There is a pretty well known physical trainer/coach that I like listening to on YouTube from time to time named Elliot Hulse.  One of my favorite videos that he has done was in response to an email where someone asked him, “How do I motivate my wife to work out (out of loving concern for her health)?” This wasn’t a subject I was searching for.  The video is actually called “Out of Shape?  Just do THIS” (language warning).

In the video Elliot gives great advice for anyone who wants to move (or help someone move) from being habitually out of shape into a healthy lifestyle.

So what does this jacked-up fitness guru recommend people do to start getting in shape?  Was it P90X, Body Attack, Insanity, Crossfit or personal training?

The program he urged people to start (and this guy to start doing with his wife) is called “WALKING.”  It’s  just what it sounds like.  Plain old, no one wants to take it seriously, walking.  Walk 30-60 minutes a day.  Just walk.

It doesn’t sound amazing or impressive.  It isn’t a big, bold move, but there is solid reason why Elliot says to start with walking.  This experienced coach knows that the thing people with unhealthy habits need to change most isn’t with their body, but with their minds and/or their character.

Elliot tells his listeners that by doing this small simple thing called walking every day for six months or a year we would see impressive gains in our . . . habits, in our character, in our ability to set a goal and consistently, daily, move towards it.  We would be in better shape for sure, but most importantly who we are would have changed.

This beats the flash in the pan, New Year’s resolution, summer starts in four weeks, sprint and quit approaches every. single. time.

OKAY, so what does this have to do with being closer to God in 2018?  Everything.

Most of us humans are so full of lethargic wanting and dusty, rusty good intentions that we rarely change much.  If we want to though; if we want to feel closer to God, to know God, to “get prayer,” to cultivate the depth and maturity in our souls that comes from a life with God – then here is how to do it.  We don’t run, we walk.  We don’t try to go from zero to monastic-saint-professor in one year.  We start small and develop the habit of taking one consistent step towards God every, single, day.

If you do, by year’s end, you’ll be surprised by how far you’ve come.

Here are some ideas from some people I have known to get you thinking about what your daily walk could look like.

• My grandfather, when his kids were young, would read his Bible and pray in his car before he left the driveway on his way to work. With a house full of kids and a job full of interruptions, it was one of the few quiet places he had.
• A friend of mine would use his lunch break from work to sit in his car or on a bench near the parking lot to spend time with God.
• A mom that I know always leaves a Bible or a devotion or prayer book in the bathroom because it is the only place she is ever alone. It’s her place to steal a few extra minutes every day to love and learn about God.
• Another friend of mine uses his toothbrush as a bookmark in his Bible or devotion book (bristles out) because he says since he was already in the habit of brushing his teeth, it made remembering to spend time with God automatic.
• My wife has always gotten up before everyone in the house to have some time alone with God.
• During one chapter of my life, I would wait till everyone was out of the kitchen in the evening and use that time to pray while I washed the dishes and put things away.
• One of my friends has to be in a meeting everyday that doesn’t really involve her, so she uses that time to journal and pray. It has the bonus of looking like she is listening and taking notes.
• A mentor of mine in high school was a mom that felt like a taxi service to her kids. She always kept a small devotion or prayer book in her car and would read something while she was waiting on someone.  She also left the radio off so she could pray while she was driving.

May God bless you in your journey this year!