I’m in my fourth week of the Insanity workout. Man, is it a killer! Whoever named it named it correctly. I’ve never worked out like this before. It’s a killer 40 minutes of cardio and it’s still just as tough as the first week but I can feel my body is able to push a little more…just a little more.

During today’s workout, I heard Shaun T say something I haven’t caught the other times I did this particular workout.

“I’m not trying to hurt you. Just trying to make you better.”

Right there in the middle of working out, I felt like the Holy Spirit was telling me: that’s exactly God’s plan for us. When the tough times come, God’s not trying to hurt us, He just wants to make us stronger. In the book of James it says:

Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. (James 1:2-3)

James says it: testing your faith produces perseverance. Perseverance is “enduring in the face of obstacles, discouragement, or difficulties”. In these four weeks of Insanity so far, I’ve felt like quiting. Honestly, almost daily I have to make myself get out of bed at 5:30am to workout. And in the middle, when I’m tired and sweating, I ask myself: “why do I do this to myself?” But once I do workout, I feel so much better afterwards because I was pushed to my limits and stretched my physical abilities.

I feel the same way through a trial. I want to quit. I ask: “why me?”. I get discouraged. Sometimes it’s tough to face another day because you just know what’s coming. But once you get through it and see how God worked, I can see the benefits or what God taught me through it. He pushes me to my limits and stretches my faith. And while it doesn’t insulate us from the next trial, it does give us a little boost to get through it.

So today, God wants you to know, no matter your circumstances – He’s not trying to hurt you, He’s just trying to make you stronger.

Part 2 tomorrow