A Fat Incentive
Why do advertisements for the greatest and latest in home exercise equipment have muscular men and women in the picture or commercial? Do the manufacturers realize if their equipment is the newest on the market, there is no way it was used to produce the fitness we see in the models? These are people who train everyday, consume a daily regimen of vitamins, minerals, and small live animals. They started their fitness program long before the newest equipment, next to which they’re smiling, was invented.
And, come to think of something really ticking me off about this whole advertisement campaign: Why do they smile? When I exercise, the last thing on my mind is smiling! Of course, I am not being paid to smile, either.
The home exercise equipment industry reports an 80% increase in domestic sales, yet the percentage of over-weight Americans has increased during the same time. Fitness magazines are overflowing the racks at grocery stores, though we have to wonder if these are how-to articles or worship magazines. Sure, these publishers are only going to print pictures of the “Best of the Best”, but if we are buying more equipment and literature, why do we continue to get fat? Or, on a more personal note: Why do I continue to get fat?
Ok… I am only speaking for myself, but if Tommy LaSorda loses weight on Slimfast, why does the same drink add pounds to my beltline? Perhaps the drink works best when there is a big endorsement check adding weight to Tommy’s wallet and he is getting a workout all the way to the bank. In that case, the distributors for Slimfast may contact me via my email address at glenn@sasscer.com and we can discuss my endorsement check workout program.
Perhaps the secret for the well-toned models and Tommy LaSorda is the endorsement checks and the paid advertisements. When your income is based on your workout, then achieving that optimal, ribbed washboard abdomen might be possible.
After all, your workout becomes your work since you are being paid to workout. The monetary incentive helps drive you towards your goal. Having an incentive is an excellent method to keep us working towards our goals, even when working out is about as boring as watching a snail race (even if they are well trained and muscular snails).
Perhaps this is what Paul was talking about in 1 Corinthians 9:24-27. Paul tells us in the last part of verse 24, “Run in such a way as to get the prize.” He immediately gets the reader’s attention by providing an incentive: there is a prize. He continues, “Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.”
Since the Corinthians were Greeks, there is no doubt Paul is drawing a reference to the four games played in Greece during the same time period, specifically the Pythian or Delphic; the Isthmian or Corinthian; the Nemean; and the Olympic. Much like the Olympic games of today, these were planned for specific years and drew crowds from all over Greece and other countries. The comparison provides a mental picture to relate how we should strive, train, and work towards the Gospel in our lives.
We should strive toward a relationship with God everyday in prayer; we should train everyday by studying the Word of God; and we work towards the Gospel by taking our sins to the Cross and submitting to the Will of God. Much as an athlete, weightlifter, or wrestler (yes, I know they are athletes) will sacrifice their physical bodies during training and development, we are called by God to make a sacrifice toward our training and development as Christians, and our reward is one that will never perish.
Now if Slimfast could provide rewards that never perish, I would stop sneaking those in between snacks and mini-meals I so well deserve since I am on a “diet”. However, the home exercise coat rack will continue to get plenty of use in keeping my clothes sorted, and nothing keeps my neckties better organized than the handlebars of the stationary bike.
Do you know the incentive we all have in Jesus Christ? Do you know of the reward which will never perish? If not, contact me at glenn@sasscer.com.
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Glenn Sasscer
www.glennsasscer.com
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