I walk up the stairs in my house multiple times in a day, often carrying a sturdy two-year old, and I've done this now for over a year. So, why don't my legs feel any stronger? Why do I still struggle up all fifteen steps when my little boy decides he needs a free ride?
The answer, I believe, comes from laziness. Yes, I climb those darn stairs A LOT! But I only climb them when I have to. What would happen if I pushed myself a little and threw in an extra trip down and up every time a task required me to move from one floor to the next?
Well, for one thing, my thighs and buttocks would scream at me the next morning. And they would protest each step I took the next day. But if were to challenge my body by continuing the extra trips, soon my legs would get stronger and I could totally handle it. However, if I didn't continue to challenge myself, adding even more journeys down and up, my strength would again plateau.
Spiritually, we are much the same. If we try to glide through life on the basic primary answers--say your prayers, go to church and read your scriptures--we will be stuck, our spiritual growth will stagnate. Climbing the spiritual stairs of prayer, scripture study, and meeting attendance will take all of our energy and never get any easier.
Instead, we must challenge ourselves spiritually: stay on our knees longer, read another verse, try to apply something we learned on Sunday to our lives.
Spiritual strength doesn't just happen any more than physical strength does.
One of my favorite quotes is: If you don't feel close to the Lord, who moved?
Start climbing those steps back to Him.
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