Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Romans 12:2

Earlier this week God had a good talk with me me about the state of our souls, using – of all things – my cycling shoe soles.

As you may have read before, I’ve developed quite a passion for studio cycling over the past two years, and for the past two years, I’ve worn the same pair of blue sneakers on every ride. To date, I’ve logged a little over 4,000 miles in those shoes. As you can imagine, the pedal grips on the bike have chewed them up quite a bit. Recently, especially on hard rides, my left shoe has been slipping out of the pedal’s toe cage, and I can never seem to get a good grip on that side. The lack of grip decreases my power, loosens my pedal shaft with all the foot re-adjusting, and increases my risk of injury by overcompensating on the right or tearing something on the left.

As the challenge of my rides increases with increased fitness, I recognize that it’s no longer productive or safe to keep riding with that sole and pedal combo, so I did my homework on upgrading my cycling gear and bought replacement pedals with toe clips and the special toe clip shoes that serious cyclists wear. To meet my fitness goals, keep growing, engage in hard rides safely, I had to get serious and make a change.

And oh sweet friends, is that not the way of it with our souls as well? Through tests and trials we grow stronger, and our souls and the pedals we’re used to spinning on simply aren’t compatible anymore. We can keep our old way of pedaling, slow down to hold our grip on what’s familiar, stop growing to stay comfortable, slip every now and then, take some hurts, or we can do our homework, study up on what God’s Word says about getting serious for Him, and make the necessary changes.

Now, those changes are an investment. Replacement pedals with clips aren’t that expensive in the grand scheme of the overall studio cycle cost, but man oh man, I haven’t spent that much money on shoes since my high school basketball team decided to get team Nikes. I also imagine it’ll take some time to get used to riding clipped in and I’m sure some muscle groups will get a work out for the first time because they were neglected in my previous pedal strokes.

Changes to our souls require an investment too. Soul changes take time and lifestyle adjustments and surrender of self. They can cost money too if God says it’s time to be serious about tithing, or making a job change, or a location change. Changing how we’ve done things in the past can be uncomfortable too, like working out previously neglected muscle groups in your mind and your heart.

Dear heart, what shape is your soul in this morning? Have you outgrown the way you’ve been pedaling? Is your current pedaling situation putting you at risk of injury? Are you holding on to a lifestyle that no longer fits what God wants to do in your soul? Is it time to invest in some soul changes? To start pedaling differently?

Do your homework with the Lord and then, invest! I know from experience, it takes a lot of work, but you’ll never regret making changes that keep you pressing toward the prize of the upward call!

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