Dads: What's The Point of Being Strong?

We live in a society that seeks, and worships at the alter of, comfort. We wear the coziest clothes, live in temperature-controlled environments, and do the least amount of hard work we can possibly do during the day.

Oftentimes, I wrestle with myself in this regard. I see the ways I avoid conflicts, or the way I get agitated at the slightest inconveniences, and I look at my behavior and reactions in shame.

It's natural to want to feel good, but we've gone too far to avoid losing that comfort because we fear what is on the other side: pain, suffering, feelings of inadequacy, and more unpleasantness. It's becoming cliché, but we do need to get comfortable being uncomfortable once again.

It is Biblical to pursue that which is uncomfortable. God does not call us to sit idly by in our comfortable ivory towers and be peacefully living in bliss. He calls us into the mud, into the ugly, and to standing against the world in a way that honors him. We are called to a God-honoring adventure towards transformation. In order to succeed, we must become strong people. But what is being strong, and how does that honor God?

When most men think about strength, they think about the gym or athletics. A certain amount of weight on the bar, the ability to win a fist fight, or lowering a shoulder to get into the end zone come to mind. While those may be displayed by physically strong people, the Bible frames strength in a broader, deeper way. Strength is not just what you can lift, but what you can carry. And fatherhood, biblically speaking, is heavy work.

Scripture never tells men to pursue strength for ego or appearance. It calls men to pursue strength because responsibility requires capacity. A weak man cannot lead and sacrifice in the way they are required to, plain and simple. I've written about the Biblical case for being in shape at length already, so I'll spare you, dear reader, the full lecture for now. Just know, the strength training isn't the thing. The being-stronger-for-life thing is also only kind of the thing. The actual thing that we are pursuing is being strong enough to handle the life God is trusting us to live out so that we may glorify him.

The reason we train for physical strength is because strength training is an efficient conduit and teacher of it all. It is a productive use of our time. It teaches us patience, hard work, perseverance, sacrifice, organizational skills, consistency, and forces us into physical discomfort which we have to overcome in order to produce something better on the other side. It builds confidence, and prepares us to prepare children for the world (Proverbs 22:6), to sacrifice for our families (Ephesians 5:25), to humble us so that we may serve (Mark 10:45), to create perseverance in us (James 1:2-4, 2 Corinthians 4:8-9), and to foster hope at the end of it all (Romans 5:3-4). It is a way of honoring our bodies and the sacrifice Christ made for them (1 Corinthians 6:19-20) without it taking control of our lives as an idol (1 Timothy 4:8).

Simply put, strength, in all senses, makes us better soldiers for God.

If you want to be the best husband and father you can be, you can't stay weak. Some of us (myself included) will never be world-record-holding strength athletes, and that's okay. God has given us all unique and special talents and gifts. However, that is not an excuse to stay in the comfort and stay where you are. It is in the "doing" and working through that — that's what honors God and produces good men that make the world better and more Christ-honoring.

That's the point.