Loving God with Strength: Lodestar Living Through Functional Fitness
In Luke 10:27, Jesus summarizes the greatest commandment:
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with allyour soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and, love yourneighbor as yourself.”
This verse calls us to a holistic devotion — not fragmented pieces of life offered to God, but the fullness of who we are. Heart, soul, mind, and strength form an integrated whole, and our love for God and others flows from that wholeness.
The Lodestar: A Guiding Principle
The word lodestar traditionally means the North Star— a fixed point in the heavens that sailors used for navigation. Over time, it has also come to mean a guiding ideal or principle that gives direction to life.
For followers of Christ, Luke 10:27 can serve as a lodestar. It is the compass that aligns our daily choices with our ultimate calling: to love well. And one surprising way to honor this lodestar is through functional fitness and wellness.
Functional Fitness: Strength with Purpose
Functional fitness is not about vanity or chasing a numberon a scale. It’s about training the body to do real-life movements with strength and resilience — lifting groceries, playing with children, climbing stairs, carrying burdens, or kneeling in prayer without pain.
When Scripture calls us to love God “with all our strength,” it invites us to steward the physical body as part of our devotion. Fitness becomes more than exercise; it becomes a spiritual discipline. A strong body enables us to serve others better, whether that means volunteering in the community, caring for family, or simply having the stamina to be present forthose who need us.
Wellness: Wholeness of Being
Wellness stretches beyond exercise. It encompasses nutrition, rest, mental health, and spiritual practices. When balanced, the secreate harmony between heart, soul, mind, and strength.
Just as the lodestar guides sailors through storms and darkness, a commitment to holistic wellness anchors us when life feels overwhelming. We don’t pursue wellness as an idol of self-optimization, but as a means of aligning body and spirit with God’s design — so that we are more available for love, service, and joy.
Living by the Lodestar
Imagine functional fitness and wellness as tools that help you live out Luke 10:27:
Each element works together, pointing toward the same lodestar: wholehearted love.
A Reflection
Loving God with strength isn’t just about muscle. It’s about using every resource — physical, mental, and spiritual — to live directed by the lodestar of love. When we prioritize functional fitness and wellness, wearen’t just chasing health goals; we’re shaping a life capable of serving, enduring, and loving deeply.
