Transform Your Body and Soul: How Faith-Based Fitness Can Boost Mental Health

welcome to the holistic counselor podcast everyone it's me Diana and today I'm really happy to introduce a guest who is doing something truly transformative in both the fitness and Faith communities on August 10th of this year I came across a powerful reel from Matthew gay on his Instagram in it he called out the church saying the church is like a hospital and we're supposed to be helping people get better in every way he went on to

highlight something deeply concerning the unhealthy food choices often present in church settings the real caught fire with over 80,000 likes and I was one of them Matthew's authenticity compassion and refusal to f shame others struck a chord with me and he speaks openly about his own struggles while also calling for change this conversation is one I've personally been waiting for because I too have asked church leaders why certain sins like gluttony are overlooked we talk about

abortion homosexuality politics but yet the food in our churches is slowly killing our people so today I'm thrilled to have Matthew on the podcast to encourage you our listener and explore ways to improve both our spiritual and physical health so let's meet Matthew Matthew's Journey began in his childhood where he struggled with low self-confidence and Body Image issues all while dealing with a tumultuous Family Life After surviving a near fatal car accident in 2009 that broke

his pelvis Matthew found himself at Rock Bottom unhealthy smoking and out of shape butes Jesus sparked a light within him that led to his transformation not just physically but spiritually and mentally he eventually became a fitness coach in 2013 and began applying biblical understanding to his health Journey over the last eight years he's been helping Believers experience true breakthroughs by integrating faith into their health Journeys so Matthew did I get that right and if I want

to know also like what you're doing now like can you just share your journey of of blending faith and fitness and what inspired you to start fit Church United yeah so or unlimited yeah furch unlimit well it's really fit Church started as just a desire for me to to bring people together um on the basis of Christ and better health and so I started hosting free workouts at my church um that actually started back in 2015

and on and on it just kind of shifted to different formats and um we started doing live workshops and things like that um but really with with fit Church it started becoming something that I wanted to take to people rather than requiring people to come to the churches in order to get the workouts in and so we started fit Church USA um and so my my my story starts back really in 2013 where I started coaching

people um as a as a as a personal trainer um and I was doing it really because I wanted to be able to serve the serve people in some way shape or form felt like me meant something but um I really struggled with it because I I was very zealous of the Lord around that time as well too so I felt like I was leaving Ministry when I was doing Street Ministry and evangelism and stuff like

that to um to help people get into shape or to lose weight I just didn't see the connection between following Christ and living a healthy life for me right um and so it felt very empty and after a couple years of praying for that kind of to change I wanted you know asking God give me an opportunity to serve you and make a living doing it he finally showed me Moses and showed me how he to

took Moses's staff and something that represented his occupation right he was a shepherd and and used it now to help the people of Israel be freed right he's tells Moses to throw it down at one point he turns it into a serpent he tells him to raise it up and the Red Sea opens he raises it up again on the other side and the Red Sea closes and and drowns the army of of Egypt so that

spoke uh so so you know just largely with me because I had been taking something that was an occupation and separating it from my service to the Lord in my mind and and doing so hindering the work that God could do through my occupation so I started you know doing the fitness classes at my church and um just along the way I realized that as I try to connect with other churches to host classes to teach

and you know bring this for free to the their churches it was being it was it was being met with a lot of indifference um some resistance yeah um I think a lot of folks just saw me as as a wolf and sheep's clothing in some way uh but more more so than that there there really just was an indifference towards health and fitness like there was a lot of pastors administrators that just don't see the

significance of Health and Fitness in the church didn't see how that tied in at all didn't see how that was relevant it seems very like far out like okay we're including way too many things now you know we don't need another ministry here we don't need another thing to do uh sadly though because of my experience in the fitness industry as a fitness coach I had realized there are a lot of Christians and non-christians that are

struggling suffering deeply on a mental and emotional level phys phys physiological level and and a relational level even right like there were so many struggles taking place because people are struggling on their health journey and so that's that's where the book fit Church came from is I needed to make a very clear case that health and fitness was relevant to the Christian Life um not only that but it was relevant to the church right and and

that it was it was really a call a charge to church culture to change um and so this is why I subtitled it Divi uh destroying the division between following Christ and living a healthy life because I believe that over the years there really just has been this this this growing gap between these two topics and um it it shouldn't be so and the the problem here is that more and more people are suffering in this

part of their life looking to the world for answers instead of God and uh they're getting them but it's it's not necessarily to their benefit so right now uh there are a lot of things going on I see you I mean I follow you and I see what what's happened I mean I think I started following you in August so September so it's been a couple of months now that I've I I see your post I'm

like okay I see where he's going and trying to do without because that's the thing where we in a culture where you know either people are super mean about things or they're not wanting to see it because you know con conviction reaps defense at times yeah absolutely you know and so but before we even continue into like mental health and all that I want to know how did you become a coach because usually like for me

as a therapist I know why I became a therapist you have to do your introspection and look into exactly you know why so what was it that got you into coaching yeah so 2010 I um after a pretty so I'll back it up real quick 20 29 2009 I got into that car accident that you mentioned in the intro um almost lost my life there the girl behind me actually did so that was tragic situation it

was traumatic um took me a while to heal learn how to walk again all of that I heal up then we move out to Los Angeles with a company that I was working for when I actually got into the car accident coming back from a a conference but I went back to working for that company um one of the guys there had moved up the ladder and was going to start an office in La I live

in Virginia and so uh we moved out to California with him turned out that he was very dishonest and just kind of disappeared took the money that they gave him to start an office out there and so now I'm 3,000 miles away from home my entire what I could fit from my apartment is stuffed into a Mazda Tribute and um we just got married the day before he moved out there so we were two months into

our marriage no honeymoon living you know in the corner of an apartment with four other guys uh um and this guy's gone right and so now we got to figure out how to how to get our life back together so move back to Virginia with our tail between our legs and um I could do sales so I looking around for all kinds of jobs again at this point I'm smoking cigarettes I'm smoking half a pack of

cigarettes a day I'm eating fast food all the time my back still kills me all the time I'm not in good shape I don't exercise at all um and uh I land a job at B Total Fitness just giving TS and selling memberships I can do that right very hypocritical though because like part of selling the the gym is encouraging people to take their health seriously started and all W that was horrible and that got me

into fitness because I was I felt hypocritical I felt very insecure I wanted to be healthy and God had changed my environment you know like when it's it's so powerful when God changes your environment he changes your perspective on things a lot of the time because now you're forced to see things a different way because you're surrounded by it right you're inundated with this this new way of living um this new mindset right uh um and

so it changed the way I was thinking and I started my own fitness journey well couple years H to take place I move up the ladder start my or um I I become a general manager of a b okay and um then we settle from the car accident that I was in so I got some money for that what are we gonna do with this money well my wife and I grew up in the Performing Arts

I we met at the governor School for the Arts I studied Opera she she was in ballet and and um studied modern as well for a while um and so we were like let's start a performing art school we give everything we have starting this school spent about a year putting it together and planning and all that stuff like that then we build out this school um some huge hiccups take place financially and we're able to

keep it open for about six months um then I find myself very stressed out yeah to close down this gym or this uh sorry we had to close down to school and um this is all two months before we're about to have our first child oh my I'm freaking out this is not the good this is not the best time to lose everything right oh um and so I just found myself in the gym now it

was like a form of therapy for me and and along the way of me be grow moving up the ladder and becoming a general manager and then you know leaving and putting together this this idea of a school I was really growing zealous in my walk with the Lord I was really like coming to follow Jesus for real and um and so I just wanted to serve God the way he wanted me to losing the school

that desire hadn't gone anywhere so I'm like all right what do I do next right I Gotta Serve Somebody some way and so I asked one of the guys at the gym how how do you become a trainer like what do you do right because I I like I like Fitness right part of my life it's transition me I don't smoke anymore I don't you know wow how to quit smoking can I ask that because I

know that's stopped it was so ugly at first I mean I got to the point like I was gross with it like I was so addicted that like it got to a point where I was like I won't buy cigarettes but I'll bum them from somebody else or where there was this lady oh it was so gross I'm not proud of this but there was like I think a a month or two where the lady across

the street the old lady she smok cigarettes and she smoked like two Puffs of a cigarette and then put the rest in the ashtray and I would just like go take it just yeah it's like what I used to smoke so I and I used to do drugs I mean like there's my story so I get it like that addiction situation just like but I'm not buying them and so I'm smoking less because of that whatever

right my wife stopped and I you know oh so she smoked too my wife did yeah for wow and you both quit good for you guys both of us yeah amen I love that uh so so yeah I um I talked to the guy at the gym he tolds me how to get C I went through the National Academy of sports medicine um get certified start coaching and uh that's that's how I became a coach it

was I I needed I needed to to keep serving God and I wanted to do it um I wanted to do something that I felt meant something even though I didn't really see the connection between following Jesus and living a healthy life for me it was like at least helping people with something that they were struggling with uh but um yeah Fitness had just become something that I found my confidence I found a little Community you

know so yeah okay that's wonder I mean that's I love that and where are you located I'm in Chesapeake Virginia now I grew up in Virginia Beach but I live in Chesapeake Virginia so my kid just moved my baby just moved to Charlottesville okay yeah and I just visited there I just came back like a week and a half ago it was beautiful I love it all right how far are you from there Charlottesville I don't

know maybe about four hours oh okay yeah I guess the state's pretty big all right so let's just talk a little bit about the mental health like how does physical fitness impact mental health from a spiritual perspective o that you're tying all three in there right how does physical well-being impact your mental health from a spiritual persp perspective yeah let's one the first thing that comes to mind is the concept of resistance right resistance is a

major part of the human life um and essentially it's just it's you you are you are not accepting right you are um pushing against the will of something else right or the the force of something else right and any s form of resistance right so uh the Bible tells us you know resist the devil and he will flee right there's a force from the enemy to to to to do something that you're tempted to do in

that moment you have to resist it doesn't feel good it's very uncomfortable but you have to resist right um so when it comes to physical well-being even the the the the the the design of God in mankind to grow from resistance um is is so powerful because it affects us both physically and mentally and even spiritually as well too so if I am somebody who daily exercises in some way shape or form I'm resisting gravity all

right I'm whether it's external resistance or or my own body weight um I am moving through space whether I'm walking or running or whatever it is right so I am resisting in that regard that level of resistance translates to a mental strength right a mental fortitude now I have more energy I'm more alert I have more energy I feel better about myself I've even got a chemical kind of balancing going on here I have more endur

you know endorphins floating around and stuff like that so there are a lot of mental and psychological aspects taking place as well too there's an outcome from the resistance that takes place um now I have to challenge myself because there's a part of me that says I don't feel like exercising and a part of me that says we should do it we feel this resistance when we have to get up in the morning you literally have

to resist gravity well in resisting gravity to get up out of to peel yourself away from that nice warm soft pillow right you're you're not you're really not challenging your body that much but you are challenging your mind you are challenging ing your character um you are you are practicing walking in the spirit and not gratifying the desire of the Flesh in that moment now as you do that over and over and over again you start

to become more resilient in listening to the voice of the spirit over the flesh we know the Flesh and the spirit are at War within you so that you are not to do the things that you want that's what the scripture says I have to practice that so my practice of physical well-being strengthens my mental and spiritual aw ESS and resilience therefore drawing me closer to the Lord It's drawing me closer to uh that this character

of of Christ likeness right let this mind be in in you that was also in Christ Jesus Jesus was was not willing to give in to what the flesh wanted he prayed take this cup from me he's sweating blood literally then he says nevertheless Lord at thy will right and so that is a mental state that all of us needs to come to as Believers um this this world life throws a lot at us and we

have to resist if we're going to get through this thing the way God calls us to in in the midst of all that he tells us to lay aside every weight and sin which clings so closely and run with endurance the race set before you so he's saying look you gotta you not only do you have to resist the devil but you've got to let go of the weight that you shouldn't be holding on to both

why so that you can follow me the way you're supposed to so that you can walk with me so that you can experience my goodness my fullness right walk in the power of the Holy Spirit um and not be weighed down by the flesh so we man there there's so much there there's so much to unpack in in that question of how how mentally are we impacted by our physical well-being from a spiritual perspective um God

designed the whole body we are a Triune beings made in the image of God who is a Triune being Father Son and Holy Spirit we are mind body and spir mind yeah mind body and spirit so you know there's not one thing that you're going to do that that that really when done correctly shouldn't impact the other um you were i' I've thought of this analogy for a long time um because I'm I'm a worship leader

and and heavily oh wow and when you say worship leader are you like sing yeah do you sing as well yeah yeah yeah that's what I meant like my my wife and I I studied Opera and she sing opera and she she sing ballet or sang ballet she danced ballet but um I think of the soundboard right so you've got the soundboard I think of that like the Holy Spirit right like this is where the the

the the sound may be coming through right um you then you've got you know your your microphone maybe let's back it up your microphone is like you know what the voice going into the microphone is like the Holy Spirit right communicating the will of God to you then you've got your soul your mind your will your emotions and whatnot that is that is the soundboard right making sure that the EQ is right and and making sure

that things are are balanced but then you've got the speakers right and that's like your body now if we just take a bat to the speaker doesn't matter what went into the microphone doesn't matter what's going through the soundboard what is going to come out is going to be distorted right it's going to be muffled it's going to be scratchy it's going to be weird it you know there may be some weird like there's all kinds

of problems that can take place if the speaker is busted um when your body is is is is is intact and it's it's being well cared for the Temple of the holy spirit is well cared for uh what is going into the what is what is going into that microphone what what the what the will of God being communicated to you um the the the the mind the will the emotions God uh God really nurtures within

us um these things are better heard more effectively so yeah your your your physical well-being is is so so vital to what people are experiencing and what you're experiencing in terms of what God is doing in your life yeah I mean you hit you hit a lot of um thoughts especially well first of all like people don't understand and and some people it's because I think you know I've been a Christian since 2000 and I've gone

to different churches and and seen what's happened and we do like we there's a separation right it's it just feels so you know people are there looking for things it to feel good yeah to feel good right and they go to church to feel good and and so to me like when I do go to the potluck dinners or things like that and don't understand the whole concept of like how physical fitness really impacts your mental

health right and it's your spirit it's like how do we gently go to them Matthew because like I'm a therapist I'm a holistic Christian therapist and I want to help my listener people around me and my community without making them feel bad and it's easy you know what they I've heard it's like well you're skinny you have no idea how it is and I was fine that might be true by my my outside but my insides

were terrible I have an autoimmune due to what me abusing my body at a very young age okay I was smoking cigarettes I was doing drugs I was drinking alcohol and I'm not going to keep going on the list of things that I was doing but but this is why I feel like you know especially with the younger generation it's like they that they have so much now right coming at them for sure and so what

you know for mindset and resilience because that's something you talk a lot about mindset and resilience like what what shifts do you you help people make you know to stay motivated in these goals and and H where would you start like say like right now someone's listening one of my listeners is you know feeling you know might be 100 pounds overweight and they're Christians and they you know like they don't know where to start what would

you do what would you say to them yeah well one of the ways that I help people is by I think in one of the best ways that we could ever help a human being um is by teaching them how to think um I have two kids and one of the best things that I could ever do for them rather than just expect them to do everything I say is tell them to is teach them how

to think for themself about what they do and the repercussions the outcomes right think about other people how to think about God how to really think about scripture how to think about their decisions and what they're feeling um which obviously takes taking the time to be aware about those things but teaching them even how like what do you do when you're aware right um and so teaching them how to think um my advice comes from Proverbs

36 um acknowledge Him in all your ways and he will direct your path right it pro the verse before that trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not to your own understanding right so so here's here's the deal um if if I really want to change my life for the better I have to consider how God wants me to do that the reason I say that is because there are a lot of misconceptions

around health and fitness to where people feel like you have to do a certain diet in order to be your best self or you have to train a certain way if you're really going to be the best version of yourself um a lot of critics a lot of um I don't know gurus a lot of experts yeah right uh and you can listen to them and you will be very uh passionate one moment and confused and

frustrated the next yeah because somebody else is going to say something very confidently that contradicts what the last person said was so when I when I say cons like really acknowledging God what I mean is stop and pause learn to stop and and actually ask God what he wants you to change and I know that sounds oversimplified but call me naive I think a lot of people know what they should be doing they just don't do

it right that Matthew that's something I do in my practice I mean I've had my private practice for four years but some of my clients well I don't know I'm like no you really do it's just that quiet still Spirit you keep squishing down it's because you're trying to people please everybody else or you're trying to go for perfection and honestly if you're a Believer you have to understand none of us are perfect that's why we

need Jesus amen right and so right what you're saying it's it is we have that inside of us and it's me as a therapist I try to teach people how not to conform by the patterns of this world but be transformed by the renewing of the Mind mind yeah that by testing that by testing you may prove the will of God by testing o may prove the will of God what is good and acceptable and perfect

I love that by testing so let's talk about that a little a little bit more what do you mean by testing yeah because like we we think that being perfect means it being easy right if I have it all together it won't be so hard lies nobody told that's not biblical that's not true you having it all together is one a facade that's not real but right like none of us has it all together no I

don't I'm you know I have a lot of tools I think we I think we I think we allow ourselves to believe that if we get it all right and we do everything that people who we're listening to Who We Believe know what they're talking about says to do if we if we if we follow the play that um life won't throw such heavy hurdles at us um such heavy blows or or that it will just

natural it will come natural to to us like so much quickly so much more quickly and the truth is um the testing is what God uses most of the time to develop us to build us up right um count it all joy when you fall into Trials of various kind um knowing that the by the testing of your faith or the knowing that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness and less steadfastness when it has its

full effect leaves you perfect and complete lacking in nothing trials leading to uh a testing of faith that produces a steadfastness that when it has its full effect leaves you perfect and completely laughing at nothing so it's we we have I think we understand God backwards sometimes or we think about him backwards like God will make things easier for me if I try that that that's just not biblical at all because making things easier for you

without you having to go through the fire makes you weaker right um and so I said like you asked you asked me like what what what advice do I have for somebody and again I told you what I help people to do is think think differently if I can change your perspective I can change your life when we change the way we look at things the things we look at change right I didn't come up with

that I heard that but it works so wait wait can you say it again when you change the way you look at things the things you look at change that's good stuff that will be in the show notes the I heard I heard God bless his whole and I and I I pray for his healing and forgiveness and all that but I also heard Rafi Zachariah say you can look into the eyes of a tiger and

see fear or you can look into the eyes of a tiger and see beauty wow right wow right so your perspective really does matter and I think if we take on a Biblical perspective towards health and fitness towards mental health towards towards self-care overall a lot of the things that we murmur about uh will become things that we praise God for absolutely so but we got to stop stop and pray stop and think about what we're

thinking about right the thoughts and intentions of your heart matter and I think if on your on your journey towards Better Health towards better mental health better lifestyle overall awareness is step one right awareness even knowing what's really going on inside of you and I think a lot of us are too busy to stop long enough to really consider what it is we're feeling yeah I me yeah Matthew I don't want I mean I'm interrupting because

it's like what you're saying what I got yeah well it's just because people what you're saying that um you know becoming aware well that means they have to get out of denial right denial is the first thing because we some of us live in such denial plus we it's a scary place for many that have to start feeling the feels because it's easy to just stay disassociated and continue on self-medicating and doing whatever it is right

and and this is our culture here in In America which I love my country I do I say this all the time because I but it's also a culture of me me me me I I I like you know selfelf self self self and it's just like you know and I I agree with some self-help stuff yeah I want you to be resilient and to encourage you that you have this you got this you have to

understand your purpose in in encouraged himself in the Lord what yeah exactly so it is like that whole mindset you're talking about and and resiliency and and the Practical tips and advice is like okay we need to become aware of ourselves and that's being still in the Lord absolutely yeah know that he's God and allow even if it's uncomfortable it especially when it's uncomfortable the fact that uncomfortable is a great indicator that you need to sit

there a little bit longer oh yeah and but okay so now I'm talking to a person like I mean we're talking to someone that is in that uncomfortable and how do we help them you and I me as a therapist you as as the fitness life coach because to me I think we kind of do the same thing we just have different titles in a way I have a government Caesar license on top of me right

right and you kind of don't yeah yeah and so it's just just like I'm trying to help people heal from their past right and coaches are usually the ones that are trying to take the people that I helped heal from there and then take them to move forward for goals which honestly I've been doing psychoeducational training in alternative high schools forever and that's why I'm non-pathological right and down here in Brer County so I had to

teach my young people how to survive the streets and Chaos because they can't leave it because this is their home life I know I come from the inner city I get it like you know and I I I wish I had the tools I had now back when I was a kid and I would have avoided a lot of the obstacles but those obstacles are the way can't yeah go around that's why through the valley therapy

became through the valley therapy it's not about going around the valley or over the valley right it's a refining fire all of it yeah exactly yeah I say I say deal with discomfort and think on unshed Rak mesach in Abednego like know that as you don't bow down to the things of this world and as you sit and trust God and Believe on him and and don't make hasty decisions fueled by emotion uh but let truth

lead you that that Jesus is with you in the fire you are not there's another in the fire um and and know that you are being not not only refined in up like with within your own life but let me say this again know that not only are you being refined but you are being a witness to someone else right um because people are watching you and whether you whether you are an Instagram influencer or whatever

are watching you and you are an influence to somebody um how are how are you handling the discomfort are you avoiding the the discomfort or are you taking it are you are you allowing yourself to be real about what what you're going through and and then you know self assessment is key right and we're talking about self awareness but you know why is it so uncomfortable like have you ever asked yourself that question why why why

am I so uncomfortable with sweating or why am I so uncomfortable with having to think about what I'm going to eat in advance like why is that like that's not a New Concept people have been like people used to have to hunt and gather to eat anything right like you wanted a glass of wine you had to go crush it and let it sit and like you like with your own bare feet like yeah it's not

a new thing to have to meal plan or to think ahead what you're going to eat why is it that it's so uncomfortable for me to do that now what you know what what ways of this world have I conformed to and is it worth it to allow some shifting and some re reshaping of of My reality uh so that God is glorified in every aspect of my life what needs to happen here so you know

I would say my my advice in that situ we're coaching somebody is what you said right and somebody is is struggling because they're uncomfortable with where they at right now I would say well first ask your question why is it so uncomfortable two where does that come from and and three well how does God want to use this discomfort right and and really think as I think on this a lot of the times the discomfort and

my life was it it was it was it was highlighting something that I needed to let go of something that I was holding on to that was weighing me down and making things that are fairly light feel heavier than they are right like if I've been holding a water bottle with my with with a straight arm out in front of me for 15 minutes you placing a quarter on it may literally cause me to drop the

whole water bottle right right because I've been holding on to something for so long um that when light matters come it feels like the way that's how you that's how a lot of folks end up turning a turning a mole hill into a whole mountain m right um a lot of times it's just because we're holding on to something so what am I holding on to might be a really good question for you maybe it's um

the way that you think about yourself right your sense of identity your sense of just your belief systems towards what what's possible for you your circumstance whether or not you should be suffering maybe you feel like you deserve it you're not worthy of that guilt and shame thing is a big deal I did this whatever it is I don't feel worthy of it maybe you're scared to succeed because you don't know what people are going to

think or what you're going to think of yourself like all of that is there and I think we sometimes make things that shouldn't be a part of who we are a part of who we are in our minds not that they actually are a part of who we are but we can easily write whatever name we want on the name tag and slap it on our chest doesn't make doesn't make that your actual name God's got

another name for you but whatever you've written on that name tag maybe you just need to rip off that name tag and say hey hey God what's your name for me in this area what's what do you have to say about this and one question I I I pose to all of my clients um in in in this area in terms of thinking wrongly about themselves is is that something God would say to you knowing his

character knowing his nature is what you just said to yourself or the way that you're thinking about your circumstances that something God would say and if it's not you have permission from on high to lay that down and never pick it up again so good yeah for real Matthew like that's that was great that was yeah people need to hear that more often especially even even the non-believers because I have clients that come that are non-believers

right even though they know I'm a Christian therapist faith-based therapist they are just they still are searching and to me I start with identity and purpose you know Psalm 139 you're fearfully and wonderfully made amen and you have all these cells right billions and billions of cells that the Lord created and just want to love you so we need to figure out why are you not loving them back right why are and and that's where we

start is there any like books or resources that have helped you on your journey that maybe the listener can find besides yours we're gonna we're going to plug that in at the end and of course it'll be in the show notes but you know what I mean like is there anything else that you realize that helped to and besides the word I mean the word is the most important because that is that is who we that's

why God created it right is our purpose our our guide our life that's our true life coach is is our wonderful counselor right and our great physician but what comes to mind when I ask you that question yeah um all books that have nothing to do with Fitness specifically but with yeah with God so the first one that comes to mind is knowing god by JJ Packer okay um another one is gentle and lowly remember who

that's written by but an amazing book on the heart of God truthfully um and I think of yeah well another book that comes to mind is don't waste your life by uh John Piper o wow okay that's good all these will be in the show notes people so and the reason I might sound so like far out to some people but like I'm obsessed with God I am obsessed like I Marvel and how do you take

someone so wretched and completely transform them to where they're unrecognizable wow right and like I think of all the stuff that we struggle with and we we we carry around these heavy burdens man and and we we beat ourselves up for not being perfect but like there's transformation power in God yeah he's able amen with man it's impossible with but With God all things are truly possible and and the transformation you're seeking after it can't be

found in just tactics and little strategies it it's it's found in the transforming power of Jesus Christ in the resurrection power of of of of his blood and his sacrifice and who he is like that's where it's found and so as you I think about it this way like even even in terms of like my is if I hang around a tree and and I I'm stuck to a tree I've I've posted up and I've made

myself um attached to a tree the only way the kids can get close to me is by getting close to that tree wow if I make God that tree yeah the only way anybody gets to me is by getting closer to him wow you have to because of where I've positioned my heart my life my mind my being it's it's in him I move and live and Bre breathe and have my being he's everything to me

he's my portion my substance my rock my shield my buckler my provider all of that right and so when when he really becomes that and and and and the more he becomes that the more a lot the more a lot of the issues that we face on this planet they kind of just start fading away because he is that burning bush that that that Untamed uncons consumable fire like it just um he is he is ever

burning and and we'll sort through a lot of the stuff that you're you're dealing with not in the way that you're expecting him to like you want answers you want a checklist you want yes a c and d right and so I could give you a book um but truthfully a lot of those books would just point you to tactics you know like yeah you could use Atomic habits I like that book it was great F

oh I read it on January 1 but tactics nonetheless right some strategy go ahead yeah yeah yeah no no and and you're right on man like maybe this you and I meeting for the first time wasn't even for my listener maybe it was just for me because I've been struggling man yeah I've been struggling because it's just it's all it is this walk with the Lord is sanctification it is not easy yeah it isn't and so

sometimes the enemy will try to come I don't want to give too much um um Power because I I know quite a few people that give way too much power to Satan and not enough on God and I'm s like h no no no not every single tiny thing is Satan like yeah yeah you know what I mean but like your words man like it just moved me to a point of course of tears and I

need to suck it up no our good our good it's it's it's it's a good thing but it is yeah I if there's any if there's anything that we could do for someone and I know that you understand this and I've come to a place of of understanding this as well too which is why a lot of my messaging has just changed over the years um if I can if I can get you closer to the

Lord um then then the the the far Out Concepts that maybe I might teach you like maybe you have a meal plan before you go into the week yeah don't seem so far out because you're like cuz you start to realize what actually matters I love the the slogan for our church is most passionate about what's most important and um I think when we when we really are most passionate about what's most important a lot of

the things that when we are busy minded and focused on way too many things that God really doesn't care about that we've made hyper significant a lot a lot of those those things that really do matter they they they they don't even just seem easy easier they they gain meaning right and that's man that's that's just that's been the blessing of of running a program the way that I have that's centered on Christ is for a

lot of folks now they found meaning in exercise meaning in and and walking and resistance training and eating healthy food and getting good sleep at night and hydrating those things before just were about losing weight or they were just about feeling good or having energy or you know living long or being able to play with their grandkids and in the moment a lot of those things let's be honest they don't really actually matter on a super

busy week I don't give a crap what the scale says or you know when when when the walls are closing in what I have to eat that day I could care less if it makes me feel better is really all that matters right like I don't even if I even eat um I don't really care because I have a lot of other things that are way more important in my mind but when when you've really bowed

down to the Lord in every way and and you've allowed him to reframe your your thinking patterns these things gain so much more meaning when you're doing them with him and for him and they because they pour into you yeah and you see that From a Different Light so yes no and understanding like we're supposed to be St like Ephesians 610 through1 18 like we're warriors right not Warriors I always can't say the word w rri

Warriors yeah but we are so what's that mean that means we're in a war you know and the battle is of the mind and we have to nourish I mean it's the whole putting the whole armor but at at the same time we have this body this physical body that has been given to us and honestly the Lord has given us everything on this Earth for the physical body in order for it to be healthy he

made the body he made our food oh yes see I mean I could talk to you probably for a whole other hour on this a whole another I've written a book on it literally so okay well tell us tell us a little bit okay no honestly because we're closing up because I know that you're busy I'm busy and I have a client after this and so I wanna I want to just have a you know as

we wrap it up like tell me about you like what books do you have like what is it maybe a little concept of each one real quick and then I will put it all in the show notes so when people are looking for your stuff they'll they'll CLI on it and find it there's one book that I want you guys to focus on and that's fit Church okay um so that is that is a book that

is plainly stating the case for healthy living in the Life of Christ and in the life of a Christian rather um and in the life of the church right and so we are going to bridge the gap for you between following Christ and living a healthy life practically biblically um and you know in a way that I I think you'll be able to take full ownership of personally not just this is what this guy says I

see what he's saying but like really see it for yourself and be able to translate that into your very real life you you you know you know yourself way better than I do yes cool thing is though is that when When God Says something to us we see the Bible as he he writes really great books we allow the Lord to write something um it has a way of just kind of living on and and translating

into our personal life in a way that we are able to take ownership of so uh by God's grace I believe I was able to do that um I say that because of the the the feedback I'm getting from people so Church would be a really great place to start maybe and is it is it like a workbook or is it a book with questions at the end action items in the there are also some ties

to the website where there are like free resources that you can use okay so yeah but it is it is a book um and then within that there's some ACT there's definitely some points of action I'm wondering if see here comes my mind like if I were able to do uh is it like a Bible study can you do it like a Bible study like you get a yeah we have plenty of people that are reading

it with others yeah and then have accountability and absolutely and there's cool it's cool because we've actually designed a 12we program so the first chapter is kind of just like the intro whatever it is but there's a 12we program called fit for heaven that's designed for church groups to be able to run through together so where you've got at home just body weight workouts you can do you can meet once a week and do one of

workouts together at the church but biblical messaging every single day of the program for 84 days um what I actually partnered with a registered dietitian so she's teaching you a very practical and sustainable approach for for nutrition she teaches do the plate method um and so we really get to sort through a lot of the the common issues that people face on their fitness journey week by week there's one theme that we hit and we really

just sort through that love and then you also have just the support of myself and my team as you're going through this so like if you have questions about certain things you're struggling with like you have our support there so people could easily just read the book do the program and by the end of that TW that's a powerful 12 weeks reading the book and doing the program together that's a pretty transformative 12 weeks and I

don't take that word lightly I know it's thrown around a lot but like I when I think of transformation I don't necessarily think of before and after pictures because I've seen people lose 80 pounds and then gain them all back if not more yeah I mean transformation of heart and mind that then translate obviously into external changes as well yes I mean real like oh shoot I can't see this any other way now like wow everything

has shifted for me um and you're practicing it as well too through the program so yeah absolutely I would if if you if I were going to have you serve your folks best by what to do next after hearing this it would give them the link to fit Church the book and give them the program they don't have to be in a group to run through it but if they decide that they do want to go

through it and then maybe run it with their church group or just run it with their church group from the start they can reach out to me privately or they can submit like an application for that the cost for the program is less it's about half when you have a group of four or more people so okay all right good to know wow so is there any final words of wisdom to share with the audience before

we end our session give it all to God give everything that you this is something that he told me years ago and it's something that I'm still learning what it means from from moment to moment but um I've always heard God say give me everything that you have and I'll make more of it than you ever could so I would ask you what comes to mind when I say that give me everything that you have to

offer and I will make more of it than you ever could I love this song by Jose uh Josiah Queen uh called fishes and Loaves you never heard the song go listen to it it's by Josiah Queen called fishes and Loaves and he's basically talking about Jesus on the mountain and where the boy offers his two fish or yes two fish and five loaves of bread and God feeds a multitude with it God is a god

of multiplication so that that would be my final charge to you is give him everything and watch him make more of it than you ever could yeah amen I'm gonna take that in too like listen people like I'm learning every day and Matthew just just churched me learned me and churched me I love it God amen amen thank you so much all right everyone listening don't forget trust in the Lord guard your heart and renew your

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thank you m