The Invaluable Benefits Of A Good Stretch

For the last couple months of summer, I have been dealing with a nagging foot injury. This is problematic for someone who considers her daily walks part of her life’s work. I have pushed through and tolerated pain because I don’t want to not walk. That time is too valuable to me.

Recently, I began to develop a secondary issue because of pushing through and not giving my foot some legitimate rest time. I finally decided to take an extended break, 10 days to be exact, to allow my foot some much-needed rest time. During the break, I chose to do some other some other daily exercises, including a lot of stretching. That felt good.

Although I have been taking higher intensity walks nearly every day for the last few years, my body still needed some good stretching. That stretching helped loosen up some muscles and joints that had grown stiff from the same routine.

I went to the doctor during this same break time. Among other things, the doctor reiterated the importance of giving my foot some rest, and he gave me some exercises that are designed to help the foot recover. Those exercises were specific stretches that target the injured area. Stretches.

God used all that stretching to really get me thinking. Sometimes we just need a good stretch. Certainly, there are physical benefits, but that’s not the only way that we find value in stretching. According to the Mayo Clinic some of the benefits of stretching include decreased stiffness, increased range of motion, reducing the risk of injury, helping to relieve post-exercise pain, improving posture, helping to reduce/manage stress, helping reduce muscular tension, and enhances muscular relaxation.

Friends our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual life could all use a stretch. God began to put on my heart how sometimes we need to stretch our faith. Stretching our faith has many of the same benefits as stretching our physical bodies. Think about it. Stretching our faith helps us increase it, reduce the risk of injuries and pain, manage stress, and, I would argue, even improves your spiritual posture. Anytime God has helped me to stretch and increase my faith, my posture toward him has ultimately improved.

I’m reminded of some Biblical examples of stretching. In Genesis chapter 22 God tested Abraham by asking him to sacrifice his son Isaac. He was stretching Abraham’s faith. Abraham was obedient, and God provided. His faith grew because it was stretched. In Exodus as God was using plagues to soften Pharaoh’s heart, the action followed Moses telling Aaron to “stretch out his hand.” In the New Testament (Matthew 12:13) Jesus was healing a man’s shriveled hand and told him to stretch out his hand. The stretching came before the restoration.

The act of stretching in each of these cases wasn’t necessary for God to complete the task. He could have chosen another way. But He didn’t. There’s a lesson for us in that. Some stretching is necessary before God completes His work in us. To receive those benefits, we must be willing to stretch out our hands of faith. Stretching works but it requires obedience and must be done slowly and consistently. I think that must be part of why God uses that method. The benefits will show up if we trust and do the stretches.

A final point on stretching, the Mayo Clinic says stop with your stretch before there is pain. If you get to the pain, you’ve gone too far and need to pull back. God works in a similar way. He will stretch us to the point of bending, but He won’t break us. Ask Abraham. Little by little He will test our faith to stretch it. Ask Moses and Aaron. If they had participated in any less than 10 plagues they might not have stood while God parted the sea. They may have thought their odds were better to turn back and fight. It would’ve been game over. The stretching little by little is the key.

Stretching helps us to heal and grow without breaking. We can trust that He knows exactly the right stretches and the correct number of repetitions. He won’t push us too far. He won’t ask us to do or put us through something that is unnecessary. The stretching will have a purpose that improves us. We must be willing to keep at it, though. The benefits decrease when we stop.

Friends don’t overlook the benefits of a good stretch.