When the apostle Paul exhorted Timothy to “train” himself unto godliness he used a word that transliterates into our word “gymnasium.” It relates to the vigorous discipline of athletes training for the ancient Isthmian games. This raises a question that Christian men need to ask themselves: What level of intensity do I give to my spiritual life? How many of us can say that we exert ourselves in the pursuit of godliness like an Olympian training for the games?

To help you begin that pursuit, or intensify your efforts, I’m going to suggest you start with Luther’s first of 95 Theses, "When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said, 'Repent,' he willed the entire life of believers to be one of repentance." Living a life of repentance means consciously denying yourself in order to draw closer to God. Here are four things you could do as an exercise in repentance.

1. Spend a day fasting

There are various levels of fasting. You might completely abstain from food for 24 hours or simply eliminate a favorite. The level of sacrifice should be considered according to what you hope to accomplish. If you just want to use the time you would normally enjoy a meal to spend it in God’s Word, the effort isn’t so great. But if you feel you need to strengthen your will power to avoid certain temptations, then make sure the sacrifice is strongly felt.

Living a life of repentance means consciously denying yourself in order to draw closer to God.

2. Restrain your tongue.

Constant repentance involves grieving over words we should not have spoken and then deliberately limiting our speech. But a sure sign of spiritual maturity is restricting our words (see James 3:2). As you grow spiritually, you will discover that you talk less but say more. Go through the book of Proverbs, note the myriad verses relating to speech, and then pray David’s prayer: "Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer." (Psalm 19:14)

3. Reign in erring thoughts.

Most, if not all sin, begins in our minds. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus warned about committing adultery and murder in your mind simply by entertaining evil thoughts. This is a battle every man faces, especially in a culture bent on sensuality, and so it is necessary to guard our hearts and minds. The pursuit of godliness may require you to read a book tonight instead of watching television. Paul provided us with an assortment of things worthy of our conscious thought (see Philippians 4:8).

4. Focus outward.

Luther defined sin as curving inward toward self. In other words, due to original sin, we are oriented toward ourselves and away from God--it’s the default setting of our hearts. The pursuit of godliness requires purposely focusing on others and refusing to indulge selfish thoughts. This is only possible by completely relying on Christ. Only as we come to grasp His amazing grace toward us will we be able to extend the same to others. A man who lives with such knowledge can best live in a self-forgetful way.

Are these four exercises needed in your life? Do you need to be more deliberate in pursuing godliness? Remember, those athletes preparing for the games sought temporal gain in terms of financial reward and celebrity. As Christians, our sights should be fixed on eternal reward and the glory of God.