I’ve been riding my bike a lot lately — almost daily. I was doing chores at my barn every morning and night. Instead of setting aside my morning workouts to accommodate chores, I rode my bike to the barn and back — about 17 miles round trip.

I like to push myself when I rdie to see if I can improve my average speed from one day to the next. Problem is, I don’t tend to think about that during the whole ride. I tend to only think about my speed on the way home — when my legs are tired. I would probably be able to raise my average speed if I paced myself from start to finish rather than having short bursts of speed here and there. I might also be able to increase my average speed if my route didn’t have so many hills. I hate those hills but I also know those hills help increase my endurance, lung capacity and leg strength. If my whole route were downhill both ways (ok, impossible, I know), it wouldn’t be that great of a workout. And, I wouldn’t get that sense of relief or satisfaction every time I reach the top of a hill.

My faith walk also benefits from consistency and those ups and downs of hills. I tend to have periods when I’m totally on fire and other times when I’m dry and distant. Fits and starts. I wish I could achieve a consistency in my faith activities and heart for God that I wouldn’t ever feel separated from him. But I let life get in the way sometimes.

I also have hills that come in the form of challenges — trying situations, times of confusion and uncertainty, big decisions — to build my faith muscles. Those are the times I need to apply myself to reach the top of the hill. Without those spiritual hills, my faith would continue to be weak. They help me learn to trust God and seek his direction.

I feel a sense of accomplishment when I’m able to up my average speed. I also feel accomplishment when I’m closer to God and assured that I’m in his will. The memory of these past victories draw me back to God when new hills arise. Consistency and steadfastness help me grow in my faith and build a sense of gratitude to God.