Partner Workout

Spiritual Skill: Humanity (wk. 3/13)

Reading: Galatians 6:1-10

If you’ve ever done a partner workout, especially something like a heavy sandbag carry, you know the rhythm — one person picks it up and grinds out the reps while the other rests or runs alongside, waiting for the exchange. Eventually, the moment comes when the bag is passed. The first person exhales, relieved to let the weight go, while the second braces and prepares to carry. It’s not just about the reps. It’s about the handoff — the connection between teammates, the shared strain, the unspoken agreement that you don’t carry this alone.

That’s how God designed humanity, His greatest creation. Not as isolated individuals grinding through life, but as a community — people moving together, bearing one another’s burdens. Galatians 6:2 makes it clear: “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” This isn’t a polite suggestion. It’s a vital part of spiritual training. Because just like in the gym, we aren’t meant to carry the full load forever.

God uses load to build us. Life’s weight — grief, pressure, responsibility, uncertainty — is like spiritual resistance training. It develops strength over time. But too much load, carried too long in isolation, breaks people. That’s why we need each other. Not to avoid the weight, but to share it. To take turns carrying what’s heavy. To become stronger not just individually, but together.

There’s something powerful that happens in that moment of transition. One person lays down the weight with a sigh of relief, while the other tightens their grip and says, “I’ve got it now.” That’s what community looks like. Not just cheering each other on, but stepping in and shouldering the burden when someone else needs a break. And it goes both ways. Today you may be the one carrying. Tomorrow, you may be the one who’s ready for the handoff.

The spiritual life isn’t a solo effort. If we try to white-knuckle our way through it alone, we’ll eventually hit failure. But when we live as the community we were created to be — when we take our place in the partner workout — we begin to reflect the heart of Jesus, who carried our greatest burden for us.

So, when someone around you is struggling, step in. Offer to carry what they can’t. And when you’re the one who’s weary, don’t be afraid to ask for help and pass the load. Humanity was built for community — and nothing trains us better than a partner workout.

Questions for Reflection:

Share a time when someone helped you carry a struggle or burden.

How do you help someone carry their load without taking on the burden yourself? What role does Jesus play?