Are you wrecking the temple?

 

Chapter 8: Surrendering Our Health and Bodies

When you got your driver's license, do you realize that it was a gift and a responsibility?  That license is supposed to show that you have learned what you need to know to drive safely with others and conduct a vehicle responsibly.  With that license presentation, there is an understanding that you probably won't always drive perfectly.  Whether others are able to safely correct you (with a horn honk), or a policeman has to get your attention and you pay consequences, there is also grace, that you will get back on the road.  

When I was 18 I insisted on getting my driver's license, though I would not graduate and move out until I was 19.  I had a good job, I was getting good grades, I was involved in some extra-curriculars at school, and I was being responsible.  I just wanted some independence.  After I got that license, I needed a car to drive.  My dad would often let me use his car; driving him to work before school, and picking him up after my school and extra-curricular's from work.  I took good care of the car, and was thankful for the share. If he said he needed it, I didn't question him- it was his. On weekends I would often have the privilege of driving it to work at the grocery store- which my mom probably much appreciated as that meant she no longer had to get me there at 6 am while she figured out what the rest of the kids (4 of us) did.  She juggled a lot.  

I remember my dad teaching me how to change a tire, check the oil, and identify some of the basic needs of the car.  He taught me the car was a tool to help me get where I needed to go.  It needed to be taken care of in order to be reliable and function at it's best, but even well-cared for cars will wear out.  He also told me it was the biggest weapon he would hand me, as irresponsible use could kill me and others.  I appreciated the responsibility he gave me  in handing over the keys to his car.  I remember only once asking to use it for my own entertainment: to go hang out with some friends.  For whatever reason (probably going a little faster than I should have), I spun out of control on our gravel road and went down the shoulder to hit a tree.  It was scary, there was an odd smell, and I was pinned in on the driver's side by the tree.  I got out the passenger side, and ran about a mile back home.  I went straight to my dad, confessed what happened, and he took me back to the car in our family vehicle.  Upon dubbing it safe to drive he gave me the keys to our family car and we both drove home.  

I don't remember any lectures, which probably impacted me more than a lecture would have.  I have not had an accident since then, and am aware of my speed.  I do remember he fixed it up to be driveable, but it still had that "scar" on the driver's side.  

Many of you could probably relate with my story.  What if we considered our bodies in the same way?  Do you ever slow down to consider what your body really needs?  Not all cars need premium gas, though all cars requiring unleaded would run best  if they were given the best and kept clean, with regular oil changes of the highest quality.  If you put diesel in a regular car, you'll kill it, but if you don't in a diesel car, you'll kill that one.  We pretty faithfully take care of our cars if we want to drive them for a long time.  Why don't we do our bodies the same way?  Our bodies are the greatest tool for God's glory, out of which everything we do comes from: from our ability to communicate to our ability to make a physical impact.  Why would we assume that whatever is at the grocery store or convenience store is good for us, no matter which isle it came from?  Why shouldn't we?  

Our bodies are a precious gift from God. They are not our own—they belong to Him. Paul reminds us: “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body” (1 Corinthians 6:19–20).

In a world obsessed with appearance and fitness, and where self-indulgence is expected or justified, it’s easy to fall into extremes—either idolizing our bodies (making it about how great they look and highlighting accomplishments) or making them an idol (showering them with gifts that taste good, but are not nutritional, or bring our minds to other levels of ecstasy, but render us without control). God calls us to a better way, His book has many examples of paying attention to what our body needs to glorify Him, and encouragement to discipline our bodies so that they are ready to serve Him.  We are to care for our bodies and keep them in good health as stewards, not owners, and to use our strength to serve Him and others.

Have you ever experienced being "hangry"?  That extent of hungry that makes you not very nice to be around?  There's a desperation and careless drive to eat.  Have you ever fasted?  Somehow, you went past those normal hungry times without biting off other people's heads.  Maybe you haven't gotten to experience that.  In the last 5 years, I've done a lot of research into how (most) bodies function at top ability.  I ran that alongside God's word, and was delighted to see He had already presented that to us.  Right down to the healing affects of fasting.  I've suffered the "American diet", and I've been healed through seeking to honor God with what I put in my body.  I can think so much clearer, respond verbally, physically, and mentally so much better, and feel so much better on the "clean side" of eating: sticking to those things in the purest form of what He created.  

Have you ever heard that a car left abandoned will break down and become un-runnable?  The same applies to our bodies.  If we don't use them, exercise them, strengthen them and cause them to need regular "refills of nutrition," they too will rust on the inside: muscles, organs, lungs, will lose their capacity to function at top speed and will decline more rapidly.  

Surrendering our health and bodies doesn’t mean we will never face sickness or weakness. Instead, it means entrusting even our  healing and limitations to the Lord.  Whether that means obedience in caring for our bodies so that they will be strong, or stepping out when we don't think we have the physical or mental strength to do so, believing that “His power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9). It means eating, resting, exercising, and caring for ourselves in ways that honor Him, not in pursuit of vanity, self-gratitude, or control.

Tomorrow I'm going to dig into a little more scripture, as God has led me through a process of surrendering my breath to Him, as even I'm still in process.  I pray blessings over you as you reflect, and consider God's love for you and the breath He breathed into you to give you life, and to live life to the fullest.