BBD 04.29.03 The Physical Body
Posted by: wrather <wrather@...>
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04.29.03
The Physical Body
For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all
things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to
ome. - I Timothy 4:8.
Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God
dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him.
For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are. - I Corinthians
3:16-17.
Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in
you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought
at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are
God's. I Corinthians 6:19-20.
After her husband died Maggie Smith and her two children (both adults) filed
a wrongful death lawsuit against Dr. Franklin Price. Mrs. Smith and her
children did not believe that Dr. Price had done enough to try to help
Lawrence Smith to avoid serious health problems. Mr. Smith was only 54
years old when he died from a heart attack. Mr. Smith was a long-time
smoker, overweight, had a poor diet, did very little to exercise, had
diabetes, high cholesterol and was under substantial stress at his place of
employment. The Smith family won a $1.2 million judgment against Dr. Price.
This was in spite of the poor health condition of Mr. Smith and his bad
habits and in spite of the fact that Dr. Price had repeatedly admonished Mr.
Smith about his need for better health habits.
As Christians we tend to concentrate on the spiritual and our
responsibilities in that realm. However, if we are to be good stewards of
all that God has entrusted to our care we must also be concerned with our
physical bodies. The condition of our physical body impacts every other
aspect of our life including the spiritual.
There are several reasons why as Christians we should take care of our
physical bodies. We should properly care for our physical bodies because
without that care our physical lives will end prematurely before our time.
If our lives end prematurely we will not be able to do all that we should do
here on earth before going to be with our Lord. A good example is Lawrence
Smith who died at the age of 54 well below the average life span. Of course
the number of days of your life may be more or less depending upon God's
will and plan for you personally.
We should properly care for our bodies so that we will have the mental
capacity to do all that God would have us to do with our lives. According
to "American Health" after working out three times a week for six months a
research group was able to perform 70% better on a test of complex decision
making. Knowing we can make better decisions if we are in good physical
condition requires us to take care of our physical bodies if we are to be
good stewards.
We should properly care for our bodies so that we will have the energy to do
all that God would have us to do with our lives. Research has shown that
exercise increases energy and reduces fatigue. At the same time exercise
reduces the stress level enabling us to do more.
We should properly care for our bodies because of the financial impact our
health has on our lives. The better our health the less money we will spend
on doctors, medicines, and all forms of health care. With better health we
will be able to have more of the financial resources necessary to further
the Kingdom of God.
Did you know that 87% of Americans own running shoes but don't run? Maybe
it's time to get those running shoes out of the closet and do some running
or at least some walking. Because unless you exercise you will not be able
to be the good steward God wants you to be. If you have bad habits, and a
bad diet that are ruining your health God would have you to change your
habits and your diet. God does want what is best for you and there is some
profit in taking care of your body as the apostle Paul points out to
Timothy. If you don't believe me why don't you ask God because I think He
will tell you the same thing.
Copyright © 2003. Ed Wrather. Permission is given for use of the devotionals
on a non-profit basis with source credited.
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