...therefore glorify God in your body...
I've been thinking about this scripture every since I heard it in General Conference in October. Granted most interpretations of this scripture talk about consecrating one's life to God and sanctifying the body and spirit in service to God. However, when I heard this scripture my mind went in a bit of a different direction.
I had just finished two months of intense physical training and my body was in pretty darn good shape. I was tired, very tired, and wondering how I could maintain the shape I was in and not kill myself with every workout. When I heard, "...glorify God in your body..." I immediately thought of all the hard work I had put into strengthening my body and taking care of it during the training. And I wondered if by maintaining a healthy and strong body was I glorifying God in my body. I think the answer is yes.
Our bodies are a gift from God. There are so many promises of strength and health, if we refrain from injuring ourselves with harmful substances and activities, and concentrate on healthy foods and activities. I know that many people struggle with health problems and physical limitations of all kinds and that sometimes it may not feel like a blessing from God to have that body. I think that God just wants us to work with what we have and do our best. I think that God wants us to listen to ourselves and learn what our bodies need in order to feel the best we can. When we do this and invite him to help, he will bless us.
I love how I feel when I'm out for a run, my lungs are expanding as I breath in and out, my leg muscles are burning from going up the hill and the endorphin high kicks in. It's a good feeling. It makes me happy, clears my head and makes me want to eat healthy, do some pushups and even some situps which I hate. The feeling of having worked hard and pushed myself a bit to do better on a run or other workout is a good one, and I think God feels a bit of glory when I seek to keep his gift to me healthy.
I'm having a hard time figuring out how to write what I'm trying to say. So, here's the simple version:
Today I am very thankful for a healthy, strong body that pretty much does what I want it to do. I am thankful I can use my body to run, sing, dance and have fun. I am thankful for the body I have right now.
No comments:
Post a Comment