|
body
Glorifying God in Your Body - Health, Strength, and Beauty
by Esosa Victor Osai
 |
One of the greatest gifts we have on this temporary earthly existence is our body! It’s amazing, it’s beautiful, and it’s in God’s image!
BUT since the earth has been corrupted by sin (Romans 5:12), our bodies are corrupted also. Instead of staying eternally strong, we tend to get weaker as we get older. Death has an effect on most people and until Jesus comes back, all humans will die physically!
Romans 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
BUT the story doesn’t end there, since Jesus came and redeemed us from the curse of sin and death, we can expect to have NEW eternal bodies when He comes back! |
1 Corinthians 15:22, 44
For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive…
It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.
So, what do we do with our natural physical bodies, while we wait for Jesus’ return to give us our spiritual physical bodies?
I’m glad you asked – stay healthy and strong so we can do God’s will. Why is this so important? Because we will be judged by God for what we do while in our physical bodies. He has given it to us, and the more efficiently we use it, the more we can glorify Him.
Make the Connection
Your body is connected to your soul and spirit so how you treat it affects you. The foods you eat affect your mind, how clearly you think, etc. Anyone that has been on a fast knows that when your body is cleaned out, you are mentally and spiritually sharper. Kenneth Hagin once summarized it by saying, “Fasting doesn’t change God, fasting changes you!”
Your mental and spiritual sensitivity is affected by what is going on in your body.
- Could this be why Jesus spent 40 days fasting in the wilderness before he began His ministry, and returned in the power of the Spirit (Luke 4)?
- Could this be why Moses’ face glowed when he took the Law of God down to the Isrealites?
- Could this be why John the Baptist had a lifestyle of fasting, to bring in the Kingdom of God by preparing the way for Jesus (Matthew 11)?
The point that I am making here is that fasting; heath and strength are good for our whole. Even when we are not fasting, we should keep our body healthy and strong; by staying physically active, and eating quality foods.
Health: Eating Fruits, Veggies, Beans, Nuts and Grains
Your body naturally craves good things like fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts and grains. God designed the human body to be healthy and strong, and actually to live forever. Sin entered into the world, and brought death, but what would life be like without death? Well, if there was no death, we would not be killing animals and eating them!
Originally the plan was for us to be eating fruits, vegetables, beans, and nuts… |
 |
Genesis 1:29: And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
God said he gave us all the herbs bearing seed, and trees yielding seed for food (the word meat meant food).
If you look in the early years of earth, immediately after sin, Adam died in his 10th century, and Methuselah lived the longest, 969 years. The effects of sin caused them to die. But also, when God allowed humans to eat meat after the Flood (Genesis 9), the life lengths drastically dropped in the next few generations, till it went down to the hundreds with Abraham.
Jesus ate meat, and he said that we could eat meat, and we definitely aren’t going to live forever by being a vegetarian! But knowing the background of what we were originally meant to eat will help you balance your eating. Eat as many natural foods as possible, and consider meat and other stuff the extra blessings (in moderation). Thank God that as members of the Kingdom of God, we have eternal life regardless!
But we still want to follow God’s wisdom. It will keep us healthy the natural way. You’ll be able to save a lot of money on artificial medicines too!
Strength: Being Physically Active at Work and At Play
Your body was meant for that too!
 |
We're definitely not meant to sit around... Our bodies were designed for physical action! Adam was told to dress and keep the garden, and as humans, we have the command to take dominion over the earth and subdue it (Genesis 1, 2). All of your work shouldn’t be sit-down stuff. For an example of someone who stayed strong in his old age, look at the example of Moses…
Deuteronomy 34:7: And Moses was an hundred and twenty years old when he died: his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated. |
So Moses died at 120 years old, but his eye was not dim, and his strength was not diminished at all! Wow! But look at his lifestyle; this guy was fasting and climbing mountains at the same time, leading people across the desert, killing animals, etc… He wasn’t just sitting around. (Read Exodus)
It’s really about an ACTIVE LIFESTYLE. "Working Out" is only an enhancement, or a replacement for someone who doesn’t have an active lifestyle.
Living an active lifestyle is really about doing physical WORK: daily activities where you either move a lot (aerobic) or move heavy stuff (anaerobic). An active lifestyle is also about physical PLAY: stuff you actually LIKE to do on a regular basis (dance, basketball, flag football, race, or play a physical game).
Beauty: Keep it Natural
Don't worry about your weight and shape, or your muscle size and mass. Concentrate instead on eating nutritiously, and living an active lifestyle of physical work, and physical play. You should avoid unnatural chemicals and things that contort and harm your body.
Most of your beauty is in your confidence anyway, so if you are confident in God’s design for you, you are half-way there! Inside AND outside, confidence in God’s creativity is WAY more beautiful than confidence in artificial things.
Whatever weight, shape, and size your body is at when you eat nutritiously and live an active lifestyle, that's the weight, shape and muscle mass GOD designed for you! IT’S BEAUTIFUL! |
 |
I’m beautiful, you’re beautiful, aren’t we all just gorgeous, yeah, yeah… ANYWAY!
Back to that hard-core knowledge and understanding:
Your Body Is A System
Did you know that your body is a system for work? It’s a machine to get work done! It takes energy in (food), and pushes energy out (work).
Energy in is nutrition, and energy out is exertion. So, your food should be nutrition, and your work should be exertion.
Analyze this diagram to see your body as a system.
Nutrition: Quality and Quantity
When it comes to the energy (food) that you put into your body, you need to make sure its quality, and that most of it is from the natural food groups.
You also need to moderate the quantity of food you eat. You only need what you will actually use. If you have a lot of energy going out, your body will naturally take a lot of energy in. If you work less, you will eat less.
Exertion: Aerobic and Anaerobic
Aerobic exercises are actions that don’t take a lot of strength, but you do it for long amounts of time. They are things that build endurance like walking, running, dancing, Tae-bo, etc.
Anaerobic exercises are activities that take a lot of strength, but are done for a short time… Like lifting or pushing, or pulling heavy objects, or working with weights.
Water and Sleep
 |
There are two things you need to keep the energy flowing in your body. You need water, to keep the energy flowing through your body. Your body is made up of partly water, and water keeps other things moving in your body. You also need sleep, to keep the energy flowing out. You need rest so that your body can recharge, rebuild, and continue to work.
You can be Healthy, Strong, and Beautiful to Do God’s Will
Use the concepts in this diagram to run your body’s God-designed system, and you will stay healthy and strong for a long time! |
Life Style Changes:
- Spend most of your food money on fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts, and whole grains. You can eat meat and other ‘extra’ things, but concentrate on these 5 foods that God originally meant for us to eat (Genesis 1).
- Drink as much water as possible, too much is not enough. Get a certain amount of sleep per day.
- Try to design an active lifestyle for yourself. Put natural physical activity in your schedule. Do things the hard way; like going up the steps, walking to the store. Find a sport or a physical game that’s actually fun to you, and do it weekly. Dance and praise God everyday. Do things that are aerobic (high time, low strength) and anaerobic (low time, high strength).
Stay away from harmful substances that were not purpose by God for your body’s use..
 |
Esosa Osai is a DJ, promoter, writer, publisher and student of the Kingdom of God's Lifestyle.
Check out www.fpdj.com or email him at victorosai@yahoo.com for questions, issues, or discussions. |
|
Wow News!
flash
