Friday, January 7, 2011

The Gift of Health

     In today's culture it is very hard to be well balanced between hating our bodies and the way God made us and being in love with our appearance to the point of having it consume our every thought. The best place to live is somewhere in between these extremes which is a state of learning to be good stewards of the gift of health and life that God gives us.
     I have memories of my 15 year old son getting his license and getting his first car. (in Montana, children get their license at 15 years of age) It was a little gray Honda car we found for $500. At first he loved this car, he kept it clean and took care of it. However, soon that started to change. He started driving through fields like it was a four wheeler. He played bumper cars with the trash cans in the alleys. He played chicken with his friend and he would race stop sign to stop sign. Once when he was racing and then stopping quickly over and over, his breaks got to hot and they quit working. He had to swerve and he hit his friends car and tore the bumper off his car and broke out his head lights. Soon his car started falling apart, literally! Eventually, it died and we took it to the salvage yard for cars who have lived out their days. As, soon as he had no car, he started begging for another car and promised he learned his lesson and would take better care of his new car; if we would just get him a new car! Now before you think we were crazy parents, we didn’t know how he treated his first car until he was older and felt he had to finally confess.
     When it comes to our life and health which God gives us, we do much the same thing with God. We do not take care of our bodies. We have fun and abuse them. Finally one day when they start wearing out or they have issues, we begin to appreciate life and say that we have learned our lessons. If God would just heal us or would make us better, we would take better care of our self! If only we would take care of them from the beginning.
     I lived the first 46 years of my life not caring for my health. I was 50 pounds overweight by eating whatever I wanted and whenever I wanted. I had never been in shape or actually tried to be physical active. I just pretended it was all okay. I never thought of it as a gift and I never realized that I had a responsibility to take care of what God gave me. I have now spent over two years trying to achieve a good level health. It has been a hard battle and it has taught me many spiritual lessons along the way.
     We need to practice stewardship in all things including our bodies, our health, and our wellness. The meaning of stewardship is ‘a person being accountable to God for the acceptable care and use of those possessions.’ Are you a good steward of your health and body? Or do you use it for whatever brings you immediate pleasure? Do you feel you are accountable? Do you think you belong to God? The care you give yourself will eventually show in your health and quality of life. If you want to live the best life you can, take care of 'you' the best way you can.

You don’t get wormy apples off a diseased tree, nor good apples from a diseased tree. The health of the apple tells the health of the tree. You must begin with your own life-giving lives.
Luke 6:43-44

2 comments:

Steph said...

Joining the gym has really helped me stay dedicated at being healthier. Going to the gym has motivated me to eat better and watch what I eat as well. I want to be in good shape (not necessarily skinny) to have babies and be around a long time for Jared and our future kiddos!

Stephj said...

Well I don't go to the gym anymore. However I still try to eat right, especially since I am pregnant now. I plan on starting walking after the baby is born and to keep up with that and stay active and healthy. The healthier we are the more we are able to do God's work and help others.