How to Care for Your Temple
We are so glad to have Abby Lewis as our guest blogger this month! Enjoy while she shares with us the importance of caring for our temple.
Taking Care of the Temple
You only have one physical body in this lifetime. And, you have a choice about how you treat that body. I am sure you have heard the body called a “temple.” The word temple can evoke images of a holy place, or at least a place that is to be treated with great respect. Referring to the body as a “temple” demands certain expectations for its treatment. The choices you make either feed your temple life or death, and not only have a physical impact, but can also greatly affect you mentally and emotionally.
As a believer in Christ, my body is the vessel, or the temple, that houses the Holy Spirit (see 1 Corinthians 6:19). It is my job to take care of my body, not just for my own sake, but so that I am able to fully live the purposeful life that God intends me to live. Without a deep sense of unique purpose and an acceptance of God’s love for us, we usually neglect the care of our temples. This neglect greatly limits our complete healing and effectiveness. But, when we begin to see ourselves the way God sees us, opening ourselves up to receiving His wisdom and knowledge about taking care of our temples, we are free to live.
How do you treat your temple? Do you know which of your behaviors benefit your body? What about habits that may be destroying it? Do you know how to make the changes necessary to take better care of your body?
At one point in my life, I was completely destructive to my temple. I fed it a steady diet of drugs, alcohol and cigarettes. I did not do any sort of exercise, nor did I take helpful supplements or eat a healthy, balanced diet. All I fed my temple was death, and I reaped what I sowed. I had constant pain in my body and felt weak, tired or sick most of the time. The breakdown of my body was also wearing on me mentally and emotionally.
Though I was well-educated about health and wellness, having received a degree in this field, I did not have the motivation to live any differently. I think I knew deep-down that the way I was living was harmful, but I was in denial that my behaviors could eventually destroy me. It was somehow easier not to think about it. At times, I was tempted to believe that I would be less happy than I would be if I had to give up my addictions. But again, deep-down I knew that this was not true.
As I began my journey to healing, God revealed to me why I was trapped in these destructive behaviors against my temple. Essentially, I was unable to properly care for my body because I had not yet accepted my value as a uniquely created being with a special purpose. I had no love for myself. However, as I practiced stillness with God more and more regularly, my eyes were opened to the changes I needed to make to heal.
Over time, I began to accept God’s love for me and soon had an urgent desire to take care of my temple instead of destroy it. I longed to be a healthy, whole individual—to climb further out of my dark valley. But, I was going to have to make some tough choices. Some of these choices were obvious; others were more subtle. In both cases, however, I very quickly recognized my own limitations to making lasting lifestyle change. I could only do so much on my own strength.
I began to understand that God would empower me to make these changes as I surrendered this area of my life to Him. He certainly delivered. As I sought God’s wisdom and direction, He led me step by step up the ladder toward the physical healing of my temple.
Learning to take care of our temples is a life-long, and sometimes difficult, process. Long-standing habits are hard to break, but God will empower us to change as we seek His wisdom and direction. Go where He leads you. Start making the changes He places on your heart. Do not wait until your body is in physical crisis to start making changes; sometimes then it is too late. It is much easier to prevent your temple from crumbling than it is to rebuild it after the fact. Accept God’s love for you, and believe that He has a unique plan for your life—a life that you can most effectively live in a healthy temple.
Be Love, Give Love~
Abby Lewis
Abby Lewis has a degree in Health and Wellness and her massage therapy license. She is the author of Blossoming out of the Valley and producer of A Breath~in Stillness. Her life’s work is to passionately encourage others to climb out of their own dark valleys by finding health of spirit, mind and body. In January of 2006 Abby opened her own business called Healing Naturally.
Abby is devoted to serving God and to letting God’s love flow in and through her. She finds great joy in spending time in nature, writing, teaching, serving others and being with her family. Her heart is full of love and she just wants to share that love with others. Abby, her husband and their son live in Branson, Missouri.
Follow Abby online: www.myjourneytohealing.com
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