Taking Care of Your Temple - Essential Four to Being the Best Mom for Your Kids
**If you would like to listen to this blog post, scroll to the bottom for the audio version.
Are you ready?!
Week 4 of the six part series: Essentials Every Mom Needs to be the Best Mom for their Kids
Take care of your TEMPLE.
It is my FAVORITE thing to do so I can regroup, refocus and become re-energized.
Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought with a price. Therefore, honor God with your body. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20
I have so many favorite verses, and this is one. It reminds me that the Holy Spirit LIVES IN ME. God gave me this body to steward as a place for the Spirit to reside in. He also gave me this body as a vessel in which to complete His work. This body was bought with a price. If God sees my body as precious and wonderful, then so should I.
Do you ever watch those hoarding shows? I am totally fascinated by them. It is interesting when the counselor comes into their home and finds out the furnace doesn’t work or the sink faucet has been broken for years. They have these homes that give them shelter but they never treated them well. They just fill them with a lot of useless stuff and then try to hide it all from the world.
Can you see how we all have a little bit of this hoarding mentality in us, too? We have something way more precious than “stuff”. We have the Holy Spirit in us. But we don’t take care of the shelter for the Spirit. We hoard useless thoughts about ourselves. We ignore pain that is signaling something is wrong. We let our “shelter” become dilapidated and disordered.
Most women I talk to hate, or very much dislike, their bodies. They tell me all the flaws. When I ask them what they like about their bodies, I hear a lot of crickets.
I don’t know about you, but I want to show my kids how to take care of their temple. They need to see the example of how a body can be healthy and strong so that it can be used to live out the purpose God has called it to. They should see me caring, loving, repairing, cleaning and strengthening my temple so that they can learn to do the same.
Let’s get one thing straight before I go any further. I’m not talking about weight here. I’m talking about well-being or the absence of illness both physically and mentally that is within your control.
See, Satan wants to destroy you, remember? He knows you have something very precious inside of you. He also knows that your body is the vehicle to do your work in the world. Guess what he is going to do then? He is going to try to do anything to wreck it.
We can fight the evil one though. He doesn’t have to destroy our minds or our bodies.
The last couple of weeks, I have thoroughly discussed how to take care of your mind, but now it’s time to focus on our physical health.
Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – His good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12: 1-2
And
So, whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. 1 Corinthians 10:31
- How do we offer our bodies as living sacrifices?
- How do we not conform any longer to the pattern of this world?
- How do we eat, drink and do all our works to the glory of God?
First, you pray.
A sacrifice means anything determined sacred that is given to God. Our bodies are to be sacred and given to God. So, pray that you see your body as sacred and belonging to God. That it is something of value and importance. When you have something valuable, you WANT to take care of it. The same should go for your body.
Second, you need to look at what is being taught in this world and question it.
Any food that is deemed “healthy”, any workout routine that is advertised as “good for you”, any product that is considered “natural”, question it. There are so many diets, cleanses and “health” products that lure us in by feeding our sinful desire to look good.
I am completely guilty of this.
But Paul tells us that we need to test and approve God’s will. I like to ask myself these questions:
- Will this help my heart, lungs, kidneys, muscles, bones, brain, etc.? Will every part of my body be better if I do this/ use this?
- Is my REAL motive to look good or to feel good?
The third questions ties in with number two.
What does God give us, straight from his hands, that provides us with nourishment and health to our bodies?
For me, I believe, the fresher the food the more of a miracle it is. Think about food growing in your garden. Isn’t it fascinating to think that tomatoes come from one little seed? That sunlight and nutrients from the dirt are used to build this perfect fruit? I see that as a miracle (especially, if somehow, I grew it 😉).
Not only what goes into our bodies should be used to glorify God, but how our bodies move. God gave us arms and legs to pick up objects, walk, run, throw, build, etc. Instead of watching a boring exercise video that doesn’t inspire you to move, look for ways in which you can move that really glorifies God. Here are some of my favorites:
- Nature hikes
- Playing outdoors with my kids
- Sports with friends
- Walks/Run with my husband
Sometimes, during the winter, I have to be creative as to how to move my body. That’s why we have dance parties, evening stretch time or clean up hour to get ourselves moving.
One thing want to add, many of you know that I exercise every morning. I don’t do this for weight loss. I do this because exercise clears my mind and makes me feel energized for the day. When I shifted my mindset, getting up early didn’t seem so hard. It was something I actually looked forward to and missed when I didn’t do it. It’s really hard to wake up any earlier if you are dreading what is coming next.
Ok, so to summarize how to take care of your temple:
- Pray for the wisdom to see your body as something beautiful and pleasing to God.
- Question what this world offers as “healthy”.
- Eat to nurture your body. Move to strengthen it. Do it for the glory of God.
Take care of your body and then your body can be used as a vessel to take care of your family. Plus, when you take care of your body, your mind becomes clearer and stronger. This will benefit you in every area of your life.
Don’t look at taking care of your body as such a drag anymore, ladies.
Look at it as a way to really glorify God and set that beautiful example for your children!
Do you need some help getting started on your health journey? No problem. Sign up for a FREE 45-minute coaching session with me.
