3 Reasons to Build a Stronger Body
Why bother?
Why should you build a stronger body? It takes considerable time and effort. Here are the top 3 reasons why it's totally worth it to build a better body. Which one motivates you?
#1 Build a Stronger Body to Value Yourself
You're Worth It!
We don't neglect what we value. Take care of yourself. You're worth it!
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Building a stronger body is a beautiful and healthy way to value yourself. When we neglect taking care of our bodies because all our time and efforts are spent elsewhere, we are either under the delusion that we are invincible or we are showing by our actions that (at least subconsciously) we really don't believe how valuable we are.
Why should you build a stronger body? First of all, you owe it to yourself. You’re worth the time and effort it takes to nourish and exercise your body. It’s not selfish to take care of yourself. It’s necessary.
It’s not a burden either. It’s a privilege. As much as you may dislike certain aspects of your body, I’m sure there are plenty of other people out there who would give anything to have the amount of health you enjoy.
Furthermore, taking the time to care for yourself does not mean you are weak. It means you're smart. Never take your health for granted. It is a gift of grace that can evaporate very quickly in this fallen world in which we live.
There are at least three important ways a stronger body benefits you. It not only improves your physical health and your mental/emotional health but keeping your body strong also benefits your spiritual life as well.
#2 Build a Stronger Body for the People You Love
Self-care is non-negotiable if you want to serve God and others
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It's not all about you!
If you were the only person on the planet who benefited from your stronger body, that would be enough. But as with everything important in life—it's not all about you. You aren't the only one who needs you to build a stronger body.
You owe it to people who love and care about you and to the ones who depend on you. They want you around them as long as possible, vibrant and full of life and the capacity to love and to serve.
Our families depend on us and we are not as indestructible as we wish we were or they may think we are. We have to take care of ourselves so that we are able to take care of them.
Truthfully, a weak and neglected body makes it that much harder to serve your family, be an engaged friend, or minister to your community. It’s difficult to shine the light of Christ into the lives of the precious people around you when you feel miserable in some way. You will be a better spouse, a better parent, and a better friend if you take the time and make the effort to care for yourself.
Possessing needs you must attend to does not make you weak. It makes you human. Not ensuring your needs are met is what makes you weak.
Only God is complete and self-sufficient. The rest of us need God and each other and some sleep for goodness sake!
You are loved, cherished, needed, and appreciated--even when you feel like none of the above. Those amazing people in your life you care about so much deserve to have a mother, sister, friend, wife, and mother who takes good care of herself.
#3 Build a Stronger Body For the Glory of God
Top 3 Reasons to Build a Stronger Body
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The third and probably most important reason you need to build a stronger body is that you owe it to God. Did you know your body isn’t even really yours? It belongs to God. He's loaning it to you. Not only did He create you, but He also bought you back by paying the ultimate price. Your physical body is the temple He lives in, the place He has chosen to dwell, His home here on earth.
Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20
You don't tear up books on loan from the library.
You wouldn't write graffiti on the church walls.
So why do you think it's okay to treat your own body worse than you would a book or a building?
Don't you know that you are far more valuable than either of those things?
Often neglected in discussions of faith, our physical health does impact our spiritual health. We usually think of our physical bodies as a completely separate entity, divided from our spiritual, mental, and emotional health. But they are all very much connected and closely related. You can't separate any one of them from the others.
Upkeep on your exterior "temple" has a lot more to do with the worship that goes on inside you than you might think. I haven’t heard any sermons on how our physical well-being affects our spiritual well-being, but I know that it does because of God’s word and my own experience.
In order to fulfill the unique purpose for which God has put us here on this earth, we must act responsibly and reverently toward the tools He entrusts to our care. Chief among those tools is our own physical body, for when our body is completely worn out, our work in this world is done. When the body is neglected, abused, or ill-cared for, it is unable to be used in service of God to the extent it would have been had it been nourished and nurtured.
Our Bodies Reveal the Power and Creativity of God
In the Psalms, King David’s marvel at the human body leads him to worship the God who designed it.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Psalm 139:14
That sounds a little strange to our modern ears. What does it mean exactly to be fearfully and wonderfully made?
You are Fearfully Made
In this passage “fearfully” indicates reverent awe of God’s wisdom in the beautiful intricacy of our design and creation. Our bodies are incredibly amazing and beautifully complex beyond our ability to imagine or comprehend. Consider the following:
Our smart immune system that hunts and destroys microscopic invaders
The body’s ability to heal itself
Conception—an entirely new human being growing from a single cell
The complexity of the eye
Genetics and DNA—simple and complex at the same time; beautifully intricate
Frostbite—the body intentionally sacrificing part of self to save the whole
A mother’s capacity to completely nourish her baby both inside the womb and out using only the components of her own body
And this is only the tip of the iceberg! God’s immeasurable power and creativity are only hinted at in the miraculous virtues of the human body.
You are Wonderfully Made
Here the word “wonderfully” refers to our uniqueness and the fact that we are “set apart” by God.
We are separate—wholly different from all animals, creatures, organic material and inanimate objects.
We are unique—there is no other being like humans in Heaven or Earth.
We are distinct—there is no other person just like you. Each human life is special, valuable, and irreplaceable by any other. You are suited specifically to the purpose for which you have been created.
If we are so wonderful, how much more the One who designed, created, and sustains us?
When we think of these things, our only right response can be thanksgiving and praise to the One who made us. David begins with “I praise you because…”
Never resent God for the way He made you. Even the aspects of yourself you may deem to be faults, limitations, or blemishes, He has carefully crafted to use for His glory. God never makes mistakes. There are no accidents in the creation and formation of humans made by His hand in His image for His glory.
BONUS #4: You Only Get One Body
3 Reasons to Build a Stronger Body: for yourself, for others, for God
Okay, I know I said three reasons, but here's a bonus! God only issues us each one body for this life. He expects us to take good care of it. We would all do well to spend less time complaining about the way we’ve been made and more time figuring out how to care for and maintain what he has already given us.
Our bodies are a precious gift and a fading treasure. We often don’t realize that truth or even think about it until our bodies quit working the way they were designed to. Thank God every day for whatever amount of health you do have, even if it seems small to you.
I read an amazing story once about a woman who did just that. She was so sick that all she could do was lay in bed and wiggle her finger. So she thanked God for the ability to wiggle her finger. Over time, her health continued to improve and she continued to praise Him for it. She gradually got better and better. (I have been unable to find this story to cite it here. If anyone has a lead, please let me know!)
It is important that we keep our bodies in good working order as much as we are able to influence it. Obviously, there are many health-related issues that are beyond our ability to control. But there are just as many areas of our health that we can improve and strengthen.
Every body’s body will eventually wear out and run down. These bodies we now possess are not intended to serve us indefinitely. They are meant to be temporary. God has new bodies in store for us that will be perfect in every way for all time, but we aren’t there yet (2 Cor 5:1-4).
Until then, let’s commit to keeping ourselves strong enough to be used for His glory in any way He may call us to serve; that we may live to bring Him glory. Who's with me?
That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.
2 Corinthians 4:16-18 (NLT)