How many times in your life have you heard the statement, "your
body is your temple?" It's one of those ideas that sneak into your
consciousness and you don't know where you actually heard it.
Think
about it for a moment. Do you believe that your body is your temple?
Maybe it doesn't make sense to you at first. Let's see what the
dictionary has to say about a "temple" and then you tell me.
· a place dedicated to worship
· having within it a divine presence
· a place reserved for a highly valued function
Let's take a look at them one by one.
Your body is a place that needs to be dedicated to worshiping itself.
If
you don't worship your own body, who will? And what exactly does
worshiping your body mean? Worshiping your body means taking care of
it. Worshiping your body means doing what is best for it, not just on
the outside but on the inside as well. Worshiping your body means
nurturing it with proper nutrition, regular exercise and sufficient
sleep. Worshiping your body means learning about it and listening to
it. When your body is sick, it's letting you know that something is
missing. It requires something that you are not giving it. I'm not
talking about worship in terms of becoming obsessed with how you look.
I'm talking about treating your body with respect, compassion and care.
Your body has within it a divine presence.
Doesn't
it make sense that a divine presence resides within your body? You
don't need to be religious to believe that we are all one with the
universe. How else can we explain the miracle of our body. Just think
for a moment about all the functions it performs without our even
thinking about it. Our heart beats, our eyes blink, we breathe, we
swallow, we digest--all with no conscious thought. We have countless
hormones, enzymes, muscles, bones, organs, all working in perfect
harmony. It is amazing, given how many of us treat our body, that it
continues to work as well as it does. Who can possibly explain such an
amazing machine without realizing that a power more powerful than we are
dwells within us.
Your body is reserved for a highly valued function.
Wouldn't
you agree that your body is reserved for a highly valued function?
Without your body, you would have no vehicle to carry you through this
life, no way to fulfill on what you see as your life's purpose, no way
to do those things that are important to you. I suspect you can see
that is a highly valued function. After all, what could be more
important? Using your body to accomplish all those things you need to
do every day. And, beyond that, being able to use your body to do
everything you want to do. I'm going to get a little personal here.
I've been in a position where my body was "sick" and I simply couldn't
do many of the things I needed and wanted to do. It's no fun. Many of
us take our body for granted. Unfortunately, it took a crisis for me to
learn that lesson. Don't wait until you have a crisis in your life to
begin to appreciate your body.
So, can we agree that your body really is your temple?
And, can we agree that, as your temple, your body deserves to be treated with the utmost respect and care?
Many
of us tend to focus much of our attention on cutting, coloring and
arranging our hair, keeping our nails impeccably polished and making
sure our makeup is perfect. But what do we do about everything below
our neck? How much time do we spend tending to those parts of us?
How
many of us pay careful attention to the nutrition we feed our body? If
you don't put the right kind of fuel in a car, it simply won't run.
How many of us make sure that we are giving our body enough exercise to
keep it in good working order. Here comes the car again! You might
know that, if you don't drive a car but simply leave it parked in the
garage, it won't run very well. You won't be able to depend on it when
you need it. Well, our body is no different. We need to use it. The
more we use it, the better it runs.
Since you're reading this, I'm
betting you've already realized what you've been doing to destroy your
"temple". Insufficient exercise, poor nutrition, inadequate rest,
stress. And, if you've made it to this paragraph, I imagine you're very
interested in repairing the damage and learning how to take good care
of your body from now on. Let me be the first to encourage you to begin
healthy nutrition and exercise practices right now. You will never
make a better investment in yourself. Your temple will thrive on it.
