My Favorite Things

Everyone has favorites. Favorite color. Favorite food. Favorite TV show. Favorite book. Favorite movie. In fact, many people ask these questions to strangers or new acquaintances in the hopes of getting to know one another better. As a married couple, spouses are expected to know each of their spouse's favorites.
Recently my husband and I changed churches. We changed for many reasons, but the top two were to find a church closer to our house and to find a church that we could call ours. We found that church quickly and God has plugged us right in. It's been wonderful. With change, negative, sometimes painful, reality comes in to play. I miss my family. I've never gone to a church apart from my parents before and this is new for me. I miss all my friends at that church. I miss the ministries that I served in. I miss the pastor. And, I really miss our old Sunday School class.
With Valentine's Day approaching, our previous SS class discussed having a Valentine's social and playing the Newlywed Game. My husband and I have never played this game and we were really looking forward to it. We've been quizzing each other and doing our best to make sure we know each other's favorites.
Not until last night did we even talk about what it would be like to give up one of our favorites. I joined the choir at our new church and my husband attends the pastor's Bible study, He told me last night that the study was on "Suffering Prayer." The pastor talked about Jesus and His 40 days of fasting and praying. 40 days! That's more than a month! I couldn't imagine having no food for 40 days. It seems almost physically impossible. The pastor told the group last night that doctors have discovered that the body can live without food for 40 days. By day 41, their body starts to deteriorate. That seems pretty amazing how meticulous God is.
Well, I don't have enough willpower to go without food for 40 days, so my husband and I talked about the ONE favorite food that we could give up for 40 days. My husband has decided to give up sodas for 40 days -- which is HUGE for him. I can't tell you how many sodas he drinks a day. As for me, well, I decided to give up chocolate. It seems beyond impossible for me to do it, but that's the point of this fast. As I suffer through my withdrawals (and believe me, there WILL be severe withdrawals) I can pray for the Lord to give me the strength and fill that void. It will bring me closer to God. It will force me in His word. It will force me to communicate with Him.
So, this is DAY 1. From today until March 20, I can have NO chocolate! That's a LOOOONNNNGGGG way off, isn't it! With God, all things are possible -- even a chocoholic giving up chocolate!

Body Temple

I saw a gym bag in a catalog recently that had "Exercise regularly. Eat right. Still die." writtin on the side. I couldn't help but laugh. I also couldn't help but wonder how many people strive to exercise regularly and eat right in the hopes of gaining immortality. It may seem extreme that people could actually believe that, but what about all the legends of the fountain of youth and the mythical immortality stream? Human beings are obssessed with the idea of living forever. Even Jesus Christ, who is FULLY God and FULLY man, had to die in order to fulfill His purpose.
As Christians, death is something that is not supposed to be feared, but rathered longed for. To die is gain. As Christians, when we die, we gain eternal life. Regardless of how we live on earth, one thing is certain, everyone will die. Everyone will pass from this life into eternity and, depending upon their faith, will spend that eternity in Heaven or in Hell.
So, why exercise and eat right if it's really for nothing anyway? We will still die. The Bible teaches that our body is a temple and we should treat it as such. Our body is Christ's body. We shouldn't treat it as our own body to do with as we please, but we should treat it as a form of worship. We are commanded, through Scripture, to take care of our bodies. That includes exercising and eating right.
I'm not a healthy woman. I'm overweight and guilty of not eating right. I despise diets and I loathe exercise. At least the exercise that you purposefully do. I enjoy swimming, so that doesn't really feel like exercise to me. However, I have no indoor pool so I cannot swim year round as a form of preferred exercise.
Health is a never-ending cycle. Some people do it for health concerns while others seek it for pure vanity. I can honestly say that I don't fit in either category. Sure, I want to be healthy and feel good, but it's not motive enough for me to get out of bed earlier and exercise. Not to mention that I enjoy chocolate and bread far too much to cut it out. I've never been a vain person. I've lived with the mentality that either you like the way I look or you do. Neither opinion makes any difference to me. Thinking that I'm pretty doesn't feed my ego, nor does thinking I'm unattractive scar it. I am happy with the person God made me to be.
The truth is, I feel good when I exercise. I feel good when I don't stuff myself. I feel good when I realize that I'm treating my body the way God commanded for me to treat it -- as a form of worship. He created every inch of my being. God took the time to will me into existence. He knows every hair on my head and every thought in my heart. I should strive to please Him, regardless of any inconvenience I might face.
Exercise regularly -- I'll strive for that goal
Eat right -- I can always cut back without cutting out
Still die -- I will enter eternity with the knowledge that I treated my body as a temple for God. Just as Scripture commands.