When I taught our oldest son to drive I tried to teach him more than just the basics of the road. I showed him how to avoid accidents, how to drive defensively. I even tried to show him how to drive on snow and to turn his lights on in the rain.
I later realized that one thing I didn’t teach him was to take care of the vehicle. He knew he had to put gas in it, but other than that, he must have thought cars were supposed to last forever. He never initiated an oil change on his own. He drove for thirty days with the engine warning light flashing on his dash, before telling me.
Our physical bodies are like that vehicle. Just as my son’s car is his transportation to get from place to place, our bodies are the vehicle God has given us to carry out our life.
1 Corinthians 10:31 says that “whatever we do…we are to do it to the glory of God.” We are to honor God with our body. The way we treat our body is important to God. God cares if we take care of the vehicle for life He has given us.
I believe we need to think more about our physical health. Doesn’t the way we feel physically affect every other aspect of our life? If we don’t feel well physically we are not going to be as effective in any other area of your life.
It is proven in clinical studies that there is a direct connection between physical health and our emotional health. Poor fitness can contribute to depression, anxiety, and a host of other emotional disorders. The same is true of our spiritual life. When we are sick, we will be less effective for God.
One question to consider is: Would there be a value in being healthier?
There is a story in the Old Testament, which has encouraged and challenged me. After Joshua and Caleb took over command from Moses and became the leaders of the Israelites, Caleb told Joshua, “So here I am today, eighty-five years old! I am still as strong today as the day Moses sent me out; I’m just as vigorous to go out to battle now as I was then.” (Joshua 14:10-11) At 85 years old Caleb was still fighting; still going strong.
That’s what I want my life to be like. My motivation for the health kick is different than it used to be. I’m passed the trying to look good stage and into the trying to feel good in the morning stage. I don’t want unproductive years of my life.
How do we continue to be productive like Caleb was? How do we remain productive at 85 years? I don’t know that I have all the answers, but I’m fairly confident that we don’t start at 85. We start at 20 years…30 years…40 years of age.
Thankfully it’s not rocket science when it comes to being more physically fit. Unless something is seriously wrong with us, for most of us if we want to be more physically fit we need to eat less and exercise more. The question is not whether we have the right diet as much as it is whether or not we are going to follow through.
I have a repeat closing question to consider. Could your quality of life be improved if you were more physically fit? Is there something you can do to improve your physical life? What are you going to do about it?
Ron,
I’m almost 40 and just starting my career in the fitness industry, teaching group exercise. My focus is on helping people realize the benefits of being healthy and making it fun. I’ve linked your article on my site. Thanks for the great info, both for my fitness friends and myself.
.-= Paula Roberts´s last blog ..Don’t wait to get Healthy! =-.
Paula, I looked at your site and love it! I love people who start new things at any age! I was 41 when I planted this, my 2nd church plant. It’s been a wild ride!
Ron
Thanks for this challenging, but encouraging message. I really needed to hear this tonight! It is time to draw the line in the sand and get serious! 🙂 Lana
.-= Lana´s last blog ..Fearless =-.
Ouch!!! Something I needed to hear again but really didn’t want to. Thank you so much for sharing this. I think maybe I will need to go and get on the exceriser. I do know that it makes me feel better always, it is just the starting that is so hard.
Thanks Ron for this message this morning! This is exactly what I needed to read this morning!
Hi Ron! Enjoyed this article about health. Three years ago, I started changing my life through exercising at the Y….I was diligent about exercise but not so diligent about my nutrition…that came later and I have made a complete turn-around in my health since combining the two…Who knew?? Diet and Exercise? Something I’ve heard all my life. I am a better wife, mom and friend because of it…there’s hope for anyone at any age who really wants to change how they feel.