Making Your Spiritual Health a Priority

The kitchen table became my pillow one day as I was so lethargic that I laid my head down and didn’t want to move. Thinking something was wrong with me, I headed to the doctor and the diagnosis was stress. My body was in constant fight or flight mode and that spun my system into adrenal fatigue. Managing stress so that my adrenals would stay neutral became my new normal. This meant a change in diet, an increase in physical exercise and better sleep.

Making my physical health a priority did have positive results. I lost weight, balanced the adrenals and lowered numbers. But, no matter how physically fit I am, if I am spiritually flabby, my life will not be all God has intended for me.

Body and Soul

Did you know that the primary purpose for the human body is to provide residence for the Holy Spirit? Romans 8:11 says it this way:

“If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.”

As believers in Jesus, our hope is not just for our current physical life. It’s for the eternal life to come. Francis Chan uses a visual prop of a rope that goes on for eternity on one end with a small piece of tape at the other end. That small piece of tape represents our life on the rope of eternity. So small tape living is out of proportion to living for eternity. Our spiritual health must be our priority. It gives life to our physical health.

God values our bodies as He chose to use them to be a temple for the Holy Spirit living inside each of us.

1 Corinthian 6:19-20 says: “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”

Taking care of our bodies is necessary but we also have a soul that needs care. Do we think we can care about one and not the other?

Just Like We Need to Keep Fit Physically We Need to Keep Fit Spiritually

Spiritual flabbiness like mine meant my soul needed cleansing because my clogged spiritual arteries told me I care too much about what others think and not enough about what God thinks. All that junk put clouds in my coffee, meaning I couldn’t see my flab!

But I knew stress can be a major cause of physical problems. And…I also knew that prayer was powerful and could reduce and even eliminate the physiological effects of stress. I knew that prayer would be the Roto Rooter for my clogged soul.

And, I also knew that cleansing my soul starts with the right spiritual food. The good food of God’s Word, and a new diet for a diseased soul that would keep me properly fed. And, as with any new diet, I’ve got to take it seriously and discipline myself with healthy habits. This is not a ten day cleanse but a lifetime habit of feeding and nourishing your soul.

The Heavenly Gym

How you live your today’s impact your tomorrow. Are you living like you expect to live forever or are you only focused on this life? Are you constantly caught up with the stress of this life and living with clouds in your coffee?

Regular exercise for a healthy spiritual lifestyle means it’s time to go to the heavenly gym. Because lifting weights off our souls, strengthening our hearts through Jesus cardio, builds our endurance for a life of faith.