Weak, Fragile, Glorious
"He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same power with which he will bring everything under his control." --Philippians 3:21 Neat week. Tuesday we talked soreness and redemption, and yesterday the atrophy of our frail flesh was a fresh reminder of resilient grace. Eternal souls - but first - a human fate. It's been some week, amen?
And to continue the body's heavenly perspective, I want you to imagine that before your very first day of school, or prior to getting your driver's license, and even before you began the family with which you spend your days...came your body. Not only did God inspire your soul's dream, but He gave you the body necessary to pursue the job. Since God will always equip us with what we need to accomplish His will, we know our bodies were His choice. Can you imagine the moment? It was as if God said:
"Sweet soul, here is your body. I've carefully woven it together. It has what it takes for you to pursue me and tell others about me. And precious body, this is your soul. Of all the matter in the universe, this is what matters most. Carry it where it needs to go. Protect it. Honor it. Now, I want you two to be good to each other. Be friends, not enemies."
Do me a favor and take a quick glance at your arm or hands. Think for a second that God himself has touched that skin. He was first. In fact, talk to your body. It's okay, go ahead. Maybe you need to thank it. Perhaps you need to assure it. Or like me the last few years, maybe during your dark hour, you need to apologize. Could be for something you've knowingly done or for something out of your control -- an ailment, an accident maybe, or even a disease. And much like any friend going through a tough time, just tell it you're so very sorry. After all, it was God who knitted it and then breathed life into it. Miraculously, He gave your heart a knowledge that there is something more to this life than life. And like it says in our verse, in order to pursue Him and then share Him, He gave you a weak and fragile body. Oh, it may not last this earth, but you can rest assured it was indeed a match made in Heaven. Glorious.
--Jimmy Peña
CONFESSION: If some of today's devotion sounds familiar, I pulled it from my latest book, The PrayFit Diet. I just had to. It was one of those pages in the book that really spoke to our theme this week of seeing Heaven from earth. Hope it spoke to you or to someone you love. You'd bless me if you shared it.
HAVE YOU TRIED "THE PRAYFIT DIET?"
Steeped in grace, fueled by faith, written with you in mind.
Jimmy Peña, one of the nation’s most sought-after fitness experts, has been trusted by the most prominent names in the entertainment industry, including Tyler Perry, Mario Lopez, and LL Cool J, to help them look and feel their best. His highest calling, however, is transforming the bodies and souls of people all over the country through his powerful combination of faith and fitness called PrayFit.
In The PrayFit Diet, Peña offers an easy, effective program-including shopping lists, daily menus, and simple, delicious recipes. A healthy body, he explains, is not about restriction of either calories or food groups. Instead, it’s all about eating in equilibrium -- a perfect 33% macronutrient balance of carbs, protein, and fat every day, which will allow you to make dramatic changes to your health and your waistline. The balanced approach of The PrayFit Diet is not only inspired by biblical principles, but it’s also supported by today’s cutting-edge science, and Peña gives you a plan to shed weight and the motivation to keep it off for a lifetime.
In The PrayFit Diet, Peña shows us how faith is the most powerful tool we have to conquer all of life’s obstacles, and that includes our health. More importantly, God wants you to be at your best, physically and spiritually. By combining perfectly proportioned meals with biblically based motivation, The PrayFit Diet will give you all the tools you need to live a life that will both inspire you and honor the Lord.