To Your Health

Our bodies are amazing gifts from God. How does He want us to take care of them?

We live in a world that hurries and hurries to get things done. Everything is fast-paced, including the way we eat. Fast food is so convenient, and prepackaged foods and microwaves cut preparation time dramatically.

Although we seem to be getting more done, is all of this really good for our bodies?

Food fears

The food we choose to eat is increasingly becoming unhealthy. Often, the news is warning people to avoid eating recently recalled food items contaminated with bacteria or revealing new research about the side effects of various food additives.

For example, a couple years ago, The New York Times published an article titled “Safety of Beef Processing Method Is Questioned” where it explained that some beef was being treated with ammonia to reduce the rate of E. coli. This beef in particular was being sent to very popular fast-food restaurants as well as school cafeterias.

The article expressed concerns both that the level of ammonia required to kill bacteria was very high and that the company concerned had cut back on that level because of complaints (increasing the chance of bacteria).

The healthiness of fast food itself is also a major concern. Consider that a double quarter pounder with cheese from McDonald’s with just a small order of fries represents 47 percent of your recommended daily calories, 62 percent of your daily sodium intake and, most shocking, 85 percent of your daily fat intake. Make it a medium order of fries and you’re up to 60 percent of calories, 68 percent of sodium and 103 percent of fat!

Certainly putting this into our bodies on a regular basis makes us more at risk for heart disease, diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure, etc.

What does God say?

So what does God say about how we treat our bodies? The apostle Paul explains that we should be aware that our bodies are an amazing gift from God! He tells Church members, “Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?” (1 Corinthians 6:19).

Our body is a gift from God. During this temporary life, we should show respect to God by striving to take care of it. Verse 20 explains, “For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.” Our body is God’s body; therefore we are to treat it in a respectful and healthy manner with balance and wisdom.

Getting enough rest

Giving our body enough rest is also an extremely critical part of keeping healthy. So often, people work so much that they do not have time to catch up and let their bodies have enough rest. It is such a busy world.

Thankfully, God gave us His Sabbath as a day of rest! Mark 2:27 explains that God made the Sabbath for us. He knew we would live extremely busy lives. Also, God was the One who created the human body. He knows that we need our rest. The Sabbath day is a day to let our body relax and to focus our attention on God. It certainly is something to be thankful for!

Whether it be in what we eat or how we sleep, properly treating our body is so important that we are instructed to do so in the Bible. By treating our body with care by feeding it well and giving it rest, our physical life can be longer and healthier.

Ashley Holl is currently a freshman at Seton Hill University studying to become a physician assistant. She attends the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, congregation.

For related reading, see:

• Eating Healthy
• How Should a Christian Keep the Sabbath?
• Does God Heal People Today?