Aaaaggh!
I spent over 24 years of my adult life as an officer in the US Army. To say that I was in good physical condition would be a gross understatement. I served a tour of duty in the 75th Ranger Regiment, one of the Army’s elite organizations. I was a paratrooper, jumping out of perfectly good airplanes and floating to Earth under a silk canopy. I also served in the 10th Mountain Division, one of the Army’s toughest and most respected divisions. Since 2001, the 10th Mountain has been the most deployed division in the US Army. The Army encourages, even demands, good physical fitness of its soldiers.
Fitness is in my DNA. I feel out of sorts if I can’t exercise three to four days per week. Nevertheless, I find myself in a fitness conundrum today. When I retired from the Army in 2001, I was a fit 205 pounds, well within the limits for my muscular, six-foot frame. Today I find myself about 30 pounds heavier; the extra weight can be attributed to a combination of age, indiscipline, and total knee replacement surgery, which I underwent about 11 months ago; the latter totally wrecked my physical fitness routine. I’m still in recovery!
I’m not happy with my current weight. Until a couple of weeks ago, I viewed my condition as purely a physical fitness challenge—a need to get back into shape to reverse the changes that have taken place since my surgery. However, I recently experienced a healthy change of attitude.
I credit the change to my dear friend Cliff, who also struggles with his weight. He recently introduced me to a book called Every Body Matters, by Gary Thomas. As the book cover explains, it is about “Strengthening Your Body to Strengthen Your Soul.”
Having personally struggled with his weight, Thomas uses scripture to demonstrate that, for Christians, physical health is as important as spiritual health. Thomas demonstrates that physical fitness, rather than being something that make us more attractive to others, makes us more useful to God. I recommend his book to anyone who has struggled with physical fitness or being overweight. Thomas offers a Holy Spirit-led approach to developing a physical being that is of maximum use to God.
Thomas cites these words of St. Paul: (All Bible citations were taken from the ESV.)
Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20
…I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified. 1 Corinthians 9:27
…let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God. 2 Corinthians 7:1
Many Bible commentators interpret bodily sins to mean sexual sins. While Thomas would agree with this, he goes on to discuss the need for developing discipline in what we put into our bodies (i.e. food). As I previously noted, he frames the discussion in terms of disciplining our bodies, not to make us attractive to others, but to glorify God (…you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. 1 Corinthians 6:20)
I highly recommend Every Body Matters to all Christians who struggle with their weight. I promise it will change your perspective on being overweight and motivate you to do something about it. It has led my wife and me to challenge each other. During the upcoming season of Lent (Feb 14 – Mar 29), we will embark upon a 40-day regimen of time-restricted eating.
In a nutshell, this means we’ll eat normally for 6 hours each day, while fasting the remaining 18 hours. By most accounts, this eating pattern is easy to adjust to and usually results in remarkable weight loss for those having the discipline to stick with it. We’re not looking for a new diet or fad, but a lifestyle change. Wish us luck! At some point in the future, I’ll share our experience.
Protecting your health is the same as protecting the vehicle with which God wants to change the world. —Gary Thomas
Divine Simplicity 