By: Hanny Lynn Stearns
Fish N
Loaves Ministries, Inc.
“Multiplying
God’s Word Around The Globe”
August 8, 2016
Our Body Is God’s
Temple
1
Corinthians 6:19
Or 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?
This is a brand new day and a
brand new week. We can walk in victory this week friends – every moment as we
depend on the Lord for our strength. He is our Comforter, He is our peace, He
is our joy. Last week as I tuned in to the voice of Holy Spirit, the Lord led
me every step. He helped me to avoid messing up my eating. When I asked Him, He
was right there to help. He is faithful. And I am fully planning on another
successful week with His mighty help. Hallelujah!
Last evening we were invited to
a gathering of people who attend our church. It was a beautiful time together
in prayer and praise, getting more aquainted with each other and sharing what
God is doing in our lives and ministries. There was no meal served – only desserts.
Whenever I hear that I know I have to prepare myself to go and eat nothing. I
ate my food at home before we left.
When we walked in I looked at
all the sugary delights they had. In my mind I thought, “How pretty it all
looks.” I had no desire whatsoever to partake in the delicasies. My sugar
carvings have long since been abated – glory to God! When I think about how
pretty the treats look, and how sweet they must taste, I remember that they are
only in our mouths for a few seconds, literally. But when we swallow them, the
are just beginning to wreak havoc on our bodies – starting with the immune
system.
When we swallow something toxic
– like sugar, it goes to work immediately to break down our system. We can
think of it like a couple of examples that came to mind this morning. I have
used this one often when talking to people about eating unhealthy food. Imagine
for a moment going out to your car and openeing the gas tank cover, and then
pouring in a coke.
What do you suppose would
happen to the engine of your car? Maybe you think that is a silly question.
Maybe in your mind you thought, “Nobody would ever do such a dumb thing!” But the
truth is, every day around the world, people are in essence doing the same
things to their bodies. How so you ask? By putting unhealthy, unnatural foods
into their mouths. Yes, anything that is not a pure and wholesome food is quite
toxic to our bodies.
We may think we are getting
away with it - for awhile. But over time, the body becomes a “trash recepticle”
that accumulates a lot toxicity until it begins to corrode, like a worn out
battery. What God created and intended to opertae at maximum capacity for an
entire lifetime has become nothing more to many folks than a trash recepticle.
How sad is that?
The truth is that when have
accpeted Jesus as our Lord and Savior, His Holy Spirit comes to live inside of
us. We then become His temple – His dwelling place. Now imagine another
scenario. Let’s say we were going to see our friends last night, but instead of
taking some healthy muffins for them to eat, I brought over my bags of trash
for the week and deposited them there. Do you suppose they would be offended? How
would it make them feel if I thought it was no big deal to fill up their home, where
they dwell, with my trash?
It wouldn’t be good at all,
would it? As ridiculous as these two analogies may seem, that is exactly what
we are doing to the Lord’s house every time we partake of something toxic –
like drugs, alcohol, unhealthy food, or even high volumes of food. We are in
essence saying, “I don’t care about this body You gave me and I do not care how
I treat it.” Imagine us verbally saying that to the Lord. Sounds hideous, doesn’t
it?
Yet, day after day, our actions
are saying just that. We are not honoring God (or His heart) with our bodies
when we turn to food and other things for comfort. It tells Him that we do not
trust Him to comfort us, so we “go to the trash can” instead. Even writing this
makes me cringe! We are not alley cats – we are human beings made in the
likeness and image of the Most High God.
Today friends, He wants us to
know that He is the God of all comfort…
1 Corinthians 1:3-4
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the
Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we
may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with
which we ourselves are comforted by God.
Today I want to encourage you. I have been down a
very long path of addiction in the past. I have walked away from cigarettes, alcohol,
street drugs, prescription drugs – and the worst of them all, sugar. And I know
it is not an easy thing to walk away from. If it were, we wouldn’t have so many
people on the planet dying from these vices. In fact, in our flesh, we can’t do
it. But with God, all things are possible. How can you make this word work for
you today?
By taking an active step of faith in God and His
power and His word. By trusting Him and calling on Him, we will get the results
we are looking for. If we claim His word – if we stand on it in faith no matter
what comes against us, we will walk out of the pit of addiction into the sweet
and loving arms of Jesus – our true Comforter.
May the Lord bless you with His
mighty comfort today as you truly put your faith in Him!
No comments:
Post a Comment