A Sunday Thought to Start the Week Off Right
Well, here we are in the belly of the summer beast, when heat and humidity rule the day here in the Northeast. But despite it all, even if you're not heading outdoors when it's really hot and sticky, you're still doing some sort of exercise, right? Sure you are, especially if you're not in the habit of running, jumping or pumping during the week (which, of course you should be).
So what's this all about? Well, it's about encouraging you to treat your body like what it was designed to be: a Temple of the Holy Spirit.
Now, to be sure, this Temple of ours isn't all about matter and muscles. It starts with the spiritual. As long as we're in the state of grace, we know the Holy Spirit dwells within us. And so we acknowledge the Spirit's indwelling by communicating with Him in some way: prayer, meditation, spiritual reading that draws us closer to Him, etc. And isn't Sunday the perfect time to remind ourselves of all this? Yes!
But we want that Temple to stand tall, to be strong enough to withstand not only the spiritual buffeting thrown our way by the world, the flesh, and the devil, but also the physical beating we take in so many ways in our active, busy lives. I don't know about you, but sometimes, when the weekend rolls around, I feel like a couple of guys with rubber hoses worked me over. Over time, I figured out the antidote to this wasn't Advil or other drugs, comfort food, liquor, sleeping late, or the myriad of other distractions and amusements we moderns have at our fingertips. No, it's exercise.
This dawned on me pretty early in life, but I can't take much credit for that. The first time I started exercising regularly had more to do with a Temple that was in need of repairs, and at a rather young age. I won't go into the details now, but suffice it to say I needed to get into some sort of shape - any sort of shape - to counter a specific physical challenge I had encountered. But since then, over decades, I've tried lots of different forms of exercise ranging from mid to long-distance jogging, shorter distance running, lifting weights, various machines in gyms, body weight exercises (no dumbbells, just your body and gravity), static and dynamic stretching - and the list goes on. Why? Because a) After years of mostly jogging, I injured my knees and calves and needed to do something else; b) I grew to like variety; c) I discovered that variety is not only "the spice of life," but that it's important to switch things up if you want to make any noticeable progress in getting in shape.
So that's my story. What's yours? If it's "I don't like to exercise," I hope you're in such naturally good shape that your Temple stands strong and tall. 'Cause if it's doesn't, you're not pulling your weight. And as you get older, if you don't stay on top of things, you'll find the Temple will become more like those houses you see owned by seniors who haven't the means or the gumption to keep up with maintenance, and can't afford (or refuse) to pay someone else to do the dirty work.
Okay, so you're thinking your soul is more important than your body here. Shouldn't we be talking about keeping Sunday holy rather than keeping our bodies fit? I can only give you my answer: No; we need to do both. We're creatures of God made up of soul and body. Remember that when Our Lord rose from the dead, He wasn't some disembodied spirit. He had a "glorified" body. And when He ascended into Heaven, He did so Body and Soul. Of course, what the nature of that glorified Body might be remains pretty much a mystery. (We do know some of the things it could do while our Lord remained present on earth during the 40 days between His Resurrection and His Ascension, from the Gospels.)
We bring all this up in order to encourage you to at the very least keep your body fit and in good health as far as you are able. The one caveat here would be this: If you're inclined to get into fantastic shape, you'll want to avoid being vain, prideful, or any of the natural temptations that may come your way if you're physical appearance is attractive. But that's no reason to let yourself go.
For those of you who do work out all week, Sunday may turn out to be your one day "off" of course. But for the rest of us who need to "catch up" with our physical fitness on weekends, you can prayerfully do that, especially when you do it on Sunday. It's really a perfect time to let Our Lord know your efforts to respect your body as a Temple of the Holy Spirit are intended to serve Him, to help you to better do His Will. Take that intention to the the track, the gym, or, if you manage your physical fitness at home, your living room.
Meanwhile, whatever your plans for the day, have a Happy Sunday!
So what's this all about? Well, it's about encouraging you to treat your body like what it was designed to be: a Temple of the Holy Spirit.
Now, to be sure, this Temple of ours isn't all about matter and muscles. It starts with the spiritual. As long as we're in the state of grace, we know the Holy Spirit dwells within us. And so we acknowledge the Spirit's indwelling by communicating with Him in some way: prayer, meditation, spiritual reading that draws us closer to Him, etc. And isn't Sunday the perfect time to remind ourselves of all this? Yes!
But we want that Temple to stand tall, to be strong enough to withstand not only the spiritual buffeting thrown our way by the world, the flesh, and the devil, but also the physical beating we take in so many ways in our active, busy lives. I don't know about you, but sometimes, when the weekend rolls around, I feel like a couple of guys with rubber hoses worked me over. Over time, I figured out the antidote to this wasn't Advil or other drugs, comfort food, liquor, sleeping late, or the myriad of other distractions and amusements we moderns have at our fingertips. No, it's exercise.
This dawned on me pretty early in life, but I can't take much credit for that. The first time I started exercising regularly had more to do with a Temple that was in need of repairs, and at a rather young age. I won't go into the details now, but suffice it to say I needed to get into some sort of shape - any sort of shape - to counter a specific physical challenge I had encountered. But since then, over decades, I've tried lots of different forms of exercise ranging from mid to long-distance jogging, shorter distance running, lifting weights, various machines in gyms, body weight exercises (no dumbbells, just your body and gravity), static and dynamic stretching - and the list goes on. Why? Because a) After years of mostly jogging, I injured my knees and calves and needed to do something else; b) I grew to like variety; c) I discovered that variety is not only "the spice of life," but that it's important to switch things up if you want to make any noticeable progress in getting in shape.
So that's my story. What's yours? If it's "I don't like to exercise," I hope you're in such naturally good shape that your Temple stands strong and tall. 'Cause if it's doesn't, you're not pulling your weight. And as you get older, if you don't stay on top of things, you'll find the Temple will become more like those houses you see owned by seniors who haven't the means or the gumption to keep up with maintenance, and can't afford (or refuse) to pay someone else to do the dirty work.
Okay, so you're thinking your soul is more important than your body here. Shouldn't we be talking about keeping Sunday holy rather than keeping our bodies fit? I can only give you my answer: No; we need to do both. We're creatures of God made up of soul and body. Remember that when Our Lord rose from the dead, He wasn't some disembodied spirit. He had a "glorified" body. And when He ascended into Heaven, He did so Body and Soul. Of course, what the nature of that glorified Body might be remains pretty much a mystery. (We do know some of the things it could do while our Lord remained present on earth during the 40 days between His Resurrection and His Ascension, from the Gospels.)
We bring all this up in order to encourage you to at the very least keep your body fit and in good health as far as you are able. The one caveat here would be this: If you're inclined to get into fantastic shape, you'll want to avoid being vain, prideful, or any of the natural temptations that may come your way if you're physical appearance is attractive. But that's no reason to let yourself go.
For those of you who do work out all week, Sunday may turn out to be your one day "off" of course. But for the rest of us who need to "catch up" with our physical fitness on weekends, you can prayerfully do that, especially when you do it on Sunday. It's really a perfect time to let Our Lord know your efforts to respect your body as a Temple of the Holy Spirit are intended to serve Him, to help you to better do His Will. Take that intention to the the track, the gym, or, if you manage your physical fitness at home, your living room.
Meanwhile, whatever your plans for the day, have a Happy Sunday!
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