It’s hard to hear that line….”I work out”…and not be reminded of a song made familiar by LMFAO.
I’ll hear it at the gym, in a car driving by, in Denny’s at three a.m. (I highly recommend the grits, especially if you’re in lock-in mode and you’ve escaped for a few minutes to get recharged). LMFAO is an American electro pop duo consisting of rappers, producers, dancers, and DJs.
In case you weren’t aware, LMFAO’s name comes from internet/sms slang language, words that don’t need to be repeated and are beside the point so I’ll just leave it at that.
Now for the reason for this post. As I was reading this morning, I was freed of some self inflicted guilt.
I really enjoy working out. I get grumpy when I don’t get to as often as I like. It’s good for your health, helps maintain weight, and gives you more energy. But my motives for working out seem to lean toward the side of self-preservation. And, that has always seemed to me to be a bit, well….selfish.
But, as I was reading, some things occurred to me that I haven’t considered–giving additional credence to taking care of and respecting our natural bodies.
1 Corinthians 15:45-49
So it is written: “The first Adam became a living being” ; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit. The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual.The first man was of the dust of the earth; the second man is of heaven.As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the heavenly man, so also are those who are of heaven. And just as we have borne the image of the earthly man, so shall we bear the image of the heavenly man.
Now consider this thought-provoking observation from C.S. Lewis (Mere Christianity)
“Christianity is almost the only one of the great religions which thoroughly approves of the body–which believes that matter is good, that God Himself once took on a human body, that some kind of body is going to be given to us in Heaven and is going to be an essential part of our happiness, our beauty, and our energy.
When God formed the mountains, dipped his fingers into the newly created ocean, sifted the sands, brought forth wild and tame, and breathed life into humans, God called it good.
What we’re working with here, including our bodies, were created good. To take care of the body and every created thing is to care for that which God called good.
I work out. I enjoy it. It connects us with the Creator who made our hearts able to do things we never dreamt of doing. I hope to keep this in perspective as I move forward. To better understand the relationship between the physical and the spiritual. To dwell in Christ who understands both fully and gives us hope to be restored fully.
To know that “some kind of body is going to be an essential part of our happiness, our beauty, and our energy” is a really cool thing. I definitely want to keep studying the Scriptures to see this echoed in other places.
“Listen, I will tell you a mystery! We will not all die, but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and will be will changed.” (1 Cor. 15:51-52)
