04/03/2011 - by Chuck Monan, Preaching Minister

Physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.
~ 1 Timothy 4:8

Every time I read this verse I think of the words of the late Avon Malone: “Bodily exercise profiteth little, but I need the little that it profiteth...”  Deny it, who can?  OK, maybe Nick Hamilton, but most of the rest of us would likely admit that we ought to be spending a little more time with Barry Marshall in the Family Life Center and a little less time with Chuck Monan at Bobby’s Country Cookin’.

But I digress.

The Bible teaches that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 6:19).  Part of honoring God with our bodies surely includes a healthy balance of diet, exercise and rest.  Whenever one part of this trifecta is out of balance, we are the poorer for it.  Most of us would do well to remember Paul’s admonition “I will not be mastered by anything” in relation to bad habits in these areas, as well as in all areas of our lives.

That said, a recent article by Ariel Kaminer in the New York Times piqued my curiosity with this headline: “Have Faith, Lose Weight.  But First, Candy.”

Now here was an idea whose time had come.

Kaminer was writing about Journey Church, a modern evangelical outfit with four locations in New York City.  As part of their effort to reach a wider    circle of city residents they had launched a media blitz publicizing a six-week teaching series called BOD4GOD, inspired by the writings of Steve Reynolds.  The basic message is that poor self-image leads to poor health, resulting in bad diet, insufficient exercise, dangerous substances, and dubious sexual choices.  Kaminer was excited that church volunteers offered her candy and doughnuts at the Sunday service.  She comments:

New York may lag behind the rest of the country in the language of evangelical self-help, but when it comes to fitness obsession, surely few cities can touch us .. It’s surprising, then, that so few have thought to merge the discourse of God and the discourse of bod.  Linking the two has a number of strategic advantages over the standard “look better in a bikini” sales pitch -- most notably the chance for followers to outsource their motivation to a higher power.

It’s also an opportunity for the church to prove its value in something concrete -- ounces and pounds -- rather than the more intangible calculus of spiritual progress.

It is easier to lose a few pounds than to grow spiritually.  Both require work, but the former can be done by mindlessly following a set routine.  Spiritual growth requires our hearts to change, our minds to grow, and our habits to change.  It demands participation by the whole person, not just part.

If we will commit to doing our part, the Lord will do his part (Eph. 1:3-10).