Back in the day Olivia Newton-John sang a song called ‘Let’s Get Physical’. It turned out to be among other things a great song to use at the gym whilst on the treadmill. Not that I would know from experience, because I wouldn’t be seen dead on a treadmill. Yet it’s that very reluctance to take my physical health seriously enough that made the weekend series on the issue so important.
It’s all well and good doing the church
stuff. Go to church, sing the songs, give to the offering and that’s about it.
Of course we have to look after the spiritual man with prayer and bible study.
Often however we can – I can get things so high minded that I forget one
crucial thing. That thing is that God created the physical as well as the
spiritual. Indeed how we deal with the physical is often a better reflection of
how we cope with the spiritual and Jesus Himself suggests if we can’t get it in
the physical, we’ll struggle with the spiritual things (cf. John 3:12).
The weekend was an exploration in how we
are responsible for the body God has given us. An often neglected or
over-emphasised area of the three parts that make up the human experience –
spiritual-emotional-spiritual – the training session put things in a perspective
that left all attendants in no doubt that how we treat our bodies matters to
God.
These considered three important aspects
– Exercise, Nutrition and Rest. It was fascinated seeing the biblical
perspective from the beginning on issues like the food we should eat; the
importance of rest as an individual and collective exercise as well as
considering carefully the benefits of implementing regular physical exercise to
our lives.
This was no mere theoretical exercise of
listening and reading – active participation was the order of the two days.
These included the experiential elements of a ‘light’ physical work-out (light
for some, others recognised that if this was light, they had a long way to go
to make light). Participants also practiced therapeutic methods of massage both
for the self and on someone else. Topping this off was a remarkably informative
and engaging look at healthy eating with samples on hand that impressed those
looking on. What stood out was just what you could do with the wide range of
fruits, vegetables, pulses and other fresh and natural foods that can provide
all the nutrition needed to make progress to a sustainable and energy-filled
life.
All this delivered in a God-centred way
for us to see the connection between the way God wants us to live and what He
has provided to make that happen. It was enlightening to many in attendance
especially when contrasted to a lot of the ways the world conditions people to
go for cheap, quick and often unhealthy options.
With the opportunity as ever to listen,
engage, reflect and map out ways to progress in the light of what we knew, the
weekend was a thoroughly stimulating experience. Oenca delivered a superbly
crafted weekend with the input of some special guest presenters and practitioners.
The Purley Chase staff also accommodated everyone with splendid accommodation
and suitable meals to compliment what was being delivered.
Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy
Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your
own; 20 you were bought at a price. Therefore honour
God with your bodies. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NIV)
It’s more than just getting physical –
as Olivia Newton-John suggested. It’s about recognising that as the creation of
God we are to glorify Him with the physical as well as the emotional and
spiritual. The weekend certainly reinforced the importance of not leaving the
temple in ruins, but ensuring it’s treated with appropriate rest, nutrition and
exercise so God is glorified.
~ Written by Christopher Dryden ~
