Thursday mornings at 8:30 am finds me gathering with 3 to 5 other women, depending on who shows up, spending a half-hour in contemplative prayer.  Our two inspiring leaders, Gail and Kathy, always provide us with a theme for the day along with applicable Bible verses and other quotes.  Today’s theme was fitness – taking care of our bodies…a topic near and dear to my heart, and on which you will hear me harp frequently.

In one of my posts nearly a year ago (see: Taking Care of My Vessel), I wrote about the idea of our body being the vessel that carries us through life, so we need to take good care of it.  One of our Biblical references this morning was from 1 Corinthians 3.  Paraphrasing – each of us is a temple housing God’s spirit; God’s temple is sacred – so, in essence, our body is sacred!  What better reason do we need to handle it with care?

My suggestions for taking care of our body both physically and mentally are listed below.  (This is the repeating part – I know I am reiterating here, but I feel it is a worthy endeavor.)

• Eat lots of vegetables, a few less fruits; and, don’t forget to include protein and a good fat with each meal and snack.
• Drink lots of water each day.
• Get a good night’s rest – 7-8 hours of good sleep.
• Exercise regularly.  Include enjoying the outdoors as often as possible – walk, golf, ski, garden, jog, bike, play ball with your kids or grandkids, etc.
• Pray, meditate, sit in silence (no technology/social media!) for several minutes or longer each day.
• Keep a mental or written gratitude journal and add to it each day.
• Spend time regularly interacting with other individuals – family, friends, co-workers, community.  Studies have shown that for a variety of reasons, maintaining friendships can increase longevity!
• No texting or sending/reading emails while driving!  In fact, how about NOT using cell phones at all while driving!?!
• Relax!

Cassie sits on my lap as I write this.  We should all take a lesson from her in how to relax!

Take good care of yourself!

Your body is sacred.