When to say When

"Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God, and that you are not your own?"  1 Corinthians 6:19  NRSV


Yesterday a friend shared with me a frequent saying of one of his favorite mentors and leaders.  This high ranking official, even during high-ranking meetings, at 4:00 would dismiss himself and his staff for the day.  When confronted on this his response was "It's happy hour, and you're not making me happy."   

I laughed hard when I first heard this, and realized there was a great deal of wisdom in this leader's actions.  Now, despite the title and the bible verse and this story, the focus of today's blog is not on T-totaling or alcohol consumption in any way.   Many of us facing chronic illness, due to medications or to our condition, have to abstain from alcohol, so that's not really the issue.

The issue is limits.  This leader was paying attention to the limits his body and mind had for sitting through endless meetings, or for over-working.  I am amused that I'm even blogging about this, as the area of taking care of our bodies and putting healthy limits around us is something I must confess I'm pretty terrible at.

But the powerful scripture is clear.  Because we are the dwelling place of God's Holy Spirit-- the very breath of God-- we are called to take care of the 'building'  (our bodies).  Whether that means eating a clean diet free from the sugar, or gluten, or allergens or alcohol that causes damage to our system, or that means we are to exercies as our doctor sees fit, or setting limits on our time so we can rest, it is clear that we are to have responsibility -- to the best of our ability -- to care for our bodies, not just for our sake, but for the sake of others, and for the sake of faith.

This devotion is a difficult one for me to hear today, as the past several days I've pushed through the day because there were things that needed to get done, even though my body was really struggling. I suspect many of you know what that feels like- when even something that used to be easy becomes a huge chore. For me that is grocery shopping-  I usually enjoy it, but when I'm very symptomatic, it is a struggle to even get partway through the trip.

What does it mean to care for my body as the temple of the Holy Spirit?  In part, I think it means paying attention to the cues of pain, nausea, lightheadedness or anxiety that my body is giving.   As I said in the intro to this blog, our society is used to taking very little time being sick, and usually push through whatever we are feeling.  I can no longer do that successfully for any period of time. So that means the ripe peaches and tomatoes on the counter will have to wait a bit longer (instead of my freezing or canning them today, which I'd love to do).  The clutter on the table can wait- or I can take it a few minutes at a time to clean it off.

Ultimately, knowing when to say when is about respecting the 'temple' that we are, and being faithful in caring for it respectfully, lovingly, and gently so that God's Spirit can work most powerfully through us.  It isn't about enduring more difficulties, but rather surrendering ourselves more to God's care, trusting that when we give up having to 'do' more God actually works more fully in us.

Peace to you today as you look at your own limits, and as you care for the magnificent 'temple' that you have been made to be.

Holy God, it is difficult for many of us to go against what society has taught us about pushing through pain, and overworking ourselves.  Give us another vision about caring for this body that you've given us, and help us glorify you in the process of setting and keeping healthy limits.  Amen.