There are probably a few hundred reasons that might motivate you to care for yourself and to be healthy. Here are five, actually four, reasons that motivate me at a really deep level… and I think that these are reasons why God would want us all to be motivated by.
- It glorifies God
- You’re taking care of your body – His temple
- It’s being a good witness
- You’ll have more energy – be better equipped for what God has planned for you
- I need your help with a 5th reason?
It Glorifies God
The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 10:31 that whatever we do we’re to do it to the glory of God. It also tells us in Isaiah that we were created and formed by God to glorify Him. This is our primary purpose in life – to glorify God. We do that when we care for our body and live a healthy lifestyle.
Our Body is God’s Temple and for Us to Care For
One scripture that reminds us that our body is God’s temple is 1 Corinthians 6:19-20. God’s Holy Spirit lives inside a believer. After we accept Jesus into our heart, God gives us His Spirit to help us live the kind of life He wants us to live. Since God actually lives in us, Paul tells us in this verse that our body is His temple. Since God “bought” us with a high price, Jesus’ death, than we are obligated to care for our body which is His temple.
If you are not a believer in Jesus but want to join His family, read more here.
Being Healthy is Being a Good Witness
Acts 1:8 reminds us that we are to be witnesses for other people. People look for us to be models of the Christian faith. We ought to desire to live our lives in a way that represents our faith well. Taking care of our health is one way that we can be a good witness.
You’ll Have More Energy to Do God’s Work
Ephesians 2:10 helps us see that we are God’s masterpiece, created to do the good things that He had planned a long time ago for us to do. We all know that the more fit and healthy we are the more energy we will have. The more energy that we have, the more we can put into whatever task we are doing. We’ll also be better able to sustain ourself for the long haul.
What’s a 5th Reason?
What is one other reason that you think God wants us to be healthy? Comment by adding a 5th reason that you think would be pleasing to God.
Something to Reflect On
What we believe determines what we do. I suspect that if you believe what I’ve written above, and you value your relationship with God, it’s likely that you are taking good care of your body and your health.
How well are you taking care of yourself and your health?
If your relationship with God is important to you, and you’re not taking too good care of your body, could you use this post as an inspiration to better care for your body?
God gives us stewardship of so many things in life. In Genesis, He expresses Heaven’s will that we care for the earth; and that’s for our sake and His glory.
In the New Testament, He tells us to live in Him, to be clean hearted, to consider one another part of a Heaven-bound body that needs personal peace but that also needs life more abundantly (that needs both spiritual and physical nourishment in order to grow in Him).
The New Testament word says, through Paul, not to fall into fighting over differences in what we each feel we should be thankful for in way of food, because, utimately, our bodies do die and passing to Heaven isn’t about what we’ve had for sustenance.
Yet, while we are present in earth, we’re still stewarts of the natural, including our own bodies.
So, one reason for us to take care of ourselves, as members of Christ’s body, is that, from Genesis up until Glory, it is always God’s will for us to be good stewards of everything Heaven gives, including our own bodies (Matthew 24:45-51). That means that, as a Christian,
5. You’re being a good stewart, valuing the kind of life God intends, instead of killing, diminishing, and hurting God’s way of keeping us well.
With godly rest, abiding in Jesus instead of anyone mistreating us and denying us proper food, we are able to say, as in Nehemiah, “The joy of the Lord is my strength,” and that, when I am well, as in the New Testament, “I can do all things in Christ who gives me STRENGTH.”
We were bought with the price of Heaven’s blood; so we belong to Heaven. We belong to Jesus. And it’s written into our witness in Him that, because of HIS self sacrifice, we are healed.
Honoring our faith, we’re meant to help take care of the body of believers, including ourselves. We’re meant to live at peace and healed, and God gives us stewardship to help bring about that end.
You make some excellent point Kim. Thank you.. and blessings to you! ~ Dale
I believe that the 5th reason is a simple and powerful one. And it is one that I experience every day!
5. A healthy body and mind encourage healthy spiritual thoughts, closer to God!
I wont lie, for a while i was in denial because I thought: if I’m God’s child, why wouldnt he let me eat junk and still be a good witness? But it seems God is best glorified when we exercise self-discipline and self denial. after all, that is Jesus’ “trademark”
5th reason might be obedience to God!
Jeremiah 7:23
“But this is what I commanded them, saying, ‘Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you will be My people; and you will walk in all the way which I command you, that it may be well with you.’
There are many verses about obedience. And that is what God wants us to be. Not to take away our way, but to give us choices. But His choices are His very best for us. I choose to seek His will. I am not perfect by any means but I seek to be Christ-like!
I believe that eating healthy, and being healthy, strengthens ones connection with God. This stronger connection with God strengthens ones conversations with God, through prayer, and in whatever mysterious ways God communicates to us. This is what comes to my mind for a 5th reason.
We need to be whole and readily equipped to do the work of God. Therefore our bodies must be free of sickness and disease. Armor of God” is derived from Ephesians 6:11: “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” . Armor of God” is derived from Ephesians 6:11: “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.”
the paragraph under Our Body is God’s Temple and for Us to Care For says “htis” when it is means to say “this
Thank for this reminder of what God expect from me when It comes to my health. And also helping me to stay on track with my journey to good health. Reading this has refresh my thinking and now I will move to the next level of my good health journey. My 5th reason would be God needs us to be health so we can encourage other to come to his saving grace. And know God does want us to be sick and fight sickness daily. He want us to be good health and spreading the word about who he is. Thanks
The 5th Reason
Be Physically Fit Healthy and strong in order to Spread the Gospel to the places where an unfit, disable, sick or older person cannot go.
Thank you for posting and sharing this. I’ve not taken good care of my body, unmindful that I am not my own, and I am repenting now. I’ve suffered from consequences of a bad diet, bad sleep, and lack of activity, and none of these things would’ve happened if I had done what I was meant to.
5th reason: God wants us to be healthy and exercise improves our health greatly. We can be sure we are doing God’s will if we work out with the right motives. The Holy Spirit wrote this words: ‘My loved one, it is my prayer that you may do well in all things, and be healthy in body, even as your soul does well.’ (3 John 01.02). This can be seen both as a promise and as responsibility.
Thank-you for this article. We eat according to the way God meant for us to eat. God Created Foods in which He wants us to eat. NIV Ephesians 5:29 After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church. 1 Timothy 4:3 abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving. Thanks
My idea is the healthier we get the better we can deal with the stress that we DO have in this broken world and the more powerful we can fight the enemy with Scripture and physique. Thx for your site and for helping see my momentarily approach to healthy living though compulsive will definitely help me with the love of God fight anxiety and fear of death and….through you I know it is His will for me to be healthy. Thx again and God bless.
The fifth reason…on your journey, there will be others who will be looking to you. To encourage, inspire, challenge, and help. It is written that I can do all things through Christ that strengthens me. Be a living example of Jesus, for it is Him that gives us that blessed Victory bringing honor and glory to God. Enjoy the greatest journey that the human heart has ever known.
The 5th reason is because God wants us to be bold and confident in our appearance and how we feel about ourselves. Many of us are confident in certain areas of our life, but God sees the bigger picture and wants us to bold and confident WHOLEHEARTEDLY!
I think a 5th reason would be giving glory to God’s creation. God gave us everything we need in his creation to be well and healthy. When we start messing with God’s creation by growing food with unnatural pesticides and fertilizers, that’s when food becomes less than what it was supposed to be and actually harmful. We need to have respect for what God created for us to eat. Then we can be blessed with the health he meant for us to have.
Thanks for 5 Reasons Why God Wants Us Healthy, Well and Fit, I think the 5th Reason is, To Fulfill his good purpose. (Phili 2:13)
I think a good 5th reason is that staying fit, eating healthy, teaches the person discipline. This discipline translates into other areas of life, like your spiritual life.
My sister – 1 Corinthians only goes to chapter 16. If you can correct the Bible reference under Our Body is God’s Temple and for Us to Care For, that would be helpful.
Great catch Diana. Thank you! Done!
Thank you for this…. A healthy body creates a healthy mind…. a healthy mind creates good positive thinking… it will be easy to renew the mind according to scripture… Romans 12:2… 🙂 God bless you
Christ came that we might have life more abundantly, so taking care of our “temples” only helps to serve this cause. Blessings and health to all.
This post is very inspirational. It brought tears to my eyes as I have recently taken my relationship with God to a higher level. I want to improve my health and eating to reflect my gratitude for all that he has given me and love I am shown daily by the Lord. Thank you so much for the encouragement.
Hello Rachael. I don’t believe that there could be a more pure motivation for taking better care of one’s body than to be motivated by the love that God has and will continue to display to us. Our bodies are indeed a gift from God. And Jesus did pay a high price for our freedom from sin and the eternal life we receive by accepting him as our Savior. May the Holy Spirit empower you to make your desired health changes. ~ Dale
Thank you for sharing. I’m about to start teaching an exercise program at our church, and wanted to give the ladies a godly perspective on how we should be wise stewards of what He has entrusted to us.
I was also thinking about a 5th point for you, and was reminded of how God says in Genesis that He thought “it was good” when He finished creating man. It seems that He was pleased with how He had made us, and we would be wise to be faithful in caring for what He has given. 🙂
This is a great read. My sister and I are actually getting prepared to start a personal training company dedicated to help others spiritually and physically be prepared for the things God has designed for us as Christians to go through. Our bodies are temples of God and we do not belong to ourselves. For example, if we were to allow a friend to borrow something we greatly valued we would expect them to return in good condition. We would be hurt and disappointed if they gave it back destroyed. Therefore our bodies belong to God. Isn’t he much greater and shouldn’t we take good care of the temple that he has allowed us to borrow until he calls us home? I love this post….
Thank you so much for this,lately the holy Spirit has been drawing my attention towards my health and I realized that I have not been fueling my body with the right things and not exercising,so I repented of that and now am on my journey of healthy eating and caring for my body.. Well I would say for the 5th one,the Lord entrust me with my body,so it’s my responsibility to take care of it for his glory!!!
Hello Vera,
I’m so happy that you’ve been able to gain some keen insight into your behaviors and that you’re caring for your body, God’s temple, more diligently! All for His glory! ~ Dale
Thank you for this great breakdown! I’m preparing a message to give to middle school aged girls about staying active and healthy and why it’s important. This post was helpful and echoed many of the things I was already planning on pointing out. The scripture to confirm these reasons were very well thought out and I am thankful I stumbled upon this post! I use my workout time as an act of worship – I blast my worship songs and praise God while I’m working out – so I get in some “quiet” time with the Lord while I’m helping keep my body healthy.
2 Chronicles 30:22
Hezekiah encouraged all the Levites regarding the skill they displayed as they served the LORD. The celebration continued for seven days. Peace offerings were sacrificed, and the people gave thanks to the LORD, the God of their ancestors.
Note: One important purpose of the peace offering was to express gratitude to God for health or for safety in times of crisis.
Thanks for sharing your insights on this Sarah. Many blessings to you! Dale
Mark 12:28
The greatest commandment is this to love the lord your God with ALL your heart, ALL your soul, ALL your mind, And ALL your Strength……
Galatians 5:22-23
The fruits of the spirit are love joy peace patience kindness goodness faithfulness gentleness and SELF-CONTROL.
5. To give God the glory.
If the spirit of God lives in us and we are the temple should we not try to keep ourselves pure and righteous and holy in all areas of our lives.
Awesome scripture.
5th reason; because God wants us to live abundant life and wants us to always do what is right; taking care of our thoughts, mind and body is the right thing to do and gives life to abundancy.