For in him we live and move and exist. As some of your own poets have said, “We are his offspring.” Acts 17:28 NLT
We have remarkable bodies. Of course, no one is born perfectly and many of us have had things happen (accidents, disease) that have altered the ideal of our bodies. But most everyone can move in one way or another, and that ability is an investment God has made in us. Paul was in Athens, Greece, and the philosophers of the day heard him speaking. They asked him to deliver a spontaneous speech, being fascinated with the ideas he was espousing. He had seen an altar there with the inscription, “To the Unknown God.” He used that as his starting point for an amazing conversation, telling them he was talking about the God they believed in without knowing who He was. He said this God was the very reason they existed to begin with; the reason they’re alive and have the freedom to move.
Now most people in those days didn’t need to make machines or routines to make sure they had healthy movement. Just to do the normal things required in a day – solid research says the average person would walk around eight miles daily. When they traveled to another village for some reason, a day’s journey was about twenty miles. Most occupations involved physical labor. You can see they were grateful for the ability to move. The only people who had weight or non-exercise related health issues were the rich and powerful, ones who had sufficient resources to have others do the physical work and/or take them places on animals or in carriages.
But whether then or now, whatever reasonable amount of daily “movement” you can do is a good way to honor God and worship, honoring God with your body. It honors God and helps you. Our modern world tends to give us sedentary lifestyles unless we work otherwise. Why should we prioritize movement? Movement jump starts joy! God made our bodies to be healthier and happier when we move. Humans have known for centuries (way back to Aristotle, for instance) that we need to move for mental health. The hormones we need for our brains course through us when we move. You honor God when you move your body to do good for others. Paul told both Titus and Timothy that they needed to be “ready to do good works” (Titus 3:1 and 2 Timothy 2:21). Our usefulness takes on a new level when we are healthy enough to work for others with energy and let our light shine. We generally increase our life expectancy with exercise and movement. This elongates our witness for God. We may add years to our valuable time on the planet just by taking care of our health as worship.
- What is God saying to you? Is there anything you could do more effectively to worship God with your physical movement and activity?