body language
"I beg you through the mercy of God to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice holy and acceptable to God, your spiritual worship." —Romans 12:1
As part of a total commitment of our lives to the Lord, we offer our bodies to Him as living sacrifices. This means the Lord (and no one else) determines what we eat and drink, our bodily habits, under what conditions we use our sexual organs, how we think, how we dress, how we use our eyes, how we use our tongues, where we go, and several other aspects of life involving our bodies.
The Lord may decide to use your body to create several children in the covenant of marriage. Some of these children may be miscarried. This is an even more demanding use of your body by the Lord. The Lord may decide to give you the gift of celibacy. Your body's sexuality will then be used exclusively for spiritual, not biological, fruitfulness. If you give your body to the Lord, He may make you a caregiver, exhausting your body by giving constant care to someone who can do very little to assist you. In giving your body to the Lord, you may be healed, strengthened, and freed from stress. You may feel ten to twenty years younger. The Lord will undoubtedly use your body to suffer in the pattern of His death (see Phil 3:10). Ultimately, the Lord wants to raise your body from the dead and renew it according to the pattern of His glorified body (Phil 3:21).
It is an adventure and a privilege to give our bodies to the Lord. No one knows what He will do with our bodies. So let us trust Jesus with our bodies and find out the wonders He has planned.
Prayer: Father, thank You for the gift of my body. Do with it as you wish.
Promise: "Whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it." —Mt 16:25
Praise: Praise You, Jesus, risen in splendor and glory! We praise You with all our being. We rejoice in You!
Rescript: †Most Reverend Carl K. Moeddel, Vicar General and Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, February 8, 2005
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