I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Psalm 139:14

I praise God for the gift of my body.

It is not what it might be or ought to be. I have inherited from a long line of ancestors, stretching all the way back to Adam, flaws and weaknesses and susceptibilities that have weakened and maimed it. I have also inherited that fatal sickness of sin that leads to death. Yet it is a wonderful machine I inhabit--this body of mine--while I live.

With no conscious effort on my part, my heart keeps beating, my lungs breathe, my glands secrete, food is digested, and my body is kept in constant repair.

But greatest of all natural gifts is the gift of reason. My body may not have the sight of an eagle, the strength of a horse, or the speed of an antelope, but it has something none of these has--a superior brain. No computer can match it in its ability to learn, remember, reformulate, verbalize, communicate, and create.

To what greater purpose can I put this, my body, than to use it wisely, keep it healthy, increase its strength and ability, and above all give it back to Him to become a dwelling place, a temple, for His Holy Spirit?

PRAYER: Thank You, heavenly Father, for the wonderful gift of my body. Let me use it to serve You and give You glory; for Jesus' sake. Amen.

(Devotions from "The Abundant Life" copyright 1998, CPH. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be printed, reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission of Concordia Publishing House. Permission is granted for one-time e-mailing of this link to a friend. For information on other devotional material, please contact CPH at 800-325-3040 or visit CPH at www.cph.org.)

Today's Bible Readings: Isaiah 62-64    Romans 12

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