Our Bodies are Temples

While attending BYU-Hawaii, I changed my major 3 times! When I first arrived on campus as a young 18 year old girl, fresh out of high school, I thought I wanted to be a Psychologist, that lasted about a semester. Then, I wanted to be a Special Ed teacher...which lasted 2 years!! However, it wasn't until after I had my first 2 sons that I realized what my true passion in life was. I loved living a healthy lifestyle! I have always been very active whether it was playing sports, running, or lifting weights. I have also been very concerned with how and what I fed my body.

I knew I wanted a career in which I could make a difference but still be with my growing family. I finally graduated with a degree in Exercise Physiology and have been so blessed by the lives I've been able to help change. My goal as a Personal Trainer and a Clinical Exercise Specialist has never been to get my clients "skinny" or to reach a certain weight in a short amount of time. It was to help them realize the importance of BEING healthy and LIVING healthy lives. I had to change their way of thinking. It was no longer about counting calories but understanding that our bodies are machines and it was up to us to fuel them properly. When my clients understood this, they began to look at food and exercise in a whole new light. And guess what? THAT'S when the weight came off! In 18 years I have never had a client NOT reach their goals or MY goals for them!

I have also been able to use my career as a sort of missionary tool if you will. I would often share with them that our bodies are like temples. We would never walk up to the Pantheon in Rome and spray paint it. Or do the same to the Salt Lake City Temple. These are beautiful buildings and to desecrate them in any way is disrespectful to all the people who built them. Heavenly Father has GIVEN us OUR bodies while we're here on earth.

One reason we came to earth was to gain physical bodies. President Brigham Young declared, “Our mortal bodies are all important to us; without them we never can be glorified in the eternities that will be” (Discourses of Brigham Young [1954], 56).

Although our bodies will be glorified in eternity, in this life they suffer from sickness, disease, pain, and injury. Some are temporarily handicapped. Others are crippled for life. But whatever their condition, our bodies are important to us because they help us progress toward perfection.

Man is both a spiritual and physical being; the physical and spiritual cannot be separated. Our spirits cannot reach their full potential without the support and strength of the body. We should develop ourselves spiritually and intellectually, but also remember to develop ourselves physically.

President David O. McKay stated: “The healthy man, who takes care of his physical being, has strength and vitality; his temple is a fit place for his spirit to reside. … It is necessary, therefore, to care for our physical bodies, and to observe the laws of physical health and happiness” (“The ‘Whole’ Man,” Improvement Era, Apr. 1952, 221).

Below are a few of the benefits we'll gain through living healthy lives:

We are able to serve better

The healthier we are, the more capable we are of serving others and bringing happiness to them and ourselves.

We Are Better Leaders

Because leaders need strength and energy to fulfill their callings, they need to be as healthy as possible.

We Feel Better about Ourselves and Others

When we keep our bodies healthy, we feel good about ourselves and have enthusiasm for our work. We also have more patience, love, and kindness for others.

We Are Able to Provide for Ourselves and Our Families

The healthier our bodies are, the better able we are to work and thus provide for ourselves and our families.

Remember too, that our children pick up on our habits, whether they're healthy or unhealthy. As women and mothers, Heavenly Father has blessed us with the opportunity of watching over His children while they're here on earth. We should make it our first priority in making sure they are healthy: spiritually, mentally AND physically!

Kris is a wife to a handsome Kiwi and mother to 4 amazing boys. She loves being at home with her family, and working as a Clinical Exercise Specialist and Chiropractic Assistant. Kris is living in the beautiful Pacific Northwest and dreams of someday returning home to Hawaii.

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