WEDNESDAYAugust 24
Do All to the Glory of God (1 Cor 10:31).
Having appealed to the believers in Corinth to avoid defiling their body temples through sexual immorality, the apostle Paul shares a principle that can guide every aspect of life: "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God"
(1 Cor 10:31, NIV). The Greek noun translated "glory" is the same word used as a verb in
1 Corinthians 6:19: "Honor God with your body." The correlation between these two passages is clear. Because your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, everything you do, including what you eat and what you drink, should be done to the honor of God.
How possibly does one "honor God" with one's body, or how does one eat and drink "to the glory of God"? What does that mean? How do these above texts show us that God does care about what we eat and drink? Why would He care?
We are physical beings. In the new heaven and the new earth, we will still be physical beings
(see Rev. 21:4, 14). The idea that we are temples serves to prove even more so how sacred, and important, the physical aspect of our being is. No wonder, then, we are admonished to take care of ourselves, to use our bodies in ways that glorify the One who made them. Any kind of physical indulgence, any kind of bodily sin, any kind of abuse of our body simply defiles what God has created and given us.
Also, if God loves and cares about us, then it should be no surprise that He wants us to take care of our bodies, which can be a source of much joy or so much suffering, often depending upon how we ourselves take care of them.
What do the following texts say about God's attitude regarding our physical well-being? Exod. 15:26, Jer 30:17, Mark 5:25-34, 3 John 1:2.
Read these words of Ellen White: "Since the laws of nature are the laws of God, it is plainly our duty to give these laws careful study. We should study their requirements in regard to our own bodies and conform to them.'—Testimonies for the Church, vol.6, p. 369. What is she telling us here? How do these words reflect the principle Paul gave us in 1 Corinthians 10:31?
THURSDAYAugust 25
Shalom!
Many people have heard of the Hebrew word
shalom, understood as "peace." It is sometimes used as an informal greeting among Jews today.
What do you think of when you think of the word peace? In what different ways do you use that word in your language? What does it mean to you?
The word
shalom itself has a very rich and deep meaning in the Old Testament, where it appears in one form or another hundreds of times. It carries within it the idea of completeness, good welfare, wholeness, soundness, well-being, inner harmony, and health. The word itself incorporates every aspect of life, including the physical, mental, and the spiritual, whether individually, collectively, or nationally.
For example, in one of the earliest uses of the word, Jacob inquires about the well-being
(shalom) of Laban
(see Gen. 29:6). The word translated "well" both times in the text is
shalom. In contrast, in
Jeremiah 29:7, Jeremiah tells the Jews in captivity to pray for the shalom "of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away," because, the Lord says, in the
shalom of the city will be the shalom of the Hebrew captives.
Look up the following texts where shalom, in one form or another, appears. How does its use help us understand the meaning of the word in regard to our total health and spiritual well-being? Gen. 43:28, Ps. 38:3 (the word translated "rest" in my bones is shalom), 119:165, Prov. 3:2, Isa. 48:22, Jer 33:6.
The Bible calls Jesus,
Sar-Shalom, "the prince of peace," which makes sense because, in Him, through faith in Him, through obedience to His law, both moral and physical, we can find "shalom," wholeness, completeness, and well-being in our lives.
As Adventists, we have been greatly blessed with a health message. How seriously do you take the light we have been given on health? What changes might you need to make to have more "shalom" in your own life?
Welcome to the forum and the challenge. 
