Day Twenty: SACRED


For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.
—1 CORINTHIANS 3:17

When God gave the plans for the temple that King Solomon was to build, no detail was omitted. Every bit of fabrication, color, size, weight, and dimension were articulated. God cared passionately about the place His spirit would dwell. The temple was to become a focal point for the nation, the place where they went to meet God and be ministered to by Him. The temple’s intricate, careful design was a way to set this place apart as holy, and to inspire worship of the Designer.

Today, the temple that God indwells is our physical body. However, past religious movements have left their mark on our interpretation of the physical body.We’re tempted to denounce it. Ridicule it. Reject it. Flog it. But the truth is, it is the chosen dwelling place of God. If God sees fit to dwell there, who are we to spit at it?

It is no accident that much of our inner battle as women centers on our bodies.We obsess with appearance, weight, and form. The battle over our bodies is really a battle for our souls. We have to choose who we belong to and what we were designed for. If we believe the body is meant for us, then we leave no place for God to inhabit. If we believe our bodies were designed by God as His dwelling place, then we leave no place for worldly judgments about size or “imperfections.”

God calls us to recognize the sacred in a world of pollution. Sacred means set apart, not for common use. Something sacred is uncommon and cannot be judged alongside the profane. Sacred also implies it is initiated by God and intended for God. The world’s standards are not relevant.

Ask: Teach me what it means to be Your temple.

Believe: I am the delicate, masterful dwelling place of a loving God.

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