I am now in 40s and am slowly seeing the effects of aging in my life. It is harder to lose weight. Health problems are creeping in. When I get up in the morning, I am more sore than I used to be.
Anyone who is older than about 20 can see this in their life as well. Our bodies just do not hold up!
I don’t want to depress you today. But that is the reality. Thankfully, that is not the only thing going on in our lives! Listen to what Paul says in 2 Corinthians 4:16…
“So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day.”
Paul is saying, “Hey, I agree, our bodies ARE failing us. But I am not putting my hope in my physical body, because my inner self (spirit) is being renewed each day.”
I picture this seesaw. When one side goes down, the other side goes up. And that is what Paul is pointing at for Christians.
Yes, our bodies are wasting away. And yes, we will one day die. But each day our body gets older and more decrepit, our inner self (our spirit) is growing stronger!
So let’s still take care of our bodies. Let’s eat right and exercise and not smoke. But let’s not put our hope in that. Instead, let’s put our hope in the fact that each day our bodies are getting older, our spirits are growing stronger. And unless the Lord returns soon, we will one day end up in the grave. But even then, our spirits will be alive and well with Jesus Christ (if you follow him).
So today, let’s put our hope in the fact that, even right now, our spirits are growing stronger and stronger.