"How To Have A Better Body" 

Connect

Share with the group: "If my body could send me a text message right now, it would say…"

Take It In

What does this reveal about who God is?

1. Read Proverbs 3:7-8, Isaiah 58:11, and 3 John 1:2.
   1. How do you feel about God's vision for our human physical experience? Does it surprise you that health and strength are part of His heart for you?
2. Read 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 and 1 Corinthians 6:12.
   1. Why is taking care of your physical body a spiritually important responsibility? What does it take, and why is it sometimes so hard?
3. Read 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 and Romans 8:11.
   1. Your body was bought at a high price: the life of Jesus. How does that change the way you think about what you do with it?
4. Read Matthew 4:4, Matthew 5:6, John 6:35, Psalm 107:9, and Psalm 63:3-5.
   1. How can your personal spiritual life help bolster your progress in physical health? Where do you need Jesus to satisfy a hunger you have been trying to feed some other way?

Talk About It

How do we practically apply this?

1. What person, place, or thing first comes to mind when you hear the word "healthy?" Why that one?
2. Share about a time in your life when you felt your best level of strength and health. What factors contributed to it?
3. John told us about his seven pints of Ben & Jerry's. Everybody has a go-to comfort when life gets hard. What is your "Tonight Dough," and what is your soul usually reaching for when you reach for it?
4. What are some ways people tend to fail at taking care of the temple? Of the four areas (movement, nutrition, sleep, regulation), which discipline do you find most difficult, and why?

Take It Home

What are we doing this week?

1. Increase your movement.
   1. Read 1 Timothy 4:8.
   2. Share about your current patterns of exercise and physical activity. What excuse do you make most often, and what realistic step will you take this week to beat it and get moving?
2. Improve your nutrition.
   1. Read Proverbs 25:27-28, Proverbs 23:20-21, Daniel 1:8-15, and 1 Corinthians 10:31.
   2. How would you honestly gauge your sugar intake and your nutrition overall? What is one change you will make this week, and how will it help you experience God's renewing strength?
3. Invest in your sleep.
   1. Read Psalm 127:2 and Psalm 4:8.
   2. What is stealing your sleep right now? What bedtime will you set this week, and what one investment (phone out of the bedroom, a better pillow, a wind-down routine) will you make to protect it?
4. Integrate your regulation.
   1. Read John 20:21-22 and Psalm 46:10.
   2. When stress hits, what is your go-to way of calming down, and is it helping you or hurting you? What regulation practice (breath prayer, a daily walk, a screen limit, a quiet morning with God, etc.) will you build into your rhythm this week?

Your next steps. Read 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 again. Share 2 or 3 steps you feel the Holy Spirit prompting you to take to care for the temple, to the degree you can. Who in this group will you ask to check in with you on them?

Prayer Time