FROM THE OUTSIDE IN
Getting in better shape and losing weight -- these are among the top New Year's resolutions for many people. But does physical fitness have anything to do with spirituality?
Ref. https://deseretnews.com/dn/view/1%2C1249%2C...01690%2C00.html
Our bodies are part of the stewardship God has given us, and if we can't properly maintain them, we may not be entrusted with greater things until we become administratively sound in that area. That doesn't mean we have to be exercise nuts, but we will be blessed if we maintain our health and fitness in balance with all our other activities.
I am not quiet sure but it seems to be a connection. My personal experience with people who are not physically fit (I am talking about extreme cases of being overweight for instance) within my religious organization, it proved that they have lots of issues concerning their spirituality. They seem more unhappy and insecure than other people and it affects their spirituality greatly. I am not saying that those who are physically fit are more in "tune" with the Spirit but I do notice that those who are not physically fit tend to have big issues with their Spiritual side. Of course, this is only based on my personal experience.
I think physical fitness has something to do with spirituality for two reasons. First, when we're not in good physical shape we don't feel well. When we don't feel well, isn't that the thing we're focusing on? We're thinking about ourselves (our physical selves) and how bad we feel and how can we feel better. On the other hand someone is is physically fit has the energy and motivation to focus on other things, spirituality for example. The second reason is that exercise and healthy eating requires self control and dedication, which is very good training to increase our spirituality which also requires self control and dedication.
I tend to think that the two are connected, if for example you are not looking after yourself properly, you never tend to feel 100% either, which then encroaches on how you view things spiritually!
If you are not fully focusing on spiritual matters, then your attention is being taken elsewhere, this becomes a vicious circle, and can become a lot harder to be totally content.
Only my humble opinion of course.
I think that people tend to link the two, though I don't believe they are necessarily linked by nature. Someone who is not spiritual can be very fit, while someone who is very spiritual is not fit. If the two were link, one should necessarily include the other. However, one cannot ignore the link between the body and the mind, both in modern day and through out history. Whether this regards your spirituality or merely your mind, I am not the one to say, but my opinion is that the mind and body are link, and the spiritual link comes from the mind.
I have found that the bigger (big=fat or big=unhealthy waste accumulation) someone is the less likely they are to give physical service, also the more intolerant they are or should I say impatient. This is from my experience only and not meant to specifically any of our bigger friends.
In keeping with the Topic my point is that when you are carrying around all that extra luggage you may not be able to function optimally thus retarding your efforts spiritually. In fact, for me getting involved in spiritual activity is both taxing mentally and physically so one has to be healthy if they are to be effective at it.
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Comments: These are all very good posts, thank you all. I am writing a little book about fitness and the mind/body/spirit connection. Reading what was said here proves that people like yourselves agree that there is a strong connection between the body and the spirit.