Every Body Matters: Strengthening Your Body to Strengthen Your Soul

by Gary Thomas

Overview

Few pastors or Christian writers have dared to approach the subject of how proper eating and an active lifestyle can affect how we serve God. Author Gary Thomas does just that. And he reaches all the way back to the apostle Paul, who wrote that we need to prime our bodies to become, "an instrument for noble purposes, made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work." To illustrate the body/soul correlation, Thomas presents engaging and diverse stories that include a young mom who got fit through volleyball and reaped spiritual rewards in her marriage, a 300-pound pastor who realized his obesity was eroding his ministry impact, and a woman who gained the spiritual strength to survive a contentious divorce by training for a marathon. In every instance, Thomas makes a direct connection between the physical challenge and its spiritual consequence. This book is a must read for anyone seeking new and compelling motivation for strengthening their bodies and fortifying their souls.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780310290810
Publisher:	Zondervan
Publication date:	11/07/2011
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	1,080,746
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.61(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Gary Thomas's writing and speaking draw people closer to Christ and closer to others. He is the author of twenty books that together have sold more than two million copies and have been translated into more than a dozen languages. These books include Sacred Marriage, Cherish, Married Sex, and the Gold Medallion-award winning Authentic Faith.

Gary holds a bachelor's degree in English Literature from Western Washington University, a master's degree in systematic theology from Regent College (Vancouver, BC), and an honorary doctor of divinity degree from Western Seminary (Portland, OR). He serves as a teaching pastor at Cherry Hills Community Church in Highlands Ranch, Colorado.

Table of Contents

1 Souls of Silver 11

2 Heads without Bodies 27

3 "Your Strength Will Equal Your Days" 39

4 Healthy Humiliation 51

5 It's Not a Fair Fight 65

6 Is Being Overweight a Sin? 75

7 Socially Contagious 91

8 The Silent Murderer 101

9 Let's Get Physical 113

10 Muscular Christianity 123

11 The Three-Hundred-Pound Pastor: Changing the Church Culture 135

12 Stronger Shoulders 147

13 Purely Practical 159

14 Meet My Friend Morty: Our Ongoing Battle against Sin 171

15 The Last Christian 191

Epilogue 203

Acknowledgments 209

Notes 211

Questions for Discussion and Reflection 221