For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. (Psalm 139:13-14)
Fearfully and Wonderfully
REVIEW:
This extraordinary book reveals the unique connection between our physical bodies and the spiritual Body of Christ. If you’re not already in complete awe of how humanity bears God’s image, you will be after reading this book!
It’s written by a surgeon who spent his career researching pain and treating lack of pain found in leprosy patients across the world. His ability to weave together scientific and spiritual truths guides the reader through each page with wonderment and reverence for our Creator.
Broken down into 6 sections, the authors walk you through viewing our bodies as living temples of God, connected across the globe and generations. Not only will this book give you a deeper appreciation for your physical body, but it will reveal a new perspective of God’s divine attention to detail found throughout humanity.
If you struggle with body image or Health-Related Anxiety, it can also help cultivate tangible gratitude for the gift of a physical body—down to each individual cell that works on your behalf.
FAVORITE QUOTES:
- “Spiritual life requires an identity change as drastic as a person’s first entrance into the world. We become, quite literally, God’s children. […] That common identity links all members of Christ’s Body with a unifying bond. I sense that bond when I meet strangers in India or Africa or California who share my loyalty to the Head (God); instantly we become brothers and sisters, fellow cells in Christ’s Body.” (pg 47-48, updated & combined edition)
- “Renouncing my old value system […] and committing myself to the Head abruptly frees me. My sense of competition fades. No longer do I have to compete through life, looking for ways to prove myself. Instead, I have the singular goal of pleasing God, of living for an audience of One. More, I can partner with other cells in the Body to accomplish God’s work in the world.” (pg 47-48)
- “Bones do not burden us; they free us.” (pg 103)
- “Spiritual life is not ethereal and outside us, something that we must work hard to obtain; it is in us, pervading us, like the blood that flows through every living body.” (pg 134)
- “I need a time of day to orient myself, to bring Heaven and earth together. In the midst of the clamor and tumult of this material world, I must find a place of quietness to listen to the still, small voice for guidance of my life. […] To survive, I must pause to breathe in the power of the living God and consciously direct my mind to how God wants me to live. Spiritually, I cannot survive the foreign atmosphere of earth without live contact through the Spirit.” (pg 157)
- “I explain my dilemmas and pour out my needs, but God does not respond by telling me what to do. There is no shortcut, no magic, only the possibility of a lifetime search for intimacy with a God who gently communicates to us through the Holy Spirit.” (pg 169)
- “Pain, so often viewed as an enemy, is actually the sensation most dedicated to keeping us healthy.” (pg 180)
- “God elected to make God’s presence known through people like us—not in one body but in many, not in one perfect Son but in millions of ornery children of all races, sizes, IQs, personalities, and genetic traits.” (pg 218)
- “Of all the marvelous aspects of the human body, I know of no greater wonder than that every one of the trillions of cells in my body has access to the brain. And in the spiritual Body, I know of no greater wonder than that each one of us has direct contact with the Head [God].” (pg 222)
- “If I must decide whether to tell the truth in the face of every situation, my life will be hopelessly complicated. But if I have developed a reflex of truthfulness, I can learn to walk as a Christian without having to think about each individual step.” (pg 224)
Visit The Beacon Road Etsy and grab this sticker as a simple reminder of how you reflect our Creator!
≫ How can you honor being made in God’s image today?
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