“Therefore, make it your habit to confess your sins to one another and to pray for one another,
 so that you may be healed.”
-James 5:16

I would be a straight up hypocrite if I wrote an article about being healthy, eating healthy, sleeping healthy, and exercising healthy, without confessing my sins to you.

Since I was a little girl, my way of dealing with depression, anxiety, grief, or fear revolves around not taking care of my body. I get in a habit of skipping meals, skipping work outs, and skipping sleep.  So much so, that I lose my desire to pick the habits back up.

This past summer I reached my worst point ever. I was so down about a relationship and school that I went from 118 to 103 in 2 months. I was so underweight, malnourished, dehydrated, and fragile that my Doctor called my parents and told them that according to my weight, my hair, my bone density, and my estrogen level, I was anorexic.  She also said that I was in need of surgery on my left ovary, but was afraid my body would not handle a surgery.

This February, I reached the same point after ending that relationship. I will never forget sitting with the school counselor, then in front of the psychiatrist, and then my doctor, and hearing all three tell me I was borderline in need of being hospitalized.  All three of those moments were a wake-up call from God.

He was reminding me that my body is HIS temple.  And look at how I have been treating His temple. I don’t feed it.  I don’t let it rest.  I don’t exercise it.  I don’t respect it. How dare I.

Chances are, there is at least one girl reading this who has suffered from anorexia, bulimia, addictions, or depression that has led you to mistreat God’s temple.  When are YOU going to wake up? When are YOU going to hear Him begging you to break free from your destructive habits?

I am choosing to hear and heed His voice today.  I am on the road to recovery.  I have set high goals of where my weight, muscle mass, and mind need to be within the next 2-3 months. I will fight through this journey to healing on my own if I have to. But I would rather fight with you by my side.

It’s time that we KILL our destructive habits, and HEAL the wounds they are causing. After all, God Himself reveals in His Word that there is a “time to kill, and a time to heal” (Ecclesiastes 3:3).

It’s our time. Time to get help. Time to pray. Time to kill and heal.  Time to set ourselves free from these chains of sin.  Time to refresh and renew.  Time to fight for our health.  Time to protect our temples.

                                                                                   It’s our time.
 

Jen Savage