"What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's."
1 Corinthians 6:19-20
We are not our own. I like that. It is a little scary, but when you think about it... so true. By ourselves in this life, we would fail. Christ paid for all our second chances with the Atonement... and God gave us everything that we have and our first chance well before this. We try so hard to hold onto that ownership and power over our own lives, because we want to choose who we are, and what constitutes our sense of self. Free agency is a huge gift, again from God. And it isn't bad to want choices, and God respects that and fights for our ability to choose as well. But I think what we don't get sometimes is that all the freedom comes from serving God and doing as he asks. That opens up new choices and opportunities and new ways of learning about ourselves and becoming more than we are. And walking away from God, without exception, ends up limiting our choices more and more until, if we don't return to God's path, we're stuck the way we are, with not even the desire to improve ourselves because we've blocked it out so long. Better, then, to accept that we are God's creations. That we owe him some loyalty and devotion. Allowing God to help us to improve doesn't take away from our individuality. It gives it the best chance of thriving and achieving greatness.
I also like the image of our bodies as the temples of the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost is so important in our lives... he helps us remember and know to do things at important moments. Guidance, comfort, so many things are hard to have in our lives without him. Respecting that relationship and being willing to live in a way that allows it to continue is beneficial to everyone. Keeping our bodies and minds and hearts clean makes us better, and gives us a chance to have that invaluable assistance in our lives.
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