The human body

is an absolutely phenomenal machine. Our Maker created it that way when

He made it in His own image. And do we ever sell it short! When injured

or ill, the well cared for body often will cure itself better without

medical intervention than with it.

Of course,

I'm talking about the body that is nourished properly and given adequate

exercise and rest by the person to whom it belongs. That body has its

first line of defense intact when injury or illness strikes. The second

line of defense (though some would call this first) is the attitude of

the person who owns the body.

I do not count

the essence of who and what a person is eternally to be the same as the

mortal body in which they live for a while. The body is the machine we

are given to use as we work to accomplish the purpose/s for which we come

to earth. I believe we came from God, our Maker, and will return to Him.

The human body

is much like an automobile, airplane or any other mode of transportation.

All are temporary. No matter how well maintained, sooner or later any

mode of transportation will begin to fail.

Yet there's

a huge difference between the failure of manmade modes and the human body.

When that plane, train or automobile dies, although parts may be salvaged

and used in other vehicles, for the most part it's over.

When the body

begins to fail and eventually dies, it's not over at all. Parts are sometimes

salvaged, yes; but beyond that, the soul that lived in the human form

lives on. God knew how weak my faith was early on so he allowed me an

experience in 1968 that grounded my belief about this.

I was working

on a medical floor at the hospital in my hometown when I went in one morning

to check on one of my patients. She was a frail, sweet old lady. We spoke

briefly and she asked me to let some light into the room. I walked over

to open the blinds, and as I did so, I felt that she left the room. As

I turned