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Congregants at Fellowship Bible Church in Grapevine, Texas, used to feed on Krispy Kremes before and after feeding on the Word of God. But these days, you'll be hard pressed to find a doughnut in the church.

Last year, senior pastor Ed Young, Jr., preached a series called "Body by God," in which he taught that our spiritual and physical health intersect to reflect the true body God desires for us.

"People loved the Krispy Kremes," Young says, "but the more we started thinking about this, we were saying, 'We can't talk about this on the one hand and on the other hand have all these unhealthy doughnuts.'"

Now Krispy Kremes are out, and health is in. The 18,000-member Fellowship Church practices, for the most part, what their pastor preaches. But like any church, there are still those who haven't quite caught the vision. A Sunday lunch visit to one of the many restaurants surrounding the church provides insight into an ongoing battle.

"You'll see a group of people who have obviously been to church," Young says. "They'll order all this fat-laden food, and then say, 'Let's pray together. God, bless this food to the nourishment of our bodies.' The deal is, they should have prayed before they ordered, 'God, help me order stuff that will glorify you.'"

To help promote physical activity, Young's church now offers a fitness boot camp, cycling and running clubs, and team competition in basketball, soccer, volleyball, softball, and flag football.

Lisa Young, the pastor's wife, wrote a cookbook to accompany her husband's teaching and inspire their members to keep their bodies "healthy and energized for God's great adventure." She even went so far as to provide a cooking demonstration onstage during the weekend services.

"Pastors don't preach on this because they're not living it," Lisa says.

At Fellowship Church, not only are they teaching it and living it, they are helping lead the movement for churches to better address the issue of diet, exercise, and good health.

For more information about Fellowship Bible Church, visit www.fellowshipchurch.com.

Copyright © 2005 by the author or Christianity Today International/Today's Christian magazine.
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