The five stages of metabolism function unfold from oneness. The first four physical stages (receiving, digesting, processing, and transformation) actually exist to support the invisible and most powerful stage, which relates to spirit and gives profound meaning to the other four. Spirit is alive within each of us. This quality of being vibrantly alive is what defines a healthy human being.

We are not in this world merely to exist. We’re here to thrive and experience. We are here to discover our true identity and achieve our purpose—the promise we made before entering this reality. That is the vibrant nature of being human. The world was not created for sadness or misery, though these things exist. We are here to be happy.

A healthy body should be able to receive, digest, process and transform what it has taken in. After it has transformed the energetic essence of food, your body has to use this material to manifest and support your life purpose. That is the fifth and most important stage. Metabolism function gives life its purpose and meaning! As metabolism function improves, you achieve a higher and higher level of health; each time you improve it, you can receive better things, digest more, process more, transform more—and ultimately manifest more!

If we can perform all five stages of metabolism function well, we become the physical manifestation of Universal consciousness. Then, we humans are literally “digesting the Universe”—not only for ourselves but for the greater consciousness of All That Is. Imagine how vital each of us is to this grand plan. No one is insignificant. Quite the opposite. In our day-to-day lives we lose sight of this eternal magnificence.

Excerpted from Digesting the Universe by Nan Lu, OMD, with Ellen Shaplowsky. © 2015 Nan Lu, OMD; Ellen Schaplowsky. All rights reserved.