Dec
29
2008
The Missouri University Center on Religion and the Professions is hosting a film series titled Spirituality and Health.
Religion and medicine both try to answer the biggest questions: about life, death and the future. Their free film series examines a broad range of issues encompassing faith, spirituality, religion, meaning, health, healing, wellness and medicine. Films represent a variety of genres and religious traditions.
The series is intended to provoke thought and interest in learning more about the intersection of faith and health. Discussions provide a safe space to explore issues of faith, ethics and beliefs as they intersect with topics both public and private.
A few films to be viewed are The Green Mile(one of my favorite films), Padre Pio and The Power of Forgiveness. To see a complete listing of films visit their website.
Dec
29
2008
I have just completed an article addressing the connection between spirituality and health. It’s on my website under the Articles/Resources tab. I’ve applied what I understand the truths of the Christian faith to be in light of what the research seems to indicate. The following is an excerpt:
“A growing body of scientific research indicates there’s a connection between spirituality/religion and health. To say that practicing a particular faith or involvement in certain religious practices will have an impact on one’s well being and health is oversimplifying things. The connection exists when people develop the type of qualities that come from knowing God and experiencing His love and in living in a way that God, the Great Physician, prescribes.
Yes, there’s a spirituality/religion and health connection. It occurs when individuals, regardless of their faith, incorporate powerful biblical truths into their lives. Forgiving, loving others, believing, worshiping in community, prayer and meditation are just a few tenants of the Christian faith that, if practiced by anyone, seem to have a positive impact on quality of life and health.
From a health perspective, our biggest challenge is to cope with the circumstances of life and its associated stressors along with relationship stressors in a healthy way. For the most part, our behaviors in response to these life events and stressors are attempts to meet our most basic needs of love, acceptance, self worth, security and identity. We have two options. We can choose to include God in our efforts to manage our life and stressors, or we can choose to go it alone.
If we rely on our own abilities and resources, apart from God, our strategies of living can be errant and unhealthy. When we depend on our own strength to cope with the pressures of life and past rejections, the result is very often conflict and frustration. Accompanied with a self-sufficient attitude and unhealthy thinking patterns and behaviors, this can lead to habits that have a detrimental impact on our spiritual, emotional and mental health. In turn, our physical health is often affected. When we experience poor health, we can not live a full life or be used fully by God. This is the strategy of the devil.”
Key Scriptures: Eph 2:10, John 3:16, John 10:10, 2 Cor 5:17, John 8:32, Gal 5:22-23
Enjoy reading the rest of the article at the link above.
Dec
26
2008
Physical Exercise Guidelines – A few months ago the US government released it’s latest guidelines for Americans on physical activity. I made a post here. A summary for adults is:
• Engage in 2 1/2 hours a week of moderate-intensity, or 75 minutes a week of vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity. Aerobic activity should be performed in episodes of at least 10 minutes.
• Adults should also do muscle-strengthening activities that involve all major muscle groups performed on 2 or more days per week.
Our country recognizes that physical activity plays a role in many health outcomes including premature death; diseases such as coronary heart disease, stroke, some cancers, type 2 diabetes, osteoporosis, and depression; risk factors for disease, such as high blood pressure and high blood cholesterol; physical fitness; functional capacity (the ability to engage in activities needed for daily living) ; mental health, such as depression and cognitive function; and injuries or sudden heart attacks.
Spiritual Exercise Guidelines - 1 Timothy 4:7-8 says “Physical exercise has some value, but spiritual exercise is much more important for it promises a reward in both this life and the next. This is true and everyone should accept it.” 1 Timothy 4:7-9 (New Living Translation, 1st Edition) God tells us, speaking through the writing of Paul, that spiritual exercise is much more important than physical activity.
Wouldn’t Americans benefit from a comparable set of spiritual activity guidelines that offers comparable spiritual health benefits? I’d like your thoughts on this matter. In the Bible, God certainly provides a wealth of information on this topic. Let’s develop a concise description of the types and amounts of spiritual activity that would provide us with good spiritual health and overall quality of life.
Post your comments here. In the weeks to come, I’ll pull them all together in a statement similar to what is provided for physical activity. God knows, our country sure could use such a set of guidelines.
Enjoy the holidays!
Dec
22
2008
Are you stressed? Unemployed? Lost half of your retirement savings? Grieving the loss of a loved one? Battling a significant health issue? Perhaps you’re distressed over something else in your life. The longer one stays stressed, the more likely the body will eventually pay a price.
There was a time when the families of David’s army had been captured and taken away. The wives of David himself had been taken. Scripture tells us that David and his men wept until they had no strength. And, all his men were terribly upset with David. The Bible tells us “David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning him; each one was bitter in spirit because of his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the LORD his God.” 1 Samuel 30:6 Reading further in this story we find that David prayed to God asking for direction, and God answered his prayers. David followed God’s guidance and he and his men were able to rescue their families and belongings. Afterward, David acknowledged that his God protected them as they were in a battle with the enemy forces.
How are you handling your stressful situation? Are you excluding God in your “battle” or distress? Are you attempting to manage on your own by falling back into an unhealthy habit or an addictive behavior to cope? Or, are you turning towards God by asking and relying on His help?
God wants us to choose Him as our source of strength when times are tough. If you’ve relied on Him in a past difficult situation, and He’s carried you through, remember that and call on Him now. If you’ve never made a choice to turn to Him when you’ve needed strength and guidance, trust in Him now. One way to receive the strength that He provides is by reading the Bible and being reminded of the character of God and of His truths. This is the main way God communicates to us today. He wants each of us to find nuggets of His truth, in the Bible, that speaks to us in our own situation, and then believe and trust that He will carry us through our own “battles.”
Read other entries about God and His strength.
Dec
09
2008
Do you walk for regular exercise? Many people do.
As I recovered from surgery for prostate cancer, I was not able to run for a period of time, so I walked. I also remember when I conducted a walking program at the Army War College for participants of a personal wellness program. I committed to only walk as my aerobic exercise for a period of 8 weeks. On some days I would walk twice as I led groups in their exercise, sometimes for four miles each session. That meant I was walking 6-8 miles on some days. I was surprised that I lost body fat and that when I began running again, I seemed to not have lost my level of conditioning. The point is, walking is certainly a way to lose weight and to stay in good shape if your level of intensity(I) and frequency(F) is adequate. (Read this short article on applying the FITT principle to your physical and spiritual fitness program.)
So, what does walking with God look like? Today’s devotional from Our Daily Bread, written by Marvin Williams, addresses this topic. Here’s an excerpt:
“What did it mean for Enoch to walk with God? It(today’s scripture) describes Enoch’s close communion with God—as if literally walking by His side. Also, it refers to Enoch’s unswerving obedience to God in a corrupt culture. God rewarded Enoch’s faithfulness by taking him to heaven while he was still alive. Death would not have the final word in God’s creation.
Enoch’s walk with God reminds us that it is possible for all of us to enjoy intimate communion with the Lord. Let’s commit ourselves to walking faithfully with Him every day.”
As good as walking physically is for your health, ‘walking with God’ is terrific for your spiritual health, just as Enoch experienced. His reward for walking with God is that he is spending eternity with his Father.
What would a closer walk with God look like to you?
