Jul
28
2010

Spirituality, Religion and Health Videos – Interviews with Harold Koenig, MD

Posted by Dale Fletcher under Faith and Health, Research, Spirituality and Health

Doctor Harold Koenig, is a leader in the research in the field of spirituality and health. He is the Co-Director of the Center for Spirituality, Theology and Health at Duke University.

Enjoy this video in which he speaks about some of the recent research.

Spirituality, religion and health: Part 1 on Vimeo.

View three additional video interviews with Dr. Koenig on the topic of spirituality, religion and health.

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Jul
06
2010

Water, Jesus and Life. Are You Thirsty? Weekly Health Devotional – John 7:38

This week, the East coast of the states will be experiencing record high temperatures.  Health experts will recommend that people living there should drink lots of water to replace what they lose trying to stay cool through perspiration. Yes, that is excellent advice for our physical health and well being. The human body is about 60% water in adult males and 55% in adult females. Lean muscle tissue contains about 75% water by weight. Blood contains almost 70% water, body fat contains 10% water and bone has about 22% water.

Many of the water products on the shelf are using the word “life” in their marketing of the water.  Nestle suggests that their purified water is “Pure Life.” When I see this printed on a bottle of water, I’m reminded of the truth of the matter. The Bible tells us that there is one source that provides us true life – Jesus, the Living Water.

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb.” Revelation 22:1

If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” “Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his flocks and herds?”Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”  John 4:10-14

After I have been working in the yard on a hot day, I’ll typically go to the refrigerator and grab a bottle of water to quench my physical thirst and to replace the water I’ve lost through sweating. Drinking pure water is probably the best way to satisfy the need to rehydrate physically. But what about satisfying spiritual needs?

Sometimes we try to meet our inner spiritual thirst through external means that do not satisfy like food, alcohol, drugs, gambling, or other forms of unhealthy or addictive behaviors. These earthly things will not truly satisfy the need that God has given each of us for a Savior. Only Jesus can satisfy this need.

He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.‘”  Jesus in John 7:38

Questions to Reflect On

Do you have a deep inner thirst that has not yet been quenched?

Are you daily drawing on Jesus as your Source of Living Water?

Related Resources

Bible Verses Related to Health and Wellness

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Jun
21
2010

Health Ministries in Houses of Faith

Posted by Dale Fletcher under Faith and Health, Fitness and Health Professionals

Last week I had the good fortune of attending a Health Ministries Leadership Summit in San Francisco hosted by Health Ministries Association (HMA). The summit was an opportunity for national leaders whose work involves the intersection of faith and health to gather and network to formulate key strategies linked to the future development of the faith-health movement. About 75 individuals attended to contribute to this effort.

Much of the focus during the 2-day summit was on how Faith Community Nurses (or Parish Nurses) and congregational Health Ministers can be more effective in their work.  Additionally, we talked about strategies to contribute to Health Care Reform and how to move our collective work forward. A White Paper is to be published later this year which will summarize the work that was done at the summit and help to chart a course forward for all those involved in this type of ministry.

Health Ministries Association (HMA) is a non-profit membership organization reaching out to transform the approach to wholeness and health.  HMA encompasses all who support whole-person ministries and is recognized as the national professional membership organization for Faith Community Nurses.  If you’re involved in a health-related ministry that supports a house of faith and are inclined to be involved with a professional organization, I’d encourage you to consider becoming a member of HMA.

More detailed information on the summit is at this press release.

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Mar
18
2010

The Faith and Health Connection – Simplifying the Message

Over the past few days I’ve been reflecting on how I might simplify the message I’ve been writing and speaking about. My thought has been that the more concise I can articulate this message, the easier it will be to explain to others and for them to understand.  With that in mind, I thought I’d share this condensed version with you.

An Inspiring Day

As I’ve pulled this together, all my senses have been engaged. I’ve been sipping on a few cups of great tasting coffee, listening to the trickling of the water in our small fountain, hearing the birds chirp, listening to a playlist of soft, instrumental Christian music on iTunes, feeling the warm spring air as it breezes through an open window, and seeing the bright sun shine on the trees and flowers in the back yard. It’s been quite an inspiring morning and early afternoon!

Understanding the Faith and Health Connection

This is, I believe, the essence of the faith and health connection:

Read more of this article »

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Mar
05
2010

Key Links in the Spirituality and Health Connection

Spirituality and Health – A Working Model

This is a somewhat creative attempt to capture my ideas on many of the key aspects of the connection between one’s faith and their health.  I used a mind mapping website to create this. It has limitations, but I’m pretty pleased with the connections it allows and the associated graphics.

Any feedback you’d like to provide would be appreciated.

What key components are missing?

Any links not made that should be?

Resources on the Spirituality and Health Link

Article – Understanding the Spirituality and Health Connection

Blog Posts – Spirituality and Health Tag

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Mar
02
2010

Guilt, Satan, Disease and Forgiveness

Posted by Dale Fletcher under Faith and Health, Spiritual Exercises

Occasionally I pass along relevant devotions that I receive.   Below are a few lines from tow of  David Wilkerson Today devotions on “The Danger of Guilt.”

Day One

“Guilt can eat away at the spiritual vitality of a Christian like a raging cancer. It causes a person to lose control of life; it leads to a desire to quit or retire from spiritual activity; and, finally, it brings on physical pain and disease. Like cancer, guilt feeds upon itself until all spiritual life is gone, and the end result is weakness and a sense of shame and failure.”

Read this brief devotion about guilt and the importance of the spiritual exercise of forgiveness.  David Wilkerson Today – March 2, 2010

Day Two

“Lay down your guilt, my friend. You don’t need to carry that load another minute. Open up the doors and windows of your heart, and let God’s love in. He forgives you—over and over again! He will give you the power to see your struggle through to victory.  If you ask—if you repent—you are forgiven! Accept it—now!”

Read this second brief devotion online – David Wilkinson Today – March 3, 2010

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness”  1 John 1:9

Have a terrific day!

Resources Related to Guilt

Article – Forgiveness: A Spiritual Exercise for a Healthier Life

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Nov
23
2009

The Religion and Health Link

I’ve started reading a new book, Prescribing Faith – Medicine, Media, and Religion in American Culture by Claire Hoertz Badaracco.  Today I read the chapter titled Belief and Wellness: Medical Pluralism and Healing.

This chapter is one of the most concise writings I have read that explains the mind-body connection from a medical or scientific perspective. Among other topics, Badaracco discusses the following in the context of health and healing:

  • The stress and relaxation responses
  • Prayer, meditation and contemplation
  • Mindfulness
  • Habits of  thinking
  • Negative emotions – the anxiety pandemic
  • Allostatic load
  • Memories and remembered wellness
  • Suffering
  • Neurogenesis
  • The role of physicians and practitioners
  • Personal transformation
  • Media’s impact

As I read this chapter, I was not surprised to read that most all of the principles she mentioned about the findings of many researchers in this field of religion/spirituality and health are also principles that the writers of the Bible captured thousands of years ago.  These principles or spiritual truths were provided to us by our Creator, God, and science is beginning to get a handle on them – to understand them from a medical perspective. (2 Timothy 3:16-17)

Our role as believers in Christ or as seekers of the truth, is to believe and understand the truth that is recorded in the Bible… and then to apply it to our life… in the way we behave and the way we think.

More and more it is clear to me that our purpose in life is to be in a right relationship with God – to love Him with all our heart, soul, mind and strength – and to love and serve others with the special gifts He has given us. (Mark 12:30-31) When we do this, God is glorified.  This is our purpose for being on this earth.

As we practice the principles found in the Bible – as we obey God out of love (John 14:15,23), one of the outcomes, in general, is a high quality of life including good health. (John 10:10) This is how God designed things to work.  Good health and well being should not be the motivator for practicing the Christian faith, but it’s often an outcome of putting into practice God’s principles that He’s provided us with in the Bible.

I’m looking forward to reading more of Badaracco’s book and to understand the impact that media, and in fact my writings, might have on people’s understanding and impression about the religion/spirituality-health link.

More Resources on the Spirituality/Religion-Health Link

Article - Spirituality and Your Health – Understanding the Connection

Article – Think Spiritual Thoughts/Renew Your Mind

Article – His Instruction Manual … Our Guidebook for Healthy Living

Poster Presentation – The Spirituality-Health Connection: Why It Exists A Christian perspective on this link supported by 194 scripture passages and 41 key principles.

Web Page – How God Designed Us

Web Page – Stress, Your Health and Faith

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Nov
06
2009

Wellness Devotional: Beliefs and Your Health – 2 Timothy 1:12-14

Last week I made a blog entry on Beliefs About God.  During my personal quiet time today I read Charles Stanley’s In Touch Magazine devotional titled Know What You Believe, based on 2 Timothy 1:12-14.  Because this devotional speaks directly to what I wrote about on the 31st, I thought it would be helpful to include it here for your reading in it’s entirety:

All people have a belief system, whether they realize it or not. Even those who claim there is no God have faith that He does not exist. What we believe affects every area of our lives and shapes every decision we make, yet few of us take the time to really think about what we accept as true.

All belief systems have a foundation. Some people base their convictions on what fits their lifestyle, reasoning, and desires. However, Jesus calls His followers to adapt life to their faith in Him and the authority of His Word.

Anytime we add other philosophies or ideas to Scripture or pick and choose which parts of the Bible to believe, we create our own version of faith based on personal reasoning. God’s Word is the only true and reliable foundation for belief, because it contains the recorded thoughts of an eternal, all-knowing God. All other concepts must be measured against it to determine their validity.

Knowing what the Bible says is essential for developing a sound system of beliefs founded on the truth and wisdom of God. This world will offer you a variety of philosophies which sound good but are laced with lies. A faith anchored in the Scriptures is your protection against deception.

Each time you face a problem or decision, search for the answer in Scripture. Begin your day by reading the Word and asking God to help you understand what He is saying. He loves communicating with you, and as you spend time with Him, He’ll open your mind to know His thoughts.

I also read a short piece by Oswald Chambers in His Utmost for His Highest devotional that was titled Intimate Theology based on John 11:26.  He wrote about the importance of our most intimate personal beliefs.

Because our beliefs serve as the basis for our behavior, and our behaviors largely determine our health and well-being it’s critical that we know what we believe and why we have those respective beliefs.

Thinking about this topic caused me to consider the following question I will challenge you to reflect on.

Questions to Reflect On:

What is your single most important personal belief that has the most significant impact on how you live your life and effects your health?  Is there a supporting scripture that this belief is based on?

Additional Resources:

Wellness Devotional – Beliefs About God

Wellness Coaching to Help Change Unhealthy Behavior

My Beliefs and the Basis for The Faith and Health Connection Ministry

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Jul
21
2009

Faith and Your Brain

Posted by Dale Fletcher under Faith and Health, Research

From PBS’s Religion and Ethics Newsweekly, the work of Andrew Newberg at the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Spirituality and the Mind is explored and discussed in an interview.  Here are a few excerpts:

DR. NEWBERG: We’ve learned that being religious or spiritual has a very profound effect on who we are, has a very profound effect on our biology and on our brain, and what we’ve found more recently is that not only does it have a profound influence on who we are, but it actually can change our brain and to change ourselves over times.

Dr. NEWBERG: The more you use a part of the brain the more blood flow it gets and the brighter or more red it looks on the scans.

Follow the link below to read the interview or view it in a video.

The Brain and Faith.

For as he(a man) thinketh in his heart, so is he.”  Proverbs 23:7 KJV

Articles I’ve Written on Faith and Health

Are Your Thoughts Causing Health Problems?

Think Spiritual Thoughts/Renew Your Mind – A Spiritual Exercise for a Healthier Life

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Jun
17
2009

Spirituality and Health – A Christian Perspective Presented at International Conference

“When individuals, regardless of their faith, incorporate these powerful biblical principles of the Christian faith into their lives, the spirituality and health connection occurs and they will tend to enjoy better health and well-being.”

This is the conclusion to a recent presentation I made at Duke University. Read more of this article »

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