Nov
25
2009
Lifestyle Factors and Your Health
By some estimates, approximately 40% of all deaths in the United States are premature (at least 900,000 deaths annually) and are due to unhealthy lifestyle choices such as tobacco use, poor diet, sedentary lifestyle, misuse of alcohol and drugs, and accidents. Other contributors to early death include genetic predisposition (30%), social circumstances (15%), poor access to quality health care (10 percent), and environmental exposures (5%). (David Anderson, Ph.D., StayWell Health Management)
So more than any other factor, it’s our lifestyle that causes us to be unhealthy. Changing old unhealthy habits is not easy but it’s essential if we want to become healthier and live a better quality of life.
God’s Power is Available to You
“God’s way is … an empowered life.” 1 Corinthians 4:20 – The Message
God wants to assist us in living a healthy life and He has given those who believe in Jesus a helper – the Holy Spirit. (John 14:16-17) Just one of many blessings we receive as followers of Christ is that we have God’s power in us to live the kind of life that He wants us to live and this includes the ability to make desired lifestyle changes.
The Bible tells us that the same mighty power that raised Christ from his grave is available to us who believe in Jesus. (Romans 8:11 and Ephesians 1:19-20)
One key to being empowered by God’s Spirit is to recognize that in our own strength we can not do what we can in God’s strength and power. We must recognize this and depend on the supernatural power of God to work in us. We must submit and surrender to God and embrace the spiritual truth that God’s power is made perfect in our weakness. (2 Corinthians 12:9) “When I am weak, then I am strong.” (2 Corinthians 12:10)
Your Body is God’s Temple
Because God’s Holy Spirit lives in those of us who have accepted Jesus into our hearts, our bodies are His temple ( 1 Corinthians 3:16) Therefore, we have a responsibility to care for His temple. It’s an awesome thing that God’s Spirit in us empowers us to live in such a way that we can care for His temple as a matter of love and worship to God. One beneficial by-product is that by appropriating God’s power, we can live a lifestyle conducive to good health.
My Prayer for You
Like the Apostle Paul, I pray that the “eyes of your heart” might be open and that you are able to understand and appropriate the power that is available to you to make any lifestyle changes you might want to make….. all for the glory of God! ( Ephesians 1:18 and Ephesians 3:14-21)
Questions to Reflect On
Are you trying to make lifestyle changes in your own strength?
If you have accepted Jesus as your Savior, do you believe God’s Holy Spirit lives in you?
Do you embrace the truth that the same power that raised Jesus from his grave is available to help you in making changes in your life?
Resources Related to God’s Power & Healthy Lifestyles
Article – Surrender – A Spiritual Exercise For a Healthier Life
Website – Spiritual Help: Steps to Peace with God
To assist in making lifestyle changes - Wellness Coaching
Other blog posts about God’s power
Oct
31
2009
Our beliefs about God and spiritual things are the most important beliefs we have because they can have the most impact on our lives – as we live day to day and for all eternity.
What we believe determines how we behave to a very large degree. When our lifestyle choices are guided by our deep spiritual beliefs, our health can be positively impacted.
On one occasion, Jesus said in a loud voice, ” “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scriptures has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” By this he meant the Spirit (of God), whom those who believed in him were later to receive.” John 7:37-38
If we believe in Jesus and have accepted him into our heart, we are promised that God’s Holy Spirit is in us. The Spirit’s power enables us to live in a way that we could not otherwise live.
This is why I have identified the following Christian principles, among 38 others, to be health-promoting:
- Believe in God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit
- Accept Jesus as Savior
- Believe the Holy Spirit Lives in You
The “streams of living water” that flow from within you, resulting from the above principles, will help you experience a healthier life than if your beliefs were otherwise. This “stream of water” is God’s Spirit and his associated power for living.
When I want to make a point about something… when I want to emphasize something.. I often raise my voice and talk louder than I usually talk. Did you notice in the scripture above that Jesus spoke in a loud voice? I suspect he was emphasizing this to those he was talking to. I hope you’ll agree with me that this is a very important spiritual truth that we should embrace and apply!
Questions to Reflect on:
Do you have a desire or a “thirst” to make a behavior change in your life?
Are you burdened by stressors in your life?
Jesus invites you to “drink” from his well and to go to him if you are weary and burdened by life circumstances. (Matthew 11:28) He promises that the Spirit of God will empower you to make desired lifestyle changes and meet your deep needs when circumstances in life are burdensome.
Related Resources:
An Invitation to Join God’s Family
A More Complete Biblical Basis for The Faith and Health Connection Ministry
Changing Behavior and God’s Holy Spirit – a Blog Post
Other Blog Posts on the Holy Spirit and Health
Aug
21
2009
Obesity and diabetes levels are still on the rise. That’s according to the State of the States Report released this week.
According to this Gallup Poll, my state, North Carolina had a nearly 2% increase since last year. Twenty eight percent of North Carolinian’s are now obese – a Body Mass Index of 30 or greater. (Calculate your own BMI) Almost 12% of the people in North Carolina have diabetes – the 9th highest state.
Obesity Rates in America - 2009
Certainly, many people in our country die of weight-related problems each and every day. These deaths are preventable. Let’s take a deeper look.
There are many factors that contribute to the high obesity and type 2 diabetes rates in our nation. Access to health care, the environment, annual income/poverty level and heredity all play a role. But the cornerstone of these two conditions are physical activity and eating habits. The bottom line is that these two lifestyle choices most contribute to both of these conditions and they are almost totally under one’s control. These are choices we make, day in and day out.
Faith and Health
High levels of body fat and high glucose both represent a form of “death.” The Bible tells us that we have a choice. We can choose between life and death. In the Old Testament, God tells his people -
“Look, today I am giving you the choice between a blessing and a curse! You will be blessed if you obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today. But you will be cursed if you reject the commands of the Lord your God and turn away from him and worship gods you have not known before.” Deuteronomy 11:26-28
Later in the same book, God continues to share his instructions about the choices we have between life and death. He says “Today I am giving you a choice between life and death.” (Deut. 30:15) In verse 19 he urges us “Oh that you would choose life, that you and your descendants may live.”
We Can Choose "Life" or "Death"
We all have choices to make each and every day or our life – all throughout the day. We can make choices that are life-enhancing or death-enhancing; good health-enhancing or poor health-enhancing. The choice is ours.
With God in our life in a big way, it’s easier to make healthy choices. It’s easier to make the countless healthy choices that are important in managing our weight. But even that begins with a choice. We must make a conscious choice to involve God in our life day in and day out. It really all begins with this decision.
The more diligent we are in involving God in our life, the more strength he will provide for living and making wise and healthy choices. God can enable us - empower us – to choose to be more active and to eat more nutritious food. One key to this is to relinquish control of your life to God and to live in a more surrendered way to him.
The Bible tells us that God’s Spirit lives in us if we have accepted Jesus into our life as our Savior. Imagine, God lives in us. When we relinquish control to his Spirit, it is actually God that is empowering us as we live. In this case, it is God’s Spirit that helps us to get off our seats and be physically active. It is his Spirit that prompts us to buy and eat healthier food. His Spirit gives us greater discipline. It is God’s Spirit that comforts us when we are stressed and feel like opening the refrigerator and eating a carton of ice cream or devouring a box of cookies.
My hope and prayers for all of you who might struggle with your weight is that you lean more heavily on God and a deeper faith to assist you in making healthier lifestyle choices. That you’ll make a conscious choice to tell him in your prayers that you need his help and that you are unable to make these desired changes on your own.
I hope that you will experience the love of God in it’s full measure and that that you will be empowered by God to make the kind of healthy changes in your life that you might want to make. See the verses in Ephesians 3:16-19
Questions To Reflect On
If your health is impacted by your weight, what lifestyle changes could you make that will help you lose weight?
How much are you really depending on God to help you with these changes?
Does God’s Holy Spirit live in you that he might enable you to make any desired changes in your life?
Resources to Help With Weight Management
An Article – Overweight? Find Freedom From Overeating
An Article – Spiritual Exercises to Help Us Know God Better and Manage Our Weight
Scripture Listing – Scriptures Related to Weight Management
Spiritual Help
Struggling with life as well as your weight? Desire to know God in a personal way? Desire to have God’s Spirit in your life to empower you to live? Read about God’s love.
Wellness Webinar
To register and learn about The Spirituality-Health Connection: An Introduction – A Wellness Webinar, an online event scheduled for September 3rd, 2009, follow the link provided.
May
30
2009
I’ve been in the wellness profession for over 25 years. Over that time I’ve seen many health risk assessments and wellness appraisals, all aimed at providing the participant with a snapshot of their well-being. Some are short with few questions and some are more extensive with a hundred or more questions to answer. Most of these deal with the physical, mental, social and emotional aspect of health. Few deal with the spiritual side.
As my faith began to take off in a very personal and meaningful way and I began to appreciate the truths of the Bible and become more familiar with it’s contents, several verses related to wellness began to stand out for me. I think one in particular is pretty helpful from a’ wellness snapshot’ point of view.
In Galatians, Paul compares what our life might look like if our old sinful nature is controlling us versus whether God’s Holy Spirit is controlling us. He tells us that if we submit to God and are intentional about letting Him equip us for coping with life’s stressors that our lives will be bountiful in “fruit.” “But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!” Gal. 5:22-23
I think that the degree to which we have these fruits of the Spirit present in our lives is an indication of our overall emotional and spiritual wellness. If we are still wounded deeply from past experiences and relationships and if we turn to unhealthy mechanisms to cope with stress in our lives, then it’s doubtful that we will be regularly experiencing these fruits.
The more we allow Jesus to heal us and the more we learn to live in dependence and submission to God, through the power of the Holy Spirit who lives inside us, the more whole we will be. Evidence of this is the presence of these fruits that Paul tells us we will experience.
Application:
Review these fruits listed and the degree to which they are present in your life.
Take a look deep inside and sense if there are any emotional or spiritual “roots” that might be lingering which are obstacles to experiencing these fruits.
If you find any “roots”, draw close to Jesus and ask Him to gently pluck them out.
Spiritual Fitness Assessment
Take a more complete Spiritual Fitness Assessment I have developed.
Apr
12
2009
Jesus has risen so we can have life
We are made whole if we confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and we believe in our heart that God raised Him from the dead. (Romans 10:9)
This is God’s promise in the Bible. We who believe in Jesus, and in what the Bible says about who He is and what He did, will be saved. We will have eternal life.
Jesus also wants us to have an abundant life on this earth. He tells us this in John 10:10. The way we can live life to the fullest is to surrender our “self” nature to God’s Holy Spirit who lives in us. The more we surrender to Him, the more we will enjoy the ‘fruits’ mentioned in Galatians 5:22-23 – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
I hope that you are enjoying the full life that Jesus wants you to experience.
Yes, Jesus died a gruesome death on a cross for you and for me. He also is risen and because of this, we can have life. 1 Corinthians 15:20-22
Apr
10
2009
Your old nature was crucified on the cross with Jesus
Have you realized substantial victory from your old and sinful nature since you’ve become a Christian or are you still “stuck” in a major rut by your old thinking patterns and unhealthy behaviors?
Consider opening this link and listing to this song as you read this post. Be blessed!
Romans 6:6 is a reminder that your “old” nature, your “old” manner – your “old” self – was crucified and died with Jesus when He was crucified on the cross. In reality, it is a done deal! Romans 6:7 tells us that anyone who has died has been freed from sin. Since your old nature has died, you are now free from sin and the way you used to live before you accepted Jesus into your life.
Our old nature, our old self did things apart from God. This old nature was inherited from Adam and Eve who were the first sinners. (Romans 5:12) We used to live life without the help of God’s Holy Spirit, who now lives inside of us. We were unable to live the kind of life that glorified God. We were unable to make behavior changes that we knew would be healthy for us… healthy in mind, body and spirit.
But because of what Jesus did on the cross at Calvary, we now have a new nature and we can live in triumph over death and sin and our old ways of living. (Romans 5:17-19) You and I are in right-standing with God. We are now righteous because of what Jesus did and our faith in what the Word of God says. We are free to live in the power of the cross. This, accompanied with the power that we have because God’s Holy Spirit is in us, enables us to live life more fully. It should enable us to live life with less of a struggle. Sure, we will still struggle in some areas, but we should be able to have significant victory over the way we used to live because of the cross and because of the power that we have. We have the same power in us that raised Jesus from His tomb! The Holy Spirit living in us gives us that same resurrection power. (Ephesians 1:19-20)
This power is to enable us to live in a way that glorifies God and that honors His temple, our bodies. ( 1 Cor. 6:19-20) This power can enable us to make the kind of behavior changes that we know we should make to be healthier.
I am learning that a key in this area is to admit to God, in prayer, that I am unable to make these changes in my own strength… in the abilities of my old nature.. and that I am strongest in my weakness and that I can have the ability to make these changes in God’s strength and power… in the Holy Spirit’s power. (2 Cor. 12:9 and Isaiah 40:28-31)
Thank you Jesus for what you did on the cross because you love me. … thank you for making me whole again!
If you didn’t listen to the song, consider opening this link now … and know that God loves you!
Points to Ponder:
Have you fully recognized and understood that, if you’ve accepted Christ as your Savior, your “old” nature died on the cross with Him? Are you living life from this perspective?
Are you appropriating, or have you appropriated, the power of the Holy Spirit in your life to make the lifestyle changes you desire/desired to make?
Are you regularly admitting to God that you do not have the ability to live life to the fullest and that you need Him and His power to do so?
If you do not have Jesus in your life but recognize your need for Him, follow this link.
Feb
10
2009
Are you struggling to change a behavior that you know is unhealthy? Maybe this will help.
In a blog post last week I wrote about how God can help us manage the stress in our lives. I mentioned how much God loves us and that he sent his son, Jesus, to die for our sins so that we might have life and have it abundantly. John 10:10. I also posted a link to a presentation that shares the Good News about how God loves us and the difference that Jesus can make in our life. I thought it would be helpful to go deeper in sharing how God enables us to change our unhealthy lifestyle.
One thing that happens when we accept Jesus into our life is that God makes our old nature dead. Romans 6:6 says “For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with that we should no longer be slaves to sin. Romans 6:11 says “In the same way, count yourself dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. The New King James version of the Bible says that we are to “reckon” ourselves dead to sin.
I am learning of the importance of “reckoning” myself dead to sin and my old nature. The degree to which I really believe and receive deep in my heart and spirit the fact that my own nature was crucified on the cross when Jesus went to the cross, will be the degree to which I can be successful in living the full life that Jesus died for me to have and that God offers me now. You see, the Bible says that our old nature really died on the cross with Jesus. Our responsibility is to believe and receive this fact. When we are able to do this at a very deep level it has the ability to radically transform our life and our behavior. It is so very critical however that we really do believe this — that we “reckon” this in our spirit. In this there is great power.
Colossians 2:8 reminds us that we are not to rely on the ways of the world once we have become a child of God. The ways of the world would tell us that in order to make behavior change, we must muster up motivation and self-discipline and all sorts of strategies to make the behavior changes we desire to make. The way of God and the Bible tells us that we are to choose to depend on Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit that is in us to make these behavior changes. We must choose as an act of our will to depend upon Christ in the power of the Spirit.
Romans 13:14 says “Rather, clothe yourself with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature. Colossians 2:6 says “So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. In Ephesians 3:16, Paul writes “I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his spirit in your inner being.” Ephesians 20 says “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us.”
What we are invited to do as believers in Christ is to believe deep in our hearts that our own nature was taken away and died when we accepted Jesus as our Savior, and then we are to rely on the power of the Holy Spirit within us each and every day to live life. This includes the ability to live and make behavior changes with the same power that raised Christ from the dead.
For me, to be able to make the changes in my life that I felt called to make, daily I surrender my own nature and ask God’s Holy Spirit to empower me to live that day and to be the one that enables me to make any lifestyle changes that I desire to make.
If you have been struggling to make a health behavior change in your life, “reckon” that the old behavior is now dead, and allow the Holy Spirit within you to live out the new behavior.
What challenges does this present? What obstacles have you encountered?
Jan
21
2009
Do you want others to experience the abundant life that Jesus came to earth, died and was resurrected for so that they might have it? John 6:63 says that “It is the Spirit alone that gives life.”
So, my question to you is this, “Is it your nature or God’s nature flowing through you that is touching the people around you and the people who you hope will experience this abundant and eternal life?” It is only when we relinquish our self-nature, when we yield our own self and allow God’s Holy Spirit to flow through our spirits into our souls and outward through our bodies that people will experience God’s Spirit and the life that Jesus wants them to have.
I have been reminded that it is important for me to start my day out asking God to help me surrender myself to His will and His Spirit so that He can live through what I do and what I say. That my living comes from His Spirit directly and by His power. As well, the more frequently than I can have this attitude and lift up a similar prayer throughout the day, the more likely it is that my actions and speech will be influenced by God’s Holy Spirit and not be of my own soul-nature. This will then increase the likelihood that the people I speak to and what I write about will be of God and His Spirit and will have His life in it.
This requires intentionality. It requires a choice to live like this. It requires a certain sensitivity, appreciation and an awareness of when we are living from our soul-nature versus living by the anointing of the Holy Spirit. And then, it requires a degree of obedience to live out God’s will instead of our own nature. We can be sure, then, that if we are acting out of the promptings and from the direction of the Holy Spirit that lives in us, we will be extending true life to others who we interact with and serve. Only in that way can we be assured that we are being instruments, in the purest sense, of God and His love.
Are you being intentional and surrendering your own own nature and asking God that His nature, His Holy Spirit inside you, live through you?
Nov
29
2008
Christians might have a health-related advantage over those who have not accepted Jesus into their hearts. When a person invites Jesus to be a part of their life, God’s Holy Spirit, a part of the Holy Trinity, takes up residence inside that person. The Holy Spirit enables a person to live in a way that he could not live without the power of the Holy Spirit. Paul tells us this in Romans 8:11 when he writes “The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.” (The contemporary Message translation is more detailed in its explanation.)
Imagine, God in the form of the Holy Spirit lives inside Christians. We have tremendous power that is not available to a non-believer. But, a big question is, do we really believe this and appropriate this power to live in healthy ways. Over recent years, I’ve come to recognize that it’s critical that I remind myself that this power is available to me and that I think, or meditate, on this truth. Even better, I often speak out this truth in a self-affirming way. When I do this, I seem to more easily live out of this power, not in my strength, but out of God’s strength and power.
How does this apply to health-related behavior change? Here’s one example. I have a tendency to skip eating breakfast. Any dietitian will tell you how important breakfast is. I enjoy a cup of coffee or two as I have my quiet time and read my devotional material and the Bible. After my prayer time, its Oh so easy for me to roll right into checking my email or writing some material. I’m off and running. Then the day begins to slip away and before I know it, it’s almost noon. When I’m disciplined to ask the Holy Spirit to prompt me and then strengthen me to take time for breakfast, I am able to be pretty consistent with this helpful behavior. Then, even as I am beginning the act of preparing something to eat, I thank God for helping me. This is the process I use in making a health-related behavior change, with God’s help. It’s really the Holy Spirit inside me that is responsible for the changed behavior. My responsibility is to acknowledge His presence and His power and my need for His help.
Are you struggling with making a change in behavior that you’ve been unsuccessful in making in your own strength and willpower? Would you consider inviting the Holy Spirit to help you and then believe He will do what you’ve been unable to do in your own strength?
If you’re reading this and have yet to accept Jesus into your life, I invite you to take some time to read this brief story about coming home.
Have a terrific day!
Read an article about surrendering more to the Holy Spirit.
Oct
08
2008
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During my quiet time this morning I was led to Psalm 46.
“God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble. So we will not fear, even if earthquakes come and the mountains crumble into the sea. Let the oceans roar and foam. Let the mountains tremble as the waters surge!” (1-3)
Thinking about our country’s crisis right now in the economic world you could easily substitute some words for this Psalm and it would apply today:
“So we will not fear even if a financial crisis comes in and the stock market plummets to new lows.” “Let the retirement accounts plummet and crumble and let the people on Wall Street and the stock market tremble as our confidence in the economy is at an all time low.”
The key in these verses is found in verse one and two – God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble so we will not fear.
I think that’s what God is calling us to do during these times. Remember that God is our refuge. He is our strength, so we should not fear – no matter what happens in the economic world or to our personal investments. God is reminding us to be still and know that He is God and know that He is in control and know that He will provide and He will make a way.
It’s in God that we can find our true security, no matter what happens, be it in our personal finances or any other aspect of our life.
I have been reading the works of Watchman Nee, a Chinese Christian author who died in 1972. In his book, The Spiritual Man ( a free on-line ebook), Nee writes about man’s soul and his emotions and how critical it is to allow the Holy Spirit to influence our reactions:
“One quality which characterizes a spiritual person is the great calm he maintains under every circumstance. Whatever may happen around him or however much he may be provoked, he accepts it all calmly and exhibits an unmovable nature. He is one who is able to regulate his every feeling, because his emotion has been yielded to the cross and his will and spirit are permeated with the power of the Holy Spirit. No extreme provocation has the strength to unsettle him. But if one has not accepted the dealing of the cross upon his emotion, then he will be easily influenced, stimulated, disturbed, and even governed by the external world. He will undergo constant change, for emotion shifts often. The slightest threat from outside or the smallest increase in work shall upset him and render him helpless. Whoever genuinely desires to be perfect must let the cross cut deeper into his emotion.” (P. 429)
Finally, let’s also be reminded of what the Psalmist writes in verse 10: “Be still, and know that I am God!”
Related Blog Post – God Gives Strength: Isaiah 40:29
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