Here’s more insight and thoughts captured from my reading of Health Care You Can Live With by Dr. Scott Morris, founder of the Church Health Center in Memphis, Tennessee.
Excerpts From the Book:
“The dominant approach to health care in the United States concerns broken bodies more than broken lives.”
“Health care is a mess.”
“”Jesus said, “The poor will always be with you.” So far, he has been right. If he ever asks me, “Where were you when I was poor and sick?” I want to be able to answer, “I cared for you as best I could.””
” Doctors learn to ‘keep out.’ Doctors learn to practice medicine by taking a medical history and asking questions around the symptoms the patient describes. ….. This process also says, ‘Keep out.’ Keep out of my heart. Keep out of my sorrow, my stress, my fatigue, my relationships. Keep out of my private space. Just fix what hurts.”
“Every day, every single day, doctors tell patients there’s nothing wrong because they find no physical root for patient complaints….. Whatever is amiss is not a matter for the health care system.”
“Plenty is wrong. Spiritual and emotional issues manifest in physical ways.(my emphasis) But, our health care system draws a line and says, ‘Keep Out.'”
“Health care is a mess. People want change. But to what?”
“Efforts at health care reform fail because they avoid the essential questions of wellness. The starting point is off kilter. Our health care system is built on the premise of waiting for people to break in some way and then come through the doors, where we will use our technological wizardry to fix them…. That’s not health care.”
“Caring for health means attending to the things that keep you well long before you break and need the door to technology.”
“In the next couple of chapters, …. we’ll delve into what you can do to bring change to your [personal] health care.”
My Thoughts
Morris is right, so very often it’s deeper spiritual and emotional issues that are at the root of the physical ailments we have. Most medical professionals will agree that the greatest majority (80-90%) of visits to physician offices are because of stress-related issues.
Our greatest hope in changing our personal health status is in loving our creator, God, and in living according to the many principles found in his guidebook for living, the Bible.
God is love. 1 John 4:8
His greatest command to us is to love him. Mark 12:29
He tells us that to love him means to obey his commands or principles. John 14:15
God has given us his principles because he knows that the greatest chance we have for health and wholeness comes when we follow them.
Questions to Reflect On:
Are you addressing spiritual and emotional issues that may possibly be at the root of your sickness or disease?
Do you encourage your physician to help you look ‘inside’ at your heart issues in addition to the ‘outside’ physical symptoms?
Are you falling more deeply in love with God?
Related Resources:
Article – It’s About the Relationship
Article – His Instruction Manual … Our Guidebook for Healthy Living
