Posts that pertain to our relationship with God and others
In the last post we talked about how important self-talk or inner dialog is to your health. In this post we’re going to talk about how to permanently change your self-talk for the better.
Most people I know struggle with their inner dialog or self-talk. What you may not realize is how important self-talk is to your health.
Many people suffer with some form of self-doubt. They wonder if they’re really enough. A man wonders if he’s competent enough. A woman wonders if she’s attractive enough.
For men, the question is more external. A man says to himself: “Can I come through when it really matters? Will people approve of what I’ve done? Will I be recognized for my accomplishments or acknowledged for my competence?”
For women, it’s more internal. A woman wonders: “Am I beautiful? Will anyone notice me? “Will anyone pursue me? Am I worth pursuing?”
For those of us pursuing vibrant health and abundant life, we must answer these questions in a positive fashion.
Intermittent fasting has the power to benefit us physically, mentally and emotionally. Those benefits go deep and wide. However, the spiritual benefits are by far, the best part of intermittent fasting.
This is the last post in this series and we’ve truly saved the best for last.
Throughout the bible, we see people humbling themselves before God by fasting. This is true for the Jewish nation in the Old Testament, as well as the New Testament Christians.
For centuries, fasting has been an ordinary part of the lives of people who walk with God. If you’re a follower of Jesus as I am. And you believe in holistic health, then intermittent fasting should become a regular part of your routine.
When you think about ways to improve health does your thinking default to nutrition and exercise? What if something that has nothing to do with either of those, is already impacting your health, for better or worse?
“Most people wander aimlessly through life, but I’m not one of them.” If you agree with this statement, and some others like it, researchers at Carleton University, Ottawa Canada say that your chance of being alive 14 years from now, goes up by 15%. (1)
Furthermore, it didn’t matter how old the participants were. All age groups experienced the same benefit.
Maybe it’s time to give some thought to your sense of purpose. It can make a dramatic difference in your longevity and overall well-being.
The topic of marriage seems to be coming up a lot lately. There’s a lot of discussion about how we should define marriage. A traditional marriage was originally defined in the bible to be a covenantal union between one man, and one woman, for life. (Genesis 2:24)
A traditional marriage, has many benefits, including: emotional support, safe sex, and financial security. Homes with a traditional marriage are also the best way to raise children.
These facts are well established. However, a lesser understood concept is that marriage is good for your health. In terms of improving your overall health and well-being, your spouse is perhaps your greatest ally.
The bible tells us to “guard your heart” Why? Because it’s ready to sin on a moments notice? No!.. Because our hearts are where we find real life. (Proverbs 4:23) So, we should treat our hearts like we would a treasure, or our most precious possession. When we do, it’s life giving.
We must hang on to this truth because it has huge implications for our health. Most of us are familiar with Proverbs 4:23 above. But, many are not as familiar with the couple of verses that precede that statement. They have everything to do with our physical health.
We are instructed:
“My son, give attention to my words; Incline your ear to my sayings. Do not let them depart from your sight; Keep them in the midst of your heart. For they are life to those who find them And health to all their body.” (Proverbs 4:20-22)
If we are to expect physical health, and vitality, we’ve got to get this spiritual concept right. It’s a matter of having an accurate self image. We must see ourselves as God sees us. When we do, we’ll be in much better positions to maintain, or even recover our health.
Good heart health means believing when God looks into our hearts, he doesn’t see darkness and sin. He sees the women and men we are capable of becoming in him. He sees our true glory. We must see ourselves this way as well, free from any form or self-condemnation, or self-deprecation.
No discussion on holistic health would be complete without addressing the human heart. Yes, we’re created as triune beings: body, soul, and spirit. But, where does the heart fit in? The answer to this question will change everything, and has huge implications for our health.
If we’re going to make any meaningful changes to our lifestyles with the intention of improving our health and enhancing our effectiveness, we’ve got to get this right. If you believe as I used to believe, that the heart is just mushy emotions and therefore not worth paying much attention to, think again.
Our beliefs and thoughts are crucial to maintaining or recovering our health. There is a well-established mind-body connection. Most would not argue with the idea that our thoughts affect our health.
However, the logical question that follows is: “What should we believe and think to maximize our chances of recovering our health? ….READ MORE
At a sub-conscious level, there may be beliefs in place that motivate us to remain sick. To help uncover these limiting beliefs, I suggest three critical questions that anyone seeking to maintain, or recover their health should ask himself or herself.
If any of these three questions are not answered properly, they’ll be severe impediments to one’s health. Remember, it’s not what we say that matters, but what we actually believe.
It’s our beliefs that determine our thoughts. And through the mind-body connection, our beliefs will ultimately affect our physical well-being.
Do you want to be well? When Jesus healed the paralytic at the Bethesda pool in John 5, the first thing he said to him was: “Do you want to be well?” (John 5:6 ) At first glance this sounds strange, even a bit sarcastic.
However, Jesus knew exactly what he was doing. Jesus didn’t’ simply want to heal the man physically. He wanted to make him more whole, by freeing him from a limiting belief system.
There are likely many reasons someone may not actually want to become well. Maybe they’re finally receiving the sympathy that was missing in their childhood. Maybe a disability check would stop if they recover their health. Maybe they’ll have to get a job if they become well again.
I can’t say what it may be for you, but if you’re dealing with a health challenge, I recommend you do some soul searching, and see if there may be some underlying motivation for you to remain sick. What do you receive as a result of being sick?
Do you believe you can be well? This one is huge. If someone doesn’t believe it’s possible to get well, they likely won’t.
Imagine this scenario. A woman has a lump in her breast; she goes to her doctor, and he runs a biopsy. The test results come back positive. She has stage four cancer.
Her doctor calls her in to the office and says something like this: “I’ve got your test results; I’m afraid its cancer. It’s in an advanced stage, and the cancer has metastasized throughout your body. I give you four months to live. Go home and get your affairs in order.”
This doctor planted the belief that she cannot get well. If this woman accepts what her doctor says as absolute truth, the results could be devastating. In order to start her journey toward recovery, she needs to reject this kind of pronouncement, and say: “That doctor is full of sh _ t, and I’m going to beat this.
I would suggest that to varying degrees, every cancer survivor, or anyone that has beat an “incurable” disease has to say, or come to believe something similar. They have to believe they can recover. It is a virtual necessity.
Do you believe you deserve to be well? This one is more subtle, but can absolutely be a major block to healing. If we believe that we don’t deserve to be well, then it’s a slippery slope to the conclusion that we can’t be well.
An incorrect, or distorted self-image can lead to illness, or block our recovery from illness. Don’t be too quick to dismiss this thought. There is an awful lot of false guilt in the church today.
Again, there are perhaps many forms of this, depending on the individual person, and their life experience. Some may think that God is somehow punishing them for what they’ve done. These are false beliefs. God stands ready to forgive. (1 John 1:9)
Some may be thinking: “Good health is for other people; my lot in life is to be a sickly person.” In this case, there is likely some spiritual warfare going on. See my four-part series on spiritual warfare and health: The Secret To Finding Abundant Life.
It doesn’t matter how we came to the conclusion that we don’t deserve to be well. If we want to maintain and/or recover our health, we must believe the truth that we deserve to be well.
We must learn to love ourselves well enough to accept the idea that we deserve vibrant health.
Consider the following truths:
You are precious, and valuable. (Genesis 1:27) You are loved and pursued by God. (Jeremiah 31:3) You are exquisitely, and wonderfully made. (Psalm 139:14) You are the apple of God’s eye. (Zechariah 2:8) (Psalm 17:8) Jesus hung naked, and bloody on a cross and died for you. (Philippians 2:8) You’ve been crowned with glory and honor. (Hebrews 2:6-7) God is working in, and through you, for his good pleasure. (Philippians 2:13) And, if Jesus is your Lord, you are forgiven. (1 John 1:9) (Hebrews 10:17)
God placed you here at this time in human history. (Acts 17:26) You are God’s masterpiece. He put you here for a reason, and he has work for you to do. (Ephesians 2:10) Doesn’t it make sense that his desire is that you have the vitality necessary to accomplish those purposes? (3 John 1:2)
Let these truths sink in, and ask yourself: Is there anything that would disqualify me from enjoying vibrant health? Do I deserve to be well?….
Next week we’ll dig deeper into our identity in Christ by defining the believer’s heart.
Few things have more potential to improve our health than practicing forgiveness. Forgiveness brings a supernatural peace, and peace lowers our stress levels. Any time we lower our stress levels, we improve our health.
Everyone enjoys receiving forgiveness, but most are reluctant to extend forgiveness. We don’t forgive for the other person’s sake. We do it for our own sakes. Withholding forgiveness is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.
C. S. Lewis said: “We are a spirit. We have a soul, and we live in a body.”
This understanding is crucial to implementing spiritual warfare and health. Thoughts that have a spiritual origin (good or evil) have a way of progressing from the spirit, to our minds, and eventually our bodies…