Holistic Health, part three

Because God’s personality is housed (if one can think of God being “housed” in anything) in Spirit, He is not bound by such things as neurology, anatomy, physiology, gravity, time, or physics.

Because we are housed in bodies, we are bound by such things. We are bound by laws that govern the functioning of a biological being. We have nervous systems and hormonal systems, particularly, which influence, and are influenced by our mind, will, and emotions. Ours is a reciprocal relationship within ourselves. Every thought, feeling, and behavior is simultaneously biological.

The Bible doesn’t say a whole lot about the body and how to treat it, but we do have hints here and there.

For example, we read in 1 Tim. 5.23 that drinking a little wine can be good for the stomach. We read in Daniel 1 that vegetables were considered better for the body than “the king’s dainties”. And in 1 Kings 19.1-18, God supplies food and water for a hungry, thirsty, and spiritually exhausted Elijah.

So the notion is that taking care to provide the body with proper nutrition is good and appropriate.

We also find that exercise is hinted at. 1 Tim. 4.8 says that, “bodily exercise profits a little”. And in 1 Cor. 9.24-26 Paul uses vigorous physical training as an example of spiritual training.

As for rest, why was Jesus asleep in the bottom of the boat (Matt. 8.23)? Because He was tired. If it is ok for Jesus to sleep when He is tired, I suspect its ok for us.

As for our Nervous and Hormonal systems, the scriptures really don’t address them. But General Revelation has taught us that many of our emotional, cognitive (i.e. thinking), and relationship problems find their roots in chemical imbalances.

If you are having emotional, cognitive, or relational problems, evaluate whether or not you are getting proper amounts of the right kind of nutrition, rest, and exercise. If those are in place and the problems still exist, seek the help of a mental health professional to consider if neurological or hormonal issues might be involved.

Remember that being as physically healthy as we can is not just an option. It is an opportunity to reflect God's glory to the world...and that is why we're here!

Holistic Health, part two

Special Revelation teaches us that we are creatures created in God’s image. That means many things. But one thing it means is that, "You and I are in little (our sins excepted) what God is in large." (Tozer, The Pursuit of God)

God has personality and we have personality. Having personality means He has mind, will, and emotion. Since we have personality, we have mind, will, and emotion.

God is spirit. That also means many things. But for purposes of this discussion, it means that God’s personality is housed in spirit. This corresponds, interestingly enough, to our personalities being housed in bodies. God’s personality can no more be separated from spirit than our personalities can be separated from our bodies (with the obvious exception of Death).

In other words, as long as we are alive, our personalities are intimately and permanently interacting with our bodies. We are, therefore, responsible to keep our bodies as healthy as we can to create an environment conducive to having healthy personalities (mind, will, emotion).

In other words, being Holistically Healthy, means being healthy in body, mind, will, and emotion. It also means being like God.

Over the next several installments, I will discuss ways of being healthy by addressing issues of the body, the emotion, the will, and the mind, in that order.

We will look at both Special and General Revelation to gain insight into healthy living.

Keep watching...

Holistic Health, part one

What makes us who we are?

Why do we get depressed? Anxious? Fearful? Stressed? Discouraged? Angry with ourselves? Angry with others?

We think, often, that if we can understand where it comes from, we can correct it. We can “fix” the problem and make our depression, anxiety, fear, stress, discouragement, or anger go away.

And this is a logical conclusion. If my car won’t start in the morning, I need to find out what is causing it not to start and fix it, so it will start. If my stomach hurts, I need to find out what is making it hurt, so I can stop it from hurting. If my child is being disobedient, I need to find out what is causing this disobedience and fix it, so he will be obedient.

The next question is: How do I find out what is wrong? Where do I go to learn the truth about what is causing my problem (depression, fear, etc)?

Ultimately, there is only one source for truth. God!

God is the author of truth. Jesus said, on many occasions, “I tell you the truth…”

He took this even further when He said, in John 14:6 “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” He IS TRUTH!

So it is imperative that we seek the mind of God on these issues (depression, anxiety, etc.) just like we would on any other question regarding truth.

How does God communicate with us? Two ways:

Special Revelation: Ps. 119 makes it very clear that when God speaks through the scriptures He speaks the truth. Special revelation also includes any direct communication between God and Man (e.g. dreams, visions, appearances)

When we organize our understanding of Special Revelation, we call it Theology or Doctrine.

General Revelation: God also speaks through creation. Psalm 19:1 says “The heavens declare the glory of God; the sky displays His handiwork.”

Romans 1:20 says “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes –His eternal power and divine nature – have been clearly seen, because they are understood through what has been made. So people are without excuse.”

When we organize General Revelation, we call it Science and Philosophy, Reason, Logic, etc.

What we must do to discern truth is glean as much knowledge and understanding as we can from Scriptures (our main source of Special Revelation) and the best of General Revelation to help us understand where some of our problems (e. g. depression, stress, anxiety) come from and how to best deal with them.

Keep watching...

Holistic Health

Several people have asked about notes regarding my teaching about "Holistic Health" and I'd like to try and make some of that available.

What I'll do is post little, abbreviated, versions of my lectures in a sort of series.

I'll start with some basic notions of how we seek and find truth and then post a series starting with being like God in our bodies, moving on to being like God in mind, will, and emotion.

Hoping this is helpful...

Tim

Judgment

"How can a Christian judge other Christians and still obey the command to not be judgmental? Simply this: There is a judgment that leads to condemnation and a judgment that leads to reconciliation." Anonymous

Judgmental?

"Don't make the mistake of thinking the little knowledge you have is all the knowledge there is to be had." Anonymous

What could be more important than you?

1 Corinthians 6:1 When any of you has a legal dispute with another, does he dare go to court before the unrighteous rather than before the saints? 6:2 Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world is to be judged by you, are you not competent to settle trivial suits? 6:3 Do you not know that we will judge angels? Why not ordinary matters! 6:4 So if you have ordinary lawsuits, do you appoint as judges those who have no standing in the church? 6:5 I say this to your shame! Is there no one among you wise enough to settle disputes between fellow Christians? 6:6 Instead, does a Christian sue a Christian, and do this before unbelievers? 6:7 The fact that you have lawsuits among yourselves demonstrates that you have already been defeated. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated? 6:8 But you yourselves wrong and cheat, and you do this to your brothers and sisters!

The wisdom of the world says something like, "I must be certain to protect my own interests. If I don't, I'll be cheated! And there is nothing worse than me being cheated! I have rights and you can't take from me and expect to not be punished. If you take anything from me I must be paid back."

Now justice and fairness are good things. The apostle here is not arguing that people shouldn't be treated fairly. But he is claiming that there is something more important than fairness: a higher law must be invoked.

When a brother takes a brother to court before unbelievers this higher law is violated. It is such a serious violation that Paul calls it a "shame".

The priority regarding these principles looks something like this: search out justice in daily matters, but under the judgment of the elders of the church. If you get justice, fine. If not, drop it! There are to be no appeals! Do not seek further resolution in the court of the unbelieving world. You are better off being wronged or cheated than to experience the shame of having lost people not only watch your dispute, but render a judgment about it!

So what is this "higher law"? God's glory is more important than you. Whether you are treated fairly and get what you deserve is less important than God's reputation.