HEALTHY PRIORITIES
Beloved, I pray in all respects you may prosper
and be in good health, just as your soul prospers.
~
3 John 1:2
FOCUS FOR TODAY
Fitness is a journey, not a destination.
Achieving physical fitness - and maintaining it -
is a seven-day-a week assignment.
If you don't make physical fitness a priority,
your health will suffer.
When it comes to matter of physical, spiritual, and emotional health, Christians possess an infallible guidebook: the Holy Bible. And,when it comes to matter concerning fitness - weather physical, emotional or spiritual fitness - God's Word can help us establish clear priorities that can guide our steps and our lives.
It's easy to talk about establishing clear priorities for maintaining physical and spiritual health, but it's much more difficult to live according to those priorities. For busy believers living in a demanding world, placing first things first can be difficult indeed. Why? Because so many people are expecting so many things from us!
If you're having trouble prioritizing your day - or if you're having trouble sticking to a plan that enhances your spiritual and physical health - perhaps you've been trying to organize your life according to your own plans, not God's.md
A better strategy, or course, is to take your daily obligations and place them in the hands of the One who created you. To do so, you must prioritize your day according to God's commandments, and you must seek His will and His wisdom in all matters.
Would you like to embark upon a personal journey to better fitness? If so, you should remind yourself that on every step of that journey, you have a traveling companion: your Heavenly Father. Turn the concerns of this day over to Him - prayerfully, earnestly, and often. And trust Him to give you he strength you need to become the kind of person He wants you to become.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
BECOME AN EXPERT
You don't have to attend medical school to understand the basic principles of maintaining a healthy lifestyle. In fact, many of the things you need to know are contained in this text! But don't stop here. Vow to make yourself an expert on the care and feeding of the body that God has given you. In today's information-packed word, becoming an expert isn't a very hard thing to do.
MORE FROM GOD'S WORD
1 Corinthians 6:19-20
New International Version (NIV)
19 Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20 you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.
John 10:10
New International Version (NIV)
10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
Ephesians 4:1
New International Version (NIV)
Psalm 23:5-6
New International Version (NIV)
5 You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
6 Surely your goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
forever.
13 Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise.
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
6 Surely your goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
forever.
James 5:13
New International Version (NIV)
MORE THOUGHTS ABOUT HEALTH
The soul is the user, the body for use; hence the one is the master, the other the servant. - St. Ambrose of Milan
Ultimate healing and the glorification of the body are certainly among the blessings of Calvary for the believing Christian. Immediate healing is not guaranteed. - Warren Wiersbe
Let exercise alternate with rest. - Pythagaras
The effective Christians of history have been men and women of great personal discipline - mental discipline, discipline of the body, discipline of the tongue, and discipline of the emotion. - Billy Graham
Exercise: You don't have time not to. - Anonymous
KNOW YOUR BLOOD PRESSURE
High blood presure can cause heart attacks, strokes, and plenty of other serious health problems. The good news is that high blood pressure is usually treatable with medication, or lifestyle changes, or both. But you won't know you eed treatment unless you know your blood pressure. Thankfully, blood pressure cuffs can be found just about everywhere, in many drug stores and even in supermarkets. Or, if you prefer, you can but your own blood pressure cuff to use at home.
So remember this: you don't have to wait for a doctor's appointment to check your blood pressure. You can monitor your own blood pressure in between visits to the doctor's office, and that's precisely what you should do.
WORKING IT OUT
MAKING EXERCISE FUN
Make exercise enjoyable. Your workouts should be a source of pleasure and satisfaction, not a form of self-imposed punishment. Find a way yo exercise your body that is satisfying, effective, and fun.
THE GIFT OF LIFE
Life is a glorious gift fron God. Treat it that way. This day, like every other, is filled to the brim with opportunities, chllenges, and choices. But, no choice that you make is more important than the choice you make concerning God. Today, you will either place Him at the center of your life - or not - and the consequenses of that choice have implications that are both temporal and eternal.
Sometimes, we don't intentionally neglect God; we simply allow ourselves to become overwhelmed with the demands of everyday life. And then, without our even realizing it, we gradualy drift away from the One we need th most. Thanfully, God never drifts away from us. He remaons always present, always steadfast, always lving.
As you begin this day, place God and His Son Jesus where they belong; in your head, on your prayers, on your lips, and in your heart. And then, with God as your guide and companion, let the journey begin....
STRENGTHENING YOUR FAITH
DON'T TRUST THE MEDIA'S MESSAGE
Many of the messages that you receive from the media are specifically designed to sell you products that interfere with your spiritual, physical, or emotional health. God takes great interest in your health; the moguls from Madison Avenue take great interest in your pocketbook. Trust God.
MORE FROM GOD'S WORD
ABOUT LIFE
Ephesians 4:1
New International Version (NIV)
Psalm 100:1-2
New International Version (NIV)
A psalm. For giving grateful praise. 1 Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.
2 Worship the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!
2 Worship the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
Philippians 4:4
New International Version (NIV)
John 14:6
New International Version (NIV)
6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
21 Whoever pursues righteousness and love
finds life, prosperity and honor.
Proverbs 21:21
New International Version (NIV)
finds life, prosperity and honor.
NOTES TO YOURSELF
Write down ways you can be more proactive about your health.
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