Health from the inside out

I know this is a strange verse to pick today, but I have been thinking a lot about health, fitness and mental health recently; it's so prevalent in the media.

I believe that God was fully aware of the problems that would face First World countries in the 21st Century! The Word is timeless and contains everything we need.  2 Peter 1:3 says that we have everything we need for life and godliness too!


Health has become the latest buzz-word, but I really believe that most of the time while the answers offered focus on the external while the real issues are inside; not even physical issues for the most part, but in our soul (mind, will and emotions), and there is a spiritual solution to these issues.

In Matthew 15, Jesus explains to the disciples that it isn't what goes into their bodies that defiles a person, because what comes from the outside in goes through the digestive process and gets flushed out (no pun intended).   He said what comes out from the inside is what defiles (pollutes us). 

The bible also says that out of the abundance of our hearts, our mouth will speak.

The thing is,  we harbour so much negativity, doubt, offence, stress, anger and fear inside. Then it comes out of our mouth so that we hear it over and over again!   Our wellbeing isn't linked as much to our outward circumstances as it is to our inward state and condition.  Hanging on to these things will make us feel crappy, and may also lead to physical ailments.

Some of us may not like that.  Blaming external factors relinquishes our responsibility to do anything about it, but the truth is, that when we face the truth we realize we have the ability (God's grace) and power (His Spirit) to change that, we can experience a different outcome.  External factors are rarely under our control, but our own minds are!

We have a choice.  We can bang our heads against a metaphorical brick wall (hence the picture this week), wondering why nothing ever changes for us, or instead, we can look at what God says about something and deal with it His way, which is always far less of headache!  Sometimes we have done the head v brick wall so often that we've numbed ourselves and don't even realize how destructive our thoughts have become.

Peace is something Jesus gave us (John 14:27 I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid)

As with all things, it really comes down to this.   Do we believe what God's Word says?   Focussing on what Christ did for us on the cross providing peace, filling us with His power, giving us His authority. 

I think the greatest cause of sickness and mental affliction today is actually found in the lack of peace that we walk in. The lack of peace we walk in is directly related to what we're giving place to in our minds.

So today, if you want to un-pollute your minds and bodies, I encourage you to replace the junk with what the God says about you.  Consider it, meditate on it, think about it, rehearse it, and believe it, and avoid the brick wall!