Your Health is Your Wealth
Whether we like it or not we are getting older. I have had to recognize in the year since I crossed the 40 threshold that I am not as young as I think I am. I can still remember as a teenager and into my 20’s that 40 seemed so old. But now that I am at the point in life, I still want to feel young. Part of feeling young is being in good health.
I can still remember when I was in my 20’s some of my older friends told me that one day my metabolism would slow down. You may not know this but when I got married in 1997 I was a whopping 110 pounds and I had some room to grow, so to speak. I could eat whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted. I didn’t worry much about exercise. But then in my late 20’s I noticed things started to change. I started to put on weight. However, I don’t remember when I gained 30 or 40 lbs. thinking. “Wow, I am at a good weight, I better start watching what I eat.” No, I kept going until at the worst, I had gained 90 pounds. I even joked that the new me ate the old me. It was at that moment in time that I decided it was time to get serious about my health. Now I know there are some of you that have a few years on me and there are a few of you who are younger than me, but I do think if you aren’t already serious about your health it is probably time. Your health doesn’t just affect your body, but it affects your entire life. Your physical health affects your life in 3 ways:
It is affects your emotional life.
I will admit that when I don’t feel good I can be a bear to live with. I am much more likely to lash out and yell at my kids. I am much more apt to say something hurtful or sarcastic to my wife. When I don’t get enough sleep, my emotions tend to be much rawer. When I don’t exercise or eat too much, I am much more lethargic and much less focused. So my physical health affects my emotional health.
It affects your mental life.
When I don’t feel good, I find the choices I make are sometimes not the best choices. Again, when I have not slept well or not eaten well, my tendency is to not think as clearly. I can notice at work when I haven’t slept well, that my creativity and my drive to get things done is compromised. Scientific studies have shown that those who don’t sleep well have their judgment impaired. So my physical health affects my mental health.
It affects your spiritual health.
Just as my relationships with my family, friend and coworkers are affected by my physical health so too is my relationship with my Heavenly Father. I don’t feel like taking time to spend in devotions or praying. My attitude toward God when things go bad sours. My physical heath affects my spiritual health.
This month we will be looking at different aspects of health. We will be talking about some aspects that you probably had heard much about but we will also will talk about aspects of health that you might not have thought about much.
I want to close with a blessing for your health that was penned by the apostle John, who tradition holds died a natural death in his 90’s.
“Dear friend, I hope all is well with you and that you are as healthy in body as you are strong in spirit.” (3 John 2 NLT)
Conversation
What areas of your life do you see being affected by your physical health? What areas of your physical health do you recognize needs work?