The Power of Choosing to Prioritize Your Health
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“I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live” (Deuteronomy 30:19).
The ability or freedom to choose is one of the greatest gifts God has given to us. His word makes it clear that our free-will choices have very real consequences that affect our lives positively or negatively. In fact, if we are to ever break free from ordinary and mundane lives – much less experience John 10:10 overcoming, extraordinary abundance – we must first choose to do so, that is, choose life.
Did you know that even our health, in many respects, is a choice? Current scientific research estimates that humans are biologically endowed with a life expectancy of 115-126 years, yet we rarely reach those numbers. While aging and death are inevitable (Genesis 6:3), God has given us control over our choices – choices which affect how well and how fast we age. And when our average life expectancy is closer to 70-80 years than 120, we should take a closer look at the choices we are making on a daily basis, and see if we are actually killing ourselves, slowly but surely.
Now, I am the last person to throw stones in this area; I have won and lost the battle of the bulge more times than I care to admit. I eat for the wrong reasons: for celebration and happiness, or to alleviate emotional stress. And my Italian heritage does much to encourage this lifestyle with massive amounts of food at every family gathering!
Other reasons people make poor choices about food include boredom, loneliness, spiritual emptiness, or financial lack. But regardless of the root cause, these choices create a bondage to ill health that literally steals away years from the life God has promised. The good news is, even if we have made seriously wrong choices regarding our health in the past, God wants us to get free and move on. Indeed, God’s word was given to us not only for our eternal salvation, but as a guide to live a happy, holistic lifestyle here on planet earth. And it has a lot to say about how we should treat the bodies we have been given, and why we should choose health.
Chose Salvation
When most people think of the word “salvation,” they simply think of attaining everlasting life with the Lord. But the word “salvation” means so much more. It is derived from the Greek word σῴζω or sózó and it has a holistic meaning (to save, heal, preserve, rescue). It is used regarding complete wholeness of mind, body and spirit, God’s ultimate desire for each of us. For example, notice how the Apostle Paul prays for the Thessalonian church:
“May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 5:23).
In fact, the Scriptures provide instruction regarding more than just our souls and spirits, but also how to treat our bodies:
“Therefore, since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God” (2 Corinthians 7:1).
“That each of you should learn to control your own body in a way that is holy and honorable…” (1 Thessalonians 4:4).
“’I have the right to do anything,’ you say — but not everything is beneficial. ‘I have the right to do anything’ — but not everything is constructive” (1 Corinthians 10:23).
“…and put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony” (Proverbs 23:2).
“No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize” (1 Corinthians 9:27).
God has clearly given us the responsibility to care for our bodies and to make appropriate choices that steer us toward God’s will for our lives. He fashioned the human body (Genesis 2:7) from the clay of this world and breathed His Spirit into its lifeless form. Mankind is made in the image and likeness of God Himself, and we are the masterpiece of His creation (Ephesians 2:10). For that reason alone, we should take care of ourselves. Our bodies are works of art by the Master and are priceless! And if they wear out prematurely, we will be unable to finish all that God had called us to do.
Moreover, the Lord of Glory Himself has chosen to dwell with us, the Church, by inhabiting these very bodies while we on the planet:
“Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).
Isn’t that the best reason for us to take care of our bodies? Don’t we want the Holy Spirit to have a nice, functioning house? A house full of life and vitality, fit for a King? Then we must choose to take care of our bodies. And when we choose rightly, the effects on our personal experience of this life are huge.
Choosing Health Empowers Us to Experience a New Normal
The benefits to choosing health extend far beyond our physical appearance. Like the prophet Daniel, when we make God-honoring choices with our bodies, we will feel better, perform better, and progress in our destiny faster.
Young Daniel was captured during Nebuchadnezzar’s siege of Jerusalem and sent to Babylon to become a slave to the empire. He was bright and good looking, and he and several other young boys were selected to go through special training to serve in the King’s Court. As such, they were given the “upgraded” menu of the palace, which would include very rich foods and wine (that is, foods rich in sugar and fat!) The boys realized that these ultra-rich foods were not something they should be eating.
“When you sit to dine with a ruler, note well what is before you, and put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony” (Proverbs 23:1-2).
So Daniel asked permission to try out a healthier diet by comparison. And here’s is what happened:
“But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way. At the end of the ten days they looked healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who ate the royal food. So the guard took away their choice food and the wine they were to drink and gave them vegetables instead” (Daniel 1:8, 15-16).
They looked healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who ate the royal food. How could they tell by the way they looked? We could presume they were more energetic, had better skin tone, better moods, with sharper and faster responses. In short, they were feeling better than the rest.
“…for drunkards and gluttons become poor, and drowsiness clothes them in rags” (Proverbs 23:21).
In other words, when you consistently eat the wrong things, it drags you down, you don’t feel as good, and you become much less productive and less sharp. Daniel’s lifestyle of God-honoring and healthy food choices, along with faithfully pursuing the Lord, surely helped him perform mental tasks with excellence beyond his peers:
“To these four young men God gave knowledge and understanding of all kinds of literature and learning. And Daniel could understand visions and dreams of all kinds. At the end of the time set by the king to bring them in, the chief official presented them to Nebuchadnezzar. The king talked with them, and he found none equal to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah; so they entered the king's service. In every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king questioned them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his whole kingdom” (Daniel 1:17-20).
They followed God’s law and chose life by choosing foods that contribute to life, rather than leading to an early death, and God rewarded them with extraordinary favor and promotion. Ultimately, even Daniel’s destiny was launched because of it:
“Then the king placed Daniel in a high position and lavished many gifts on him. He made him ruler over the entire province of Babylon and placed him in charge of all its wise men” (Daniel 2:48).
He was promoted to a prominent position in the King’s Court and was able to influence the life of the empire for God simply because he made the right choice.
Begin Today
Most of us realize that unless we put the right fuel in our car’s tank, the engine will spit and sputter and eventually shut down; we can actually blow a brand new engine entirely if the wrong “fuel” gets into the tank. And we also realize we can extend the life and improve the performance of the engine by selecting the high-octane, premium fuel at the pump.
If we understand how car engines work, why are we so cavalier about the fuel we put into the amazing human engine we have been given?
Do you want to fulfill your life-long mission to expand the Kingdom of God? Do you want to be used to significantly impact influential people for the cause of righteousness and the plan of God? Do you want to progress in your destiny rapidly and accomplish as much as possible in the name of Jesus? Then begin today with making right choices. Choose life by making the decision to choose health, and may all of us be blessed to see 120 happy and prosperous years!
Source
Blagosklonny MV. No limit to maximal lifespan in humans: how to beat a 122-year-old record. Oncoscience. 2021 Dec 1;8:110-119. doi: 10.18632/oncoscience.547. PMID: 34869788; PMCID: PMC8636159. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8636159/
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