Seasons change....Here in Western Pennsylvania, we experience the full gamut of the changing seasons. Sometimes we can experience 2 or 3 of those seasons in one day and we need to leave the house prepared for cool mornings, hot afternoons, and an umbrella just in case. We leave our homes prepared to strip off the layers of clothing, turning off the heat in the car and turning on the A/C. In the winter, we have our snow brushes and ice scrapers. We are prepared! Bring it on!
I am a "preparer" by nature, I schedule my days, but not so much that I can't be flexible if necessary. I leave some wiggle room and try to be happy about it. I will even plan my adventures, not wanting to leave anything to chance. Not like when I was much younger, when I lived life fully on the edge, looking forward to uncertainty, and singing seasons change and so do I*. I had no fear, took many risks, not really caring. (*The Guess Who)
The seasons of the earth change, and we know what to expect. Rain in the spring, blooming flowers, hot summers, thunderstorms, the glory of the changing leaves, and then the snow and ice of winter. We know it is coming and we prepare, switching out our clothes, buying snow tires, etc.
But what about when the seasons of our lives change? When life happens when we are making other plans? When it gets too hard? Because face it, doing life is hard. I was trying to live this cautionary life, laying out my plans for the future like I switch out my boots for sandals. But wait, didn't God say in Proverbs 16:9 "We can make our plans, but God determines our steps" (NLT).
My life is facing uncertainties in this season. Family members with health issues, an aging parent, and everything that goes with it. Uncertainties tend to overwhelm us. I think that is because we feel threatened and out of control. We cry out why me, and this is not fair. This is an emotional response to being uncertain of the outcome and this response can cause health issues, if we let it.
We don't know the future, but we know whose hands the future is in. And it is not ours.
Facing uncertainties requires preparation in body, mind, and spirit:
Body: sticking to a health promoting way of eating and keeping up with your exercise routine will help you think more clearly and keeps your immune system in top shape to fight off infections and viruses. When we are emotionally distraught, our body is more susceptible to infections and viruses. In the midst of everything, I caught the nasty virus going around and was able to kick it in a couple of days. I never would have been able to do this years ago, when I ate a not so good sick promoting diet. In the midst of hard life happening, stick to a routine and get adequate sleep.
Mind: when emotions get out of control, take a step back, examine the situation, and write down what is making you feel out of control and threatened. When life is hard, we lose heart. Find people who will weep with you and support you. Sometimes we really do need a professional to talk to and sort it out. Keeping on an optimal way of eating, with lots of fresh fruit and veggies, really does help. When your digestive system is healthy, your mind is healthy as well.
Spirit: the future is not in our hands, no matter how much I want to schedule it. Being grateful for the little blessings that we have daily can be transformative. My friend Greg McBrayer wrote today "Some people believe they are masters of their own destiny." Don't we prove this to be untrue every day? He also wrote "All our trials and triumphs are part of God's transforming glory." It might be difficult to be loving and compassionate through our own trials, but this is where our faith comes in. This faith in God transforms us daily.
As the seasons of my life change, by God's grace, so will I. Only this time it is the transforming change of faith, from glory to glory. Being healthy in body, mind and spirit is the position from which we fight our battles. We will be equipped when life happens. We can still live on the edge but this time it's because God has our back and we can live boldly, facing the unknown.
Liz Fattore
Nurture Your Health
Licensed Food Over Medicine Professional
Wellness Forum Health
Excerpts from "What does the Bible say about Health"
How is your spiritual health?
We all look for wholeness in our lives. As Susie Larson says, "what happens in our souls, happens in our cells."
God made our immune system. Our immune system doesn’t wait until we get sick to start fighting or until we have a major threat in our life. It fights at the first sign of danger. As soon as it detects the slightest one-cell bacteria, that’s it!
A healthy lifestyle doesn't mean you are only eating well, but your mental and spiritual health are being fed as well.
Did you know that when you speak negatively about yourself, you give those words power that enters your consciousness, and it affects your DNA! Refuse to allow it to have a place in your life. Negative words will devour you.
Feeding our soul a healthy diet of Jesus is what helps us come alive spiritually, just like feeding our body a healthy diet helps us function at our best. This is stewardship of mind, body & spirit (and the heart). James Clear says “what gets rewarded gets repeated. Don’t reward behavior that you don’t want to see repeated. God made us stewards of everything, including our physical body.
Some science:
Trauma is an assault to the symphony of the body. It overwhelms the body’s intrinsic ability to self-regulate. This is regulated by the amygdala. If some of our body is not functioning, the body compensates and “holds” what is painful. It causes dis-regulation, but parts of our body cooperate to keep it going. This is what leads to disease. It also leads to depression, sadness, and anxiety. The chemistry of the brain becomes disrupted (neuroinflammation). We can become cut off from our body and live in our head (going through the motions). But the body and the soul remember.
What are you ignoring about your body and your health? What are the messages that your body is sending to you that you are not listening to? God speaks to us through our physical issues. We need to not only pray for healing, but pray that we can understand first, what God wants to address about our character. Ask him to “disrupt” your life by speaking honest and loving words to the most damaging issues in our lives.
A higher daily intake of fiber-rich fruit and vegetables is associated with lower incidences of anxiety in adults and, at the same time, greater happiness, higher life satisfaction, and greater social-emotional well-being.
In turn, emotions may harm you: anger affects the liver, stress affects the heart & brain, worry affects the stomach, grief affects the lungs, fear affects the kidneys. When we speak ill of ourselves and attack ourselves, our brain goes into a stress response. This produces cortisol and insulin and triggers our body to store fat.
Come join the conversation!
Keep a lookout for the next free Bible Study!
Liz
