I used to struggle with caring for my body and my spirit because I thought of them separately and as disconnected. I must take care of my spirit by reading the Bible and going to church and praying. I must take care of my body by drinking enough water (why is hydration so hard?) and eating healthy food and exercising. Is it possible that taking care of both body and spirit is essential because they are connected? Is it possible that lacking in caring for the spirit can affect our physical health? Is it possible that using things from creation itself betters our health?
Experience has taught me the answer to those questions is a strong yes.
The Bible has quite a bit to say about both our bodies and our spirits – which together, make humans a very unique creation.
Genesis 2:7 says, “Then the Lord God formed the man of the dust of the ground and breathed into him the breath of life.” All the rest of creation – light and darkness, sky and sea, land and ocean, the universe, plants, and animals – were all spoken into existence. But humans were made from creation. Adam was shaped and formed from dirt by God’s hands. Eve was shaped from Adam’s rib and designed by God’s hand. Humans are unique in that we were taken from Creation and shaped and formed by the Creator.
Humans are the only part of creation that was made in the image of God. Genesis 1:27 repeats this fact three times. “So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.”
Our bodies are incredible gifts. Such a special gift deserves special care!
In addition to our bodies, humans have a spirit. (Sidenote: humans are not angels, nor do we become angels. In fact, 1 Corinthians 6:3 says, “Do you not know that we are to judge angels?” I personally find this verse amazing, and I can’t wait to judge the demons which taunt us!) James 2:26 says, “The body apart from the spirit is dead.” And Proverbs 18:14 says, “A man’s spirit will endure sickness, but a crushed spirit, who can bear?” These verses lead me to consider that the health of the body is heavily affected by the health of the spirit.
I have noticed in my life that when I abuse my body, even in culturally acceptable ways such as indulging in junk food, it hurts my spirit. For instance, too much alcohol can make us depressed. Too much sugar causes a crash. Artificial food dyes can have a large effect on mood and behavior. These are simple things that most of us know.
I have perhaps experienced this to the extreme. In my teens, my diet was not great. I had amazing home-cooked meals every night, compliments of my mom. However, my breakfast was almost always dyed cereal. On school days, my lunches were highly processed (and I rarely chose the salad bar). My snacks were usually Twinkies and Oreos, not fruits, veggies, or other whole foods. Rather than water, I usually chose Mountain Dew – a lot of it.
I was also going through some really hard situations – surviving a home explosion and enduring sexual assault. The result was overwhelming depression, crippling anxiety, and oppressive PTSD. However, I blamed my mental health 100% on trauma, and I ignored what I was putting into my own body.
I took SSRIs for 15 years. My mental health was tolerable. I was surviving, but I wasn’t thriving. In fact, I was self harming as a way to release emotional pain, and I developed a chemical addiction to the endorphins self-injury induced.
Causing my body physical harm really affected my spiritual life. I will go so far as to say that during that time of my life, I was under demonic oppression. There was an all-out spiritual battle for not just my body and spirit, but my soul.
When my faith was strengthened by the work of the Holy Spirit, only then was I able to stop self harming.
After the strengthening of my faith, the next biggest change came for me when I went off sertraline (Zoloft) and also removed foods with artificial ingredients. The only things I added in were gut-healing foods and magnesium. The panic attacks cleared. The depression turned to motivation. My mood became stable. And in return, therapy started to have more of an effect.
My life shows a pattern:
My body was harmed. My faith took a hit.
My faith became weak; my body was further weakened.
My faith was strengthened; my health improved.
Physical things like herbs and whole foods and grounding have an impact on our mood. Things like limbic system retraining and cognitive behavioral therapy work. It’s why going for a nature hike changes the brain signals in the prefrontal cortex. These things are part of God’s creation, of which we were made. Using things from creation for our physical health connects us to our roots and to our Creator. Romans 1:12 says that caring for our bodies is a “spiritual act of worship.”
But it’s also why prayer life is vital. It’s why being connected to God’s Word is sustaining. It’s why going to church and receiving the Sacraments of baptism and communion strengthen faith. And these must come first, because without God’s breath of life, there is nothing.
It’s why 1 Corinthians 6:19 makes sense. “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.”
Our bodies and spirits are connected, and the care for them must be connected to both God and His creation.
I look forward to collaborating with you all the ways we can glorify our Creator God in our bodies.
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