So far most of the studies on the relationship between spirituality and health have focused on how to apply the concepts and practices of spirituality to patients, especially those with serious and terminal illness, like advanced stages of cancer. Almost all of these studies conclude that spirituality does help patients cope with pain and death so that many of them do recover. They do not discuss the relationship of these two concepts in healthy persons. In this article I share with you my thoughts on why spirituality helps us to live healthy lives so that we do not get sick most of the time. I hope that this article will help the healthy person see the dynamic relationship between spirituality and health so that he or she can enjoy life better and longer.
A Brief Description of Spirituality
For our purpose here I define spirituality as simply a person's relationship with the spiritual world, the unseen world of powers which are greater than ours. Spirituality is familiarity with this unseen world.
Some have a very low level of spirituality, almost non-existent. They are not aware of this spiritual or unseen world. They think that only those things which can be perceived by our five senses and reason exist.
Others have a very high level of spirituality. A few even live as though they are spirits. They sense this spiritual world in the same way that they perceive things with their five senses. This world is too real for them to be denied. In fact this world influences all their thoughts, words and actions.
In between these two groups of people are those who are struggling with spiritual issues, persons who admit of a spirit world but they are still trying to understand it.
How Spirituality Helps Us Stay Healthy
Just as the mind or soul directs the voluntary motion of our body, so also the spirit directs the activities of our mind or soul which activities mostly consist of thinking and acting.
It is the mind through our brain which directs our body what to do. Take the mind or soul from the body and the body does not move. When this separation is permanent the body can no longer move, is dead.
In a similar way it is the spirit which directs our mind or soul what to think and how to act. A person with a high degree of spirituality follows the leading of the spirit what to think and how to act.
For most people they do not follow what their spirit leads them to think. Their thinking is either reactive or slavish. They either react to the effect of other people on their lives or they just follow what others want them to think, just like slaves.
Reactive thinking is thinking that contradicts what others say. If they tell a person that he is a coward the reactive thinker will think that he not a coward and may prove this to these persons who call him a coward.
Slavish thinking is just following what others want the person to think. You find slavish thinking before television sets and in classrooms. Most of those who gaze at the television screen imbibe the values projected there. Most students just follow what their teachers want them to think in the hope that they can get passing grades.
The spiritual person follows the leading of his spirit in his thinking, not what others want him to think. Nor does he react to what others say about him. He listens to his spirit and then he thinks what his spirit wants him to think and act accordingly.
No one is more concerned about our health than our spirit. The reason for this is that for our spirit to function normally and effectively he needs a healthy mind in a healthy body. So this spirit leads us to think only of thoughts that produce a healthy mind and healthy body. He knows what is the best food, the best exercise, the best recreation, the best reading materials for us. He will direct us to shun junk foods which are very common nowadays.
So if you want to stay healthy and fit, follow your spirit as he tells you what to think. This is the dynamic relationship between spirituality and health. It is dynamic because it is a relationship which gives power (dunamis in Greek) to live a healthy life.
Here are my other blogs which may be of help to you:for your spiritual growth
http://bit.ly/alternativehealth
for your health
for learning about the new trends around us
for earning some income from the Internet
Here are your links to download the e-books for FREE. To download a copy of A NEW CHRIST by Wallace D. Wattles click this website http://bit.ly/anewchrist. To download a free copy of A NEW EARTH by Eckhart Tolle click this website http://bit.ly/ebookanewearth. I hope that you enjoy reading these free e-books and profit much from them, as I have also profited greatly from them.
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