The first thing that usually comes to mind when people ask themselves if they are healthy is if they are in good physical shape. However, being healthy includes a few different things. It is comprised of maintaining balance physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually.
A necessity to being a Christian is spending quality time with God. When Christians spend time with God, they are not only strengthening their relationship with their creator, they are also strengthening themselves in every category that collectively makes them a healthy person overall.
“One of the ways you spend time with the Lord is by reading (the Bible),” said Jeremy Mercer, lead pastor at Connection Church in Corona, Calif. “The (Bible) is full of practical wisdom for life. The more we become ‘doers of the word, and not hearers only,’ the better off we will be, in all areas of life.”
Reading the Bible is one of the most common ways Christians spend time with God, but there are many different ways.
Pfc. Matthew Terry, infantry soldier in the U.S. Army, spends time with God by worshiping in his room or in his car while driving by listing to Hillsong, praying, going to church and, of course, reading his Bible.
“Going to church gets you out of the house, making you an active person and puts you around other people,” Terry said. “It meets our social need for human interaction and our spiritual need through worship. When any basic human need is being met this makes us healthier people.”
Physically, Hannah Ov-
ereem, freshman undeclared major at California Baptist University, said she is more committed to working out and exercising by having a relationship with Christ.
“It gives you a clearer head, helps you relieve stress and helps you have a better attitude toward life in general,” Overeem said.
Terry, Mercer and Overeem admit that staying physically active is vital to being a healthy person, but working out and eating right is not enough. Taking care of only your bodily needs may mean that you’re physically alive, but spiritually dead.
There are non-believers in extremely good shape and may seem to be healthier than a Christian, who spends time with God, but Terry explains why they are not.
“Someone can’t be at their absolute healthiest without God,” he said. “God designed our human needs and he also gave us the means to meet every one of them through him.”
A person can be well off mentally, emotionally and physically, but without the spiritual element of being connected to God, their health is kept from reaching its highest potential.
