Wellbeing

Today we start a series that looks at our well-being as disciples of Jesus. In his third  letter we find  John greeting his friends in Christ with the words, “I pray for good fortune in everything you do, and for your good health—that your everyday affairs prosper, as well as your soul!”

Right throughout scripture we find this theme of God’s will for the health of humankind. Indeed, much of the ministry of Jesus features God’s unfolding plan for our welfare.

In recent research by the National Geographic Society and the National Institute on Aging, scientists interviewed some of the oldest and healthiest people on earth and observed where they live. Many of these people live healthy and active lives beyond the age of ninety, and a significant percentage of them are still going strong at one hundred.

Here is one of the discoveries they made: none of the people in these cultures did daily exercise. No weight lifting. No jogging. You see, they lived lifestyles where movement was a part of their everyday life. They didn’t have to jog or put on their track suits or lift weights. They were in motion from morning till night.

Wesley taught that God cares for the health of our minds and bodies as well as our souls. In our times, Rick Warren wrote, "The key for churches in the 21st Century will be church health, not growth." When a congregation is healthy, it will grow spiritually and enjoy the benefits of a live, vibrant relationship with Jesus Christ. A healthy Christian will not find their strength or determine their weakness in the size of the church the attend.”

It’s no coincidence that wholeness and holiness are related concepts as one writer put it, “Holiness leads to wholeness and wholeness leads to happiness.”

Almighty God our heavenly Father, you have blessed us with the gift of life
and placed us in a world of beauty and wonder. Your perfect will for us is wholeness in body, mind and spirit.

We bow in awe and wonder at your feet and freely acknowledge our dependence upon you for all that is good. In your presence we remember all that damages our lives, the lives of others and the world which you have created.

Compassionate God: we seek your wholeness, your forgiveness, your renewing us through and through, your peace; in the name of our Lord Jesus who loves us and gave himself for us. Amen