Health Principles, Part 2: Practical Solutions you can apply!
In part one of this series on health, we discussed the basics
about God and his creation. God designed the natural world into a
system of interdependent processes, causes and effects. By
understanding that there actually IS a system functioning in the
natural world, a system which follows rules, we can bring
ourselves into balance with this system and avoid unnecessary
suffering.
Knowing there is such a system, though, isn't enough.
Knowledge which isn't understood is useless. For decades,
there have been voices warning of dire consequences for polluting
our environment. We've heard warnings and pleading from
health care practitioners of many disciplines throughout this
century about various aspects of the human body and its
relationship to the natural world. Knowledge was there and it has
been vehemently resisted and crushed BECAUSE it was not
understood and because Satan hates the truth and knows it sets people free.
Today, we are in the midst of a health revolution. Suddenly
people are beginning to understand the knowledge. Why? Because
the world around us, the environment, the natural system and
ourselves are showing signs of serious interference. As our
environment, the water, air, land, wilderness, animal diversity,
etc., has become more involved, we've come to see and realize
that we, too, are becoming involved. Man has assumed that he is
above nature and independent of it. Now we realize and understand
that we can't divorce ourselves from the natural world
without a terrible price.
People are beginning to understand the physical world around
them and realize the connection between environmental health and
PERSONAL health. There's nothing like a dose of reality to
get one's attention. Today, virtually every aspect of the
natural health system which has been consistently fought against
is gaining acceptance. It is unfortunate that much of this
acceptance is through hindsight. Research and technology can be
useful tools for deeper understanding, but to depend on research
proof before we are willing to accept or understand what is self-evident has brought us to our present health crisis. The natural
world is a wonderful example of principles which work on all
living things. Let’s take a look at some of these
principles, and apply some analogies which will explain in
everyday experience how these principles work. These principles
are not independent of each other. Rather, they are very
dependent and interactive with each other as part of the natural
system.
THE PRINCIPLE OF DEGENERATION
The
natural world around us is in a constant state of decay. At any
level you would care to look, you will see a certain rate of
degenerative change occurring. This rate is different for
different species, systems and even tissues, and is negatively or positively impacted by other forces, however, this degenerative
process has never been stopped or defeated. Change comes to every system on earth, including humankind. There MUST be a constant maintenance or upkeep to minimize negative changes, or maximize positive changes.
Death occurs to every
living thing at one point or another. The important concept to
keep in mind concerning this principle is that, although there is
no physical way to stop this process short of a resurrection, man
has the ability by what he does and how he lives, to either speed
up or slow down this degenerative process. Science is gaining more and more understanding of the aging process, and this knowledge is proving that nutrition and natural health processes MUST be understood and worked WITH and not against, or damage will result.
Physical life
functions on somewhat of a "supply and demand" system.
How much we eat, what we eat, the exercise we may or may not get,
general maintenance we do. All of these examples are necessary
for health, but what we do and how we do it will determine, to a
large extent, the rate of degenerative change we go through.
Why do we brush our teeth daily? Why do we take a shower or bath once
a day and not once a week? Why do we normally breath
12-15 times a minute? Because proper "maintenance" within a time
framework requires it. We all know what happens when we don't
take a shower or bath for a week. Natural processes create
certain conditions which we have to correct. Eating when hungry,
cleaning when dirty. Try breathing once a day or eating once a
week. When the body is provided the proper elements, it can function at
its fullest and minimize the natural degenerative processes
inherent in nature. God designed His creation to function within
certain parameters. It is designed to build, replace and defend
on a continual basis as long as the required parameters are met.
Note: Science has been reaching into the very atoms and smaller particles of our physical world, and recent research is revealing that a mechanism that prevents rapid aging has apparently been discovered involving our genes. This mechanism involves the lack of an enzyme in most of our tissues which allows the gene (telomeres) to shorten with each replication. Some cells do NOT age because the enzyme "telomerace" prevents the telomere from shortening, thereby preventing the aging process... bringing us to a distinct possibility of slowing down considerably the aging process, and even reversing aging to some degree. You can read more about this discovery HERE
Degenerative forces can be minimized or maximized by how we work with the natural system. Symptoms we experience do NOT indicate the "start" of some health problem, but the final stages of a process. For example, when you experience a runny nose, sore throat, chest congestion, you are "getting a cold", you've already HAD it for a week or more. It just finally reached the "degenerative" point where the body exhibits the symptoms of losing the battle.
In the same way, when someone experiences ANY other symptom of ANY disease process, be it cancer, heart disease, stroke or wherever, the "disease" did NOT just BEGIN with that symptom... it is the far later stages of the process of degenerative changes that finally exhibit the ongoing disease process that hasn't been stopped or reversed. Symptoms are a horrible way to gage health levels... meaning the ABSENCE of symptoms DO NOT MEAN you are in "good" health. It merely means that unless you are applying the proper health laws to the body, to prevent degenerative changes that lead to disease (dis-ease), then you are likely NOT "healthy" as you should be.
THE PRINCIPLE OF LIVING FOODS
The
subject of living foods, in and of itself, could cover a dozen
articles. It is one of the most important areas of human
nutrition, yet is one of the biggest deficiencies known to date.
"Living" foods, of course, suggests that there are foods that are "dead." What makes a food "living"? The natural system consists of a growing medium called soil. Soil is the core structure for assuring that foods being grown in that soil have all the essential elements necessary to maximize the food "bank account" in any particular product. Of course, you can also utilize hydroponics (water medium) as a growth source, but the essential elements must be present for this food to be of any degree a "living" food.
This is a very basic reminder of how food grows, in case we've forgotten the miracle. Soil essentially should consists of raw materials such as minerals, organic vegetable matter, bacteria, worms, and water. (This is a very similar system as our intestinal track and its health, discussed below). A seed planted in such soil absorbs water and begins to sprout. That sprout drives down into the soil seeking more moisture as the seed's initial food supply is used up to produce the initial sprouts (one goes down as the root, and one goes up as the stem, seeking the sun, all based on the "law" of geotrophism). As the roots develop, the plant develops because of access to the waiting raw materials in the soil.
The soil moisture from rain or other sources creates a medium which the bacteria then harness in THEIR activity levels. Bacteria and worms are necessary in healthy soil because they act on the organic matter in the soil, breaking it down, (digesting it), releasing nutrients into the soil as well... their own "by-products" which help to keep the soil healthy. For example, the by-products of the various bacteria types are substances such as certain acids which act on the minerals (inorganic rocks), leaching the microscopic minerals into the soil, and making them available in the water for absorption by the roots of the plants.
Other elements can include vitamins, enzymes, and anti-microbial and anti-mold/fungal substances that prevent soil from growing unwanted and destructive neighbors. All these make for a healthy soil and thus, healthy plants. The problem, however, is in the archaic farming methods still being employed by the vast majority of farmers across America. The use of chemicals and artificial fertilizers is completely destroying the ecosystem of American farmlands. The bacteria and worms are destroyed by these toxic substances, and the soil is very far from healthy, and the plants being grown on them are essentially devoid of many microminerals and vitamins which we need to stay healthy.
Imagine a lifetime of eating depleted foods that are lacking major amounts of the necessary substances we need for good health? There is one particular substance in foods that research has proven to be vital to
good health, and that substance is ENZYMES. Enzymes are elements
in ALL raw and uncooked or unprocessed foods which support digestive and
metabolic processes. Yet, one of the most common forms of food
preparation destroys these enzymes. Cooking or processing food
above 118 degrees (F) destroys these enzymes, thereby placing a
huge demand on the body to supply what should normally be
supplied in the food itself.
The body can't possibly keep up with the demand for large
amounts of enzymes for a sustained period, usually three times a day, without "wearing out" over time the organ responsible for these enzymes... the Pancreas. Yes, our body has the ability to produce enzymes, (except cellulase, the enzyme for breaking down cell walls of plants) or else we would all be dead.
However, the amounts needed by the body to handle enzyme
deficient foods is far more than the body was designed for, or
normally produces routinely throughout any given day. This
process, if continued month after month, year after year, decade after decade,
produces an enzyme deficiency within the body. This forcing of
our body to produce enzymes eventually wears out our
enzyme-producing capability, and aging speeds up.
The enzymes normally present in the tissues and organs of the
body are responsible for EVERY process known in the body. There
isn't one single process known that doesn't need enzymes
to occur, directly or indirectly. Imagine what happens to the body when the enzymes
levels gradually decrease. As enzymes decrease, degenerative
changes, aging, etc., increase. Enzymes minimize these
degenerative changes. They promote regeneration, healing, cellular defense
and detoxification. They are anti-inflammatory, help with allergies, asthma, sports injuries, gout, etc. They can reverse heart disease caused by blocked arteries.
Over time, the lack of enzymes promote a cascade of events
within the body involving multiple systems of the body. Much of
what we call "aging" is affected by the premature
degenerative changes brought on by our unhealthy lifestyle.
Enzymes, as God created them in living foods, are vital for
proper health and metabolic processes. It is a major player in
preventive health care. We need them in our foods or we need to
add them TO our foods that don't have them.
There is a domino affect that happens when we start down the wrong road of how we eat. For example, when foods are not properly digested in the stomach by enzymes which should be there, (hydrochloric acid does NOT "digest foods." It is responsible for helping to kill bad bacteria, and control the PH of the stomach for the various enzymes to function properly), these foods sit there and begin to breakdown abnormally. Imagine placing ground up food, in a warm, wet environment, say, in a pot, and just letting it sit there. How long would it take to begin to "spoil" from bacteria, oxygen, and other causes? Well, this principle is the same for our internal environment. This food should be actively digesting in the stomach, and then passing down into the small intestine to continue, where now the bacteria, protected from the hydrochloric acid environment, can begin working on the foods as well.
However, being deficient in enzymes causes this food to begin to essentially rot. This continues in the small intestines, and this rotting allows toxins to be created and absorbed by the body, just as the nutrients we should be receiving are absorbed into the body. These toxins can cause a host of problems while they set up "housekeeping" which other damaging pathogens (bad bugs) can then take advantage of. It is not at all uncommon for most people to have one or more negative infective agents (bacteria, virus, mold, yeast or fungus) to live in the intestinal track and these then can migrate to other tissues via the blood and lymph systems.
Everything from simple bloating, indigestion, gas, abdominal extension, to constipation, diarrhea, weight gain and a host of intestinal and colon disease processes, cancer, leaky gut, and Crohns, being a few major ones. Imagine the cells of the colon (not to mention the cells of the body...) being "bathed" in toxic chemicals on a daily basis, for decades... you can see why cancer is so prevalent. A complete digestive enzyme should have all the enzymes for digesting all the types of foods such as proteins, fats, carbohydrates, cellulose, etc., and allow a clean system. When the intestinal environment is overrun by the "bad guys," the good bacteria, friendly flora or "probiotics" as we call them, cannot survive well and this creates the second domino to fall...
- FRIENDLY BACTERIA, OR PROBIOTICS
Friendly bacteria are living cells which we take in from our environment, just as we do the bad guys, but if our environment is healthy the bad guys are eliminated, and the good guys help with this. Every type of bacteria is like a fruit tree. All fruit trees look like trees, but they all produce a different type of fruit. An apple is way different than an orange, or an avocado. Each type of tree produces different fruit, just as every type of bacteria produces different substances or by-products as they do their job in the intestine. Like the bad guys giving off toxins, the good guys give off GOOD substances that we are missing in our intestinal environment.
These substances do different things. The bacteria can produce vitamins, enzymes, anti-infective substances and likely hundreds or thousands of other substances not yet truly identified, but are critical for good health. These substances work in the intestinal track, and are absorbed into the blood stream to have access to the entire system to do its work on. A complex probiotic is vital to maintaining good health. This should include 15-20 different, but very viable, bacteria so they can make it into the digestive track alive.
By maintaining a healthy gut, you minimize the degenerative changes there, and enhance food absorption, and overall health.
THE PRINCIPLE OF CAUSE AND EFFECT
One
of the most deceptive aspects of the natural world is in how slow
the processes are. Cumulative damage is what occurs over time in the cause and effect scenario. Nature functions along a time gradient. The
laws and principles which God created in the natural world were
designed in conjunction with the equally created element of time.
The conception of an egg, and development, birth, growth and
death all occur over time. Physical law demands that all physical
processes occur over a time period. Because this is true, it can
be a difficult thing to remember that there is indeed really such
a thing as "law," or "cause and effect."
There is a spiritual principle given in Ecclesiastes 8:11 which
states that because a penalty against disobeying the law is not
immediate, the attitude or intent of man is to continue in the
disobedience. This principle holds true even in the physical
realm.
Effects which occur in the physical world occur in a time
framework. Disease processes never suddenly become full blown in
a matter of minutes. SYMPTOMS, (as discussed above) on the other hand, CAN suddenly
appear. The symptom is not the beginning of the problem, any more
than the signs of pregnancy indicate the beginning of conception.
Unfortunately, modern day practice focuses on treating symptoms
in the same way we view sickness and disease. The mysterious
heart attack, the gall bladder problem, stomach and liver
problems, cancers... are dealt with in purely a crisis management
framework.
The bottom line is this. We absolutely, positively can not
depend on how we FEEL to be our guide to how healthy we are.
Feelings are very limited in how much information they give us
about our physical bodies. Feelings do not accurately function at
all levels of our existence. Symptoms are effects of previous
causes, which were wrong. For example, cancer symptoms can take
5-20 years to develop. Persistent conditions for allowing cancer
to develop is what eventually leads to symptoms. They are the
last things to show up in a developing health problem.
Atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries) doesn't
produce a heart attack or high blood pressure the minute it began
forming years back. Even symptoms of the flu present themselves
long after the body temporarily lost the battle to the virus.
Dealing with symptoms is crisis management. Going by feelings is
ignoring cause and effect, laws and principles. They function no
matter how we feel. The question isn't, "How do I
feel," but rather, "Am I following the health
principles and laws the natural system provides?" The answer
to that question will tell you, right now, what you can expect in
the way of health later in TIME.
One other point to make in this section. Our society has been
conditioned to turn to a pill or potion for health. This concept
is quite often, transferred to the natural system. By this, I
mean many people trying to improve their health simply substitute
a "natural" medicine for the previous drug or chemical
they used before. You can use aspirin for your headache, or you
can use willow bark, the natural source of aspirin. But the
question is, "Is your headache an aspirin deficiency?"
Herbs and other whole food medicines contain many good elements
and substances that promote healing, but they are NOT a
substitute for proper diet and lifestyle, nor will THEY minimize degenerative
changes by themselves. We can't continue to break God's
health laws, only to turn to even natural substances for forgiveness.
We may find help, but the body is still paying a price of broken
laws. Turning to medications for the standard remedy is no different than turning off the fire alarm in a burning house and feeling better about the warning being "gone".
THE PRINCIPLE OF MAINTENANCE AND USE
The physical world around us requires an active hand to produce
our needs. From farming and gardening, to building and replacing,
man must exert a certain amount of time and effort within the
natural system to reap the best results. The spiritual principle
of, "As you sow, so shall you reap," applies here as
well. If we do too little, we pay the price of cheap products,
poor roads, lousy service, lost business and productivity. The
world won't provide us a living without right effort. Neither
will nature or our bodies provide us with good health without our
good effort. Right effort will enhance the natural principles
and provide optimum health.
There is, of course, the principle of genetic weakness which
will be discussed later in the article. The human body requires
constant maintenance. There isn't a moment in our lifetimes
when there aren't thousands of processes taking place within
the human body. These processes require specific nutrients and
specific physical actions on a consistent basis in order to
properly occur. Maintenance simply means working with these
processes in response to the responsibility God gave each of us.
He has a specific purpose for our lives and he is accomplishing
the greatest feat He can using physical flesh. There are profound
spiritual reasons as to why He chose physical flesh rather than
using spirit.
Our responsibility is to look at this creation, use the mind
God gave us, and work with, rather than against, His system. We
are to provide the human body with the necessary substances that
are in line with His created design. Anything short of that
becomes a "foreign" element to the body. Food taken out
of its natural state and altered is contrary to what God designed
our bodies to function with. We routinely take such substances
and expect this human design to function normally.
ANY element which the natural world comes into contact with
that falls outside the designed and created laws will, at some
point along time, produce physical manifestations God did not
intend. Any molecule of chemical or other substance which the
natural world does not recognize which enters our body is
regarded as a poison and a foreign substance. The body
immediately must take steps to remove these substances. With
multiple thousands of biological processes occurring, the body
can't allow foreign substances to interfere.
Maintenance is simply the continual supply of necessary food,
activity, rest, or other factors which fit the natural systems
design. Activity is an example. Activity is necessary to maintain
a stimulus on certain cells and tissues of the body to remain
strong. If you have had a broken arm or leg, you can better
understand this principle. In a short 6 weeks, an arm or leg in a
cast goes through a process of degenerative change which results
in shrunken muscles, weakened bones and stiff joints. The process
is a natural one when the activity required to minimize these
changes is lessened or removed. It takes some time and increased
use to regain strength and size of muscles and to loosen the
joint affected. Sometimes it can take weeks just to
regain pre-injury status. All because of not using it.
That principle applies to every aspect of the human body,
especially from a muscular, joint and skeletal point of view. The
classic phrase, "use it or lose it" is very accurate in
this regard. The less we regularly use our limbs, joints and
muscles, the more we enhance the degenerative process in this
area. Combine poor nutrition, food additives and preservatives
and other negative environmental factors and you can readily see
how the body's systems can be overwhelmed and how that leads
to premature degenerative changes which allow disease and
sickness a foothold.
Exercise, when viewed from today's perspective usually
brings up negative images in most people's minds. If we
replaced the word "exercise" with the word
"use," it could help us to understand what is really
required for good health. Activity which utilizes the human frame
and physiology in all of its designed aspects is all that God
intended for optimum maintenance of health.
The simple act of muscular contraction and relaxation helps
the heart to circulate blood throughout the body. When there is
no regular muscular activity, the blood, which carries nutrients
and oxygen, and carries away metabolic poisons and waste products
is unable to adequately do its job. Without adequate circulation,
muscular activity is impaired. Without adequate muscular
activity, circulation is impaired. Cellular metabolism is
impaired, cellular rebuilding, healing, etc., are all impaired.
Over many years, this leads to premature degenerative changes
within the tissues. It's only a matter of time before one or
more areas begin to show symptoms of this degeneration.
Can you imagine Moses, Abraham or the others seeing someone
jogging, pumping iron, etc? They would undoubtedly think we lost
our minds. They didn't have to do such things to remain
healthy and live long. Their daily chores and activities were
enough to maintain adequate activity. The point is, we don't
need to make a religion out of the activity we engage in. Simple
regular activity can go a long way, like walking, or simple range of motion/aerobics.
PRINCIPLE OF RESISTANCE
The body has a built-in resistance to the natural disease-causing organisms all around us. We have bacteria on our skin that, given the
right circumstances and opportunity, would kill us if we
didn't have our immune system. This immune system is fighting
battles 24 hours a day. This immune system is a complex
combination of processes which the body uses to defend itself. As
was mentioned earlier, "germs" are a part of the
natural system. Because God doesn't tell us specifically
about this aspect of His creation, all we can do is speculate
based on what we do see. When an animal is killed or dies of its own, the
bacteria and other microbes present are able to do their work of
decomposition because of a simple fact: The animal no longer has
ANY resistance to these microbes. They can then do what God
intended them to do... decompose the animal back into the
elements of the earth from which it came. For that same reason, we harvest the animals and freeze the meet to prevent this same process.
This process effects us as well. Alive, we all have varying
degrees of resistance to outside forces. When our body has what
it needs, and is protected and maintained, it will destroy
abnormal or foreign elements it discovers. This includes cancer
and other abnormal cells. It is well known by medical authorities
that everyone at one time or another has cancerous cells. The
body spots these and destroys them regularly. It is when our
resistance is down and our internal biological terrain is wrong
that our immune system can no longer carry on the battle, and
these cells can grow and develop into major abnormal tissues
which eventually destroy other systems in the body.
It is pretty much considered "normal" by most
people to get the flu once or twice a year. But is this
"normal?" Did God intend people to get sick as part of
His designed system? Colds and flu are an indication (not the
only indication) of an immune system which is being negatively
affected in some way. When a group of people are exposed to
someone with a cold, not all of them come down with the same cold
or flu, right? That is because some have a higher level of
resistance and are able to defeat the organism before it can take
hold. The immune system is being implicated in many of the
disease processes today. AIDS being just one example to date.
Wouldn't it be wise to strengthen and maintain the immune
system on a regular basis?
The body's metabolism resists negative changes, but
supports positive changes. That is why people can respond to
proper health habits so quickly compared to how long it might
have taken to develop a particular problem. The body will do all
it can to maintain a normal functioning system. It stores toxins, or
hides them if it can't dispose of them. On the other hand,
the body will reverse this process when the conditions are
corrected and the body can properly rid itself of unwanted
material. This principle is important to understand in the
process of improving your health habits.
PRINCIPLE OF LIMITATIONS OF MATTER
In
natural law, there eventually comes a time at which the processes
within the body reach a point where they can no longer be
affected by the basic application of the natural system, as in
the case sometimes with malignant cancers which have spread. The body is so
involved adversely, and so much time has passed outside the
protective bounds of natural laws, that it can't overcome the
odds, and applying even natural principles won't change the
final outcome of the damage. This doesn't mean the natural system God
designed doesn't work, but that we have moved so far outside
the protective bounds of His health laws, that natural processes
can no longer do the job. The physical limits of that tissue or system has been reached.
The point of this article is to provide you with information
and understanding so you don't reach this stage. But if you
do, applying true health principles won't HURT you and will
help prevent greater damage from the more drastic measures
sometimes taken. Remember, though, that many of the so-called
"treatments" for diseases is man's idea of health
care, swayed by Satan, and in truth, often does more damage than
any good. No one wants to die prematurely, but to what extent should we cling to
life when we have God as our Father, and HE has a plan for us and
is in charge of our lives?
In our world today, no one can argue that there is a lot
going against achieving and maintaining good health. From the
pollution of our air, water, soil and food, to the conditions
many live in. Crowded cities, noise, stress...the list goes on.
One important principle we can apply has to do with the degree to
which we apply the natural system toward our health. IF the world
were pure and natural, and our food was untainted, we could
simply eat wisely what God has provided and expect the system and
our bodies to work well.
Unfortunately today, that is not the way it is. So what can
we do? That is what we need to focus on, what we CAN do rather
than what is out of our hands or how bad it is. There is still
plenty we can do. For instance, utilizing the natural system
while living in a noisy, polluted and stressful city is not
enough to maintain a minimal degenerative process. So the
solution is to provide additional substances which are a part of
the natural system, which will provide the necessary nutrients
which are lost more quickly due to environmental or nutritional
circumstances.
The stresses of city living are known to deplete levels of
vitamin A, C and B, micro-minerals, and weakens the immune
system. The constant assault from stress and poor quality food
depletes the bodies ability to detoxify itself. This process
requires minute amounts of micro minerals and substances which,
in far too many cases, are not provided by what we eat. We simply
apply natural substances in what could be termed an
"unnatural way," that is, by way of NATURAL, "whole food" vitamins,
minerals and other substances, in their natural state. Plain, mostly "fractionated"
vitamins or minerals are not very beneficial to the body in that
they have been removed from their natural state and are missing
necessary co-factors, and in many cases are causing health
problems in the body. Remember, the natural system God designed
KNOWS what is natural and what isn't. It was created that
way, and even most so called "natural" vitamins are
simply partial elements of the real thing and cause the body to
either reject them, or force the body to supply the missing
elements to make use of it, if possible.
An example of this is "vitamin C". Many forms of vitamin C come
as "ascorbic acid." Research shows that ascorbic acid leeches
elements out of our collagen, our connective tissue, in order to
try to form the whole vitamin C complex. This weakens our body in
many ways. This can and does make a big difference to the bodies
ability to function in adverse conditions.
One other point which should be mentioned under this heading
is this. There is a point which the natural system and the human
body have, which, if we go beyond this point, produce
considerably diminishing returns for the amount of effort given
to it. For instance, Olympic athletes regularly push their bodies
past this point of diminishing returns in an effort to reach
their ultimate level of performance. It takes a tremendous amount
of effort and time to support what is achieved beyond what would
be a healthy maintenance level. That is simply the price for
being a professional athlete.
For the rest of us though, a simple and balanced activity
program is more than enough. Keeping in mind the "use"
idea, any program which incorporates a stimulus to the
circulatory/respiratory, muscular, skeletal and joint systems of
the body will provide a good level of maintenance activity. A
twenty to thirty minute swim, and a 15-20 minute stretching and
range of motion (ROM) regimen would bring profound benefits to
most people. A 30 minute walking program, followed by a
stretching/ROM regimen would do the same. In some cases, even our
daily work could be providing a level of maintenance stimulus to
the body. But by adding the stretching and ROM regimen, you cover
all the bases so to speak. There are a wide variety of adequate
activities which can be helpful AND enjoyable. Find one you like
and do it 3-4 times a week. Then add a regular
stretching/mobilizing regimen to support such activity. Without
it, you will only gain a portion of the benefits of exercise.
THE PRINCIPLE OF GENETIC WEAKNESS
Most
likely this subject came to your mind as this article progressed.
The subject of a genetic basis for disease and sickness is a
touchy one for several reasons. We view genetics as something
which is out of our hands and therefore we can't do anything
to change the situation. It can be tempting to use that as a
crutch and an excuse for not taking responsibility for our
health. We can also possibly look at genetic manipulation as the
"magic bullet" which will save us from disease. We even
view it, through gene splicing and manipulation, as a possible
cure for the common cold. Today, in fact, virtually every disease
is thought to be genetic and the hunt is on for THAT cause of
health problems. This is simply a blatant disregard for God or
health laws in general and ignoring any personal responsibility.
It is also a way to distract people from their personal
responsibility and offer up a "magic bullet."
We are getting into the same sinking boat with this focus of
thinking. Granted, there are some diseases which are definitely
genetically based. Most of us can also point to our fathers and
mothers, grandfathers and grandmothers, and see where we
"got the bad heart, knee or back, cancer," etc. If we
are not careful, we can easily slip into the "its no use, I
inherited it" mentality. There is most likely much we
don't understand about genetics and health. What we do know
is that God didn't create the human gene pool with deformed
or distorted genes. So where did they come from?
One source is certain. Broken health laws and principles over
hundreds and thousands of years. Over time, these defects become
compounded, especially when the same laws and principles are
STILL being broken through habits learned, further supporting the
genetic degeneration. Genetic research has shown that a bad gene, if
left to itself and not adversely affected by unnatural events
will simply cease to exist. That is, abnormal genes are NOT prone
to survive without some degree of support. We all have cells that
have genetic mutations occurring but these cells usually die. The
gene pool is being influenced to produce deformities, and these
same influences are occurring in the people who inherit the
defective genes simply because they are breaking the same or more
health laws. However, if genetics can be "negatively" affected, they
can also be "positively" affected.
There is also a genetic basis behind the development of
disease causing organisms. We hear of mutations, adaptations,
supergerms and the like on a regular basis. Do we realize what we
have been doing? As long as man continues to destroy his
environment and break health laws and principles, he will have
new and bigger diseases and sicknesses to deal with. As man has
continued to do this, and sickness and disease remain, he has
unwittingly provided such things as bacteria, virus and other
microbes a steady host for growth, dispersion AND mutation. That
host is US. It is well known that the more generations a specific
disease organism can go through, the more chances it has to adapt
and mutate to survive. When you add the drive to adapt caused
from such prevalent use of drugs to suppress and kill these
organisms, along with poor eating habits and quality of food, you
have man, by his own hand, promoting and sustaining the very
thing he longs to destroy. An impossible scenario and one which
has the seeds for the biblical prophecy of famine, disease and
death well planted. The question is at what point will we have
gone too far to have any hope of reversing our health care
crisis?
The responsibility to known personal genetic weaknesses we
have is this: We must educate ourselves about this weakness and
then take steps to change our lifestyle so we do not place undue
stress on, or added support FOR, this weakness. We may have to be
extra careful in specific areas of our daily living. In diabetes,
for example, which, by the way, is diet related (and possibly infective agent related) in most cases,
even natural sweeteners and desserts should be avoided until your
system has stabilized. Even then, you may be so sensitive because
of limitations of matter that you will have to simply accept your
position and act accordingly. The longer we go on in this world,
the more there will be to deal with. The sooner we wake up to
these things, the sooner we can begin to turn it around.
THE PRINCIPLE OF FITNESS
The subject of
fitness is quite often confused as being synonymous with health.
Fitness is fitness and health is health. They are two different
things, related but not the SAME. They affect each other, but it
is a mistake to presume that because you are "physically fit", you
are also "healthy." How many professional athletes have dropped
dead on the court? How many people do we know or have heard of
who suddenly dropped dead or began showing symptoms of cancer?
You can't be healthy and drop dead of a heart attack. That is
physically impossible. You are either healthy or NOT healthy. The
body is either in a maintenance state or in a degenerative state.
Unless there is some degree of regeneration, you automatically
have degeneration. There is no such thing a neutral with nothing
happening.
Fitness is important to health but it isn't health by itself.
Health involves what we eat, what we are exposed to, activity, frame of mind... it
involves a lifestyle. It is possible to have relatively good health without
having a great deal of fitness. It is also possible to have great
fitness, and NOT have very good health. Being physically fit
doesn't nullify the affects of a poor diet. We become what we
eat and drink.
Fitness is also NOT developing muscle, being an Olympic
athlete, etc. Fitness is simply maintenance of the human body
through enough activity to stimulate all the systems of the body
to be in optimum health. Too much is actually worse than too little.
THE PRINCIPLE OF THE NATURAL SYSTEM
There has been a great deal of frustration for many people
regarding health over the years. When you have, on the one hand,
professionals stating "this," and other professionals
who counter "this" with "that." If the
professionals can't agree, how in the world can most of the
rest of us know what is true or not true, and what to do? The
single biggest key to good health is this. God is the designer of
all we know and see. He did so with US in mind. He designed it to
all work together, even if there are many things occurring now in
the natural world that will be changed when Christ returns.
The simplest way to know what to do when you have a question
about health is to ask yourself this. "Is this food,
vitamin, or whatever choice you are wanting to make... a direct reflection of the created natural
order? Is it in the same state that nature provides it, or as
close as possible to this state? How far has it been removed from
this normal, natural state, and altered to be something else?
Satan masquerades as an angel of light. Is it surprising that He
pawns off foods that appears to be genuine and good, but in
fact is slowly destroying health? That is his goal, and we have
bought into it wholesale. We supply the body with building blocks
through our diet. Do you think it is possible to build good
health with processed foods, chemicals, artificial preservatives
and additives? In other words, FAKE foods. Deceptive foods. Lying
foods. Foods that support taste and looks, and we've been
conditioned to act on those two criteria.
One point to make clear here is this. Human physiology is
"generally" identical, since it all functions within
the natural laws God set up. However, within this general
physiology, there are, oftentimes, differences in how someone
might respond to certain helps. Diet and nutrition is the most
basic. Health "helps," such as herbs, homeopathic
substances, Reflexology, Chiropractic, massage, etc., even though
all within the natural system, won't "necessarily" work the
same for everyone, although for the most part, they will. There is a lot of duplication within the
natural system, and various herbs, for instance, do similar
things. The point is because one thing helps YOU, doesn't
necessarily mean it is THE "magic bullet" for everyone
else. "Magic Bullet?" You know, that single magic
substance that we have all looked for to take care of our health
problem. We read about a substance in a health magazine, or hear
about it on the TV or radio, and we get excited because all the
symptoms they describe as being caused by a
"deficiency" of this element, "WE" have. So we go out and
buy this one "miracle" substance in the hope that
"IT" is the answer we have been looking for.
We WANT easy answers. We WANT an easy way to be healthy. We
have been conditioned to believe that a pill is what we need to
be healthy. Next month, there is another "miracle"
substance that is promoted, and millions go out for THAT. On and
on it goes till we have spent a fortune on useless concoctions
that make many companies money, but don't do a thing for
health. Fads are big business and anyone can develop and promote
something, playing on the magic bullet belief system so many of
us have. Yes, there are SOME good health products out there, but
even in the natural arena, Satan still rules, and we need to
exercise wisdom and caution. God is the creator. Remember that
and you'll know what is real and what isn't.
To help with how to tackle the label and "what's in it" questions, Read the How to Read Labels PDF document.
THE PRINCIPLE OF BALANCE
Balance has
been a buzz word for decades in God's church. We use this
word to essentially say, "Not to much and not to
little." It is a good principle to go by in all aspects of
our lives, however, it is also misused and mis-applied all too
often. Balance has come to mean this: It is OK to eat junk as
long as we are "balanced" about it. It is OK to eat or
drink anything, as long as we are balanced about it. Balance
meaning, we shouldn't eat junk too often. 50% of the food we
eat can be junk as long as the other 50% is "good"
food, which is naturally subject to personal preference. Is this
what balance really means? That would be the same as saying,
"It is OK to sin 50% of the time as long as we are NOT
sinning the other 50% of the time. Breaking God's laws,
physical or spiritual, is OK as long as we are balanced about it.
Is this realistic? Is it TRUE? We can't have double
standards.
Are we going to do things perfectly? No! Are we going to
always be able to avoid ALL bad things in our diet? No! Are we to
never go out to eat, never eat anything that might be unhealthy
of itself in some respects, not knowing exactly "what" may be in it? Will we make some choices that may not be as well as we "could" be doing, but can't do better, or simply don't have the drive to do? Yes!
We live in a sick, dying world, and we have to deal with
those facts. However, we ARE to be a light to the world. Our
example should be setting the pace for others in the world. We
are called to show that God's way works, even in this world.
It is far too easy to make excuses as to why we can't do this
or that. We are creating our own future health RIGHT NOW. We are
involved with our own spiritual future health RIGHT NOW. Do we
believe that? Do we LIVE that?
Proper balance isn't juggling the good with the bad. It
is working with the good in a balanced way. Do we study 10 hours
a day, work 10 hours, and sleep 4? Do we drink 6 glasses of wine
a night? Do we eat so much that we hurt? Do we take 5 showers a
day? Balance means exercising our choices WITHIN the framework of
truth, in a way that supports all aspects of our life. If we
aren't working with truth, then we lose. Would you rather
have one drop of cyanide in your water jug, or none? What would
be better for your health, one drop or no drop? What is better
for your health, one artificial chemical preservative or
additive, or none? How about 20,000 chemicals, or 3? There are
well over 100,000 chemicals in our food chain as supplied by
traditional sources. Could there possibly be a correlation
between that fact and our health problems? Knowing who designed
THIS world's food and health system, what do you think?
For example, testing is often done on any specific chemical being considered for food or in other products either consumed or placed on our body. This testing is allegedly proving the chemical to be "safe", (which is highly questionable), however, testing is NEVER done on any combination of chemicals acting together in the body. I use the example of taking three harmless "chemicals" found in nature... charcoal, sulfur and salt peter. These are actually beneficial to the body in various ways, but when you combine the three together, you get "gunpowder". This is a very simple example of what is happening inside our biology. Out of 100,000 chemicals we are subjected to in our food supplies daily, do you really believe we don't have thousands of these "reactions" taking place to damage our cells?
Brethren, time isn't standing still for us. It marches
onward, and our personal choices day to day ARE affecting us,
even if we don't "feel" it. Spiritually and
physically, we are under assault with only one thing in mind...
to keep us from achieving our full potential as children of God.
Our reward is according to our works. Isn't it possible to
limit our own reward by how we treat these "temples?"
Is God pleased by our disregard for His creation and our
not-so-serious approach to health and the lives He has given us?
We reap what we sow. That is truth. Health isn't a mystery,
and we don't have to suffer the way we are.
THE PRINCIPLE OF EMOTIONS
For the sake of completeness, we need to include our mental state
as a factor in good health. Research and experience has proven,
and many books have been written, concerning our state of mind
and its affects on the functions of the body. From anger and the
stomach, to stress and the immune system, there are very real
correlation's between how we experience the world around us,
how we react to it and the results in our health.
"As a man thinks in his heart, so is he." Proverbs
23:7 Our thinking and feeling processes directly affect our
organs and tissues. We can enhance or degrade our performance,
health and the length of our lives by the simple process of
thinking. That is truly an amazing thing. There are many books
which address these issues. For the sake of this article, we want
to look at how health is affected. The Bible is full of warnings
concerning wrong emotions and their destructiveness. Jealousy,
envy, hate, wrong anger, over time can be destructive.
Stress, too much and too constant, forces the systems of the
body to remain in a heightened state of "flight or flight". This places
incredible demands on the hormonal system and utilizes vast
amounts of nutrients. Over time, this can and will break any
system down. High stress levels will reveal our personal physical
weaknesses. Where our body is weak will be the first place high
stress levels will hit. Stress is especially hard on our
muscular, circulatory and gastrointestinal systems.
WHAT YOU CAN DO?
Take the time to analyze your present practices in light of the
principles discussed and in regard to the creator God. The sooner
you begin your part, the sooner the system can begin working for
you. Trust that God knows what He is doing. Believe that His
creation is for our best. Use His health system as the pattern
for how to be healthy. Do your part and God will do His. We have
wondered about the overwhelming number of cases of sickness in
God's church. We remember how healing was so much more a part
of our lives years ago. Do we ALSO remember that we were much
more careful to observe God's health laws back then? Do we
remember how we slowly gave up that belief and turned to this
world's health system? We can get upset about about the truth about health. We can resist changing, and cling to
our old habits. We can feel "judged" by not observing
the health laws as we should. We even DO some judging of each
other. It isn't the Big Mac once a year that causes the heart
attack. It isn't the sweets once a week that adds the weight
on. It isn't chance. If God didn't supply it, do we really need or want it? If
we have a love for the truth, it will include ALL truth. If we
want to be healthy, we have to do our part.
Perhaps then, God will see we are serious about health,
expressing our belief, our faith, in Him through DOING, and will
intervene where He chooses to in a more obvious way. If God has supplied us with the
way to be healthy already, and we reject that way, WHY should He
intervene and heal us? Yes, all things work together for good for God's people, but this doesn't negate law. There have been some healings. God is
merciful, and realizes it is our own ignorance and foolishness
that bring on most of the health problems we have, but what do we
learn from breaking His laws, and will God simply heal us regardless of it?
We assume that in the Millennium or in the second resurrection,
God will just heal everyone of all the health problems they have,
but WILL He? How will people learn that health laws DO exist
better than by seeing those laws at work in their own health
improvement? God is allowing us to learn that lesson. He
doesn't want us to be sick. That isn't His plan and goal.
Yet, He is using it. He always uses our mistakes and sins to
correct us and to train us, but are we learning?
We have the greatest human potential as our future. We have
jobs to do now that affect that potential. Christ has warned us
about the hard times to come. If we think we will do better in
these hard times being sick and diseased, we are deceiving
ourselves. If we think God will just blanket heal everyone, we
are deceiving ourselves. If we think God will protect us
completely from the end time diseases and related plagues, we are
deceiving ourselves. Could He? Sure. Will He? Are you willing to
take the chance? When we do what we should do, doesn't God
always do what He should do?
He allowed the Israelites to experience some of the initial
plagues on Egypt. Was that a pleasant experience for them? We
have enough to deal with in the future to not bring on more
potential suffering and problems because of our neglect. Our
families, our children, all of us need to be as prepared as we
can be, both spiritually and physically for the future. Let's
not judge others on these issues because we ALL have been wrong,
and suffer to varying degrees for it. Let's get back on track
with our health, and mutually encourage each other, support each
other and be patient with each other as we improve. Let's be
about our Fathers business physically and spiritually!
Back to Health Introduction
Health Principles, Part 1
Clean and Unclean Foods.
Dietary Laws
Free E-Book with more details on how to live naturally.
Pure Health
Systems has specific Research and Product information about
your health and how to address it at the most fundamental
levels and not spend a bunch of money chasing the magic bullet, or throwing a host of products against our health issues. Take care of the foundation, and many of the health threats simply disappear.
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