So half the year is over already! Wow! Where does the time go?
As May draws to a close, many of you are gearing up for the beginning of another summer, and that means snacking, slacking, shopping, packing, working, and, sadly, even saying “goodbye” to those you love, as you move to a new school. But for many of you, it also means those dreaded annual physicals.
Doctors Do It On Purpose!
I have it on good authority that doctors purposely put their stethoscopes in the freezer, and when they get together, they laugh about the look on your faces.
I know, not cool!
I can’t imagine that anybody would enjoy going to the doctor to get poked, prodded, or punctured, but it’s just another hoop you’ve got to jump through to get a summer job. go to school, or play sports.
Physical examinations are important for two reasons:
- Preventive medicine: to catch any problems while they’re still small and manageable.
- Track development: to make sure you’re growing like you should be and meeting your “developmental milestones.”
Health is Wealth
My grandfather used to always tell me “if you have your health, you’re the richest person in the world! And if you don’t, then no amount of money will do you any good.” You may not appreciate this gem of wisdom right now, in your teens—with your new…everything, but when you begin to get down the road of life a bit, you’ll quickly see the truth of that statement. It’s likely the moment you read that someone’s specific face flashed fresh in your mind.
Wholistic Health = Holiness
As a counselor, I help every single one of my clients to understand that they are unique and incredibly created individuals, who are made up of three parts: emotional (character, will and emotions), physical (body) and spiritual. And once they recognize that this is the case, they must address every part of their lives. It’s not enough to focus only on the emotional aspect of their lives, because when there’s an imbalance in one area of life, it always affects other areas of a person—usually all areas.
Consequently, given this truth of life, your spiritual health is way more important than your physical health, so how are you doing? Are you growing in your relationship with God? Do you have any specific goals that you set for yourself at the beginning of the year? Have you met them? How is your progress? I know, I know, they’re uncomfortable questions, but you can’t really move forward in your relationship with God if you don’t ask those hard questions. At the beginning of the year I challenged you to define the relationship with God and take Him seriously. So how are you doing in this area?
God wants to make sure that you are spiritually healthy. He, through the apostle Paul, put it this way:
“So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you. We ask God to give you complete knowledge of his will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding. Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better. We also pray that you will be strengthened with all his glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. May you be filled with joy, always thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light” (Colossians 1:9-12, NLT).
Did you catch that? Paul actually addresses spiritual growth and then gives us several ways in which we can actually measure it; you might call them “developmental milestones.” Let’s break them down individually:
Goal: to live a life worthy of the Lord and please Him in every way.
Developmental Milestones:
- bearing fruit in every good work
- growing in the knowledge of God
- being strengthened with all power according to His glorious might as evidenced by great endurance and patience
- giving joyful thanks to the Father
Whoa! I’m tired just reading that list! Did you notice that being a healthy, growing Christian involves a lot of doing? I counted four verbs/action words. So the question has to be asked: how are you doing?
If that hurts, then maybe you need to take some time to think deeply about this issue. I would
suggest:
- Talk to God about it all. After all, He’s the only One who can fill you with “the knowledge of His will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives” (verse 9).
- Ask a trusted friend, adult (parent, teacher, youth pastor, counselor).
- Then, begin to make the changes you need to make (Philippians 2:12). But never forget that it is God who tells you what you need to work on (John 16:8), and it is He who ultimately gives you all the motivation and power to change (Philippians 2:13)!
God’s Got Great Stuff in Store
God’s got great stuff in store for you! God, through a prophet called Jeremiah made this bold promise:
“‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ says the Lord. ‘They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope’” (29:11, NLT).
And Jesus Himself promised: “ . . . My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life” (John 10:10b, NLT).
So, if you want to get involved with God and live a joyful, powerful, and peaceful life to be able to share His love with others, then you’ve got to pass His physical. And passing it begins with being honest about your results. So, now’s the time to get started on working on improving your numbers, so by this time next year, you’ll be further down the road of spiritual health.
Oh, and by the way, when you do have to see your doctor, feel free to let your doctor know ahead of time to warm up that stethoscope. BRRRRRR!
Here’s to your good health.
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