It is important we understand how our biology relates to our spirituality and how we think.
With modern science and technology available to us, I think Christians ought to be highly educated in how the body works because we are called and established by God to minister to the full person—spirit, soul and body. One does not need to be a neurosurgeon to have a basic comprehension of human anatomy.
Many teachings today address healing, both in our hearts and in our physical bodies, yet God’s desire for us is even deeper than that. The highest aim that He has for His people is not just to be healed, but to live in continual health.
One of the keys to understand is that how we think, believe and see life greatly affects the overall condition of health in our lives.
“Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, even as your soul is well” (3 John 2, MEV).
True Biblical Prosperity
God’s word for healthy thinking here involves prosperity. In our current culture, we typically see the word prosperity in limited context, pertaining to only financial wealth and an overflow of possessions.
This Greek word, however, goes much deeper. The word-translated prosperity has to do with “a journey.” This journey involves a daily path of pursuing God and how He thinks. It also includes a process of transforming our thinking to align with how God thinks.
The word prosperous also speaks of “strong and flourishing.” This tells us that God’s way of thinking creates strength and opens up the way for our lives to flourish effectively on this planet. This is what aligning ourselves with God’s mind produces—having everything you need to become strong and flourish in your journey.
I like to help people understand biblical prosperity as having divine help for your personal journey.
Prosperous Thinking
As we allow God’s way of thinking to be engrafted within, it produces a prosperous soul. This moves us into thinking, meditating and operating under God’s thoughts on a regular basis, which, in turn, brings the overflow of strength and a flourishing life.
How we think greatly affects our physical condition and overall wellness. A prosperous soul means your way of thinking is one that brings you help for your daily life. This means that every day, you are listening to thoughts that are empowering for your journey or disempowering. There is a big difference.
Your thoughts are either pointing you towards resourcefulness or feelings of being unresourceful. Thoughts are either promoting great hope or hopelessness. The thoughts that empower you to grow and overcome in your journey are the ones that help you remain in a place of biblical prosperity. You are accessing thought systems that empower your perspective to overcoming and find the keys to unlocking breakthrough.
Empowering thoughts position you to flourish in all circumstances. Included in this flourishing, is health in our physical bodies. This is what John was speaking of when he said, “be in health, just as your soul prospers.” Our bodies were designed to operate in response to prosperous thinking. When this is truly taking place within, it makes more room for overall health in the body.
Taking the Empowering Journey
This is not a condemning word to those who are not in health. It should never be a condemning thing. It simply reveals that we are all on a journey of growing in how we think and believe. No one is beyond needing development; we are all in different stages of needing inside-out transformation.
We long for healing, but there are major factors in our belief systems, patterns of thinking and viewpoints within that must be addressed if we are to see a shift in our health. Each of us needs to see broken areas of our hearts healed. Our vision for life needs to be restored. Hope needs to come alive. Our faith needs a boost. Most of all, our sense of being loved and empowered needs fueling.
Instead of prosperous thinking being the dominant presence, many are under the oppression and effect of toxic thinking. Many of these destructive belief systems are the source of the breakdown, inflammation and lack of strong immunity in the body.
Our bodies, as God originally fashioned them, were created with an intended design of living in and under God’s way of thinking, which are built on faith, hope and love. When creation lives outside of God’s way of thinking, we open the door for the body to break down prematurely.
Human anatomy was fashioned to have a very complex yet intricately effective system to handle the adversarial situations that we face. It is very resilient, yet when thinking based on lies is not addressed, the body can begin to lose its ability to bounce back.
Application
The first thing we need to do is not beat ourselves up over our situation or lack of health, for that opens us up to disempowering thinking, which makes matter worse. It also opens our minds to listen to the accuser, who day and night is assaulting our minds with thoughts that condemn us and leave us feeling helpless.
The next thing is to be honest. Where are my thoughts leading me to feel unloved, hopeless and disempowered? Where in my life do I feel disconnected from healthy relationship with God? Where am I believing lies about myself? What patterns am I acting out with others that is not consistent with how God sees me?
There is no need to navel gaze or go into long introspection, but I find that healthy honesty without condemnation can bring about great results. For example, the day I truly realized that I did not love myself was the first step towards empowering my life into loving myself the way God designed me to. Being honest does not need to be excruciating, but can unlock beliefs systems that we’ve not embraced that can actually change our lives dramatically.
What ways of thinking do you find to be detrimental to healthy living? What are thoughts that are greatly empowering for health? {eoa}
Mark DeJesus has been equipping people in a full-time capacity since 1995, serving in various roles, including teaching people of all ages, communicating through music, authoring books, leading and mentoring. Mark’s deepest love is his family: his wife, Melissa; son, Maximus; and daughter, Abigail. Mark is a teacher, author and mentor who uses many communication mediums, including the written word, a weekly radio podcast show and videos. His deepest call involves equipping people to live as overcomers. Through understanding inside-out transformation, Mark’s message involves getting to the root of issues that contribute to the breakdown of our relationships, our health and our day-to-day peace. He is passionately reaching his world with a transforming message of love, healing and freedom. Out of their own personal renewal, Mark and Melissa founded Turning Hearts Ministries, a ministry dedicated to inside-out transformation. Mark also founded Transformed You, a communication platform for Mark’s teachings, writing and broadcasts that are designed to encourage people in their journey of transformation.
For the original article, visit markdejesus.com.
Leave a Comment
You must be logged in to post a comment.