Sacred Whispers Devotional 1

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Spiritual

YOUR BEAUTY IS NOT FOR SALE

By Marlin D. Harris

What do you see when you look in the mirror? What does the image that looks back at you say when you walk by a reflecting glass or even see yourself in a photograph? 

For far too many people they see someone who is fat, or ugly, or unattractive, or embarrassing. Even as I write these words, I believe the heart of God breaks over the large number of men, women, and young people who have attached these psycho-social labels to their sense of personhood. The fact that they bear the very image of God is no longer sufficient ground upon which to build their sense of self-esteem. Inner virtues of the heart have taken a backseat to outer vices of the body. ‘Purity’ doesn’t matter half as much as ‘pretty’, and our personal honor has been drowned out by public hubris. When did all of this happen? How did we fall so far away from what God calls beautiful? Who told our daughters, and our sons that they are ugly; or fat; or unattractive? Where did these concepts of describing human beings even come from? And by what standard are we using to reach such determinations in the first place?

All of these questions, and many others like them, crowd my thoughts when I hear someone describe their outward physical appearance in these negative ways. 

Somebody had to tell them they were ugly. At some point in time, someone convinced them that they were unattractive. These beliefs do not arise spontaneously. They do not germinate independently in a little girl's or a little boy’s mind. 

No, they have to be planted there. 

And every time our daughters pick up a magazine, or our sons browse through a website, or they turn on a television, they are being subtly – and surely – indoctrinated into what our culture defines as beautiful, and conversely what our culture defines as ugly. 

Sadly, this is the result of living in a shallow, image-conscious society where we are deluded into thinking that ‘image’ is reality. You must be careful to never let anyone turn you into an artificial copy of the original ‘you’ that was never given the freedom to exist.  

If we are not careful, we will soon become slaves to the opinions of others. Fight to maintain your God-given sense of dignity, and never allow your world to revolve around the cosmic sun of other people’s approval. For so many people, their entire perspective of their own personal self-worth and value hinges completely on what somebody else thinks about them. This need for approval and validation from outside of ourselves is a dangerous drug to give to a culture that is hypersexualized, image-driven, and masters of exploitation. These shallow notions about beauty existed long before our 21st Century culture immortalized them. They existed in the days when the scriptures were recorded and are particularly highlighted when the book of Esther was being penned.

The Book of Esther has much to say about its main character, Esther. This is only right since the book is named after her, and the story centers around her personal strength and enormously courageous faith, in saving her people from certain destruction.  

However, there is one other character in this book, that doesn’t get the press or the attention that I think she deserves. We all know Esther, but I think it would be helpful if we all got a little more acquainted with Queen Vashti. Vashti didn’t save a nation from extermination, nor did she accomplish any great diplomatic victories for her people, but there is something that she did that demands both our attention and our respect. Vashti defended her sense of honor and personal dignity, even amid the threat of her immediate demise and death. She wasn’t in a position to stand up for a nation, but she was in a position to stand up for herself.

In the days of the empirical rule of the Persian Kingdom, the luxuriantly powerful Persian King Ahasuerus threw a fabulous banquet for all the princes and noblemen from around his vast empire who had gathered in the Persian capital city. 

As the festivities ensue, Ahasuerus and his many guests had become overly self-indulgent in their wine and the opulent displays of their wealth. The king begins to parade his vast power and fortune around for all of his subjects to marvel at. This demonstration of wealth, power, and human glory went on day after day as the end of one party quickly gave way to the beginning of another. Then in a moment of drunken revelry, it occurs to the king that there is yet one object of beauty that he has not yet paraded around for the men at his party to marvel at; and that object was his queen, Queen Vashti. She was his prized possession, and her beauty was a ‘commodity’ that he could depersonalize and objectify at his own wishes and whims.  

It is this social dynamic that is at the heart of our culture today. The king determines what is beautiful. He defines what is successful, and he tells us who is valuable. The self-esteem and self-worth of people everywhere are at the mercy of the king. Well, Vashti would not play along with this overt abuse of her own personal dignity. 

She was not going to be a willing participant in her own exploitation. She would not attend a party where she would be paraded before the king as only an object of sexual desire, and not a human being with personal dignity. Had she gone in to be paraded before this party of men, she would have become an accomplice to her own imposed devaluation. So, in honor of her sense of personal dignity, Vashti refused.  

How powerful are those two words – Vashti refused. Even though the king was calling her, and great honor and accolades no doubt awaited her; but for Vashti, her beauty was not for sale. Is this not the very definition of human trafficking? Doesn’t this strike at the heart of pornography and feminine exploitation? 

There is a strange reality in our modern culture today; beauty, image, and our personal dignity seem to always be up for sale. This is what is at the root of low self-esteem and image shaming. Too many Vashti’s have answered the king’s call. 

Too many women and men have defined their human dignity by what others think of their outward appearance. The reference point for our personal self-esteem has been moved so many times that we no longer know how to arrive at our true value, or how to determine our true worth.  

Many of you are reading these words while inwardly being consumed with an insatiable desire to measure up. You have to measure up to standards that at best are artificial. You are emotionally stressed trying to be beautiful, or smart, or skinny, or liked, or valued – and for many people, you are just simply trying to be seen. Because you feel like you live in a world where no matter how much you do, and how hard you try, no one ever notices… you. The truth is that many of us are not dieting and exercising to be healthy; we are dieting and exercising to be seen. We are not trying to become our best version of ourselves, we are really working hard to become somebody else’s best version of ourselves. And if we were to be honest, it is completely exhausting. 

Well, please hear me. This devotion today is your permission to stop. Literally, fully, totally – Stop. Stop being a willing participant in your own exploitation. Stop selling out your true beauty for somebody else’s approval. Stop wearing the labels that other people have given you while rejecting the labels that God embedded in your heart when He created you. Stop esteeming yourself only as high as other people’s approval of you. Because whether you know it, or even believe it; you are beautiful. You are wonderful. You are more than enough. The only reason why you don’t believe those words is because somebody kept telling you differently, and you have chosen to believe them. Well, I want to share with you what God says about you. This is all that ever really mattered.  

Practical Step

Don’t simply read these next several lines of truth, but embrace them. Sit with each statement and let them speak to your heart, and believe that God was speaking each one directly to you. 

You Were Purposefully And Wonderfully Created – Psalm 139:14

You Are Beautiful – Ecclesiastes 3:11

You Are His Treasured Possession – Exodus 19:5; Deuteronomy 7:6

You Are The Apple Of His Eye – Deuteronomy 32:10; Zechariah 2:8

You Are The Object Of His Love – Jeremiah 31:3

God Knows You By Your Name – Isaiah 43:1

You Are God’s Masterpiece – Ephesians 2:10

Every Hair On Your Head Is Numbered – Matthew 10:30

You Are Loved With An Everlasting Love – Jeremiah 31:3

You Are Made Perfect In Weakness – 2 Corinthians 12:9

You Are The Bride Of Christ – Ephesians 5:25-27

You Are The Righteousness Of God – 2 Corinthians 5:21

God Sees You In Your Weakness – Genesis 16:13

You Are Never Alone – Hebrews 13:5

Beloved, never doubt your inestimable worth. You are worth more to God than a million sunsets and an innumerable host of angels. Nothing shall ever separate you from His love. You do not exist at the pleasure of people, you exist at the pleasure of God. 

If only you knew how much God loved you, you would never run to another one of the king’s parties. You are more valuable than that. So never let yourself be judged again by someone else’s version of beauty. Refuse to allow your conscious to wear the labels that the world has imprisoned you with. 

You are none of those things they said! You are God’s masterpiece. And your beauty is not for sale.

PRAYER

Loving Father, I pray that You will wrap me in Your love and remind me that I am beautiful, wonderful and special in Your eyes. Give me the calm assurance that I don’t have to give in to what the culture says about me. I am more than my outside appearance. I am everything You have made me to be. Thank you for Your grace. In Jesus Name, I pray. Amen.

Practical

GOD OF REST 

By Matthew Pryor

(Content taken from the Body Tithe Devotional)

When I tell people that fitness is composed of three things, they generally know the first two: exercise and nutrition. However, when I tell them that the third factor determining their overall level of fitness is sleep, they seemed surprised. Sleep is for lazy people, right? Who has time to rest anyway? It’s so unproductive . . . or is it? 

The benefits of sleep fall into two categories, the first being the physiological functions. Your body does countless, incredible things when you’re asleep. For instance, hormones are being regulated. Big deal, you say? Hormones are essential for muscle growth and development. Hormones help determine appetite satiation. Hormones are used to manage stress and control energy production sources and increase alertness. 

Your tissue growth and repair occur in your sleep. Energy is restored. Your immune system is bolstered. Muscles relax, repair, and grow. The cardiovascular system gets a break with a lower heart rate and a drop in blood pressure. Toxic metabolic byproducts are removed from the brain. Memories are preserved. The list goes on and on, all happening without you even having to try. Equally important are the emotional benefits of sleep. When well-rested, you increase your ability to focus, lower your stress, and have a more positive demeanor. Getting good sleep will improve your decision-making process, including options regarding food and exercise. It’s a whole lot easier to make bad nutrition choices when you have no energy. When we’re low on energy, if we exercise at all, it often results in half-hearted efforts and a decreased benefit. Being tired usually results in poor decisions, rationalization, quick fixes, or unrealistic assumptions about how we’ll do the next day. 

When it’s spelled out like this, it’s easy to see why sleep is so important for your fitness. In a nutshell, it helps you repair and prepare, without you even having to try. The Bible says that God formed us (Psalm 119:73). He made the delicate, inner parts of our body and knitted us together in our mother’s womb (Psalm 139:13). So, it should come as no surprise that the God of our bodies is also the God of rest. He did invent rest, after all: “On the seventh day God had finished his work of creation, so he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, because it was the day when he rested from all his work of creation.” (Genesis 2:2–3) 

Now in fairness, rest and sleep are not always synonymous. God, of course, never sleeps (Psalm 121:4), but He has wired our bodies to require it. Furthermore, He has blessed us with permission to relax, recoup, and refresh for our days ahead. He has made it appropriate for us to repair and prepare. God is also the God of a different kind of rest, as His Son tells us in Matthew: “Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28)  

This kind of rest frees us from the compulsion to use our own strength to fix something we can’t fix. We no longer need to keep trying, doing, and working for something that’s already been offered through grace by faith. This kind of rest relinquishes us from the feeling that we must earn our deliverance. This kind of rest restores our souls for all of eternity. This is salvation rest. 

The good news doesn’t end there. The same assurance of being united with God in the someday allows us to go to Him in the now. The exhaustion we have in our earthly life, the loads we are carrying, the busyness, the problems and hardships—we can lay all this at His feet. The confidence and security that are born out of a relationship with Him serve only to lighten our load. He can replace Martha’s work with Mary’s wonder (Luke 10:38–42). God lets us rest in green meadows (Psalm 23:2). He invites us to experience the rest that He prepared for us and promised to us (Hebrews 4:1–3). Having 20 days of the fitness journey under your belt, you’re hopefully realizing the benefits of your nightly sleep. It plays out in your workouts, the day’s events, your decisions, and in your progress. Making it a priority will make the journey not only more rewarding, but more enjoyable. 

The greatest need, however, is to fully rest in Him every step along the way. We need not worry or have anxiety about our fitness. We can relax. Exhale. Trust. For when we go to Him (as He teaches), we find rest for our souls (as He promises) because He does the work. Just as with our sleep at night, we are the ones who benefit and we don’t even have to try. 

PRAYER

Thank You God for the gift of sleep and, even more so, for the gift of spiritual rest. Will You forgive me when I rest my efforts in anyone or anything other than You? Please help me to slow down, try less, and rest more. In Your Name, Amen.

Pryor, Matthew. The Body Tithe Devotional: Spiritual Encouragement For Your Fitness Journey (pp. 79-82). Sophros. 

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

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Spiritual

COMMON DISEASE: COMMON CURE

By Matthew Pryor – The Body Tithe Devotional

(Edited and revised by Marlin D. Harris)

“Because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death”.

Romans 8:2

All this week you have been reading about choices and bad habits in either our spiritual or physical devotions and I’m sure that by now you are pretty exhausted with the topic. 

But unfortunately, bad habits and choices are not something that any of us can get away from. Whether we are talking about physical habits, mental thinking habits, our habits of vices and sins, or even the people we habitually choose to be in relationship with, our habits and choices are all around us. 

Sometimes they stalk us with a haunting persistence; waiting for us to be presented with a good or a bad choice. 

Our habits and choices are constantly reminding us of our weaknesses, our forbidden impulses, and our unhealthy cravings.  

As much as we desperately want to be free of them, we simply can’t seem to get away from negative habits and bad choices. Where did this come from and how did all of us in the human race become so compromised in our ability to make good choices? The responsibility lies conspicuously at the feet of our fore-parents, Adam and Eve. When Adam and Eve chose to disobey God and eat the forbidden fruit, they set all of humanity on a course of free, willful disobedience to the perfect and natural design that God had in creation. As a result, sin entered the world, and death along with it. What is more disturbing is that sin entered you and it entered me. All of us are equally impacted by sin and all of its painful aftereffects. We all naturally desire what is ungodly, and we all innately gravitate towards ourselves before we do others. This is not the picture of a bad person; this is simply the picture of the human condition. 

Satan uses this moral defect against us, to make us feel that we are worse than others. However, that is simply not true. Beware of this kind of thinking. It will damage your mind, stain your psyche, and ultimately only perpetuate more bad choices. The truth is, we are all struggling, we are all weakened, and we are all human. Since our disease is universal, then so is our cure. There is one cure for the common diagnosis of sin. That cure is the unconditional love of God, expressed through the sacrificial death of His Son. This is our only hope and confidence that sin can be erased, our weaknesses can be reversed, and our lives can be redeemed.  

Like any other cure, the patient can choose to accept or reject it. Jesus will not violate our free will. Even though ‘free will’ is what caused this disease of sinfulness in the first place, it is also what is at the core of our being made in the image and likeness of God. Therefore acceptance of the cure is completely up to us. All that is needed is to receive the love that God has for you, accept Jesus as your Savior, and put the full weight of your eternal trust in him. Until we do this, our habits and choices can never truly be cured.

Every day, I talk to patients who have a history of making bad choices—whether it’s smoking, excessive drinking, overeating, lack of exercise, unwise relationships, and even illegal drug use. In many cases, these choices have shortened their natural lifespan by months, if not years. When we turn away from our bad habits and make good choices, sometimes the downward trend of health problems can be slowed and occasionally even reversed. If you’re in such a situation, it’s worth the pain to change. But even if we don’t change our bad habits, we can still change what happens when we sin. When we turn to the Lord, he will release us from the permanent death that is the resultant price for our sin. And that’s a change worth making! 

Though our physical bodies will one day fail us and return to dust, God has promised us eternal, heavenly bodies. These new bodies will be complete and healthy, free of sickness, disease, and weakness. Jesus came to find me even when I wasn’t looking for him. When he did, my life turned around 180 degrees from the way I was living before. Prior to meeting Jesus, I was on a pathway filled with sin, destruction, and death. Turning toward Christ gave me a new life and lifted my spirit out of those destructive behaviors. 

No matter which path you’re currently on, I know that Jesus can rescue and redeem you. You were created to live perfectly in paradise, but we have been relegated to stumbling sinfully through the world. But your life can be placed back on the right track. No, it won’t be perfect, but it will be forgiven and redeemed if you would make Jesus your choice today.

PRAYER

Father, I am choosing Jesus today. I admit that I am a sinner, and I am in need of a Savior. I believe that Jesus died in my place, and gave His life that I might have real, true life. I ask Him to come into my life and be my Lord and Savior. 

I repent of my sins and dedicate my life and my choices to Him, and pray that He would fill me with His Holy Spirit. Lord Jesus, come into my heart and never leave. In Jesus Name I pray, Amen.

YOUR NEXT STEP

If you prayed the prayer above and for the first time truly meant it, then I would like to say “welcome to the Family of Christ”. You are now a Christian and on your way to becoming a fully committed follower of Jesus Christ. But you must take the next step and share your experience with someone whom the Holy Spirit will use to help guide you along this new journey. One way to do that is to simply go to https://www.newlife-atl.org/contact and fill out a contact form to let a New Life Church leader know that you just gave your heart to Jesus, and you are ready to begin a new life with Him! We are so happy that you did!

DAILY SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINE

Pick one bad habit or one ungodly choice, and by intentionally seeking the Lord’s help, start making good choices that will erase that one bad habit today. Just as the Lord Jesus redeemed your life by making you a new creation in Him, He will also give you the strength to overcome any destructive habit that seeks to make your life less than what He created you to be.

Practical

THE WIDOWMAKER

By Dr. Reggie Anderson

(Content taken from “The One Year Book of Healing: Daily Appointments with God”)

“No wonder my heart is glad, and my tongue shouts his praises! My body rests in hope. For you will not leave my soul among the dead or allow your Holy One to rot in the grave.”

Acts 2:26-27

 As a primary care physician practicing rural medicine in a small town outside of Nashville, Tennessee, I have witnessed a lot of healing. Some of it has been through the work of medical professionals, whom God uses to carry out his good work, and some have happened supernaturally—the result of God’s direct intervention. Either way, I’ve never seen anyone healed or helped with any disease or illness that did not involve their cooperation and commitment to the healing. In many ways, healing is a two-sided experience. God must do His part in the healing process, and man must do his. The following short conversation is between me and a young man named Brett, who has just come to the difficult realization that he must take personal responsibility for his health.

“It’s kind of late for a farmer to be sleeping in, isn’t it?” Brett opened his eyes, yawned, and smiled. He was usually up and out before the rooster crowed, but he’d had heart surgery the day before and was still recuperating. Brett had grown up on a meat and potatoes diet—usually with dessert to polish it off. And like many of my patients whose diets had placed them at an increased risk for premature heart disease, his unhealthy eating habits had caught up with him. 

At forty-two, he was much too young to have undergone heart surgery. “Brett, your heart surgeon gave me a call yesterday. That surgery saved your life. He said you needed a four-vessel bypass and that you had a 99 percent blockage in the left coronary artery—that’s what we call a widowmaker. You’re a lucky man to have this much heart disease and not much muscle damage.” 

“I am thankful,” Brett said. “That widowmaker almost caused me to meet my maker! But I know that God has a different plan for my life.” 

“You’re right. He does, but you’re going to have to make some different choices about your health—specifically, your diet.” 

“I know. You’ve been preaching to me about diet, exercise, and especially watching my portions. Being in the ICU gives a man a lot of time to think. I realize that instead of my friends and family gathering at my bedside right now, they could be gathering at my graveside. Not only am I going to make changes, but I am going to make sure everyone I know realizes they need to make changes too.”

Brett was faithful to his word. He made a major overhaul to his life and became an evangelist to his friends and family, not only for God’s goodness but also for good health. Each day, when he gets up before the rooster crows, he thanks God for his second chance. 

This short conversation reveals how significant it is to have a clear sense of ownership of your health. Many of us are gambling with our lives, by not making some critical choices today. Changing our diet, exercising, resting more, and worrying less, may seem like difficult things to do, but it just might make the difference between living for a few more years, or living long enough to see the next generation. The choice, in many ways, is yours.

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, may I be granted the courage and determination to make the necessary changes in my life that may be required. You are a God of second chances, allowing people to be reborn into new life through Your Son Jesus. Thank you for not giving up on me and instead, showing me the way. In the name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.

DAILY SPIRITUAL EXERCISE

When faced with a major blockage in your heart or in your soul, look to God for a way to bypass the damage and start a new life. Make a decision today to eliminate one bad choice from being a part of your life.

Anderson, Reggie. The One Year Book of Healing: Daily Appointments with God for Physical, Spiritual, and Emotional Wholeness (p. 172). Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.. Kindle Edition. 

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

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Spiritual

Mental Wellness- Accessing God’s Peace

By Sabrina Botts

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.

John 14:6

Many of the emotional and relational issues that plague us as adults are the results of seeds planted in our childhoods. I don’t mean to suggest that there is a dysfunctional family in everyone’s bloodline, but all of us were shaped by the things from our past and our parents' past and their parent’s past, etc. When you see the inner turmoil that continues, besetting sins or overall dysfunctions in your own life, maybe it is time to take a deeper look. 

One of the blessings of the COVID-19 Pandemic has been the focus on mental health or what I prefer to call “mental wellness”. I think we can all agree that previously in America, mental and emotional issues carried a stigma, making the topics of anxiety, depression, or even addictions taboo. The sad reality is that for many minority communities, it is downright forbidden to speak of emotional or mental issues for fear of being labeled weak, flawed, and crazy, attaching a sense of shame to those who are experiencing these struggles. 

This stigma has always confused me because mental illness and many common emotional distresses, actually result from a malfunction of a biological organ in our body – our brain. Yet, when other organs fail us, like the pancreas in diabetes, or our cardiovascular system with heart disease, there is no shame at all. In our cultural stigmatization of mental illness, we have enlarged the already deep chasm between the people who are ill and the help and support they need to get better.

Amazingly, through health discoveries dating back to Hippocrates (5th Century BCE), we have learned that our emotions, thoughts, addictions, desires, and fears all have their seat in our brains. In fact, neuroscientists and psychologists have realized that common mental health issues like anxiety and depression can actually result from a breakdown in the brain’s chemistry. This breakdown can result from both internal things like thyroid disease and external things like prolonged stress. Yet other mental health conditions, unhealthy behavioral patterns, and a countless number of addictions can result from our brain learning to respond a certain way to things that we have experienced.  

Some in the psychological community like Dr. Fulvio D'Acquisto, Ph.D., of the London School of Medicine[1], and Dr. Bret Stetka, Editorial Director of Medscape (WebMD)[2], actually see a link between the brain and the common immune system. Many believe that mental illness is much like other immune-driven illnesses. When the body is under the stress of foreign pathogens, the immune system activates to eliminate the threat. Sometimes the immune system over activates and we are stricken with allergic reactions, glandular disorders, and other non-stigmatizing diseases. The brain does the same thing when it is trying to protect its host from stress, trauma, or even some internal imbalances. Sometimes it over activates and the resultant symptom is what we often call a mental illness.

Additionally, mental, and emotional distress is common to mankind. In America, 1 in 4 adults - suffer from a diagnosable mental disorder in a given year, with anxiety disorders being the most common. [3] We even see examples on display all throughout the Bible. David expresses sorrow, grief, anger, despair, and even depression all throughout the Psalms. 1 Sam 16 mentions a harmful spirit that plagued King Saul and caused bouts of depression, paranoia, and fits of rage. The Apostle Paul notes in 2 Corinthians 1:8 that even he despaired of life due to the hardships he was facing. We see the demoniac in the gospels (Mark 5:1-20) who acted in bizarre ways, living in a graveyard, cutting himself, and was strong enough to break chains. 

These truths make Jesus’ promise to give us peace in John 16:6, even more appealing. It’s as if he knew all the ways peace would be essential to our lives. So, if you are plagued with emotional and mental pain or behavioral dysfunction in your life, the time to seek a solution is now. I believe that since God made us body, soul, and spirit he desires for us to possess wholeness in every area of our being.  

It’s important to note, that for the Christian, there can be no healing and wholeness found outside of God. He has promised his peace, but like possessing the Promised Land, we need to take steps to access it. It must include steady doses of Biblical truth through scripture memorization, taking thoughts captive, prayer, and putting on the whole armor of God. And, in more cases than not, it should also include seeing a skilled, compassionate, Christian therapist. Therapy helps us identify sources of distress, provides a safe place to process deep-rooted issues, and can also assist in formulating solutions, including behavior change.

So, if you are struggling with mental, relational, and or emotional distress, I invite you to take the step to talk to someone. Today thankfully, mental health counselors are widely available by phone, text, or video and most insurance companies provide coverage. If you are uninsured you can also seek your local county health department or community health center for these services. Making this one critical decision can make a difference in your situation, helping you to be free to enjoy the abundant life of peace that God promised.  

PRAYER

God, sometimes life overwhelms me, or I find myself being caught in cycles of dysfunction or behaviors that I cannot change. I want, instead, to access and live in your peace. Help me be open to doing all the things that lead to your peace, including having the courage to talk to a therapist. Remind me that my brain is a part of the body that You gave me. Help me to care for it, just as I would any other part of my being. May You be my Mind-Regulating God. In Jesus Name, Amen.

DAILY SPIRITUAL EXERCISE

If you are experiencing depression, bereavement, trauma from your past, or just confused thoughts, would you pray about speaking to a trained, licensed Christian counselor? They may just be the “angel in disguise” that God is seeking to use for your healing.

(Brief Editorial and Academic References in this devotional are provided by Marlin D. Harris)

Practical

TWO-SIDED FREEDOM

By Matthew Pryor

(Content Taken From The Body Tithe Devotional, Spiritual Encouragement for Your Journey)

Ever heard about the behavioral study where data was gathered on a playground? Surrounded by a fence, the playground was a flurry of activity for students in their free time. Swinging. Sliding. Laughing. Life was good. Then, researchers removed the fence. When the kids went out for recess the next day, they stayed mostly huddled in the middle of the playground. Now unsure about exploring, they were apprehensive and uneasy. The researchers put the fence back and the next day, all the running, playing and carrying on returned. It was back to business as usual for the children. 

In essence, the children had become accustomed to the fence, and playing with it in the background had become somewhat of a ‘habit’. When the fence was gone, it left a void because the fence had a meaning that was not known until it was no longer there. The fence, for them, meant a sense of security. 

That security translated into greater confidence, and the fun followed. 

At first glance, it would be hard to see how the fence boundaries gave the children freedom, but they did, and not just freedom “from” negative things, such as the temptation to wander off or the threat of dangerous people entering the playground. The boundaries also gave them freedom “for” things, such as exploring the playground, climbing on the equipment, and playing tag. Now, I’m not sure if the children would explain it that way, but most of our habits are more than just behavior patterns, most of them carry meaning and symbolism in our lives that fuel the particular behavior pattern that we are engaged in. What this means for us is that being free ‘from’ a habit may actually mean being free ‘for’ something better.  

That’s the ‘flipside’ of freedom, and more specifically, freedom in Christ. Jesus doesn’t only release us from the negative: bondage to sin, guilt, performance-based acceptance, the law of sin, etc. He liberates us for the enjoyment of the positive: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, for starters. Remember, “it is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery” (Galatians 5:1). Let us not miss what this verse teaches. It gives us the reason why Christ set us free. It says, “it is for freedom that Christ set us free…”. He literally set us free, so that we could experience…freedom.

This means that, as Christians, we can celebrate being released from the yoke of slavery. We can also take great delight in the blessings God has orchestrated for our pleasure. Many experts say that you should not merely try to eliminate a bad habit. If you do, you leave an empty spot for that habit to return. You’ll be more likely to change your behavior if you replace the old habit with a new one. Our mental outlook regarding our fitness should be no different. We are far too focused on what we are giving up: junk food, time, TV or Internet or books, and magazines, money, energy, resources, etc. Instead of focusing only on the sacrifice (i.e., junk food, time, TV, etc.), we should focus on the reward. 

We should replace the thoughts of what we’re freeing ourselves from with thoughts of what we’re freeing ourselves for. We are freeing ourselves for things such as playing with our kids or grandkids without losing our breath. Savoring the countless all-natural foods God created for our taste buds to enjoy. Having sustained energy throughout the day. Minimizing potential injuries. Being less self-conscious in the clothes we wear, and in the way our body looks. We are breaking bad habits so that we can lessen the likelihood of being struck with certain diseases. We will be able to serve our neighbors, church, and community at a higher capacity. This freedom will allow us to be outdoors more, possibly run a 5K, or mini or full marathon. This kind of freedom—the freedom “for”—is part of His perfect plan for our lives, wherever we are. 

2 Corinthians 3:17 says, “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” Imagine that! That same Spirit of freedom resides in us; in our hearts. Wherever we are, we have freedom! Not a reckless freedom, or a frivolous freedom, but a responsible, fulfilling freedom. This is the kind of freedom that Christ set us free for. This is the very freedom that lives in us — a complete freedom, with two sides! The “from” and the “for”; and both are designed for our benefit. Both are designed for His glory. 

PRAYER

Father, thank You for not just freeing me from sin. Thank You also for freeing me to enjoy You, that You might be glorified. Will You forgive me when I fail to remember all that You’ve freed me to enjoy? Please help me to live a life characterized by the freedom You have given me. Amen. 

DAILY SPIRITUAL EXERCISE

Psalm 34:4 (LBT) says, “I cried to him and he answered me! He freed me from all my fears.” What great comfort it is to know that He answers in favor of freedom. 

Psalm 34 might be a good starting place for you to spend 3 to 5 minutes of Gratitude Prayer today. It certainly is a great reminder of what the Lord is doing for us. As you pray, remember that freedom in Christ is the freedom to enjoy the life He has designed for us—a life lived with that design is the freest of all, and consequently where we will bring Him the most glory.

Pryor, Matthew. The Body Tithe Devotional: Spiritual Encouragement For Your Fitness Journey (pp. 157-159). Sophros.

  [1] See https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5442367/. Academic article entitled: Affective Immunology: Where Emotions and the Immune Response Converge. Published by the National Library of Medicine and the National Institute of Health. March 2019 Affective immunology: where emotions and the immune response 

 Affective Immunology: where emotions and the immune response converge

[2] See https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/important-link-between-the-brain-and-immune-system-found/. Article entitled Important Link Between the Brain and Immune System Found. July 2015

[3] https://adaa.org/understanding-anxiety/facts-statistics

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Spiritual

GET UP, TAKE UP YOUR BED, AND WALK

By Sabrina Botts

After this, there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Aramaic called Bethesda, which has five roofed colonnades. In these lay a multitude of invalids—blind, lame, and paralyzed. One man was there who had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had already been there a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be healed?” The sick man answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, and while I am going another step down before me.” Jesus said to him, “Get up, take up your bed, and walk.” And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked. Now that day was the Sabbath.

John 5:1-9

The narrative about the man at the pool of Bethesda in John 5:1-9 has always been curious to me.  As we read through the miraculous healings recorded in the Gospels, most of them came as a petition to Jesus by the sick person, and in some cases, by someone else.  But this one was different. When Jesus “happened” to pass by the pool of  Bethesda while he was in Jerusalem, those who know the divine nature of Jesus would have to know that his passing by the pool that day was not by accident.  Jesus always lived on purpose, with intentionality, to only do the will of His Father (John 6:38).  This specific pool, Bethesda, was the place that the sick, hopeless, and helpless gathered. For they believed that randomly an angel would descend and stir up the water and the first person to step in would be miraculously healed of their ailment or disease.    

Jesus honed in on someone who was not only sick but likely by now, completely discouraged about his life.  He had been coming to this place for nearly four decades but still, he was not cured. The writer doesn’t tell us his specific type of infirmity, but from the reading of the text, we can only infer that it likely involved some sort of paralysis or weakness that restricted his movement. What’s so sad is that the actual physical problem that he was trying to cure was, ironically, the roadblock to accessing the cure he so desperately needed.  He believed that all it took for him to be healed was to be the first to get in to the water, but in 38 years he had found no one who was willing to help him get in first. It seemed that he was so close, but yet so far. 

Jesus, knowing how long he had been there without being cured, asks the man, “Do you want to be healed?” Now, my first thought is, of course he wants to be healed, why else would he have been there for all this time?  But remember though, Jesus always lived on purpose and never wasted one single word, action, or deed during his time on the earth.  He could have just walked up and touched the man and healed him, like the man who was born blind in John 9.  He could have spoken a word of healing like he did for the centurion’s servant in Matt 8, and the servant was cured the very hour that he spoke it.  But for this man, Jesus went about healing him in a different way.  Instead of healing him right away, Jesus engages him on a deeper level through that one simple question.  Notice that he didn’t ask what I would call more relevant questions like, “Can I help you get in the water?”, “Why has no one helped you in all this time?”, or “Why have you been here so long?”.  All these questions would be logical given the history that the scriptures have presented concerning this man.  Jesus didn’t ask the obvious questions, because what was obvious was not this man’s real problem.  Perhaps, Jesus’ question was aimed at highlighting the man’s true problem, which was far deeper than him getting in the water, or having someone to help him.

Some commentators note that many times the infirmed in Jerusalem had become beggars, and their disabilities, in a sense, became a source of financial benefit for them.  After all, this pool was near one of the main entrance gates in Jerusalem close by the temple.  Any Jew coming to the temple would have passed by them, and undoubted they would often have had compassion on their plight and provided financial gifts.  Besides, how could you pass a beggar on the way to worship God and not help them? Perhaps this man had become so accustomed to his helpless plight, and the daily practice of making his living from begging, that this was all he truly expected out of life.  After all, 38 years is a long time to be in a single state of misery and sickness. Surely by now, he had normalized his condition and the response of others to him. 

Jesus takes this opportunity to handle this healing uniquely different from how He had healed others in the past.  He doesn’t touch the man, command his legs to strengthen, or even speak to his condition. He tells the man to simply, “Get up, take up your bed, and walk”.  In order to obtain his healing, this man was not going to be given anything, he would actually be required to do something. This pattern of healing is a powerful analogy that is relevant in our lives today.

In fact, years ago I was in a similar condition. For nearly a decade my life, my marital relationship, and resulting emotional state were a hopeless chaotic mess. I kept waiting for God to come in and simply deliver me from the depression, anxiety, and relational dysfunction that I found myself bound to. Year after year, I waited, cried, prayed, and continued to suffer.  I finally got tired of the vicious cycle and asked God what was going on.  He showed me that while I was waiting for Him to deliver me, he had already delivered the answers to my life’s issues, now I needed to get up and do something to access the provision that he had for me.  My deliverance was not going to come miraculously, but rather my deliverance involved me getting up and doing something.

J.R. Miller notes, “quite often we fail to receive the blessing he has ready for us because we are not moving forward with him. While it is true we miss many blessings by not waiting for God, we also lose numerous blessings for over-waiting.  There are times when it takes strength simply to sit still, but there are also times when we are to move forward with a confident step.”[1]

What about you?  Is there an area of your life that is languishing with no apparent solution for victory?  Is it in your health, your career, your relationships, your finances, your mental and emotional health?  The good news is that there is hope for a seemingly hopeless situation. Whether it is counseling, exercise, and good nutrition, learning a new skill, or taking a class, we will learn that oftentimes God’s provision for our deliverance is not in the miraculous, but rather in the practical.  Sometimes the greatest miracles happen in the most mundane of actions.  For you, like this man by the pool of Bethesda, your miracle may not be in the water; your miracle might just be in the simple act of getting up and walking.  The very thing you have believed you couldn’t do may just be the very thing that God will require you to do just before He delivers you.  

PRAYER:

Lord, open my eyes to see if there are areas of my life where you have provided deliverance and provision but I am sitting waiting on a miracle.  God give me the wisdom to hear you and courage to obey you to get up, take up my bed, and walk into the provision that you have so richly provided.

Practical

STARTING NEW/BREAKING OLD

By Frank Luke

'In that He says, “A new covenant,” He has made the first obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.'

Hebrews 8:13

Starting a new habit, for some people, is actually one of the easiest things to do. Breaking old habits, now that’s the tough part. Starting requires a consistent practice of ‘behavior repetition’.  But breaking old habits require a whole lot more. Ironically enough, through my experience, I’ve found the easiest way to break an old habit is to replace it with a new one.

Most bad or addictive habits begin in considerably simple ways. They start with the simple desire to try something new or something different.  Soon this curiosity develops an appetite for the new thing that they tried, and before you know it, that thing that was once a novelty has now become an addiction. There are some indulgences that are so dangerous, that it is not even safe to try them; you should simply keep your distance from it completely.  But for many other things that may be new and adventurous, there may be no harm in opening yourself up to them to give them a try. The problem arises when your appetite is not properly managed, and the thing that was once a novelty now becomes an overwhelming craving.

The enemy knows if he can entice you to indulge in something that you know may not be the best for you, it only takes a few missed steps, and a couple of  “I got this”, and before you know it you're stuck in a bad habit.  It is so much easier to get into a bad habit than it is to get out of one.  But thanks be to our God! He is a chain breaker and the giver of new beginnings.

Hebrews 8:13 show us the key to breaking something old by way of receiving something new. Many of the Pharisees, scribes, and priests resisted the message of Christ because they had grown comfortable with their familiarity with the old Law of Moses.  Little did they know, not only was the old law fulfilled in Christ, but they were on a one-way path to eternal damnation by rejecting the new covenant of grace.

Each day we are given an opportunity to wake up and breathe, is God's way of saying, “you have a new opportunity”. Develop a thirst for something new and let those obsolete, antiquated habits go. And then you will see how easy it is to break an old habit, by replacing it with the newness of Christ.

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, I am ready to break the old habits in my life that do not honor You or grow my relationships with You.  I am in need of You to change my heart from the old to the new.  Remind me that each day I awake is a new beginning.  Teach me not to carry the baggage of ‘yesterday’s habits into my bright season of ‘today’.  I break the old ways of my past, for a new and fresh way of experiencing You even more today.  In Your Name, Amen.

PRACTICAL ACTION TODAY

- Be honest with yourself about how the old habits are impacting your quality of life emotionally, physically, financially, and relationally.

- Identify what new habits you can replace for the old, and run after them (start with Christ and the word of God).

- Stay with the new habit until it becomes second nature.

[1] J.R. Miller, Streams In the Desert Reading Plan, The Bible App, 2022.

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Spiritual

WHAT DO YOU BELIEVE?

By Cathy Morenzie,

Content Taken from “Healthy by Design: Weight Loss, God's Way”

“They continued to follow their own gods according to the religious customs of the nations from which they came.”

2 Kings 17:33

“Growth demands a temporary surrender of security. It may mean giving up familiar, but limiting belief patterns; safe, but unrewarding work; values no longer believed in, and relationships that have lost their meaning.”

John C. Maxwell

We all have things that we believe about ourselves. We may have been told them, or we may have internalized a belief as a result of something that’s happened to us in our childhood. In relation to our health, some of these beliefs might sound something like this: God isn’t concerned about the physical, it’s what’s inside that counts. Physical exercise profits little. Realistically, chances are I’ll never be thin. I’ll put all the weight back on again if I lose it anyway.

These beliefs, or positions about life, can sometimes get in the way of us reaching our goals. As we unconsciously carry these beliefs with us into adulthood, they often sabotage our plans and goals. These faulty beliefs impact our emotions, actions, and health. Our breakthrough will require a change in these thought patterns.  Habits are not just actions that we engage in, they can also be our patterns of thinking and our overall, most predominant mindset.  Many people think and believe the way they do, not because they have embraced the logic of a particular train of thought, but often only because that way of thinking has become for them a habit.

We see the danger of an unchanged mindset in the book of 2 Kings 17.  This is the tragic story of how the Israelites began their slippery slope into idolatry. Their desire was to serve God, but their actions and old mindsets followed the nations around them and it eventually led them to idolatry and corruption. The king of Assyria saw firsthand how harshly God dealt with idolatry, so when he repopulated Israel with newly repatriated Jews, he sent for Hebrew priests to teach the Israelites how to worship their God, Jehovah. The problem was that the new Jewish settlers continued to worship idol gods according to the religious customs that they learned from the nations from which they came.

Their geographic location had changed, but their mindset had not. The result was their ruin. Israel was conquered because it refused to focus on the one true God. They couldn’t turn away from their old beliefs even though it led them away from God.

What beliefs are you refusing to let go of?  If you understand the cost of holding on to it, you would realize that it’s not worth it.  Each of us must do the hard work of looking at how our beliefs make us engage in unhealthy behaviors such as excuse-making, blaming others, procrastinating, and emotional eating.  We often engage in unhealthy relationships or choose lifestyles that are self-destructive and personally debilitating. We do these things because they are reflections of the pain caused by these deep-rooted beliefs that have become habit-forming mindsets that many of us have never let go of. Noticing which of these unhealthy behaviors you engage in is a big first step toward freedom.

PRAYER

Loving Father, Your promises are for eternity. Every generational curse and everything spoken against my health are broken in the name of Jesus. I declare that I am in sound health in my body, mind, and spirit. I am strong and courageous and successful in everything I do. I meditate on Your Word day and night. He who the Son sets free is free indeed.  I declare my freedom in You. In Jesus Name, Amen.

DAILY SPIRITUAL EXERCISE

For today’s spiritual exercise, identify a limiting belief that sabotages the goals you have set for your life; whether it is weight loss efforts, spending more time with family, returning back to school to finish a degree, or just seeking to become a more happier, healthier person.

Give all of your limiting beliefs to God and ask Him to help you change the way you see yourself, the world, and even Him. He is able. Ask the Holy Spirit to lead you to a thought life that only believes God’s truth. Decide today that you don’t want to live apart from His truth and light.

Morenzie, Cathy. Healthy by Design: Weight Loss, God's Way: The Proven 21-Day Weight Loss Devotional Bible Study - Lose Weight for Life, Deepen Your Faith, End Overwhelm & Doubt. (pp. 68-71). Guiding Light Publishing...

Practical

BREAKING FREE

By Sabrina Botts

“I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate, I do.“

Romans 7:15

The apostle Paul very realistically captures the battle that all Christians face in the area of our desires. Whether it’s something spiritual like allowing the Holy Spirit to help us not act out in anger or something mental like exercising self-control and not eating ice cream to soothe us when we are stressed. The truth is, we all seem to continue to do the things that we intuitively know we shouldn’t do.  As I have thought about this in my own life, what is totally illogical, and quite frankly, frustrating is: it’s not that I don’t know better, but rather, despite this knowledge, I tend to do it anyway.

Well, I know that I am not alone here.  Actually, every human has this struggle mainly because we are habitual beings. A habit is, simply, a repeated action that soon becomes automatic. In fact, when it comes to habitual actions, reactions, or feelings, our brain, and the way God has wired it, is actually the real culprit.  See, our brains are designed to solve problems through a sequence of very detailed operations.  It uses an incredible amount of energy to take in the information needed and then process possible options and strategies to solve the problem. But once the solution is found, the next time the problem occurs, the hard work is bypassed, and the brain goes right to the solution.  That in a nutshell is the process of forming a habit.  It’s what has often been called ‘doing things on autopilot’, without even consciously thinking about them. 

James Clear, author of Atomic Habits, states it this way, “Your habits are just a series of automatic solutions that solve the problems and stresses you face regularly.”[1] From the first time that you came home from work stressed and felt better when you picked up a piece of cake, a remote control, a cigarette or a glass of alcohol, the pattern began to set in.  In fact, every time you repeated the action and felt the reward of calm, happiness or pleasure, that habit got reinforced.  Now you do it without even thinking. In fact, your brain even knows to anticipate the reward as soon as the stress or trigger is felt. 

If you are like me, you might be having thoughts of hopelessness right now.  I mean, how can we fight against biology?!  But wait, there is some good news!  The good news is that just like our brains can form negative habits, our brains can also form positive, healthy habits.  See, no longer do we have to be slaves to our cravings, or hopelessly controlled by bad habits, following their dictates. We have a choice to change our minds and correct our bad habits.  And as Christians, we also have power through the Holy Spirit to do so!  It is never God’s will for us to live our lives in bondage to anything.  Not to sin, not to self, and definitely not to bad habits that ultimately harm us and rob us of the health that God has so richly provided for us.  The scriptures state in 1 Corinthians 6:12 that “all things are lawful unto me…but I will not be brought under the power of any”.  This is more than just information about our position in Christ, this must become a declaration about our desire for freedom.

You may now be asking the question just how do we get free from bad habits?  The answer is really simple: just consistently form good ones. Before you close this devotional and decide to stop reading, I didn’t say it was easy, but it is possible, and it starts with a change in the way we think. Actually, God promises that we can be transformed by renewing our minds.  “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Romans 12:2)

Here are some simple ‘Action Steps’ to get us started towards a renewed mind:

1. A simple way to start changing your mind about negative habits or unhealthy choices is first to recognize what is actually on your mind. In daily prayer and meditation, ask God to help you to discern your mindset.  You want to learn things like: why do you eat what you eat, as much as you eat, when you eat?  Why don’t you prioritize exercise? Do you really believe that God owns your physical body, and do you believe that Christian Stewardship should include your health?  What about self-control? Does it really matter to God how and what we eat? What about motives for eating?  Has food become an idol, meeting emotional needs rather than going to God for what is really needed?   Now all of the above questions are related to eating and diet, but are there other areas in your life that are out of control? Are there other disciplines that you need to develop? Begin active introspection and self-confrontation in those areas also.

2. Now, you must purposefully choose to act on what God reveals to you, and know that he will assist you to change. His word declares that our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, has power, “…to bring everything under his control…” (Philippians 2:13). You must constantly claim that His power is readily available to you.

PRAYER

Dear God, You alone have the power to change the things in my life that I do not desire.  I draw upon the strength that You have placed in the Name and Power of Jesus Christ.  I ask for the strong will of the Holy Spirit, to come alongside and enable me to overcome the habits and mindsets that have kept me from living the life You designed for me to live. I claim this, and thank you for it, in Jesus’ Name I pray. Amen.

[1] James Clear, Atomic Habits, (New York: Avery Publishing), 45.

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