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September 2008
New Health Horizons
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New Health Horizons
By Rev. LeRoy E. Zemke
Pastor, Temple of the Living God
Regarding new health horizons, the 21st Century offers - some of the
most complete and advanced health care data ever amassed concerning all
aspects of our overall health picture, the physical, emotional, mental,
psychological and spiritual.
This new information is based on solid original and organic research;
and is now available in almost gargantuan detail on line (the internet),
through countless news media outlets, publications, books and from the
private health sector (medical) as well.
The question becomes, I suspect, what exactly do we need to be conscious
of as an informed spiritually aware person, or as a more responsible
adult, in discerning and wisely following or attempting to understand
the information we discover.
Some guidelines follow:
1. Do your homework. As with school children so with adults, read,
read, read. Be willing to do some research. Libraries are still major sources
of very accessible, useful, updated information which is free and readily
available in nearly every community across the country. Regardless of
size most bookstores, spas, and health stores carry a significant assortment
of magazines, periodicals and books offering the very latest or current
information.
Because of our predilection for predigested material offered as “short
sheet” (many facts condensed in one page) there are incredibly
significant amounts of information to be found on the internet and websites
as well. The goal is not to overwhelm, but to be aware of and discover
what’s available and make use of it. Ask someone you know who has
access to these resources, and slowly, patiently, get the scoop on our
body’s needs and how to approach our own health care.
2. Personal willingness to discover what we may need
for our own body’s
health is a requirement. Many of us prefer a certified health
care man/woman to give us the data and information we may seek or need.
I agree it’s
a most singularly important choice to seek out an appropriate health
care practitioner for ourselves, but before seeking such a person we
need to, at least, do some conscious and diligent searching on our own.
Questions such as: What physical (or other needs) do I really have? What
does my body ask of me? We each need to know if we sleep well or if what
we eat offers real nutrition., (not junk foods, not high fat or high
calorie) to our over all body system, heart, bones, brain and cells.
Do we eat too little? Too much? Do we drink too little water or imbibe
too much alcohol? Smoke? Do we already use or overuse prescribed drugs?
What about narcotics? These questions are just a tiny sampling of the
many we might ask.
3. As we become more conscious about our own health
needs, each of us genuinely must take a personal interest in how our
physical body functions. It is not exclusively up to our doctor or medical person to tell us.
We need to be more proactive and be willing to actually help ourselves.
It’s useful to make a list of how we interpret our body’s
overall function. Do we have high energy (vitality)? Are we sanguine,
phlegmatic, lethargic? Do we have known allergies and, if so, to what
foods, plants, chemicals? Do atmospheric conditions such as cold, heat,
dryness or humidity, etc. affect us? As one can see the list goes on
and on, but as we make our list, a rather clear profile will emerge that
may prove to be enormously helpful.
While the task may seem daunting at first, quality time may well offer
rewarding results better and more clearly. The point is not to obsess
about our health, but to become informed.
4. Our body is the single most important physical
possession we shall ever have and it’s ours for our lifetime. However our body functions,
even with a possible birth defect, imbalances and inherited (genetically
or acquired issues), this body is all we will ever have. Even if we believe
in reincarnation, this time around the body we have is absolutely necessary
to live out the incarnational pattern as positively and as effectively
as possible.
Often I have found that some individuals on their spiritual journey feel
that their body is unimportant in the overall scheme of things. Some
feel it’s so unimportant as to ignore basic health care entirely.
While some people cannot perhaps afford health care insurance or even
to professionally visit a health care practitioner, I strongly encourage
everyone who has an interest in living their life from a place of action
(not reaction) health wise, will be far better served in the long run,
to do what he/she can do to pay attention to their human form.
One argument tends to undercut these suggestions. There are those who
say, “I do not believe in illness or doctors, therefore I will
not get sick.” Indeed, our belief does influence our health. In
an informative recent book, The Biology of Belief by Bruce Lipton M.D.
a very clear relationship is shown at the deepest cellular level, how
belief affects our wellness.
Positive attitudes, meditation, all forms of physical exercises, including
such practices as Tai Chi classes, yoga and other related disciplines
are viable practical and ultimate approaches toward developing a personal
and positive health response to our overall health care. It is still
however up to us, individually, to sort out what we may (or may not )
need to support ourselves. Again, we need to do our homework.
Never let excuses such as lack of money, time, lack of interest, or lack
of any kind of resources be a deterrent in this quest. Much help is now
available simply for the asking. It can be mailed to us, sent via the
internet, delivered by friends, family or even neighbors. If one cannot
get to a community health spa or gym, participating in a television program
will do nicely. Programming is now aimed at all ages, from the very young
to the most senior members of our community.
As a minister, consultant, teacher and fellow member of the human family,
I have discovered and uncovered the necessary steps that each of us has
an all important task to explore and learn as much about our body as
possible. We give due importance to spouses, partners, family, children,
our jobs, work or business. We plan vacations, travels and handle special
events of nearly every sort in our lives. We even prepare for natural
catastrophes such as hurricanes (if we live along the Atlantic Ocean
or the Gulf of Mexico basin or in the Caribbean Islands) tornadoes, floods
earthquakes and fires to name a few. All of this kind of preparation
is designed to save lives, and hopefully make our personal circumstances
easier should a tragedy occur.
While we may not know that we have a possible diabetic problem or high
blood pressure or some other chemical or medical issue, being proactive
is a plus - a huge advantage often called (in health language), preventative
care. The invitation is tantamount to our vital functioning throughout
our life.
The health horizons I have referenced are not pie-in-the sky, a magic
elixir to reduce effects of aging, or snake oil tonics to ward off evil
spirits, fix broken bones, or cure cancer. Rather it is the single, most
essential message of wake up to living and functioning as fully as possible
in the human world. Each of us is busy living our lives with duties,
chores, responsibilities ... some real, others imagined. The imagined
duties are those we tell ourselves or others we’re going to do,
but never find the necessary time or reason to even get started on the
worthy projects. In the meantime our life continues.
The call is now to do what we can to become (a) informed about what we
need and (b) to begin a viable, practical, simple program to implement
what we know to do.
Finally, we need to stay the course. Remember Aesop’s fable of
the Tortoise and the Hare? A race was set between the two. “I can
easily win,” said the hare looking at his slow, barely moving,
competitor. He wildly sped along, outdistanced the tortoise and decided, “I’m
tired, I’ll take a nap. Even if I rest, I can still win!” The
tortoise steadily plodded along, passed the sleeping hare and consistently
continued his measured and deliberate pace.
Eventually the hare awakened and not seeing the tortoise, scampered toward
the finish line. There, to his stunned amazement, the tortoise had crossed
the goal and won the race!
We each choose the way of the tortoise or the hare. Starting quickly,
we tire easily and fall asleep. Others start slowly, keep at the goal
and succeed.
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