From Jim O'Brien
June 29, 2018
Hi Friend, Better Than Medicine On the
rare occasions that the television is on in our house I am amazed at the
frequent advertisements for prescription drugs. It's the disclosure of side
effects following the sales pitch that is staggering. Can a disease be worse
than the side effects of taking the drug? And if the drug company is telling
this much in an advertisement, what are they NOT saying? If you
learned of ONE thing that is proven to improve health more than ANY other
single factor, would you buy it? Truth is,
there is such a thing and it is free! Guess what it is-it is the practice of
religious faith. Here are a few reasons. In a few
words, spiritual practices have been demonstrated to reduce blood pressure,
strengthen the immune system, curb mental illness and stave off dementia. In
fact, NOT practicing the Christian faith is about as unhealthy as 40 years of
smoking a pack of cigarettes a day. Most
people recognize that a network of friends is good for you. In his book
"Medicine, Religion, and Health" author Harold Koenig, the Director
of the Center for Spirituality at Duke University, writes that "church
membership was the only type of social involvement that predicted greater life
satisfaction and happiness." A study
in Iowa found that older adults who frequently attend church were 68 percent
less likely to die over a 12 year period. This web of Christian friends
sustains health. Most
everyone knows that stress is bad for health. Studies have shown that religion
reduces stress in lots of ways. Prayer can reduce high blood pressure and
enhance the ability of the body to relax. Faith
gives a sense of meaning and purpose to life, which in turn improves a person's
health. Religious people are less prone to depression than others and religious
people who face depressing circumstances are more likely to overcome. Emulating
Christian virtues causes a person to change. The individual who overcomes a
dependence on alcohol, for example, will have a better relationship with his
wife and remove the destructive element from the family environment. None of
this has touched on the greatest source of healing. In over 40 years in the
ministry I've seen more people miraculously healed through prayer than by any
other means. More than three quarters of Americans believe that prayer can heal
people. In a survey, the same number of doctors said that they believe in
miraculous healings. In China, 80 to 90 percent of converts claim to have
converted due to divine healing. Space and
time won't permit a longer discussion of the effect on health of practicing
religious beliefs. Suffice it to say that the same authority of God that
created the earth and gave life to man also stretches to heal men who call on
His name. There
won't be any advertisements during halftime of the next Super Bowl that will
encourage you to forego the second half and pray if you really want to be
healthy. No one can profit from it. But I've never known one person that said,
"The prayer I offered to God caused cancer." And the FDA does not
require a warning label on the Bible stating it may be bad for your health. But, I
better stop before I put ideas in the head of a bureaucrat. Until next time,