"For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come."   1 Timothy 4:8

Physical health is an immensely valuable asset. The ability to move without pain, to complete everyday tasks with ease, to run around with our children, or to compete in athletics are all benefits of good physical health. Even unconscious daily functions our bodies do, things like breathing and swallowing, are easily done when we are in good health. For many of us, we sometimes take our health for granted because we have been fortunate to have maintained good health, but even catching a cold can make us aware of the fragile state of our physical health. A simple cold that causes just a short-term decline in our health can make us acutely aware of and grateful for good physical health. In order to appreciate its worth, it can sometimes take being without something that we normally have. Anyone who has ever had a significant illness, injury, or disability will attest to the immense benefit of physical well-being.

We can see that physical health is valuable, and it is all the more true that spiritual health is valuable and even vital. True health and wellness comes from being spiritually whole and healthy. Although the aging process causes a natural decline in our physical health, our spiritual health need not follow suit. It can remain strong and vibrant throughout our entire lives. God's desire is for us to be whole in body, soul, and spirit, and He has provided everything we need to live in true health. So let us look at what it means to be spiritually healthy.

We have seen that physical health is more than just the absence of disease, but is rather better described as the ability of our bodies to operate at their physical fullness. We can also see that spiritual health is the presence of fruitfulness and wholeness in our spirits. In fact, spiritual health is the key to having excellent physical health, as well as a healthy soul. The soul is comprised of our mind, will, and emotions, and is intricately tied to our physical health or lack thereof. Most of the primary contributors to poor physical and mental health are a result of our own lifestyle choices. Stress, anger, depression and lack of self-control are among the top contributors to physical decline. In fact, 70-80% of all physical disease is due to our personal choices and lack of self-control. From this we can understand that how we handle these issues of the soul is crucial to our physical well-being. This is where we also see the importance of spiritual well-being. When we are healthy spiritually, we will be full of peace, even during stressful situations; we will have love instead of anger; joy and hope in place of depression; and self-control rather than the lack of it. Strong faith gives rise to such spiritual health, which in turn produces greater physical and emotional health. So we see that excellent spiritual health is crucial to our well-being, and is actually the source of true health and wellness.