An Overlooked Health Condition
Proverbs 18:14 NLT
The human spirit can endure a sick body,
but who can bear a crushed spirit?
Lately, I have been wearing a health tracker on my wrist. This tracker monitors things such as my sleep quality and different physical markers, such as heartbeat and recovery. This tracker, combined with an AI coach, has suggestions as to how to handle the exercise and activity portion of my day. It has been interesting, and my guess is that these trackers are only going to become more accurate in determining physical health.
The tracker also monitors responses to stress and asks me questions that pertain to my mental and emotional state. Of course, the tracker can only determine my mental state based on the information I feed it. So that is a limited measurement. But there is something even more limited that no tracker can monitor, the health of my spirit. We are spirit beings, we have a soul, our mind, will, and emotions, and we live in a physical body (see 1 Thessalonians 5:23). With all the information recently coming out regarding the health of our bodies and brains, neuroscience still has not grasped the human spirit. All the neuroscientists who are not believers don’t quite know what to do with the eternal part of mankind, the spirit. Now, there are some believers who are adept in neuroplasticity who have insight into the spiritual side. I am convinced that some of the greatest advances can be made when we embrace not only the brain’s ability to be rewired but the role of the human spirit in regard to strength and resilience.
Our verse for today says that when our spirit, our inner man, is strong, we can endure physical sickness on a higher level. But when we are broken-hearted, the strength is not there. My personal belief is that the combination of a strong spirit and a renewed mind will be a huge leap forward in dealing with mental health issues. If a strong spirit can impact our ability to face physical pain and discomfort, then a strong spirit can impact mental and emotional pain.
A vital part of spiritual strength is spiritual feeding and refreshment. God’s Word is life and light to our spirit. Jesus said man does not live by physical food alone but by every word of God. And if anyone knows about spiritual strength, it is the Lord Jesus. We often can’t tell by reading and meditating on God’s Word that we are getting stronger. Just as we often can’t tell by eating a meal that we are strengthening our bodies. But just go without eating for a few days and notice how you feel after a good meal. We need food for strength for our outer man and our inner man.
So keep feeding, keep reading, keep meditating on God’s Word. Your spirit will thank you, and your ability to deal with difficulty will increase.