Obesity, diseases induced by unhealthy diets and habits, uncontrolled addictions—all these are reasons to get healthy. In order to make an outward change, however, something inside needs to change, or we will go right back to our old habits.
I heard recently that someone who had stopped taking illegal drugs had replaced the addiction with excessive shopping. She conquered one obstacle only to gravitate to another.
Dealing with the symptoms of a problem is a temporary fix, if it works at all. It’s like inflating a flat tire without fixing the hole. The air won’t last. We have to fix the root of the problem. We cannot just turn over a new leaf and expect it to live without a deeper transformation.
When I was in my early twenties I was dealing with some difficulties with my goals. In addition to struggling for success, I was also failing at relationships and very unhappy. I well remember the night when I looked up into the sky and asked God for help. As a result of that prayer, I had a life-changing experience. It carried over into every part of my life. I started succeeding where I had been barely hanging on, my relationships grew stronger, and, amazingly, I even lost weight. I hadn’t even asked God to help me get physically healthier. Healthiness came to me as a byproduct of internal happiness and peace.
Will power can only go so far in making a person successful. From my past experience, when I admitted I needed help and yielded myself to that higher power, that is when real change happened. The journey must start from within the heart.
After working in the healthcare industry for years, my mother noted the same thing. There is no true help aside from God. Pursuing the internal spirit man, examining him and helping him to grow and thrive does amazing things for our physical and soul selves as well. God is that dividing line between what we can do or know and what is life altering.
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