Heart Health
How’s your heart doing these days? Aside from the fact that you know you’re still alive, what’s going on in there? Let’s talk about the heart, the physical, emotional, and spiritual heart. Makes good sense to wonder about our heart’s health, since the heart is one of the most essential organs of the body.
The physical aspects about our heart are intricate and miraculous. We feel the heart beating in our chest – but are totally unaware of how it carries out the function of pumping blood to the body’s vessels, the arteries and veins. The heart is a muscle that contracts and relaxes, normally in a predictable sequence or rhythm – that is your heartbeat. Its function is indispensable to life: blood contains nutrients, such as oxygen, that the body’s tissues need to do their jobs. We can say then that our heart has an intimate relationship with all of the organs and mechanics of the body.
The emotional characteristics of our heart are often mysterious and arduous to understand. Emotions, feelings, and moods seem interchangeable, but they have different meanings. Emotions are reactions to stimuli, but feelings are what we experience as a result of emotions. We can feel amusement, anger, anticipation, contempt, disgust, embarrassment, excitement, fear, joy, pride, sadness, satisfaction, shame, or surprise. Emotions are likely to have a definite cause, and are normally short-lived, but intense. Feelings are influenced by our perception of the situation, which is why the same emotion can trigger different feelings for us or others. While it is the brain that thinks on an emotion, it’s the heart that decides what experience or response you will have.
The spiritual properties of our heart are limitless and virtuous. The spiritual heart is always awake, always ready to light our path with insight about our Creator. In the Bible the heart is considered the seat of life or strength. It is the place where we have our will, our attitude and intentions, which is the source of our thoughts, actions and words. Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life (Proverbs 43:23 KJV). Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts (Proverbs 43:23 GNT). Our heart is at the center of our relationship with God, our greatest fulfillment — one characterized by profound peace, gratitude, joy, safety, and unconditional love.
How do we keep our hearts healthy?
Our heart health literally depends on what we harbor in our hearts. The vicissitudes of life (upward turns, downward spirals, mediocre middles) all flow towards our seeking and maintaining fulfillment in God (Father, Son, Holy Spirit). We were created to communicate and commune with Him heart to Heart! His desire is that no one would be left behind (out of relationship with Him) and doomed to an eternal hell. Consider how our seven dimensions of life (social, emotional, spiritual, environmental, occupational, intellectual, and physical wellness) can interact in a way that contributes to our quality of life. Spiritual health is the ability to establish peace and harmony in our lives through Jesus. We develop congruency between values and actions and realize His common purpose, a knowing that God completes our well-being.
Think about what you’re thinking! It’s estimated that we have 25,000 to 50,000 thoughts a day. How many positive and godly thoughts vs negative thoughts? We can “kill” the ANT’s (Automatic Negative Thoughts) that seek to ruin our day, maybe even our lives. 3 ANT types: fortune telling (predicting bad outcomes, always/never thinking); over-generalizations void of faith; and guilt beatings (bad self-feelings). Let’s challenge our thoughts. Reject negative thoughts and think positive ones instead. Visualize success, not failure. Keep God’s promises on your mind and expect positive results.
Don’t let storms stop you!!! Amazing things come out of the storms in life. People suddenly demonstrate creativity they never knew they had. Compassion for others erupts and an initiative for survival takes over when least expected. Out of nowhere, physical strength and endurance become a sustaining force. When the storms are over, they leave behind character growth discovered during the drama, over and above the ruins and devastation they may have caused.
Don’t worry about what you don’t have. Life’s complications know no economic level, race, culture, occupation, locality, spiritual or physical condition, or timeframe. Look beyond the ruins and figure out what you have left, even if it’s one thing. It could be character, wisdom, humility, strength, peace, forgiveness, determination, boldness, discernment, organization, or just plain awareness to truth. Those things – whatever they may be – are your building materials for God’s plan.
Step into revitalization – defined as an awakening, freshening, or invigoration. It is what happens when building takes place: moving from the Problem to a Process, with Purpose, and the Power God meant for us to have. This awakening takes root when we widen our prospective and think more deliberately on the positive/purpose. It’s not what’s outside in the world that defeats us; it is what’s within – how we think of ourself. Restoration of the spirit, mind, and body is our opportunity to engage in meaningful reflection on our inner life.
God’s H.E.A.R.T. is… Holy, Everlasting, Awesome, Righteous, True!
Gayle Smith, M.Ed., Christian Life Coach for Women
