Your Spiritual funk may be caused by your diet
I think some people are under the assumption that our bodies don't have much to do with our spirituality. The assumption goes, "who cares what you eat and how much you move, as long as you have a great relationship with God you will be fine."
It sounds very Hallmark-y, but that doesn't make it true. My fear is many good people will believe this assumption and end up missing out on getting the most out of their lives and their relationship with God.
God created our bodies and wants us to steward them well, but that's not the only reason we should care for our bodies.
Your physical body may be effecting our spirituality.
Martyn Lloyd-Jones on Physical vs. Spiritual
Martyn Lloyd-Jones was a Welsh Protestant pastor in Britain some years ago. He was also a health doctor. A unique combination. His unique perspective gives us some insightful analysis on our bodily ties to the spiritual. He says:
Does someone hold the view that as long as you are a Christian it does not matter what the condition of your body is? Well, you will soon be disillusioned if you believe that…. There are some in whose cases It’s clear to me that the cause of their depression is mainly physical. On the other hand people who are more physically weak are more prone to attacks of spiritual discouragement and depression. But if you recognize that the physical may be partly responsible for the spiritual condition and make allowances for this, you’ll be better able to deal with the spiritual issues.
Dr. Lloyd Jones asserts that the physical and spiritual nature of man are inextricably tied together. He also says he has seen several examples of people who have spiritual problems caused by their physical bodies and vice versa.
Dr. Tim Keller says that this is an indictment on Americans. He says most americans have a tendency to bifurcate the spirit and body, also known as Dualism.
What does this look like practically?
A number of years ago I was serving in ministry in a long stretch of back to back Sunday preaching sessions. I was also starting my own business as a speaker and caring for a newborn. I remember hitting a wall and my messages just weren't as good as they could be. I also wasn't connecting spiritually with God. During that time I was thinking, "it must be spiritual warfare, or I should pray more."
Looking back, I realized that my physical condition was causing a lot of my mental and spiritual stress. I didn't sleep well. I ate pizza, chicken wings and ice cream all the time and I was eating things I didn't know I was intolerant to. So was the devil getting me? Maybe. But more than likely, I needed to stop eating so poorly and sleep better.
The way you treat yourself may effect your mind and spirit. You may not notice, but perhaps you've been a state of low performance for so long you don't even notice.
Poor eating, lack of rest or toxin exposure can mimic the effects of what many would consider spiritual depression or attack. brain fog, depression, fatigue, irritability and low libido are all shared symptoms between poor bodily care and spiritual attack.
Mind, Body AND Spirit
Here is the thing: Mind, body and spirit all work in synchrony. One is not more dominant than the other. They all compliment each other and one can crush the other two if neglected.
-Secular folks would say everything is mainly physical and there is a reasonable physical explanation for al things.
-Some other people will reduce everything to the mind. They will say, "get over it", or "it's in your head."
-And many others reduce all things to emotional. If you are feeling sad or emotional they will love, listen and support, but never help you search out a cause.
In order to thrive, we must find the synchrony, the perfect balance, of all three.
Not just positivity and thinking.... Not just prayer and meditation..... Not just exercise and medicine.....
