We have adopted our New Years resolutions, and many of us are focused on a healthy heart. It apparently is making a difference. According to a study published in an American Heart Association journal, The epidemic increase in heart disease mortality ended in the 1960s or 1970s. Deaths from heart disease have fallen dramatically over the last 50 years. Heart-healthy alternatives are produced in almost every food category. Restaurants include heart-healthy menus. Smoking has been banned in most public places. Physicians and nonprofits promote diet and exercise.
I first read Dr. Kenneth Coopers book, Aerobics, in 1982. It was a groundbreaking book that opened the eyes of millions to the benefits of aerobic exercise and healthy diet for a healthy heart. When I visited Brazil I was fascinated to find hundreds of Brazilians walking and jogging every morning to get in their Cooper. The doctors name had found its way into Portuguese as a synonym for heart-healthy aerobic exercise.
When I followed Coopers regimen, I experienced the benefits: lost weight, increased strength and stamina. Unfortunately, I have not always followed those disciplines, and it shows. Developing a healthy heart requires more than knowledge.
As important as it is to maintain a healthy heart physically, it is even more important for us to develop a healthy heart spiritually. The Bible clearly sets forth the disciplines and characteristics of a healthy spiritual heart. They include gratitude, hope, forgiveness and love. If we discipline ourselves to be grateful every day for what God has done, if we hope when things look hopeless, if we forgive those who injure us, if we love our enemies instead of just loving those who love us, we will have a healthy heart.
But, like our physical heart, having a spiritually healthy heart requires more than knowledge. We may know that we need to be grateful, hopeful, forgiving and loving. But how do you create heartfelt gratitude, hope, forgiveness and love?
In the spiritual realm, this requires a spiritual heart transplant. God has to create a new heart within us, something that He is more than willing to do. We are all born with spiritual heart disease. Jeremiah says, The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; who can understand it? (Jer. 17:9). But later he writes, I will give them a heart to know Me, for I am the Lord; and they will be My people, and I will be their God (Jer. 24:7). And in Ezekiel He says, Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh (Ez. 36:26).
God sent His son Jesus so that He might create in us a healthy heart that is full of gratitude, hope, forgiveness and love. He changes the heart that has grown callous, bitter and resentful into one that overflows in gratitude. Someday our physical heart will beat its last beat and our bodies will die. But the spiritually healthy heart that God creates will live forever.
Bill Tinsley reflects on current events and life experience from a faith perspective. Visit http://www.tinsleycenter.com. Email bill@tinsleycenter.com.
See more here:
Bill Tinsley: Develop a physically and spiritually healthy heart - StarNewsOnline.com
- Book Excerpt: One Song - November 7th, 2009 [November 7th, 2009]
- Book Review: The Mitten Tree - November 7th, 2009 [November 7th, 2009]
- Book Review: The Monkey with a Bright Blue Bottom - November 7th, 2009 [November 7th, 2009]
- Book Review: Mama, Will It Snow Tonight? - November 7th, 2009 [November 7th, 2009]
- Book Review: There's No Such Thing as Monsters! - November 7th, 2009 [November 7th, 2009]
- DVD Feature Film Review: Perestroika - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- DVD Feature Film Review: Nothing Like the Holidays - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Spiritual Literacy Blog: Must We Have Bad Music in Public Spaces? - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Book Excerpt: Angels and Dragons - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Book Excerpt: A Soul's Journey - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Book Review: A Book of Hours - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Book Excerpt: A Book of Hours - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Feature Film Review: Storm - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Feature Film Review: Skin - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Book Excerpt: The Anger Diet - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Newsletter: October 31, 2009: The Abbot Who Declared The Hall Is Finished - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Book Excerpt: Suffering and the Courage of God - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Book Excerpt: Life-Changing Affirmations - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- DVD Feature Film Review: The Answer Man - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- DVD Feature Film Review: The Dead - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Book Excerpt: Five Voices, Five Faiths - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- DVD Feature Film Review: Lemon Tree (Etz Limon) - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- DVD Documentary Film Review: Unmistaken Child - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- DVD Documentary Film Review: Food, Inc. - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Book Excerpt: The Workplace Revolution - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Book Excerpt: Journeys of Courage - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Feature Film Review: The Men Who Stare at Goats - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Book Excerpt: The Gift of Prayer - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Feature Film Review: That Evening Sun - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Feature Film Review: The Box - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Relax and Melt into a deep deep meditative state. - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Symptoms of Anxiety - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Nonduality And Spirituality---Enlightenment - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- How Not to Stop Anxiety Attacks---Part 1 - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Natural Treatment for Anxiety disorders--Antidote anxiety - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- What to do When Anxiety Attacks--Antidote Anxiety - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Spiritually charged metaphysical spiritual quote - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Release Technique & Non Duality& Law of attraction - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- NonDuality & Manifestation - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- All Is One, One is All !! - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Worrying about Anxiety---Antidote Anxiety - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Free course on Conquering Anxiety - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Manifesting Prosperity,Love manifesting,Dream Manifesting - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Stress and Anxiety Relief Treatment - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Stress and Anxiety Reduction with Brainwave entrainment - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- How to Remove feeling of Fear and Anxiety - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Relieve Stress:Financial Troubles, Low Self Esteem - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Meditation, Enlightenment & Paradox - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- False beliefs and Emotional Healing to develop emotional intelligence - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Millionaire Mind- Meditations Manifesting Abundance - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Three Essential requirements to learn Self Hypnosis Quickly - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Non duality and manifestation--Law of attraction - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Law of Attraction-- Manifesting Wealth Beyond Reason - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- The Secret Busted--- Flaws of the Secret. - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Book Excerpt: Web of Silence - December 12th, 2009 [December 12th, 2009]
- Living Spiritual Teachers Project: Byron Katie - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Feature Film Review: Before Tomorrow - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Book Excerpt: Sadhu Sundar Singh - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Spiritual Literacy Blog: We May Be Born with an Urge to Help - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Feature Film Review: Everybody's Fine - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Feature Film Review: Brothers - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Feature Film Review: Gigante - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Book Excerpt: When People Grieve - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Book Excerpt: The Light and Fire of the Baal Shem Tov - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Feature Film Review: The Last Station - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Feature Film Review: Up in the Air - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Book Excerpt: Learning to Pray - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Book Excerpt: Beyond Absence - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Book Excerpt: Ecology & Liberation - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Book Feature: The Best Spiritual Books of 2009 (So Far) - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- DVD Feature Film Review: Julie & Julia - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- DVD Documentary Film Review: The Cove - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- DVD Feature Film Review: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Book Review: Spirit of Service - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Book Excerpt: Spirit of Service - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Book Review: The Wolf at Twilight - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Book Excerpt: The Wolf at Twilight - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Book Review: Memories of Muhammad - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Book Excerpt: Memories of Muhammad - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Book Excerpt: Humility Matters for Practicing The Spiritual Life - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]