A Prescription For Spiritual Health From the Great Physician

        At some point in time, we have all been sick. If the sickness is not very
serious, most of us will stay home and try to get better on our own. When the
sickness becomes more serious, however, most will seek the help of a doctor
whom they trust. Like a medical physician whose expertise is to help the body
overcome physical sickness, Jesus is our Great Physician Who has the ability to
help us overcome physical and spiritual sickness. ““When Jesus heard it, he saith
unto them, They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are
sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” (Mark 2:17).

        We become spiritually sick when we are weakened by sin and when we
allow the temporary cares of the world to take priority over God. When we become
spiritually sick, we need Christ as our Great Physician to help us overcome our
spiritual sickness and get better. In order to keep spiritually pure and healthy, we
have the following prescription from the Bible to follow;

1. Bible Reading: The Bible acts as a mirror in which we view our spiritual
selves. We have to read and study our Bibles everyday in order to gain the
full benefit of its teaching and instruction (II Timothy 2:15). Just as II
Timothy 2:15 says, God not only suggests that we study our Bibles
regularly, He commands it!
        We may think that we are keeping spiritually pure in the sinful and
perverse world that we live in, but we can only know for sure if we are
spiritually healthy if we read our Bibles daily and examine ourselves
regularly to be sure that we are truly and accurately following God’s Word.
“Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves.
Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be
reprobates?” (II Corinthians 13:5). I know that from my own personal experience, that after I do my daily bible study, my day goes so much better. My life is much more blessed now, and yours will be too if you take up daily bible study! 

2. Pray : We are to pray daily and often. I Thessalonians 5:17 tells us to, “Pray
without ceasing.” Whenever we are tempted to worry, we should pray about
it to God and lay all of our burdens upon Him to carry. “Be careful for
nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let
your requests be made known unto God.” (Philippians 4:6). We should pray
about anything that we feel that we need help with, no matter how small of a
matter it may seem to us. When we are so troubled that we do not know
exactly what to pray for, we have the Holy Spirit to help us in our prayers by
interceding tot he Father on our behalf. “Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our
infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the
Spirit Himself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be
uttered.”(Romans 8:26).

3. Going to a Solitary Place. Sometimes it is necessary for us to seek solitude
and to be by ourselves for awhile. Jesus did this at times so that He could
pray to God without interruption. “And in the morning, rising up a great
while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there
prayed.” (Mark 1:35). The apostles also sought a solitary place to pray such
as when Peter sat upon the rooftop to pray (Acts 10:9). Having quiet moments alone helps us to think more clearly as well as allow us some time
to focus on God.

4. Crying: It has been said that crying is therapeutic for the soul, and it surely is. When we are feeling sad, angry, overwhelmed, etc, a good cry cleanses us and makes us feel better. God allows us to go through sadness in our lives so that we can cry and release the pain that is harboring in our souls.
“Sorrow is better than laughter: for by the sadness of the countenance the
heart is made better.” (Ecclesiastes 7:3). Sorrow also makes us better
Christians, because it causes us to assess and realign our priorities in life.

5. Laughing: Just as tears are therapeutic for the soul, laughter at appropriate
times can be a great relief during trying times. Laughter relieves our stress at
the moment, and helps us to feel better. Those who choose to be happy in
life will laugh often. “A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a
broken spirit drieth the bones.” (Proverbs 17:22)

6. Christians Encouraging Other Christians: Having encouragement from our fellow sisters in Christ can help motivate us to continue being faithful to God, as well as see us through the many challenging times that we may face in this life. As Christians it is our duty to  be encouraging to one another so that our bond is strengthened, and we can help one another go to Heaven! "Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do" (I Thessalonians 5:11).
     It is so sad to see Christians who only want to discourage other Christians.  The practice of discouraging one another not only hurts the person being discouraged, but it shows the spiritual weakness that the discourager possesses. We are to be like Barnabas, whose great ability to encourage others gave him the name "son of consolation." (Acts 4:36)

7. Attend the Worship Services of the church of Christ Regularly. By regularly, I mean that you should be worshipping with the saints every Sunday that you are not sick or taking care of the sick, and any other time in the week that the men of your congregation set aside time for Bible Study, such as on a Wednesday night. We are commanded to worship with a congregation of the church of Christ. " And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching."(Hebrews 10:24-25). Just as daily Bible study will help God Bless you in your life even more than you are blessed already, going to worship services regularly will also help your life immensely. Show me a person who does not attend worship services regularly, and I will show you a person whose life will fall apart, at some point in time and things will not be going as good in that person's life as it would be if that person was faithful in his/her worship service attendance. 

     When you are tempted to stay home on Sunday to sleep in or stay home on Wednesday night for something other than being sick or taking care of the sick, please take the time to think about how if Jesus could die a cruel death on the cross for you, then the very least you could do is drive to a church building in your comfortable vehicle and sit in a comfortable pew in a temperature controlled building to worship Him, and to thank Him for all He has done for you! 
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       When we, Christians study and pray daily, find solitude, allow ourselves to cry
and laugh when needed, and examine our spiritual selves regularly, we are blessed
to have Jesus, as our mediator between God and ourselves, bring us to the Father.
“For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ
Jesus;” (I Timothy 2:5). We also have Jesus as the best example we could ever
have in living the faithful Christian Life. No matter how much sorrow we have
here on the earth, it all pales in comparison to what Jesus went through in His short
33 years on the planet. During all of His struggles, however, He maintained the
“peace that passes all understanding” (Philippians 4:7). We can also have the peace
that passes all understanding when we follow the prescription that the Great
Physician has given us, and work to be more like Christ each and every day that we
live.

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