Spirituality and Health

There are actually some biblically based food plans out there. A friend of mine used it for awhile. Not sure if that's something for you to look at.

Here's the thing for me...I am a Christian, if I look back at struggles in my life I can also see where I was walking away from God trying to do things my way in my time...it doesn't work. When I put my "stuff" in His hands, it always works out - might hurt a little while it's happening but always, always seems to work out way better than I could expect.

I belong to a Baptist church (very comtemporary) where we lots of small groups some by age, or kids ages, interests, etc. that could be a place to start in your search - finding someone to relate with

I thought you might like this....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tv1gCa5Us7Q

I copied the link from another post - it's incredible!

I will preface this by saying that I don't want to offend anyone and part of our humanity is to have personal beliefs and feel both wonderment and fear toward death and what that might entail. We all have different beliefs and having those doesn't mean we think other people are wrong (well I don't think anyone is wrong, I'm just not sure, but my beliefs make sense to me).

That said, I'm not a Christian...in fact, I don't even know if there's a name for what I am. :laugh:

Previous to last year, I was an atheist, not because I found religious entirely unbelievable, but because I was more ok with absolute nothingness than most people are. I was fine with the knowledge that my brain functions would cease and I would no longer be conscious or have any awareness of my existence.

Then last year, one of my professors gave a lecture on near death experiences. Her father held a 20 year long study following the lives the people who'd had an NDE. Interestingly, although none of the people knew one another, they all experienced almost the same thing. The main points were out of body experiences, ability to transcend time and space, a 'being of light', and viewing their lives through the eyes of others (and therefore experiences others' pain/joy based on their own actions). They also mentioned the inability to sense time passing and that the being of light was just a chaperone, and they could telepathically communicate with other ________ (souls, beings, whatever). Since these people actually died, I tend to believe that they have a good idea of what's going on 'over there'. The reason this didn't make me want to be a Christian was that there is no mention of heaven or hell. Rather, the re-living of their lives would provide either very good feelings or very bad feelings. After that, they spent time in various places--forests, institutes of learning--until they came to an obstacle and came back to life.

Okay, that was long, but I felt like I should explain my choice of beliefs. I believe there is an afterlife, and that afterlife will be either really good or really bad based on how I treat others--but whether I swear to myself or secretly covet the nice car of the neighbor next to me will not decide whether I suffer eternally. So now I try to treat others with respect and kindness, do favors whenever I can, and keep bad thoughts to myself. I'm still not worried about death, but now I view it more with interest than with indifference. I sort of anticipate what might be possible once I'm not a physical presence anymore. I take care of myself now so I can stick around for a while--I want to make the most of my time here so I am truly satisfied when I leave, since I believe I'll be conscious outside of my body. As a whole, I think my beliefs have made me more respectful toward myself and others, and more optimistic in general.

I am a muslim. I have always believed that God(Allah) has intended for us to eat little and lead simple lives. My weightloss journey is also teaching me that it is okay to let go of food and be more active for we are truly blessed with health and a good life. I feel like this is another part of my worship. I feel close to God and thank Him everyday for each and every blessing. There are countless. I pray five times a day and my last prayer of the day, I end by reflecting on how my day has been. I also pray for a better day coming up. Take each day at a time and thank God for his blessings and you will find not only peace and reassurance from above but also that this weightloss journey becomes a reflection of who you truly are and who you want to become. A healthy YOU.

Good luck!

Bits and pieces... Disclaimer: I not always practice what I preach...:grumble:

Losing weight for a good reason: see your body as the temple where God comes to live, He made you a gift, you have to be careful to protect it.

Not making an idol from the food. Fasting teaches me self control. But the purpose is different with fasting, this is why the result is different.

The acknowledgment of the fact that He loves me as I am. Even if He doesn't like some things I do, these don't push Him away. He's never disgusted with me.

Knowing that in whatever thing I invest some effort, there's no perfection and I'll never be doing enough. So how about put the rest into His hands? The rest, not all of it. My role there is clear, but so are my limits. I'm trying to learn to accept these limits.

I'll leave it open, maybe I'll come back when I get new ideas.

hi there, i always read your post and i think your an incredible person

like songbird, i want to say that i am very respectfull of others peoples believes and i ask the same in return, i want to give you the opposite perspective. i dont believe in god, i am an atheist, also an active member of the humanist society of scotland.

first, if you are worried about your health and how spirituality can help you, it is proven that people that regulary attend a secular group are in general better off psychologicaly because of the social interactions, and other needs that such a practice will fullfill. its got nothing to do with the fact that non-believer people are moralless and that we live a self destructive life. i could join a regualr book club and get the same kind of benefits. there is also the fact that people get an iner peace from believing in an afterlife, its a dauting thing to think that death is a full stop of a being, helps to deal with your own and others people death to believe that life carries on afterdeath. so yes i could help. but is it essential .. no

i guess the keyword we are looking for is faith. most people go on and have the same faith as their parents. due to upbringing. you didnt seems sure of what your faith is in the first place, did you take ask yourself if you believe in ? did you ever think that they could not be a god ? how is that going to affect your life ? basicly, its a very personal thing.

someone once told me that i had to be very courageous to come to a conclusion that there was no god. i first i dismissed it and then i though about it for very long. and she is right. i dont personaly feels very courageous but when you think about it, for someone to completely dismiss the help, the promises that religion gives you is somewhat courageous.

how did my beliefs help me through my weight loss journey, well, i proud to say that ive done it on my own. (alright.. my bf and mfp are really supportive i also know that i have only myself to count on, so i better get myself sorted !!! i believe in myself, and that i can prove it to myself that i am strong made all the difference

here a good book, the god delusion by richard dawkins, it really interesting, it doesnt bashout religion, it just explain how the human being has come to believe in god and the society interaction with religion.

sorry if this was long :ohwell: i would be happy to help you more is you need it
may :flowerforyou: