Isaiah 58:11 The Lord will guide you continually, watering your life when you are dry and keeping you healthy, too. You will be like a well watered garden like an ever-flowing spring.
The large juicy orange is what people see on the surface. They love the way it looks, the bright color, the way the sun glistens off of it, and the sweet, second-to-none taste. Most people desire the fruit but fail to realize what went into producing it.
The delicious orange is the end product of endless amounts of cultivation. A seed was planted; it grew into a seedling. The seedling was planted in rich soil that had long been cultivated and lovingly tended to. The tree was then nourished, pruned, and cared for year after year. Eventually, the fruit was produced and we got to experience the main attraction of that cultivation.
Healthy living is very much the same. A vibrant, energetic, positive, life-filled person exuding great health is attractive to us all. However, that person is the result of years of cultivation. You see, there are powerful things that God gives us, but they need to be cultivated. Our world doesn’t lend to them naturally prospering.
Light is greater than darkness but in our dark world, light must be cultivated.
Love is greater than hate, but in our hurting, suffering world, love must be cultivated.
Health is greater than sickness, but in our disease-filled, sick world, health must be cultivated.
The end fruit, which is prospering health, comes from continually cultivating healthy habits. In Romans 12:2, Paul tells us to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. In James we learn of faith and works coming together. In 1Cor9:27 we learn of bodily discipline. We are taught all these things because our harsh world doesn’t naturally lend itself to this.
When we live a life where our thoughts are continually renewed, they will eventually produce a new belief. That new belief will be the foundation for a new set of actions. When those new actions are maintained consistently over time, we now create a new atmosphere. That new atmosphere is the fruit. It is the vibrant health, the restored marriage, the loving parental relationship. Ultimately, it is the prospering Kingdom inside of us. Health and prosperity is the norm. Don’t let the common of this world convince you otherwise. You will become what you cultivate most. Spend the time cultivating what really matters: relationships and health.
Be Blessed,
Dr Matt
