NxtGen Energy

“But Jesus turned around, and when He saw her He said, “Be of good cheer, daughter; your faith has made you well.”  And the woman was made well from that hour.”  Matthew 9:22 (NKJV)

Have you ever read the account in the Bible of the woman who had a chronic health problem and she sought out Jesus for healing?  You can read about it in the book of Matthew, chapter 9, verses 20 through 22.  This woman who had been sick for twelve years fought her way through the crowd to reach Jesus.  As soon as she touched him, she was healed.  But it was a fight getting to her healing.

In my Energy 101 class, there are people all types of people in various levels of physical fitness.  Some are very fit and come to my class to compliment other forms of exercise they enjoy throughout the week.  Some have chronic health problems that they are struggling against like high blood pressure, arthritis, obesity, injuries from car accidents, and other health issues.  Some have debilitating illnesses like sickle cell anemia.  But everyone in the class is fighting for the same thing:  wellness.  And I think that they are going to win.

Why do I believe that?  I believe that they have already decided in their own mind that wellness belongs to them.  Instead of just accepting what they were given or diagnosed with and settling into the anxiety and fear that often follows, they have decided to be well.

Some people think that “thinking won’t make it so”.   But I have evidence to the contrary.   As I have watched the people in my class change, not just physically, but emotionally and spiritually as well, I think that we can think ourselves into wellness.   How?  The first step is believing that you can be well and that God wants you to be well.  Then, ask God for wellnes.  Next,  start making “wellness” choices like:  choosing to eat food that promotes healing and wellness, choosing to get enough sleep, choosing to listen to and talk about positive things, choosing to exercise.

And over time, as you fight for it, you begin to change from the inside out.

“take care to get what you like, or you will be forced to like what you get.”  — George Bernard Shaw

Recently, I had the privilege of traveling as a team member on a Mission Trip to Haiti.   Our team of fourteen people had been sent out of Trinity Church (Miami, Florida) to the Mission of Hope in Titanyen, Haiti.  During our time there, we were able to work at the Mission of Hope’s medical clinic, travel to nearby orphanages to provide medical care, and also do some light construction work around the site.

In that part of the country, there is no water treatment or wastewater treatment, nor is there any garbage pick-up.  We had electricity in the evenings, sparse internet, and little running water.  We drank bottled water and cooked with it.  Because of the lack of sanitary conditions, we mostly ate peanut butter, crackers, canned tuna, and other canned goods.  There was no grocery store or corner pharmacy.  We faithfully downed our malaria pills.

Every evening after dinner was “family time.”   We played card games, read books, and just talked.  One of the many things we talked about was how we were going to live our lives when we returned to the United States.   After what we had seen and experienced, we knew that we would be viewing our lives from a new perspective.

What I realized about myself was that with all of the resources, conveniences, opportunities, and choices that I have, I can chose to live a peace-filled life.  I can go to the grocery store or restaurant and select the healthiest food for me.  I can exercise. I can buy products from businesses that support environmental sustainability.  And I can use less of everything.

I don’t have to just talk about it.  I can take control of myself and make the best choices for me daily.   The choices that I have the power to make right now will impact my health in the future, my family in the future, and my community in the future.

“This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.”  Psalm 118:24 (NIV)

Being well includes building healthy habits into our daily routine. Rather than saying, “Oh, I will just eat this today and diet tomorrow” or “I will eat this now and exercise twice as long tomorrow,” I propose building healthy food choices, exercise, prayer/meditation on scripture, and worship of God into each day. When you have all of those elements present in one day, you acknowledge that the present day is what you have been given. Tomorrow is a future possibility only.

Students often tell me that they don’t always have time to exercise or time to really plan out a healthy snack, etc. But I think that if we let the amount of time we think we have to dictate our lifestyle choices, we are going to lose in the long run.

Try building healthy food, exercise, prayer/mediation, and worship into a few days in a row. I think you will be amazed at how great you will feel!

In the book, “You Staying Young,” Dr. Roizen and Dr. Oz describe  ‘disuse atrophy.’  Drs. Roizen and Oz  state that as you cut back on physical activity or stop using certain muscle groups, your body shifts energy to other parts of your body.  Your body says, “we aren’t using that anymore, let’s not waste any energy trying to maintain that.”  And slowly,  that area of your body begins to atrophy.  This is what happens to astronauts when they spend long periods of time in space,  in the absence of gravity.  They don’t have to use their muscles the way they did on earth.  So, over time,  they lose muscle and bone mass.  A similar, but less dramatic impact occurs as we cut back on physical activity.  Muscle atrophy or disuse atrophy is a major cause of what we perceive as aging.

So at NxtGen Energy, we plan to keep our bodies moving!

Take a look at Dr. Roizen and Dr. Oz’s website by following NxtGen Energy Link to Real Age.