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This first appeared in The Chicago Tribune, community section. Here is the link: http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/naperville-sun/community/chi-ugc-article-7-ways-to-improve-our-spirituality-and-our-h-2016-01-04-story.html
There is increasing research and evidence that one’s spirituality has an important impact on health. So how can we be more active in improving our spiritual work-outs?
- Take time each day to read from your sacred texts. Whether it be The Bible, the Quran, the Book of Mormon, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, or any book that you find particularly inspiring, take some time each day to read from it. Let it speak to you. Find a passage you find helpful and highlight it, write it in a notebook, or even memorize it. You will then find that when need it, you will have a sacred truth to help you gain the courage needed to face any situation.
- Stretch your spirituality. An athlete will often spend quite a bit of time stretching and limbering up, even before he practices. You can find that this is quite important in the practice of our spirituality also. Stretch yourself. Limber up. Get out of ruts. Do something new. Limber up your forgiveness, your patience, and your tolerance. There are many ways to stretch the love you share: the gentleness, serenity, and goodness you express.
- Spiritual work-outs. Find a good definition of spirituality for yourself. “The fruit of the Spirit” usually works well for me: love, peace, joy, patience, goodness, gentleness, faith, meekness, temperance (it is in The Bible – Galatians 5: 22, 23). Then go out in the world and express these qualities. Really work at it. If you are usually impatient, be more patient. This may not be easy – but it’s worth it.
- “Cool down” periods of prayer. These should be moments or more of quiet prayer. You may want to go somewhere alone, or a certain place in your home. You may call it prayer or meditation, but find time each day to quietly commune with God, or just with a quiet sense of peace so that you find the spiritual energy to face your day.
- Diet from criticism, envy and hate. It may not be easy at first, especially if you have gorged yourself on these in the past. You can even call this your 4 “c’s” diet – abstaining from the complaining, comparing, condemning and criticizing that seem so rampant today. Counting “carbs” may not be the most important thing in your life, but discounting the other “c’s” will be.
- Include many nutrients of love, friendship and unselfishness. Do something for someone else each day. It may be a phone call, a note, volunteer work, but do something for someone else each day. Keep away from the constricted thought – being obsessed or consumed with ourselves and our own problems. Speaking of reaching out to others, Christian Science discoverer, Mary Baker Eddy, once wrote, “The highest and sweetest rest, even from a human standpoint, is in holy work.” It really is healthful for us to love others – bringing increased wellness not only to ourselves, but to those we help also.
- Drink in plenty of joy. Let there be plenty of smiles on your face and laughter in your heart. Share humorous stories, watch a comedy on tv. The Reader’s Digest coined the phrase many years ago, “Laughter is the best medicine”. It certainly is life-enriching.
Let’s try this together. See if these work for you. These ways to improve your spirituality are not only mentally enriching, but health restoring also.
©2016 Christian Science Committee on Publication for Illinois
