Health in the Season of Giving

By Cindy Williams, RN

Coordinator, Health Ministries

I’ve been thinking about Christmas and pondering what connection there might be between Christmas and our health. 

Scripture says, “When the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law,” (Galatians 4:4). 

“Providence had directed the movements of nations, and the tide of human impulse and influence, until the world was ripe for the coming of the Deliverer. The nations were united under one government. One language was widely spoken and was everywhere recognized as the language of literature. From all lands the Jews of the dispersion gathered to Jerusalem to the annual feasts. As these returned to the places of their sojourn, they could spread throughout the world the tidings of the Messiah's coming,” (Desire of Ages p 32).

Satan had been trying for four thousand years to obliterate the knowledge of God. “The deception of sin had reached its height.” It was time.

A sentence from Ministry of Healing (p 143) came to mind as I read this: 

“The world needs today what it needed nineteen hundred years ago – a revelation of Christ.” Though this was written more than a hundred years ago, it is no less true today. Our world is in chaos and sin seems to triumph. 

Jesus revealed God’s love, God’s character, through action. He fed the hungry, healed the sick, touched the outcast, and freed people from the chains of demon possession. We are called to serve as He served. 

Did you know that serving others benefits our own health? Research shows that people who volunteer regularly have healthier immune systems, lower blood pressure, and healthier hearts. They have less chronic pain. They live longer and are less likely to get dementia as they age. One study found that even writing a check to charity ignites a flood of feel-good chemicals in the body. Additional hormones are released when you give generously face-to-face. 

Isaiah 58:6-9 talks about the kind of “fasts” that God wants from us. They include sharing food with the hungry, giving shelter to the homeless, clothes to the naked, lightening the burden of others, and just being available to others. Then it says: “Then your salvation will come like the dawn,  and your wounds will quickly heal.” Our Creator knew that we would reap benefits from serving others! I sometimes think I benefit more than those I serve.

Be a revelation of Christ this Christmas! 

References

https://www.webmd.com/balance/features/volunteering-physical-benefits#1

This article is part of a continuing series of health during these COVID times. For other articles, please see www.uccsda.org/healthministries.

Photo by Kira auf der Heide on Unsplash