Why you Shouldn’t Neglect your Spiritual Health
What is Spirituality
Oxford Languages defines spirituality as: the quality of being concerned with the human spirit or soul as opposed to material or physical things.
This means spirituality encompasses your whole being, what makes you YOU. When your spiritual health is in decline, then you are in decline.
What is Spiritual Health
So what exactly is spiritual health? Spiritual health is the health of your soul, your spirit. Spiritual health is in a sense akin to your physical or mental health. When you have a broken arm, your physical health is afflicted. When you are feeling depressed or anxious, your mental health is unwell. When you are questioning your purpose in life, this could be a sign that your spiritual health is suffering.
Why you Need to Sustain your Spiritual Health
Your mental health and your physical health can affect each other. When one is present, the other may not be trailing too far behind. Your spiritual health affects both your mental and physical health. When your spiritual health is unstable, you pose a greater risk of physical and mental impairment.
Similar to your physical and mental health, your spiritual health will fluctuate throughout your life. This is why it is vital to tend to it and nourish it often. The more you feed your spiritual health, the less trials will bring you down. When your spiritual health is elevated, you’ll be able to bounce back from damaging circumstances less damaged, spared some of the injuries that could have been, giving you access to take notice of the silver lining.
When you experience sound spiritual health, not only are you creating a safeguard for your mental and physical health, you are weaving a balance between the three, allowing your being to become whole. You will experience greater satisfaction in your life. You’ll be able to discover the meaning in your life, better equipped to live out the purpose God has for you. As you develop spiritually, you begin to develop a deeper relationship with God, as well as experience deeper connections with those around you. And as your relationship with God increases, peace will start to increase, allowing you to manage stress better, and create a life of gratitude.
How to Maintain your Spiritual Health
- Pray
- Spend time in nature
- Keep a gratitude journal
- Meditate on God’s word
- Go for a walk
- Do some yoga
- Practice deep breathing exercises
- Forgive and let go of the past
- Reflect on your life
- Truly listen to others
Scriptures about Spiritual Health
A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. -Proverbs 17:22
Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones. -Proverbs 16:2
And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual. -Ezekiel 18:4
Addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, -Acts 20:7
Quotes about Spirituality and Spiritual Health
“We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience.” – Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
"At any moment, you have a choice, that either leads you closer to your spirit or further away from it.” – Thich Nhat Hanh
“Spirituality is not about being fixed; it is about God being present in the mess of our unfixedness.” – Michael Yaconelli
“Learn to get in touch with the silence within yourself and know that everything in this life has a purpose. There are no mistakes, no coincidences. All events are blessings given to us to learn from.” – Elizabeth Kübler-Ross
“When you connect to the silence within you, that is when you can make sense of the disturbance going on around you.” – Stephen Richards
“But no matter how much evil I see, I think it’s important for everyone to understand that there is much more light than darkness.” – Robert Uttaro
“Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn, or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude.” – Denis Waitley
“When we are spiritually healthy, we realize that we exist beyond the physical and our life has a sense of meaning and purpose.” – Robyn L. Gobin
“God's ultimate goal for your life on Earth is not comfort but character development. He wants you to grow up spiritually and become like Christ. Christlikeness is all about transforming your character, not your personality.” – Rick Warren
“God will test you because he wants you to grow up. He wants you to mature. He wants you to develop a walk with him that is not based on your fluctuating emotions but on your commitment to him as you learn to walk by faith.” – Greg Laurie
“And above all, remember that the meaning of life is to build a life as if it were a work of art.” – Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel
“Anybody can thank God for good things. But when you can thank God even in the bad things, your faith grows and your spiritual roots go deeper.” – Rick Warren
Remember…
Spiritual health is fluid, at times it will waver. However, when you are steadfast in your spiritual journey, you’ll become better able to overcome the periods of low. When your level of spiritual health is high, your actions and words begin to align with God’s values, thereby revealing the purpose that God has for you in this life. It isn’t always an easy task, but you have the Lord by your side to carry you when you stumble.
- Torrance Church of Christ