Of Lightbulbs and Health
You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone . . . , let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father. Matt. 5:14-16, NIV.
Yesterday I ran into Mr. Ultrahealth. Thirty-one years of age, committed to a daily one-hour workout on his Nautilus machine, he is in fabulous shape. His hobby is rock-climbing and his diet consists of piles of unsprayed fruits and vegetables, mounds of alfalfa sprouts, and barrels of oat bran. He drinks 10 glasses of distilled water a day, sleeps eight hours at night, regards sweets with utter disdain, and never forgets to floss his teeth. In addition, his cholesterol is below 130, he has never been in a hospital, and his physician says he has never seen anybody healthier.
Today, however, I saw him kick the dog, scream obscenities at his wife, and leave the house without saying goodbye to his children. At work he lied to his boss, blaming a colleague for his own mistake. He was unkind, impatient, selfish, immoral, and spiritually bankrupt.
And suddenly a light came on in my mind. Health is more than eating right and exercising daily. Fitness involves more than first meets the eye. Actually, health is more like a lightbulb. The glass may be shiny, clean, and clear on the outside. But if the filament on the inside is broken or disconnected from the core, then there won’t be any light. Yet without light the bulb will have missed its purpose.
Lightbulbs aren’t ends in themselves. They’re only a means to an end, only valuable if they help us get to where we really want to go.
As we look forward to the new year, let us take a closer look at our goal of health. If our lifestyle improvements don’t help us to become more loving persons, then we are as worthless as a broken lightbulb. We may look polished on the outside, but without being connected on the inside we are not bringing light to others.
The ultimate purpose of pursuing health remains to become a more efficient lightbulb-to serve others better.
Lord, may my life shine with love to others. Amen.
Yesterday I ran into Mr. Ultrahealth. Thirty-one years of age, committed to a daily one-hour workout on his Nautilus machine, he is in fabulous shape. His hobby is rock-climbing and his diet consists of piles of unsprayed fruits and vegetables, mounds of alfalfa sprouts, and barrels of oat bran. He drinks 10 glasses of distilled water a day, sleeps eight hours at night, regards sweets with utter disdain, and never forgets to floss his teeth. In addition, his cholesterol is below 130, he has never been in a hospital, and his physician says he has never seen anybody healthier.
Today, however, I saw him kick the dog, scream obscenities at his wife, and leave the house without saying goodbye to his children. At work he lied to his boss, blaming a colleague for his own mistake. He was unkind, impatient, selfish, immoral, and spiritually bankrupt.
And suddenly a light came on in my mind. Health is more than eating right and exercising daily. Fitness involves more than first meets the eye. Actually, health is more like a lightbulb. The glass may be shiny, clean, and clear on the outside. But if the filament on the inside is broken or disconnected from the core, then there won’t be any light. Yet without light the bulb will have missed its purpose.
Lightbulbs aren’t ends in themselves. They’re only a means to an end, only valuable if they help us get to where we really want to go.
As we look forward to the new year, let us take a closer look at our goal of health. If our lifestyle improvements don’t help us to become more loving persons, then we are as worthless as a broken lightbulb. We may look polished on the outside, but without being connected on the inside we are not bringing light to others.
The ultimate purpose of pursuing health remains to become a more efficient lightbulb-to serve others better.
Lord, may my life shine with love to others. Amen.
Used by permission of Health Ministries, North American Division of Seventh-day Adventists.
⇦ Previous | View Today's Devotional | Next ⇨