A few weeks ago, my back started to feel all out of whack for the first time in a long time. Years previous, my back was injured in the workplace and I had to get adjustments done at the Chiropractor and Osteopath so that I could walk and sit properly without pain. After my visits with the Chiro and Osteo dudes, I felt a lot better and life was back to normal. Get it? “Back” to normal! ha ha ha… cheesy I know… anyways, a few weeks ago my back needed some adjusting again so I went to the Chiropractor, only this time it was a different doctor. Nice guy. We talked and eventually got to the topic of religion and God since I told him that I was a Pastor. The conversation then became very interesting. He began to tell me about the important connection between our thought life and our bodies. Stress can actually throw our bodies out of whack and can put our backs out of alignment. Then, nerves can become pinched and prevent the proper flow of information from the brain to the other parts of the body. Now I am not a doctor, nor do I have much understanding, outside of a wikipedia answer, of how our nervous system really works, but I think I got a basic understanding while at the Chiropractor’s office. The way we think, the way we process the stuff in our lives, effects the functioning of our bodies. Worry, stress, doubt, anxiety… all have adverse effects on the body.
Jesus comforts us with his words in Matthew 6:25-34 to not worry about our lives. So often the stresses of our lives such as bills, food, medical needs, clothing, children, family, work can overwhelm us with thoughts that bring us to a point of breaking down. It can be so easy to get distracted by all these things and feel like we are drowning. But Jesus calls us to a new level of thinking. A new perspective of our situations in life. He calls us to look to Him, trust Him, seek Him. Jesus is Lord over the storm. He calls us to get out of the boat, even though all the odds are against me, even though it seems impssible to walk on the water, he calls us to Himself. Now of course in the account of Peter walking on water and going towards Jesus, he begins to sink. The message of that story though, is faith. To be able to get out of the boat, to be able to see life from a new perspective requires faith. When we choose to operate out of faith, when we choose to seek first the Kingdom of God, when we choose to not give in to our worries and anxieties even though things look rough, our lives will become aligned to God’s will.
Now it may mean we will have to work on our finances and become more responsible, it may mean we will need to work on our relationships and be more humble, it may mean that we will have to adjust the way we do some things, but all in all, God’s promise is that He will walk with us and always be with us (Matt 28:20). God is faithful. He is a provider, healer and restorer.
Trust Him in times of trouble. Let us re-align our minds to His will, which is to seek Him first above all other things. He will take care of the rest and guide us to vistory over the storms.
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