Biblical References for Spiritual Healing

Many people have the impression that spiritual healing is a “new age” phenomenon, something that is trendy and modern. But they couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, spiritual healing is an ancient practice, and was seen in many cultures around the world in some form. From ancient Egypt, Greece, Native America, Asia and South American, methods of spiritual healing have been practices for hundreds and thousands of years.

Religious experts also recognize the importance of spiritual healing to ancient religions, and there are a number of references to spiritual healing in the Bible. Both the Hebrew Scriptures (also known as the Old Testament) and the New Testament, or Christian scriptures, contain a number of references to both physical and spiritual healing. While some of these passages are a bit ambiguous as to their specific meaning, it is clear that the writers of these works had a strong belief, and perhaps even direct experience in, some for a healing of a religious or spiritual nature.
In Exodus 15:26 of the King James Version, the Lord promises to the Israelites that if they keep his commandments, and do what it right, he will keep them free from a number of diseases. Second Kings 20:5 talks of healing of a more personal nature, in which God promises to heal Hezekiah of his affliction after hearing his prayers. And Psalms 34:17-19 speaks of Lord’s ability to heal a variety of afflictions of the righteous. Psalms 103 invokes a blessing from the Lord, and asserts that he can heal illness and forgive iniquities.
More specific references to healing in the Hebrew Scriptures can be found in Isaiah 57:18-21, Jeremiah 30:17, and Hosea 6:1.
The New Testament is likewise filled with references to healing, especially granted to those who pray for help. Matthew 7:7-11 speaks of the promise of asking for help in any way, and the power of God to grant the request. Also in Matthew (21:22), it is stated that whatever is requested in prayer by a true believer, will be granted.
The gospel of Mark speaks specifically of laying on of hands to heal the sick (16:18), while John (15:7) reiterates that anyone asking of God shall receive what they need. James 5:14-15 continues the theme of spiritual healing, this time speaking of anointing with sacred oils in combination with prayer to heal those who are ill. In fact James even appeals to the crowd, encouraging any who are sick to ask the Lord for healing, in much the same way that healing preachers today prompt their congregations to come forward for healing.

The bible does offer some caveats, however, citing specific incidences during which healing was not successful. In the story of Lazarus, Jesus was not able to prevent the death of his friend, although he later did raise him from the dead. And in Paul’s letters, (1 Corinthian 15:42-53) he writes that the human suffering caused by illness and death is unavoidable, and a part of the human condition. Paul himself suffered from a flesh wound that remained unhealed, and caused him much discomfort. Paul’s attempts at healing others were not entirely successful either, as cited by Timothy in 1 Timothy 5:23 (Timothy himself) and 2 Timothy 4:20 (Miletus).

For a deeper discussion of the presence of spiritual healing in the Bible, there are several books available. Healing Oils of the Bible, written by David Stewart, Ph.D., cites over one thousand instances in which oils are mentioned in the Bible in relation to healing. The Heart of Pastoral Counseling by Richard Dayringer is a short book that includes information on the religious aspect of healing from a biblical perspective. And Life Understood from a Scientific and Religious Point of View cites specific references to spiritual healing in the Old and New Testaments.

What You Should Know About Alcohol and Exercise

The following paragraphs summarize the work of alcohol and sports experts who are completely familiar with all the aspects of alcohol and sports. Heed their advice to avoid any alcohol and sports surprises.

On Friday afternoon after you leave work, you’re probably thinking about  doing out and having a few drinks with friends to relax and wind down. But even though you may think you deserve to go out and have a few drinks, there are some things that you should certainly keep in mind.

Like any other day, tomorrow is going to be a day for exercise, and since you are exercising on a regular basis, a few drinks of alcohol won’t really hurt anything, right? Before you decide to rush out to the local bar, there are a few things below that you should think about before you make your choice about going out to drink some alcohol.

Research has proven that even small amounts of alcohol with increase muscular endurance and the output of strength, although these types of benefits are very short lived. After 20 minutes or so, the problems will begin to surface. All of the negative side effects associated with alcohol will easily outweigh any possible benefits that it can have. No matter how you look at it, alcohol is a poison that can really harm your body if you aren’t careful.

The negative side of alcohol can reduce your strength, endurance, aerobic capability, recovery time, ability to metabolize fat, and even your muscle growth as well. Alcohol will also have an effect on your nervous system and brain. If you use it long term, you can cause severe deterioration of your central nervous system.  Even with short term use, nerve muscle interaction can be reduced which will result in a loss of strength.

Once alcohol reaches the blood cells, it can and probably will damage them. With alcohol users, inflammation of the muscle cells is a very common thing. Over periods of time, some of these cells that have been damaged can die which will result in less functional muscle contractions. Drinking alcohol will also leave you with more soreness of your muscles after you exercise, which means that it will take you a lot longer to recuperate.

See how much you can learn about alcohol and sports when you take a little time to read a well-researched article? Don’t miss out on the rest of this great information.

Alcohol will also have many different effects on your heart and circulatory system as well. When you drink any type of alcohol, you may begin to see a reduction in your endurance capabilities. Anytime you drink, your heat loss will increase, due to the alcohol simulating your blood vessels to dilate. The loss in heat can cause your muscles to become quite cold, therefore become slower and weaker during your muscle contractions.

Drinking alcohol can also lead to digestive and nutrition problems as well. Alcohol cause a release of insulin that will increase the metabolism of glycogen, which spares fat and makes the loss of fat very hard. Due to alcohol interfering with the absorption of several key nutrients, you can also become anemic and deficient with B type vitamins.

Because your liver is the organ that detoxifies alcohol, the more you drink, the harder your liver has to work. The extra stress alcohol places on your liver can cause serious damage and even destroy some of your liver cells.

Since alcohol is diuretic, drinking large amounts can put a lot of stress on your kidneys as well. During diuretic action, the hormones are secreted. This can lead to heightened water retention and no one who exercises will want this to happen.

If you must drink alcohol, you should do it in moderation and never drink before you exercise, as this will impair your balance, coordination, and also your judgement. Think about your health and how you exercise – and you may begin to look at things from a whole new prospective.

Now that wasn’t hard at all, was it? And you’ve earned a wealth of knowledge, just from taking some time to study an expert’s word on alcohol and sports.