Three Healthy Habits

Last week I was reading Psalm 105. I noticed that there are lots of commands/verbs in the first five verses. Have a look for yourself! I  picked three to write about. According to google, these three things are very good for your health! 

 1) Thank God

Do you thank God every day? Is it a daily/regular habit in your life? There are many things to thank God for. How many things can you think of? Be really specific! And then thank God for all the things you don't have. For example, as far as I know, I don't have cancer. That's something to thank God for. You can even thank God for your trials, because God has allowed them for a good purpose. Thank God for all the prayers He's answered in the past and the ones He will answer. Choosing gratitude changes your attitude!

 It is such a simple thing to thank God but it can make such a big difference to your life. You can have a gratitude journal and write things down or jot down a few each day in your diary or prayer journal. If you like to draw, draw what you are thankful for! You could have a gratitude jar and fill it up with blessings. You could thank God for a few things when you pray.

 Aswell as showing appreciation to God, try showing appreciation to the people around you– your parents, your siblings, your pastor, your teacher, your friends, your grandparents etc. It's easy to take things for granted and to only notice other people's mistakes. Yet, if you look for things to be thankful for, you will find them. It could change your whole view of your world and the people around you.

Do you know anyone who is always complaining and doesn't seem to notice blessings? This is what we can easily become like if we don't make a point of thanking God and counting our blessings. I was eating lunch with someone recently and it was raining outside. It is the middle of summer here in NZ and very dry. So I commented happily, "It's good that's its raining." The gloomy answer I got took me by surprise "But only a little bit!" 

One day this week I took my children to a hospital appointment. In the waiting room a little girl shared some of her food with Lydia, our little girl. I was dismayed to see she only had three fingers on each of her hands. That night for the first time, we all thanked God for fingers! There are so many things we just take for granted.

2)Pray to God

Aswell as thanking God, you can tell him anything that bothers you. He wants to hear it. Nothing is too big or too small. Ask Him for help, wisdom and strength. Tell Him what you are feeling burdened about and who is on your mind. You will unburden yourself! If is helpful, you can write down your prayers. Then you can look back and see how God has answered. 

Is it a daily habit in your life to pray? Not just as a tradition, but as something that is necessary and lifechanging! It makes such a difference when you pray. When you pray for opportunities, you notice them when they come. When you pray for God's help, you are very aware of His help and His presence. When you pray for something specific and see an answer, it makes God feel so real and close.

3) Sing to God

It's actually a command to sing! There are many verses in the Bible that tell us to sing. You don't need to sing well to sing to God. Paul and Silas prayed and sang praises to God in the middle of the night and amazing things happened (Acts 16:25,26)! Apparently there are many physical benefits to singing–it's a natural antidepressant, it lowers stress levels, it improves your posture, it improves mental alertness, it helps with sleep and so on. I don't know for sure if all those things are true, but it makes sense that what God tells us to do is good for us!