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Hey, before we get started today, I want you to know about some changes that are on the horizon for the show. I'm making some changes so I can focus more on the Christian Healthy Lifestyle Community that is officially launching on May 8th, 2025. Starting next week on May 7th, this podcast is going to be audio only. I'll no longer be publishing a video version of the show on YouTube or my website. Now I'm still going to have the YouTube channel. It's at youtube.com.
But I'll be creating content that is specifically tailored for YouTube. There's going to be shorts and I'll be adding medium length videos in the five to 10 minute range that are really more appropriate for YouTube, more suitable for YouTube. The other change is the full length version of the show is only going to be available to members of the Christian Healthy Lifestyle community. The free public version of the show is
is still going to be available on all the podcast listening platforms, but it's going to be a shorter, more condensed version. So this episode is the last publicly available full length video version of the show. Starting next week on May 7th, the day before the official launch of the Christian Athlete Lifestyle Community. This show is going to be audio only and the free publicly available show that you're listening to right now will be a shorter
or condensed version of the podcast. If you'd like to learn more about joining the community, go to chlcommunity.com forward slash membership. There's still time to join at the founding member pricing, which is very affordable. We're going to have a live informational meeting one week before the launch on May 1st. You can get all the details at chlcommunity.com forward slash membership. Now this is an exciting time in the evolution of the podcast.
And the community is going to be a place where we can connect on a deeper level and you can accelerate your progress towards your health goals. So let's jump right into this week's topic, which is how our love for God impacts us, not only on the spiritual level, but on our mental emotional state and our physical vitality. Today, I want to talk about perhaps the most important thing we could discuss on a podcast about natural and holistic health.
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our love for God. In his book, Knowledge of the Holy, A.W. Tozer said, what comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us. I couldn't agree more. Our perception of God and who he is and what his intentions are toward us have everything to do with our spiritual strength, our mental, emotional fortitude, and our physical vitality. Here at Christian Healthy Lifestyle,
We want to age gracefully and live abundantly. Psalm 103 verses 2 and 5 says, Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget none of his benefits, who pardons all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases, who satisfies your years with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle. Healing all my diseases and having my years satisfied with good things and having my youth renewed sounds pretty attractive to me.
I hope it sounds attractive to you too. Let's talk about it.
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Welcome to the Christian Healthy Lifestyle Podcast where I help people cut through the noise and natural health so they can age gracefully and live abundantly. I'm your host, David Sandstrom, and this is episode number 182. Today, our focus is what I firmly believe is the cornerstone of everything when it comes to health, our love for God. Our relationship with our Creator profoundly shapes our perspective, governs our choices, and ultimately,
influences our health across every dimension of our being, spirit, mind and body. You know, I realized after listening back to this episode that I kind of had my pastor hat on here, but I want to say that what comes to mind when we think about God is crucial to our health and well-being. As you, the natural nation, know, it's my contention that we maximize our health potential by aligning our lives more fully with God's natural design for spirit, mind and body.
Now that requires a surrender to his way of doing things in every area of life. In order to trust God that much, we've got to get clear on what his primary nature is and what his intentions are toward us. We also need to focus on the love relationship that flows from that fundamental understanding of who God is. So heads up, there's a lot of Bible verses in this episode and I've really got my preacher hat on here.
But Matthew 6 33 says seek first the kingdom of God and all these things will be added to you In context that verse is referring to the essentials of life like food shelter and clothing But everything in life flows from that fundamental relationship we have with God and the principle remains putting God first in our pursuit of health and wellness is Fundamental to a natural and holistic approach to health. So let's jump right into this discussion
Now, I want to be sensitive here. I recognize that this subject of our love for God can be sensitive for some people. Life's experiences can sometimes leave us with a distorted view of who God is and what his intentions are towards us. Perhaps some of us have had a challenging relationship with our earthly fathers, which can unfortunately color our perception of God as our heavenly father.
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Others may be raised with a concept of God that is distant or severe or primarily concerned with rules and the enforcement of those rules with punishment. Therefore, I want to emphasize from the outset, God's essential nature is love. As the Apostle John unequivocally states, God is love, 1 John 4.8. This love isn't a transient emotion.
It's the very essence of who he is. And this love is directed toward us with an intensity and faithfulness that surpasses our ability to comprehend. Now, to cultivate a genuine and transformative love for God, we've got to first dismantle the misconceptions that often create barriers and hinder us from experiencing the fullness of his love. And consequently,
abundant life he desires for us. So misconception number one is the distant and detached God. A prevalent misconception is that God in his infinite power and grandeur is somehow remote, far away, and uninvolved in the minuté of our daily lives. That thinking goes something like this. God is the sovereign creator of the universe. He orchestrates galaxies and
commands cosmic forces, surely he doesn't have the time or the inclination to be concerned with my seemingly insignificant life, my everyday struggles, my personal challenges. This notion stands in stark contrast to the portrait of God painted throughout the scriptures. The Bible consistently reveals a God who is intimately equated with every detail of our existence.
Psalm 139, which I consider to be a masterpiece of Hebrew poetry, illustrates that truth. Jesus, in his earthly ministry, further emphasized God's personal involvement.
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He taught that God knows the very number of hairs on our heads, Matthew 10.30, and that He collects our tears in a bottle, Psalm 56.8. These aren't mere poetic expressions. They're powerful images that convey the depth of God's attentiveness and care. He's not a distant observer passively watching from afar.
He's a very present help in trouble, Psalm 46.1, actively engaged in the lives of his children. Misconception number two, the vengeful and punitive God. Another deeply damaging misconception portrays God as an angry, wrathful, and punitive figure, eagerly waiting for us to trip up so he can unleash his divine wrath. This paints a picture of God who is
more akin to a cosmic tyrant than a loving and compassionate father. While it's undeniably true that God is just and our actions have consequences, Galatians 6-7, it's crucial to understand that His overarching desire is for our redemption and our restoration, not our destruction. His discipline, when necessary, is an expression of His love.
akin to a parent correcting a beloved child with the ultimate goal of guiding us back to the path of righteousness and wholeness. Hebrews 12, 6 says, for the Lord disciplines the one he loves and chastises every son whom he receives. There's two false beliefs that lead to this perception that God is just waiting for us to trip up so we can punish us. The first false belief is God's law functions like human law.
Human law operates like this. The state may post a speed limit on a road, and then they enforce punishment for those who break the speed limit in the form of a fine. God's law doesn't operate that way. God's law is part of His created order. It's simply the way things are. God is eternal. He's the Alpha and the Omega. He has no beginning and no end. And just as if a carpenter built a table,
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When he was finished, his fingerprints would be all over that table. Well, when God finished making creation, he left his fingerprints all over it for us to discover. He has physical laws such as the law gravity or inertia or the law of the conservation of energy. And just like God, those laws don't change. And God also has moral laws and laws for health. An example of a moral law would be
Adultery is wrong, but adultery is not wrong because the Bible says it's wrong The Bible declares adultery is wrong because it is wrong The same is true with God's laws for health the law of physical exertion use it or lose it the laws of respiration and rest if We ignore those laws. It's to our peril That's why I often say in the podcast we maximize our health potential by aligning our lives more fully
with God's natural design for spirit, mind, and body. When we embrace lifestyle habits that are in harmony with God's design for spirit, mind, and body, we give ourselves the best chance to excel and thrive in all three areas of the human condition, spirit, mind, and body. The second false belief that leads to the perception that God is an angry tyrant is a misunderstanding of what the wrath of God is. Again,
God is not a human being. He doesn't get angry the way we do. He doesn't get angry and act out on that anger in a way that he's gonna regret later, like we all do. That's not the way God works. God's fundamental nature is love. And he will never act contrary to his core character trait, which is love. When the Bible refers to the wrath of God, what it means is,
God is honoring our individual liberty and allowing us to make our own choices. And sometimes those choices have undesirable outcomes. God is simply saying, you can trust me, do as I say. But if you insist on doing things your way, I'm telling you, you're not going to like it, but you're free to choose. We see this concept really quite clearly displayed in Romans chapter one.
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In Romans 1 18, we see this, for the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. It's just like it says in Galatians 6 7, do not be deceived. God is not mocked for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. God forgives our sins past, present and future, but he doesn't spare us from the
consequences of our sins. God honors our individual liberty and our free will and hands us over to suffer the consequences of our poor choices. Why does he do that? Because he's more interested in our spiritual growth than he is our physical comfort. Now back in Romans 1, verses 22 to 26, we see this.
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in the lust of their hearts to impurity. And then in verse 25 and 26, for they exchanged the truth of God for a lie. For this reason, God gave them over to degrading passions. Romans one doesn't say God got angry and took out his anger on his children. Quite the contrary. When God sees us making poor choices, just as any loving parent would feel, it breaks his heart. I had
I had an issue with one of my daughters. I have two 16 year old daughters, twins in high school right now. They just started driving and like most teens, they tend to cut their schedule a little tight and they're rushing out of the house in the morning. And they've got a pattern, one of them especially, had a pattern of forgetting things that she's going to need that day at school. And I would get a text message sometime during the day and say, Hey dad, I forgot my homework assignment. Can you bring it in? Hey dad, I forgot my lunch today. Can you bring it into me?
Dad, I forgot my cleats for practice after school. Can you bring them over to me?" And I kept telling her, look, you've got to take a little more responsibility here. And if you have to bring something to school, you've got to follow through on that commitment. So one time she called me and said, hey, dad, I need my homework assignment. And this was not too long ago. And I said, you know what? I'm not going to bring it today. And I allowed her to suffer the consequences of not turning in that assignment on time. And she got a zero.
It didn't bring me any joy or satisfaction to see your good as zero, broke my heart. But she had to suffer that consequence in order to learn that lesson. And by the way, she hasn't forgotten anything since then. So this concept does work. Now, the Bible is overflowing with accounts of God's mercy, His compassion, and His willingness to forgive. So God is always willing to forgive
and embrace us into his loving arms. Consider the parable of the prodigal son in Luke chapter 15. The prodigal son, after squandering his inheritance on loose living, was welcomed home with open arms by his loving father. That picture is a picture of God the Father. Reflect on Jesus' words from the cross in Luke 23, 34. Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. These examples
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among countless others reveal the true heart of God, a heart of love, grace, and a relentless pursuit of reconciliation and restored relationship with us. The misconception number three is some people see God as the transactional God. A subtle but pervasive misconception is that our relationship with God is essentially a transaction.
If I perform certain actions or adhere to specific rules, then God is obligated to bless me in predetermined ways. That's name it and claim it. And that's trying to paint God into a corner and make him perform for us like a circus animal. But we should be careful about approaching obedience as a means to manipulate God, attempting to control his actions and secure some desired outcome for our selfish needs.
While it is true that the Bible speaks of blessings being attached to obedience, just read Deuteronomy 28, it's all full of promises of blessings if we obey, but our primary motivation should always be love, gratitude, and a genuine desire to please God, not a self-serving attempt to control Him. It's all backwards. God is not a cosmic vending machine where we deposit good deeds and
withdraw blessings on demand, he desires an authentic, heartfelt connection with us rooted in mutual love and respect. What is the truth about God's love? It's imperative that we anchor ourselves in the unwavering reality of His character, as revealed in the scriptures. As I said earlier, God's love is not transient, fleeting, or contingent upon our performance. As the prophet Jeremiah declared,
I have loved you with an everlasting love. Therefore I have drawn you with loving kindness. That's Jeremiah 31.3. Nothing we do can increase his love for us and nothing we do can diminish it. His love is a constant unwavering flame that burns eternally. Second Timothy 2.13 says, if we are faithless, he remains faithful for he cannot deny himself.
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Even when we are faithless, God remains faithful. We can always rely on his relentless love. How then can we express our love for God in a way that's pleasing to him and that deepens our connection with him? The most authentic and meaningful response to God's love is a life that is progressively transformed by it. This involves
continuous process of being conformed to the image of Christ, allowing His love to permeate every facet of our being. As the apostle Paul exhorts us, do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Romans 12.2. That transformation should affect every dimension of our lives, our thought patterns, our attitudes and dispositions, our actions and behaviors, and our relationship with others.
It entails putting off our old self, our old sinful nature, and putting on the new self created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness, Ephesians 4, 22-24. It's a lifelong journey of becoming more like Jesus, reflecting his love, grace, and truth to the world around us. Our obedience should flow from a grateful heart. Obedience is an indispensable expression
of our love for God. Jesus himself declared, if you love me, you will keep my commandments, John 14, 15. However, it's crucial to distinguish between the two types of obedience, one that stems from a sense of duty or fear of punishment, and another that flows from a heart of love and gratitude. The latter is the kind of obedience that truly honors God and deepens our relationship with him.
Think of it in the context of human relationships. When you genuinely love someone, you want to please them. You want to honor their wishes and preferences. It's not a burden, but a delight. We don't have to serve others. We get to serve them. The same principle applies with our relationship with God. Our obedience becomes an overflow of our love in a tangible way of demonstrating to Him
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that we value His guidance and cherish His presence in our lives. Like any meaningful relationship, our relationship with God thrives on the investment of quality time and intentional connection. That involves several key practices. Number one, Bible study. The Bible is not merely a collection of ancient texts. It's a living and active book that speaks to our hearts
and transforms our lives. Number two, worship. Expressing our adoration, reverence, and gratitude to God, both in the context of private devotion and corporate gatherings with fellow believers, it's all worship. Worship is not a religious ritual, but a celebration of God's worthiness, our response to His majesty and glory.
Number three, prayer. Engaging in heartfelt communication with God, sharing our innermost thoughts, desires, and concerns with him, and attentively listening to his still small voice. Prayer is not a monologue, but a dialogue of a sacred space where we encounter the living God. Number four, meditation. Reflecting
deeply on God's Word and allowing His truths to penetrate our hearts and minds and contemplating His attributes and His works. Meditation is not emptying our minds, as some would promote, but filling them with God's thoughts, dwelling on His promises, and aligning our perspective with His. A vital aspect of loving God is trusting Him implicitly.
even when circumstances are challenging and his ways seem perplexing. Proverbs 3, 5 and 6, I often quote this verse, but it counsels us. Surrender is the practical outworking of trust. It's releasing our grip
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on the need to control every aspect of our lives and yielding to God's sovereign leadership. A loving relationship with God is not a matter of mere duty or obligation. It's the gateway to experiencing the abundant and fulfilling life that he longs for us to have. John 10. There are profound and multifaceted benefits that flow from aligning our lives with his design, walking in his ways,
and abiding in His love. First and foremost, those benefits begin with spiritual well-being. We have peace available to us, peace that surpasses understanding. You will keep Him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you because He trusts in you. Isaiah 26.3 Overflowing joy. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.
John 15, 11. When we're walking with God, we can know that we're created with a divine purpose and that our lives have significance within God's grand plan. Strength to endure. God says that he'll empower us to overcome challenges and persevere through trials. can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Philippians 4, 13. Another benefit from walking with God
is mental and emotional well-being. We can experience freedom from fear and anxiety. For God has given us a spirit not of fear, but of power and love and a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1 7. When we're walking intimately with God, we can also have abundant hope. May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing so that by the power of the Holy Spirit, you may abound in hope.
That's Romans 15, 13. We can also experience healing for the brokenhearted. God can heal our deepest wounds, mend our broken hearts, and bind up our emotional scars. He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. Psalm 147, 3. We also experience renewal of the mind. As we fix our thoughts on God and His truth, our minds are transformed
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leading to healthier thought patterns, greater clarity, and increased emotional stability. And then finally, physical well-being. Do not be wise in your own eyes. Fear the Lord and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your body and refreshment to your bones. That's Proverbs 3, 7, and 8. Again, physical well-being is not a guarantee. God is in control, but we have a role.
I love this passage right here, Proverbs chapter four, verses 20 through 22. My son, give attention to my words, incline your ear to my sayings. Do not let them depart from your sight. Keep them in the midst of your heart for they are life to those who find them and health to all their body. Now, do you see the if then statement there? If we don't give attention to his words and we don't incline our ears to his sayings,
then we shouldn't expect health and body. Galatians 6, 7 is true. Whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. It still applies. God has established principles and laws that govern physical health. So let me ask you a question. Is there plenty of fruit that comes from a genuine loving relationship with God? If your answer is yes, do you think a little more love, joy, peace,
Emotional healing, a whole heart and a sound mind would be health promoting on a physical level? Of course it would. We all know that it is. Why more people haven't connected the dots and made the connection between a love relationship with God and our physical vitality, I just can't figure out. But the point is this. If we've surrendered our hearts and minds to Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, and we trust Him enough to make Him
not only our savior, but Lord of every area of our lives. And we practice the kind of things I mentioned in this episode to deepen our connection with him. It's health promoting at all three levels of the human condition, spirit, mind, and body.
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And that pretty much sums up the mission of the new Christian Healthy Lifestyle Community I'm starting. If this message is resonating with you, you're going to love it inside the community. In the community, we're going to be surrounded by a group of like-minded believers who are pursuing aging gracefully and living abundantly through vitality in spirit, mind, and body. If you sign up for the wait list now, you'll get immediate access to my Opt Out of the Medical Matrix mini course. I think you'll enjoy watching it, and you'll get a taste
of what the content inside the membership is going to look like. Go to my website, chlpodcast.com forward slash membership. Sign up right now while still top of mind. For those on the wait list, I'll be in touch with details about the launch and you'll also have a chance to attend my first live event, which will be on May 1st at 8 p.m. Eastern. Everyone on the wait list will get the Google Meet Join link. The wait list is only going to be open for another week. After that, the wait list closes.
And the only way to get involved with the community is to sign up for a monthly or an annual membership. I look forward to hearing from you. That's it for now. Thank you for listening. I appreciate you. Go out there and live abundantly. I'll talk with you next time. Be blessed.
