Question 1

How can God use my sickness in a positive way?

Accepted Answer

Romans 5:3-4We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation.2 Corinthians 12:7-9I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud. Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.We never welcome sickness, pain, or weakness. But we rejoice in the fruit that often comes from these afflictions—patience, humility, reliance on God’s strength, and gratitude to God for what we do have.

Question 2

What is the greatest danger to my health?

Accepted Answer

Jeremiah 30:12-13, 17This is what the Lord says: “Your injury is incurable—a terrible wound. There is no one to help you or to bind up your injury. No medicine can heal you. . . . I will give you back your health and heal your wounds,” says the Lord. “For you are called an outcast—‘Jerusalem for whom no one cares.’”Romans 6:23The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.The wages of sin is death, but the great gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.Romans 8:26The Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words.Sin is a terminal disease, leading not merely to death, but eternal death. But God can heal and restore spiritual health through his gift of salvation and the work of the Holy Spirit.

Question 3

How can my attitude affect my health?

Accepted Answer

Proverbs 17:22A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person’s strength.That a positive, cheerful disposition has a positive impact on our health is both biblical wisdom and confirmed by science.2 Corinthians 12:5-10I will boast only about my weaknesses. If I wanted to boast, I would be no fool in doing so, because I would be telling the truth. But I won’t do it, because I don’t want anyone to give me credit beyond what they can see in my life or hear in my message, even though I have received such wonderful revelations from God. So to keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud. Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.When we are weak, God’s power and strength can be more easily seen and experienced in our lives. When we think we are self-sufficient and rely on our own strength, God will not exercise his greatest strength in us. So when we are afflicted with a health problem, we should let God show his great strength to us. His power is greatest in our weakness.

Question 4

What can I do to keep my soul in good health?

Accepted Answer

1 Timothy 4:8“Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come.”To keep our soul in good health, we need to exercise it spiritually through regular prayer, reading of God’s Word, worship, and more. Spiritual exercise is as purposeful and strenuous as physical exercise. But the benefits of spiritual fitness last for eternity, while the benefits of physical fitness last only as long as our bodies.

Question 5

What causes sickness?

Accepted Answer

Genesis 3:17-19And to the man he said, “Since you listened to your wife and ate from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat, the ground is cursed because of you. All your life you will struggle to scratch a living from it. It will grow thorns and thistles for you, though you will eat of its grains. By the sweat of your brow will you have food to eat until you return to the ground from which you were made. For you were made from dust, and to dust you will return.”Romans 5:12When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned.Sickness and death entered the world when Adam and Eve sinned. From that time on, every human being is born sinful and into a sinful, fallen world, subject to sickness and death.Romans 8:22-23We know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us.1 Corinthians 15:43Our bodies are buried in brokenness, but they will be raised in glory. They are buried in weakness, but they will be raised in strength.Our physical bodies are victim to physical ailments. Our souls are also victim to spiritual ailments. Both of these are a result of human sin. When Christ returns, not only will we be made perfect spiritually, but our bodies will be made new—eternal and free from death and sickness.

Question 6

How can I find rest in times of poor health?

Accepted Answer

Psalm 73:26My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever.Whether we have good health or poor health, we must rely on God for strength of spirit. He gives us the strength to hold on to our hope of eternal life where health problems will no longer exist.

Question 7

What is my responsibility toward those who are sick?

Accepted Answer

Galatians 4:13-14Even though my condition tempted you to reject me, you did not despise me or turn me away. No, you took me in and cared for me as though I were an angel from God or even Christ Jesus himself.Sickness in a friend or loved one may be unpleasant, but that is no reason to reject anyone. We can easily stay away from older family members when their health fails. But we shouldn’t miss the ministry opportunities sickness brings. Showing love and care to people in their time of need is a powerful witness to Christ’s compassion.

Health