Forget not what it says in the Bible.
Do you not find Old Testament books like Wisdom, Proverbs, or Sirach filled with little gems of great (even health) advice?
Take Sirach as it pertains to food, sleep, and money.
Insomnia? “Wakefulness over wealth wastes away the flesh,” says Chapter 31, “and anxiety over it drives away sleep.+
“Wakeful anxiety banishes slumber; more than a serious illness, it disturbs repose.”
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Too much focus on money (the real plague of our era)?
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“The rich labor to pile up wealth, and if they rest, it is to enjoy pleasure. The poor labor for a meager living, and if they ever rest, they become needy.”
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A key sentence: “The lover of gold will not be free from sin; whoever pursues money will be led astray by it.”
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“Many have come to ruin for the sake of gold, yet destruction lay before their very eyes; it is a stumbling block for fools; any simpleton will be ensnared by it.”
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That’s not to condemn those who have earned a lot of it—just those who hoard and have placed the accumulation of money as their primary motivation. Modesty is the rule (and so critical in this time when the dollar sign shouts in neon all around us).
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“Remember that the greedy eye is evil.
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“Who has been tested by gold and been found perfect?” says Sirach. “Let it be for him his glory; Who could have sinned but did not, and could have done evil but did not? So his good fortune is secure, and the assembly will recount his praises.”
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Table etiquette?
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“Are you seated at the table of the great?” says this same chapter. “Bring to it no greedy gullet, nor say, “How much food there is here!”
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“Eat, like anyone else, what is set before you, but do not eat greedily, lest you be despised. Be the first to stop, as befits good manners; and do not gorge yourself, lest you give offense. If there are many with you at table, do not be the first to stretch out your hand. Does not a little suffice for a well-bred person?”
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It seems these days we all have trouble moderating what we eat. But if a person does: “When he lies down, he does not wheeze. Moderate eating ensures sound slumber and a clear mind on rising the next day. The distress of sleeplessness and of nausea and colic are with the glutton!”
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Okay, back to insomnia. One could add heartburn, shortness of breath, and, for that matter, arrhythmia.
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“Listen to me, my child, and do not scorn me; later you will find my advice good. In whatever you do, be moderate, and no sickness will befall you. People bless one who is generous with food, and this testimony to his goodness is lasting.”
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Meanwhile:
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“Let not wine be the proof of your strength, for wine has been the ruin of many. As the furnace tests the work of the smith, so does wine the hearts of the insolent.
Wine is very life to anyone, if taken in moderation.”
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[resources: The God of Healing]
