Faith and Physical Health

Throughout the pages of the Bible, we can see that God is our healer, and that He has the capability to bring healing to us not only spiritually, but physically and mentally as well. When we are sick James 5 instructs us to pray. Proverbs chapter 4 traces the relationship between the absorption of God's Word and its holistic effect:
20 My son, give attention to my words; Incline your ear to my sayings.
21 Do not let them depart from your eyes; Keep them in the midst of your heart;
22 For they are life to those who find them, And health to all their flesh.

1st Thessalonians 5 addresses the entirety of our "spirit, soul, and body." I think you can make the case that God's Word brings life to us - abundant life, and that a physical deficiency can sometimes be directly tied to a lack of devotion to God's Word. We can also recognize that if we are not engaging in healthy practices and taking good care of ourselves, then we run the risk of physical consequences. We can also face harm in mental and emotional areas if we do not prioritize our walk with God.

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In 1st Corinthians chapters 3 and 6, we are reminded that God dwells in our hearts, contained in a physical body, and we are encouraged to be careful how we treat our bodies. 1st Corinthians 3 states:
16 Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?

17 If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.

1st Corinthians 6 reminds us:
19 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?
20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's.

It's a sobering, but not irreversible trend that has been pointed out by a recent Pew Research article. The article noted that "The Center estimates that in 2020, about 64% of Americans, including children, were Christian. People who are religiously unaffiliated, sometimes called religious 'nones,' accounted for 30% of the U.S. population."  

The article pointed out the trend of "religious switching," and contended...

...If switching among young Americans continued at recent rates, Christians would decline as a share of the population by a few percentage points per decade, dipping below 50% by 2060. In 2070, 46% of Americans would identify as Christian, making Christianity a plurality – the most common religious identity – but no longer a majority. In this scenario, the share of “nones” would not climb above 41% by 2070.

That is a concern, but not a certainty, and illustrates that the Church definitely has some work to do. 

A research team has characterized the decline of religious practice as a health crisis. A ChristianHeadlines.com article says:

In 2016, Dr. Brian Grim, the president of the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation, and his daughter, Dr. Melissa Grim, a senior research fellow and project director at the foundation, published a study detailing that religion provides about $1.2 trillion per year to the socio-economic value of the American economy.

As reported by The Christian Post, they published a follow-up study in 2019 in the Journal of Religion and Health. The follow-up study found that the work of nearly 130,000 congregation-based substance abuse recovery support programs in the United States was valued at an estimated $316.6 billion.

“We find that these faith-based volunteer support groups contribute up to $316.6 billion in savings to the U.S. economy every year at no cost to taxpayers,” the researchers wrote in a post published on the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation website on Saturday.

The team admitted that "negative experiences with religion" have occurred, which could possibly have resulted in substance abuse, nevertheless, "...given that more than 84 percent of scientific studies show that faith is a positive factor in addiction prevention or recovery and a risk in less than 2 percent of the studies reviewed, we conclude that the value of faith-oriented approaches to substance abuse prevention and recovery is indisputable." They also cite that "religious youth are three times less likely to binge drink alcohol and are four times less likely to consume illegal drugs. Additionally, teens with substance use disorder (SUD) say that remaining connected to God was the top reason they remained sober post-rehab."

And, the Grims contend that, "...by extension, we also conclude that the decline in religious affiliation in the USA is not only a concern for religious organizations but constitutes a national health concern..."

I do believe that our faith practice, or lack of it, can impact our health - negative or positively. God is interested in the operation of our physical bodies, and He has given us wisdom to know how to maintain them.  He has also instructed us to pray when we are facing health maladies.  There are pursuits that will damage our health, so we should be careful to explore spiritually healthy pursuits.

The Bible tells us that our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit.  So, in essence, we are acting in faith when we make health choices.  Diet and exercise are two common areas that are promoted in order to address our physical health.  We can be certain to be careful what you we put into our bodies, knowing that we have been given stewardship over them.