Basic HTML Version
134
Medical Ministry
Enlisting the Willpower
In journeying I have met many who were really sufferers through
their imaginations. They lacked willpower to rise above and combat
disease of body and mind, and therefore they were held in suffering
bondage. A large share of this class of invalids is found among the
youth.
I sometimes meet with young women lying in bed sick. They
complain of headache. Their pulse may be firm, and they be full
[107]
in flesh; yet their sallow skins indicate that they are bilious. My
thoughts have been that, if I were in their condition, I should know
at once what course to pursue to obtain relief. Although I might
feel indisposed, I should not expect to recover while lying in bed.
I should bring willpower to my aid, and should leave my bed and
engage in active physical exercise. I should strictly observe regular
habits of rising early. I should eat sparingly, thus relieving my
system of unnecessary burden, and should encourage cheerfulness,
and give myself the benefits of proper exercise in the open air. I
should bathe frequently, and drink freely of pure, soft water. If this
course should be followed perseveringly, resisting the inclination to
do otherwise, it would work wonders in the recovery of health.
Deceptive Ailments
I feel sad for those who are not only deceived themselves in
thinking that they are sick, but who are kept deceived by their parents
and friends, who pet their ailments and relieve them from labor. If
these were so situated as to be compelled to labor, they would
scarcely notice difficulties which, while indolent, keep them in
bed. Physical exercise is a precious blessing for both mental and
physical ailments. Exercise, with cheerfulness, would in many cases
prove a most effective restorer to the complaining invalid. Useful
employment would bring into exercise the enfeebled muscles, and
would enliven the stagnant blood in the system, and would arouse
the torpid liver to perform its work. The circulation of the blood
would be equalized and the entire system invigorated to overcome
bad conditions.