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The Retirement Years
The love which Christ diffuses through the whole being is a vi-
talizing power. Every vital part—the brain, the heart, the nerves—it
touches with healing. By it the highest energies of the being are roused
to activity. It frees the soul from the guilt and sorrow, the anxiety and
care, that crush the life forces. With it come serenity and composure.
It implants in the soul, joy that nothing earthly can destroy—joy in the
Holy Spirit—health-giving, life-giving, joy.
Our Saviour’s words, “Come unto Me,...and I will give you rest”
(
Matthew 11:28
), are a prescription for the healing of physical, mental,
and spiritual ills. Though men have brought suffering upon themselves
by their own wrongdoing, He regards them with pity. In Him they may
find help. He will do great things for those who trust in Him.—
The
Ministry of Healing, 115
.
[132]
Jesus was the fountain of healing mercy for the world; and through
all those secluded years at Nazareth, His life flowed out in currents
of sympathy and tenderness. The aged, the sorrowing, and the sin-
burdened, the children at play in their innocent joy, the little creatures
of the groves, the patient beasts of burden—all were happier for His
presence.—
The Desire of Ages, 74
.
The Importance of Exercise
Inactivity is the greatest curse that could come upon most invalids.
Light employment in useful labor, while it does not tax mind or body,
has a happy influence upon both. It strengthens the muscles, improves
the circulation, and gives the invalid the satisfaction of knowing that
he is not wholly useless in this busy world. He may be able to do
but little at first, but he will soon find his strength increasing, and the
amount of work done can be increased accordingly.
Exercise aids the dyspeptic by giving the digestive organs a healthy
tone. To engage in severe study or violent physical exercise immedi-
ately after eating, hinders the work of digestion; but a short walk after
a meal, with the head erect and the shoulders back, is a great benefit.
Notwithstanding all that is said and written concerning its impor-
tance, there are still many who neglect physical exercise. Some grow
corpulent because the system is clogged; others become thin and fee-
ble because their vital powers are exhausted in disposing of an excess