THE EAGLE
(Part VI)
Eagles Longevity
Isaiah 40:28-31
28 Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the LORD, The Creator of the ends of the earth, neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable. 29 He gives power to the weak, And to those who have no might He increases strength. 30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall, 31 but those who wait on the LORD Shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.
· Eagles live 25 to 30 years…some close to 40
· They are healthy and vital most of their lives Psalm 103:3-5
1Bless the LORD, O my soul; And all that is within me, bless His holy name! 2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits: 3 Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases, 4 Who redeems your life from destruction, Who crowns you with loving-kindness and tender mercies, 5 Who satisfies your mouth with good things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
Soul (nê’ pes) – throat, neck, breath, living being, heart, life (This blessing comes from deep down on the inside)
Benefits (ge mul) – reward, recompense, reprisal
I. FORGIVER
A. Who forgives all your iniquities?
Iniquities (awōn) misdeed, sin, guilt caused by the sin, punishment, root that is twisted
1. Sin comes from our Adamic Nature
Romans 7:16-20
16 If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. 17 But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. 18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. 19 For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. 20 Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.
Romans 8:1-2
There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.
2. Sin tries to emerge from iniquity Psalm 51:5
5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me.
· Sin - Chattah, means to miss the mark.
· Iniquity - Awon, relates more to the inner character, twisted root. Why you missed the mark
· Transgression - Pesha, willful rebellion against the given standard.
II. HEALER
· Sin affects your wellbeing Psalm 51:7
7Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. 8 Make me hear joy and gladness that the bones you have broken may rejoice… 12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold
me by your generous Spirit.
· Sin weighs on you emotionally and mentally thereby affecting your health
· His Forgiveness is deep 1 John 1:9
9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us
our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
a. Deal with sin
b. Confess Sin (To God and to Others)
c. Don’t become comfortable with it
A. Who heals all your diseases?
1. It’s His Job Description Matthew 8:16-17
16 When evening had come, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed. And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick, 17 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: “He Himself took our infirmities And bore our sicknesses.”
Luke 4:18
18 “The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, because He has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed
2. Children’s Bread
Matthew 15:21-28
21 Then Jesus went out from there and departed to the region of Tyre and Sidon. 22 And behold, a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out to Him, saying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! My daughter is severely demon-possessed.” 23 But He answered her not a word. And His disciples came and urged Him, saying, “Send her away, for she cries out after us.” 24 But He answered and said, “I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25 Then she came and worshiped Him, saying, “Lord, help me!” 26 But He answered and said, “It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the little dogs.” 27 And she said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.”28 Then Jesus answered and said to her, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour.
a. We must press into it
b. Get radical about it
c. Demand it
d. Believe for it
III. REDEEMER
1. Who redeems your life from destruction?
go'el, refers to a person who rescues another from a form of bondage through outside help. The term is applied to situations ranging from physical harm to slavery, to debt.
· Trusting in his ability to rescue you from bad situations is healthy.
2 Corinthians 1:8-10
8 For we do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, of our trouble which came to us in Asia: that we were burdened beyond measure, above strength, so that we despaired even of life. 9 Yes, we had the sentence of death in ourselves that we should not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead, 10 who delivered us from so great a death, and does deliver us; in whom we trust that He will still deliver us
IV. LOVER
A. Who crowns you with loving-kindness and tender mercies?
· Chased” - “steadfast love”; “faithfulness”; “loyalty”;
“mercy”; “kindness
In 2010, researchers at
Duke University Medical School found that
babies with very affectionate and attentive mothers grow up to be happier, more resilient, and less anxious adults. The study involved approximately 500 people who were followed from when they were infants until they were in their 30s.
Then 30 years later, those same individuals were interviewed about their emotional health. The adults whose mothers showed “extravagant" or “caressing" affection were much less likely than the others to feel stressed and anxious.
Oxytocin is a chemical in the brain released during times when a person feels love and connection. It has been shown to help
parents bond with their children, adding a sense of trust and support between them. This bond most likely helps our brain produce and use oxytocin, causing a child to feel more positive emotions.
Next, a 2013
study from UCLA found that unconditional love and affection from a parent can make children emotionally happier and less anxious. This happens because their brain actually changes as a result of the affection.
Psalm 63:3
3 Because your loving-kindness is better than life, my lips shall praise you.
V. PROVIDER
A. Who satisfies your mouth with good things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s
· Good things – Pleasant, desirable, beneficial
· Eagles never eat Carrion…(road kill)
Answer Key: Nature; Healthy; Beneficial
7 TIPS TO GET HEALTHY AND LOOSE WEIGHT QUICKLY
TIP #1: DON’T DRINK YOUR CALORIES
Liquid calories, whether they come in the form of diet sodas, sports beverages, or fruit juices are the single biggest source of sugar in our diet, they are extremely addictive, and they simply shut down your metabolism. They cause you to eat more, it doesn’t take your body any energy to metabolize them which means your resting metabolic rate plummets, and they are filled with fructose which your liver turns into fat.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, found that if people drank water instead of sodas, they would consume 225 fewer calories a day (equivalent to about 1 soft drink). In a year that is 82,123 fewer calories. That amounts to a weight loss of 24 pounds a year just by switching to non-sugar sweetened drinks.
Want to lose weight quickly and keep it off for good? Stop drinking soda and never pick up another one.
TIP #2: ELIMINATE THE WHITE MENACES
After beverages, the second biggest source of sugar in our diet is what I call the “white menaces”: white flour, white rice, and white potatoes. From a metabolic standpoint these is little difference between them and table sugar. When you’re at the supermarket looking at the aisles of bread, pasta, cookies, and cakes, you should think, “This is ALL sugar,” and stay away! Even items that advertise themselves as “whole grain” often are not.
Eating too many refined carbohydrates causes your insulin levels to skyrocket and this wreaks havoc on your health and your waistline. Stabilizing your insulin and blood sugar levels may be the single most important thing you can do to minimize your risk of chronic illnesses
like diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, Alzheimer’s, cancer, and more. It’s also a key way to stay thin and fit for life. Avoid these bad carbs and you go along way toward achieving both of those goals.
TIP #3: REPLACE REFINED CARBS WITH WHOLE GRAINS AND VEGETABLES
For some of you, eliminating these two items may make it seem like there is nothing left to eat! That’s far from the truth. I’m not encouraging a starvation diet. I’m simply encouraging you to choose the foods your body is designed to thrive on. At the end of the day, it may be that the single most important foods you can eat are healthy carbs. That means, whole grains (brown rice, quinoa, millet, and others); veggies (anything green, red, yellow, or blue in your produce aisle is fair game); beans; nuts; and seeds.
For every serving of pasta and bread you push out, add a serving of spinach instead. Get rid of the bad, and put the good in its place. Accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative. You don’t have to starve. You just need to make different food choices. So fill half of your plate with healthy carbs at each meal.
TIP #4: FOCUS ON HEALTHY FATS
Fat has gotten a terrible reputation in the last 40 years. The low-fat diets that began to be popular in the 70’s are a big part of what has driven the epidemic of weight gain and chronic disease in this country. When the nation eliminated fat, it replaced it with refined carbs. This caused a host of problems. Fat increases satiety, it has no impact on insulin levels, and every cell in your body is made of it.
Low-fat diets cause you to be more hungry, they typically increase your level of refined carbohydrate and the concomitant insulin problems, and you deprive your cells of an essential nutrient. Most people don’t realize that if they eliminated all of the fat from their diets, they would die.
Essential fatty acids are called “essential” for a reason: You must have them to survive.
So eat fat. Focus on healthy fats like omega-3 fats in fish, nuts, and seeds; olive oil; and avocados. When you eat these kinds of fat, you actually burn more fat, reduce the amount of inflammation in your body, and give your cells the raw materials they need to construct healthy cell walls and enhance communication throughout your body.
TIP #5: GET ENOUGH PROTEIN
When fat was demonized, protein went out of fashion as well. This problem fits hand in glove with the difficulties outlined above regarding the reduction of fat in our diet. Your body is made of the protein you eat. All protein is made of special building blocks called amino acids. The only job your DNA has is to take the amino acids you get from your diet and string them together into the chains of protein that created literally every cell in your body.
So imagine what happens when you don’t get enough amino acids or you get the wrong kinds. Your body doesn’t have the raw material it needs to form your cells. This is devastation from the ground up.
These days your choices about purchasing protein are especially important. Protein is usually packaged with fat, and the quality of protein and fat you get is determined by the source from whence it comes. Factory raised and processed cattle have VERY different fat profiles from those that are grass finished. The same is true of chicken and pork. Farmed fish may have been fed corn (unbelievably!) which alters its fat content. Small, wild river fish, on the other hand, are packed with healthy fat and are free of mercury. So you need to be careful when making protein choices.
My recommendation: Buy the best protein your budget allows. Look for pastured chicken and pork, grass-fed cattle, and wild, sustainably caught fish. Focus on lean chicken and fish with a little of the others mixed in
for good measure. And never forget vegetarian sources of protein like beans, seeds, nuts, and tofu.
TIP #6: EXERCISE
Aside from eating breakfast, exercise is one of the few elements of a healthy lifestyle that consistently correlates with long term health and weight loss across all of the scientific literature. There are too many benefits of exercise to count. They include improved cardiovascular health, improved cognitive function, improved mood, and an improved waistline.
You should get 30–60 minutes of vigorous exercise at least 5 times as week. Make sure to incorporate both aerobic and strength training components into your regimen.
TIP #7: RELAX AND CONNECT
We live in a stressed out, isolated society. Our sense of separation and our chronic levels of stress are one of the most under recognized factors in our modern health problems. A study in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that even after controlling for behaviors and risk factors like low socioeconomic status, smoking, consumption of alcohol, junk food, obesity, and lack of exercise, higher rates of disease and death could not be just explained by these factors alone. ii
The key, they said, was not behavior but perception of one’s place in the world. The key findings that could account for the higher risk of disease and death were:
1. Lack of social relationships and social supports
2. Personality dispositions (thinking the glass is half empty) including a lost sense of mastery, optimism, control, and self-esteem, or heightened levels of anger and hostility
3. Chronic and acute stress in life and work including the stress of racism, classism, and other factors related to the inequitable distribution of power and resources
The answer is to reconnect, relax, and re-conceive your relationship with your world.
All of these tips can actually be wrapped up into three simpler steps:
1. Get rid of the sugar.
2. Eat whole, real, natural foods
3. Balance exercise and relaxation
Follow those steps and you go a long way toward lifelong health, happiness, and the trim waistline you’re looking for.
To your good health, Mark Hyman, MD
