I wanted to send just the right prayerful thought of heart to a godparent. I didn't want to believe the worst could come to pass.
In my own daily battle for health, I had had many trying times, including days when it seemed as if all well-being would fail. I had felt sick unto death at times, but always fought back by taking God at His word, knowing He knew what was needed before I could even ask.
I fought back by being thankful in all circumstances, eating as needed. Any fasting was limited to keeping away, for years, from pizza (which I like very much) and some other less healthy choices.
I trusted God for the creditable health information I was finding. And, true to my findings, whole-grain oatmeal and baked or boiled chicken became two of my superfoods. Over the past six months, milk also has become a go-to.
I also was thankful to read and see medical breakthroughs were dramatically decreasing cancer morbidity. I trusted that everything ultimately is in Heaven's hands.
And if ever I was feeling especially ill, I was thankful for high-protein options at low costs.
Complete proteins from whole foods, are just as vital in the fight to maintain health, as essential minerals like iron are. And anytime I felt worse than weak, as if a virus was taking hold, or even as if my mind and physical balance were leaving me, I had baked chicken with other healing things to eat, and felt much better within hours.
An article from Harvard's School of Public Health admits, "Animal studies have found that deficiencies in zinc, selenium, iron, copper, folic acid, and vitamins A, B6, C, D, and E can alter immune responses." Yet the Harvard school repeatedly says, "It is unlikely that individual foods offer special protection."
Harvard isn't one of my favorite places to read health information. Their take on living seems to give up too easily. In holding to the idea that there is no such thing as superfoods, institutes like Harvard deny every scientifically faithful study that shows things like oatmeal lowering and keeping blood sugar stable, even to the point of bringing a patient out of intensive care; things like grapefruit, including bottled grapefruit juice, reducing not only inflammation and gut infection but also the size of tumors (though no cure for tumors); and, yes, the selenium, protein, and other help we get from baked or boiled chicken as supports for strong immune responses and decreased respiratory inflammation.
There also is denial, in Harvard's strong assertion, that certain fruits, like raspberries, can help lower cancer risks when eaten routinely as part of a balanced diet, and that some foods have been proven to help fight in active cancer battles.
As a matter of Christian faith, no, we don't put our faith in food. But we certainly thank the one who provides.
I thank Him for all things He makes possible, if we only trust that He is leading the way.
I thank Heaven I've not only read about why high protein when there's sickness, but have experienced high-protein as more than a health gimmick. And I know the benefits of high concentrations of complete proteins and vital vitamins and minerals are one advantage of eating foods like chicken whole, instead of eating processed cold-cuts or nuggets, which taste good only because of sodium (including cancer-causing preservatives), but are almost non-nutritional except for small amounts of protein.
There is a way to bless our faith in receiving daily sustenance. And though our knowledge will pass away from earth one day, we can thank Heaven for those things we have learned for a time such as this.
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