Faithfulness in Following Principles of Health Reform
By L. V. Mann, M. D.
L. V. MANN, M. D.
ARE we living up to all the light we have received on the subject of health reform? We should thank the Heavenly Father for this phase of the message, and for the instruction he has given us regarding it. Says the servant of the Lord:—
"I am instructed to bear a message to all our people on the subject of health reform; for many have backslidden from their former loyalty to health reform principles."—Testimonies for the Church, Vol. IX, page 153.
"Seventh-day Adventists are handling momentous truths. More than forty years ago the Lord gave us special light on health reform, but how are we walking in that light? How many have refused to live in harmony with the counsels of God! As a people we should make advancement proportionate to the light received; . . . and yet there are among us well-instructed members of the church, and even ministers of the gospel, who have little respect for the light that God has given upon this subject."—Id., page 158.
Looking back over the history of our medical work, we find several reasons why some of our people are not faithful in health reform. First, we might mention the inconsistencies and extremes that were advocated. Articles of food necessary and common to the average household were withdrawn from the dietary. Many could not replace these articles with those recommended, and being conscientious in the matter, lived on an impoverished diet. This resulted in a lowering of the vitality. Families that had plenty of good milk, butter, and eggs rejected these articles from the diet list and provided themselves with foods more expensive and less adapted to the system. The body was not only made to suffer from the effects of a lack of good food, but had to endure the outrage imposed upon it in the use of articles not suited to the system. This caused many cases of confirmed dyspepsia, and some of these persons are dyspeptics still.
Years ago so much was said and written on how, when, and what should be put into the stomach that we learned to believe this organ to be the largest part of our anatomy. Many of us have run the gauntlet of the stomach tube. If you have escaped the ordeal, you may consider yourself fortunate. The point is that we have confused the light Heaven sent on the subject of health reform with what man has said.
The spirit of prophecy says on extremes in diet:—
"Some, in abstaining from milk, eggs, and butter, have failed to supply the system with proper nourishment, and as a consequence have become weak and unable to work. Thus health reform is brought into disrepute. The work that we have tried to build up solidly is confused with strange things that God has not required, and the energies of the church are crippled."—Id., page 162.
Any system that undermines the constitution of the worker, making him less efficient in the cause of Christ, is far from being health reform. It is health deform! There are some today who are putting in a miserable existence for which hard work, the climate, etc., receive the blame, but many times the cause is directly due to a false system of health reform.
Many, in beholding what disastrous results followed this radical teaching, became confused in the matter, and condemned the whole thing. Any good principle carried to extreme is liable to cause a reaction.
Is health reform any the less binding on our people because we have met these discouragements? As the great day of Christ's coming approaches, his church will need health reform principles the more. We can easily dispense with the radical ideas of men in health reform, but we cannot get along without the principles themselves.
"I have been shown that the principles that were given us in the early days of the message are as important and should be regarded just as conscientiously today as they were then."—Id., page 158.
We are looking forward to the time when man's home will be restored to him unmarred by sin, and he will live on the original diet given to him in the garden of Eden. In order for us to inherit our new home, we must make the preparation here. This is why God is holding the four winds. We must look upon health reform as a part of our preparation. Our habits of life, both physical and spiritual, must be such on our journey toward the promised land that they will harmonize with our surroundings when we reach the city of God.
One of the sins of the children of Israel in the wilderness was the longing after the flesh-pots of Egypt. They had lived in disobedience to the laws of life, and had been eating and drinking as they pleased so long that when they came to partake of the simple food of heaven, they complained bitterly. The result was that they never saw Canaan.
We are on our journey through the wilderness to the land of Canaan. God is bearing with us to make the necessary preparation. He has given us his Word and the spirit of prophecy to help us act wisely in the matter and avoid mistakes. Let us be sure that a lack of faithfulness in health reform will not turn the balances against us.
"God demands that the appetites be cleansed and that self-denial be practised in regard to those things which are not good. This is a work that will have to be done before his people can stand before him a perfected people."—Id., pages 153, 154.
