Health: More than Fruits and Vegetables?

Forget about your low fat, no sugar diets and calorie restricting, Miss Lamoreaux, the health teacher for ICS this year, has a new perspective on what health should REALLY be about. She shows us how living a healthy life is so much more than just eating your fruits and vegetables (although, yes, they are important too!). Her lessons come from the ultimate textbook of all: The Bible. She knows what it’s like for us teenagers these days, being surrounded by the negative influences of pop culture and all the things that go along with it. No one really has it figured all out yet. But, after pondering it for a long time, and with God challenging her to incorporate the Bible into daily life, She says, “As a teacher, I’m excited to help students form a solid foundation on how to live from the very beginning, and save them the trouble of one day trying to rebuild & relearn portions like myself.”

For a woman such as herself, teaching health is a dream: “Anyone who knows me knows how much I love any class that allows me to have theological discussions on a regular basis (and it fits with the topic and curriculum this time!!)…and I’m kind of excited about weaving in a whole section on cooking and nutrition to indulge one of my favorite hobbies of revamping recipes to be more nutritious (and delicious!)” She keeps her students engaged and involved with lively discussions about what it means to be healthy. From the experiences she has had in the past, Miss Lamoreaux helps them to really think about who they are in a positive light. ” I don’t care how smart, pretty, talented, beautiful, graceful, you are…its still not WHO you are, and you are going to struggle until you acknowledge and live from the identity that you are created by the God of the universe, and that this (and ONLY this) is what you gives you infinite value. “

She tells us that health, despite popular belief is defined “not by the cover of a magazine, the number on a scale, or the amount of weight you can bench press.” Well then, you might say, what is it about? What should we do to be healthy? She shares the secret to health with us:

“Be mindful about who and what you listen to, the things you choose to make your life about, the ways you choose to live, and the so-called wisdom you choose to follow.  Be watchful and on guard about life, we love to think that things are neutral, that we can just go through life accidentally and have it all work out for the best, that we can add Jesus casually and occasionally to areas of our life, like an accessory.  But, that’s a recipe for disaster and brokenness.  Jesus wants it all, and while it’s not easy, He has promised that you will only fully live when you surrender it to him.”

I think we can all agree that this seems like a pretty decent way to sum up how we should live life in order to be healthy in all areas. I hope you are all signed up for health this year, to see what other inspiring and insightful things she has to say! She left us with her favorite quote from the bible (although she said it’s a, “Miss Lamoreaux paraphrase!”). It’s said by Peter, in the midst of confusion about the future. “‘You have the words of Life, Lord, where else can we go?”