Surina Ann Jordan - The Seven Disciplines of Wellness: The Spiritual Connection to Good Health

Copyright Surina Ann Jordan, 2013.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any otherexcept for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the author.

Interior book design, cover design, layout, graphics, and typesetting by Melissa Cox. Edits by Kassel Coover and Melissa Cox.

This book does not offer medical advice, prescriptions, or cures, but does provide health information for consideration. The author or publisher assumes no responsibility for its use and highly recommends that you follow the direction of your health practitioner.

Any website addresses and telephone numbers printed in this book are offered as resources. They are not intended in any way to be or imply an endorsement by the author, nor does the author vouch for the content of these sites and numbers for the life of this book. While the author has made every effort to provide accurate telephone numbers and Internet addresses at the time of publication, the author does not assume responsibility for any errors, or for changes that occur after publication. The author does not have any control over and does not assume responsibility for third-party websites or their content.

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are taken from THE MESSAGE (MSG). Copyright 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group. Scripture quotations marked KJV are taken from the King James Version of the Bible. Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the New International Version of the Bible. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by the International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation. Copyright 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked NKJV taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked AMP are taken from the Amplified Bible. Copyright 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

ISBN: 9781483519692

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This book is dedicated to the great I Am,
the Source of my existence.

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Foreword

Surina Ann Jordans The Seven Disciplines of Wellness is a comprehensive tour de force through the world of wellness, balanced in its survey of the social, spiritual, emotional, and physical barriers to an individuals achievement of wellness. Surina lays the foundation by introducing her readers to a concept of wellness as unbroken completeness of the three components of man: body, mind, and spirit. Each of the components of this trinity of man requires attention when moving away from what she calls the diseased culture to a lifestyle of wellness. At the core of her discourse is the proclamation that it is necessary for anyone on the quest to completeness to recognize God as the source of life from which all else flows. Like Adam, possession of free will enables us to choose to break free from a culture wrought with impediments to health, such as processed foods, targeted marketing of unhealthy products, and busy lives reflecting poor stewardship of our time and resources when it comes to our own wellness. The choice to place God as priority in all that we do is the authors cry throughout The Seven Disciplines of Wellness.

Her approach to achieving wellness is both spiritual and cerebral without losing sight of the practical applications of the concepts she presents. The reader will become empowered to incorporate life-changing, sustainable practices which will permeate every aspect of her life. The reader will learn to apply the disciplines of pursuing primary care, maintaining good communication, being intentional about life (living on purpose), using common sense, establishing a sacred place to live, and moving (or exercising), in addition to consuming healthy foods.

This books strengths lie in both its depth of Scripture and its scientific citations to support the principles offered. The authors own lifestyle is a superb example of the genuine embodiment of the Seven Disciplines. I have been fortunate to receive advice from Surina on the proper use of vitamins and herbal remedies while traveling together on the missionary field in Lesotho, South Africa. Her insight and passion about nutrition in her community and globally are refreshing and stem from a life completely immersed in holistic living.

Surinas charge to readers to consider the sacredness of their living spaces when configuring a wellness-supportive home environment is a special jewel, among many, in this insightful book. As myself a physician in the field of Internal Medicine and a minister of the faith, I believe Surina has successfully consummated the relationship between science and spirituality with this book. People of faith will, of course, connect readily to the concepts presented herein, while others will be drawn by the philosophical and scientific information presented. The common sense and wellness thought points in each section, and the tables covering a myriad of wellness lifestyle concepts, are great references that make this a resource to be utilized long after ones initial reading.

Cozzette Lyons-Jones, M.D.

Los Angeles, CA

Introduction

I have been a wellness teacher, practitioner, and counselor in Christian communities across the United States for 20 years. Within that time, I have noticed that when it comes to health and wellness for Christians today, the most significant problem is that they have not made the connection between their relationship with Christ and their health. Wellness has a spiritual underpinning. When the children of God understand this, they gain the motivation needed to change and become healthier. Being healthy becomes a part of good stewardship, and good stewardship requires discipline.

Individuals who want to live healthier lives, prevent disease, strengthen their walk with God, and help family and friends become or remain healthy should read this book. Reading this book simplifies how to improve your health by removing the noise of the health and wellness industries and gives you a clear focus of health and wellness on Gods terms.

I believe that a person cannot experience whole health without a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. On our own, we can never be well. I want to help synthesize all the health information available. I have created a path with seven easy-to-remember disciplines for becoming healthier.

These disciplines are designed to educate you consciously. However, the effectiveness of these disciplines will plant seeds of change that will hopefully resonate at the subconscious level, taking root within your value system and providing the motivation to change behavior in your daily struggle to be well. For the purposes of this book, I will use the terms health, well, and wellness interchangeably. These terms not only mean the absence of disease, but they also refer to an overall sense of mental, spiritual and physical well-being.