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The familiar phrase “Bless your heart” has taken on a whole new meaning for Pamela Christian. One morning at age 47, Pamela went to play tennis with three other ladies. She arrived with a feeling of indigestion and chalked it up to the cantaloupe she’d been eating. During the warm-up, she was hitting the ball in every direction except where it was supposed to go. Embarrassed and unusually short of breath, she decided to rest and then go home. Before she could get to her car, she threw up and couldn’t muster the strength to walk. Her breathing was shallow, and as she lay on the sidewalk, her tennis partners called 911.
When the paramedics arrived, they immediately administered lifesaving procedures because Pamela was experiencing sudden cardiac arrest. Her heart had abruptly stopped. The paramedics shocked her with a defibrillator and put an oxygen mask on her face, and her heart began beating again.
At the hospital, the doctors could not figure out why Pamela suffered cardiac arrest. Weight wasn’t a problem; she didn’t smoke or have a history of heart disease in her family. There wasn’t an electrical problem or an obstruction in the arteries around her heart. After surviving her dramatic and unexpected cardiac arrest (95 percent of those who suffer sudden cardiac arrest don’t survive), Pamela founded a ministry called “Bless Your Heart” (www.blessyourheartcampaign.com) to increase awareness among women about heart disease. With great passion, she urges women to examine their lifestyle and make the necessary changes to reduce their risk.6
Here are a few questions to quickly assess your heart health:
• Do you eat a well-balanced, healthy diet?
• Do you exercise regularly?
• Do you smoke or use recreational drugs?
• Are your blood pressure, weight, and diabetes (if applicable) under control?
• Do you manage depression effectively?
Feel convicted in any of these areas? Here are two simple things you can do today to radically improve your heart health.
Go Mediterranean: Eat olive oil, leafy greens, whole grains, nuts, fruit, fish, tomatoes, salmon, and other foods with omega-3s.
Go Active: Exercise at least 10 minutes a day and aim for 30 minutes daily.
According to the American Heart Association, a complete physical fitness program should include activities that promote endurance, strength, and flexibility.7 To build endurance, do aerobic activities such as brisk walking, running, cycling, or swimming. To build strength, try weight lifting. You can lift weights at the gym or you can buy a set of 5-, 10-, and 15-pound dumbbells to use at home. To improve flexibility, do stretching and movements that put each part of the body through its full range of motion.
What form of exercise has the lowest dropout rate? If you guessed walking, you’re right. Walking is free, easy, and convenient. No special equipment is necessary, though it’s advisable to invest in a good pair of walking shoes. Whether you’re 45 or 65, you can walk year-round, though in some climates you may want to walk indoors, perhaps at an indoor shopping mall, during winter months. Walking is low impact so your risk of injury to bones and joints is minimal.
Your overall fitness goal is a body mass index (BMI) of 18.5–24.9. BMI is a measure of body fat based on height and weight. Just search for “BMI calculator” on the Internet and input your height and weight to discover your personal BMI.
Another way to easily assess your cardiovascular health is by taking your resting heart rate. Take your pulse at the thumb side of your wrist after sitting calmly for at least five minutes or when you wake up in the morning. Count the beats for ten seconds, then multiply that number by six to determine how many beats per minute. Your resting pulse should be no higher than eighty beats per minute. If your resting pulse is high, your heart needs some extra TLC. Talk to your doctor about improving your diet and adding cardiovascular exercise. Because the heart is a muscle, exercise such as running or cycling will make it stronger.
To look and feel younger, not only should your heart be strong physically, it must be strong spiritually. Are you smitten with Jesus Christ? Are you in love with your Savior? I remember falling in love with my husband, James. Whenever he came into the room, my heart started beating wildly and butterflies swirled in my stomach. Throughout our courtship and up to today, my heart was and is completely his.
Does this describe your relationship with Jesus Christ? Do you love Him tenderly, with passion and devotion? Deuteronomy 6:5 tells us to “Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.”
Elizabeth George in her book, A Woman After God’s Own Heart, writes, “Our heart for God should be like a boiling pot. Our heart should be characterized by God-given and intense emotion and passion for our Lord. After all, when a teakettle is boiling on your stove, you know it!”8
If you need some help rekindling the flame between you and God, why not write Him a love letter? Write out the characteristics you appreciate about God, thank Him for specific blessings, and pour out your concerns to Him. Listen to worship music that both touches your heart and communicates what you want to say to God. Think back to a time when you felt very close to Christ. What was happening in your life? How was your heart hotter toward God then? Pray and ask God to help you return to that first love.
When my son Ethan was three years old, he was very afraid of going into a swimming pool. The moment his little toe touched the water, he was already screaming, “Out! Out! I want out!” But in time—and with a lot of coaxing—he could handle being in the shallow end of the pool (clinging to his daddy, of course).
One day, James instructed Ethan to stand at the edge of the pool and jump into his arms. Ethan stood there, his feet solidly cemented to the ground. He wasn’t going anywhere. “Look into my eyes and trust me,” his daddy said. “I won’t let you fall.” With great faith and his eyes half closed, my little boy flung himself into his father’s arms. There were a few tears, but he survived. Every time he jumped, it got easier.
This picture reminds me of what it’s like to trust God. Sometimes it feels like jumping into the great unknown, hoping there will be a safety net. Rest assured; your heavenly Father will always catch you, and the more you jump, the easier it will get.
Have you ever had a two-year-old child or grandchild stare you in the face, stand toe-to-toe with you, and declare with unbridled boldness, “No!” Usually the “No!” is accompanied with excessive crying, whining, screaming, and maybe a temper tantrum. When you think of it, a disobedient child is terribly unhappy.
Do you want a happy heart, one that feels youthful and light? Then learn to obey God in the big and small matters of life. In Acts 13:22, David was described as a man after God’s own heart: “I have found David son of Jesse a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.” David’s heart was praised because of his obedience.
I hope you can say with the psalmist,
Your statutes are my heritage forever;
they are the joy of my heart.
My heart is set on keeping your decrees
to the very end.
(Psalm 119:111-112)
When your heart is hot for God, trusts Him completely, and is obedient, you will make choices that will bless your heart both today and in eternity.
Thought for Rejuvination
How would you describe the state of your heart? Are you critical, fearful, indifferent, cynical, childlike, excited, peaceful, happy?
A Prayer for Today: Lord, I give You my heart. Help me to have the discipline to take care of my physical heart with exercise and healthy eating. Your Word says to guard my heart for out of it come the springs of life (Proverbs 4:23). Guard my heart from destructive habits. Cleanse my heart from sin and make me aware of any sin that’s keeping me from You. I want my heart to burn brightly for You. Help me to trust and obey You each day. Others may look at my outward appearance, but I know You look at the heart (1 Samuel 16:7). So may my heart be pleasing before You.
Act of eXpression
To get some idea of your physical heart health, you can take a free online risk assessment at the website for the American Heart Association (www.americanheart.org). But always check with your doctor for a more thorough assessment.
What is one thing you can do today to improve your heart health spiritually?