Three things stand at the helm our decision making process:

   1. Strength of body

   2. Strength of mind

   3. Strength of character

            If each is addressed and educated wisely a lot of mistakes can be avoided that lead to the emotional pain of regret.  Our conscience is best educated by strengthening our integrity to our inborn sense of right and wrong, for to go against the conscience on the convictions of our thoughts produces a tormenting effect on the mind.  And by repeatedly denying the convictions of conscience this reduces the strength of will to make wise decisions.

         This study will therefore address how to fortify these three areas affecting our skill in the decisions we make.

1.  What is our foundation for success in all we say and do? 

Matthew 7:24,25  Therefore whosoever __________ these sayings of mine, and ______  ______, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded on the rock.

Micah 6:8  He hath shewed thee, 0 man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but _____  _____  ___________, and _____  _________  ____________, and _____  ________  _____________ with thy God?

         Believing and upholding the Holy Bible will meet the above admonitions, for by prayerfully honoring “the Word” the fruits of civility and wisdom will naturally come.  And everyone who comes under its patronage will experience the benefits that are promised.

2.  Is self-righteousness dangerous as I read the Bible?

Matthew 18:3,4 …And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ____  ____  ___________, and become ____  _________  ____________, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of souls and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is ___  ____________  ____  _____  _____________  _____  _________  ____  _____  _________.

3.  What is the best way to reverse the damage done to our

      minds and bodies?

Genesis 1:29  And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of the earth, and every tree, in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; _____  ______  _____  ________  _____  ______  _________.

         The original diet established in the beginning was a plant-based diet.  Studies have shown that greater strength, endurance, longer life, and far less susceptibility to disease are achieved by a vegetarian diet.  Even the tooth decaying plaque on teeth is virtually nonexistent in those who abstain from dairy products.  This is due to the superior nutrition that is gained from combinations of fruits, nuts, vegetables, and grains whose combinations produce superior health over eating meat.  Science agrees that the shapes of human teeth are not suited for a carnivorous diet but a vegetarian diet.  Although many populated areas are unable to maintain a vegetarian diet (those northern and arid regions where the supplement of meat is necessary to sustain life), the best available diet should always be chosen.  All would agree that if hamburgers are your only source of food your strength of mind, body, and willpower would be greatly weakened. 

         Scripture teaches, “the blood is the life” (Deut. 12:23). Therefore the quality or purity of the blood determines the quality of life.  Impure blood will corrupt the purity of the life.  This is why physical addictions are so harmful, from cigarettes to pharmaceutical drugs, because the snowballing of accumulating any toxin in our system creates adverse effects on our wellbeing, and ultimately will affect our reasoning powers and decision making process (the means by which GOD speaks to our minds and hearts). The decisions of the present greatly influence the outcome of our future.

Daniel 1:8,12,15,17,20  But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself.…(v.12) Prove thy servants, I beseech thee, ten days; and let them give us pulse [a vegetarian diet of nuts, fruits, vegetables and grains] to eat, and water to drink...(v.15) And at the end of ten days _______  ________________  ____________  __________  _____  __________ than all the children which did eat the portion of the king's meat....(v.17)  As for these four children, God gave them _______________  _____  _______  ____  _____  ______________  ______  ___________: and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams....(v.20) And in all matters of wisdom and understanding, that the king enquired of them, he found them _____  ________  __________ than all the magicians and astrologers that were in all his realm.

         Today's philosophy and lifestyle is hostile to the laws of health because the animal-based diet has become the overlord to plant-based foods.  The literal rampage of disease that exists today did not exist in the 19th Century.  This increase in the rate of disease came when society abandoned the primarily plant-based diet and turned to a primarily animal-based diet.  Every nation of earth can trace its exponential rise in disease to the increase of meat consumption.  In addition, common sense dictates that whatever antibiotics, growth hormones, and diseases are found in the blood and meat of these animals, they are ingested, and strain the immune system and vital organs.  It is estimated that 80% of our immune system is in the intestine.  Therefore, the quality of food entering this vital organ determines the overall health of the body.  The end result of an animal diet taxing of the body's strength is a whole variety of mental and physical illnesses of which dominate our society today, affecting everything from one's physical strength to one's sense of morality. There are many ways to incite harmful results in both moral inclinations and physical consequences through the avenue of diet alone.

The Bible provides common sense ways to build our body-strength and emotional stability, which in turn will bless our level of wisdom and willpower to achieve our best legacy.  These benefits are through diet, rest and exercise.  But to ignore the value of these benefits this will greatly limit one’s longevity and clarity of mind.

4. Why have men resorted to poisonous chemical fertilizers

     and pesticides, thus reducing our food’s nutrition while

     threatening the fragile balance of nature?

Leviticus 25:3-5 Six years thou shalt sow thy field, and six years thou shalt prune thy vineyard, and gather in the fruit thereof, But _____  ______  ____________  ________  _______  _____  ____  ___________  _____  _________  ______  ______  _______,  ____  ___________  ______  ______  ________: thou shalt neither sow thy field, nor prune thy vineyard. That which groweth of its own accord of thy harvest thou shalt not reap, neither gather the grapes of thy vine undressed: for it is ____  ________  _____  ________  _______  ______  ________.

I Timothy 6:10  ______  ______  ________  _____  ___________  _____  ______  ________  _____  ______  ________: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

         The decisions of farmers are not the sole contributor to this erosion of life’s strength. Everything from people's cultivated tastes and government regulations to the recommendations of the scientific community and the profiteering corporations (who are complicit to systematically exterminating the biodiversity that sustains life): all of these factors influence where we find ourselves today with their easily traceable harmful results.

         The amounts of nutrients found in today's farm crops are inferior when compared to organic farming, which does not use artificial fertilizers. This is verified by the fact that the amount of nutrition found in a given crop is determined by the amount of living organisms contained in the soil.  And the fact remains that artificially fertilizing the soil kills the very organisms that provide the superior nutrition, which in turn provides the healthiest life for man.  Just one of a hundred examples: a cup of spinach in the 19th Century contained 250 milligrams of iron.  One cup of spinach today contains less than 5!  Today we live in a very malnourished society and this accounts for the insatiable appetites creating obesity, disease, and emotional instability.  Many are incapable of living a rational life based on their diet alone.  

In every conceivable way man has altered nature’s food sources to such extremes that the majority of popular food combinations are combative to our body’s health.  One mild example: “enriched” bread. The bread maker refines (or strips away) the most nutritious components from the grain, leaving its nearly nutrition-less base.  The refined grain is then enriched with man's calculated amounts of nutrients.  The human body was designed at creation to be most efficient in the assimilation of naturally raw food sources with little or no processing. 

Men of science are just now learning the vast complexity of nutrition, where a simple apple holds an estimated 12,000 micronutrients.  Without the micronutrients to accompany the primary vitamins and minerals, the human body’s assimilation of nutrition is highly disadvantaged.  This is why we see vitamin companies putting 1000% RDA of this nutrient, or 3000% of that nutrient in their pills, simply due to the fact that the body passes the great majority of it through the vital organs, thereby needlessly overtaxing them.  Even children’s vitamins are now discovered to be dangerously harmful to the health of the child because they lack the needed micronutrients for sufficient absorption. 

         Whatever body system is overtaxed, whether it be the stomach, intestine, lungs, liver, or kidneys; even the brain: any assault on the organs, inhibiting their intended function, will deplete the inborn strength of that organ and will lead to it's premature failure.  This alone explains the high number of organ transplants in hospitals.