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Bookmark Creation Health: A Journey of Discovery CREATION Health: A Journey of Discovery, Chris Blake, Florida Hospital Mission Development, Orlando, Florida, 2013, 228 pages, US$14.99. Reviewed by Stephen Chavez, coordinating editor, Adventist Review. Health is hot. You can’t go anywhere without seeing an article, an ad, a program about eating healthfully, losing weight, beating addictions, or reducing your risk of heart attack, stroke, or various forms of cancer. A generation ago Adventists were well-known for speaking out against smoking, using illicit drugs, and drinking alcohol. Indeed, in many venues ours was the predominant voice in opposing these habits. Now it’s not only Adventists who lobby against corporations that promote tobacco, alcohol, and factory farming. Some might wonder whether we have anything to offer, or if we’ll ever have the influence we once had. CREATION Health is one response. The book, written by wellknown author Chris Blake, is an exposition of the CREATION health outline adopted by the General Conference Health Ministries Department and embodied by the Florida Hospital Health System. CREATION health (choice, rest, environment, activity, trust, interpersonal relationships, outlook, nutrition) is the twenty-firstcentury child of the NEWSTART health system, used so well and so effectively as part of the Adventist health message in the last half of the twentieth century. The book CREATION Health defies description. It’s not a textbook; it’s not literature; more than anything it’s a workbook, packed with more information, activities, questions, and quotes than can be absorbed in one setting. And that’s the idea. This isn’t a book to curl up with and read straight through; it’s a book to digest, a little at a time, preferably with friends or fellow church members in small groups. According to Robyn Edgerton, Mission Development director for Florida Hospital and editor of the book, the book is designed to go where Adventists aren’t generally invited: government agencies, county health departments, community recreation centers. And why not? With the current emphasis on health and health care, employers, employees, and individuals are increasingly looking for ways to stretch their health resources, to find cures that are simple, effective, and lasting. CREATION Health’s message is overwhelmingly positive. It’s not a book about prohibitions. It’s a book of prescriptions: “eight universal principles for living life to the fullest.” Author Chris Blake uses three words to describe the book: accessible, deep, practical. All the principles begin with the Bible, but they don’t end there. They move into our lives and touch those areas where we live, work, recreate, share relationships, and enjoy life. The only drawback to this book can be stated in one word: accessibility. As of this writing (the first week of November), the only way to get copies of this book is to call Mission Development at Florida Hospital and order them. The phone number (407-303-7711) isn’t even tollfree. For a generation used to one-click shopping, this is a huge disadvantage. Books can also be ordered from CreationHealth.com, but when I went to the site I couldn’t find a link with which to order the book. CREATION Health is ideal for smallgroup Bible studies, prayer meetings, Sabbath school classes, youth and young adult groups. It’s also a great, nonthreatening way to introduce people to the practical truths of the Bible. The writing and activities are engaging and thought-provoking, providing many opportunities to make personal applications. If only it were available on Amazon. com or at Adventist Book Centers. n 30 (1054) | www.AdventistReview.org | November 21, 2013
Reflections Fissures in Fine-China Christianity “OK, girls. Can you help me get dinner ready?” My mother spoke quickly as we moved from the car into the house. “Mindy, will you please set the table?” Still wearing my favorite church dress—the one with pale-pink roses and soft cream lace trim—and filled with 12-year-old self-importance, I led the two girls into the kitchen. I felt sure I knew all there was to know about Sabbath dinner preparation, and I was ready to impress. We had five small guests eating with us—siblings ranging from 3 to 11 years old. They came from difficult circumstances: their mother was in jail, and their father was in charge yet absent, intent on a very public affair with another woman. As the pastor’s family, we had invited to take them to church and to dinner with us afterward. The flash of steel and the fast motion of the knife in my mother’s hand quickly chopped a buffet of green, red, and yellow vegetables for a fresh relish tray. Hymns played from the stereo, and rich savory smells escaped from the oven door as the vegetarian roast was reheated. My mouth was already watering. Breakfast seemed so long ago. I started confidently toward our country-blue china hutch, its glass doors revealing an array of beautiful dishes, glass goblets, and bowls. While their brothers roughhoused and played in the living room, the two girls stood awkwardly, faces grimy and clothes stained, in the middle of the dining room. Their eyes tracked my every movement. From inside the cupboard I began to pull out my mother’s wedding china. White and richly delicate with gleaming silver trim and a lacy flower design, it caught the light as I counted out the plates we would need. One, two, three, four. . . Next, I would count out the matching fancy silverware. I already knew what my table-setting finale would be: the tall crystal candlesticks. Their glittering cut glass, catching and refracting the light, would surely awe my two young friends. All of a sudden, out of the corner of my eye, I saw my mother motioning to me. She was shaking her head. What’s wrong? I wondered. Am I in trouble for something? But once she had my attention, she simply smiled and opened one of the kitchen cupboards, silently motioning that I should use our everyday plastic blue dishes. At first, I stood there confused. Why did my mother not want me to use our special Sabbath china? She was the one who had taught us that Sabbath was a special day, a day to honor God by using only our best. I looked from my mother’s face to the two little girls silently watching me and then back into my mother’s eyes. Suddenly I understood. That Sabbath we ate from our scarred and battered everyday plastic dishes, and I learned an important lesson. Without saying a word, my mother had taught me the importance of being careful with people’s feelings. That day I realized that showing God’s love to others might not always mean offering your best. It is about making your guests feel comfortable and at home. In the same way, our churches can have the most beautiful stained glass, the shiniest grand piano, and the richest upholstered pews; but unless people—all kinds of people—feel welcome, we are not truly sharing God’s marvelous love and providing them with a safe church home. Even though that Sabbath dinner happened more than a decade ago, I remember the powerful lesson my mother taught me that day. There are fissures in fine-china Christianity, and truly caring about people’s feelings is how we genuinely honor God. n Mindy Liebelt writes from Lincoln, Nebraska. www.AdventistReview.org | November 21, 2013 | (1055) 31
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Page 6 and 7: Editorials Bill Knott Each edition
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