Devonotional

Doctrine and Covenants 89:10-11

And again verily I say unto you, all wholesome herbs God hath ordained for the constitution, nature, and use of man- Every herb in the season thereof, and every fruit in the season thereof; all these to be used with prudence and thanksgiving. 

I tended to skim over this section because it seemed so obvious to me. Herbs for cooking (parsley, basil, etc.), fruit for eating. Duh! But I looked into it a bit more.... particularly verse 10.

What does it mean that we use herbs for the "constitution, nature and use of man?" To me, it means that herbs are more than just for flavor in your pasta. The constitution and nature of man sounds pretty fundamental to me. It sounds to me that we can use herbs to treat our most severe problems. 

I recently went to Newberg with my mother-in-law to visit a doctor. We were both curious what he would find. Normally, I think this stuff is "hocus pocus," so keep in mind that if I hadn't experienced if for myself, I would still believe it was all silly stuff. 

After talking with him about some concerns (skin issues being the primary one), he had me lay on a table. He told me to hold my arm straight up in the air, a 90 degree angle from my body. He would push it down and I would try to resist. Then he started pulling bottles of supplements off a huge shelf and placing them on my stomach. He would push on my arm, and I would try to keep my arm up. Sometimes I could resist, and sometimes my arm would give and I wouldn't be able to keep it up. This is how he determined what herbs and supplements I would need to take. He also showed me how the same thing could be done with my leg. (I hugged my knee, he tried to push my leg straight. Sometimes I could lock it in place, other times my leg would straighten.) It was a really interesting experience. 

I came home with a pretty intense regime. Turns out my liver is not working at it's best, which would result in the skin issues. The only thing that has kept me from taking the pills is how large they are (I tried blending them in a smoothie and it tasted horrible). I need to try Kelly's tip for swallowing pills. Other than that, I'm pretty much sold on the idea of natural medicine. 

I'm sharing because I think the whole concept of natural medicine is fascinating. And, it doesn't hurt that we are given the A-okay to try it out in the Doctrine and Covenants. I'm also willing to babysit, come along with you, etc. if anyone wants to go.

Newberg Natural Health