The Law of Obedient Action—All the heavenly beings are in constant activity, and the Lord Jesus, in His practical lifework, has given an example for every man. God has established in the heavens the law of obedient action.[Note: The law of obedient action is worthy of careful study. Action not only advances physical health but brings us into harmony with others and with the universe.] Silent but ceaseless, the objects of His creation do their appointed work. The ocean is in constant motion. The springing grass, “which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven,” does its errand, clothing the fields with beauty. The leaves are stirred by the wind, and yet no hand is seen to touch them. The sun, moon, and stars are useful and glorious in fulfilling their appointed mission.And man, his mind and body created in God’s own similitude, must be active in order to fill his appointed place. Man is not to be idle. Idleness is sin.

Inactivity a Fruitful Cause of Disease.—Inactivity is a fruitful cause of disease. Exercise quickens and equalizes the circulation of the blood, but in idleness the blood does not circulate freely, and the changes in it, so necessary to life and health, do not take place.The skin, too, becomes inactive. Impurities are not expelled as they would be if the circulation had been quickened by vigorous exercise, the skin kept in a healthy condition, and the lungs fed with plenty of pure, fresh air. This state of the system throws a double burden on the excretory organs, and disease is the result.

Judicious Regulation of Exercise—Well-directed physical exercise, using the strength but not abusing it, would prove an effective remedial agent.

Without Exercise, Mind Cannot Be in Working Order—For a healthy young man, stern, severe exercise is strengthening to brain, bone, and muscle. And it is an essential preparation for the difficult work of a physician. Without such exercise the mind cannot be in working order. It cannot put forth the sharp, quick action that will give scope to its powers. It becomes inactive. Such a youth will never, never become what God designed he should be. He has established so many resting places that he becomes like a stagnant pool. The atmosphere surrounding him is charged with moral miasma.

Physicians often advise their patients to take an ocean voyage, to go to some mineral spring, or to visit different places for change of climate, in order to regain health, when in nine cases out of ten if they would eat temperately and take cheerful, healthful exercise, they would become well and would save time and money.

Work is a blessing, not a curse. Diligent labor keeps many, young and old, from the snares of him who “finds some mischief still or idle hands to do.”Let no one be ashamed of work, for honest toil is ennobling. While the hands are engaged in the most common tasks, the mind may be filled with high and holy thoughts.

Extract from the book Mind Character and Personality. Vol. 1 Chapter 14. By E. G. White.