Giving Up the Belief in Illness by Rev. Teresa Stuefloten, M.Div. 3/22/2026

Good Morning! This is Rev Teresa. This morning I am speaking on Giving Up the Belief in Illness. This is the 6th Sunday in our Lenten series. What we believe regarding illness is very powerful in determining our experience of health and well-being. The Universe just deposited the perfect example of this right in my lap this week!

A friend from my exercise group sent a text to our group of exercise friends that had been sent to her by a neighbor who is a doctor. I read the text and was surprised at the negativity of it regarding the supposed inevitability of illness and infirmity as we age. It was called “On the Road to Eighty” and it basically said that past 70 the body is rapidly aging and disease, accidents and disability are inevitable. It talked about the brain reaction slowing and all of the things that can befall a person, causing us to be a burden to our children.  It listed the number of people who do not reach various ages beyond 70. It even said: “Everyone’s old age is a bloody storm…”!!! Wow!

What would your reaction be if you received this text from a friend? My immediate reaction was, “No, this is not true!”

Our group is composed of age 70+ vibrant, active people. One person reacted feeling insulted by the article, as it was so negative and she is past 70. Another person who is firmly on the spiritual path responded, “All I can say is it happens to you according to your belief. Yes, we are all going to die, but how depends a lot on your belief system. What you give your attention to multiplies (positive or negative), so I try to keep my mind on what I want. It is not easy, but it does work. Sometimes the monkey mind wins, but that is usually when I am not paying attention to my thoughts.” Yes!!! My consciousness said, Yes!!! I agree with this response!

I saw this as an opportunity to share my belief regarding illness and aging with the person who sent the article. So I responded: “I read the whole article that was texted about aging and I completely disagree with what was said in the article. Disease and disability are not inevitable past 70! We create with our thoughts. If you focus on illness and disability, you will create that experience in your life. Focus on health and happiness and that is what you will create. We are all going to exercise classes for our health. If we continue to exercise, eat healthy food, keep our thoughts positive, and stay connected with friends, we will live a long and happy life for as long as the Divine wants us here in the Earth realm. Life past 70 is a blessed and happy time in my opinion. Age is just a number. Don’t let a number dictate your life experience. As the song says, ‘Don’t worry, be happy!’”

There were thumbs up agreement from others in the group, but the person who texted the article seemed surprised at the responses. I responded, “I feel like it is important to critically evaluate what we read and ask our inner wisdom if we feel it is true. The article says disease and disability are inevitable past 70 and we will be a burden on our children. I simply do not believe this is true. If your Dr neighbor wants to believe this, good luck to him/her as he/she ages. I choose to believe that good health is in my future and refuse to take in negativity such as this article. Critical thinking is essential.”

Another person responded, “ I totally agree with Teresa. I used to say, ’80 is enough.’ and found that to be silly. I am totally enjoying my life with my family and especially all of my beloved friends. I really care and appreciate All of you. Sooo… I’m living on this earth happy and healthy as I can until God calls me home.”

This whole texting conversation was a good opportunity for the group to consider their belief about illness and aging and affirm a positive attitude.

What we believe and focus on is very important. It does indeed determine our experience. Do you want to be healthy and happy or sick and miserable? You have the power to create it. You must believe in good health in order to have good health. You create it with your thoughts every moment of every day.

The Christian Bible records many of Jesus’ healings. Historically it is recognized that Jesus was known as a healer. Jesus’ healing employed the beliefs of the person being healed.

Luke 8:41-56 records two healings. “A man named Jairus, a leader of the synagogue, fell at the feet of Jesus and besought him to enter into his house. For he had an only daughter, about twelve years old, and she was near death. And as Jesus went with him, a large crowd pressed against him. Now, a woman who had had a hemorrhage for twelve years, and had spent all her wealth for doctors, could not be healed by anybody, She came near him from behind, and touched the edge of his cloak; and immediately her hemorrhage stopped. And Jesus said, Who touched me? And when all of them denied it, Simon Peter and those who were with him said to him, Teacher the crowds are troubling you and pressing on you, and yet you say, Who has touched me? But he said, Some one has touched me, for I know that power has gone out of me. When the woman saw that she could not deceive him, she came trembling, and fell down and worshipped him; and she said in the presence of all the people for what purpose she had touched him, and how she was healed immediately. Jesus said to her, Have courage, my daughter; your faith has healed you; go in peace.”

“While he was still talking, there came a man from the house of the leader of the synagogue, and said to him, Your daughter has died, do not trouble the teacher. Jesus heard it and said to father of the girl, Do not be afraid, but only believe, and she will be restored to life. Jesus came into the house, and he did not allow anyone to enter with him except Simon and James and John and the father and mother of the girl. All of them were weeping and mourning over her, but Jesus said, Do not weep, for she is not dead, but asleep. And they laughed at him, for they knew that she was dead. Then he put everybody out and held her by her hand and called her and said, Little girl arise. And her spirit returned, and she got up immediately; and he commanded to give her something to eat. And her parents were amazed;”

In both of these cases the person’s belief facilitated the healing. The woman with the hemorrhage did not give in to negative thinking just because the doctors had been unable to heal her. She had an unshakable belief that if she could touch the hem of Jesus’ garment she would be healed. She believed that good health was possible for her and she released her illness.

In the case of the little girl, the father believed that her illness could be released, and Jesus knew that the spirit, recently departed, could come back to the body. It was done according to the belief of the father and of Jesus.

When Jesus healed the 10 lepers, he told the one, a Samaritan who thanked him, ‘Arise, go; your faith has healed you.”

Luke 17:19

In John 4:46-54 the healing of a servant’s son, “…there was at Capernaum a servant of a king, whose son was sick. This man heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee; so he went to him and asked him to come down and heal his son; for he was near death. Jesus said to him, Unless you see miracles and wonders, you will not believe. The king’s servant said to him, My Lord come down before the boy is dead. Jesus said to him, Go, your son is healed. And the man believed the word that Jesus said to him and went away. And as he was going down, his servants met him and brought him good news, saying, Your son is healed. And he asked them, At what time was he healed? And they said to him, Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him. And his father knew that it was at the very hour when Jesus told him, Your son is healed…” The man believed in the Truth of his son’s healing.

John 5:2-9 tells the story of the healing of the paralytic man: “Now there was at Jerusalem a baptismal pool, which is called in Hebrew Bethesda, having five entrances. And at these entrances a great many sick people were lying, the blind, the lame, and the crippled; and they were waiting for the water to be stirred up; For an angel of God went down at a certain time to the baptismal pool and stirred up the water; and whoever went in first after the stirring of the water was healed of any disease he had.”

“A man was there who had been sick for 38 years. Jesus saw this man lying down, and he knew that he had been waiting for a long time; so he said to him, Do you wish to be healed? The sick man answered, saying, Yes, my Lord; but I have no man, when the water is stirred up, to put me into the baptismal pool; but while I am coming, another one goes in before me. Jesus said to him, Rise, take up your quilt and walk. And the man was healed immediately, and he got up and took his quilt and walked.”

The key is that the man is asked if he wishes to be healed. Again, it is the belief in the possibility of healing and the willingness to let go of sickness and be whole.

New Thought pioneer, Charles Fillmore says of the meaning of Bethesda, the healing pool, it is “The point in consciousness where we feel the flow of the cleansing life of Spirit. This ‘pool,’ or place in consciousness, is formed by the realization that our life is being constantly purified, healed, and made new by the activity of mind. Physically this is expressed in the purification and upbuilding wrought in the blood when it comes into contact with the oxygen in the lungs. The ebb and flow of the waters of the pool are constantly going on, and when mind is active all the depleted blood corpuscles are purified and renewed.” (Metaphysical Bible Dictionary, p117)

Our body produces around 250 million red blood cells every day, so it is constantly producing the means to health and wholeness.         

But we have to want to be healthy and whole. Sometimes people want to be sick to get love and attention from others. This is usually an unconscious motive, but it is a good one to consider and to release if it is present. There are better ways to get attention.

Mark 10:46-52 is an account of a blind man made to have sight: “…a blind man, Timaeus…sat by the roadside begging. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry aloud and say, O son of David, have mercy on me. And many rebuked him and told him to keep quiet, but he cried out more, saying, O son of David, have mercy on me. Then Jesus stopped and commanded to call him. So they called the blind man, and said to him, Have courage, rise, he is calling you. And the blind man threw off his robe and got up and went to Jesus. Jesus said to him, What do you wish me to do for you? The blind man said to him, Master, that I may see. And Jesus said to him, See; your faith has healed you. And immediately he saw and went on his way.” It was done to him according to his belief.

In Divine Science we do not advocate ignoring medical treatment. The doctors, nurses, nurse practitioners and medical technicians are Divine expressions, too. When we are in a physical body the medical people have a role to play in the physical realm. But when we get predictions from our medical  team about a prognosis, we do not have to take this in. Medical people are basing their predictions on averages of previous cases and their strong belief in the medical model. They have seen many cases in their medical practice, but you are not those previous patients and you do not have the same beliefs and consciousness that they had. You can choose to believe in health and wholeness as your birthright. You are one with God and God is perfect health and wholeness.

A friend told me recently about an ultrasound procedure she had where the technician was talking about various cancers the entire time the procedure was being done. She could feel herself becoming tense and fearful as the technician talked about possible cancers. The word “cancer” often evokes fear in people due to all that we have heard and read about cancer, and the experiences of others we have known. We do not have to take in information like this as if it is Truth with a capital T! We can choose to believe the real Truth that our Divine Source is with us, within us, always facilitating our highest health and well-being. We do the treatment with the knowledge that we are being Divinely blessed with good health each and every day. Our body is renewing itself minute by minute, hour by hour, day by day. We affirm the Truth that: “I am perfect, whole and complete in God. I live and move and have my being in God.”

Like my friend who sent out the text from her doctor neighbor, we receive information that we do not have to take in as truth. There is so much on social media and the news these days and a lot of misinformation. I, personally, get my booster vaccinations each fall for the flu and covid, as my doctor advises, and then I think no more about it. When someone says they just got over the flu, or I hear about an increase cases of the flu, I do not think that I will get the flu. I give it no more thought. And I cannot even remember the last time I had the flu. Our thoughts do affect our body. Why not choose to think positively?

One of my aunts had breast cancer that had metastasized to her bones. She was getting treatment and feeling she was being healed. She went to her doctor for a check up and the doctor said he was surprised she was still here and had thought she would have died by now. This surprised her since she felt she was healing. After that appointment she started to gradually become worse, when she had previously been getting better. She believed the doctor’s medical opinion and she passed away a few months later. What we believe is what we manifest. We do not have to take in medical prognosis as truth.

Scientific American reported in April 2021, “The human body replaces its own cells regularly. Scientists at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel, have finally pinned down the speed and extent of this “turnover.” About a third of our body mass is fluid outside of our cells, such as plasma, plus solids, such as the calcium scaffolding of bones. The remaining two thirds is made up of roughly 30 trillion human cells. About 72 percent of those, by mass, are fat and muscle, which last an average of 12 to 50 years, respectively. But we have far more, tiny cells in our blood, which live only three to 120 days, and lining our gut, which typically live less than a week. Those two groups therefore make up the giant majority of the turnover. About 330 billion cells are replaced daily, equivalent to about 1 percent of all our cells. In 80 to 100 days, 30 trillion will have replenished—the equivalent of a new you.” (scientificamerican.com)

We have to claim our perfect health and wholeness in order to experience it as our reality. Malinda Cramer, one of the founders of Divine Science, says in her book, Divine Science and Healing, “What we do not recognize as being present and claim as ours we do not enjoy. Then claim health, power, knowledge, good - in short claim wholeness, that now are you complete in the Infinite Good; and you will enjoy it and have peace and rest. The living God is around you, above you, and through you all; so you are protected and shielded by the perfect Good at all times. This consciousness is above the plane of expression and knows no limitation. Acknowledge or recognize this Truth and it will make you happy and free.” (Pp 64-65)

Malinda says of the body, “The body must be held to be perfect without disease… In Truth the body always stands as a holy temple of Good; therefore, speak Truth of it, affirm that it is eternal substance, living substance, limitless idea expressed. Deny false beliefs about it by affirming the Truth of it, but never deny the body by thought, word or deed. Give your body a place in your Being, and your Being a place in the Supreme All.” (P 94)

She says of our image of the body, “Make use of true wholeness, or holiness, and declare you see the expression of the real immortal self. Place your body in Being, and yourself in perfect at-one-ment with all the Being implies; thus, you will have the true oversight of your body and be master over your own house. You will love and nourish it and give it the best of care.” End of quote. (P 93)

Giving our body the best of care means feeding the body healthy food, getting exercise to move the body and keep it functioning well, and giving the body adequate rest to renew and refresh the body.

The science of Ayurveda says we should be asleep between 10 pm - 2 am because this is when the body repairs tissues, the liver detoxifies itself and the brain flushes out waste products. This is the physical body’s “clean-up shift.” When we stay up late we have a tendency to overeat and to wake up with brain fog. Having night owl tendencies myself, I have experienced this, and am making efforts toward a consistent earlier bedtime. I do find that I feel much better the next morning.(alignbodyayurveda.com)

So feed your body healthy food. Eat your fruits and vegetables. Get enough rest. And believe in your good health and wholeness.

We are Divine Beings, perfect whole and complete, made in the image and likeness of God. God is good, only good, and gives us only good. Illness is error thinking, false thinking of the ego, not Truth.

Malinda Cramer has some healing affirmations in Divine Science and Healing, so I will end with these affirmations. You may want to close your eyes and just take in these positive affirmations.

Healing Affirmations

“Of all that God has given me, I can lose nothing.”

The gift of God is ETERNAL LIFE, I cannot lose it.

God has given me STRENGTH, I cannot lose it.

God has given me HEALTH, I cannot lose it.

God has given me FAITH, I cannot lose it.

God has given me CHEERFULNESS, I cannot lose it.

God has given me WISDOM, I cannot lose it.

God has given me LOVE, I cannot lose it.

God has given me PEACE, I cannot lose it.

God has given me a PERFECT BODY, I cannot lose it.

God has given me REST, I cannot lose it.

All things that the Father has are mine, I cannot lose them.

These words are Spirit and they are Life.

“All mine are thine, and all thine are mine.”

God knows not DEATH, I cannot know it.

God has not given me WEAKNESS, I cannot have it.

God had not given me SICKNESS, I cannot have it.

God has not given me DOUBT, I cannot have it.

God has not given me DESPONDENCY, I cannot have it.

God has not given me IGNORANCE, I cannot have it.

God has not given me FEAR, I cannot have it.

God has not given me STRIFE, I cannot have it.

God has not given me AN IMPERFECT BODY, I cannot have one.

God has not given me UNREST, I cannot have it.

I cannot experience any result but the result of Truth and Truth is absolute freedom.

“My words shall not pass away.”

And so it is!