HEALTH VIRTUE GROUP

Because I value my body as Christ's temple, I choose to achieve and maintain optimum physical, mental, and spiritual health.

How To Be Healthy

Water

God's ideal is for me to drink enough pure water for my body's need. It helps purify my blood and refreshes me to bless others.

Definition

Water related virtues: Pure, to bathe, to drink.

Water means: cleansing inside and out,

See flipchart

Baptize us anew, SDAH, 258
Fill my cup, SDAH, 493
Like the woman at the well, SDAH, 493

Student Life Applications

God has provided us with water as an essential element of life to clean and nourish, therefore I will:

Use water to carefully wash my body each day;
Wash my hands before I eat and after going to the toilet;
Drink water regularly throughout each day to keep my body healthy;
Carefully find clean water, safe for drinking and washing;
Care for the rivers, streams, lakes and oceans, never putting trash, garbage or sewer in them;
Learn principles of good sanitation to keep the wells and water sources clean and free from impurities;
Choose pure water for drinking rather than sodas and other drinks full of sugar;

Bible, E.G. White

Genesis 2:10 (God created water and He said it was “good”)
Daniel 1:12 And let them give us pulse to eat, and water to drink.
Revelation 22:1 (In heaven the pure, crystal clear river of life will flow through the center of the holy city from the throne of God)

“In health and in sickness, pure water is one of heaven's choicest blessings. Its proper use promotes health. It is the beverage which God provided to quench the thirst of animals and man. Drunk freely, it helps to supply the necessities of the system and assists nature to resist disease. The external application of water is one of the easiest and most satisfactory ways of regulating the circulation of the blood. A cold or cool bath is an excellent tonic. Warm baths open the pores and thus aid in the elimination of impurities. Both warm and neutral bath soothe the nerves and equalize the circulation.” MH 237
“Pure air and water, cleanliness, a proper diet, purity of life, and a firm trust in God are remedies for the want of which thousands are dying; yet these remedies are going out of date because their skillful use requires work that the people do not appreciate. Fresh air, exercise, pure water, and clean, sweet premises are within the reach of all with but little expense,” 5T 443.
“Never take tea, coffee, beer, wine or any spirituous liquors. Water is the best liquid possible to cleanse the tissues.”
CDF 421.

Reinforcing Stories

“Carol’s Camel”, Treasury of Devotional Aids for Home and School

Student Activities

1. Bring dirty dishes to wash. Use lemonade (or soda pop) to wash them. Then use water to wash them. Let the students see which one works best. Some people think that drinking lemonade or soda pop can satisfy their thirst but neither one does the job the body needs.
2. Let each student measure out the amount of water he should drink each day (6-8 oz per 20 lbs of body weight)
3. Instruct students to check urine daily. If strong color, then they need to drink more water.
4. Talk about washing clothes each week, washing houses each month, washing hands several times a day.

Links to the Curriculum

Resources

Primary:
Tell or write about when you saw the hurt and unhappiness when someone was not getting pure water.
How do you think God feels when He sees people who are getting pure water?
How do you feel when you are drinking water?
Tell two ways that you can get pure water.
What makes you want to get water?

Middle:
Why does God care if I have pure water?
What difference does it make whether I have pure water or not?
What effect would it have on my future if I did not choose to get water?
How would people treat me differently if I did or didn’t choose to drink water?
How would I feel about myself if I did or did not choose to drink water?
Give some reasons why you think it is best to drink water. Why would someone do differently?
What makes choosing to drink water better than the opposite?
List 3 situations where a person could be drinking water at his work, home, or at the shopping mall.
Can you think of someone who seems good at drinking water? What makes them better at it?
How could you learn to be better at drinking water?
Do you like to join in when people are drinking water? How have you joined in?

High school:
Would you practice drinking water if no one was checking on you? Your parents, school, or the law?
What is the alternative to drinking water and what do you see as the results of that choice?
Would you keep quiet if someone paid you a lot of money not to be drink pure water?
Are you proud to drink water and willing to tell others how you feel?
If someone in a group spoke out against drinking water would you speak up to give the other side?
Are you willing to put some money toward supporting water drinking in your city, class, work?
Can you say that drinking pure water has become a habit? How often are you that way?
What effect do you think drinking pure water will have on your future life?
What do you think should be done to promote water drinking in your family, friends, church, city, nation?
Does it make much difference if they drink water or not?