When it comes to being healthy, there are two main groups of people. Those in one group have a plan for maintaining their personal health and work at that plan. Of course, they may go seasons with interruptions, but they generally progress toward their goal. Those in the second group have a desire to become healthier, but also know that they are not on the path of progress. Most of the time they struggle with making a plan or with finding the right inspiration to move them toward better health.
Regardless of which group you may be in, a friend of Feed the Hunger, Al Seagraves, or “Coach” as everyone calls him, has developed a unique healthy living plan that may help you in your journey. As his health improves, so do the lives of hungry children around the world!
Coach has established some daily activities to improve his overall wellness. These are common-sense habits that most of us would do if we were embarking on a journey to improve our fitness. But what Coach has added to keep up his motivation as well as add accountability is that for every week he achieves his goals, he will make a donation to FtH to help feed hungry children.
Coach’s journey to link his health with the health of needy children started a few years ago when he attended a Packathon at his church. At this event, his eyes were opened to the problem of hunger around the world, and he felt compelled to travel so he could see it firsthand and help. Al traveled with me to Haiti in January of 2014. Since then, he has continued to look for ways to help needy children as much as he can.
Last year, as a milestone high school reunion was approaching, Coach wanted to improve his overall health before attending. This set him on a course to research the various ways to “feel better.” Now, almost a year later, Coach has taken what he learned and has succeeded in implementing his own custom healthy living plan that gives him great freedom and flexibility.
Coach concentrates daily on six areas: moderate exercise, drinking lots of water, sleeping for a certain amount of time, eating healthy, controlling stress, and spending time in prayer. At the close of each day, he evaluates himself. If at the end of the week he has reached his goals in those six areas, he makes a contribution to FtH that helps feed malnourished children somewhere in the world.
Coach has now enlisted his wife in his program, and together they are improving their health while also feeding others. Coach said, “I set out to improve my own health so I could be around for a longer period of time to help other people. After having some success, I thought, ‘Why not tie in a direct contribution as an added way to keep me accountable?’” If Coach and his wife are successful for the entire year, then they will be furnishing almost 4,000 meals to hungry children!
Perhaps some of you feel inclined to do something similar to what Coach and his wife are doing. You may already have a plan and need some added motivation to help you stay on course. Or you may not have a plan right now, but you might adapt Coach’s plan by setting some initial, easily achievable goals in some of the six categories mentioned.
If you struggle with finding the motivation to improve your own health, maybe a plan in which your effort also benefits someone else is just what you need. As Coach says, “This gives me more incentive and motivation to hit my health goals so I can follow my heart and passion to help hungry children.”
When Coach and his wife improve their own health, they are also improving the spiritual and physical health of someone else in need. Everybody wins!
Scott Hahn | Packathon Director