1) Religious Americans Enjoy Higher Wellbeing Read more at GALLUP.com.:
- Americans who are the most religious have the highest levels of wellbeing.
- The difference in wellbeing between the religious and nonreligious populations is highly statistically significant given the large sample size Gallup's research uses, and would occur by chance alone on an infrequent basis.
- The difference is also notable given that the Well-Being Index scores do not vary widely across sub-groups of the U.S. population.
- Religious service attendance promotes social interaction and friendship with others
2) Church Boosts Your Emotional State Read more at GALLUP.com.:
- Frequent churchgoers experience an average of 3.36 positive emotions per day compared with an average of 3.08 among those who never attend.
- Not only do Americans who attend a church…frequently report having higher wellbeing in general, but they also get an extra boost to their emotional state on Sundays -- while the rest of Americans see a decline in their mood.
3) Strong social ties = Health Satisfaction Read more at GALLUP.com.:
- Individuals who say they have family and friends they can count on to help them in times of trouble are consistently more likely to be satisfied with their personal health.
- People who are socially isolated tend to have more physiological stress, poorer immune function, and a host of biological risk factors
Please (as Reggie McNeal says) don’t hear what I’m not saying. The fact it may be good for your health should never be a reason for being part of a church. The church is God’s vehicle for the Gospel of Jesus between now and when heaven and earth are joined together. And following Jesus means we make many counterintuitive choices (die to live; serve to be honored; give to gain; forgive not retaliate; love your enemies; Depend on God not yourself; joy in hardship; honor the poor not the celebrities; etc). But it is interesting to learn it’s good for your health.
