The blessings of the word of wisdom

Today's scripture mastery is the promises we are given if we obey the word of wisdom found in section 89 of the Doctrine and Covenants.  The blessings are specified in verses 18-21:

 18 And all saints who remember to keep and do these sayings, walking in obedience to the commandments, shall receive health in their navel and marrow to their bones;

 19 And shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures;

 20 And shall run and not be weary, and shall walk and not faint.

 21 And I, the Lord, give unto them a promise, that the destroying angel shall pass by them, as the children of Israel, and not slay them. Amen.

Those are some powerful blessings given to us if we keep the word of wisdom.  What is the word of wisdom you ask?  Well, it is the revelation that tells us that we should not take into our bodies harmful substances, and that we should eat good foods (such as plenty of grains and fruits and vegetables, and also meat in moderation)

The harmful substances referred to are things that can be addictive, such as Alcohol and Tobacco.  Also included are "hot drinks" which have been defined as Tea and Coffee by the prophets.  This council also includes illegal drugs--and even over the counter medication that is used improperly.

I think that you can boil the word of wisdom down to "use moderation, and avoid addictive substances and behaviors"

It is interesting that this past week, I have heard on the news items related to the word of wisdom--specifically that the recommendation has come out recently about eating red meat.  The study that has been talked about in the news says to eat red meat in moderation.  (That agrees 100% with the council in the word of wisdom)  Moderation in this study means to eat only 1/2 a serving of red meat a day (or 1 small serving 3 times a week--rather than every day).  The study shows that eating red meat more often than that drastically increases the risk of cancer.  Here is a link to that study: http://archinte.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/archinternmed.2011.2287  And here is a quote taken from the results summary of the report:

We estimated that substitutions of 1 serving per day of other foods (including fish, poultry, nuts, legumes, low-fat dairy, and whole grains) for 1 serving per day of red meat were associated with a 7% to 19% lower mortality risk. We also estimated that 9.3% of deaths in men and 7.6% in women in these cohorts could be prevented at the end of follow-up if all the individuals consumed fewer than 0.5 servings per day (approximately 42 g/d) of red meat.

It is very interesting to me that science continues to validate the revelations of God (The word of wisdom was given to us in 1833. . .)  For your info, here is the verse in the word of wisdom that talks about meat (verse 12)

12 Yea, flesh also of beasts and of the fowls of the air, I, the Lord, have ordained for the use of man with thanksgiving; nevertheless they are to be used sparingly;

We are more than compensated for "missing out" if we do obey the word of wisdom.  We may miss out on some of the "instant gratification" that these substances (Alcohol, Tea, Coffee, Illegal Drugs, etc) can give.  But the long term benefits of health, and increased knowledge and wisdom more than offset the instant gratification we may think we will receive.

Obey the word of wisdom, and be happy.