Reformed Presbyterians live longer. They live better. The RPCNA pension board knows this. They learned long ago that they could not calculate pension payments based on accepted standards for an average group of people. Such calculations in the past meant significant underfunding of pension plans when servants of the church consistently outlived the averages.

I’ve seen the same thing occur in other Reformed and Presbyterian organizations as well as faithful churches of various kinds. While that’s a small sample, it backs up a truth we already know. When we honor God and follow His Word, we will experience blessings. “Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones” (Prov. 3:7-8).

Empirical data demonstrates the same. A Harvard review of scores of studies measuring human flourishing pointed clearly at the value of true Christian community. “Participation in religious services is associated with numerous aspects of human flourishing including happiness and life satisfaction, mental and physical health, meaning and purpose, character and virtue, and close social relationships. Evidence…comes from rigorous longitudinal study designs with extensive confounding control.” It stated that real, weeklong connection to the church was markedly better than mere association with the church or private religious practice alone, adding, on average, seven years to one’s lifespan (Tyler J. VanderWeele, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health).

What’s more, there was a fivefold increase in suicide among those with no vibrant association with a religious community compared to those who have one. “Our own research indicates that declining religious service attendance accounts for about 40 percent of the rise in suicide rates over the past 15 years,” VanderWeele said.

Having endured two years of a pandemic, we know many things that aren’t good for us. Coronaviruses are deadly. Long periods of isolation, even when warranted, don’t make us healthy. Tensions with our friends and neighbors about how to deal with the pandemic haven’t made most of us healthier either.

During such times, Christians must step forward and point to what is healthy. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and acknowledge Him in all your ways (Prov. 3:5-6). “Train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come” (1 Tim. 4:7-8).

Pre-, mid-, and post-pandemic, the world will maintain a shortsighted and narrow view of what is good for them. That flawed view is costing people their health and their souls. We have so much to show them about enjoying what is really good in this age and even better in the age to come.