Choosing Life: A Journey Through Healing, Faith, and the Gerson Way

?Introduction: A Crossroads of Health and Faith

Each of us, at some point in life, stands at a crossroads—faced with choices about how we live, how we heal, and how we move forward. For me, that moment came when I received a diagnosis: chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). This was not a title I wanted to claim, yet I knew I had to acknowledge it to address it. The reason I study Healing the Gerson Way is not just academic curiosity—it is a search for healing, a path toward restoring my body’s defences, and an act of faith.

But I am not the only one standing at this intersection.

What about the 80-year-old man who has survived leukemia for 15 years? Should he reconsider how he will live his remaining years? What about the woman told she has only six months to live—is it too late for her to turn her health around? What choices do we all have when confronted with the stark realities of illness?

This is where faith and wisdom must walk hand in hand.

The Breakdown of the Body’s Defenses

Dr. Max Gerson, the pioneer behind The Gerson Therapy, outlined how modern living is wreaking havoc on our health:

“People who live on toxin-rich but nutrient-poor food—especially fast food—begin to suffer from headaches, arthritis, insomnia, depression, frequent colds, infections, digestive problems, and more.” (pg. 33)

We live in a time when food is abundant, yet nutrition is scarce. Our bodies are designed to thrive, yet they are breaking down under the weight of processed foods, environmental toxins, and pharmaceutical overload.

Just as neglected watchmen weaken a fortress, improper nourishment weakens the body. Small cracks form, unnoticed at first, but eventually, the entire structure collapses. This occurs when toxins bombard the body while it starves for essential nutrients.

The link between sick soil and sick humans is painfully clear. Similarly, our bodies cannot remain healthy when deprived of life-giving sustenance, just as the earth cannot produce good fruit from depleted soil.

Medicine or Poison? A Hard Look at Modern Pharmaceuticals.

Symptom management, not true healing, forms the foundation of the modern medical system. Dr. M H. Fisher once said:

“Half of the modern drugs could well be thrown out of the window, except that the birds might eat them.”

Dr. Sir William Osler argued:

“One of the first duties of the physician is to educate the masses not to take medicine.”

We see this reality in the devastating consequences of certain drugs. Side effects from VIOXX, a once widely prescribed painkiller, caused 55,000 deaths. Or consider Ritalin, commonly given to children, yet linked to severe issues like heart problems, insomnia, addiction, and anxiety.

If medicine is supposed to heal, why do so many suffer under its weight? Could it be that we have placed our trust in treatments that only mask symptoms rather than address the root causes?

Jesus warned us:

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life and have it abundantly.” (John 10:10)

Have we allowed the thief of pharmaceutical dependency to steal from us what God designed our bodies to do naturally—heal?

A Market Booth and a Message of Hope

I sit at my market booth, surrounded by my books, my art, my CDs—items created to inspire and uplift. People stop by, some browsing, some engaging in conversation. Among them are those who are searching—not just for a book, but for hope.

• Some are fighting illness.
• Some are exhausted from years of chronic pain and failed treatments.
• Some, like the woman with liver cancer, have been given a countdown to their last breath.

Yet, as long as there is breath, there is an opportunity to choose life.

Some may think it’s too late. But is it ever too late to begin a journey toward healing? Even if one cannot change everything, one step toward healing is still a step away from destruction. And one step is enough to begin a journey.

Conclusion: A Life Worth Fighting For

We are standing at a crossroads. We can continue down the familiar path of toxic living, waiting for the body to break down, or we can choose to nourish, restore, and fight for life.

This is not about fear. This is about choice.

Like the Israelites before entering the Promised Land, the invitation is clear:

“Now choose life, so that you and your children may live.” (Deuteronomy 30:19)

I do not know how many will take what they’ve read and act on it. But I know that if even one does, then this message has mattered.

Because life is worth fighting for. And healing is possible.

Even now. Even here.

What will you choose?