You are a magnificent creature, wonderfully made; you live in a physical world, but have strong ties to the spiritual world. One of these ties is what the scientific community calls “epigenetics.”

Background

When DNA was discovered, it appeared that our destiny was fixed and determined wholly by our DNA. We were led to believe that since our DNA was locked in at conception, we were slaves to our ancestry. However, we knew that this couldn’t be true; it would invalidate the promises and principles in the Bible; there would be no reason to pray, no reason to believe, and no purpose for life. We knew that there had to be more than just DNA; so, we patiently waited, by faith, and our patience has been rewarded by what is now called “epigenetics”. Not only does epigenetics solve the “slave to our ancestry” problem, but it shows us how God’s creative genius connects us to the spiritual world. It is genius, and very, very complex ¹.

So, epigenetics is the study of how DNA is expressed by switching genes “on” and “off” as directed by our environment. We humans have an environment which is diverse: diet, atmosphere, stress levels, fear, music, love, microbiome, belief system, prayer, and faith. All these elements of our environment have the capability of switching our genetic switches “on” and “off.”

Diet and Epigenetics

DNA provides the genes, and epigenetics decides which genes are expressed and to what level. This epigenetic expression is dependent on how the DNA is packed in the cell. For instance, take the ant; pack his cells one way and you have ant larva; pack them differently and you have a worker ant; pack them a third way and you have an ant with wings that can fly. The DNA is the same, but the expression is quite different. Epigenetics switches determine which ant version is expressed. The worker ants attending the larva know when the time is right, then they prepare a potion of fungus. When this fungus potion is fed to the larva, the larvae’s switches are positioned to pack the DNA to produce wings and a flight control system. Each cell works in unison with the others to produce the intended creature, in this case, a flying ant.

Social Environment

Researchers are just beginning to connect epigenetics with social environment. We have all known that our circle of friends, parents, and community made an impact on our mental health, but now we are seeing the epigenetic mechanisms that affect our physical health. Researches have correlated gene expression with social influences ². We, at Genesis and Genetics, are very interested in the results of these laboratory results knowing how the Bible warns about joining with those who practice evil.

The Nurturing Rat

Then there is the rat. It has been found that if the mother rat licks and grooms her babies, they do better mentally and physically. If the pups are not licked and groomed, they suffer both mentally and physically. This means that the rat DNA has genetic switches that are turned “on” or “off” responding to the environment of nurturing and grooming³.

Fear and Trauma

Another study where a small mouse was traumatized repeatedly ⁴, the small mouse did poorly mentality and physically. Again, there were switches that were being turned “on” and “off” depending on the packaging, but the interesting point is that the trauma was sometimes passed on to future generations ⁴ of the traumatized mouse. Some secular scientists are referring to this effect as the Biblical “sins of the father” effect ⁵. If you please, type, “sins of the father epigenetics” into your favorite search engine and you can read all about it.

Summary

You have nearly 40 trillion cells in your body, and how your DNA is packed in each one of these cells matters. This packaging can switch select genes “on” and switch other genes “off.” This switching can affect your overall mental and physical health. The mechanism for packing the DNA in your cells is not yet understood, but we now have evidence that our physical and spiritual environment can and does affect the packing. Therefore, know that you are not a slave to your DNA, your DNA is a slave to you and the environment you provide. You are empowered by your faith in harmony with the Bible to harness and exploit your DNA. How? Simply by supplying a proper physical and spiritual environment. Your epigenetics is crying out to fulfill its vocation to find, bind, and wind your genes so that you may do well.

Dear friends and children, it is true, the Bible got it right, our physical bodies respond to faith and prayer.

References:

1. https://www.genesisandgenetics.org/2017/12/12/epigenetics-complexity-of-biblical-proportions-part-1/
2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4555996/
3. https://www.reed.edu/biology/professors/srenn/pages/teaching/2008_syllabus/2008_readings/5_Weaver_etal_2004.pdf
4. https://www.nature.com/news/fearful-memories-haunt-mouse-descendants-1.14272
5. https://www.nature.com/news/epigenetics-the-sins-of-the-father-1.14816