Honoring God with our Body...
Do you want to become more like Jesus during the holidays?
The standard answer would be "YES" for any Christian.
Are you sure about that? ^_^
What I realized is that I had limits on that statement.
I think we all have areas that are "no man's land" for Jesus,
In many cases without even knowing it.
I had one.
It's something that flew under the radar for most my life until recently,
And here it is, just in time for the holidays...
FOOD.
Yup, you heard me... FOOD.
Uhhh... What does it mean to be Christ-like around FOOD?
Truth be told, this is NOT a favorite topic for me.
Why?
Hello, my name is Christine and I'm a foodie.
I enjoy it,
I look forward to it,
I have fun being a foodie with other foodies,
It's all good, right?
What's the probleemmmmmmm????
The problem is...
I'm not bearing God's fruit.
"the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience... SELF-CONTROL."
Doh!!
When did that get in there?!
Surely that doesn't include the holidays, right?
Surely this is overboard, right?
You're right.
Bearing God's fruit has it's limits.
I'm sure somewhere in the Bible, it says "except on parties of 5 or more you may bear the fruits of gluttony, over-indulgence and lack self-control".
Grrr.... I know.
It's not a thrilling topic.
No one is like "Weeeee~~! This is so much fun!!"
If you're a foodie like me,
You may feel a bit uncomfortable,
You may have stopped breathing,
Or started getting antsy.
It's ok.
Take it easy.
So what is the solution?
Are we supposed to become Keto, Vegan, super-disciplinarians overnight?
Thank God, no.
The answer is BALANCE.
Have fun with your family and friends,
But when you're full, stop eating.
Start winning little victories,
One serving at a time,
One bite at a time.
"So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God."
Instead of 3 servings, do 2,
Instead of 4 glasses, do 3,
Instead of 5 cookies, do 4,
And start taking back SOME territory for Jesus in the battlefield of your mind.
Give glory to God in all that you do,
Including the turkey, the gravy, the drinks and desserts.
You can still enjoy the food AND exercise self-control and self-discipline.
"Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own,"
Trust me, the struggle is real.
Do you know why?
This is not just a physical battle,
It's a SPIRITUAL battle too.
There is a spiritual battle around FOOD.
Yup.
You heard me, FOOD.
Do you remember that the first sin of Adam and Eve was around FOOD?
The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil was a FOOD.
Do you remember Esau, the brother of Jacob who sold his birthright?
What did he sell it for?
FOOD!
The history of man having issues around FOOD is not new.
For thousands of years it has been used to tempt us,
Distract us,
Lead us away from God,
To bear fruits OPPOSITE of self-discipline nor self-control.
Why does that matter?
It's just that ONE area, right?
What about the rest of life that is good?
What if you're a great father, mother, co-worker, brother or sister in Christ?
Doesn't the FOOD issue pale in comparison to that?
Let me ask you this...
If you're trying to protect your house from thieves getting in,
Does it make sense to lock all the doors except one and give them the keys?
That's what I realized FOOD was for me.
As I was cleaning up many areas of my life,
The Lord brought to my attention that FOOD is an open door to disobedience, gluttony, and lack of self-control in my life.
It's like having a sparkling clean house except for one maggot infested dead carcass in the corner.
That one thing will create a stink that affects the rest of the house,
That one thing will keep feeding and multiplying the maggots,
That one thing will will attract other bugs, bacteria and pests that you never wanted in the house.
Our lack of discipline, self-control around FOOD is...
A big OPEN DOOR for the enemy to walk through,
And squat in the corner of our mind,
And start infiltrating other areas of without us knowing it.
For me when I over-indulge in food,
My self-discipline in other areas are at risk,
Especially things regarding God.
"...gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts."
For me when I eat too much,
I feel sluggish when I wake up,
I get behind for the day,
It's a struggle to spend time with Jesus,
I rush through it or skimp on God time,
And the rest of my day is survival mode.
And if I repeat this mistake multiple times a week,
Then before I know it,
My quality time with Jesus is down by 50%,
Because of that one thing, FOOD.
That one thing leads to poor time management,
I make unwise decisions,
I'm at high risk putting off spending time with God,
Not seeking Him,
Not hearing Him,
Taking my eyes off of Him who gives me peace.
I'm more irritable instead of patient,
I'm more tempermental instead of patient,
I'm more aggressive instead of gentle,
I'm reactive rather than responsive,
It's just not good.
At some point,
When it gets bad enough,
After I smash my head into the wall enough,
I'll think to myself "Hey, something is really off. Where's my peace?".
I'll eventually realize that I'm disconnected with God,
I'll wonder "When did this happen? How did I get here... again?!".
It happens slowly but surely,
Through one little act of disobedience,
Then another one with no self-discipline,
Then another little one,
Then another,
Until the next thing I know,
I'm totally off my rhythm and game with God.
Satan never comes with red horns and a pitchfork,
"Satan comes disguised as an angel of light",
Satan comes to boil the frog one degree at a time.
"Ribbit!"
Just beware.
So in order to "present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship."
Let's talk strategy for this FOOD war:
1) Before a dinner party or event, ask the Lord for help and protection around the spiritual battle around FOOD. "Dear Heavenly Father, HELP! Be with me in this dinner party. Help me exercise self-discipline. Remind of glorying You in EVERYTHING that I do including caring for your temple, which is my body, with food. In Jesus name, Amen."
2) You can also make sure you don't show up starving at a dinner party because when you're famished you have less self-control and start eating everything in sight.
3) Simple breath prayers while you're selecting your food such as "God help me. God sustain me." does wonders. It's simple yet effective. It can take the edge off enough to help you choose wisely.
4) Strive for one MICRO-victory at a time and thank God for each of them.
This is a fight worth fighting,
Because it closes a door that Satan will always have access to until you do.
You can do all the spiritual housekeeping that you want,
But if you leave a rotten meat in the corner of the house,
It will stink up the whole house and you will have a maggot infestation.
It won't matter how much Lysol or Febreze you spray.
Until you get rid of the rotten meat,
Until you close the door that the enemy keeps using,
You will have a losing battle in an area that touches many other areas of your life.
So start winning the battle one cookie at a time,
One serving at a time,
One glass at a time.
And if anything...
Think of this as something that is PLEASING to the Jesus,
The one who gave His whole body as a living sacrifice to save us.
Can't we fight our flesh and submit it to His will this month?
"For you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body."
It's simple but significant.
It's simple but it's not easy.
It's possible, but only with God.
"I can do all this through him who gives me strength."
"Dear Heavenly Father,
I submit my BODY to You this Christmas,
As a living SACRIFICE,
To honor You in all that I do including eating,
I want to really say THANK YOU in a new way,
With something that will cost me,
With something not easy,
But something that is holy and pleasing to You.
Give me wisdom,
Give me strength,
To keep my eyes on You,
At every party,
At every dinner,
At every event that celebrates You.
Help me submit my desires to You,
My spirit is willing but my flesh is weak,
I can't do it without You.
I love You,
I praise You,
In Jesus name, Amen."
Cheers to victory over the spiritual FOOD war this Christmas!
