It occurred to me the other day, while placing an zucchini apple spice muffin on the gun on the counter, that I had to…
Wait… what? That’s weird?
Well, I suppose I could have been considerate enough to put the muffin in a little baggie and stashed a little love note inside, but I was in a hurry and…
Oh. It’s not the muffin.
Silly me. I forget placing food on weapons on kitchen counters is not a normal post-dinner tradition in homes across America. Or in most countries, I would assume.
But it’s pretty much the norm around here. Such is life when you’re married to a cop and the only way to get said cop to remember his snacks or dinner is to strategically place said food on said weapon. So she said.
What?
I digress.
As I was saying…muffin on gun on counter…I was amazed how incredibly hard it was for me to not grab one out for myself and devour it – after already having eaten one barely an hour earlier, and without so much as a hint of hunger on my radar. I just like to eat. And I don’t even stop to think about whether I’m hungry enough to truly enjoy it.
So during these 100 days, as I stop to consider what exactly it is that I’m stuffing in my pie-hole, and eventually my body, I’m trying to get to the root of my mental/emotional “issues” with food. You see it’s a combo deal, this mind-body thing. Our minds can be a weapon of mass destruction…or should I say consumption {admit it…you’re envisioning a muffin on a gun, aren’t you?}. You just cannot separate the two. And to complicate things further…there’s the spiritual dimension that cannot be neglected. It’s a triple whammy, baby.
All this pondering took me back to Temple Care 101.
After revisiting my notes, I realized it might be helpful to share them with you {aren’t I so sweet?}…so here you go, sit down, get comfy and get ready for more information than you ever wanted to know.
{I apologize in advance for the shear enormity of this post and the raging headache you may experience after staring at your screen for so long}:
WHAT IS WELLNESS? It is health of mind, body and spirit. God designed us as INTEGRATED BEINGS – when one area is off balance, our entire being is thrown off balance.
Unless you are both spiritually, mentally/emotionally and physically healthy you really aren’t completely “healthy”. As downright depressing as that may seem, until you pursue health and wholeness in all 3 areas, you won’t experience the vibrant joy and peace of a life well lived. The combination of all 3 gives you a synergistic effect.
- Total wellness is when your physical health (good nutrition, stress management, physical fitness, healthy weight, good habits, etc.) align with a healthy spiritual life. When one is out-of-sync, it will always affect the other. God made us that way…we are integrated beings.
- Until we take personal responsibly for our physical and spiritual health – we will never get ahead of the game.
WE’RE IN THIS TOGETHER: Have you ever made a commitment, be it a new year’s resolution or for an upcoming event, to get healthy, lose weight, eat better, etc?
I knew it! See, you’re not alone {if you haven’t, my next post will be especially for you…all about one’s inability to admit their desire to change. Or something}. Now that we now we all want the same thing: better health – no matter how different we may feel we look from those around us –– let’s find out why it’s not just a superficial desire, but actually a God-given hunger to attain this!
SO IF GOD IS BEHIND THIS DESIRE, WHAT DOES SCRIPTURE say about taking care of our bodies?
- “Didn’t you realize that your body is a sacred place, the place of the Holy Spirit? Don’t you see that you can’t live however you please, squandering what God paid such a high price for? The physical part of you is not some piece of property belonging to the spiritual part of you. God owns the whole works. So let people see God in and through your body.” 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (The Message)
- Think about it this way….if you had a 1.5 million dollar horse, would you feed it mountain dew and twinkies? Not a chance! Then why do we put that junk, on a somewhat regular basis, into our bodies – our temples?!?
- “Therefore, I urge you brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship”. Romans 12:1
- God presented us with the physical gift of a body. It is our responsibility to take care of it so it can be presented back to him, in service, in the best possible condition. That doesn’t mean we have to have perfect bodies…but I do think it means we need to take care of our bodies.
- Have you ever noticed – there is much about us we can’t really change (permanently, that is)…our personalities, our hair, our skin color, our height…BUT, God has given us the freedom – and ability – to have an impact on the shape and health of our bodies – that is exciting stuff! You’re not stuck where you are – you have the POWER to change this about yourself! I get so excited when I read anatomy & physiology books – we are SO INCREDIBLY WOVEN TOGEHER (muscles, bones, ligaments, tissues, organs, etc.) that I just don’t get it that someone could study the human body and not believe there is DIVINE DESIGN behind all this!
- God has the patience and desire to stick with you through your attempts and your failures…he wants total wellness for you and your family even more than you do!
Other Key Scriptures:
- The woman in Proverbs 31…strengthened her arms, and girded her loins with strength – so, do you think being a healthy and fit woman is a part of God’s plan for his women?
- “I have come so that you may have life, and have it abundantly” John 10:10
- Ask yourself…from my own personal faith and fitness level, is that true in my life?
- Ask yourself…if I was more physically healthy, what and where could God use me that he isn’t able to now in my current state? Are you functioning at your optimum level?
- Get excited, don’t feel condemned! If you could feel better physically, have more energy, get around easier, function harder for longer – do you see where God could use you more?
- “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”
- Here’s the great news about that scripture…as much as you desire to be healthy and in shape – God wants it for you even more because He knows how debilitating it is for you!
- PRAY and ask for His help. Ask him to show you your triggers for emotional eating (God wants to be your source of comfort – and He’s fat-free!)…ask him to show you where you could eliminate habits an incorporate new ones….ask him for more motivation and discipline – if He wants you healthy, do you believe he will honor your pray in this area? If you believe you serve a mighty God – do you believe he can give you power to overcome these areas of struggle in your life?
- 3 John 1:2 says “Dear friend, I hope all is well with you and that you are as healthy in body as you are strong in spirit.”
- 1 Corinthians 10:31 “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”
Let’s talk about FOOD for a moment…
- God has always used the area of food to teach his people about themselves and about Him…
- The Garden of Eden is our first introduction…remember that mess?
- Manna from Heaven was used to show God’s provision – and soon it wasn’t enough to satisfy his people.
- The miracles…feeding of the 5,000, or the wedding feast @ Cana for example.
Much teaching took place around a table – over the breaking of bread…
- In Matthew 4:4, Jesus told his disciples “The Scriptures say, ‘People need more than bread for their life; they must feed on every word of God.’” In Psalms 63:5 David writes to God saying, “You satisfy me more than the richest of foods.” In Psalms 145:15-16 he also writes, “All eyes look to you for help; you give them their food as they need it. When you open your hand, you satisfy the hunger and thirst of every living thing.”
- In just these few verses we have insight that our deep needs are to be met by knowing God and by receiving His love that flows from getting to know Him personally.
Food is woven in and out of the bible with great significance, and food – like everything else – needs to come under the Lordship of Christ. But this whole topic of food seems to bring out rebellion, anxiousness, fear and a whole lot of what’s going on inside us.
SO WHAT NOW?
My advice is to start small and set some goals.
* Look into the future, three months from now, what fitness goals would you like to have achieved by that time? Write them down and keep them in a place where you can be reminded of them daily.
* Next take a look at where you are currently. How is your nutrition? What are you doing consistently for exercise? Once you have answered these questions, find one or two small changes you can make and commit to this week, which will help you get closer to your fitness goal.
* Practice doing this each week, stay committed to the small goals that you make until they become a habit for you. Your weekly mini goals don’t have to be huge and overwhelming.
* Start small, it is better to make a small goal and stick to it, than to set a huge and unrealistic goal and fail to accomplish it.
* Can you make a small change to your daily eating patterns?
* Can you add a few minutes of extra physical activity into your day?
* Come up with a few ideas of your own and start making a commitment today. Better yet, pray and ask God to help you identify areas which you can work on.
You can do it!
