What’s trending now

I love to study nutrition.  I love how God put foods on the earth to heal and protect us.  I love how different foods have different vitamins and minerals.  I like making new recipes with healthy foods.  It fascinates me.  I’ve noticed a trend in nutrition; however, that is very concerning to me and it reminds of the way that I heard satan say to Eve in the Garden of Eden, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree in the garden?'”

That subtle change in God’s Word was enough to get Eve to begin a conversation with satan so that he could tempt her to believe what he said instead of what she knew to be the truth of God’s Word.  This is the same thing I see him doing in the world of nutrition.

I just picked up 3 of my favorite nutrition books this morning to verify.  The first one had a picture of the chain of evolution from monkey to human to fat human.  The second and third talked about how far we’ve come since being cave men.

So, I consulted my book on the history of creation:  The Bible.  I see that God created man and woman in a garden.  He gave them trees with fruit that bore seeds, herbs, and plants.  After they sinned and had to leave the garden, their son Abel was a keeper of sheep.  Cain was a tiller of the ground.  (Shepherd and farmer)  These aren’t unintelligent cavemen with no food.  These are intelligent people with access to healthy foods, intentionally growing them.

I see Jubal coming in a while.  He was the father of all those who play the harp and flute.  Tubal-Cain was an instructor of every craftsman in bronze and iron.  Oh!  And did I mention that before these two were born, Cain built a city and named it after his son?  He wasn’t living in a cave, unable to form words or think properly.

Even after the great flood, Noah became a farmer.  He planted a vineyard, too.  It just goes on and on from there.  As Christians, we have to guard ourselves.  Yes, be wise enough to eat whole foods and take care of your body.  I believe 100% that God put foods on this earth to nourish our bodies and give us the things we need.  But we must beware of what subtleties we allow into our minds.  Know the truth of God’s Word.  Know your Creator and how all things began.  Make sure your house is built on the Rock and you will be safe when the winds of untruth come blowing by.

We must remain in the Word and pray as it says in Ps. 25:5, “Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.”

Dig in!

jamie

Scripture references for the things I mentioned today, in order:  Gen. 3: 1-24, Gen. 2:7-25, Gen. 4:2, Gen. 4:20-21, Gen. 4:22, Gen. 4:17, Gen. 9:20

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Tasty but destructive

Pr. 26:22:  The words of a talebearer are like tasty trifles, and they go down into the inmost body.”

I read an article that was written about one of my great-aunts who passed on a few weeks ago.  She would have been 100 years old this winter.  The author of the article had gone to visit her and asked my great-aunt what life advice she would give a middle-ager.

The 3 things my great-aunt said she would have done differently were to read her Bible more, pray more, and not believe things she heard about others without having first heard their side.

I didn’t see that last one coming.  Not something I would expect to hear a 99-year-old woman saying; however, perhaps a relationship in her life was lost or altered in her middle years that caused her to still think such a thing all those years later.  I’m not sure.

This verse tells us that it shouldn’t be surprising, though.  Words of gossip do not just bounce off of us, but are taken in, savored, digested, and soaked up into our very core.  It then becomes very difficult to erase what we’ve heard, lie or not, because our minds are so hungry to make us feel better about ourselves.

If a 99-year-old woman, knowing she’s passing on to eternity, is still thinking about the effects of a decision like this, it seems it is certainly something we shouldn’t take lightly.

I guess the best thing is probably to avoid gossip at all, whenever possible.  Then, if there is a situation where we do hear something, we can take her other advice and pray more.  We can pray that God would help us be responsible with what we’ve heard and either help us forget it, if it isn’t necessary for us to know or concern ourselves with; or to give us a proper setting to hear the other side.

Remembering that no one is perfect, and that we all fall short of the glory of God and of perfection, we must be careful with not only what we hear, but also what we choose to do with those words.  We can choose to savor, digest, and soak it in to raise ourselves up, or we can choose to protect, love, and build others up.  With God all things are possible.

Soaking in the advice,

jamie

Looking for a healthy alternative?

Pr.4:22:  “For they are life to those who find them, and health to all their flesh.”

Nutrition and health are major topics in our world.  I wonder exactly how many books have been written just about Superfoods?  Scientists, dietitians, nutritionists, and every day people are constantly discovering new information about health.  I enjoy a tasty, energy-packed green fruit and veggie drink myself.

Through discovery, we know that the simple act of washing our hands prevents countless illnesses.  Now we understand that eating whole foods gives us more energy and less weight than their processed alternatives.  Technology allows us to see exactly what happens inside the body when we choose an unhealthy lifestyle.  It can be quite fun to discover the vitamin/nutrient facts of kale, the many benefits of fresh ginger, and the antioxidant powers of blueberries.

In Pr. 4, Solomon tells his son that there is life and health in his words and sayings.  This is true for the entire Word of God.  If we’re searching for health, there is no healthier place than arms of Jesus, our Healer.  When we give attention to the words of our Father, we find life; and not just more enjoyable life, but eternal life!  Choosing to incline our ears to the sayings of our Father, we allow health comes on our flesh.

Through discovery, we know that the simple act of believing that Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life brings salvation.  It can be quite fun to discover all the way the Lord has been faithful to His children over the years.  Reading the word, we understand exactly how sin affects us and how submitting to God brings true freedom to us and to those around us.  Inclining our ears to the Word, we find a God full of grace and mercy, who lovingly guides and directs us.  Jesus gives us glimpses into what is going on within the body to bring forth filth from our mouths.  It’s all so exciting!

As I think back to the moments when I was living outside of the Lord’s will and purpose for my life, I remember the aches I always felt.  Sure, I may have had moments of exhilaration or pleasure in my sin, but once the moment passed, I was left with guilt, shame, pain, confusion, feelings of being out-of-control, hopelessness, and despair.  Sounds like unhealthiness to me!

Giving my attention to the words of my Father has brought health to my flesh and my mind with signs like joy, peace, hope, security in forgiveness and grace, self-control, reassurance, desire of better things, faith, and confidence in the strength of my Lord.  Truly, God has breathed life into me once again, and continues to give health to me as I grow closer to Him and make new discoveries in His Word.

Are you excited about health and nutrition now?  Me, too!

Getting healthy,

jamie