You know, I've gotten fat. No beating around the bush - not gonna try and make an excuse. Bottom line is I'm putting more in than I am putting out. Not much exercise and not very good choices with eating. But daggummit, I'm a Christian.
Wait - what? What does that even have to do with anything? You ask.
1 Cor. 6:19, that's what.
"Or 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."
Ouch.
Man, this makes me think about some Old Testament times in which people who were unworthy of being in the temple were killed....that might make me think that God takes the temple pretty seriously.
Most of the time we eat whatever we want and don't think twice about it, maybe even being quite arrogant and saying "Lord, thank you for this food and bless it to our bodies". And then I bite into a pizza dripping with grease. Or maybe I'm thinking well, I'm watching my weight, so eat 2 lbs of salad with half a bottle of ranch. Hmmm... how's that working for me?
As a Christian, people are going to look at me and arrive at a conclusion. They'll see that I'm soggy around the midsection and assume that my spiritual life is also soggy around the midsection. The thing is I'm not going to be so arrogant to say that their wrong. I'm not saying that my spiritual life sucks, but I am saying there are sooooooooooo so many things that I could be doing better that I am not. Just as I am not fit physically, I am not fit spiritually. This is a problem.
We are suppose to be good stewards of what God has given us. Good stewards, a biblical command, means that we are to take care of well. Not skid by through life. We know smoking and drinking and drugs are harmful to our temple; and we are pretty good about avoiding them (if not, look for help, don't go through it alone. There are so many people willing and wanting to help you break your addiction!). But, one of the worst ones has sneaked in. Food abuse. Not many of us are looking at that as a type of sin or issue. But, it is.
And think about it. The Lord isn't honoring us in our eating habits. He's not "letting it slide" as we may think. He is truly punishing us and trying to get out attention!! Take a look around, the majority of our illnesses and conditions stem from poor eating habits. And bad eating habits are killing people. So what do we do then?
Repent! Who ever thought someone would have to repent from food right? Well, let me be clear - I'm not saying from food...I'm saying from abuse of food. I'm not telling people to be vegetarians (I couldn't!). But I am saying that in this age of information, we can do research. We know what works and what doesn't. We know processed foods are bad for us. We know overeating is bad for us. We have no excuse and we are being held accountable for it - whether you want to believe it or not - if you don't, I'll be the first one to call you out and say you've got your fingers in your ears and your eyes pulled tightly shut.
Now, what about me? I seem to have come down on "people", but I said at the beginning that I am fat...I gained 40 lbs when I moved to the west coast. Lame. So, I have started walking in the mornings and eating way more vegetables and fruits. I have lost 4 lbs. this week. No, I'm not on a power trip about it either. Sure, if you want to think I'm being hypocritical, you're welcome to. It won't change any facts.
For me, I know I need to commit myself to excellence. I need to be self-controlled as a leader in the church (1 Timothy 3). That includes my weight. And I know God will honor me for taking care of HIS possession well.
Take it personally.
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