Yesterday, I had some good old corn on the cob for dinner and I love, love, love corn on the cob so much. Well, as I was eating it, I started thinking about how much butter I had put on my favorite "healthy" delight... and realized I drowned away all the health benefits with excessive amounts of salt and butter. See, where I'm from, corn on the cob isn't corn on the cob without plenty of salt and butter/margarine to really make that flavor pop.
Have I got any witnesses right there?
It's the same thing with other vegetables I enjoy like green beans, cabbage and collard greens. They just taste better when I add some some ham hocks, or bacon for flavor and slow cook 'em.
My, my, my.
But the "good taste" can sometimes undermine the "good benefits" of the food and pleasing my palate takes precedence over caring for my temple.
Well, if you have a similar weakness, then you'll understand how this mentality can sometimes carry over into our walk with God. By that I mean, if we're not careful, we'll get a mighty word from God, spend time in church, seek God in prayer and worship, and then, turn right around and drown out those spiritual health benefits with things that aren't good for our spiritual man.
You see, the enemy wants to keep us immersed in the toxic things of this world and limit our exposure to the things of God to keep us distracted. So, we'll find ourselves watching more foolishness on TV than we do reading the word... sitting for hours in front of crazy reality shows, music videos, talk shows, awards shows, entertainment "news" (and I use that word loosely) sitcoms and movies etc. Instead of listening to songs of Zion... music that infuses life into us like worship and praise songs, we'll fill our ears and our soul with tunes that don't edify us... and wonder why we're left feeling empty.
But God wants us to be balanced in our lives, in order to maintain our spiritual health.
Does that mean we can never watch TV or entertain ourselves? No, absolutely not. Does it mean we can never eat butter or season our vegetables with our favorite fat-laced, yet flavorful meat? Nope, doesn't mean that either... 'cause I'm gone have me some bacon or ham hocks in my greens on the few occasions when I do eat them! :-)
But, it does mean we can't over indulge in things and do them excessively, because then, they begin to negatively impact us. We ultimately drown out the very things that are beneficial to us, because they are overpowered by the flood of images, messages and impressions that aren't helpful or needful.
So, what can we do about it? We have to allow God to lead us and show us the things we need to do in moderation, as well as, the things we need to abstain from altogether.
We have to work very hard not to live in extremes where we're watching crazy TV programming all the time, listening to unedifying messages through music... and rarely doing the things that will keep us healthy, uplifted and strong in the Lord.
I hardly ever watch TV; I absolutely don't listen to everything and don't agree with the belief that you should...and despite my enjoyment of my favorite soul food meals on occasion, I'm quite health conscious. I believe in reading my word and seeking God daily and spending more time in His presence than anywhere else, because He is my sustenance and my keeper. I need Him above all else.
God is my everything.
Some people call me "deep," and others call me boring... I just call me sold out for Jesus and striving everyday to live a life of purpose that's pleasing to my King.
How about you?
Remember, if you always fill up on junk, you won't get very far on that kind of fuel. So, let us all be more diligent, balanced and careful about what we feed ourselves. As the saying goes, "You are what you eat," and that applies to the natural and the spiritual.
God wants us to be concerned about our temples. He desires for us to fortify them, nurture them and take good care of them, so they will be fit for the Master's use.
As always, thanks for reading, and until next time... may you be empowered to prosper!
Dianna Hobbs
www.eewmagazine.com
