Choose Well

They were calling out to me. In all their hot, oily, salty splendor, those spuds hollered my name. Such was the case when I walked past that Five Guys Burgers and Fries joint. Yield not to temptation. Score one for team healthy!

I was chatting with some ladies in my Women’s Group and one asked how I stay so disciplined when it comes to my eating. As I described to her what I do when faced with a food choice, she summed it up quite well. She said, “So you do a lot of self-talk”. And that’s correct.

Honoring your temple is a choice. And when faced with options, I constantly have to weigh and choose.

But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.” Joshua 24:15

Because my body is the temple where the Holy Spirit resides, I have to choose to honor my temple. And choosing well is not always easy. I’ve shared previously how I’ve devised a system that supports honoring my temple through proper nourishment. You can read more about how I choose well with:

Eating Right on the go

Getting Kids to Eat Right

I like to keep it interesting in the kitchen so I’m always concocting something that tantalizes the taste buds. But on the real, truth be told I love a few foods that do the opposite of honoring the temple. I LOVE coffee, pizza, macaroni and cheese and two of my absolute favorites are tiramisu and The Cheesecake Factory’s Banana Cream Cheesecake. One slice of that cheesecake has a whopping 930 calories, 36 grams of fat and 60 grams of sugar.

Precious Lord, take my hand, lead me on, on away from that cheesecake!

When I walk into my local Wegman’s grocery store to pick up a few items and haven’t eaten lunch yet, my eyes spot the mac and cheese. One whole hot bar station is full with different types of mac and cheese: traditional, blue cheese, chicken mac and cheese and more. Can I also mention here that the bakery is right near the hot food bar replete with pastries, cakes and cookies? The struggle is real folks! Nonetheless, I begin a dialogue with myself. It sounds a little something like this:

~Mmm that mac and cheese smells so good

~Don’t even look in that direction

~Hot cheesy melty goodness

~Seek out the vegetables

~A little won’t hurt

~Honor your temple and choose well

~Ch-a (that’s me sucking my teeth)

~Brown Rice veggie sushi roll w/ small side of Sichuan green beans

~You’ve chosen well daughter.

I’m sure you are confronted with similar choices every day all day. From the moment you wake up you have to decide, will you have:

~McDonald’s Medium McCafe Carmel Mocha 390 calories 14 grams of fat and 50 grams of sugar. That one drink has your recommended sugar intake for 2 days!

~McDonald’s Bacon Egg and Cheese Bagel with egg whites because hey, you’re trying to save on some grams of cholesterol by choosing well with the egg whites yet it has 530 calories, one fourth of your total caloric intake for the day, 23 grams of fat, more than one-third of your daily value of fat and 1340 mg of sodium, more than half of your recommended value of salt for the day.

So with those two breakfast choices, one’s health account is overdrawn and checks are bouncing.

While you may not know or have readily available these nutritional facts before you consume food (though it is posted in McDonald’s) you should ask yourself, “Is this contributing to or detracting from my health?”

And I’m sharing here not to point fingers or to make you feel bad. I’m sharing because I know from my personal experiences that it IS difficult to choose well. I do have one area where I am NOT so disciplined and that is with popcorn. See I had rationalized it was healthy so I could indulge but that indulgence went too far and I had to really examine myself. You can read more about that here. But I’m happy to report; I’m getting that under control. I will not be a slave to my urges. Yes, by the power of the Spirit at work in me I am a spirit-controlled self-disciplined individual.

A spirit-controlled individual is self-disciplined. As Believers we can discipline ourselves to attend worship service regularly, to serve regularly, to dial in to prayer calls regularly, to have daily quiet time, but when it comes to eating right and exercise…well, it can be challenging.

I know it’s difficult. But I also know that we can do ALL things through Christ who gives us strength. Just like He strengthens me at this very moment to not go downstairs and get something sweet. I used to like to have a sweet little bite before going to bed but I had to end my attachment with that. Eating before bed interrupts your ability to fast overnight. That’s why the first meal of the day is called Breakfast because you are breaking your overnight fast. Eating before sleeping can cause insomnia, restless sleep, weight gain, and heartburn among other issues. I have eaten before bed and literally awoke feeling like I had a hangover. And I thought to myself, “Did that food ferment in my stomach?” I’m no doctor but that was my immediate thought.

So be empowered friends to choose well.

“Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live!” Deuteronomy 30:19

Having the right information is just one step in helping you make better choices. When it comes to what you eat, some decisions may be clearly apparent, while others may be murky. To assist you when making better choices at the grocery store and at restaurants there is a fun quick read called Eat This Not That.

Coupled with the right information is then exercising our will and making the right choices. Will we choose to add to or to detract from our health? Every food decision we make is either a deposit or a withdrawal. There is no food shade of gray, just black or white, an investment or a loss, an advancement of health or a reversal.

“Every person has free choice. Free to obey or disobey the Natural Laws. Your choice determines the consequences. Nobody ever did, or ever will, escape the consequences of his choices.” Alfred A. Montepert

I stand here, cheering you on as you choose well!

As always, it is my prayer that you’ve been Inspired to Live Fully!

Feature Image Photo Credit

Happy to connect with Dance With Jesus Fellowship Friday Grace and Truth