October 17, 2011 - Diet

Last night as I looked at my son chomping on his bag of potato chips that he had purchased, it reminded me of how often we need to hear basic truths. I mentioned to him that he needed to take more seriously his diet if he truly wanted to be the best athlete he could be. His response was, “I’ve got to put on weight somehow.” I quickly reminded him that even though he does need to bulk up some that is not the way to do it. He needs to put on the right kind of weight and also give his body what it needs for complete healing from his knee injury. Literally put, he needed reminded that if you put crap in you get crap out! I reminded him that staples of his diet need to include protein and good carbs.

The interesting thing is that this discussion came after I had spoken twice yesterday about one’s diet. Only I was not talking about the physical diet but instead one’s mental diet…

I reminded the folks I was talking with of a very well-known truth; one which I have written about in these weekly devotions; yet one that I think needs repeating often.

Ephesians 1:13-14 tells us that the believer is indwelt by the Holy Spirit and sealed until the day of redemption. Galatians 5:16-18 reminds us of how this plays out in our lives. As believers we have both the Spirit and this flesh (and its mind) that has desires. It is truly a battle that takes place for supremacy of our thought lives. And which one wins that battle will be which one you feed the most.

Basically the world is full of “junk food” that feeds the flesh and its desires. Our flesh craves things that feed our pride and our lusts. That is the “food” for the flesh.

So what does the Spirit like to eat? God’s Word! God’s Word is the nutrient that transforms our minds. God’s Word is the nutrient that strengthens the Holy Spirit in us. God’s Word has to be a major part of our daily diet if we want to be the best spiritual athletes we can be! (Browse through Psalm 119 today.)

I urge you this week to take a look at your “diet.” What are you “feeding” on each day? What are you watching, listening to, and talking about?

Is God’s Word a staple in your diet? (Or are you content to just “eat” of it once a week at church?)