April 14, 2012

And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men. Colossians 3:23 (KJV)

I’ve been on the diet train several times. I get derailed a lot, but here are some things I’ve learned from others that have helped me. They are just some basics. The concepts can work for our spiritual journey to lose the weight of the world too.

Clean Out Unhealthy Foods

If I’m going to do very well in watching what I eat, I first have to get rid of those things that aren’t good for me. You know, those chips, sweets, and fatty foods.

It’s the same in our spiritual lives; we have to clean out the sin and bad habits that could cripple us in our spiritual journey too. We may have to look down deep and really reflect on our life in order to do this.

Educate Yourself About Foods

We have to learn all about the benefits of healthy foods. What vitamins do they contain? What is good for protein? What makes our brain healthy? What foods prevent cancer?

We have to learn how to put those healthy foods together in order to make a meal so we are getting all the benefits we can.

We need to educate ourselves on the things of God in order to eat right spiritually as well. We need to learn our Bible and where we can find those things that will fuel us so that we can make the most of our spiritual food.

Avoid Temptation

Sounds easy, doesn’t it? We all know that avoiding temptation is hard when it comes to eating and nibbling on those foods that aren’t good for us. We all do better if the temptation isn’t set before us. Of course that isn’t always easy.

Maybe at home we can avoid it easily but when we go to someone’s home for a meal or to restaurants, it can be very hard to avoid that temptation to eat something that’s not healthy for us.

We have to set some guidelines us for ourselves, like knowing a restaurant’s menu and calorie count ahead of time. We many need to eat something healthy before big dinners and parties so we don’t overdo and things like that.

We also don’t want to get into situations that can cause temptation spiritually. Feast on God’s Word before situations arise where we need to be around nonChristians. Know what you believe so you can count on it when it is needed.

Don’t Get Sabotaged

When we are trying to lose weight and get healthy, we need to be around friends and people that don’t discourage us. Losing weight around people that tend to sabotage you never works. You know who I mean. Those people who continually offer you unhealthy foods or that constantly tell you that just “one” won’t hurt you.

Avoid those people. Instead, find someone who will encourage you as you move forward.

It’s the same in the Christian life. Avoid bad company. Don’t hang around with those who continually make bad life choices or try to get you to do things that aren’t fitting of a Christian.

Final Thoughts

Face it. Any weight loss and healthy lifestyle journey is hard. It can be a long and winding road with bumps and curves along the way. We can’t take such a hard journey in our own willpower.

Willpower is not what we want to rely on in a tempting situation when it comes to food and healthy choices. We want to face the journey with preparedness. We have to know all about healthy food and be educated. We have to set some guidelines in place for how we’ll handle certain situations. We have to exercise and make good choices each day.

We have to do everything we do “heartily”. When we do that, it involves everything, not just our willpower but doing everything we can do to do something to the best of our ability.

And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men. Colossians 3:23 (KJV)

Aren’t you glad that we don’t have to rely on our own willpower spiritually? We have that wonderful God-Power to rely on. He’s already done all the work for us. We can have salvation because of Him, because of His life, because of His death, and because of His resurrection.

So, are you ready to lose the weight of the world?

Copyright ©2012 Julia Bettencourt

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