I struggle with food, but not in a huge way. I’m not the type to raid the kitchen at night or run around like a crazy person to lose weight. But I’ve read a lot about nutrition, and I’m here to tell you, it’s tyranny.

Of course we should eat right. Absolutely. I garden for this purpose. And I typically don’t eat packaged, plastic food because I believe the natural state God created food is probably the best state to eat it.

So I read another book about nutrition that tells me a certain food is a no-no (Does it even matter what it is?), and I practically threw my hands heavenward. “I give up,” I told the empty room.

Because one day a food is deemed a miracle, and the next day it’s diabolical.

In that moment, I heard a still voice, “I am the God of food,” He said. “Trust Me.”

I could either spend my life running after the next fad or miracle cure. I could spend hours of my life fretting about what I’m eating. Or I could trust the God of food. After all, He made it.

This reminds me Colossians 2:20-23:

“You have died with Christ, and he has set you free from the spiritual powers of this world. So why do you keep on following the rules of the world, such as,  “Don’t handle! Don’t taste! Don’t touch!”?Such rules are mere human teachings about things that deteriorate as we use them. These rules may seem wise because they require strong devotion, pious self-denial, and severe bodily discipline. But they provide no help in conquering a person’s evil desires.”

Friends, why do we become enslaved to the world’s diet rules? What does it profit us? It is tyranny. Let it go.

Some closing thoughts:

• We are God’s creation. He makes beautiful people out of us. To constantly disbelieve that is sin.
• We must approach food with gratitude. Many folks in the world don’t have it.
• Placing more trust in the One who made food is better than following food fads.
• Taking good care of the temple where the Holy Spirit resides is important, but it must not become our focus or we will become obsessive about our weight, our looks, our workout schedule.
• American society dictates a completely unrealistic body type. Don’t buy into that. Be healthy and joyful, but don’t be under the tyranny of the airbrushed folks on magazines. That’s not reality.
• What matters even more than our exterior is this: Are our hearts growing more beautiful as we age? Or are we desperately clinging to the fountain of youth? In doing that, we forget that the true gift of wisdom comes to those who age joyfully and gracefully.
• Food is fuel. It helps us live our lives.
• Food is a gift, and is especially to be savored and enjoyed among friends. It builds community.
• It’s okay to indulge now and again as long as gluttony isn’t your daily diet. (Gluttony is a sin.)
• Making rules about food makes you want to disobey those rules.
• There’s a difference between being in shape so you can be healthy and alert to serve Jesus, and being in shape to impress others (or even yourself.)

Q4u:

I’d love to hear from you. What do you think about food? What has messed you up in your view of it?