Not Just Another New Year’s Resolution – Taking Care Of My Body
Another New Year’s Resolution:
A short-lived gym membership.
A cleared-off treadmill collecting dust after just a few weeks of well-intentioned use.
“Maybe I’ll give up chocolate?” you may think. “But how can I REALLY make this year’s resolution different than all other years?”
When I look around, I see friends and family members being diagnosed with diabetes, high blood pressure, and having heart attacks at a young age. I had always assumed that as you grow older, you take more and more pills until you die of either cancer or heart disease.
But what if that didn’t have to be the case? And what if these diseases could be reversed?
We find it unacceptable to be drug and porn addicts. But what about food and sugar addicts? Why are gluttony and lack of self-control “acceptable sins?” Aren’t our bodies temples of the Lord (1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19)?
Four months ago my husband, my in-laws, and I embarked on a journey to break our food addiction. We all had weight to lose, nutrition to gain, and diseases to be reversed.
From the outside, I might not have looked like a food addict, but I most certainly was. Every time I walked into a restaurant, my eyes were drawn to the steaming hot rolls that I couldn’t wait to tear into. At a party, my attention immediately turned to the decadent brownies that I tried to resist as long as possible until I eventually let myself have a half of a brownie, then another half. After all two halves are better than eating a whole, right?
We read a testimonial by Dr. Michael Brown (a known apologist and Jewish believer) titled Breaking the Stronghold of Food. Next, a nutritional book by Dr. Joel Furhman called Eat to Live. This wasn’t just another gimmick or a miracle pill; this was simply encouragement to eat only nutritionally-good food, none of the “bad” stuff, and making that a lifestyle change.
It sounded impossible, so we started off by taking it one day at a time (Matt. 6:34), then one month at a time.
Within a couple months, my father-in-law had reversed his onset of diabetes and cut down his blood-pressure medication. Not to mention the 102 pounds that were lost between the four of us!
You may be wondering . . . what made this resolution different than all others?
A no exception mentality! This was a completely different mindset for me. I was always under the impression that “to make a diet successful, you have to allow yourself a cheat day.” But once I found out sugar is more addictive than cocaine, why would I even consider an occasional “hit?”
Accountability! Making a drastic change like this alone is nearly impossible. Doing this with my husband and in-laws has been the key to success. Throughout the week, we send each other videos of creative meals we put together and read the above-mentioned books together.
And most importantly…
The Lord! The Lord wants us to live healthfully. He provides us with a huge variety of colorful and nutrition-packed foods: fruits, vegetables, seeds, nuts, beans, and more! He is on our side and wants us to succeed! “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).
I want to serve the Lord for many years to come, so why shouldn’t I be giving my body the best fuel, rather than toxic foods? Reading these verses helped encourage my family and me on this journey: Proverbs 23:20-21; Proverbs 28:7; Romans 12:1-2, 1 Corinthians 10:13, Galatians 5:22-23, and Philippians 3:17-20.
How are you taking care of your “temple” (body)? What will you resolve to do this new year, under the Holy Spirit’s direction and enabling?
– Stephanie, LIFE Staff Member