You Are What You Eat

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            Earlier this week I approached the sign-in sheet at work and saw a handwritten note at the bottom that said, “You are what you eat and the company you keep.” I didn’t think about it much at the time, but the thought has stuck with me through the week. With all of its other resolutions, January usually brings thoughts of what I eat—nothing new there, most of us need to lose a few pounds, right?—but the idea of being what I eat has given me pause this week. Am I really the rather bland carbohydrate-packed diet I’ve been keeping lately—rice, potatoes, etc., or am I something chocolate, which I always crave? Hmmm. While I don’t necessarily think of myself as bland, I also don’t think I am always ultra-sweet. As I considered what I eat and the company I keep, my thoughts turned to more spiritual in nature. In John 6:48, Jesus says that He is the “bread of life” (NASB). Do I get the nourishment I need to sustain me, or is my diet bland and inadequate? With what do I stuff myself, and is it really good for me?  As I thought of this, I realized that the recurring verse in my life during 2010 applies here. The verse that has been the theme for 2010 is Romans 12:1-2, which says:
“Therefore, I urge you brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to the world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good, acceptable, and perfect” (NASB—emphasis added).
This verse tells me that IF I spend enough face time with Jesus in His Word, I will not fill myself with the junk the world offers. As an added bonus, if I sacrificially present myself to Him, He considers it worship; if that’s not enough of an incentive to “eat right,” Paul also says that the renewal of my mind (through the good company I keep—God’s) will lead to a walking out of my faith that proves His will. I know all of this, but like every other struggle I have in my life, the rub is in actually living it. It’s easy to “eat” junk—both literally and figuratively—and think nothing of how I spend my time, but it’s not nearly as rewarding as drawing closer to God. God has blessed me this past year with friends who are good company. They have challenged me to draw closer to Him through His word. Now, if I could just get the “You are what you eat” part down pat…

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