Bad Habits Grow Together

Many of us have recognized the spiritual nature of a battle with unhealthy food issues. But, sometimes it is tempting to brush it off with the thoughts, “I’m so committed in other area of my spiritual life — I’m a great friend, wife, mother, and servant of the Lord. I’ll deal with my struggle with food another day.”

As I researched (and frankly not liking what I was reading!) the spiritual issue of healthy eating, I found this principle in Proverbs. A commentator put it this way – “Bad habits grow together.” The implication is that unhealthy eating goes against the wisdom and teaching of God’s Word, which leads to a life of guilt, which leads to a seared conscience, which leads to a dead­ening of the heart to spiritual truth. In other words, overeating or under-eating has far greater consequences than an unhealthy body. It affects your spiritual life!

Unfortunately, we sometimes learn more from failure than from suc­cess. And I know many women who have failed in this area of food who are now waging an active battle against unhealthy eating habits. They’re making the changes that lead to a better life. They’re taking the daily steps to live out God’s principles regarding food choices. I’m in their camp, and I heartily applaud them. It’s also true that “habit” is either the worst of masters or the best of servants. And bad habits reap failure for us in the Food Department.

So now we must begin… just for today… to break the cords of harmful habits and replace them with a chain of good habits. God issues commands for strong spiritual disciplines so that good habits become our allies and the best of servants for us.

• Just for today… write out, memorize, and carry with you 1 Corinthians 10:31 – “Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” Make this the rule of your eating and drinking habits… just for today. Also pray this Prayer for a Better Life, which I am repeating here. Pray it now and each time you prepare to eat.

“Lord, may a lifestyle of struggling with food, the physical repercussions, and the spiritual deadening, not be true of me! Help me live my life in a better way—in Your way.”

• Just for tomorrow… begin following the steps in this checklist, beginning with – Do not eat too much.

Eat only when you are hungry.
Eat only after you pray.
Eat only one helping.
Eat half-portions.
Eat on a small plate.
Eat on a schedule.
Eat what is healthy.
Eat what will give you energy.
Eat to the glory of God.

• Just for this week…keep records of your eating habits. I’ve learned the habit of journaling, and I recommend the same for you. Just for this week, repeat out loud 1 Corinthians 10:31 and in a journal or a notebook write down your morning weight. Throughout each day, write down everything you eat and the exact time you eat it. Go a step further and record how you felt physically and mentally after you ate. Pay attention to what foods eaten in what quantities at what kinds brought you down or picked you up in the Energy Department. Then you can make changes each day toward a better life.

These changes will help you become the vibrant woman you want to be!

I hope that this day-by-day breakdown makes the challenge of healthy living easier. I promise that it will be full of the benefits that God intends for you. For more daily steps to living God’s plan for you in every area of life, read my book, Small Changes for a Better Life.

Read Bad Habits Grow Together on Elizabeth & Jim George.