Food, Faith, and Choices

As a food enthusiast and blogger, I am often asked the typical food questions, if I am eating a salad I’ll get the “how can you survive on rabbit food?” or if I am eating a brownie with ice cream, chocolate sauce and whipped cream “how can you afford all those calories?” and of course the good old “what diet are you on?”. And many are disappointed to hear that no, rabbit food nor indulgent desserts are the only thing I eat, and no, I do not have a diet plan. All I can say is that I am just ‘mindful’ of what I eat and when I eat it. Sounds simple enough, but choosing how to appropriately feed ourselves is not always that simple.

Life is full of choices. And in a world where choices grow by the second, the simple act of making a decision has gotten more complex and difficult, becoming almost a science of its own, with plenty of studies and statistics related the art of making choices. Specifically, on how to manipulate the human brain, and the truth is that we are all, at one point or another, motivated to making mindless and feeling-driven choices.

It is hard for me to look at those words and not feel a little shame for my own iniquities, for the many times I have made mindless choices just because I was “going with the flow” and/or conforming to the patterns of the culture, or just because I would rather take the decision somebody else had already made for me, because it was readily available, and I just did not have to “look” for anything else. Everyday, I have a choice on what to feed myself, and what the world wants to serve me is a plate of “junk food”, so I’ve got to go seek for the “real food”, I’ve got to seek with intention and purpose, and make mindful choices.

It wasn’t until I came to a crossroad point with my spiritual and physical wellness, that it dawned on me… just like the faith I needed, the food I needed was not found on a set plan, not on a checklist and, most certainly, not on anything man-made. Faith, food and my feeding choices started to make a lot of sense. What my body and my soul need is rather found on a relationship, a relationship to that which nourishes me. To nourish means to sustain, to strengthen, to build up; so the “real food”, the provisions that I was looking for, would do just that for me… for my body and my soul.

Accepting my faith in Christ as my Savior, knowing Him personally and not through anyone nor anything I was supposed to do, but just for who He is and what He did for me, was the most important choice of my life. And is still an ongoing daily choice, a relationship, that allows Him to do for me what He has promised to do, to nourish my soul.

And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness. Colossians 2:6-7 (NLT)

If you explain these things to the brothers and sisters, Timothy, you will be a worthy servant of Christ Jesus, one who is nourished by the message of faith and the good teaching you have followed. 1 Timothy 4:6 (NLT)

Accepting food in its most natural, unrefined and organic form and its relationship to my life, was also a life changing choice. One that freed me from the fears of what food would do to my body, allowing it to do what it is naturally intended to do, to nourish my body.

Daniel spoke with the attendant who had been appointed by the chief of staff to look after Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. “Please test us for ten days on a diet of vegetables and water,” Daniel said. “At the end of the ten days, see how we look compared to the other young men who are eating the king’s food. Then make your decision in light of what you see.” The attendant agreed to Daniel’s suggestion and tested them for ten days.  At the end of the ten days, Daniel and his three friends looked healthier and better nourished than the young men who had been eating the food assigned by the king. Daniel 1:11-15 (NLT)

Freeing myself from worldly religious ties and eating norms, allowed me to choose God-given provisions straight from the source and establish nourishing relationships.  Food and faith should not be a set of rules, but rather a lifestyle of persistent choosing of that which truly sustains, strengthens and builds up my body and soul.

Our daily bread [food], to me, is like God’s Word: better in its purest form and an abounding source of life, a medium of nourishment and care, of fellowship and community, of provision and gratitude. And so each “meal” is an opportunity to worship, to connect, to disciple and to be thankful.

As humans we will always fall short of making the right choices all the time, and that is okay, for in our weakness we are made strong through Him. Even after failing, we can not stop pursuing intentional choices and seeking His goodness for our bodies and souls. I really believe we were made to live in permanent connection with our Nurturer and all the nourishment He provides. He does not promise perfection, nor freedom from struggles and hurts. No He doesn’t. But He does provide the sustenance to get through it all.

We don’t get to just live this life, we get to nourish it. And that might just be the best choice.