New Year, His Way
Enjoy the first of our new series on nutrition and faith with nutritionist Linda de Courcy.
(From the January - March 2019 issue of VOX)
It’s that time of year again. We’re feeling inspired (or guilted) into making changes; promising ourselves we’ll exercise more, lose weight, get to bed earlier, be more patient, etc. There are articles, vlogs and 21st Century technologies on hand to count our steps, calories and heart rate. Yet, as most of us have figured out, they’re not the answer we’ve been looking for.
Jesus gave us the key to success in every endeavour of life, including health (mental as well as physical), in Matthew 6:33: to seek His kingdom first. This is His way of doing and being right, then (when we stop worrying about what to eat, drink and wear) everything we need will be added to us.
Psalm 18 is pretty clear, “Lord, you have brought light to my life, my God, you light up my darkness. In your strength I can crush an army; with my God I can scale any wall. As for God, His way is perfect, all the Lord’s promises prove true” (v 28-30 NLT). God has a perfect way, and He wants to light up areas in our lives that are dark, where we’ve tried and failed to change unhealthy habits. The biggest challenge is resisting the pressure to try doing everything in our own strength, rather than His way, and looking to society for the latest 10-step programme to get us there.
So what if, in 2019, we shifted our focus away from our way and tuned into His perfect way? So, dear brothers and sisters, you have no obligation whatsoever to do what your sinful nature urges you to do. For if you keep on following it, you will perish. But if through the power of the Holy Spirit you turn from it and its evil deeds, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God (Romans 8:12-14 NLT).
“Do you want to be led by the Spirit of God in your eating and exercise habits?”
Do you want to be led by the Spirit of God in your eating and exercise habits? “So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you and quickly respond to it” (Romans 12:1 MSG).
This is how we get Him involved: do you need to lose weight? Place your eating habits before God as an offering. Do you need to get fit? Place your walking (cycling, swimming etc.) before God as an offering. Do you need to spend more time reading God’s Word? Place your social media time before God as an offering.
This is His way of doing and being right, and it supersedes the world’s way. Speaking these Scriptures out and thinking about them during the day will empower us to stay committed to His way. And when you do fall off the wagon (His way), let Him help you back (before you eat that whole tin of biscuits…) and keep you on track.
Have a healthy His way 2019!!
Linda de Courcy MSc., is a Dublin based nutritional therapist and certified pilates instructor who is passionate about empowering people to take control of their health. For more information or to contact Linda visit her website at www.nutritionforlifeireland.com
