But Is It Beneficial?

1 Corinthians 6:12-13 – "Everything is permissible for me" — but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible for me" — but I will not be mastered by anything. "Food for the stomach and the stomach for food" — but God will destroy them both. The body is … meant … for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. (NIV)

I am struggling (for the first time in my life) with overweight. I console myself by saying that I am not obese, but if the truth be told, I am getting there! All my life, I was a skinny mini (98 pounds "soaking wet" at my wedding) who could drink milkshakes and eat chocolate bars, cakes, and pies with impunity. I have become addicted to cream cheese and bagels. (These days, I rationalize that it is fat-free "cream" cheese.)

When I hit 40, what a rude awakening that was! Suddenly, every calorie became an extra pound on my "gluteus maximus" (the place God gave me to sit) which was getting quite maximus indeed! Now, I struggle to take off what I so blithely allowed myself to put on to my small-boned frame. What a challenge! Oh well, so much for willpower!

Daily, I began to (half-heartedly) pray, "Lord, give me the strength to say 'No' to temptation", but then the tempter would throw the mental image of a succulent chocolate éclair into my brain! So, I would bake another batch of chocolate chip cookies! So much for half-measures!

Then, I read the Scripture for today. In it, the Lord reminded me that my body is not my own to treat blithely as I will, but I belong to Him. Therefore, I am encouraged to lose the weight I have accumulated. But I do so love to bake and eat sweet treats! Yet, is it beneficial for me? A person doesn't need to be a rocket scientist to know the answer to that question.

Prayer: Dear Lord, help us where we are struggling with our addictions, whether they be sweet treats, tobacco, drugs, or alcohol. Remove from us the desire for anything which comes between our relationship with You and our testimony as a Christian. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.

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