Faith along the way

Food is one of my favorite topics, hobbies, happy places…greatest loves. I love food and love to eat. In my family, it was and still is, a way to show love, a way to celebrate various occasions. Many of you can probably say the same thing. Due to health reasons, I’ve had to make changes in my diet, teach myself how to cook (even though I love food, I hated cooking, really hated cooking), and learn to make healthier food choices. I spent almost two years on iv nutrition, unable to eat much or retain any nutrients and still don’t retain nutrients well, therefore, I still need to focus on eating nutritious food that is good for my body. In this process, I have learned to love cooking, trying new recipes, and cooking has become an activity that I love. Who knew?! That being said, I do love a good, sweet treat! It’s my weakness. Good nutritious food is something our body needs to function, and help us lead a healthy, productive life.

Spiritually speaking, we need good “nutrition” for our body, mind, and spirit. What we think and do affects us, affects how we function and how we relate to people and circumstances along the way. What goes in is crucial: things we watch, read, listen to, and who we listen to are important, as well as the activities we participate in. Even how we speak to and about ourselves is important.

We are created by our heavenly Father. Each one of us is made uniquely, specially, by our loving Father. We have special traits, features, and talents He has given to us. Each one of us is special and we are loved by Him. Psalm 139:14 tells us we are fearfully and wonderfully made. Our bodies are beautiful and complex and an amazing work of our Creator God. If you read further, you will see He knew us before we were born, knew the moment each person was conceived, and is present in every aspect of our lives. Isn’t that amazing?

Back to spiritual nutrition. We need a daily diet of God’s Word. Deuteronomy 8:3 tells us we do not live by bread alone, but by every word from the mouth of God. It is crucial that we are reading God’s Word daily, studying it, meditating on it, memorizing it, applying it to our lives. His Word is life to us. We also need a steady diet of prayer and communication with our Father. He loves us and wants to commune with us. He is a relational God, and how can you have a deep, close relationship with someone without speaking or communicating with them? Not possible. Prayer helps deepen our relationship with the Father, helps bring us peace, calmness, and strength in every circumstance and situation, helps us discover His will for our lives, strengthens our faith, helps us make decisions, and so much more. We have Someone to talk to regarding our deepest fears, our greatest sorrows, and our hopes and expectations…even our dreams for our life and for the ones we love. He is always faithful to listen and hear our cries, always has time for us, is always there for us, always loves us.

Another aspect of a healthy spiritual life is church attendance. This seems to be a contentious topic. People say they can worship anywhere. The Bible tells us in Hebrews 10:25 not to forsake assembling together. Believers are called to gather together to worship God. We get strength from each other, learn and grow in our Christian walk as we assemble together to study and learn about God’s Word. We receive love and compassion from one another, we encourage and pray for one another, endure trials and heartaches with one another, laugh together, cry together, and form a strong bond as brothers and sisters in Christ. It’s so vital and important for our spiritual growth. We grow stronger together. I hope you have found a wonderful body of Christ to worship wish. Personally, I love my local church. I miss them when I’m not there, and they miss me.

These are just a few thoughts the Lord brought to mind as I was thinking about spiritual growth and spiritual health. I hope it encourages and speaks to you.

Glory to God and His blessings to you,

Jackie