On your mark! Get set! Go!
And we are off…to the forty days or so season of potential feasting and eating
way too much food, resulting in added pounds to our already overweight bodies and
clothing that will no longer fit.
Yes, I said “too much food”; such a problem to have
when so many had too little food. To you who are reading this in a country
where starvation is commonplace, I am truly sorry that we who have so much are
not more grateful...
I say “potential” because none
of us really know what will happen tomorrow. But I know that we are not supposed
to worry about what we are going to eat or drink (see Matthew 6:24-34), and
therefore I am confidant of the Lord’s provision in my life.
But if this season goes like
it has for all of the previous years, we will eat way to much, too fast,
without really taking time to enjoy or give thanks.
So what can we do assuming we
will go the route of eating and eating and eating and eating and eating…? My
suggestion is twofold:
1.) Be more aware of what goes IN to your body. Look before you eat; look, really look, at all of
the work that went into the feast you are about to eat. So much effort was put
into the breads, meats, salads, beverages, etc. prior to your consumption. Be
grateful for eyes that can see…
So much detail was put into
the decorations on the cookies and candies prior to you grabbing a handful that
goes from your hand to your stomach in ten seconds or less, as your eyes spot
another dish that your body craves.
Take time to linger, to salivate,
to ponder as you pick it up; don’t just pop it into your mouth. Slow down and to give thanks! Be grateful for your
nose that can smell…
Take time to smell and to feel
and to give thanks. Take time to let the beverage or snack or food item roll in
your mouth and let it hit the various parts of your tongue that were created to
pick up distinctive tastes that are bitter or sweet or savory…
Take time to really enjoy the
love that was put into EVERY item that you drink or eat; even if someone picked
the item up at 7-11 on the way over to the gathering…
2.) Be more aware of what goes OUT of your body. Yes, I did say; “OUT”. Relax; I am not being crass
or vulgar. Jesus Himself, to make a point, said; “Do you not yet understand
that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and is eliminated?” (Matthew 15:17)
When I have become more aware
of what goes out of me, I have become more aware of several things; all of
which have led to me becoming more grateful for what I eat or drink…so bear
with me as I expound.
I become more grateful as I realize
that my internal organs necessary for digestion are functioning to take food
from my mouth and eliminate whatever is not useful even after almost six decades
of use.
This includes my mouth, esophagus, stomach, small intestine,
and large intestines, liver, gallbladder, and pancreas…some of which contribute
chemicals that aid in the digestion of the food and beverages that I have consumed and
process them into nutrients; which the body uses for energy, growth and cell repair
needed to survive…and then creates and eliminates what is not useful to my
body.
This includes the urinary tract that filters wastes and extra fluid
from the bloodstream and removes them from the body. The ureters, bladder, and urethra move urine from the kidneys and store it until
releasing it from the body.
Grateful for what went in and what went out.
Simply put, I have learned to be grateful every time
that I void liquids or solids that I am able to eat food and my body works as
it was created to work. Grateful that I don’t need a colostomy bag to collect
my solid waste or urostomy bags and
a catheter to collect my liquids
And grateful that I can do this myself privately and that
I don’t need assistance to do so.
And yes, grateful for even the toilet that is private
and works properly and for toilet paper available for the task at hand.
So, as you start this season
of feasting, stop today and give thanks to the One who made you; no matter what
shape or condition you are in…it can always be worse.
Stop and give thanks for how
He has provided for you…you have it better than you realize; you really do.
Stop and GIVE THANKS today with a grateful
heart for the many blessings He has given to you today.
HAPPY THANKS GIVING
