The Medicine Cabinet: Eat Well — Friday
Psalm 107:8-9
Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind, for he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things. (NIV)
As we wrap up this week’s discussion on eating well, let’s throw it back to a very profound statement Scott made on Sunday: “Rightly ordered loves lead to rightly ordered lives.” In order to maintain a healthy relationship with the many wonderful things on this earth God has given to us, they must each be put in their proper place as good gifts that pale in comparison to their perfect Creator, who is worthy of all our praise and worship.
Food, music, nature, technology, people, sex, money, etc. are all very good things, but unless we’re careful, we’ll undoubtedly fall prey to worshiping the pleasure we derive from them and place them on a throne in our lives that isn’t theirs to claim. Paul talks about this very thing in Romans 1:25 (NLT): “They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise!”
Growing up, my family always made a point to pray over big holiday feasts (can’t help but reference the “Aunt Bethany says grace” scene from National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation), but we didn’t usually pray before meals in everyday life. On the other hand, my sweet fiancé, Connor, grew up in a family who made it a regular habit, and even though I’ve had a full year and a half of being in a relationship with him to get used to praying over our meals together, I still sometimes find myself three bites in before realizing he’s sitting across the table looking at me with a sweet smile, food untouched, waiting for me to pause my overzealous chowing so we can pray. Whoops.
I obviously have a ways to go in this discipline, but I’ve nonetheless discovered there is a real power in this very simple practice of regularly and sincerely giving thanks to God for the food in front of me. When I humbly acknowledge the source of the sustenance in front of me, not only does it remind me of the goodness of God to provide for my physical needs, but it also centers me on a healthy perspective of that food by reminding me that God is the only One who can truly sustain and satisfy me.
So if you, like me, haven’t already made this a habit, I encourage you to start! And this applies not just to food, but every good gift in our lives. Though it may sound far from profound, this simple discipline of thankfulness is an incredibly helpful step toward rightly ordered loves and rightly ordered lives, as it re-orients our attention, adoration, and worship to the One truly who deserves it all.
“Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind, for he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things” (Psalm 107:8-9).
Friday’s Reflection
Make it your goal over the next few days to sincerely and humbly thank God for everything you eat, and see how it impacts your perspective on food.
