SUNDAY, DECEMBER 17

Matthew 6:22 -The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light.

The phrase “you are what you eat” has a  tendency to make me stop and think. No, it’s not because I worry about what those Little Debbie snacks could do to my waistline, or the fact that I don’t exercise as much as I should to burn off those extra calories. Rather, to me the phrase is another reminder that what I consume will have consequences on me as a person. Sometimes we worry too much about what we physically consume and not enough about what we spiritually consume.

Jesus declares through the above passage that if we focus on God, our lives will be filled with his light. His claim through this verse (as well as the next verse in this passage) is that we ARE a product of what we take in, and what we choose to surround ourselves with and to partake in will have an effect on who we are. Just as eating the wrong foods can have an effect on our weight, the choices we make, the people we surround ourselves with, and the lifestyles we choose to live have an effect on who we are as individuals.

To put this in a practical sense, you cannot literally EAT spiritual food...but what you see and hear will nourish your soul, either positively or negatively. With that knowledge, the question you might ask yourself is this: what food are you giving to your spiritual stomach? Are you relying completely on fulfillment from your friends, job, close relationships, or whatever...and are you still spiritually hungry? A donut can give a sugar high and leave us empty an hour later, and sometimes the things we do, the people we hang out with, and the lifestyles we live may only be sufficient at the surface level. The best diet is not always the easiest one, but when we actively seek God and receive his love and guidance we will always satisfy our spiritual hunger.

Candace B.