I've always heard knowledge is power

It’s been a while since I’ve had the chance to sit down and update my blog.  I have missed it.

In my reading the other day, I came across the following verse from Hosea 4 “my people are destroyed from lack of knowledge…” and it got me thinking.  I do not read my Bible as much as I should… I don’t learn as much about the Biblical customs/traditions/etc as possible so I could apply them in context with what I read.  I need a deeper knowledge of the scriptures and how they fit in with the people then so I could better apply them to my life now.

That also got me thinking about how I used to eat.  I had no knowledge about what I was putting in my body.   I bought into the cliche of "better living through chemistry" as it applied to food.  Now, I’m learning about the different things that we’re consuming and have been shocked by the junk we’re consuming, sometimes even doing so to be healthy (have you read what's in some of the low {whatever} foods??).  We truly are morons at times.  (I said WE, not you).   The less we know about what we put into our bodies, the worse we are for it.  We stay tired, our vitals go wrong, etc.

A greater tragedy is not feeding our spiritual life good things.  Listen to what people are saying in books/TV shows/music/movies/etc closely.  If they are clearly going against your beliefs, change channels, leave, whatever you have to do.  Don’t be like I was at one time and just go grab something to eat and hope that part of will be off when you get back. 

Please, let’s join together to put into our minds, hearts and bodies things we know are good at least for 2 weeks.  If a food has a list of ingredients that looks like they are written in a foreign language, skip it for a banana or a salad with olive oil dressing.  If a TV show has a history of saying things that are 180 degrees away from your beliefs, turn the TV off and read or, better yet, go for a walk or run.  We can’t consistently avoid things that are not in line with our beliefs, but we can take a week or two off.  We may find out that the TV show we thought we liked, really isn’t as good when we go back to watch it after “cleansing” our mind.  We may also find that the food we thought we liked really doesn’t taste as good as we remember.  If we do this long enough, we may also find our pants fit better than we remember!

Thoughts?

May He Increase and I decrease,

shane

You can't have real un-noticed change

Looking at my pictures above, you'll notice I've changed a bit.  I changed with guidance from liveRIGHTnow (http://www.liverightnowonline.com/).  One thing you won't notice is the change has happened all over... not just my face and belly.  There are changes you don't notice, however, in the pictures:  I have more energy, I can actually run now, I can even wear out a four year old rather than the other way around.  Another thing I thought was odd is my shoes and caps now fit differently as well.  I have a pair of loafers that I have to wear two pair of socks to wear.  We were talking about this at work a while back and when I told a co-worker about this, he said "wow, you were fat from your head to toe, huh?".  I'd not thought of it that way, but it is true. 

Ginger and I were talking the other day and she commented that she also thought my feet had "shrunk" (this is different than her saying my feet stunk, but I digress).  These two comments made me think.  When I changed one thing that most folks wouldn't notice, it lead to changes that they do.  Think about it... when was the last time you were in a restaurant and REALLY noticed what someone was eating other than if it looked really good or something.  By changing what I eat and the amount of exercise I get, neither of which most people would give a second glance to, my whole body, from head to toe, was transformed. 

Think about that in a different context.  If we are really sold out to Jesus, we really don't have to announce it... people will know.   We don't need to miss an opportunity to lead someone to Christ, but we also should live a life that people can see a difference in us.  The Bible talks several times about our need to change.  Two places come to mind... Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13:11 " When I was a child, I talked like a child. I thought like a child. I had the understanding of a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me." and, more specifically, in 2 Corinthians 5:17 "¹⁷ Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new."  Did you get that?  all things have become new.  We're not the same person we used to be, physically or spiritually.  As big of a change as you see above, there is an even bigger change inside me that happened years ago and was made possible just over 2000 years ago.  I am a new creature. 

How about you?  Have you changed?  Think so?  Do others see it?  If not, re-evaluate and be honest with yourself.  If you’re not different, there is no change.

Thoughts?  Comments?  Love to hear 'em.

May He increase and i decrease,

shane

God, Fast Food, Dad and Bob Dylan... what a combo!

Other than the story of Jesus birth, death and resurrection, one of my favorite stories, if not my favorite story in the Bible comes from 1 Kings 18.  The story starts to unfold in verse 19 when Elijah and Ahab were talking about who has caused trouble for Israel and ends with God showing Himself to the Israelites in a powerful way.  (Read the story here:  http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20kings%2018:19-39&version=NIRV

  I love the confidence and humor displayed in Elijah.  He shows himself to be someone I’d like to hang out with and, I believe, my Dad would like to hang out with as well.  If we look at the history of the story, though, it reminds me of one of my favorite stories about my Dad’s Dad.  I’ll get to that shortly.

So what does that have to do with weight loss?  Healthy Eating?  Exercise?  The other half of what this blog is about?  Well, you see, people then had a problem.  They had competing loyalties.  They were trying as hard as they could to worship God and the other gods of the area/time referred to as Baals.  This reminds me of the way we are in America today.  We’re going to get healthy… we’re going to eat right… we’re going to lose weight.  Then, the next day, we’re pulling through McDonalds/Burger King/{insert your favorite fast food place here}.  We may try to continue walking with one foot on each side by ordering a grilled chicken sandwich and drinking a diet coke, but what we’re doing is eating something that may (or may not) have started off as chicken but is so processed and shot full of chemicals that it is damaging us.  We cannot have our proverbial cake and eat it, too.  We have to decide… do we want to eat processed junk food that is quick and cheap *OR* do we want to lose weight and increase our health?  If we want the former, we need to stop working toward/talking about the latter.  For the most part, barring a few freaks of nature, they are mutually exclusive.  Decide and fall in line and life is easier. 

Same thing in our Spiritual lives.  We show up to Church on Sunday morning, may sing a few songs, may even give money… maybe even tithe.  Then we cross back over the line and walk on that side the rest of the week.  Next Sunday, if we feel like it, we’ll go back to Church and start again.  We need to choose a side and follow that leader.  In the late 70s, Bob Dylan (not that I think he’s a theological person to follow) had a song that said it best:  “You’re gonna have to serve somebody; Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord; But you’re gonna have to serve somebody”.  Just like with our eating, the sooner we pick who we’re going to serve, the better we’ll be. 

So, how does this story remind me of my Dad and Grandfather?  Elijah’s confidence in God and sense of humor remind me of my Dad.  He’s someone to be proud of and set a great example for me growing up.  When we look at the background of the story is where I think of my Grandfather.  The people in Israel were going through a bad drought then.  They’d been praying to their gods as well as God for rain, but it hadn’t come in about 3 years.  The story I remember of my Grandfather (and I hope it is true) is the community where I grew up was going through a drought of their own way back when.  The men of the Church decided to have a special prayer meeting to pray for rain.  My Grandfather was one of two men that night that brought his umbrella!  That’s faith, confidence and my memories of my Grandfather.    

Thanks for reading… hope you got something out of it.

May He increase and I decrease,

shane

Life might be like a box of chocolates, but sin is like a pizza buffet

I've been slow in posting recently, we've been out of town, Sarah's not sleeping again, etc etc etc.  One thing that's been weighing on my mind (and stomach) since Tuesday is another correlation between our spiritual lives and physical.  After swim class, we went out to eat with a bunch of Ginger's friends at the local pizza buffet.  I knew I'd eat some pizza, so I had a pretty big salad before.

As I ate a couple slices, I thought, this isn't **that** bad... However, about 5 minutes after eating, it was.  My stomach hurt, I felt bad, actually felt guilty plus felt like I'd been ran over by a truck.  It was the stinkin pizza that I'd just had that didn't taste bad eating.

That's the way it is with our spiritual life as well.  We do this or that which doesn't seem that bad, but before you know it, we've done way too much of it.  Maybe it is something that in and of itself is not bad unless taken to extremes.  But... then comes the reckoning when that activity or word or whatever hits.  We feel bad, we wish we hadn't, but it is too late.  It's done.

The other thing that comes to mind is that before I started eating better, we'd go to these places occasionally and I'd leave not feeling bad.  That intake was normal.  When we continue doing things we shouldn't, our spiritual lives become such that our conscience dwindles and dwindles.

Let's join together by getting the pizza buffets out of our spiritual lives, then let's get them out of our physical lives.

Running and Boxing (no this isn't Rocky 127)

I've been thinking all week, what is next?  I keep going back to 1 Timothy 4:8:   For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. (thanks, http://www.biblegateway.com).  


The verse really could mean different things to different people.  One could look at it and say, "well the Bible clearly says that physical training is of little or no value, so why do it?"  I, on the other hand, see that the Bible mentions it and the verse seems to say, at least to me, that physical training is important, but not nearly as important as spiritual training.  OK... I got that;  had that before.  What keeps ringing in my head, though, is the mention of physical training.  I mean, it could have said the color clothes you wear, the kind of breakfast you have or any of a million things.  So, I'm thinking Paul must be saying physical training is important.  Why else would he mention it?  


Let's think a little broader, Paul also mentions in 1 Corinthians:  "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize."  Hebrews (author unknown, but credited to Paul) says "let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith".


So the New Testament authors are telling us of running and boxing.  Preparing our bodies for these two sports.  I see from this, that if I have my body under control and tamed for running, I have it under control when other temptations come about.  I need to be training to "run with perseverance".  Once I have my body tamed, then I'll be in better shape for the spiritual combat I'm faced with every day.  


Don't do like I did for so long and pass over the boxing reference.  Boxing back in these days was nothing like it is today.  Boxers wore gloves with spikes in them and usually fought until one was dead or at least incapacitated.  Sounds like something I'd want to be in great shape for, what about you?  That also reminds me of the stakes of our spiritual "boxing" we do every day.  The stakes are high and there are no time-outs.  Let's get our bodies in shape and prepare our bodies and spirits for the boxing matches of the day.  


May He increase and i decrease, 


shane

Choices

I know I haven't kept up with doing this once a week like I'd planned.   It's been a rough few weeks in the Mason household.  I've had to make some decisions here and there and the blog, sadly, has lost out a few times.  This got me thinking about how choices often times happen way before a decision is made. 

We make choices and decisions every day.  I choose to eat better than I used to.  I choose to excercise.  In an earlier post, I wrote that my kids were not going to be a statistic.  That is something that we have to choose now, not when they're 12 and experimenting with drinking or 14 and spending "alone time" with boys or... It happens now.  We choose now to do things to set our kids up to make responsible choices as they get older.  Because of that choice,  I choose to work at the job I do so I can be home at night.  I choose to put their well being and happiness above my self pride. Most importantly, I choose to put my faith and hope in my Lord, Jesus.  We have to make choices, drive a stake in the ground and say "this is how it is".  Once we do that, our decisions will follow those choices (most of the time).   

We have to choose to stop abusing our bodies with the plethora of crap the marketing firms we call fast food is dishing out.  (yes, I used plethora and crap in the same sentence... that's called talent ;-) ).  The time for that choice is at home when you're sure you can make that commitment.  Not when you're in the drive through lane at the golden arches trying to **decide** what is the least toxic on the menu.  Once we've made that choice we decide in the morning to have oatmeal or yogurt or eggs and toast rather than the doughnut drive through on the way to work.  Once we choose to eat better, we'll decide our kids don't need the kids meal with the choking hazard painted with lead paint in a cartoon box. 

This also applies to our spiritual lives.  One of my favorite verses in the Bible is Joshua 24:15.  Many of us know it says "as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord" and I like that.  I **LOVE** the whole verse though.  From http://www.biblegateway.com/ "But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD".  We have a choice in who we serve, but make no mistake, we will serve someone.  So, my challenge to you is a tweak to this verse.  If serving God seems undesirable in your sight, that's fine, but don't put it off, choose today whom you will serve.  Whether it be yourself, budda, mohamed, money, fame and fortune, or whatever.  Bear in mind, these are all temporal "little g" gods that will have no power to keep you from the gates of hell.  For me, Ginger, Natalie and Sarah, we will serve the Lord. 

Thanks for reading!!!

May He increase and i decrease,

shane

Fuel and Salt

I've noticed recently that we have lots of food that is no-calorie, low calorie, etc.  It got me thinking why do we eat this stuff?  Is it really a selling feature to sell food that our bodies use for fuel that has no fuel or has had a lot of the fuel taken out of it?  Or has had the fuel altered to be different than the "normal" fuel?  Would we buy gas for our cars that has had all or most of the chemicals removed needed for combustion to happen?   My truck isn't very new or worth very much money, but I wouldn't put anything like that in it.  I buy fuel to be able to go places.  So the engine will function the way it should.  I want the engine to pull a load if I am pulling a trailer, I want it to make my truck go fast if I "floor-it".  Let's go a bit further.  I buy either gas or E85 for my truck because that is what it was designed to use.  It wasn't designed to use diesel, but it is sold where gas is and looks a lot like gas.  My truck wouldn't function well, if at all, if I started putting diesel in it (plus, have you seen the prices of diesel???)

Our bodies need nourishment from the food we eat, which includes calories we use for fuel.  I had a co-worker ask me the other day if I am still counting calories or not.  He was taken aback when I told him I never counted calories.  I ate (and still eat) when I'm hungry and I stop or don't eat when I'm not.  Throw in some exercise and you've got what dropped between 90 and 100 lbs off me and is still off.  The trick is eating the right foods.

So, I come back to my first question... What are these foods (and I use that term VERY loosely) that have had the calories taken out of them?  Do we eat them to get full and limit the intake of calories?  There is some logic there, but if we're hungry, shouldn't we eat?  If we're not, why are we putting things in our mouth?  Isn't hunger our body telling us it needs something?  Let's concentrate on getting food in our bodies that our bodies can use (like gas in our cars) and let's stop putting things in there manufactured for the taste/smell/appearance.  Let's face it... once we're done with it, it all looks the same!  Our bodies will function better and I bet if you're not the weight you should be, that you'll notice your clothes fitting better really soon. 

We don't need to put tons of calories in our body just for more energy, we can over do.  Plus, not all calories were created equal.  There are good ones and bad ones.  Calories our body can effectively and efficiently use and others that it doesn't know what to do with.  There are gas pumps and diesel pumps. 

When we go to the grocery store, how do we know which "pump" to use?  Look for foods that were not processed.  Fruits and veggies from the produce section.  Get fresh meats.  Remember, God didn't put any of our food in boxes for us. 

I've rambled on pretty good about this empty stuff we're putting in our bodies and calling food.  What can I use to apply to my walk with God in this?  In Matthew and Mark, Jesus talks about Christians being the salt of the Earth and asks what salt that has lost it's flavor is good for.  Are we the kind of Christians that make up programs, classes, even whole churches that don't provide saltiness?  If our job is to add flavor, why are we bland?  And if we're bland, what are we good for?   Let's all, as Christians, come out of the box!  Let's be good for something.  If I were put among a group of people, would they be changed?  Would there be a difference in the group?  I hope so, but have to admit, I'm probably at best half salty.  I'm working on becoming more salty, though.  What about you?  How salty are you?  What are you doing to add flavor?  Are you trying to add the right flavor?


May He Increase and i decrease!