Additives and Preservatives

Ever wonder how much sickness, disease, and just plain ole’ feelings of lethargy/fogginess would go away if we simply lived on the foods that GOD gave us??

On a few occasions for health reasons, I’ve had to eliminate all foods from my diet that were not basically God given.  I lived on fruits, vegetables, meats and fish, certain grains, non-dairy milks, and water… for 6 months at a time.  Never felt better in my life!!  I could pile my plate FULL of these things, eat as much as I wanted, and yet was leaner than I’d ever been before.  My head was clear and my body just - “worked”.   I found myself choking on the sweet juice that bursts out a plump grape.  Colorful vegetables were exploding with so much flavor I couldn't get enough of them.   Diving into a delicate piece of fish was a savory sensation… why would I ever want to fry one??  And without worry about counting calories, I could even enjoy the simplicity of sweet cream and salt in a concoction we call... butter.  The grocery store became a new experience. I loved looking down into my cart knowing everything I had in it was for my benefit.   It wasn’t easy though.  I still craved the foods my body was used to.  The ones it became literally addicted to.  And it was hard at times to watch other people indulging in whatever looked good to them on the menu.   

Did you ever notice how all the “healthy foods” are typically around the perimeter of the grocery store??  It’s because they need refrigeration.  And why do they need refrigeration??  Because they don’t have additives and preservatives.  God given foods are meant to supply what our bodies need… NOW.   

After the 6-month elimination was up... I was "allowed" to add foods back into my diet.  I started slowly... trying a little of this and a little of that.  No harm done at first.  But it didn't take long until my body started craving those man-made foods once again.  Slowly the additives and preservatives entered my body... slowly my body started getting used to them... until slowly, the symptoms returned.


So the question is WHY.  Why would I trade the vast array of foods that God put on this earth for the ones that some guy is designing behind a computer screen??  "Whaddathink, Harry... do we need more orange #58 to make cheddar color look more real??".   Does it make any sense that I would put in my body what man makes to last on a shelf for years... when God's design of what my body needs is for NOW???

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Ever wonder how much sickness, depression, pain, and overall feelings of despair/desolation would go away if we simply lived by the guidelines God gave us???  

When we face the mountains, walk through the valleys, or are led into the deserts of life... we tend to go back to those basics.  It's what our souls NEED when our lives are no longer "working".  We long for the sweetness of His Spirit.  We sink our teeth into the richness of His Word.  We fill our emptiness with His presence and we feel FULL.  We are so HUNGRY for Him... we can't get enough.

But when things settle down and life starts clicking along again, it's easy to get distracted by the things of this world.  By the delicious offerings that distract us from the basics.   Every form of media tells us that where we will REALLY find satisfaction is in "adding" more of this and a little of that.  As we watch others around us indulge, the old cravings resurface. Our focus begins to turn from what made us well... to "preserving" the very way of life that made us sick in the first place.   We are left once again... feeling hungry.

So the question once again is WHY.  Why would we trade the abundant life... life beyond our wildest dreams... for what some guy in a marketing department is saying.  "Whaddayathink, Harry... if we tell them they'll be happier when they're thinner, richer, more famous, more accomplished.... think they'll buy it??".  Does it make one lick of sense that what "this world" says will make us happy eventually could even compare to what the CREATOR of the universe has for us NOW??  

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From the beginning of time in the garden and that first bite of "wanting more"... it has been human instinct to strive after it. But just like perimeter shopping at the grocery store, GOD has surrounded us with what we need. What we need physically. What we need emotionally. What we need spiritually.  Not only what we need to survive, but what we need to live life to the FULL.  When we examine those things God puts in our "cart"... we'll notice that what He's supplying is what we need right NOW.  He specifically tells us not to worry about tomorrow or next year.  He gives us what we need TODAY.  

No additives or preservatives.

Just HIM.