Spiritual Diet

So, I am on a diet. According the BMI charts, I need to take off about 30 pounds. I am looking for a happy medium.

For this week, I have started tracking everything I eat. My calorie count has been good but I noticed that my sugar intake is off the wall. Then I realized that I had been real grumpy that day and a bit anxious. I made the connection between the amount of sugar and my mood.

This got me to thinking about how important it is to watch what I am putting into my body as it has great consequences. I may be losing weight but the side affects are not desirable. So, now this got me to thinking about my spiritual diet. Sometimes, I notice that my prayer is great but my scripture study is non-existent. Not a recipe for a healthy spiritual life.

At different times, you may crave different things. That's OK. Be sensitive to the Holy Spirit and where he may be guiding your spiritual life.

When we eat too much, we feel lethargic. The same thing can happen in our spiritual life. When we have too many devotions, we can become lethargic in our spiritual life. The very things that we want to feed our spiritual life are what is dragging us down.

What are the spiritual sugars that I am putting into myself? Are these affecting me in a good or bad way? Do I have a healthy, balanced spiritual diet? Am I covering all of the food groups; prayer, sacraments, service,  and scripture?

Bottom line, we need to keep our spiritual life balanced and our physical life. Let's pay attention to our diets, physical and spiritual.

Gluttony

I live life to the fullest. Because of this, I have a tendency to go a bit overboard at times. Often times my saying is; "Any thing worth doing is worth over doing"

Ever have that happen?

This can be more than just food. A new interest comes and suddenly it consumes you. This can even include your religious life. We get so into different devotions that we ignore friends and family. 

My issue right now, though, is good old food.  I have assumed the role of family garbage disposal. I  spend each evening cleaning up the leftovers. My wife and children like to make deserts and I am always willing to help eat them. Easter has just come and gone. I am busy getting rid of all the candy so my children won't eat it. I don't even like candy!

Fasting is sound from a biblical standpoint. My wife and I both see the benefits of fasting. My gluttony is a bad habit. I pray for the strength to practice self control in my eating and other areas of my life. For now, I am looking to lose 10 to 20 pounds. I also pray for God's blessing from this practice of self control. 

On a Trek

Just recently my son asked me what a trek was. I explained it is a journey with purpose. I guess I am on trek. My trek is a journey of faith. I think, that like most treks, mine has been one of  varied emotions. Sometimes, I am excited, scared, sad, content, joyful, happy, frustrated, or melancholy. I think these are normal.

The last few weeks have been interesting. We have been having a Life In The Spirit seminar at church during lent, and it is still going on. I am part of the team putting it on. This is a joyful thing for me, mostly. This last Monday, the Monday after Easter was our fifth meeting. At this meeting, we were supposed to pray over anyone that wanted for a greater release of the Holy Spirit in their lives. 

When I got there, it was explained that we would be praying over people while sitting in chairs. I prefer to have people prayed over standing up. So, I was a bit bummed but willing to go along with the group leaders. You see, I had my vision of how things were supposed to go but I still was not 'happy' about  it. Then, as we were sitting there at the start of the meeting, I realized I was putting limitations on God. In my mind, He would not be able to work miracles unless we did it my way. Pretty arrogant, right? Yeah, I thought so too.

Needless to say, it was a wonderful night for most people,and I know many hearts were changed and people were healed. I still had a letdown experience. I got done and just didn't feel good. In my mind, I had been just a noisy gong. My prayer partner did wonderfully, and I have confidence in God's power but I did not live up to my expectations. Do you ever have that feeling? Sometimes, I think my expectations are much higher than God's or at least the expectations are different.

Thankfully, I did not wallow in this feeling. On Wednesday, we had adoration time in front of the blessed sacrament. I felt very close to the Lord, and he gave me consolation. Then on Friday, I had a meeting with my spiritual director and shared much of this with him. Having this spiritual mentor is just fabulous for keeping oneself grounded.  

Remember, that while the destination is important, equally so is the journey.