Too Much of a Good Thing

I enter the New Year, like many of you, resolved to exercise faithfully, eliminate sugar and processed foods, drink more water, reduce stress, and consume more fruits and vegetables–all in an attempt to heal and prevent disease, maximize energy, retard aging, maintain mobility, and preserve mental acuity–a commendable, if overly ambitious list.

A cautionary word from Aristotle for those who, like me, have a tendency toward over-doing a good thing: All things in moderation.

Long before Jim was diagnosed with lung cancer, I was concerned with a healthy lifestyle for me and my family. My kids were eating whole grains when their classmates lunched on baloney and Wonder Bread sandwiches. I started yoga in 1973 when  Lilias brought the foreign practice into my Midwest living room via PBS. 

When I became a cancer caregiver, healthy living became even more a priority. I wanted to do everything I could to aid in Jim's cancer recovery and prevent a recurrence when he was in remission. Over our 16-year cancer journey, I made additions to and revisions of our health plan which, I believe, contributed to Jim's survival and my over-all health. But have I gone overboard?

The Bible tells us:

"Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body" (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).

Are we not to take care of our bodies so that we can better accomplish God's purpose for us?

Of course, we are. The problem arises when we become consumed with what we consume. The national preoccupation with health is leading to orthorexia, an obsessive preoccupation with avoiding foods deemed unhealthy and dietary restriction of such "impure" foods. Healthy eating has for some become a religion complete with dietary laws as rigid as those in the Old Testament.

Ironically, when we become obsessed with what goes into our bodies, our focus moves away from the ultimate source of energy and power–God. In our quest for the formula that will cure all our ills, we overlook the most crucial element–the power of the Holy Spirit. Through the Spirit, God provides peace to the stressed, strength to the weak, energy to the weary, healing to the sick, and renewal of spirit and body–far superior to the benefits of power smoothies.

As you make your resolutions for the upcoming year, be sure to put God in the number one spot. Bypass the eight glasses of purified water and drink from the well that never goes dry.

"But whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life" (John 4:14).