A willing mind wants to know.

Now that we have all the practical tools for a healthy lifestyle in place; i.e. eat well, move more, it is time for us to start drilling deeper. I think those practical tools, which really are universal tools, are necessary but they definitely are not all there is to living a life that is healthy and whole. So this week we enter the dark, mysterious, caverns of the human mind. 

If you want to know or learn something it is only possible with the cognitive learning skills that are embedded in the seat of the mind. We receive all our initial information with one or many of our five senses (touch, taste, smell, see, hear) and without the brain in full functioning healthy and fit form, we will not know what to do with that information. We do not come out of the womb with a full functioning and healthy mind, unblemished yes, but not fit. It takes years and years of processing information and of trial and error to get those synapses to start firing and bridging areas of the brain together before we are up and running in a somewhat of a whole form. The problem is that as soon as we start learning, we are receiving good news and bad news. We are being told truths and lies. Because this world is not perfect and we are not perfect people. We can try our best, but even the best intentions to get it right, will fall short. Which is why we can all say that we come from dysfunctional families and smile. 

If you trace our dysfunction back through the blood line it started when the first son and daughter of God chose to believe a lie. And lies have been plaguing us ever since. We are confused. We don't know. But in the heart of every man is the desire to know what to do. What is the "right" thing to do? Which way should I go? Those basic questions that we all have and has given philosophers over the years many reasons to want to get to the root of the why. We all fall into one of two categories. Either we want to know and are going to investigate and inquire, or we would rather not know because we are not willing to change anything should we find out that what we have been doing all along is bent and skewed. If we are bent and skewed, this means we will have to change. 

"As for you my son Solomon KNOW the God of your father......for the Lord searches all heart and understands every intent of the thoughts." (1 Chronicles 28:9). Is it just me, or do you find that many people who say they follow Jesus, don't really KNOW Jesus? Which makes me wonder why did they ever chose Jesus? It all starts with revelation. God reveals himself to those who inquire of him. It says that later at the end of this verse that "If you seek Him, he will let you find him". The Hebrew word for know means "to allow oneself to be inquired of". God allows us to inquire of him. To know him. We initially come to Jesus with a pure, right and true motive. Our intent is right, so God reveals himself to us and shows us His grace, mercy and love that came in the God man Jesus. He reveals the mystery. And we realize, OF COURSE, OF COURSE it is about God and the sacrifice of His son Jesus, and when God came near. We come to know God, because he allows us to inquire of him and he shows himself to us because we have a pure heart when we first seek because we really want to know! And when we really want to know, God will SHOW UP! It' is a promise. For those who don't really want to know, because they have no desire to have their hearts or minds shifted, God has already searched their heart and thoughts and knows that their intentions are wrong. That they are self-seeking not God seeking. But when God shows up, and the relationship begins, there is a wooing time. A time of peace, and rest and joy. We are restored and given hope. But guess what? You can bet the battle is coming. The doubts are headed your way. Those lies that have been swirling in your head all your life, the lies that come in the form of doubts and fears will come to the front of your mind. The voice that says "people are going to think you are crazy", or  "this is not real" and "no one is going to like you because you like Jesus." "What will people think?" those forces are jockeying to be God in your life. To keep you from knowing God any further, because if you go further you WILL fall in love with Jesus. Let me assure you that just because Jesus enters your life does not mean that life gets easy. As a matter of fact you can bet that it will get harder in some ways, BUT the irony that is a CERTAINTY is this; as long as you do not turn your back on him or forsake him (which is to walk away) you are covered!! THE PROMISES STAND that "never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." (Hebrews 13:5) and he came so that we "may have life, and have it to the full." (John 10:10) and "if God is for us, who can be against us? "(Romans 8:31). 

Is your mind willing?  Because if your mind is willing to know God, you can bet that God desires you healthy and whole, as far as it depends on you! Whether that means weight loss or joy gained. You cannot lose! 

Comments

[Alisa Keeton]

Sugar,
Thank you. Thank you for affirming the call on my life.
Peace,
Alisa

[Tiffany]

Ok so I just returned from a trip of "overindulging" I mean Disneyland with my family. I had such an eye opening experience about just how unhealthy our world really is. Aside from the fact that Disneyland is the "happiest place on earth" or as my husband referred to it the "happiest money vacuum on earth" The walks of life are many there and it gives you a real picture to those numbers we all hear about about the mass amount of people that are overweight and or obese. I would say that was the majority walking around disney.
So I felt like I was very equipped and strong with all my WL2FM knowledge and new confindence in making the right food choices. But wow its a jungle out there. There is such a small and I mean small amount of healthy food choices while at the park and the hotel we stayed in. I did bring my usual protein bars, almonds, and 2 days worth of Go Lean Crunch for breakfast but other than that I was at the mercy of the disney menu and the options for food at the hotel. I was amazed at the fact that even the little jar of jelly or peanut butter option for toast had either High Fructose corn syrup or hydrogenated oil as the first ingredient. So plain toast it was with a watery bowl of oatmeal. The rest of the "free" continental breakfast at our hotel was nothing but SUGAR and BAD CARBS! Then off to Disney for lunch ok so lets see do I choose a hamburger with fries option or a breaded chicken sandwich today? Day 2 lunch do I go with the salty,cheesy chicken taco's or the Chicken salad served in a bread bowl yes I chose the salad with shreds of iceburg lettuce and shredded chicken (so glad i asked for the creamy lemon dressing on the side). Anyways, we truly do have it all wrong. Even when going out with the attitude that i can and will make good choices it is still a "battle" to do that. After explaining this scenario to a friend she summed it up... yes we do have the occasional "disney diet" but it is still no excuse why everyone can't move away from that and make those good choices. So the lesson I learned is yes as Alisa said it is a "battle ground" out there no matter where we turn. We will always be fighting against the current in all we do. But in the end how awesome our father is there to fight it with us as long as we keep him along for the ride. So yes we are a world of poverty in so many ways. It hurt me that so many are missing out on the joy of what I feel and the rest of us believers that we don't have to do this alone.
I do however have a true passion to help rid of the "disney diet" menu and find ways we can implement a "better choice" menu. I mean come on if cost is the issue to offer the healthier stuff we already paid $7.69 for a very unhealthy, and grose disney cheeseburger!