You Are What You Think

For as he thinks in his heart, so is he (Proverbs 23:7a NKJV).

As a culture, we are very food driven. Perhaps it has always been this way and the internet highlights it more, or maybe it has only recently become so prevalent. All I know is there are countless food websites, social media pages, how-to videos and recipes online. It would appear we live to eat rather than eat to live. I am guilty of it myself, following a number of aforementioned online places.

Within this focus on food, there is a focus on the quality of our food as well as its source. Tucked in with quality are focused areas of specific ways of eating – paleo, nutritarian, vegan, vegetarian, etc. For some people, their identity is wrapped up in how they eat. Many people are intentional about what they fuel their bodies with, living as optimally healthy as possible.

All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful; all things are lawful for me, but not all things edify (1 Corinthians 10:23).

Humans are made up of three parts – spirit, soul and body. Each part requires nourishment from viable and quality sources. The better the source, the healthier we are overall. Our thoughts often drive how our parts affect each other, and what we feed ourselves in all three parts affects our thoughts.

I was an avid reader growing up, there was very little I would not read. If I started a book, I was compelled to finish it whether or not it was enjoyable. Since I read practically anything I could get my hands on, I read books that were not age appropriate and I read quite a bit that had very dark, mystical, and demonic themes. Over time, this was the genre to which I gravitated and by the time I was in my late twenties I was dealing with depression, anger and a skewed sense of self. I had taken in so much garbage over the years, it was spilling out.

My family and I met the Lord when I was in my early thirties and the very first thing the Lord did was clean up what I read, listened to and how I spoke. And these were almost immediate changes. My five senses had been subjected to such darkness that He had to deliver me and change my focus. I learned so much in my first year of walking with Him. To this day, I cannot hear a song, read a title or smell something from back than that does not instantly transport me to those feelings. This is a place I no longer with to reside, nor even visit. I have learned that the devil loves when we are transported back to those times, setting traps to ensnare and keep us there.

Over the years I have learned to feed my spirit and soul quality, and recently, I have begun to feed my body the same. When our whole person feasts on the best God has for us, our whole person becomes whole and healthy. This is why it is vitally important to read Scripture on a regular basis, listen to music that uplifts and edify, read or watch encouraging things, and chase negative thoughts away.

Junk food not only affects the health of our body, it affects our mental health. Junk food weighs us down, makes us sick due to lack of nutrients, and muddles our thinking. Junk television, music and books can do exactly the same. When our thoughts are not clear, we can be driven to do things God did not intend for us to do.

We are what we think. Ditch junk, think quality.