Walk of Life, Day 23, August,2021-Thoughts from the Book of Proverbs. Right Attitude
“The right attitude – Eating Healthy Both Physically and Spiritually”
Proverbs 23:1, 2 “When thou sittest to eat with a ruler, consider diligently what is before thee: and put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to appetite.’
‘Eat to Live’, but do not ‘Live to Eat’. The literal meaning of today’s verse is very clear. When you find yourself very much interested in eating food, it is better you control yourself, especially when you sit with people who are greater than you. As we try to glean thoughts from today’s verse from proverbs, we shall learn two lessons, one being a lesson for the body and the other for the soul.
According to the literal meaning, we learn that we should watch what we are eating and how we are eating. We have few television as well as YouTube channels which teach us to cook different varieties of food. These have been there since my childhood. Recently, I have come across few channels which have modified these cookery shows. Under the food and travel section, we find few people who call celebrities to be their guests for the day, meet them at a restaurant, and eat all varieties of food. They show us how they eat and what they eat. While the olden day shows of cooking food, encouraged many young men and women to try to prepare new dishes, the new trend has been encouraging both old and young to experiment with new restaurants to satisfy their hunger. Thanks to few operators who bring the food to our doorstep. How lazy have we become? Eating out has become a fashion these days. People are least bothered to keep a watch on what they are sending inside through their mouth. It seems to be just enough if we eat to our heart’s content.
Surprisingly, when it comes to the spiritual aspect, we find that many of us are on diet. These days we find the Word of God being served plenteously, even then we look weak and pale. It is because we do not take care in feeding on the word of God. We ought to feed on the word of God to grow spiritually. Feeding on the word of God does not mean you fill yourself with every doctrine that you come across. In the verse picked from Proverbs, we read about a knife kept at the throat to control the person from eating more or something improper. In spiritual terms, that knife can be equated to the spirit of discernment. When you surrender yourself completely to the authority of the Holy Spirit, and plead Him to guide you, He will give you the gift of discernment, by which you can accept only that which comes from the Lord.
Eating to heart’s content keeps us physically fit. Eating what the Lord Himself offers keeps us spiritually fit. Being fit in both areas in necessary. If we are not mindful of our physical fitness, how do we get the strength to work for the Lord? If we are over caring about our physical fitness, how do we get the time to work for the Lord?
