Doxa

I Corinthians 3: 16-17 (ESV):

 ¹⁶ Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? ¹⁷If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.

We continue this week discussing healthy nutrition and how we ought to take care of our bodies, being temples of the Holy Spirit.

We should avoid eating processed foods. What exactly is a processed food?  A broad definition, found in Wikipedia, defines it as the transformation of raw ingredients into food or food into other forms for consumption. For example, removal of an unwanted outer layer, like the peel of an apple or a potato, or the slicing of a potato, would amount to processing by that definition (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Processed_food.) A narrower, and more practical, definition for our purposes would be that “processed food” is that which contains ingredients that are not natural, which has been chemically altered through additives like flavors, flavor enhancers, binders, colors, fillers, preservatives, stabilizers, emulsifiers, etc., or which has been manufactured (http://health.amuchbetterway.com/how-do-you-define-processed-food/). The consumption of food containing these kinds of additives may have adverse health effects.  At the same time, processing, although it has its benefits, frequently decreases the nutritional value of food. Fresh food usually contains a higher proportion of valuable naturally occurring (and not synthetic) vitamins, enzymes, minerals and fiber.  Heat, for instance, destroys Vitamin C, and canned vegetables would, therefore, have a lower proportion of natural Vitamin C. 

Whole grains, for example, are better for us than refined grains like white flour and white rice. They contain fiber to regulate our systems and B-Vitamins to boost our brain and provide energy.

If you are trying to lose weight, whole grains are especially beneficial as they keep your blood sugar more stable than refined grains and enhance fat burning.  They are also digested more slowly than refined grains, and keep you full longer.

There are nice tasting whole grain alternatives to your food favorites, like pasta, bread, rice, and even waffles and pancakes.  Instead of eating white rice, try brown rice, which comes in long grain, short grain, jasmine and basmati.  Giving up white rice, for me, is akin to pulling out all my teeth. Those who know my eating habits and preferences well know that I can eat white rice three times a day. Variety for me amounts to eating jollof rice instead of white. However, I have no real excuse because whole grain versions of rice are actually quite tasty. Instead of giving up white rice, or white bread, all at once, you could try gradually supplementing your diet with the more healthy kind.  Speaking of jollof rice, brown rice holds its own very well in the dish and gives it a lovely texture.   If you are feeling particularly adventurous, experiment with other grains like bulgur wheat and quinoa.  

We should avoid other processed foods and drinks like junk, fast and sodium-high foods like donuts, cakes, pastries, cookies, potato chips, fries, pizza, sodas and canned food. Eat healthy snacks like fresh fruits, carrot and celery sticks (without the accompanying and customary dips), whole grain pretzels, whole grain popcorn, nuts (in small quantities because they are high in calories), dried fruits like raisins (within moderation because they are high in sugar) and Greek yogurt (which you should sweeten with fruit, avoiding added sugar).

I will provide one word of caution: watch the labeling on the processed products that you do buy.  You should buy products with ingredients that state whole wheat or whole grain (compare enriched wheat which is actually refined flour). If you are concerned about price, Asian Stores and wholesalers like Sam’s Club sell whole grain rice at fairly reasonable prices. In addition, avoid ingredients like hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated fat, trans fats, high-fructose corn syrup, monosodium glutamate, artificial colors and flavors, and preservatives.

Transforming the way we eat is a gradual process, but taking those little steps will be of long term benefit to our health.

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 I Corinthians 3: 16-17 (ESV):

¹⁶ Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? ¹⁷If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.

Happy New Year!  I pray that 2010 will overflow for you with God’s divine favor, love, peace, joy, prosperity and excellent health. Last week, I talked briefly about God’s mandate, in the Bible verses quoted above, to take care of our bodies, as temples of the Holy Spirit, and about my personal commitment to make healthy living a priority for 2010.

I am glad to report that I have already taken small steps to further my pledge. Between Tuesday and yesterday, I have done three walking/running sessions, each of the last two covering six miles, as part of training for half-marathon (13.1 mile) races (for more information, visit www.charmcityrun.com). I began exploring the idea of training for a half-marathon eighteen months ago, but it was not until last week, Tuesday, that I finally undertook the first outing. During my first session, I would have thrown in the towel but for God’s grace! I arrived a few minutes late at the Goucher College race track in Towson where I had planned to meet up with the rest of the training group and our coach. I encountered a woman who told me that our team mates had already headed out. We set off together, jogging at a low pace, to look for the other trainees.  However, I appeared to have chosen one of the coldest and most bracing nights so far of this winter for my first half-marathon training attempt!  After a few minutes, my companion said to me, “You may run ahead if you’d like.”  I replied truthfully, “I can’t.” At that point, I was breathless and frozen solid, I needed to go to the bathroom, and I was beginning to re-examine my decision to participate. After approximately ten minutes, she began to take the lead- what she had really meant earlier was, lady, I really don’t want to proceed at your snail-like pace, and since I have graciously offered that you don’t have to slow down on my account, likewise, you won’t mind if I take off and leave you behind.  In any case, after several more minutes, she was far ahead of me, and because it was immediately apparent that I would never catch up with her and I had no idea where she was going, I decided that I would reduce my speed, walk as far as the entrance to the campus, which was a good distance away, and then walk back to get my car. 

As I heaved, huffed and puffed on my way back to the car, I came across several groups of runners all racing in the opposite direction, some of whom said “hi” and waved at me in an annoyingly cheery and unflappable manner. Each time I saw a group approaching, I would start to run and put on a cheery and unflappable face; as soon as they went past, I stopped running.  However, when I got to the car, I discovered that I couldn’t bring myself to leave, as that seemed to amount to an unacceptable admission of defeat. I set out again along the route that I had just completed; to abbreviate this tedious tale, I eventually did locate my trainer and team mates and I made the decision that I would stay the course.     

 Making Good Food Choices

I gave my word that, this week, I would start sharing some tips on how to make better food choices. We have documented examples in the Bible about individuals making food choices that were beneficial for them. In Daniel 1:8-15, we read that Daniel requested vegetables and water for himself and his companions instead of the rich food and drink consumed in King Nebuchadnezzar’s palace, which resulted in healthier appearance and better nourishment for them.

Certain foods we will find are key in fighting disease. We should make it a priority to consume nutrient packed fruits and vegetables. Anti-oxidants like flavonoids and vitamins A, C and E, keep brain cells in prime condition, neutralize free radicals that damage them, and improve memory. Blueberries and spinach are examples of powerful anti-oxidants. The B vitamin folate (found in kale and spinach)) also improves brain function and helps prevent birth defects. Lycopene, another anti-oxidant, may reduce the risk of some cancers.  Lycopene is found in tomatoes, especially when cooked or processed, and better absorbed when eaten with healthy fats (I will provide information about healthy fats in a future column.) Beta carotene, found in tomatoes, apricots, mangoes and carrots, may help fight heart disease and protect eyesight. Isothiocyanates, contained in cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower, fight breast cancer.

Generally speaking, the darker the fruit or vegetable, the more nutrients it contains.  For example, a cup of spinach has about three times as much folate, and nearly eight times as much beta carotene as a cup of ice berg lettuce. However, iceberg has more potassium than arugula lettuce, and romaine has even more, so you should mix dark and light green leaves for maximum protection from disease.

Now that you are totally confused, you only need remember one rule of thumb, which is that colorful fruits and vegetables contain a range of anti-oxidants and nutrients. For maximum effect, on a daily basis, eat a variety of fruits like blueberries, plums, grapes, pineapple, guava, apples, kiwi, and oranges, and vegetables like spinach, broccoli, eggplant, squash, red cabbage, bell peppers, and carrots.

It is worth mentioning that anti-oxidants are also contained in dark chocolate.  Dark chocolate contains flavonoids, reducing inflammation which may lead to heart attacks. Enjoy one to two ounces a day (look for chocolate containing 70% cocoa). Green tea is rich in flavonoids which improve mental performance and may help with weight loss. Coffee also contains anti-oxidants, but be careful about your caffeine intake and choose decaffeinated as far as possible.

Next week, I will continue my discussion of nutritionally beneficial foods. I will leave you for now with the following exhortation from the Apostle Paul:

Hebrews 12:1 

¹Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us…”

As you set off to achieve your targets for 2010, whether those goals pertain to improving your Christian journey, ameliorating your eating habits, exercising or losing weight, I pray that God will give you the endurance to persevere in spite of any obstacles, the determination to succeed, and the stamina to keep going even when you are weary.

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Eat and drink in a manner beneficial to your body

I Corinthians 3: 16-17 (ESV) tells us:

 ¹⁶ Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? ¹⁷If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.

Our Pastor George Akhigbe recently taught us the difference between the “reality” of certain symptoms of ill health that we perceive, and the truth, which is that as children of God, we can lay claim to perfect health by virtue of the fact that Jesus, our Lord and Savior, died for our sins, and that by His stripes, we are healed.  (I Peter 2:24.) If we exercise the power that we possess as children of God to decree healing in our bodies, we will be healed.   My brothers and sisters in the Lord, I put it to you that we can ensure that “reality” lines up with the truth by obeying God’s mandate, which is that we take care of our bodies, as temples of the Holy Spirit. We pray for healing and flock to healing and deliverance services, when the truth is that we have the power of healing in our hands, not just by decreeing in prayer that our bodies are healed, but, in certain situations, by taking the necessary actions to aid healing, and even to prevent ill health in the first place.

We need to grow spiritually and strengthen our inner minds. In addition, when we are weary and weak, God will rejuvenate us and we will soar like eagles (Is. 40:29-31). However, we have to play a role in taking care of ourselves physically. It is our sacred duty as Christians, in whom the Holy Spirit resides, to pay attention to our bodies, which is God’s temple. This is the mandate that God gives us; we do not have a choice in the matter if we wish to be obedient children of God. As we go about our work building the Kingdom of God, it is imperative that we take care of ourselves so that we will have the strength and health to be effective in doing God’s work. 

If we ask God for wisdom, knowledge and understanding, He will grant such to us (2 Chronicles 1:8-12). We have to use the wisdom He gives us accordingly to do the following things:

• Eat and drink in a manner beneficial to our God-given bodies and make healthy nutritional choices in food preparation and consumption
•  Get adequate rest
  • Exercise
  • Minimize stress; and
  • Lose weight, if necessary, and maintain a healthy weight.

At the end of October, I presented a seminar paper in Chicago on Taking Care of the Temple of God: Making Wise Nutritional Choices.  I am ashamed to say that in recent months, I have barely practiced what I preach.  I have found, like the Apostle Paul, that “I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.” (Romans 7: 18, NIV).  I can relate to what Paul says in Romans 7:23 (Amplified Bible):

²³But I discern in my bodily members [in the sensitive appetites and wills of the flesh] a different law (rule of action) at war against the law of my mind (my reason) and making me a prisoner to the law of sin that dwells in my bodily organs [in the sensitive appetites and wills of the flesh].

I am almost certain that some of the poor health symptoms that I currently perceive in myself, like painful knee joints, would go away if I consistently followed God’s directions for healthy living. However, with 2010 fast approaching, I have determined to make a permanent commitment to healthy living. I hope that you will make a similar determination to make changes in your life where necessary.  Join me every week as I offer guidance on how we should take care of ourselves, and also share with you my struggles and triumphs in taking care of the precious temple of God. Next Sunday, I will discuss how to make wise nutritional choices.

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