A spiritual detox.....

The new year brings in with it new year's resolutions and aspirations to change in many areas of my life. Most years I don't really make any resolutions because I don't seem to be much of a goal oriented person and sometimes I just lose steam.

But, it wouldn't be a new year for me without at least one goal....losing weight. The clinging chain of fat that seems to be a stronghold for me....one in which I'm determined with the Lord's help to conquer and break down. So, this past week I did a food detox. For five days I consumed only fruits and vegetables and let me tell you...I was miserable. It affected every part of me..my attitude, mood, parenting, and ultimately outlook on everything. And as torturing as it was for me, I was proud of the discipline I maintained in communicating to this addiction to food that it has no power over me.

One particular day I was having a hard time and getting angry at what I had committed to. My husband asked me, "Have you talked with the Lord about it today?" I promptly said - "no." I needed Him and I neglected to include Him in this process...thus the reason it was probably more difficult for me. In fact...I neglected my time with Him almost all week.

I physically felt really badly all week. Tired, headache, emotional, almost ill....it was hard on my physical body. As I was sitting in church today, I had thoughts about this food detox in relation to my time with the Lord. For while I felt awful physically for lack of food, even more devastating to my life was how I had also been torturing my spiritual life and relationship with the Lord from my lack of time with Him and in the Word....my spiritual food. If I felt terrible from lack of physical food, how much more is my life affected when I don't give it spiritual food.

The most important feeding I can receive is the Word of God...so now I re-visit my spiritual discipline and make sure my time with the Lord never goes through any detox.