A grandfather tells his grandson: "I've got a terrible struggle on the inside of me. I have two natures. One nature is evil - full of anger, pride, envy, jealousy, self-pity, fear, ingratitude, and without restraint. The other nature is good - loving, joyful, peaceful, kind, patient, gentle, faithful, and self-controlled. That same struggle is going on inside of every person who accepts Jesus as their Savior too."

After thinking for a moment, the grandson asks, "Which nature will win?"

The grandfather answers: "The one I feed."

I modified this story from a Cherokee legend I heard long ago. It has a great lesson about how to overcome internal struggle. Struggle is defined as "a forceful or violent effort to get free of restraint or resist attack." That sounds like hard work, doesn't it?

On this journey for better health, many people are struggling. They are resisting doing what is harmful to their bodies every day. They are committed to doing the right thing...even when it is hard or it hurts.

Sometimes, they succeed. Other times, they fail. However, what they learn from their failures gives them ammunition to resist from another angle. If one method of resisting doesn't work, they try another. They are determined to keep testing strategies to get or stay free.

But there is a flip side to struggling - Surrender.

Repeat after me: It is not a struggle if you are just permitting a behavior that binds you!

A motivational speaker once said, "You have no cause to complain about a condition that you choose to permit." 

Some are not only surrendering to destructive health habits, but they are collaborating with the enemy: "The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly (John 10:10)."

You lead yourself into temptation by making it easy and convenient to practice destructive habits.

To this day, I love Pepperidge Farm coconut cake, a former binge food of mine. But I don't struggle against it anymore. Why? Because I don't keep it in my house!

Remember, for there to be a true struggle, there must be one force RESISTING another. Since the cake is not there, there is nothing to resist.

The best way to win a fight is to avoid getting into one in the first place. I'd rather save my strength for those times when struggle is really necessary.

With those definitions in mind concerning health habits that you know aren't good for you ask yourself these questions:

• Are you really struggling or are you surrendering to destructive habits?

• Are you leading yourself into temptation by keeping destructive foods around you?

 

Now there is a case where surrender is good: Surrendering to the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Romans 8:6 says, "For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace."

 

You know within your heart what you ought to be doing regarding your health. Isn't it time that you declare the nature you want to win inside yourself? Which nature glorifies God?

Once you decide which nature you want to win, then start feeding that nature with the food it requires to grow stronger - God's word!

Kimberly Taylor

Take Back Your Temple
www.takebackyourtemple.com

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