Never forget that investing in your health and wellness is not selfish, and can actually be an investment in your loved ones.  Love is not only a feeling, it’s also very much a verb.  Making healthy choices nutritionally and physically are actions you can take to insure you will be healthy and able to take care of your loved ones.   On this holiest of weekends, remember that our bodies are His temple.  After the resurrection and ascension, Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to be with us, and He lives in our hearts.  What we do with our bodies and what we put into our bodies – we do to His Temple.  

By making healthy choices, we protect and strengthen our immune systems, our mobility, our stamina – our overall wellness.  Being our healthiest enables us to take care of our families and friends!  Are you fit to serve?  On His last day with the disciples, Jesus served them; He washed their feet, fed them, and prayed for them.  We can follow His example in the simplest of ways in our communities. 

• Practice random acts of kindness to strangers!  Just hold the door for someone to enter or exit after you.  Let another driver turn out of a store into the gap in front of you.  Give your smile to someone who seems grumpy.  Offer to return someone’s buggy to the store as you walk in.  Compliment another person; if you think to yourself that someone has pretty hair or a beautiful smile – TELL THEM! 

• Take a turn to serve in your church service!  Even if it means getting out of your comfort zone.  Greet visitors.  Hold babies.  You can make another person’s visit, and possibly their worship experience better!  Allow someone who always serves to sit and truly worship!  You just might realize that you’re blessed above and beyond what you expected.

• In the gym!!  Encourage someone you see that is a new member or seems to be struggling.  If someone inspires or motivates you – tell them!  Re-rack weights that someone else leaves laying around (yes it’s annoying!  But maybe it helps someone coming after you who might not be as strong as you, AND it sets a great example!)

• Make your families’ favorite meal randomly.  Have a movie night with your family without needing an occasion.  Leave encouraging or loving notes hidden around the house for your family to find.

For ourselves, we can set such a strong example for our families and friends!  Easter is very much a sweet season, and treats abound.  Moderation is key!  We all know that alcohol consumption is dangerous and should be at a minimum.  Did you ever consider that sugar is every bit as intoxicating and addictive as any alcoholic beverage or drug?   Just take cupcakes and/or donuts into any classroom for the children, then sit back and watch their behaviors change.  The same holds true for adults.  Remember the earlier blog about sugar?  It hides in SO many foods and drinks!  Even spaghetti sauces and other canned products.     Taking in too much sugar consistently is so toxic to our bodies and detrimental to our health and wellness.  It increases inflammation in our guts and in our joints, causes brain fog, increases blood sugars, increases body fat, suppresses our immune systems, and contributes to cardiovascular problems and diabetes.

The Old Testament gives us plenty of reminders of what God intended for us.  The Garden of Eden was all perfect, natural fruits and vegetables and animal proteins.   Even Daniel and his cousins ate vegetables rather than the richer foods offered and were rewarded for it!    Choose your nutrition wisely, and look for clean, natural foods over enriched, processed foods.  Shop around the outside of the grocery store, selecting fresh produce over canned.  Frozen from fresh without preservatives is a great option.  Always check the ingredients list – the fewer ingredients, the better!  If you’re buying frozen green beans, all you want is green beans, not a lot of ingredients that you can’t pronounce!  

Easter is only one weekend – celebrating THE MOST INCREDIBLE event in a believer’s life.  Celebrate what Jesus has done, every single day.  Enjoy your family and friends.  Enjoy an occasional treat, for sure.  Just don’t fall back into that sugar and processed foods hole, and don’t ever stay there.  I promise you that you will feel better if you’re getting clean, healthy, whole foods into your body.  Food is fuel, remember?  If you don’t believe me, then prove me wrong.  Cut out the fast foods, processed foods and junk foods.  Eat healthy for one week.  Most people honestly have no idea how good our bodies are designed to feel!  Remember – God designed our bodies.  He created us with a purpose!  We need to be healthy enough to fulfill that purpose!

Happy Easter!