Oct 3, 06:00 AM by Mike Mitrovich

What comes out of your mouth before what goes in?

categories Health

comments 6 comments

What comes out of your mouth before what goes in? I suppose it’s a strange sounding question, but one I’ve been tossing around and confronting in my life lately.

A vision of perfect health

beverageI’m 34 years old. I feel reasonably healthy. My wife is an AWESOME cook and we don’t eat a lot of junk. My BMI is 26.8 (according to the Wii Fit), which basically means that while a thinner man might pull himself up by the boot straps, I could use my love handles. While at the same time, were I single, I’d feel perfectly comfortable writing “HWP” in a personal ad.

Yet somehow, it turns out that I’m borderline diabetic and have the cholesterol of a Big Mac dipped in gravy.

Getting back to the original question, here are some of the things that come out of my mouth before what goes in:

  • “I need a Diet Coke”
  • “I need coffee”
  • “I need caffeine”
  • “I need a snack”
  • “I need some ice cream”
  • “I need to get up from my desk”
  • “I need to take a break”

If I could only do more research, I’m sure I’d see a trend here. The Diet Coke is the worst. I can’t hardly leave the house without “one for the road”.

I was thinking about this the other day and a Bible passage came to mind. I don’t think it was really intended for this situation, but I’m going to milk it for my purposes anyway:

“Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen and understand. What goes into a man’s mouth does not make him ‘unclean,’ but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him ‘unclean.’

…

Peter said, ‘Explain the parable to us.’

‘Are you still so dull?’ Jesus asked them. ‘Don’t you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean.’ “

Matthew 15: 10-18

Counting calories, counting carbs, testing blood sugar… these might all be useful tools for me. But none of them will improve my health until I improve my “relationship” with food. Including not eating just because I’m bored or as an excuse for getting up from my desk.

And the Diet Coke will have to go. For all I know, it may be the primary cause of my borderline diabetes. If you’re the praying type, don’t be afraid to add my health to your next prayer!

If you’re in a similar boat and have any suggestions, I’d love to hear them in the comments…

6 comments on "What comes out of your mouth before what goes in?"

1

  • Mike
  • 4 October 08
  • 12:47 PM

I have found it helpful to see food as something that can either fuel and build your body or destroy it. This helps me to make better choices.

2

I know when I eat right and exercise I feel so much better. I’ve struggled with my weight all my life. It’s hard to stay on top of it, but I have no doubt that you can do it!

3

  • nh92
  • 6 October 08
  • 04:41 PM

Wow, this is kind of depressing to read because I share the problem of eating out of boredom….I hope for both our sakes that doesn’t cause any serious problems.

4

Thanks for the comments guys. I definitely need to make some changes. It’s just hard to make something a priority that has never really been a priority before. (That’s not an excuse, just a statement of the challenge).

We’ll see how it goes. My wife and I are looking into some diet changes we can make at home.

And I’m trying to talk myself into getting up early enough to go running or something similar.

5

very nicely put. Taking care of our bodies, the temple of the Holy Spirit, is so important. I think there’s a grain of truth in that old saying “Cleanliness is next to Godliness.” I know I always feel better when I eat healthy and take physical care of my body, but nothing can compare to the feeling when I am spiritually healthy. Which, praise God, is available to me each new day.

On a side note: I think it’s sad when people get caught up in a religion that tells them they can’t eat this or that and have a spirit of fear that if they do they will be damned.

“God did not give us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” – 2 Timothy 1:7

6

You will most certainly be in my next prayers but I think you have a good handle on the situation


Commenting has been disabled for this entry

Search the blog