Fasting my way to better health

Often many of us find ourselves slipping a little in the healthy life style category. At least in my case that is true. Not huge slips all at once but several little slips, one at a time adding up. Slow but gradual weight gain over several months and then one day I see the scale and I have become 8 or 9 pounds above my goal. Skipping my daily exercise routine first one day a week and eventually for a week and even longer until it becomes only once in a while as I grow less flexible. With less flexibility comes more strain with weight lifting so I skip that because it takes more effort than I like. And, then I sit more and walk less etc. etc. etc. Snowballing into more of a sedentary life style.

All that sedentary stuff needs to halt! My modus apparendi is to fast for up to three days and get myself back on track. Fasting sharpens my mind and body to look and listen for what I need to do. A little sacrifice for my soul to awaken and point me in the right direction. I often fast 5 or 6 times a year.

Today is the second day of my 3 day fast objective. The first day is always easy and I don't crave much at all. The second day brings a desire to eat at every turn. I am so hungry at the moment I can almost visualize and smell a comfort meal. That's when I begin to think good things. I'm really not all that hungry. I am more like wanting food rather than actually needing it. I drink a glass of water and the craving disappears for an hour or so. As the day goes on I get back to business and the fast goes to the back of my mind and I busy myself with getting the exercise. The third day is almost silly in that I become no longer hungry and I am pretty much on my program to better health. Probably because I know that on the fourth day I will enjoy three normal meals and exercise will once again be part of my everyday life. Yeah, that's how I do it.

Jesus and his friendships

During this time of the six weeks of Easter I find all sorts of writing and essays and quotations from the bible and other historical books. Most of them are accurate and without agenda. Excellent for gaining knowledge and meditation. Much needed after such a cold month. But, then again, there are those with an agenda other than spiritual growth.

If given the time and with effort I suppose anyone can find a biblical quotation to back their own, often time inaccurate opinion. All one has to do is take the subject matter out of context or change the punctuation. However, doing that does not alter the original meaning, it merely changes it into a false statement. In effect, concealing the teaching lesson of faith.

The statement that Jesus sat and dined with thieves, tax collectors and prostitutes is commonly used for a variety of reasons to prove one point or another. Maybe we are all guilty of that at one time or another. The thing that bothers me is that when someone used that statement to somehow legitimize a behavior which is illegal, immoral or goes against nature the statement is made to be inaccurate. Jesus, in no way condoned those particular behaviors or life styles by sitting or dining with those people. What the teaching was and is becomes very clear when we look at Jesus' teaching in those cases. He said: "Now go and sin no more." He did not say: " Gee guys, I don't care about you enough to tell you when you are doing wrong." You see Jesus did and does care enough to be with people that practise those things, He loves them, but that is not to say he loves any sin.

If quoting a sacred text I feel it is best to allow the true meaning to be seen. Especially if we are attempting to justify a particular behavior. "Now go and sin no more."