Body, Mind, and Soul Inventory
A nice, big, thick potato
I attended a wedding recently, and when I saw the pictures of myself on Facebook, I was floored.
Mercy! What had happened to me? It wasn’t my mother staring back at me, it was my grandma! My face showed the wear of my experiences, but it was my body shape that made me gasp in horror. My hourglass figure had turned into a potato!
How did it happen?
One unexercised pound at a time– one careless empty calorie smothered in fat grams after another– I had turned into a blob.
I know what to do about my figure:
-eat less and move more
-cut back on portions and consume more green food
-quit scarfing down king-sized chocolate bars cut into little pieces so they don’t seem so gluttonous.
(Who did I think I was fooling with that trick?)
As I gave my body a thorough inspection, I began to wonder what else had slipped. If I was slacking in one area, like my shape, I had to consider that I was negligent in other areas, too—such as my mind and spirit.
Take Inventory
I needed to take an inventory, so I asked myself:
- Am I praying with the fervency I used to?
- Do I stick my nose in the Bible regularly?
- Do I make time for myself to hear from God?
- Am I alert for opportunities to demonstrate God’s love?
- Do I share my God moments with others?
- Do I make eye contact with people I love while conversing?
- Do I read books and blogs as much as I watch television?
- Am I consumed with Netflix or Candy Crush or Facebook at the expense of a good night’s rest?
- Am I ignoring a call or mission or a project that I’m supposed to be pursuing?
Just as I knew what to do about my potato body, I knew what to do about my potato mind and soul. I strategized a plan and got to work.
I would:
- Establish morning quiet time.
- Read a chapter of the Bible a day.
- Drink more water than Pepsi.
- Stop eating like Ms. Pac-Man.
- Give up my volunteer part-time job of television binge viewing.
- Write something most days.
- Call my loved ones more often.
- Read at least one book a month.
Is it time for you to take an inventory and make some new declarations too?
Check the mirror…but not the one you think
Ask yourself those questions above and use my check list to see if you’re sleek or sloppy. The full-length mirror in the privacy of your home will tell you about your body shape.
Now it’s time to use a Holy-Spirit-length mirror to tell you about your heart and soul. Even a little change makes a big difference.
Leave me a comment about how the Holy Spirit has lovingly challenged you to stop and check this week. I know I’m not the only one!
Verse: “Do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness.” —Romans 6:12–13
Prayer: Heavenly Father, help me to be self-controlled about the things that distract and deter me from all the good things you offer. Teach me balance and help me make healthy choices for my body, mind, and spirit. Amen.
Amen! So true! I’ve started reading chapters in the Bible at night before bed along with devotions & prayer with my wife. We have to set priorities!!!
Lovely, lovely. Sweet dreams to you both.
The potato body made me laugh! I thought my body was taking on the shape of “the grinch!” The potato thing makes alot of sense though. Fried potatoes,baked potatoes,mashed potatoes! Yum! This isn’t even about potatoes or our shape,is it? It is about the things we indulge in and our idols before God. I am praying about something that I took on. More Jesus,and less busy! He provides all I need,and can always be trusted! Thanks for your insight on this!
Hi Marla,
You got that right, friend. Praying for your clarity.
Robyn, the full length mirror you mention…conjures up the memory of the full length mirror in the airport restroom when Bob and I were catching the early flight from Albuquerque to Wisconsin. After TSA broke out in laughter gazing from my ID to me back to my ID and me 3x I said to him can’t you sing Happy Birthday or what? It is 5:30 am and “What?!!”
He says go ahead. I get frisked. by a female security official and she asks me to remove my little jacket.
I did. She let me go on. By then I needed the restroom. As I entered I noticed a woman in the full length mirror and greeted her with a “Good morning.” Suddenly I broke out in laughter. I was greeting myself! And my jacket was inside out.
This experience left me wondering and still laughing when i recall that experience. Imagine the body figure God sees compared to the reflection of what we see!
Oh my goodness, Kathleen, that is funny. Thanks for sharing your foibles and wisdom.
Got spanked on this one but the way you craft your words makes the pill easier to swallow, lol!
Thanks Leslie. You made my day with your post.
Your words are so true in this post. I need to copy your I Would list and post on refrigerator to remind me every day. Thank you
Thanks for posting. Glad I’m not the only one.