About 5 months after my bypass surgery, I did something that I never thought I would do! Encouraged by the nurses in cardiac rehab, I entered myself (and Jane) in a 5K walk. Yes, I’m a walker, but not really in a competitive way. 5 months earlier, I’d had my chest cracked open and a very talented surgeon went in and replaced some of my arteries to open up the way for good blood flow. It was not something I would consider routine. It was a very delicate surgery that took skill to do … and a boatload of encouragement and persistence on my part to recover from. I’d come a long way, but could I do this? Could I do the 5K walk (3.2 miles) and in such a way as not to embarrass me … or God (or Jane), for that matter?

What I discovered, by stepping out of my comfort zone, was that my body had healed—even more than I expected. And for the first time out doing a community 5K walk, I didn’t do too bad! I’d gotten stronger. I’d lost some more weight. I’d gained weight in muscle. What I’d learned over these months was this: I learned to make exercise and right eating a regular part of honoring God with my body…

I used to have all these excuses for not exercising. I don’t have time. I’m too busy. I have to write sermons. I’ve got all these meetings I need to go to. I don’t want to let anyone down by not doing my job … and exercise wasn’t really my job. But, guess what? If you’re not here, you can’t do your job either! What I discovered through all of this (and this is my new motto), “Something’s better than nothing!” Every day, I can find at least 30 minutes to walk—at least 30 minutes when I can deliberately honor God with my body through exercise. Now, who wants to say they don’t have time to honor God? Not me…

Folks, today, I want to talk to you about eating and exercise. This is the ‘what’ that you’ve been waiting for. We know the ‘who’—God is who we dedicate our bodies to. Last week, we heard about the ‘why’—the reasons that motivate us to honor God with our bodies, and today we’re finally getting to the ‘what’—what we can actually do to honor God in these ways, both physically and spiritually…

This week, we’re going to wrap up this Bod4God series and we’re going to begin with our KEY VERSE, 1 Thessalonians 4:4 (NIV):

“…each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable”.

The truth is it does take time to learn to do this, because there’s no quick way to a healthy, God-honoring lifestyle. It takes work. And the two ways I know best to this is through eating better … and exercising more. And the Bible’s going to help us learn how to do just that today! The story of Daniel is where we’re going—Daniel, Chapter 1 to be exact. Let me set it up for you…

Daniel lived in 587 BC. So, let’s go in our imaginations back 2,015 years, plus another 587—over 2,600 years ago is when Daniel lived. He lived then in what is today called Israel. And he was invaded by what today we would call Iraq. But it was Babylon in those days … and they invaded Jerusalem. And they took all of the young men from Israel back to Babylon and held them captive. They left the older men, the women and the children—those who wouldn’t give their soldiers any trouble. So Daniel lived in captivity in a foreign land! Just imagine, folks, if Canada would come down and invade the U.S., taking back with them all of the strapping young men … and took them off to live in Canada—held there in exile. This was the position Daniel found himself in…

It says in Verse 1 the King of Babylon was named Nebuchadnezzar. And he decided to do something really interesting. It says that he told his Chief of Staff (v. 4)

“Select only strong, healthy, and good-looking young men”.

Then he said.

“Make sure they are well versed in every branch of learning, are gifted with knowledge and good judgment, and are suited to serve in the royal palace. Train these young men in the language and literature of Babylon.”

Now, from a strategic standpoint, you can see what King Nebuchadnezzar was doing, can’t you? He’s trying to remove from Israel the very best of their young men and … turn them into Babylonians—a very strategic move. And then (v.5),

“The king assigned them a daily ration of food and wine from his own kitchens.”

Now, hold that place for just a second. Can you believe this? This is very important, because the king ate very, very well. In fact, the king ate rich, fatty, unhealthy foods and consumed a lot of alcohol. That’s just what kings did. So, what was he saying? I want to take these young men of Israel and I want to serve them the highest calorie foods, the highest fat foods, and give them my very best! And then it says,

“They were to be trained for three years, and then they would enter the royal service.”

That’s how the story begins… And what can we already learn from this? The king was going to put all these young men on a very special kingly diet, but one of them by the name of Daniel had a different idea. Daniel actually proposed an alternate way of living, because Daniel wanted to have a Bod4God! So, if we’re going to do the same, if we’re going to manage our eating and our exercise in a healthy way, here’s what we need to do:

Consider Eating and Exercise to Be Spiritual Habits. Folks, if you want to honor God with your exercise and your eating habits, you first have to understand that God cares about your body—cares what you eat! Your spiritual life, in other words, is actually impacted by your diet and exercise—how you care for the body God has given you! So, let’s pick up the story here…

“But Daniel was determined not to defile himself….”

Isn’t that an interesting phrase? He’s talking about not defiling himself…

“…by eating the food and wine given to them by the king.” So then, “He asked the chief of staff for permission not to eat these unacceptable foods.”

Can you imagine how much courage that took? Here’s Daniel—a nobody in Babylon. He’s been taken captive from his homeland. He’s been forcibly put into the king’s service, but yet he has the courage to speak up, suggesting the most important thing he can do while there is to take care of his body. For Daniel, every meal was a spiritual endeavor…

Have you ever thought about that? You and I aren’t forced to eat the king’s food—not even the Burger King … or Dairy Queen! We may choose to eat that, but we’re not forced to. But what if we decided that every meal would be a spiritual endeavor? What if we saw eating and exercise as spiritual disciplines … you know, like prayer and Bible study? Or … fasting? What could we change in our diet for the season of Lent, for instance, that might help us be healthier for God? Or this…

What if we began to pray and say, “God, I want to honor you with my exercise and my diet.” Now, wouldn’t that change the way you see those two things—to move them from drudgery to spiritual discipline? That’s why praying before a meal is so important. We are saying, “God, thanks for providing this food for us.” But it could also be an opportunity to re-evaluate whether or not what you’re asking God to bless should go in your mouth. I’ve always felt like a bit of a hypocrite when I’d go to McDonalds and sit down with a Big Mac … and ask God to bless it! I can almost hear God saying, “Really? That’s what you want me to do? I know I turned water into wine, and raised the dead, but really?” That reminds me of Paul’s words to the Corinthians (1 Cor. 10:31) when he said,

“So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”

We too need to turn our exercise and our eating into spiritual habits. Daniel did. And we can too. Here’s #2…

Choose a Plan that is Best for Me. We talked a little bit about this last week, but it’s not really about the diet, or even exactly what you’ll do; it’s really about what fits you the best. Do you remember from last week? Walking works for me, but for others it may be running or biking or swimming—whatever works best for you…

Getting back to our story, Daniel came up with a really interesting PLAN. In fact, his plan from Daniel 1:12 is now so famous there are actually diet books called ‘The Daniel Plan’. It’s not something you can probably do forever, but if you need a 10-day jump start, here it is:

“‘Please test us for ten days on a diet of vegetables and water,’ Daniel said.”

So, 10 days was his initial plan. Then he said (v. 13),

“At the end of the ten days, see how we look compared to the other young men who are eating the king’s food. Then make your decision in light of what you see.”

So, Daniel basically said, ‘Look, let them eat the Chunky Monkey (Ben and Jerry’s) and deep fried Oreos; we’re going to eat vegetables and water. And let’s see if that will change our bodies. Sounds like a pretty good plan—a wise plan, doesn’t it?

Now, that may not be your preferred diet. I understand that. That may not be what you choose … but choose something that you can live with and make it your goal! One thing I know is this: If you don’t have a goal followed by a plan … you’re not really serious. You’ve gotta have both. So, find out what works best for you and don’t be afraid to bring others in on the decision! Your doctor or nutritionist would love it if you would ask them to help you out with a new health plan. That’s what they’re there for… Proverbs 15:22 says,

“Plans go wrong for lack of advice. Many advisors bring success.”

So, have a goal, find a plan, and then … make it a routine!

Recent studies say that it takes 21 days to make a new habit, so if you can stick to something for 21 days, you are well on your way. And that’s why routine is so important. When you begin a new health plan, your body will automatically resist it … like crazy! Routine … all the way up to 21 days … is what’s going to bring you success, and help you reach your health goals… Next:

Correct Unhealthy Habits and Replace Them with Healthy Habits. Do you remember our mantra from last week? Remove/replace … remove/replace … (Say it with me!) remove/replace… So, if you remove unhealthy habits from your life, you have to replace them with healthy habits … otherwise there’ll be a vacuum that’ll be filled back in by those bad habits (not always, but all too often)…

One of the bad habits I used to be about constantly (and still have to fight) is this: The more I was under stress, either at work or in my personal life, the more I would eat—overeat! And so, when stress would creep up in my life, I had to find new ways of dealing with that … other than eating. So, I’ve begun to replace the overeating times (while under stress) with exercise … or with extra Bible reading for encouragement—both of which are profitable for my overall health…

Now, before I go on, let me share with you a couple of tips from health professionals that have been shared with me; so, I’m just passing these on to you today:

1. Only eat foods that your grandmother ate. Now, think about that for a second. If your grandmother didn’t recognize it as food, don’t put it in your mouth! A good piece of advice, indeed… Here’s another one:
2. Replace soda with water. Replace soda, or other high-calorie drinks, with water. Water is very important to your overall health. I’ve been told that if you drink a glass of water before a meal, you’ll eat less. In fact, I recently read that if you drink a glass of ice-cold water, your body will burn 15 calories just heating it up so your body can process it. Here’s another one:
3. Replace mayo with mustard. We love our condiments, don’t we? And we are a sandwich nation, for sure. But mayo is very high in calories and/or fat (depending on what kind you use). Try replacing that with mustard. And one more:
4. Deliberately walk as much as possible (i.e. take the stairs/park as far away as you can from the store, etc.). Many of us act like we’re physically disabled, don’t we? I’m not talking about those who are physically challenged; they have good reason to take the elevator or park close. I’m talking about those of us who just act like we are. And if we do that long enough, we will be. Deliberately walk as much as possible…

Folks, many in our society today would say, “But, I’m allowed to do anything.” Think about that. God doesn’t force you to eat anything. God doesn’t force you to exercise. But, get this: In 1 Corinthians 6:12, God’s word says ‘Not everything is good for you.’ Don’t become a slave to any kind of food … and don’t become a slave to inactivity! (Remember, two deadly sins are gluttony and sloth!) So, replace old habits with new ones… Now, quickly:

Calculate How Much I Eat and Exercise Each Day. Find a way to track daily what you’re putting into your body … and how much you exercise your body! To some that may sound a bit tedious, but remember … after 21 days things become a habit … so you won’t even pay attention to tracking your eating & exercise after that. Again, find what works for you; counting calories didn’t work for me, but counting carbs did—whatever works for YOU!

I found some sugar-free chocolate that I enjoyed eating and I thought to myself, ‘Man, this is great! Sugar free, so this won’t affect my body at all…’ Wrong! It was still full of fat and calories (Read labels!). Remember Proverbs 21:2 which says,

“People may be right in their own eyes (I’m eating sugar free chocolate, so I’m doing great!), but the LORD examines their heart (in other words, we need an external advisor to let us know when we’re off track).”

‘Same thing with Daniel. Daniel kept track. In Daniel 1:5, it says,

“The King assigned them a daily ration of food.”

We need a specific amount of food & exercise too—to keep on track with what we’re doing with this body. Then…

Celebrate the Benefits of Healthy Living! When you celebrate healthy living, it actually brings you closer to God! Bod4God is not saying you can’t enjoy eating anymore; it’s just saying to care about what you eat, that you might be the healthiest you can be for God—a very spiritual thing!

So, what happened to Daniel and all those in the courts of Babylon after this food test? It basically says, ‘They looked healthy’. And that’s the goal of Bod4God. Then, what happened? Daniel 1:16 (NLT) tells us,

“So after that, the attendant fed them only vegetables instead of the food and wine provided for the others.”

So who’s the ‘them’ in this verse? I believe it’s all the other young men in court—everyone…

Folks, Daniel’s choice of healthy living impacted an entire kingdom. And there’s the lesson for us today, too. The choices we make as individuals affect our relationship with God, and with others, and our impact on the lives of others … including our friends and family—our kids, our grandkids… We have a responsibility there, don’t we?

I’d like to thank Nelson Searcy, my pastoring coach, as well as Pastor Steve Reynolds who wrote the initial book on ‘Bod4God’. I’d also like to recommend to you Steve’s book called ‘Bod4God’ as a resource if you want to know more about living your life physically in such a way as to please God…