A Well Balanced Diet

We all know we should eat a well balanced diet..... lots of fruit and veggies, not so much sugar, lots of whole foods, and not so much processed junk. I'm not terribly vigilant about my kid's diet. I try to make sure they eat decent but I don't stress about it.

But I know mothers who never let their kids have sugar or processed foods.... seems slightly overprotective doesn't it? I've also heard some of these mothers say that when their children got older and where given a choice of what to eat they preferred fruit over sugary sweets..... sounds crazy doesn't it?? You'd think that when the reins were loosened the kids would go crazy and gorge themselves on junk. And maybe sometimes they do, but not always. Their parents have intentionally cultivated an appetite for wholesome food in the children so when they're later offered junk it holds no appeal.

This is how I want to be in the spirit.

I've tried to explain it to several people lately and been slightly frustrated at my inability to express my thoughts, but that's what I want. I want to cultivate an appetite for God in my children so that the things satan offers won't be a temptation. I want them to 'taste and see' for themselves how good God is so that nothing else will compare in their eyes.

I've had people tell me "You don't want to be to strict" and "You can't shield them forever", and I agree..... but that totally misses my point!

It's not about strict..... I'm not going to line up all the worldly junk for them and then tell them not to touch. I want to spread a banquet of God's goodness and say "THIS... This is what all you can have!! Look what God has for you, taste and see!!" It's not about strict, it's not about what you can't have or do..... it's about what we CAN have and do.

And true, I can't shield them forever. At some point they are going to grow up and go out to face the world on their own. But I don't have to be the one to expose them to the junk. My job is to equip them to face the world. Show them the better way. Teach them God's word, so that it's so ingrained in them that as soon as satan tries to tempt them their immediate reaction is to rebuke him with the truth.

It sounds crazy to think of raising teenagers who aren't tempted by the things of the world. But you know what else sounds crazy?? Feeding 5000 people with 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish..... speaking to a storm and it stopping immediately...... blind eyes seeing...... lame people walking.... dead people living..... those all sound crazy, impossible. But they're true, they all happened! And God hasn't changed, He's still the same today as He was then. So surely if He can do all that, He can lead me in raising these boys to follow Him!