Gluttony

Well, since there are now officially only two pairs of pants in my closet that fit, I'm forced to face the sin I (and much of America) so often ignore. GLUTTONY Eewww. Don't even want to go there but instead of just disgusted right now I'm...convicted. It's always bothered me that the church seems to ignore this sin but I guess it didn't bother me so much that I did.

But I had great justification for my gluttony. I can think of two huge excuses.

1. I don't want to be wasteful. I should eat all the leftovers before they go bad and I have to throw them out, right? If Annie only eats three bites of her cheeseburger from her happy meal and five fries, I should eat the rest, right? If Annie ruins all the cupcakes but they are still edible I should eat them, not throw them away, right? Is it worse to be wasteful or gluttonous?
2. I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings. After all, if someone goes to the trouble to make a bunch of food for me, I should eat it. If two members of my family send me Cheryl & Co. cookies for Valentine's Day, I should eat them. If my mom sends chocolates, I should eat them. I don't want to seem ungrateful after all.

Gluttony used to be tied to pride. It was a sign of wealth to be fat. I guess that's what poor countries with little food think when they see us. Even the poorest of us is wealthy by comparison. Gluttony is often linked with drunkeness in the Bible but we don't have to drink. We do have to eat. It's not like we can avoid gluttony by just not eating at all. And the temptation is EVERYWHERE. We talk about stumbling blocks and then lay out all kinds of gluttonous pleasures with no regard for the fact that more people struggle with food issues that alcohol. I have a great affection for good food. I love to eat out. I love to cook. And I know we'll be feasting in heaven. Why do I have self-control in other areas and I blow this one off? I've been pondering and learning and reading a lot lately about truly living by the Spirit. Why haven't I thought about it in this area? Romans 8:5 says, "Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires." So I've decided to "set my mind on what the Spirit desires." Don't know what this is going to look like yet in this area. There's nothing in me that wants to deal with it so it will have to be God who does it. It's something God's been teaching me in so many areas in the past few months. Even Sunday morning at connect group I was reminded again that our bodies are temples. For some reason I got a real clear picture this time.

Anyway, it's not really about diet and weight, it's about sin. And I'm guilty as charged. Let me know what you think about the subject. And here's the other thing I'm going to have to look at...I don't think gluttony is just about food.