Food & Discipline

The flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want.

—Galatians 5:17

My impulse, when things feel scary or busy or heavy, is to eat like a truffle pig and drink like it’s my only solace. I push myself like I’m a college football player doing two-a-days, and then after all that pushing, I think that the only way to nurture and nourish myself is with mindless eating, because I can’t possibly be asked to do one more hard thing, like feed myself with health and kindness. I think that it’s simply too hard to impose any more structure in my already structured-to-the-max days, that I can only blast through the work and then flop down on the couch with cheese and red wine at the end of the day.

What I really need, though, is discipline. Instead of using food and drinks as desperate ways to backfill all the needs I’ve been neglecting, I’m learning that discipline and healthful choices set me free and get me through stressful seasons. I thought that discipline would make an already difficult season unbearable. Instead, when I feed myself healthy food, when I drink lots of water, when I take the time to eat well, it gives me more energy and more clear-mindedness.