User blog:Jrandms/Spiritual Food Groups

Most Americans know about food groups—foods with similar nutritional properties or biological classifications. Nutrition guides divide foods into groups and recommend daily servings for a healthy diet. In the United States for instance, the USDA has anywhere from four to eleven different food groups.[i]

Write the following categories of food groups in the blanks: confections, dairy, fruits, grains, meat, vegetables.

·       __________:[ii] (milk products) milk, butter, ghee, yogurt, cheese, cream and ice cream

·       _________:[iii] (sometimes included with vegetables) apples, oranges, bananas, berries, and lemons. Fruits contain carbohydrates, mostly in the form of sugar as well as important vitamins and minerals.

·       __________,[iv] beans and legumes: (sometimes called cereals) wheat, rice, oats, barley, bread and pasta. Grains are a good source of starch and are often categorized with other starchy food such as potatoes.

·       _______:[v] (sometimes labelled protein and occasionally including legumes and beans, eggs,  and/or dairy) chicken, fish, turkey, pork and beef

·       _____________:[vi] (sugary foods sometimes categorized with fats and oils) candy, soft drinks, and chocolate

·       __________________:[vii] (sometimes categorized with fruit and occasionally including legumes) spinach, carrots, onions, and broccoli.

Getting God’s word is not a mystical experience for only a few select people but a practical goal which every believer should strive for (Col 3:16). Fortunately, God has a five-step plan for accomplishing it (Proverbs 2:1-5):

Fill in the blanks of the five spiritual ‘food groups.’

1.             receive: 1 “My son, if thou wilt ____________[i] receive my words,

2.              retain: and __________[ii] my commandments with thee;

3.              reflect: 2 So that thou ______________________[iii] [pay attention] unto wisdom, and__________________[iv] [practical application] to understanding;

4.              request: 3 Yea, if thou __________[v] after knowledge, and ________________[vi] for         understanding.

5.              research: 4 If thou ____________[vii] her as silver, and ____________[viii] for her as for     hid treasures;

5 Then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God.”

Receive: hear, read
First, you need to receive God’s word. But the critical variable is your attitude—you must receive it with all____________________[ix] (Acts 17:11). You can receive God’s inspired (given) word in two ways:

Hear
You hear God’s spoken word from parents, pastors, teachers, CDs, cassettes, etc. But you must pay close attention (incline thine ear).

Read
The second way to receive God’s word is by reading the Bible—his preserved word. This will take you through the Bible repeatedly so you learn to (Deut 17:18) _______[xiii] the Lord (vs. 19), _________[xiv] the word, and be _______________[xv] (vs. 20). This gives you a general overview (understand, Neh 8:8) of how the Bible fits together so you get the ‘big picture’ rather than mastering the specific details (which you will in research, #5). But it isn’t enough to do it only on Sundays at church (like eating a meal once a week)—you must get spiritual nourishment every day at home.

Retain: keep, hide
Second, you need to retain (keep, hide) God’s word in your heart—memorize. This keeps God’s word from going in one ear and out the other. The goal is to have God’s word ‘handy’ for instant use whether or not you have a Bible in your hand.

Fill in the blanks to show how to retain God’s word.

●               (Deut 11:18, Job 22:22) ___________[xvi] (it’s not just for basketball)

●               (Psalm 119:11) ________[xvii] (never leave your ‘valuables’ lying around the house)

●               (Proverbs 3:1) _______________[xviii] (keep it fresh in your mind)

●               (vs. 3) ________[xix] (about your neck (near your heart)

____________________[xx] (don’t abandon)

_________[xxi] (upon the table of your heart)

●               (vs. 21) ___________________:[xxii] (captivated)

●               (Proverbs 4:13) ___________________[xxiii] (‘Polygrip’ for the word)

●               (6:20) ________________[xxiv] (don’t abandon)

●               (vs. 21) _________, _______[xxv] (keep your ‘pearls’ handy—near your heart)

●               (Colossians 3:16) __________[xxvi] (no ‘eviction’ notice)

Reflect: meditate
Third (and most crucial), you need to reflect on God’s word—meditate. This is similar to the four compartments in a cow’s stomach—each time food goes into a different compartment more nutrition is extracted. In the same way, when you ‘chew the cud’ (meditate on God’s word) you extract more spiritual nourishment (1Tim 4:6).

Fill in the blanks to show how to reflect.

·      (Psalm 19:14) _____________[xxvii] (not just for Buddhists)

·      (143:5) _________[xxviii] (very ‘entertaining’)

·      (Luke 2:19) ______________[xxix] (it didn’t start on Bonanza)

·      (Ephesians 5:19) ______________________[xxx] (‘schizophrenic’ conversation)

·      (Philippians 4:8) __________[xxxi] (use it or lose it)

·      (2 Timothy 2:7) ____________[xxxii] (think it over)

Fill in the blanks to show what to meditate on.

Request: cry, lift up your voice
Fourth, you need to request it (ask) through prayer. But it must be based on God’s word (Ezra 7:25), according to his will (1 John 5:14-15). Thus, James warns, “ye have not because ye _______[xxxvii] not.”

Research: seek, search
Fifth, you need to research (study) God’s word. Whereas hearing and reading show you how the whole Bible fits together (general overview), study (2Tim 2:15) _____________[xxxviii] (dissects) the Bible so you can decipher its parts. This can be either:

·      topical: search the scriptures (John 5:39, Acts 17:11, Eccl 12:9-10) about specific subjects

·      expository: study a specific passage, chapter or book

The Bible is the ‘meat’ of your research, but it may be supplemented by other resources (‘side dishes’) such as commentaries, religious literature, non-biblical texts, etc. Just be careful not to ‘consume’ anything which contradicts or refutes clear Bible doctrine.

Conclusion
But this is NOT a passive activity:

·      (vs. 1) Receiving God’s word isn’t enough—you must hide it in your heart (memorize).

·      (vs. 2) You must incline your ear and apply your heart (meditate).

·      (vs. 3) You must cry and lift up your voice (ask in prayer).

·      (vs. 4) You must seek it and search for it (study).

Only people who actively receive, retain, reflect, request and research God’s word will get it. Just like the food groups (grains, meat, fruits, vegetables, dairy products and sugars), some foods are healthier than others (which is why you should eat more of them).

The same thing applies to spiritual nourishment. Each ‘food group’ meets a different need and needs to be ‘consumed’ in appropriate amounts. But all five are essential for a balanced and healthy spiritual diet. Unfortunately, most Christians’ spiritual diet is just as unhealthy as their physical diet—they pick and choose only ‘foods’ which are convenient, taste better, cheaper, etc. Is it any wonder today’s Christians are spiritually anemic, under/overweight, sickly, bedridden, etc.? [i] receive

[ii] hide

[iii] incline thine ear

[iv] apply thine heart

[v] criest

[vi] liftest up thy voice

[vii] seekest

[viii] searchest

[ix] readiness of mind

[x] heard

[xi] knew

[xii] saw

[xiii] fear

[xiv] obey

[xv] humble

[xvi] lay up

[xvii] hide

[xviii] forget not

[xix] bind

[xx] let not forsake

[xxi] write

[xxii] let not depart

[xxiii] take fast hold

[xxiv] forsake not

[xxv] bind, tie

[xxvi] dwell

[xxvii] meditate

[xxviii] muse

[xxix] pondered

[xxx] speaking to yourselves

[xxxi] think

[xxxii] consider

[xxxiii] God

[xxxiv] word

[xxxv] works

[xxxvi] godly teaching

[xxxvii] ask

[xxxviii] divides [i]  Nestle, Marion (2013) [2002]. Food Politics: How the Food Industry Influences Nutrition and Health. University of California Press. pp. 36–37. ISBN 978-0-520-27596-6.

[ii] dairy

[iii] fruits

[iv] grains

[v] meat

[vi] confections

[vii] vegetables