"Hast thou found honey? eat so much as is sufficient for thee, lest thou be filled therewith, and vomit it."
Proverbs 25:16
We had a little Halloween party today where we handed out a LOT of candy, so when I ran across this today it made me laugh. In thinking about it further though, I think there is a lot more here than just a laugh, and maybe it is something that we should all think about.
We all find honey in our lives. Maybe it isn't literally honey... it could be some other kind of food that we really like, or something else totally unrelated to food. But whatever it is, we like it a lot, and we're very tempted to have way more of it than is merely "sufficient." We want ALL the toys, not just one. And tasting honey can be addictive... we want more and more of it.
God gives us boundaries and guidelines to protect us. If we partake of good things in our lives within the guidelines that he teaches us, then our lives, our relationships, and our health (mental, spiritual, emotional, and physical) will be better. We'll be happier and more hopeful.
Today, whatever that honey is in our lives, let's find healthy and positive ways to have the good part of it in our lives, within the bounds the Lord has set, and anything outside those bounds... the part that tempts us to go too far and to have too much... let's be careful to let go of. God isn't trying to punish us with these rules... he's trying to help us not get sick and vomit (figuratively and symbolically as well as literally). There can, indeed, be too much of a good thing... and when we overdo it, it turns it bad. So let's enjoy the honey, but not make ourselves sick.
Proverbs 25:16
We had a little Halloween party today where we handed out a LOT of candy, so when I ran across this today it made me laugh. In thinking about it further though, I think there is a lot more here than just a laugh, and maybe it is something that we should all think about.
We all find honey in our lives. Maybe it isn't literally honey... it could be some other kind of food that we really like, or something else totally unrelated to food. But whatever it is, we like it a lot, and we're very tempted to have way more of it than is merely "sufficient." We want ALL the toys, not just one. And tasting honey can be addictive... we want more and more of it.
God gives us boundaries and guidelines to protect us. If we partake of good things in our lives within the guidelines that he teaches us, then our lives, our relationships, and our health (mental, spiritual, emotional, and physical) will be better. We'll be happier and more hopeful.
Today, whatever that honey is in our lives, let's find healthy and positive ways to have the good part of it in our lives, within the bounds the Lord has set, and anything outside those bounds... the part that tempts us to go too far and to have too much... let's be careful to let go of. God isn't trying to punish us with these rules... he's trying to help us not get sick and vomit (figuratively and symbolically as well as literally). There can, indeed, be too much of a good thing... and when we overdo it, it turns it bad. So let's enjoy the honey, but not make ourselves sick.
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