Bye, Bye Holiday Foods

Is anyone else glad that holiday eating is over at last?

I love, love, love all the holiday foods. And I don't do a lot to limit my intake of them during the holidays. But by the time the holidays are over, I always feel like a big peanut-butter ball myself!

That's why I equally look forward to getting rid of all the rich foods and bringing out the healthy ones. The last several years I have used the month of January to detox my body and focus myself spiritually. There is nothing at all wrong with feasting. It's Biblical, actually. But there needs to be a bookend. Feasting that lingers is gluttony (which translates into jeans that don't fit).

This year I am not doing an official "fast", but I am making two small (or HUGE) changes during the month of January that help me put a bookend on the holidays.

1. No desserts during the month of January (including but not limited to muffins, dessert breads, and the obvious...cookies, cakes, etc...)
2. I'm allowing myself one cup of tea each morning, and then only water to drink the rest of the day.

It's nothing too drastic or huge. But it's a small death to self as I am overly zealous about good dessert and I so enjoy a cold Diet Coke every day around lunch. Every time I deny myself these "goodies" I am reminded that, oh yeah, I can have self-control and food will not be my master.

Feasting and fasting...both can teach us so much about God and ourselves!