I was writing notes for my devotionals the other day, and thanks to The Bible with Nicky and Pippa Gumbel, I came up with a happy and healthy theme.
I have loved the theme since I was a graphic designer for a series of books called The Happy, Healthy Pet. There are certain healthy habits that all of us would like to cultivate. But alas, do we want to do the work?
Most of us have the freedom to do what we want. Yet, as the Apostle Paul said, “Not everything is beneficial.” Yes, we have the freedom to eat all the junk food we want, never exercise, and watch mindless, even harmful content. But we soon realize none of that will make us happy or healthy!
What makes matters worse is that it is much easier to search for others who face different temptations and point their fingers. For instance, I am the first to admit I love to eat. And I have an affinity for chocolate, chips & salsa, and pretty much any junk food my mother admonished me not to eat. It’s not that I don’t like fruits and vegetables. I am more than glad to eat those too! But if you place a platter of cookies and brownies before me, then present a platter of veggies next to it, guess which one I will be attacking?
Is Happy and Healthy Possible?
I have my struggles, and I am sure you have those unique to yourself. Temptations, heartbreak, and frustrations happen to all of us. Worse, the things we have mastered tend to fill us with pride. Blessings end up making us entitled. And the next thing we know, we start looking down on others. The tragedy of this is that pride and arrogance lead to a fall. Heaven help us!
So yes, it is possible to stay happy and healthy. But that doesn’t mean our journeys will be perfect. We mess up, we stumble, and we get up again. And just when we think we have it together and we start to flaunt it, something or someone will come along and remind us we aren’t the big show after all. We can’t be pleased and perfect. But learning how to be happy and healthy on this bumpy journey we all find ourselves traversing is possible.
