1 Kings 18:21 Elijah went before the people and said, “How long will you waver between two opinions? If the LORD is GOD, follow HIM; but if Baal is God, follow him.” But the people said nothing. [New International translation]
BIBLICAL COMMENTS
Elijah was a great prophet reformer in the Northern Kingdom of Israel during the reign of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel. When Ahab, Jezebel and their prophets promoted Baal worship, Elijah sought to reawaken Israel to the real truth— JEHOVAH, HE alone is GOD. Baal worship was everywhere, all around him, but Elijah refused to succumb. Ignoring what was going on around him, Elijah challenged the status quo. He was confrontational. He was direct. Even Elijah’s name, which meant “YAHWEH1 is my GOD,” left no doubt where Elijah stood.
In 1 Kings 18, Elijah, called the “troubler of Israel” (1Kings 18:16), takes a stand against all the false Baal prophets around him. Elijah lets the people know that their “waver” between GOD and Baal worship had to stop. The people had to choose. Elijah proposed a test---a “showdown.” Elijah, GOD’s prophet vs. the 450 prophets of Baal.2
PROCESSED FOODS vs. REAL FOOD
In this modern age, the difference between “real food” and “processed foods” is being blurred. In fact, many people (especially children) may not even know the difference between real food and processed food.
Processed Foods
Generally, processed foods are any food that has been changed or altered from its raw or natural state. If a food has been altered by chemicals, flavors, enhancers, colors, fillers, preservatives, additives then it is processed food. If the food is labeled with “other ingredients” (which generally you may not be able to pronounce or even know what they are) such as: mono and diglycerides, exthoxylated mono and diglycerides, dough conditioners (sodium stearoyl lactylate, calcium iodate, calcium dioxide), datem, calcium sulfate, yeast nutrient (ammonium sulfate), dicalcium phosphate, diammonium phosphate, calcium propionate (to retain freshness)---then it is a processed food.
Most canned, boxed, jarred, frozen, packaged foods are processed foods. Most quick service and fast food outlets serve processed foods. Generally, foods with trans fats, which are fried, baked, hydrogenated and that come out of food vending machines are processed foods. Processed foods tend to contain a lot of salt, high fructose corn syrup and MSG (monosodium glutamate).
Often chemicals preservatives are added to food to:
- Prevent the food from rotting;
- Make the food look more appealing by adding color;
- Give the food a certain texture; or
- To give the food a particular taste or flavor.
For example, processed foods tend to contain high levels of sugar, salt and saturated fats. People often become addicted to processed foods because the intense dopamine release that occurs when people eat these foods. In fact, many researchers have noted that the same area of the brain that is activated when someone is addicted to sugar is the same area of the brain activated when someone abuses cocaine. Some researchers have suggested that sugar “is actually more addictive than even cocaine” and is “probably the most consumed addictive substance around the world.” See, “Is Sugar the New Cocaine?” https://www.medpagetoday.com/psychiatry/addictions/67513
Another recent study found that participants ate about 500 calories more per day when they consumed an ultra-processed diet compared to when eating a diet of unprocessed foods. In addition to addiction, the study stated that a crucial clue to the excessive calorie consumption was the speed that the ultra-processed meals were eaten. They found that these meals were eaten faster and resulted in the participants consuming more calories per minutes. These meals were eaten faster because ultra-processed meals contained little fiber. For example, fiber in an orange requires us to chew more and the whole orange takes longer to digest than just drinking a glass of sweetened orange juice. Eating slower and eating foods with fiber that slows consumption also allows the body’s satiety mechanism to activate before a person eats too much. See, “New Study Shows What Eating ‘Ultra-Processed’ Foods for Two Weeks Does to Your Body by Richard Hoffman, May 19, 2019; https://www.sciencealert.com/there-s-firm-evidence-that-ultra-processed-food-causes-weight-gain-at-last.
One suggestion for breaking a processed food addiction or reduce your eating is to substitute a fruit or vegetable for those times when you would normally eat or drink a processed food.
Some common processed foods include: cake mixes, pie crust mix, bread, anything with white flour, macaroni, cookies, French fries, pizza, energy bars, breakfast cereal, canned meat, cured meat, bacon, luncheon meats, sausage, gelatins, refined oils, boxed rice mixes, salad dressing, stick margarine, diet shakes, protein bars, BBQ sauce, mustard, ketchup, mayonnaise, soft drinks, pretzels, instant breakfast drinks, white sugar, sugar substitutes, soft candies, pudding, dessert mixes, ice cream, snack chips, crackers, whipped cream, chocolate, marshmallows, shredded coconut, frozen desserts, frozen dinners.
Diets that contained a lot of processed foods have also been linked to obesity, heart disease and diabetes.
Natural/Non-Processed/Real Foods
Non-processed foods are raw foods. These include raw fruits, nuts, seeds, raw vegetables and whole grains.
WE MUST CHOOSE
Every Wednesday, a group of believers, striving for greater spiritual and physical health and fellowship choose to eat raw. Every Wednesday, they choose.
Having an active prayer life, studying GOD’s WORD, serving GOD, deciding to follow CHRIST, allowing GOD to direct your path also involves choosing. The words of Elijah still ring true: “How long will you waiver between two opinions?” That is the question each of us must answer every day. Like the people of Israel, “doing nothing” or “saying nothing” is simply not an option.
Choosing can be difficult. But let us pray that we submit our will to GOD’s WILL---that we surrender our will to HIM.
Let’s make HIM our choice and BE BLESSED.
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1A name of the Hebrew God, represented in Hebrew by the tetragrammaton ("four letters") יהוה (Yod Heh Vav Heh), transliterated into Roman script Y H W H. Because it was considered blasphemous to utter the name of God it was only written and never spoken. This resulted in the original pronunciation being lost. The name may have originally been derived from the old Semitic root הוה (hawah) meaning "to be" or "to become. Other variants include Jehovah, See, www.behindthename.com
2Elijah also challenged the 400 prophets of Asherah (another false god), who were loyal to Jezebel to the “showdown” too. See 1Kings 18:19
