Train Your Child in the Way He Should Go

Children in our country are suffering from obesity and its related disorders at alarming rates. They are taking medications for hypertension and Type II diabetes, which only occurred in adults a generation ago.  Some of them are even dying.  The Bible clearly commands us to train our children in the way that they should go.  This applies to teaching them to honor Christ with their bodies by making healthy food choices.  1 Corinthians 10:31 says, "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God."  Likewise, the Bible teaches that our bodies are temples, which is defined in Scripture as a house or dwelling, of the Holy Spirit and commands us to honor God with our bodies because Jesus bought us at the price of His life.  Consequently, teaching your children to eat and drink for God's glory in order to maintain the Lord's house (temple) should be part of how your household serves the Lord (Jeremiah 30:17).  Teach them now that the Holy Spirit is not pleased when His home is kept in disrepair. 

God's promise is that our children will practice what they have been taught when they grow up (Proverbs 22:6).  If you fail to teach them, you leave them at the mercy of the world’s system which plans to ensnare them and keep them bound until they die from eating disorders and obesity related diseases.  In other words, Satan will use your child’s ignorance of God's Word against him or her.  The Bible confirms this fact in Hosea 4:6 which states, "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge because they have rejected knowledge."  Conversely, the opposite is true when your child is armed with the Word of God.  “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free” (John 8:32).

The devil's plan is to steal years off of your child’s life by keeping him or her entangled with the sin of gluttony and/or eating disorders.  If successful, the enemy will ultimately bring about your child’s untimely death and destroy the abundant life God meant for him or her to share with your family.  Don't let the enemy win!  Seek the knowledge of God in regard to training your child to eat for His glory and help your child win the battle to lose weight, be free of eating disorders, and lead a long, healthy life. 
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Lastly, pray for them.  Pray that your child is blessed with eyes to see, ears to hear, and a mind to understand the biblical principles that teach them how to adopt and maintain a healthy lifestyle through Christ.  Pray that they submit to godly discipline which you enforce in your home regarding healthy eating habits and that they will be blessed with long life for adhering to what they were taught (Proverbs 22:6).  Ask that they are given wisdom to continue eating for God’s glory when they reach adulthood and teach their children to do the same.  Pray that they never again become entangled with the sin of gluttony, failure to eat and drink for the glory of God, or "make a god of their belly" (Proverbs 23:20-21, 28:7; Deut. 21:18-21; 1 Corinthians 10:31; Philippians 3:18b-19).
It is time for parents to be parents again. Then we can stop attending funerals for 36-year olds who have dropped dead of heart attacks and strokes because we will have the right to claim God's promise over the lives of our children even in terms of eating healthy and maintaining a healthy body weight.