A Taste of Honey

Proverbs 25:16 "Hast thou found honey? Eat so much as is sufficient for thee."

It is always enlightening for me to go on a diet. I really like sweet snacks, so when I start to cut back, I am amazed at the amount I have been eating prior to the diet. I never think I am eating as much as I am. That's why portion control is a must in a diet plan.

One cookie rarely satisfies me. So I eat two or three. I love the hundred calorie prepared portions of snacks. It raises my awareness level of how much I think it takes to really sate my hunger.

Isn't that true of any pleasure we experience? Eve was an example of this. She and Adam were given everything they needed in the garden. But she wanted more.

The word sufficient implies that it is "enough or meets the need". The opposite of that is "extreme" which means intense or severe: to the maximum.

Scripture confirms that we must embrace temperance and moderation in our lives. Some passages stress this so much that we are instructed to cut off our hands or pluck out our eyes. We know this is figurative but I think God knew that indulgence would be a human weakness that would easily get out of hand. He was saying that it would take very strong measures to bring ourselves and keep ourselves in control.

So what is your honey? Is it eating? Most of us have to work hard to keep our appetite in control. It could be hobbies that bring you much pleasure. It is so easy to over indulge in time or money to satisfy the things we love to do which seem to be therapeutic. This generation is into extreme sports or exercise. It is proven that much of either will harm the body.  Then there's entertainment, reading or music. There is nothing wrong with any of these but if they control you, you are eating "too much honey".

So many of us think or say, "It's my life. It's not affecting anyone else." I can do what I want." Many times that is the practice of our lives as well. What are the results of overindulgence?

All over indulgence eventually affects the mind and the body. When we become sick, we are a burden to others. God created us to contribute to society, not be a burden. He gave us faculties to do all the things we can so easily over do. It makes life sweet like honey. But if we are always pushing the lines of sufficiency, we will be unhealthy in our approach to living. 

This approach affects everything in our life.There's nothing we do that cannot be touched by this principle. So let's keep our spoonfuls of honey limited!