Freeing My Mind

My iPhone broke. Well, not in a way that keeps it from functioning, but my headphone mic input broke. How? I think my nephew might have rammed a small object into the headphone jack. To me that makes it broken. My beautiful 1987 Chrysler Fifth Avenue, Eloise, although with CD functionality, has no tape-deck or auxiliary input. Therefore I actually drive around with my headphones in. For all of my mother figures who read this blog, I know. It’s dangerous to drive around with headphones in your ear. Maybe it will make you feel better to know that I’m not listening to thrash metal. I listen to podcasts exclusively while I drive. (If your interested in entering the world of podcasts, considering that I do not know your niche interest, I will suggest two to begin with. 1. Stuff You Should Know 2. The AwakeCast Oh, and make sure you have iTunes installed.)  Prior to the destruction caused by my nephew, whenever a call came through in the midst of my podcast listening all I had to do was click a small white button on my headphones: Podcast pauses, call received, call ends, podcast resumes. All of this with the click of a single button. Now the process is much more complicated: Phone rings, headphones are unplugged and set to the side becoming entangled a midst my various wires and do-dads sitting on my passenger seat, iPhone is unlocked and brought my ear, only one hand free now, call received, call is inevitably stress inducing due to steps 1 -4, call ends, iPhone is unlocked once again, headphones untangled and inserted back into the iPhone, tap icon to bring up iPod functionality, re-choose desired podcast, press play, lock iPhone. All that to say, I broke down and paired a blue-tooth earpiece with my iPhone. I wouldn’t have bought one out-right, but I found one that came with my PS3.  Not the best option, I refuse to actually keep the thing in my ear, but it’s close by now.

I’m convinced that the greatest concern facing America isn’t swine flu, cancer, or even the health-care bill. It’s fake food. Now, before I rant a little, I’ll admit that I don’t eat 100% organic and although accused of being a hippie at times, this isn’t about becoming “one with nature”. Think about it: Most nations of the world, even 1st world countries, have a food staple high in carbohydrates. The average Frenchman drinks 100 liters of wine a year along with cheese by the truck load. Yet, they have a much longer lifespan than Americans and 40% less heart conditions. If you think that our diet related health issues and weight have only to do with the abundance of food we have, consider that the second fattest nation in the world is Mexico. Mexico, a country riddled with poverty, yet in close proximity to the American food industry. Hmmm?

If one were to look on the back of most of the packaged foods that we find in the grocery store, we won’t even begin to discuss restaurant food, you will noticea small list at the bottom of the label. These are called the ingredients. Ingredients are listed in descending order according to the amount of that incredient contained within the food. Everything from cheeses, to cereal, to bread and even to meat contain a list of ingredients that would have to be read aloud by a panel of molecular biologists in order to comprehend their pronunciation. Usually within the first one or three ingredients you’ll find one of the greatest culprites… high-fructose corn syrup.

America both grows and consumes DOUBLE the amount of corn as the country holding down the #2 position in corn consumption… China. Why? Well, how often do you see corn on your plate? Not that often? The answer is simple: a devilish ingredient known as high-fructose corn syrup. In 1970 over 80% of all sweetener consumed by Americans was sucrose. During this time an artificial sweetener was being developed at the hands of the soft-drink industry and the corn farmers of America. By 1997, the amount of sugar sweetener consumed by American had dropped to 47% and HFCS had taken over with about 57% of the marketplace. Right under the noses of it’s consumers, the American food industry had pulled a switcheroo.

The problem with this, apart from other various health issues, is that sweetener of any form has been shown to increase the desire to eat. You see, it wasn’t just that sugar was replaced with HFCS, it was that HFCS was added to food that had not previously contained sweetener in any form. Their plan was simple: Add the low-cost sweetener to the foods we eat, we become addicted to those foods and no longer desire any food doesn’t contain the addictive property. Other food companies had to follow suit in order to keep up with America’s unknowing demand for HFCS. The number one target for these sorts of food? Our children’s school cafeteria. If children were to develop a dependency on these highly processed foods at an early age, they would continue to depend on them as adults. Mwuahhhaha!

High-fructose corn syrup is just one example of the additives contained within our food. I’m holding a package of bread that I picked up from our office’s food area. It contains 25 ingredients. A bread that’s touted for it’s “18 grams of whole gains” and “49% of daily fiber”. I’m no dietition and I’m definately not a scientist, but it all adds up. America is the fattest nation on the planet and our obesity has lead us to be a leader in unwanted health statistics as well. Maybe along with the healthcare-reform bill we should earmark a food-industry reform clause. And, maybe we as Christians while proclaiming the dangers of various addictions we should also take note of the most dangerous addiction: food.

While I was contemplating all of this, I found that it was a good way to express some much needed concern for my spiritual movement’s current state. It seems that we crave more of what makes us simply feel good, rather than what is actually good for us. We have become addicted to the sweetness of the flash of ministry, without much concern for the actual beneficial content. We take a food that is good in and of itself, but dilute it with artificial sweetness. Paul talked about this: For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers (2 Timothy 4:3) Those itching ears are the addictive properties of that which we hear. I don’t want to give you specific examples, just something to think about. Maybe an industry of ministry has conditioned us to want certain things, rather that what God has actually created for us to consume. I’m not talking about what we traditionally think of as “watering down the gospel”, but rather when we become too used to one form of food because it makes us feel so good. You gotta ask yourself: Is what I’m eating actually contributing to my spiritual health? Am I growing? Calm down, Craig, it’s Wednesday. Sorry, I couldn’t help it. I’m just sayin’.

much love!

and now, inspiration served up warm