I spent yesterday with a family at the UAB Hospital in Birmingham. Armed with a newfound resolve to amend my errant eating ways, I determined to be healthy and live happy and holy. It makes sense and more importantly, it has a nice ring to it. We were in the cancer center of this hospital; the area where the cause and effect of cancer is addressed. As the afternoon dragged on hunger began to gnaw at my decided determination. I needed a snack in the worst sort of way. Friends of the family headed to Starbucks (I love that place) to indulge in the syrupy sweetness of “Mochacchinos”, “Macchiatos”, and “Frappuccinos.” Plates of lemon cake and sweet rolls beckoned them. I sat in the hallway, talking to my dear wife on the phone, wiping the reflexive saliva from the corners of my mouth. I needed help and I needed it now. Surely in the cancer center I can find healthy options that would satiate my raging hunger. I wandered through the food court, passing vending machines lined with honey buns and cheetos. Steaming hot cheeseburgers and glowing french fries sang their siren song as I passed by. Finally, hidden in a cooler filled with deserts and soft drinks I found a V-8. It was a tiny bottle but surely it would slake my pain. As the attendant scanned my nutritious choice, I was floored by sticker shock. My little snack, my tiny healthy choice, my only island in an ocean of cholesterol and sugar, was $3. I knew a stroke was surely on the way.

We have been looking at sin these past couple of weeks. Sin advertises a “play now, pay later” philosophy. Just as the hamburgers, lemon cakes and cinnamon rolls were a cheaper option at the moment, there is definitely a higher cost to these choices down the road. When you factor in the cost of a heart attack or diabetes, V-8 may not be so expensive. In the same way sin tastes good and seems like the cheaper option. To live a life that is healthy, happy and holy involves discipline and personal cost. To allow the Holy Spirit to work in our lives is to surrender the reigns to Him. Devotional times, prayer, introspection, these are costly ventures that war with our flesh. But in the end, health is restored and we find ourselves dining on the sumptuous food of fellowship with the Almighty.

We must not let the “father of all lies” deceive us. Galatians 6:7 tells us, “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.” Sin has consequences. But allowing the Holy Spirit to work in us to conform us to the image of the Son of God has impact as well. So the question is, will you get out of the buffet line and begin to dine on the “bread of life”? I guess I’m ready to…even if it is costly.