June 30, 2025 • 31 mins
Daniel’s Resolve - Set Apart by What you Eat
✨ Part 5 of the Biblical Food Series
Next up in this Biblical Food Tour: we’re headed to Babylon, mama!
In today’s episode, we’re unpacking what happened when Daniel found himself surrounded by indulgence, status, and daily feasting—and why he said no to the king’s table.
This isn’t a story about trendy diets or rigid rules. It’s about conviction. Clarity. And honoring God in a culture that had lost its way.
If you’ve ever felt stuck in survival mode, running on caffeine and sugar, wondering how to live with more purpose and energy in the thick of motherhood—this episode will speak straight to your heart.
We’re talking about the powerful connection between your food choices and your calling, the spiritual lies we sometimes believe when we reach for another treat, and the truth that God has something so much better for you.
You were made to live set apart, mama. Let’s talk about what that looks like—right here, right now, with what’s on your plate.
SHOW SOME LOVE: If this episode encouraged you, I’d love for you to leave a quick rating and review here. Your words brighten my day and also help more mamas discover the hope, healing, and joy they deserve.
WORK WITH ME TO RESTORE YOUR ENERGY + DISCOVER YOUR DESIGN FOR HEALTH AS A BUSY MAMA: Option 1) Join the Live Healthy, Mama coaching program today! Find all the details here.
Option 2) Work 1:1 with me to reach your wellness goals - without the overwhelm -and get total clarity on living the healthy and energetic life you were created for. Get the details here.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Jerusha Jantz, Holistic Wellness Coach for Christian Moms:
Welcome to Tired Mommy Revival. (00:01):
undefined
Hey mama.
Are you running on coffee fumes,feeling like brain fog, fatigue
and anxiety, or running the show?
Do you wake up dreading the dayahead already overwhelmed by the
endless to-do list, and unsurehow you'll make it through.
Do you long for the energyto enjoy motherhood?
(00:23):
And care for yourself, but feelstuck and unsure where to start.
Let me remind you ofsomething life changing.
You were created for more, moreenergy, more clarity, more joy.
Hi, I'm Jerusha, certifiedHolistic Wellness Coach.
Wife and mom to two wild boysand one baby girl in heaven.
(00:46):
I know the exhaustion you'refeeling because I've been there
barely making it through the day.
Relying on coffee and chocolate tosurvive and wondering why nothing
I tried ever made me feel better.
Then God stepped in andrevealed a powerful truth.
A woman's body is beautifullyand uniquely designed to thrive.
(01:07):
When we align with how God createdus, we can boost our energy bust
through fatigue and step into thevibrant, joy filled life he has for us.
Mama.
I'm living proof thatit's possible these days.
I wake up, refreshed, nourished my bodywith intention and navigate the chaos
of motherhood with patience and peace.
(01:28):
Most days, and I wannahelp you do the same.
If you're ready to swap exhaustion forenergy, brain fog for clarity and guilt
for grace, you are in the right place.
Each week we'll dive into practicalstrategies, faith-filled truths,
and empowering tools to renew yourhealth, body, soul, and spirit.
(01:48):
Are you ready for this?
Let's do it, mama.
Welcome back to episode five andour God's Design for Food series.
In the series, we've walked through theGarden of Eden, wandered the Wilderness
with manna, and stepped into the PromisedLand of abundance and celebration.
(02:10):
We've covered how the Bible teaches usthat God created good food for us in his
original design, that God cares if ourfood is enjoyable, he wants to richly
bless our table through a provision ofbountiful foods, and that feasting and
celebration around food was God's idea.
(02:32):
But today we find ourselves inBabylon, a culture of indulgence,
status, power and compromise.
And in the middle of it all is ayoung man named Daniel who made a food
decision that would change everything.
This story is one of boldness, conviction,health and favor, and what happens when
(02:59):
we choose to honor God with what we eat.
The story begins with the Israelitesbeing taken into captivity by the
Babylonians who had overthrown theircountry and carried them away as slaves.
Because of their disobedience theIsraelites were suffering the loss
(03:20):
of the covenant that they had withGod for living in the Promised Land.
And yet in the midst of this corruptculture, even in the country of Israel,
Daniel comes out and he goes into anothercorrupt country with the Babylonians.
But in him is the heart of God.
(03:41):
Even in the midst of corrupt culture,Daniel at a young age, at about 15
years old, had a desire to serve God,and he was willing to do that even
after being taken away into captivity.
We find that Daniel was takenand placed in the palace, a place
where indulgence was a daily event.
(04:03):
It was considered a right becausethey were wealthy and because
they were in the king's palace.
So they had a right to partakeof all the richest foods in
the country on a daily basis.
The King's table was filledwith pork and horse meat, both
unclean according to God's law.
Excessive daily consumption of wine,but not just any wine, this wine
(04:28):
had been dedicated to Babyloniangods before they consumed it.
And food prepared for the sakeof pure pleasure and not purpose.
This food wasn't for nourishment, itwas food for power, pride, and control.
And for Daniel, that wasa line he couldn't cross.
(04:51):
Daniel 1:8 says, "but Danielresolved that he would not defile
himself with the king's food orwith the wine that he drank."
Daniel knew this wine, thisfood, it didn't honor God.
So what did he do?
He asked for vegetables and water instead.
And I bet people thought he was crazy.
(05:15):
Like, what do you mean nopork shoulder and wine?
You're going to eat kale and carrots?
But Daniel wasn't trying to be difficult.
He was choosing faithfulnessover fitting in.
Now Daniel's food wasn'tabout restriction.
It was about reverence.
This wasn't purely a vegan statement.
(05:37):
It was a spiritual one.
Daniel knew meat wasn't wrong.
In fact, Genesis 9 tells usthat God gave Noah and his
descendants permission to eat meat.
But the meat served in Babylon wasspecifically unclean according to
things that God had told them notto eat and it didn't honor God.
(05:58):
Another note about meat in theIsraelite culture is that they often
would eat meat as a celebratory meal.
At the very most, they were eating itonce a week on the Sabbath, and then at
celebratory feasts, but meat on the tablewas not a daily occurrence for them.
And now he's finding himself in thepalace where meat is laid out across the
(06:22):
whole table, and it's like eat meat anddrink wine all the time, to your heart's
content, with absolutely no boundary orhealth purposes involved in it whatsoever.
It was feasting for the sake ofindulgence and gluttony, and for serving
oneself, and there was no remnant ofhonoring God in their food whatsoever.
(06:45):
Daniel also refused the wine, not becausewine is sinful, because as 1 Timothy 5:23
tells us, Timothy himself was encouragedto drink a little wine for his health.
He was abstaining because he more thanlikely wanted to uphold himself to a
higher standard, which was good, butin the process he was getting sick.
(07:07):
Now before you assume that wine is supergood for your health, let's take a little
detour on our Bible food tour todayfor a small history lesson about wine.
Back in Bible Times wine wasa fermented grape drink, and
fermentation creates probiotics.
(07:28):
And so the reason that the winewas helping Timothy stay healthy
was because it was providingprobiotics for his gut health.
And 80% of our immune systemis housed in our gut, so it was
helping him sustain his health.
And often in Bible times winewas also diluted with water, many
occasions, and they drank it regularlybecause there was a little bit of
(07:51):
alcohol, but there was also a lotof probiotic benefits to it too.
Nowadays, you don't seethat in wine at all.
We are a far cry from what Bible wine was.
First of all, you don'tfind probiotics in there.
We use a process called distillation,not fermentation specifically, and
so it creates a much higher alcoholcontent without all the beneficial
(08:15):
components of the probiotics.
And it's also loaded withingredients that are designed
to preserve it on the shelves.
So this wine that he was drinkingwas much, much different than
what we would know as wine today,but it was good for his health.
So Daniel knew wine wasn't sinful,but the problem with his wine that
(08:36):
he was being offered in Babylon inthe palace was that it was dedicated
to false gods and that was notsomething he was about to partake in.
It no longer aligned withGod's design for food.
Daniel's choice wasn'tabout what was popular.
(08:56):
It was about what was pure.
He chose food that honored God'sdesign: simple, whole, life-giving.
And even though it looked strangeto those around him, Daniel trusted
that honoring God would nevercome at the cost of his wellbeing.
So Daniel requested to eat vegetablesand water, but the problem was, is
(09:19):
that the attendant in the palace waslike, "whoa, hold up. Like, I wanna
support you, Daniel, but I'm pretty sureyou're really gonna offend the king,
and that's gonna come back on me too".
And so Daniel said, " okay,test us for 10 days.
Let us eat vegetables and drink waterfor 10 days and see what happens to us.
(09:40):
And if we don't look better thanall the other men, then we will
go and eat the king's food". Andso the steward said, "okay, fine.
I'll give you 10 days.
Let's see what happens".
Daniel's on the line here because he'ssaying, God, I'm stepping out in faith,
I'm choosing to honor you above thisculture of indulgence that dishonors
(10:02):
you and your intention for food.
And so God bless me whileI eat these vegetables and
drink the water for 10 days.
So in Daniel 1:15, it says, "at the end of10 days, they looked healthier and better
nourished than any of the young men".
And in verse 17, "to these fouryoung men, God gave knowledge and
(10:25):
understanding, and Daniel couldunderstand visions and dreams".
Daniel didn't just get stronger.
He got wiser.
God gave him favor, mental clarityand a position of influence, all
because he set himself apart.
(10:46):
And Daniel didn't just surviveon vegetables, he thrived.
He was set apart physically, mentally,and spiritually in this culture, all
because he chose to honor God overindulging in the world's way of eating.
Mama, honoring God with your health isn'tjust about looking good or eating clean.
(11:10):
It's about clarity, wisdom, strengthin motherhood, and fulfilling
the purpose that God has for you.
When you choose food that supportsthe life God created you for,
you make room for more of whathe wants to do through you.
Daniel's story is an endorsement ofsomething deeper: honor God with your
(11:35):
food choices, choose foods that arenaturally life-giving, and reject
cultural patterns of overindulgencethat harm your health and your spirit.
Now this is where I wanna pauseand ask you a question, one
that might hit a little deep.
So Mama, what might God want to do throughyou if you chose to steward your health?
(12:03):
As moms eating in alignment with God'sdesign for our bodies can help us
become more of who he created us to be.
If you weren't constantly tired,emotionally drained, overstimulated,
and running on spiritual empty,who would you be as a mom?
(12:24):
As a woman of God?
If you lived with energy, mentalclarity, joy, peace, patience,
and creativity, how would youshow up in your home differently?
Would you love from a place of peace?
Teach with creativity?
(12:44):
Discipline with patience?
Would you run and play withyour kids from a place of joy?
If you had the strength to get up andread your Bible instead of dragging
yourself to the coffee pot andplopping in front of the cartoons,
how would you grow as a woman of God?
Would you minister to friends froma place of spiritual overflow,
(13:08):
instead of purely from fatigue?
Would you live with purpose insteadof operating in survival mode?
Mama, the gap between the life wehave and the life we desire in God
may be as small as the treat we keeprunning to, instead of running to him.
(13:32):
We say things like,
"I deserve this."
"I've had such a hard day."
"The kids are driving me nuts."
"I'm too tired to care right now."
And we use these things asexcuses to indulge in the things
that we think bring us peace.
In Joel 2:19 it says, "behold, I willsend you grain and new wine and oil
(13:57):
and you will be satisfied by them".
In this story, God is calling his peopleto repentance and when they turn to him,
he will restore the covenant blessing.
And that blessing involves "youwill eat and be satisfied".
But on the flip side, the curse is thatyou would eat and never be satisfied.
(14:20):
Micah 6:14 says, "you shalleat, but not be satisfied.
Hunger shall be in your midst".
And how often do we eatand yet not feel satisfied?
We wake up and we eat the brownie,and we feel good in the moment, but
in an hour or two, we're reaching formore, and then we come back again.
(14:44):
And then today's indulgence becomestomorrow's staple in our life, and
we find ourselves caught in thistrap of constantly turning to the
foods that never truly satisfy us andalways leave us reaching for more.
Ecclesiastes 6:7 says, "wework to feed our appetites.
(15:05):
Meanwhile, our souls go hungry".
We were never meant to live inphysical or spiritual hunger.
Isaiah 55:2 says, "everyonewho thirsts come to the waters
and you who have no money.
Come buy and eat.
Yes, come buy wine and milkwithout money and without price.
(15:30):
Why do you spend money for whatis not bread and your wages
for what does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to me and eatwhat is good, and let your soul
delight itself in abundance.
Incline your ear and come to Me".
This verse serves as a reminderthat only God can fill the
(15:56):
hunger that we truly need filled.
And that food, yes, it can fill a physicalhunger, but when we have a hunger of our
soul and we turn to food to nourish us, wewill end up feeling hungrier than before.
And not only do those foods, especiallysugars, and empty carbs, and foods
(16:20):
filled with additives and preservatives,they damage our physical health.
They create a craving for more physically.
But then spiritually, we'releft wanting more too.
This verse in Isaiah 55 says thatGod will give us wine and milk.
(16:43):
Both of those drinks are used to representspiritual as well as physical nourishment.
God is telling the people you'vebeen spending your money on things
that don't bring true fulfillment.
Then we jump down and we seethe reference to bread again.
"Why do you buy things that arenot bread?" Why are you buying
(17:06):
cupcakes and expecting them tofeed you like the Bread of Life?
God wants more for us.
He has deeply interwoven purposeinto our food, and he wants us
to come to him and eat out ofhis hand and his rich provision.
And when we live in a culture that isindulging, it's easy to get confused
(17:31):
and believe that we deserve that.
We start to believe that wedeserve the little pleasures
that we find on this earth.
Maybe you found yourself sayingsomething like, "God, I'm laying
down my life for everyone.
Don't ask me to giveup this little joy too.
Don't ask me to give up the browniesand the cookies and the pastries.
(17:54):
I won't get this in heaven,so let me have it now".
It seems like a simple pleasurein exchange for the hardship
that life demands from us.
If you've ever feltthat way, I can relate.
I've thought those things too.
But when I brought that cry to God, helovingly spoke back, "do you believe I
(18:17):
don't have good things for you in heaven?"
And that shook me.
Because if I believed that browniesand croissants were better than his
design, maybe I wasn't really trustingin the goodness of his promises.
How could I love my life so muchmore that I would choose what I
(18:38):
have here over the design of heaven?
And so now I say, I do believe God hasevery good thing for me in eternity.
Brownies and croissantswithout consequence, maybe.
Maybe not.
But I know that whatever he has forme there is more beautiful, more
joyful, and more satisfying thananything I could cling to here.
(19:04):
And if believing that God is gonna giveme good food in heaven helps me trust
his promises, because it helps me declarehis goodness over my life, even when I
have to say no to things of this world,then I will continue to believe that.
Because at the core of thatbelief is that God will give me
(19:24):
every good thing that I need.
That he's a good father who wants torichly bless me in abundance, like there
is evidence throughout the entire Bible.
I believe that carries over intoheaven too, because he's showing us
even now on this earth his designand his character towards us.
(19:47):
And this helps me live a life forGod instead of feeling like I have to
cling to the pleasures of this world.
And when we step away from trendy dietsand emotional eating, and instead look
at the food through the lens of worshipand stewardship, everything changes.
(20:08):
Just like Daniel, you mightfind that your health improves.
But more importantly, you'll know thatyou're honoring the One who gave you
your body, your food, and your purpose.
The book of Daniel starts withDaniel's decision to choose the
right foods and God's blessing him.
(20:29):
But the rest of the book is filledwith his accomplishments in that
culture, the way he rose, head andshoulders above everyone in wisdom,
because he chose to seek God above all.
Because he chose God overthe pleasures of the culture.
The culture that God hadcreated for the people was that
(20:52):
they would enjoy their food.
Ecclesiastes 9:7 says, "eatyour bread with joy and drink
your wine with a merry heart".
But God also created a culturearound food that benefited their
physical and spiritual health.
And he gave them parametersof how to do that.
(21:13):
How to feast, and celebrate, andenjoy in abundance in a healthy way.
And that involved stopping work andresting, gathering in community,
and doing it in a way thatalways pointed you back to God.
Whether it was thanking him for thefruit of the land, his provision
(21:35):
through the earth, or in remembranceof the amazing ways that he had
shown up for them time after time.
It always came back full circle toGod, and it was done from a place of
beauty, and rest, and in season withthe times that God had appointed for it.
(21:57):
And not just a daily indulgence for thesake of escaping what we truly needed
to face, which was relationship withGod and reliance on him for our everyday
needs, not just physically with food,but spiritually and emotionally as well.
And around the world for many, manyyears, we've seen in various cultures
(22:22):
that even if they weren't honoringGod, they still had this idea of
using food to promote our health.
There are recipes and culturalfoods that are based on eating
food to make us healthy.
They instinctively knew from the beginningthat they may not understand why something
(22:45):
worked, but they knew if we do thisto our food, then we don't get sick.
If we eat this like this,it promotes our health.
If we aren't feeling welland we need healing, then we
can eat this thing over here.
We may not be living in Babylon today,but we are living in a modern Babylon-type
culture, this mesh of cultures.
(23:07):
They were conquering the world andbringing everybody into this one place.
In America we have multiple culturesthat have come into this one melting
pot, and it is beautiful and good, butone of the tragedies of our country is
that people come here with their cultureand their culture eventually fades.
(23:28):
So we are a culture without culture.
And our food has seenthe evidence of that.
We don't know how to eat topromote our health and longevity.
We don't know how to eat for energy.
We don't know how to eat after birthto promote our health and restore us.
(23:50):
We have no idea what we'redoing with food as a culture.
And we can see that Babylonianmirror in our society where
we're eating simply for pleasure.
We eat what serves us and feels good.
And it really doesn't matter where itcame from or what purpose it served.
Food is everywhere, availableat our fingertips 24/7.
(24:15):
We binge food while we binge Netflix.
We order takeout from our couchwithout leaving the house.
Cookies and cakes don'trequire any effort.
We just unwrap, eat and repeat.
It's a feast-culture without thereverence, without the sacred, and
without the rest or the communitythat God commanded for us.
(24:39):
And if we wanna get back to the heartof God's intention for our food, then we
need to know that we deserve what is good.
We deserve the fruit of the land thathe intended for us to heal our bodies.
And I don't believe that just eatingbetter will fix everything in your
life, but I believe that it's apowerful pathway to realigning
(25:02):
what God wants to do in your life.
I believe that when you eathealthier, you get your energy back.
I believe that when youexercise, you sleep better.
And when you start to feelbetter in your body, you're able
to wake up in the morning andactually read your Bible for once.
And then you're able tospiritually feed yourself too.
(25:22):
And so I just believe that health and ourfood is one of the catalysts that propels
moms forward into a better life and closerto the life that God has planned for them.
Just like we see in Daniel's life, hewas spiritually blessed, and physically
nourished and elevated because ofhis food choices, and I believe that
(25:46):
that can still be true for us today.
So let's pause for a heart check momentbecause this episode isn't just about
Daniel's choices, it's about ours too.
And I want you to ask yourself, am Ichoosing what's easy or what honors God?
(26:08):
Have I allowed food to become a dailyindulgence instead of a sacred provision?
Do my eating habits reflectculture or conviction?
And do people think myfood choices are weird?
And if they don't, should they?
(26:30):
Should they feel like what I eat isweird because it's so counter-cultural.
But if I were to meet up with thepeople of the Bible, if I were to
sit with Daniel at a table, would helook at my food and say it was weird?
Or would he say, Hey,can I have some of that?
Food has become something that we nolonger steward like we were called
(26:51):
to, even from the place of the Garden.
Instead, it's become a statussymbol like it was in Babylon.
It's a source of comfort to us anda constant companion where we're
meeting a need with food that onlyGod was designed to meet for us.
(27:12):
But God's design is better than that,and Daniel shows us what it looks like
to live in the middle of indulgenceand still stand firm, and for his life
to be richly blessed by it, to receivethe spiritual benefits that came with
choosing God above his food choices.
(27:33):
You don't have to be vegan tohonor God, but you must have
to make choices that stand out.
And when you do, it might look like: swapping drive-thru dinners for home (27:40):
undefined
cooked meals from God's ingredients.
Or skipping the sweets thatleave you foggy and fatigued.
Or making intentional decisions that feelcounter-cultural, even in your own home.
(28:01):
And listen, I get it.
Saying no to indulgence ina tired-mom season is hard.
I am not pretending that it's not.
We've all had those days where acupcake in the pantry feels like
the only bright spot of our day.
But Daniel didn't just deny cravings,he replaced them with something better.
(28:24):
And so can we mamas.
It all starts with one simple choice tosay, "God, I don't always do it right,
but in this moment I'm choosing to turn toyou instead of turning to the ice cream".
And when we do that over and over, we cantrain our bodies and our spirits to align
(28:45):
more fully with God and his design for us.
God's design for food is still good.
His intention hasn't changed from theGarden, even though we found ourselves
so far from there in our modern day.
So let's follow Daniel's lead.
Choose whole foods that support health.
(29:06):
Avoid foods that dishonorthe temple of your body.
Ask God to give you strength, wisdom,and favor in your food choices.
And don't be afraid to lookdifferent from the world around you.
First Corinthians 10:23 says,"everything is permissible, but
not everything is beneficial".
(29:27):
Mama, you are permitted to eatanything, but you're also invited
to eat what is beneficial.
What brings life, what aligns withGod's design, what allows you to
thrive so that you can fully serveGod in the capacity that you were
called to operate in on this earth.
And to receive the full benefit ofyour reward in heaven for serving
(29:52):
God faithfully in all the ways, bigand small, that you are made for.
Now, next week we are wrapping upthe series with a bonus episode,
Jesus at the Table, and I cannotwait to share this with you.
We'll look at how Jesus used food,not just to fill stomachs, but
(30:13):
to teach, connect, and transform.
And it is going to be a powerfulrevelation of how the Old Testament
and the New Testament come togetherand even reveal to us the purposes that
God has in heaven for us with our food.
But for today, let's remember: you were made to be set apart. (30:31):
undefined
And your food choices, they're not small.
They're an opportunity to honor a big God.
Mama, I hope this episode blessedyou and reminded you that you were
beautifully and uniquely made to thrive.
(30:51):
If today's conversation spoke to yourheart, I'd love for you to take a
moment to leave a rating and review.
Not only does it encourage me,but it helps more tired mamas
discover the hope, healing, andenergy they've been searching for.
You are not in this alone.
Make sure to hit subscribeso you never miss an episode.
Together we will reclaim yourenergy, renew your health, and revive
(31:13):
your spirit one step at a time.
Until next time.
Remember, you are beautifully designed byGod to live with energy, clarity, and joy.
You're not just surviving mama.
You're stepping into the vibrantlife you were created for.
I'm cheering you on.
undefined
Hey mama.
Are you running on coffee fumes,feeling like brain fog, fatigue
and anxiety, or running the show?
Do you wake up dreading the dayahead already overwhelmed by the
endless to-do list, and unsurehow you'll make it through.
Do you long for the energyto enjoy motherhood?
(00:23):
And care for yourself, but feelstuck and unsure where to start.
Let me remind you ofsomething life changing.
You were created for more, moreenergy, more clarity, more joy.
Hi, I'm Jerusha, certifiedHolistic Wellness Coach.
Wife and mom to two wild boysand one baby girl in heaven.
(00:46):
I know the exhaustion you'refeeling because I've been there
barely making it through the day.
Relying on coffee and chocolate tosurvive and wondering why nothing
I tried ever made me feel better.
Then God stepped in andrevealed a powerful truth.
A woman's body is beautifullyand uniquely designed to thrive.
(01:07):
When we align with how God createdus, we can boost our energy bust
through fatigue and step into thevibrant, joy filled life he has for us.
Mama.
I'm living proof thatit's possible these days.
I wake up, refreshed, nourished my bodywith intention and navigate the chaos
of motherhood with patience and peace.
(01:28):
Most days, and I wannahelp you do the same.
If you're ready to swap exhaustion forenergy, brain fog for clarity and guilt
for grace, you are in the right place.
Each week we'll dive into practicalstrategies, faith-filled truths,
and empowering tools to renew yourhealth, body, soul, and spirit.
(01:48):
Are you ready for this?
Let's do it, mama.
Welcome back to episode five andour God's Design for Food series.
In the series, we've walked through theGarden of Eden, wandered the Wilderness
with manna, and stepped into the PromisedLand of abundance and celebration.
(02:10):
We've covered how the Bible teaches usthat God created good food for us in his
original design, that God cares if ourfood is enjoyable, he wants to richly
bless our table through a provision ofbountiful foods, and that feasting and
celebration around food was God's idea.
(02:32):
But today we find ourselves inBabylon, a culture of indulgence,
status, power and compromise.
And in the middle of it all is ayoung man named Daniel who made a food
decision that would change everything.
This story is one of boldness, conviction,health and favor, and what happens when
(02:59):
we choose to honor God with what we eat.
The story begins with the Israelitesbeing taken into captivity by the
Babylonians who had overthrown theircountry and carried them away as slaves.
Because of their disobedience theIsraelites were suffering the loss
(03:20):
of the covenant that they had withGod for living in the Promised Land.
And yet in the midst of this corruptculture, even in the country of Israel,
Daniel comes out and he goes into anothercorrupt country with the Babylonians.
But in him is the heart of God.
(03:41):
Even in the midst of corrupt culture,Daniel at a young age, at about 15
years old, had a desire to serve God,and he was willing to do that even
after being taken away into captivity.
We find that Daniel was takenand placed in the palace, a place
where indulgence was a daily event.
(04:03):
It was considered a right becausethey were wealthy and because
they were in the king's palace.
So they had a right to partakeof all the richest foods in
the country on a daily basis.
The King's table was filledwith pork and horse meat, both
unclean according to God's law.
Excessive daily consumption of wine,but not just any wine, this wine
(04:28):
had been dedicated to Babyloniangods before they consumed it.
And food prepared for the sakeof pure pleasure and not purpose.
This food wasn't for nourishment, itwas food for power, pride, and control.
And for Daniel, that wasa line he couldn't cross.
(04:51):
Daniel 1:8 says, "but Danielresolved that he would not defile
himself with the king's food orwith the wine that he drank."
Daniel knew this wine, thisfood, it didn't honor God.
So what did he do?
He asked for vegetables and water instead.
And I bet people thought he was crazy.
(05:15):
Like, what do you mean nopork shoulder and wine?
You're going to eat kale and carrots?
But Daniel wasn't trying to be difficult.
He was choosing faithfulnessover fitting in.
Now Daniel's food wasn'tabout restriction.
It was about reverence.
This wasn't purely a vegan statement.
(05:37):
It was a spiritual one.
Daniel knew meat wasn't wrong.
In fact, Genesis 9 tells usthat God gave Noah and his
descendants permission to eat meat.
But the meat served in Babylon wasspecifically unclean according to
things that God had told them notto eat and it didn't honor God.
(05:58):
Another note about meat in theIsraelite culture is that they often
would eat meat as a celebratory meal.
At the very most, they were eating itonce a week on the Sabbath, and then at
celebratory feasts, but meat on the tablewas not a daily occurrence for them.
And now he's finding himself in thepalace where meat is laid out across the
(06:22):
whole table, and it's like eat meat anddrink wine all the time, to your heart's
content, with absolutely no boundary orhealth purposes involved in it whatsoever.
It was feasting for the sake ofindulgence and gluttony, and for serving
oneself, and there was no remnant ofhonoring God in their food whatsoever.
(06:45):
Daniel also refused the wine, not becausewine is sinful, because as 1 Timothy 5:23
tells us, Timothy himself was encouragedto drink a little wine for his health.
He was abstaining because he more thanlikely wanted to uphold himself to a
higher standard, which was good, butin the process he was getting sick.
(07:07):
Now before you assume that wine is supergood for your health, let's take a little
detour on our Bible food tour todayfor a small history lesson about wine.
Back in Bible Times wine wasa fermented grape drink, and
fermentation creates probiotics.
(07:28):
And so the reason that the winewas helping Timothy stay healthy
was because it was providingprobiotics for his gut health.
And 80% of our immune systemis housed in our gut, so it was
helping him sustain his health.
And often in Bible times winewas also diluted with water, many
occasions, and they drank it regularlybecause there was a little bit of
(07:51):
alcohol, but there was also a lotof probiotic benefits to it too.
Nowadays, you don't seethat in wine at all.
We are a far cry from what Bible wine was.
First of all, you don'tfind probiotics in there.
We use a process called distillation,not fermentation specifically, and
so it creates a much higher alcoholcontent without all the beneficial
(08:15):
components of the probiotics.
And it's also loaded withingredients that are designed
to preserve it on the shelves.
So this wine that he was drinkingwas much, much different than
what we would know as wine today,but it was good for his health.
So Daniel knew wine wasn't sinful,but the problem with his wine that
(08:36):
he was being offered in Babylon inthe palace was that it was dedicated
to false gods and that was notsomething he was about to partake in.
It no longer aligned withGod's design for food.
Daniel's choice wasn'tabout what was popular.
(08:56):
It was about what was pure.
He chose food that honored God'sdesign: simple, whole, life-giving.
And even though it looked strangeto those around him, Daniel trusted
that honoring God would nevercome at the cost of his wellbeing.
So Daniel requested to eat vegetablesand water, but the problem was, is
(09:19):
that the attendant in the palace waslike, "whoa, hold up. Like, I wanna
support you, Daniel, but I'm pretty sureyou're really gonna offend the king,
and that's gonna come back on me too".
And so Daniel said, " okay,test us for 10 days.
Let us eat vegetables and drink waterfor 10 days and see what happens to us.
(09:40):
And if we don't look better thanall the other men, then we will
go and eat the king's food". Andso the steward said, "okay, fine.
I'll give you 10 days.
Let's see what happens".
Daniel's on the line here because he'ssaying, God, I'm stepping out in faith,
I'm choosing to honor you above thisculture of indulgence that dishonors
(10:02):
you and your intention for food.
And so God bless me whileI eat these vegetables and
drink the water for 10 days.
So in Daniel 1:15, it says, "at the end of10 days, they looked healthier and better
nourished than any of the young men".
And in verse 17, "to these fouryoung men, God gave knowledge and
(10:25):
understanding, and Daniel couldunderstand visions and dreams".
Daniel didn't just get stronger.
He got wiser.
God gave him favor, mental clarityand a position of influence, all
because he set himself apart.
(10:46):
And Daniel didn't just surviveon vegetables, he thrived.
He was set apart physically, mentally,and spiritually in this culture, all
because he chose to honor God overindulging in the world's way of eating.
Mama, honoring God with your health isn'tjust about looking good or eating clean.
(11:10):
It's about clarity, wisdom, strengthin motherhood, and fulfilling
the purpose that God has for you.
When you choose food that supportsthe life God created you for,
you make room for more of whathe wants to do through you.
Daniel's story is an endorsement ofsomething deeper: honor God with your
(11:35):
food choices, choose foods that arenaturally life-giving, and reject
cultural patterns of overindulgencethat harm your health and your spirit.
Now this is where I wanna pauseand ask you a question, one
that might hit a little deep.
So Mama, what might God want to do throughyou if you chose to steward your health?
(12:03):
As moms eating in alignment with God'sdesign for our bodies can help us
become more of who he created us to be.
If you weren't constantly tired,emotionally drained, overstimulated,
and running on spiritual empty,who would you be as a mom?
(12:24):
As a woman of God?
If you lived with energy, mentalclarity, joy, peace, patience,
and creativity, how would youshow up in your home differently?
Would you love from a place of peace?
Teach with creativity?
(12:44):
Discipline with patience?
Would you run and play withyour kids from a place of joy?
If you had the strength to get up andread your Bible instead of dragging
yourself to the coffee pot andplopping in front of the cartoons,
how would you grow as a woman of God?
Would you minister to friends froma place of spiritual overflow,
(13:08):
instead of purely from fatigue?
Would you live with purpose insteadof operating in survival mode?
Mama, the gap between the life wehave and the life we desire in God
may be as small as the treat we keeprunning to, instead of running to him.
(13:32):
We say things like,
"I deserve this."
"I've had such a hard day."
"The kids are driving me nuts."
"I'm too tired to care right now."
And we use these things asexcuses to indulge in the things
that we think bring us peace.
In Joel 2:19 it says, "behold, I willsend you grain and new wine and oil
(13:57):
and you will be satisfied by them".
In this story, God is calling his peopleto repentance and when they turn to him,
he will restore the covenant blessing.
And that blessing involves "youwill eat and be satisfied".
But on the flip side, the curse is thatyou would eat and never be satisfied.
(14:20):
Micah 6:14 says, "you shalleat, but not be satisfied.
Hunger shall be in your midst".
And how often do we eatand yet not feel satisfied?
We wake up and we eat the brownie,and we feel good in the moment, but
in an hour or two, we're reaching formore, and then we come back again.
(14:44):
And then today's indulgence becomestomorrow's staple in our life, and
we find ourselves caught in thistrap of constantly turning to the
foods that never truly satisfy us andalways leave us reaching for more.
Ecclesiastes 6:7 says, "wework to feed our appetites.
(15:05):
Meanwhile, our souls go hungry".
We were never meant to live inphysical or spiritual hunger.
Isaiah 55:2 says, "everyonewho thirsts come to the waters
and you who have no money.
Come buy and eat.
Yes, come buy wine and milkwithout money and without price.
(15:30):
Why do you spend money for whatis not bread and your wages
for what does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to me and eatwhat is good, and let your soul
delight itself in abundance.
Incline your ear and come to Me".
This verse serves as a reminderthat only God can fill the
(15:56):
hunger that we truly need filled.
And that food, yes, it can fill a physicalhunger, but when we have a hunger of our
soul and we turn to food to nourish us, wewill end up feeling hungrier than before.
And not only do those foods, especiallysugars, and empty carbs, and foods
(16:20):
filled with additives and preservatives,they damage our physical health.
They create a craving for more physically.
But then spiritually, we'releft wanting more too.
This verse in Isaiah 55 says thatGod will give us wine and milk.
(16:43):
Both of those drinks are used to representspiritual as well as physical nourishment.
God is telling the people you'vebeen spending your money on things
that don't bring true fulfillment.
Then we jump down and we seethe reference to bread again.
"Why do you buy things that arenot bread?" Why are you buying
(17:06):
cupcakes and expecting them tofeed you like the Bread of Life?
God wants more for us.
He has deeply interwoven purposeinto our food, and he wants us
to come to him and eat out ofhis hand and his rich provision.
And when we live in a culture that isindulging, it's easy to get confused
(17:31):
and believe that we deserve that.
We start to believe that wedeserve the little pleasures
that we find on this earth.
Maybe you found yourself sayingsomething like, "God, I'm laying
down my life for everyone.
Don't ask me to giveup this little joy too.
Don't ask me to give up the browniesand the cookies and the pastries.
(17:54):
I won't get this in heaven,so let me have it now".
It seems like a simple pleasurein exchange for the hardship
that life demands from us.
If you've ever feltthat way, I can relate.
I've thought those things too.
But when I brought that cry to God, helovingly spoke back, "do you believe I
(18:17):
don't have good things for you in heaven?"
And that shook me.
Because if I believed that browniesand croissants were better than his
design, maybe I wasn't really trustingin the goodness of his promises.
How could I love my life so muchmore that I would choose what I
(18:38):
have here over the design of heaven?
And so now I say, I do believe God hasevery good thing for me in eternity.
Brownies and croissantswithout consequence, maybe.
Maybe not.
But I know that whatever he has forme there is more beautiful, more
joyful, and more satisfying thananything I could cling to here.
(19:04):
And if believing that God is gonna giveme good food in heaven helps me trust
his promises, because it helps me declarehis goodness over my life, even when I
have to say no to things of this world,then I will continue to believe that.
Because at the core of thatbelief is that God will give me
(19:24):
every good thing that I need.
That he's a good father who wants torichly bless me in abundance, like there
is evidence throughout the entire Bible.
I believe that carries over intoheaven too, because he's showing us
even now on this earth his designand his character towards us.
(19:47):
And this helps me live a life forGod instead of feeling like I have to
cling to the pleasures of this world.
And when we step away from trendy dietsand emotional eating, and instead look
at the food through the lens of worshipand stewardship, everything changes.
(20:08):
Just like Daniel, you mightfind that your health improves.
But more importantly, you'll know thatyou're honoring the One who gave you
your body, your food, and your purpose.
The book of Daniel starts withDaniel's decision to choose the
right foods and God's blessing him.
(20:29):
But the rest of the book is filledwith his accomplishments in that
culture, the way he rose, head andshoulders above everyone in wisdom,
because he chose to seek God above all.
Because he chose God overthe pleasures of the culture.
The culture that God hadcreated for the people was that
(20:52):
they would enjoy their food.
Ecclesiastes 9:7 says, "eatyour bread with joy and drink
your wine with a merry heart".
But God also created a culturearound food that benefited their
physical and spiritual health.
And he gave them parametersof how to do that.
(21:13):
How to feast, and celebrate, andenjoy in abundance in a healthy way.
And that involved stopping work andresting, gathering in community,
and doing it in a way thatalways pointed you back to God.
Whether it was thanking him for thefruit of the land, his provision
(21:35):
through the earth, or in remembranceof the amazing ways that he had
shown up for them time after time.
It always came back full circle toGod, and it was done from a place of
beauty, and rest, and in season withthe times that God had appointed for it.
(21:57):
And not just a daily indulgence for thesake of escaping what we truly needed
to face, which was relationship withGod and reliance on him for our everyday
needs, not just physically with food,but spiritually and emotionally as well.
And around the world for many, manyyears, we've seen in various cultures
(22:22):
that even if they weren't honoringGod, they still had this idea of
using food to promote our health.
There are recipes and culturalfoods that are based on eating
food to make us healthy.
They instinctively knew from the beginningthat they may not understand why something
(22:45):
worked, but they knew if we do thisto our food, then we don't get sick.
If we eat this like this,it promotes our health.
If we aren't feeling welland we need healing, then we
can eat this thing over here.
We may not be living in Babylon today,but we are living in a modern Babylon-type
culture, this mesh of cultures.
(23:07):
They were conquering the world andbringing everybody into this one place.
In America we have multiple culturesthat have come into this one melting
pot, and it is beautiful and good, butone of the tragedies of our country is
that people come here with their cultureand their culture eventually fades.
(23:28):
So we are a culture without culture.
And our food has seenthe evidence of that.
We don't know how to eat topromote our health and longevity.
We don't know how to eat for energy.
We don't know how to eat after birthto promote our health and restore us.
(23:50):
We have no idea what we'redoing with food as a culture.
And we can see that Babylonianmirror in our society where
we're eating simply for pleasure.
We eat what serves us and feels good.
And it really doesn't matter where itcame from or what purpose it served.
Food is everywhere, availableat our fingertips 24/7.
(24:15):
We binge food while we binge Netflix.
We order takeout from our couchwithout leaving the house.
Cookies and cakes don'trequire any effort.
We just unwrap, eat and repeat.
It's a feast-culture without thereverence, without the sacred, and
without the rest or the communitythat God commanded for us.
(24:39):
And if we wanna get back to the heartof God's intention for our food, then we
need to know that we deserve what is good.
We deserve the fruit of the land thathe intended for us to heal our bodies.
And I don't believe that just eatingbetter will fix everything in your
life, but I believe that it's apowerful pathway to realigning
(25:02):
what God wants to do in your life.
I believe that when you eathealthier, you get your energy back.
I believe that when youexercise, you sleep better.
And when you start to feelbetter in your body, you're able
to wake up in the morning andactually read your Bible for once.
And then you're able tospiritually feed yourself too.
(25:22):
And so I just believe that health and ourfood is one of the catalysts that propels
moms forward into a better life and closerto the life that God has planned for them.
Just like we see in Daniel's life, hewas spiritually blessed, and physically
nourished and elevated because ofhis food choices, and I believe that
(25:46):
that can still be true for us today.
So let's pause for a heart check momentbecause this episode isn't just about
Daniel's choices, it's about ours too.
And I want you to ask yourself, am Ichoosing what's easy or what honors God?
(26:08):
Have I allowed food to become a dailyindulgence instead of a sacred provision?
Do my eating habits reflectculture or conviction?
And do people think myfood choices are weird?
And if they don't, should they?
(26:30):
Should they feel like what I eat isweird because it's so counter-cultural.
But if I were to meet up with thepeople of the Bible, if I were to
sit with Daniel at a table, would helook at my food and say it was weird?
Or would he say, Hey,can I have some of that?
Food has become something that we nolonger steward like we were called
(26:51):
to, even from the place of the Garden.
Instead, it's become a statussymbol like it was in Babylon.
It's a source of comfort to us anda constant companion where we're
meeting a need with food that onlyGod was designed to meet for us.
(27:12):
But God's design is better than that,and Daniel shows us what it looks like
to live in the middle of indulgenceand still stand firm, and for his life
to be richly blessed by it, to receivethe spiritual benefits that came with
choosing God above his food choices.
(27:33):
You don't have to be vegan tohonor God, but you must have
to make choices that stand out.
And when you do, it might look like: swapping drive-thru dinners for home (27:40):
undefined
cooked meals from God's ingredients.
Or skipping the sweets thatleave you foggy and fatigued.
Or making intentional decisions that feelcounter-cultural, even in your own home.
(28:01):
And listen, I get it.
Saying no to indulgence ina tired-mom season is hard.
I am not pretending that it's not.
We've all had those days where acupcake in the pantry feels like
the only bright spot of our day.
But Daniel didn't just deny cravings,he replaced them with something better.
(28:24):
And so can we mamas.
It all starts with one simple choice tosay, "God, I don't always do it right,
but in this moment I'm choosing to turn toyou instead of turning to the ice cream".
And when we do that over and over, we cantrain our bodies and our spirits to align
(28:45):
more fully with God and his design for us.
God's design for food is still good.
His intention hasn't changed from theGarden, even though we found ourselves
so far from there in our modern day.
So let's follow Daniel's lead.
Choose whole foods that support health.
(29:06):
Avoid foods that dishonorthe temple of your body.
Ask God to give you strength, wisdom,and favor in your food choices.
And don't be afraid to lookdifferent from the world around you.
First Corinthians 10:23 says,"everything is permissible, but
not everything is beneficial".
(29:27):
Mama, you are permitted to eatanything, but you're also invited
to eat what is beneficial.
What brings life, what aligns withGod's design, what allows you to
thrive so that you can fully serveGod in the capacity that you were
called to operate in on this earth.
And to receive the full benefit ofyour reward in heaven for serving
(29:52):
God faithfully in all the ways, bigand small, that you are made for.
Now, next week we are wrapping upthe series with a bonus episode,
Jesus at the Table, and I cannotwait to share this with you.
We'll look at how Jesus used food,not just to fill stomachs, but
(30:13):
to teach, connect, and transform.
And it is going to be a powerfulrevelation of how the Old Testament
and the New Testament come togetherand even reveal to us the purposes that
God has in heaven for us with our food.
But for today, let's remember: you were made to be set apart. (30:31):
undefined
And your food choices, they're not small.
They're an opportunity to honor a big God.
Mama, I hope this episode blessedyou and reminded you that you were
beautifully and uniquely made to thrive.
(30:51):
If today's conversation spoke to yourheart, I'd love for you to take a
moment to leave a rating and review.
Not only does it encourage me,but it helps more tired mamas
discover the hope, healing, andenergy they've been searching for.
You are not in this alone.
Make sure to hit subscribeso you never miss an episode.
Together we will reclaim yourenergy, renew your health, and revive
(31:13):
your spirit one step at a time.
Until next time.
Remember, you are beautifully designed byGod to live with energy, clarity, and joy.
You're not just surviving mama.
You're stepping into the vibrantlife you were created for.
I'm cheering you on.
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