It has been over two years now that I have thrived on a nutrition plan that avoids grains of any kind. I have my moments of compromise here and there including the occasional family pizza outing. However, those times are fairly rare for me.
I stumbled upon this way of eating. It was not by a doctor’s suggestion. It began by simply trying to get healthier and lose some unwanted fat. Long story short, I discovered that some of my life-long health struggles began fading away the longer I went without grains in my diet.
In all honesty this was life-changing for me. There were multiple prescription medications that I began no longer taking, some of which I had taken daily since youth. I could go on and on about the physical benefits that I began to enjoy after this change. There lies my struggle…
Let’s keep the main thing the main thing.
In the same way we do with any great blessing, I found myself wanting to talk about the change and the results with those around me. There is nothing wrong with that desire… and I often find myself talking about it today with those around me. However, this new personal conviction was something that paled in comparison to the eternal convictions which rescued me, transform me, and will eternally carry me.
I felt a weight of conviction as I noticed that it was easier for me to talk about my nutrition change and the ensuing effects than it was to talk about the all encompassing joy of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
All of us are evangelists. Some of us are evangelists for our beloved alma mater, local sports teams, schooling methods, parenting philosophies, and nutritional convictions. God has given us passions that we should enjoy for His glory. We should find joy talking with others about those passions. Those passions are not evil.
The struggle, as the saying goes, is keeping the main thing the main thing. We should be known on our street or at our place of work as the one who is an imitator of Christ and a lover of the gospel above and beyond the one who is a vegan, homeschool advocate, or Aggie football fanatic.
Paul’s words make a striking connection here: For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.” (Romans 1:16-17 ESV)
The gospel of Jesus Christ is THE power of God for salvation. God will give us passions and interests but He will never give us a banner to fly above His gospel.
May we be a people who are known first for our life of gospel transformation and may we always keep the main thing the main thing.
Matt Powell serves as teaching pastor at Crossings Community Church, a body of believers whose mission is to engage, equip, and empower homes for gospel transformation in Katy, TX.