So here's my "overthinking it" thought for today.
I've read several articles, and another today, about how scientists believe sugar has a similar effect on the brain as drugs like cocaine. It messes with our dopamine levels and rewires our pleasure sensors, especially in people who are susceptible, so that you not only crave more sugar, but will forsake everything else just for the sugar. The article documented a study in which rats were allowed to gorge on things like cheesecake, and when they were given healthy foods once again, they voluntarily starved themselves for 2 weeks, refusing to eat, apparently holding out with the hope that they would eventually be given more sugar.
I've often wondered if maybe that's part of why God allows us to go through what can seem like never-ending times of trials and sorrow here on earth. In the original perfect design, He never meant for us to feel those things. But in a sin-tainted world, it seems that we humans become addicted to pleasurable things very easily. We get confused about what's "good" and "bad" and how much of each we should be exposing ourselves to and taking in.
I wonder if pain is one of God's many "reset" buttons... and if He's using it to re-calibrate our senses. I always read that if you completely quit processed sugar, honey, and artificial sweeteners for a month, your tastebuds reset and things like berries will seem 10 times sweeter than they did before.
I wonder if our spirits are like that--when we experience good things, we start to crave more of them and chase after only the things that make us feel good... Any sense of serving or self-sacrifice is left by the wayside.
But a painful event in our lives can help make us appreciate the good things all the more and make them feel even more satisfying. Not exactly a comforting thought... but definitely a reminder that God uses everything for a purpose.
Ok, I'll stop talking to myself now. Thanks for listening!
I've read several articles, and another today, about how scientists believe sugar has a similar effect on the brain as drugs like cocaine. It messes with our dopamine levels and rewires our pleasure sensors, especially in people who are susceptible, so that you not only crave more sugar, but will forsake everything else just for the sugar. The article documented a study in which rats were allowed to gorge on things like cheesecake, and when they were given healthy foods once again, they voluntarily starved themselves for 2 weeks, refusing to eat, apparently holding out with the hope that they would eventually be given more sugar.
I've often wondered if maybe that's part of why God allows us to go through what can seem like never-ending times of trials and sorrow here on earth. In the original perfect design, He never meant for us to feel those things. But in a sin-tainted world, it seems that we humans become addicted to pleasurable things very easily. We get confused about what's "good" and "bad" and how much of each we should be exposing ourselves to and taking in.
I wonder if pain is one of God's many "reset" buttons... and if He's using it to re-calibrate our senses. I always read that if you completely quit processed sugar, honey, and artificial sweeteners for a month, your tastebuds reset and things like berries will seem 10 times sweeter than they did before.
I wonder if our spirits are like that--when we experience good things, we start to crave more of them and chase after only the things that make us feel good... Any sense of serving or self-sacrifice is left by the wayside.
But a painful event in our lives can help make us appreciate the good things all the more and make them feel even more satisfying. Not exactly a comforting thought... but definitely a reminder that God uses everything for a purpose.
Ok, I'll stop talking to myself now. Thanks for listening!
Another example, when I got addicted to video games, I played 12 hours a day and missed two meals most of the time (I was 80 lbs, with no flesh, but all bones). It makes sense that when we find something pleasurable, we lose all logic and sanity to get what we want. So when the bible calls it the 'flesh' it makes sense, because it's against the Spirit. It's not exactly what we want inside, because after falling for it, there is a haunting feeling!
After God's smacking (technically not, cause we usually are the ones who really brought this upon ourselves!) we learn to be content with what He provides. I think it's a matter of trusting that He knows what we need and desire, more than we do. And choosing to give up what we 'think' we want, and doing it daily, we can now understand what Paul may have meant when he said, he died daily xD
