Mind your Excesses

Food for the belly and belly for food, both shall be destroyed…

Let your moderation be known to all men… Phil 4:5. In other words, we are to be moderate in all things. I recall an incident that happened many years ago.

During my undergraduate days at the university (Lautech), I attended Foursquare Students Fellowship and was a chorister in the earliest days; I was actively learning, thriving, and serving. From childhood, I had loved singing and even co-formed an acapella group in college. My Fellowship choir was quite good, music ministrations were on point and we had so many vocally sound and disciplined singers which endeared us to many churches and fellowships around.

We got invitations from time to time one such invitation would always be in my memory for reasons that I here share. We had been invited by a ministry to minister during the church anniversary; we prepared spiritually and professionally, however, on the said day, I took out time to give myself some treat; I prepared a very special Egusi soup (native to southwestern Nigeria). 

The soup was very tasty and I felt very satisfied and proud of the work I had done; I prepared an accompanying swallow and enjoyed the meal, however, I wouldn’t let go because the soup was too sweet, I took more and more till I had taken too much though I still wanted to take more but for my hesitant belly. I never knew the impact of what I had done till it was a few moments before we were called up to the podium for our ministration.

I felt some sensations in my bowels, it felt funny initially, later I felt like I wanted to fart, later, I needed to visit the convenience, I had to excuse myself from the auditorium, unfortunately, the convenience was quite a distance and at this time I could barely walk as my bowel movement was extremely somehow at this point. I began to sweat profusely as I walked seeking any deserted place where I could offload. I trekked further till I got home, messing my underwear in the process; it was my worse experience ever, I missed the ministration just because I could not control myself, it served as a learning point for me afterward.

You just might be digging your grave with your excesses

You may be denying yourself precious opportunities

You may miss God

Friends, be moderate in all that you do whether in eating, dressing, talking, acting...everything. Too much of anything is bad; “I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but I will not be mastered by anything. 1 Corr 6:12