Gluttony, derived from the Latin gluttire meaning to gulp down or swallow, means over-indulgence and over-consumption of food, drink, or intoxicants to the point of waste.
Proverbs 23:21- For the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty: and drowsiness shall clothe a man with rags.
I struggle with this from time to time. Usually it involves an obsession with sugary foods, and an overwhelming desire to indulge to the point of being stuffed and uncomfortable. For others, it is drink… alcohol, soft drinks, or dare we bring up the word…. COFFEE? Could it be possible to be gluttonous with coffee?
It got me thinking… what else can we hoard or be over-indulgent in? Let’s name a few:
Our time
Our possessions
Our money
Our ministries
Our friendships
Our lust for pleasure
Our pride and desiring to be noticed
Pretty much anything we hold onto tight enough to call “our own”, we can be gluttonous with.
Nothing is our own! As Christians, we are bought with a price, and we are the Lords! Everything we have needs to be daily laid at His feet.
Have you been hoarding anything, calling it your own? I do this almost daily! I can be so selfish, and I often get those white-knuckles as I grasp the things of this world. Anything and everything I have has been given to me by my Savior, Jesus. He holds my very breath!
Proverbs 6:16-19
16These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him:
17A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood,
18An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief,
19A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.
I don’t want to be doing things that the Lord hates. He is so gracious with us. He is long suffering. He loves us unconditionally. But I desire to PLEASE HIM! Do you?
I’m surrendering everything, once again. What do you need to surrender? Can I pray for you?
Thanks for visiting!
Traci, I do the same thing with food at times. Yes, I want to please the LORD. We all have areas of weakness, some are more obvious because it shows physically.
This is definately something He has brought to my attention lately. My biggest things right now are sugary foods and my time. I very much desire to please HIM! I’ll be praying for you, thank you for your thoughts.
Hmmm, Guilty as charged. 🙁 I can be very gluttonous at times. I like to eat when no one is watching. Ugh! I also sometimes am selfish with my time, etc. Thanks for the awesome post, Traci!
Food. DAILY struggle for me that food stuff is.
Ah, Traci. I shared that passage in Proverbs with my Sunday school class recently. It’s something that makes you think. Many youth I’ve directed to those verses have no idea it’s there.
And gluttony? Yes, I struggle with the white knuckle syndrome, too. laying it down again.
Very good post Traci! I am gluttonous with food and with pride at times. Proverbs is such a wonderful book, so much wisdom there!
Awesome post. Simply awesome.
Thank you for being so honest, Traci. Here in America we have so many creature comforts, and it is easy to idolize food or leisure or pleasure or entertainment, and forget eternal realities – forget that this life is going to be over SO soon, and our eternal soul hangs in the balance. God calls us to find our pleasure in Him… food and everything else points to Him… and if we are abusing those gifts of His by idolizing them then we are sinning against Him! I need to remind myself of this daily… lately I have been gluttonous on entertainment and leisure… watching Gilmore Girls, reading blogs, etc…. instead of finding pleasure and joy in housework and serving my family.
Thank you Traci, words I need to hear. My husband is quick to say, “It’s OK, it all belongs to the Lord anyway.” There is great freedom in living that way and that must be His plan. Have a blessed day:)
such pertinent truth. Thank you for the reminder and for visiting redeemed days! You’ve blessed me. Eleanor
This hits home with me. Not only do I have a major sweet tooth (particularly for chocolate), but I indulge myself in other ways that I shouldn’t. The tug of war with my desires . . . the battle in my heart . . . the pride. That’s what I’m needing to surrender.
Great post and thanks for the sweet comments on my blog.
Really, it’s great to find other christian bloggers online who are bold about their faith – AWESOME!
Following you back on your great blog – looking forward to some more posts like this one! 🙂
Oh, and I can definitely get sucked into the glutton of coffee! It can be the “drug of choice” for many christians. And I totally agree with your view on gluttony. I think that if you cannot see yourself giving up something in your life (other than the Bible, your duties to caring for your family, etc.) – it’s dangerous that that item or action is becoming an idol or you are becoming a glutton to it.
Again, GREAT post! See you around!
-E
I love the song “Until only love remains” by JJ Heller. It reminds me that nothing is mine, not even me!
Wow that scripture so rings true with me and food… on the other things, I learned several years ago after a nasty divorce that THINGS don’t mean much and it doesn’t help to hoard them. I try not to HOARD as much as appreciate and enjoy all the wonderful things in my life.
I guess I am guilty too. This was an awesome post. Thanks for opening eyes.
Hi Traci,
Oh! You hit the gluttony button on the head. Mine is sweets! I always think it’s just a little reward for hard work or something to cheer me up when things get tough. It’s definitely an idol. And I’d better get rid of it.
Your blog is delightful. Thank you for visiting and following mine.
Blessings,
Janis
Thanks for stopping by to follow my blog. You have a very lovely blog.
It’s true that we can hoard things to our detriment. Thanks for the reminder to let stuff go.
Blessings!
What a great post Traci Michele! Such a thought provoking list…I have never really thought about anything other than food as the object of gluttony! I think you have something there…might the LORD help us all to check our motivation behind any excessive behaviours! Might me we be useful in HIS hand for HIS glory…each and every day!
Blessings,
Camille
Oh boy, I can relate to this one. There are so many ways that we are gluttons… Can you say “coviction”? Ouch. Thank you for these words to encourage and help us stay on the right path. Nice to meet you!
Sh, gluttony. Its a sneaky one at times. Thanks for the reminder to be careful and intentional. Gluttony a good “heart revealer” for what you are currently worshipping. Instead of the Lord.