“You are what you eat.” How many times have I heard that line before? It is almost like the advertisement from the late 80’s – Farmer Brown’s Chickens. “They look so good because they eat so good.” I can still recall the oom‘s voice (oom just sounds better here than uncle). If I recall correctly it was a bit of a husky voice (is that the right term? In Afrikaans we call it rasperstem.)
Husky voice or not, that line always stayed with me. When I was older, I even joked about my body by saying “I look so good because I eat so good!” Because let us be honest. Anything refined, sweet and unhealthy is the nicest to eat!
And so it happened, that God showed me a few years ago, while channel hopping on TV (almost as fast as popcorn that jumps while being made), pausing for a brief moment on one or another absurd reality show. I just have to interrupt myself here – my goodness, what a long sentence with very little punctuation marks! I feel out of breath just reading through it….
Anyway, as we were watching these people, everyone in search of something that they do not know what it is that they are looking for (they looked helpless and lost in this show as it was one or another weird dating something or another), God dropped in my spirit You are because I am. It was in English and just like that. For a moment I thought about it and then I realised that this is so true! God referred to Himself as I am who sent Moses to the Pharaoh, did he not? Oh my goodness, did I spell Pharaoh correct??? You know, the guy with the goatie that enslaved the Israelites, the Egyptian king. That is the guy I am talking about!
Jump forward to 2020 or 2021 (I don’t even know anymore when what happened because everything seems like a blur). Somewhere there, I wrote on my own personal Facebook page something similar to this article I am writing, and that we are because God is. But later God expanded even more on this for me.
You are what you eat, what you think and what you speak. And just like that, everything falls into place in my head (I actually cannot explain HOW that happens, it just does). Body, mind or soul (not sure whether to use mind or soul here in Afrikaans it is Liggaam, siel en gees) and spirit. You are that which goes around in your heart (there is a bible verse to this effect is there not? Somewhere in Psalms?). You are what you think in your mind (and then speak). You are what you physically eat.
The power of life and death is in the tongue – it says so in the Bible too….so we must be aware of what we speak, as this manifests in the flesh normally….and actually what you speak starts with what goes on in our hearts, does it not? Does it make sense what I am saying here?
I recon from these Godly thoughts (not me but God for sure!) is where Beroepsvrou started to exist. For YEAAARS I thought that I, Elsie, am the only one that does not wake up with a song in my heart and birds that chirp just for me in the mornings. You know, almost like Snow White that whistles and then all the birds come to do what ever they do for her. I thought that is how it should be….
I know, it is a fairy tale full of lies, but give me credit. I have said it before, I feel like a late bloomer when it comes to things like this (at least I did not come to this realisation now only, probably early 30’s if I really have to draw a timeline for you and no, I did not think the little birdies will do my work for me). Now, to get back to Beroepsvrou…that what you are fits in so nicely with the whole theme of Beroepsvrou and the Pink Feathers range and what I stand for.
Pink Feathers for God. Your spiritual (and soul I suppose) person is fed with what goes on in your mind and heart. From there the Pink Feathers for God….but what God actually showed me is that the apron was the forerunner to the whole Pink Feathers range.
When you put on an apron, you are busy serving other people with food. A bit of a double meaning with the apron. But you are also busy preparing something to feed your body with (you must look after your temple that God gave you – THAT also stands in the Bible).
It feels to me as if I am talking deurmekaar as I call it in Afrikaans. But I believe that God will pull all the strings together here so that those who read this will understand. We also have to constantly refresh our minds and thoughts with God’s word so that our hearts do not turn black and ugly, so that our mouths do not speak curses and our bones do not dry out from this which we speak.
Back to the aprons – recently I had the absolute privilege to bless a local school’s Consumer Study children with aprons (absolutely in order from God) and I further had the privilege to speak to them for 5 minutes (ok maybe 10 minutes, I am not sure), serving them with what God has laid on my heart and Beroepsvrou and the Pink Feathers.
I cannot recall what I said and it felt like I did not talk sense at all, but I believe that seed was sown that day and that it will come up when the time is right…I also know that I am busy growing, learning and that God will absolutely put the right words into my mouth when I go to the next school to serve them with God’s word and to bless them with the aprons.
The conclusion that I want to make about this piece is, you are what you eat, you are what you think and you are what you speak. This is what will manifest in our lives and this is within our control and in our hands. That is actually THE ONLY THING we have control over. Wow, what a wonderful revelation. I have known this for a while now, that this is the only thing we can control, but God has just put it all together so beautifully and finished it off with the blog and the Pink Feathers range…
All the glory be to God always! May this blog always be what God has planted in my heart, to put it into words for others to read and may this NEVER be about me!! He inspires me, gives me the knowledge and wisdom, the vision and talents to do what is busy happening…
Jy is…
