The Fine-Tuning of the Universe (and Our Food) – Part II

Last week I wrote a bit about the current book I’m reading titled Miracles: What They Are, Why They Happen, and How They Can Change Your Life. The beginning chapters of the book outline just how miraculous it is that our universe exists, let alone our galaxy and this swirling sphere of dirt and water we call Earth. I have been astonished to learn some incredible facts, all backed by science, that have led even the staunchest of atheists to reconsider their skepticism regarding an intelligent Creator. For those who are Christians already, such as myself, this knowledge strengthens our faith and equips us with answers with which to offer those who seek “proof” or evidence that God isn’t a made-up myth, but in fact sustains the very forces that hold our planet together.

In today’s post, I’m going to address the parenthetical you see above which says, “and our food.” Because as awesome and electrifying as the heavens are in their resounding declaration of God’s existence, there are also things much closer than the moon and stars, albeit less majestic things, that likewise testify to a divine Designer, one who never ceases to show Himself faithful, gracious, and unfathomably good.

My last semester of college, I took a nutrition course that taught all about the vital nutrients found in fruits and vegetables, as well as which diseases those nutrients help prevent and which bodily functions they facilitate. While studying for my first exam, I tried to cleverly devise an easy way to memorize which food did what. If only I’d known that many of the answers can be found in the foods themselves!

If looking up at the night sky isn’t enough to make you marvel at our Maker’s handiwork, maybe you should try slicing open a tomato. It turns out that a food’s mere appearance indicates its importance to our bodies. The following chart illustrates a few examples:

Food Appearance Function
Tomato Red, 4 chambers (like the human heart) Contains lycopene, an inhibitor of heart disease
Walnut Looks like a brain with a left and right side and upper cerebrum and lower cerebellum. Even the wrinkles on the nut resemble the brain’s neo-cortex Help develop over 3 dozen neuron-transmitters for brain function
Celery, Bok Choy, Rhubarb Look like bones These vegetables are 23% sodium, just like bones. A lack of sodium in the diet forces the body to pull it from the bones, weakening them. These foods replenish the body’s skeletal needs.
Grapes Hang in a heart-shaped cluster, and each grape resembles a blood cell Contain flavonoids and phytonutrients that decrease risk of heart disease
Kidney Beans A no-brainer, these look like kidneys! Heal and help maintain kidney function
Sweet Potatoes Look like the pancreas Balance the glycemic index within diabetics
Eggplant, Pears, Avocados Look like a woman’s cervix and womb Balance hormones, help shed unwanted birth weight, prevents cervical cancer. It takes 9 months to grow an avocado from blossom to ripened fruit!
Olives Look like ovaries Assist the health and function of the ovaries
Oranges, Grapefruits, other Citrus Fruits Resemble mammary glands of females Assist breast health and the movement of lymph in and out of the breasts
Carrots A sliced carrot looks like the human eye Greatly enhance blood flow to the eyes:

 

Mushroom and Ear Resemblance
A sliced mushroom looks like a human ear, and mushrooms are good for ear health!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pretty amazing, isn’t it? This knowledge gives us even more motivation to eat salads chock-full of garden goodness and enjoy the sweetness of citrus on sweltering summer days. And how fun to know exactly what your pre-workout orange or post-workout sweet potato is doing for your body, besides providing energy and revving up your metabolism.

The apostle Paul was spot on when he said God’s eternal power and divine nature can be observed in everything He’s made, and as such, we have no excuse for not knowing Him.[1]

As science advances, let’s not be intimidated by it or fearful of it. After all, it only seems to be pointing us more and more to the One outside time and space, the One who created science and uses it to draw us closer to Him in numerous ways, such as when we feel an ineffable sense of awe when we gaze up into a starry sky, or ask for health and blessing when we bite into a nourishing piece of fruit grown in the soil of His creation.

 

“God dwells in His creation and is everywhere indivisibly present in all His works. He is transcendent above all His works even while He is immanent within them.”

– A.W. Tozer

 

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[1] Romans 1:20