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This week’s winner for either the Thin Within book, Hunger Within book, or free week of coaching goes to Christina!
CONGRATULATIONS!
Also, don’t forget to vote for what study will be next. Click this link to go straight to the poll if you haven’t voted yet!
I have been including less content this week at the blog because I know that many of you are joining the Weight Loss Bible Study a bit late or feel like you are “behind.”
But today’s question is significant, so I hope you will give it some prayer and thought.
Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect,
but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.
Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own.
But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead,
I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
Philiippians 3:12-14
I want to focus on a little statement in the middle of this passage: “But one thing I do.”
Sometimes, as we look at the BIG picture of our weight, our issues with the way we think or the HUGE task ahead of us, we go on tilt. If you are anything like me, this can cause you to…well…simply…just SHUT DOWN.
We have to get away from looking at that big picture. The big picture of our holiness is God’s burden. He wants me to conquer this moment for Him.
So I want to issue a challenge and I would love your feedback today!
What ONE THING will you do today?
What is one thing that you can do–TODAY–that will help propel you forward? One thing that hard, perhaps, but that you know you can do today? One thing that you know you need Christ’s strength to do because you know you are too weak to manage it?
Will it be to have one less cup of coffee? (I know that may not sound tough to some of us, but to others of us, we are convinced we need it!)
Will it be to take 15 minutes to truth journal?
Will it be to open the bible and be still for a few minutes?
Will it be to confess?
Will it be to say no to a particular food that you know has mastery over you?
What one thing…TODAY. I am not asking you to commit to this for a week or a month or longer, but just TODAY. What one thing will you do TODAY that is different than all the other days and times when you wanted to be free in the area of eating and body image?
Tell us in the comments what it is…AND be entered into next week’s drawing by doing so.
One thing that I am going to do is not to eat anything that is not in my 0-5 boundary. I tend to fall when it come to eating seconds of food. I serve myself a plate, but after I am done, I eat a little more which adds up to a lot more! So, no more eating a bite here or there with out thinking first.
That is a great secondary boundary. But it is a perfect ONE THING to commit to today!
During each meal, I will put my fork down between each bite and focus on the mouthful of the moment.
How did that go today, Lesley! What a great–simple–One Thing!
The challenge had an added twist, both breakfast and lunch were hand foods without the need for a fork – too funny! I tore my tortilla into one inch pieces (ish), and scooped each piece through hummu. Out of respect of the “put my fork down between bites” commitment I placed my hands in my lap until my mouth was empty, I repeated this till I reached 5 (or maybe I was just getting bored)…ended up with 1/4 tortilla over. Lunch was a banana scooped through peanut butter! Dinner I was able to put a fork down between bites successfully!
Lesley, I love this thought. I was thinking I was pretty good at this, most of the time, BUT, once you’ve been working on this awhile, I’ve realized today, it can almost become a ‘habit’ without much concentration, and SO, I’m at the point where I need to RE FOCUS on this! So simple, yet not easy.
Oh! And Lesley, I meant to ask, does the UK stand for United Kingdom? Are you in England?
The UK is because I’m a Brit, but I live in Sacramento, CA. Move to the USA when I was 28. This is now “home”, but all of my family are still in Britain, so I travel a lot.
I will eat ONLY when sitting at my dining room table, with a placemat and cloth napkin and NO TV, computer or book, no matter what I’m eating, even my evening snack.
I love this, Dalena, because it sound so peaceful and really like a pampering sort of experience. I like that. And I also like that you are treating the “snack” like a meal…which it is. LOL!
I’m gonna try Leslie’s suggestion and put my fork down between bites at each meal!
I know that helps me to slow down, Minda. How did that go today? 🙂
Hey Minda, I gotta a laugh…when I read your comment I must have been distracted because I was sure I read that you were going to put your fork down between meals – what a crackup! I hope this went well for you today, I had fun with it.
Lesley, you are just too funny! Your posts are cracking ME up!! I loved what you wrote about eating and putting your hands on your lap in between each bite, how you stopped at 5, or maybe you were just bored!! too cute!
Today I will be attentive to what I am eating – enjoying each bite and watching for clues that I’ve had enough.
I love the ideas you ladies have come up with today!
I like all these suggestions but since I am having a little trouble stopping at or before 5, I will ask myself throughout the meal if I am still hungry. If I am not hungry, I will stop even if I am craving the food because I simply like it. Heidi offered this suggestion during coaching and i just have to practice it I want to feel comfortable and not bloated after a meal and I want to faithfully keep 0 to 5 eating. Naturally, I will invite God to help me in this process. Without him this is not possible. I am praying for all of us.
Lisa, I am finding if I even have to ask myself if I’m still hungry that I’m not. It’s disappointing sometimes because I would really like to continue eating what I am enjoying, but I know that I can always eat that thing the next time I’m hungry.
Lisa, thank you for your prayers. I know that having those willing to pray for us here is vital! Thank you, Lisa! You are so right…chances are, if we could do this apart from him, we wouldn’t be at this website! LOL!
Oh, Lisa, I so understand! Yes, me too, inviting God into each step of this journey AND praying for each of these ladies!!! And getting comfort, knowing prayers are coming from this group for me also. God IS doing a new thing!!!! It IS a new day!!!! I will rejoice and be glad in it! Love you all!! And especially you, Heidi, for starting this wonderful place to come and share with Christian women on the same path!! PRAISE GOD!!
Dalena, you are so sweet!
My “one thing” for today is going to re-write some scriptures in my journal and write about what God is speaking to me through those scriptures. I’m going to start with Romans 12:1-2
Christina, what a wonderful idea! I’d love to hear more about this. Could you share more details with us?
I would love to share! Over the years I have written out scripture to help me. The word is our weapon. Years ago I was dealing with some heavy fear and it was almost a paralyzing fear. I wrote out scriptures on notecards and I read them several times a day. I also wrote out scripture on paper and taped it up in different places of our home. Without purposely memorizing the verses, one morning I woke up and one of the verses was right there in my memory. The word is so powerful! So I’m doing the same thing now in my battle even with food and obsessing over food and what to eat. Yesterday I rewrote a few scriptures in my journal and expounded on them. It was awesome! The Lord is so faithful to meet us in that way and he ALWAYS stands by his word!
Thanks for describing it Christina! Sounds powerful!
Heidi, does the new study start next week? If so, will we have a chance to order our new study material before starting?
May 6th. There will be a post tomorrow about it. 🙂
Thanks Christina I will have to think about what you are saying that if I even have to ask if I am hungry I may in fact not be hungry. It seems then that i get satisfied after just a few bites. I hope I will be willing to stop eating at the right time. I definitely have to be prayerful to do this. Thanks.
Yep, yep, yep…if I gotta ask myself if I am still hungry then I’m pretty sure my head is trying to justify “one more bite”! Ooh sneaky self, I need to be on constant look out for that old behaviour…it’s an old “friend” that I am keen to kick to the curb.
Lesley, what a good way to look at it! I’m sure this is true for me, I’m going to do some serious “observing and correcting” with this new insight from you. Ladies, I’ve gotten so much out of all this sharing on this!! God bless each of you!!
I think that when Lisa made that comment in the first place…that she wanted to ask herself if she was still hungry…she meant that while she is eating, she wants to be sensitive to each bite and where her body is relative to hunger and satisfaction. Knowing Lisa’s heart, I feel like she means something different from what many of us might mean if we did the same thing! She is responsive and obedient. So rather than justifying a desire to keep eating, I think she means it as a way of being sensitive to the Lord as to when to stop. Hope that makes sense!
Wait again for 9 to 5. I have gotten away from that, but coming back today!
WOW!!!! I wake up this morning with my inbox filled with comments from wonderful Christian women!!! AWESOME!! Thank you, God!!! I want to respond to all of them! And I thought by doing each one separately, it would add so many emails to all your email boxes, so I intended to put all my comments in just one reply. BUT!! As I look through all these, I’m thinking that would get more confusing, and it’s a neat thing that we can follow a thread, so, I hope I don’t irritate anyone with all the replys.
Thanks Heidi that’s exactly howi feel. I am such a mindless eater that I must constantly ask for God’s direction in what to eat and how much to eat and certainly when to stop. Mindlessly I will always eat past a 5. This is a challenge for me because my eyes want more than my body can handle. Truly I can’t believe how little is needed to feel satisfied. I am still working with the emotions I feel about this. I think deep down inside I feel like this isn’t fair. I know this is shallow buy I have to be honest if I want to get rid of this “idol.” Thanks to you all for helping me on this journey. Let’s continue to pray for each other.