I hope that you woke up this morning with this thought on your heart…

 

I am fearfully and wonderfully made!

 

We can believe it!

You know what? Here’s the thing… If our God is awesome (and I bet not one of you reading this would say you don’t agree with that), if He is so creative and powerful and clever (and I bet you all agree with that), then He has made our bodies reliably, too!

Like a Thin Within class participant said

He has created our marvelous, fearfully and wonderfully-made bodies to give us signals about when we need sleep, rest, when we are in pain, when we need to expel something from our bodies, and when we need to drink or eat, as well as when we need to STOP eating or drinking.

 

The trick is that often, over the years, either through carelessness or dieting, we have “shut down” those hunger and satisfied signals.

We want to get in touch with those signals again because they are a reliable means for eating the right amount of food: Eating to live, rather than living to eat.

When I get back in touch with those signals (this may take work, so please be patient and extend grace to yourself!), I find that I will release extra weight to my natural God-given size and then maintain it. No hocus pocus. No counting. No weighing and measuring. Just a naturally, calm, worry-free, way of living for the rest of my days.

Sound good?

knew it would. I know it does to those of you who already subscribe to this approach.

In Thin Within and Hunger Within, we use the Keys to Conscious Eating to help us get back in touch with the signals of hunger and satisfaction.

These are not “rules” but rather are intended to provide boundaries:

 

Keys to Conscious Eating:

1. Eat when your body is hungry.
2. Eat in a calm environment by reducing distractions or calming your mind.
3. Eat when you are sitting.
4. Eat when your body and mind are relaxed.
5. Eat and drink the things your body enjoys.
6. Pay attention to your food while eating.
7. Eat slowly, savoring each bite.
8. Stop eating before your body is full.

Grace Response: Observation and Correction

 

Each time we eat – as in each and every time we eat – we try to use each of these keys as boundaries.

• Numbers 1 and 8 are the primary boundaries of eating between physical hunger (called a “0”) and physical satisfaction (called a “5”).

• If we use numbers 2 through 7 as secondary boundaries for ourselves, it helps us to succeed at #1 and #8.

• The goal is to be intentional each time food crosses our lips.

If we set a place for Jesus at our tables and imagine His presence there, if we foster a heart of gratitude and thanksgiving for the abundance that He supplies and that He has made our bodies fearfully and wonderfully, we can do this.

We can get back in touch with our body’s signals and discover a stress-free way to release the burdens of our hearts and the burdens of our life. They are so often connected!

Let’s eat when we are hungry.

Let’s stop when we are no longer hungry.

And let’s run to God for all the other things that ordinarily draw and lure us to food.

Ya with me? 😃

 

 


 

How are you doing with eating between 0 and 5 being your primary boundary? Which of the secondary boundaries do you think could help you more effectively abide by your primary boundaries? Which is hardest for you? Select one of these today to ask for God’s special help with. How can you plan for success?