Listen, O daughter, consider and give ear:
Forget your people and your father’s house.
The king is enthralled by your beauty;
honor him, for he is your lord.
Do you feel like you enthrall the King of Kings with your beauty? He speaks this truth on the pages of His eternal Word—but do you, like many of us, have difficulty believing it?
Many of us have come to Thin Within or to this blog because of something external we want to change—our eating habits, our weight due to our eating habits, or something similar. We may not feel beautiful at all.
Some of us may be visiting this website because we have heard that Thin Within isn’t merely about externals–and that there is some new content and you want to experience the newness, freshness and freedom! You may even be fed up with focusing on externals and long for something that will encourage your *heart*.
Maybe you are just sick of the dieting treadmill!
Let me be frank. My goal at this blog and in my coaching ministry isn’t that you be a gorgeous, thin, creature that commands the attention and envy of every man and woman on the planet! It isn’t even that you be physically healthy, though that is a wonderful goal.
Frankly, my goal is to support you as you continue to grow in beauty from the inside out. I love seeing a life turned upside down with the power of praising our God and I KNOW that this has a direct impact on how we view food, our bodies and our eating!
No matter why you are here or what your expectations may be, you can rest assured that our God and King is a God of surprises—he can meet you and far exceed your hopes and dreams. The story he desires to live out with you can be a glorious testimony of this fact.
You may have your sights set on something extremely concrete or a very tangible goal, “I must gain enough weight to be 110 pounds,” or “I simply have to weigh less than 200 pounds!” or “I need to fit into that size 7 dress by my 20 year high-school reunion!” We have all kinds of folks that visit this blog.
You may know that at the heart of your struggle is an addiction that has its coils wrapped around you like a snake constricting its prey prior to devouring it. You may feel devoured…constricted, captured and snared. (Please know that a #1 truth is that Jesus has paid for our freedom. He HAS done it. He HAS won it. We get to walk it out!)
Regardless of your thoughts about where you currently find yourself, there is One who comes to rescue you from the dominion of darkness. He may lead you on a more circuitous route than what you have in mind. You can trust that He will only lead you where you need to go. Nothing will be wasted. His ways are beyond fathoming. He has in mind much discovery for you as you get to know Him better, get to know yourself better, and participate as the tale is penned, as the dance commences, as the journey unfolds.
You can rest assured this will be exactly what you need—no more, no less.
You may feel like you have been in this position before. If you have had enough of Mondays, “fresh starts,” new beginnings, and “this-time-it-will-be-different”s, then you are right where you need to be!
What About You?
Can you take an inventory? What do you DREAM of? What do you hope to become? Dare you write it on a page? Dare you bring it before the King of Kings, the Creator of the Universe, who gives birth to our dreams? While it is true that he sometimes allows a dream to die even as he ignites a new dream within us—HIS dream in us—we are safe with Him, sharing with Him what we long for.
Why not take some time today and write down what you long for? Hope for? Dream of? No one needs to see it.
Once you do this, sit with the Lord with the page open before Him and offer it to him. Invite him to see your dreams. Welcome him to either make them come true or replace them with his wonderful desire for you so that you can dare to dream God-shaped dreams for your future.
If you would like, you can share with us here how you feel about this exercise.
On Wednesday, I shared a post that asserted that the #1 reason we fail at eating 0 to 5 is because of a lie that we believe that eating outside of our boundaries will be a bigger blessing to us than honoring God and staying inside our boundaries. I also shared an alternative truth that we can memorize and plaster (in sticky notes) around our house, office, and car so that we can begin to replace the lie with the truth that obeying God is an honor and privilege and no food will taste as good as the joy of obedience will feel.
If trading the lies for truth is the foundation upon which our eating is to be built (and I believe it is), then the mechanics—the how-to—of our hunger/satisfaction eating is the infrastructure.
Yesterday, I shared that there are two extremely different (opposite) ways of living within 0 and 5 boundaries. I also mentioned that a person can choose a combination or a variation of either or both. More on that in the weeks to come!
In brief review, the first of these two extremes is a very structured approach. Yesterday, I provided a link to a Google Docs chart that you can copy, save and use if you feel God is leading you to do so. It isn’t likely to be a good idea to use it all the time. It might be for a week or a month-long “season.”
Today, I want to share the extreme opposite approach–that of the “free spirit,” “free-flowing” non-structured approach. This might be right for the person who—at least for now— does best (for any number of reasons) without charts, logs, or reports. God has wired us all differently, so if this is you, I hope you will celebrate it! But, before I share with you how this can work, I want to lay some groundwork with a couple of caveats:
1.) Our hearts are deceitful.
The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?
Jeremiah 17:9
2.) Our bodies are not yet redeemed
Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies.
Romans 8:23
Because our bodies are not yet redeemed, because our hearts can be quite convincing, using this “less restrictive” approach is best used by those who have an intimate relationship with Christ, who are aware of their own weakness and tendency to wander. Not all people with this kind of relationship with the Lord will be suited to this, but it would be very difficult to have this approach if you know that you are definitely more of a “seeing is believing,” or “nuts and bolts,” or “cerebral” kind of Christ-follower! Even if you think of yourself as a true-blue “contemplative,” if you are like many of us and are too busy to be still in God’s presence daily or through the moments of the day, if an entire day (or week!) can go by without you being aware of God’s presence, if you think people “over spiritualize” the eating thing too much or you are convinced that God doesn’t care that much about your eating…then this approach isn’t likely to be for you at all!
Let’s talk straight. For some of us, structure can actually masquerade as godliness when it is really (perhaps, maybe?) a play for control.
Conversely, those who are sensitive to the Lord’s leading in the moment (or who think they are ;-)) might develop an air of superiority to those who are more technical or concrete in their walk with God and may attempt to justify sin as “The Lord led me to….” OUCH. We don’t want either!
To blow everyone out of the water :-), let me just say that one of the most tender-hearted, sensitive-to-the-Lord’s leading people I have interacted with is a client who is very “routine-oriented.” So while these approaches may appear to be mutually exclusive, they aren’t. My client has shown me that structure and free-flowing sensitivity to the Lord’s leading can not only co-exist, but be wonderfully complementary!
To make it even more confusing, some people who are “free spirited” might be challenged by people they respect to add more structure to their lives when what they really might need is to:
“Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”
Psalm 46:10
Specifically, I would urge those who are drawn to this more “free flowing” approach to:
1.) Recognize the voice of the Lord—that He speaks at all—even in the moment (John 10:27)
2.) Know that He has a will—and is willing that you know what it is—even in the moment (Romans 12:1,2)
3.) Rest in the fact that He gives you what you need for life and godliness—even in the moment (2 Peter 1:3)
What do I do to do this, Heidi? You have convinced me!
It is pretty tough to provide instruction or a “This is How This Is Done” to a NON-structured, FREE-flowing approach! LOL!
Jesus says that his sheep know his voice—he speaks, but sometimes, we prefer not to hear it. We may even hide behind 0 and 5, pointing to them as the rule we follow for our eating. Sometimes, the rule written on our heart, breathed into us by the Holy Spirit—the voice of Jesus—will over-rule what we claim is our 0 and 5. God may lead us to abstain from food, to choose another food, to eat more slowly, to stop eating…or, he may challenge us to love well by eating when we aren’t yet at a 0 when an aging aunt showers us with love (via a meal we weren’t expecting). GASP!!!! I know. I sound like I am contradicting everything, right? Sometimes that is the way God is, but we don’t want to blame God for a rebellious act, either. God’s #1 goal is for us to love well and he typically provides ways for us to do that without breaking godly boundaries. But, when in doubt, the Spirit can guide us to what God wants in the moment. In theory, anyhow! 🙂
If you know that you have the freedom to flow with the Lord and that you have a heart for obedience–not the heart of a rebel unchecked–then this unstructured approach might be where you will find the freedom that you know Jesus has purchased for you. When we boil it all down, asking the Lord “Is now the time to eat?” or “Is now the time to stop eating?” “Is God in this bite?” is probably what we want to do.
This first came to my attention in 2007 when I was still releasing weight. I had 0 and 5 wired and I was zipping along to my “natural God-given size,” releasing weight steadily. I was stoked! Then, I began to notice incredible stomach pain if I got to a zero. Also, I could only eat tiny little bits without hurting, too. I couldn’t eat to a 5. A visit to the doctor confirmed what I had suspected…I had a stomach ulcer–my first and, so far, my last! God used this season to show me I had turned 0 and 5 into something I listened to even more than I did the voice of the Lord!! I had turned it into a law that couldn’t be trumped even by God’s leading by His Spirit! I depended on 0 and 5 as if it had the right to tell me what to do. I had to stop being so rigid about hunger numbers and start listening more for God’s leading. HA! Fancy that! I found I needed him so much and he showed me just how much he was there for me, leading, guiding, strengthening. I continued to release weight, too!
If you think it is possible that you are looking to 0 and 5 or charts, challenges, reports as your “functional Messiah”—to save you from the sin of gluttony or over-eating, then you may want to consider waiting on the Lord to show you when to eat and how much. He may actually lead you to eat smaller quantities than you would eat if you depended on 0 and 5, although more frequently.
Be mindful of the fact that the heart is deceitful and prone to go astray. This isn’t a license to abandon 0 to 5 eating. Truthfully, the best approach is probably somewhere in-between both the extremes I have shared today and yesterday. I believe that, for most of us, it may be possible that the Lord wants us to listen to HIS voice, praying about what we are interpreting as our 0 and 5 signals (remembering that the physical body is not yet redeemed) as well as which foods will provide us the nourishment we need.
How About You?
Have you been replacing the lie with truth as mentioned in Wednesday’s post?
Will you sit with the Lord and evaluate which approach might be better for you or if God is calling you to a “both/and” approach of some kind? What do you think?
What has worked best for you in the past to be faithful in 0 to 5 eating?
Is your 0 to 5 eating about what you choose to DO or is it more about what you BELIEVE?
“Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them,
for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.
I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.”
– Luke 18:16, 17
Once, while waiting in my car at a nearby elementary school, I witnessed something spectacular! Two little girls walked by my car. One of them exclaimed to the other, “Come here! Let me show you something!” The girls ran ahead to a vacant lot that was covered in yellow flowers. They took off their shoes and began dancing and playing amidst the flowers, smiling and giggling with glee.
I watched as they played, pretending they were fashion models with flowers between their teeth, in their hair, and wrapped like jewelry around their necks and arms. The little girls’ ecstasy was enchanting and exhilarating.
Soon, the twosome was skipping through the flowers and scooping up large handfuls of the blooms and throwing them in the air! At first, my heart broke at the thought of the flowers being yanked up by the roots…I wondered how other little girls could enjoy them? But the field was rich and healthy and I was soothed by the thought that other flowers would grow there. There will be more flowers and more girls and more dances.
Just then, one of the girls plunged headlong onto the ground, as though she couldn’t get close enough to the objects of her joy and delight. She lay there encircled by yellow flowers as her friend threw handfuls of the blossoms over her, showering her with what seemed to be small bursts of sunlight.
As I watched, I wondered…when did I change? When did I stop taking off my shoes? When did I stop skipping? When did I become more afraid of briars and stickers than of boredom? When did picking flowers become sacrilegious? I realized how much I want to recapture that sense of wonder, that joy, that adventure…the child-like heart that plunges into beauty and wallows in the joy it brings.
In Luke 18:16, 17 Jesus called the children to him and said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.”
I believe, in some mysterious way, that those little girls showed me how to receive the kingdom of God…I’m to receive it with reckless abandon, joy, and enthusiasm, putting aside my high and rigorous regard for “rules and regulations” and my desire for the “practical” or “sensible”.
I believe that the Lord is calling me to go barefoot more often and to worry less about stickers, to skip more, to pick more flowers, to smile and giggle more, and share it all with a friend. And I believe that He wants me to desire to be so close to the object of my joy and delight that I plunge myself headlong into His ever open arms.
In His sight, I am a “princess on parade” and His Kingdom has come! I will receive it with joy, gladness and wonder!
Thoughts to Consider:
1. What can you do to recapture that joy and delight in your Savior and the many gifts he has showered on you?
2. What role could joyfully moving your body play? What activity might you do to enjoy moving the marvelous body that God has given you? Turn on some great music and dance in your living room? Jump in your swimming pool and pretend to be a mermaid (or mer-man)? LOL! I used to pretend I was Peter Pan gliding through the air when I was gliding through the water. What might work for you today to recapture that youthful glee?
This was the subject heading of an email I received last week from one of my coaching clients.
I went on to read:
“Yep, you read that right. I hate my legs and butt because of all of the cellulite so I decided to pray that I would love it. That may sound weird but I know that I have to completely accept my body before I can relax and learn to eat like a normal person. When I go shopping for clothing and I see myself in the mirror, it sends me over the edge with disappointment and it’s a big trigger to find a diet. I decided that God wants us to turn to him for everything and that he loves my cellulite so he can make me love it. I just don’t want to feel that urgency that I have to lose weight by a certain time anymore. I know if I keep going and eating 0-5 I will get there. ”
Thank you, Debbie, for giving permission for me to share this GREAT perspective here with others who will read it.
How about you? Will you pray that God will help you to love your ____________? (Maybe it is your hips, thighs–or cellulite…whatever aspect of your body that you secretly or, not so secretly, despise.) What might be the results of loving this “part” of your body with God’s love?
You DO have “Body Beautiful!” I hope you are beginning to see that. You have arms to give hugs; a mouth to offer affirmation; a smile that warms a heart or gives courage to another; legs that have carried you throughout life, enabling you to experience adventure, to work, to play, to live! You have shoulders that are strong and arms that have carried groceries and moved furniture. You have served, used your hands to write notes of encouragement and your bottom has sat beside a friend in need! 🙂
Are you beginning to know fullwellthat you are fearfully and wonderfully made? Is the truth, reality, validity, accuracy, actuality, authenticity, certainty, correctness, exactitude, genuineness, infallibility, legitimacy, precision, rightness, veracity of this fact beginning to come home to you? Continue to invite God to show you this truth that you might know full well that ALL of his works are WONDERFUL (including you).
Looking at this week’s material in Lesson 4, what resonated for you? What did God show you, perhaps for the first time, or remind you of? I would love to hear!
On page 76 of the HEAL book, we have an activity: Praise and Reflection. If you were in my living room with me, we would do this activity together, so I have included a part of the video for it! I hope you are able to view the entire video. If you are short on time, fast forward the video to 6:26 and take about two minutes and thirty seconds to participate in the activity with the video running. Welcome God to show you what you can praise Him for because of your body. If the Psalm says “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made,” then we want to invite God to show us what specifically we can praise Him for relative to the amazing creation that is our bodies!
God, you have shown me ________.
God, thank you for _____________.
Additionally, will you please share with us what some of the things you have added to your Body Beautiful checklist on page 73 to keep your body in the most God-glorifying condition possible? I have so enjoyed your comments this week on the blog posts. Now let’s welcome the “rubber hitting the road” with how do we DO this? How do we work this out? God will lead each of us uniquely, to be sure. Whatever he shows you, another person can prayerfully consider. Who knows? Maybe God will use what you share–what you have added to your Body Beautiful checklist, for instance–to encourage her to do something similar!
On page 74, we were issued a challenge to renew our minds about our body. What are some truths about your body that you can continue to tell yourself so that you can relish and praise God for the body he has given to you? Again, if you share here, someone else is going to be encouraged by what you post!
Did you memorize 1 Corinthians 6:19-20? How has God used that in your life this week?
How can we be praying for you?
Is your routine changing right now? I know that when weekends come and when summer comes, many of us experience a shift in our routine and this challenges us! Let us know how we can pray for you!
