by Heidi Bylsma | Mar 29, 2010 | Blog
I realize that this blog post title is horribly “cliche’.” But it is on my heart this morning. You see, last night at a seminar for “Creating the Most Amazing Author Website,” one over-arching theme struck me like a locomotive train. And it is true.
It is that “This isn’t about me.”
I have known that at some level, but it came home to me at a new, deeper level. This blog, the writing that I aspire to do, my involvement at the Thin Within forums, my sharing with you the transformational journey that *I* am on, isn’t really about me…Sharing it here at the blog, when I get to share with women in person, or writing about it in any form–it is about Jesus and you and about Jesus’ work in you.
None of it means anything if I don’t keep that in mind.
You come here to this blog looking for something–hope, perhaps, ideas for getting unstuck, inspiration–the reasons are endless. If I fail to keep that in mind, then I miss the opportunity that God extends to merely be a conduit through which He can pour out Himself into your life.
Your kindness to me has been so healing to me, but I have taken that and somehow twisted it. Please forgive me for that! My heart is truly that God would take anything that is true about his work in me and offer it to you as proof that he loves you. Proof that He is doing a new thing in you. I am not a “special case” in his eyes–no more special than you.
So, I want to commit afresh to offering you the only thing that matters. It is Him. You may already know this, but I want to offer it again, afresh. Right now, in THIS moment…this is a sacred moment and in it, he wants you to stop. To listen. To hear him say, “Child, I am doing a new thing in you right now…” I hope you can hear him. Stop for a second, close your eyes. Do you hear him delighting over you with singing?
Oh, how he loves YOU. I hope you can believe this and rest in this fact today.
No matter where your life has taken you–if you are struggling with health problems, if you are overweight, if you are underweight and refuse to honor your body by eating enough nourishment to sustain good health, if you are on the brink of giving up on life and on God…stop…please stop…and listen. In the stillness…there is a still small voice…and it sings over you with delight…
by Heidi Bylsma | Mar 28, 2010 | Blog
Most of us who land at this blog are here because of food and body issues. Most of us want to weigh less, be smaller, lose weight.
So let me ask you something…what does your heart weigh? Does the weight of your heart matter as much as what your body weighs? What if you could be lighter in body, but only at the expense of your heart–if getting smaller actually caused your heart to be burdened? Would you give up a light heart in exchange for a light body?
Certainly in our world, the focus is on our physical weight and size. We are told we have to be a certain weight for our height and we have an idea of what size we “should” be. Some of us have fixated on that number and won’t deviate from it for the world.
But what does God say to us? I think he asks me, even now…”Heidi, what does your heart weigh? Is it heavy because you are chasing after things I have never led you to chase after? Is it burdened because you refuse to release cares and concerns to me?”
This is the real “weight” issue that God cares about. Sure he wants us to be as physically healthy as we can be, but he cares the most about our hearts. If he were to “weigh” our hearts on a scale, what would the result be?
Should we consider “losing weight” in our heart? What if we were to seek first His kingdom and His righteousness? He says that we need not to worry about what we EAT or drink or what we will wear (including the size!). Instead, as we seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, all these things will be added to us as well.
Practically speaking: What can you do to have a lighter heart? A heart that isn’t quite so burdened? How might this affect your eating and body issues?
by Heidi Bylsma | Mar 25, 2010 | Blog
What is “balance?” What does it mean to “find balance” or “keep balance?”
What things do you struggle with “finding balance” with/in or “keeping in balance?”
What are you doing to “do” balance? 🙂 (Do you see just how foreign this concept is to my thinking and living? LOL!)
Would love to hear from you.
I am heading off to Mt. Hermon Writer’s Conference tomorrow. I don’t know if there will be internet capability or not. I return next Tuesday night.
by Heidi Bylsma | Mar 23, 2010 | Blog
Have you ever felt like this?
“I am tired of my quiet times being all about what I eat or don’t eat.”
Do you feel like you want something different to be the focus of your time with God?
I totally understand!
Here is a potentially important distinction for us to draw.
My time with Jesus is to direct the focus of my eating.
vs.
My eating is to direct the focus of my time with Jesus.
Does the distinction make sense? It is really huge to me.
When I “blow it” with my eating or views of myself, I confess and move on. God doesn’t want me to sit quietly with him beating myself up with books and workbooks and verses and prayers all focusing on food and getting this right and that right…and call it my “quiet” time. When I do this, it is like I bring my sin, now confessed and forgiven, into my sacred time spent focusing on…well…it is supposed to be time spent focusing on Jesus! Not only that, but it is as if I haven’t believed him–that he has cleansed me of ALL unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).
Yet, instead, I make it be about my mess ups, my food, my need to “fix.” I wallow in condemnation, which is so contrary to what the Word says! (See Romans 8:1)
What if we were to reverse this? What if we were to take time each day with the Lord (and in the rhythms of the day, too…in the quiet moments waiting at traffic signals, or when in the shower, whenever else we can), rich opportunities to focus on his sufficiency? What if we were to worship Him in those times? What if we were to toss out the food/body/issue related bible studies for a month and do an experiment? Let’s just sit at his feet and focus on getting to know HIM more. I mean, REALLY get to know Him more. What is He like? What does He do now? How does Jesus reveal Him to us? Who is the Holy Spirit and how does He affect me now?
And what if we took the things He shows us about himself in our times with Him into our eating? Whether we eat or drink–whatever we do–we can glorify God, so it stands to reason we can take the things we know, learn, are reminded of from those sacred moments with still hearts before Him and go into the eating experience changed, transformed, ready to allow Him to yet reveal more to us.
Does this make sense to anyone?
It is a subtle, but profound difference.
If I can make my eating/view of my size and my body be about what I learn in my times alone with Jesus instead of make my times alone with Jesus be about my eating–what kind of changes might occur in my life over all?
by Heidi Bylsma | Mar 22, 2010 | Blog
Obviously, those of us who come to Thin Within, typically do so because we want something to change with our size, weight, or attitude toward food … or ALL of the above! LOL!
What often happens, though, is that we discover God wants something so much more…he wants our hearts, our devotion, our thoughts, our actions.
It suddenly makes it SO hard! We KNOW how to *diet*…If someone just tells us what to eat and when, we often have an easier time of things! So when we discover that God wants us dependent on Him, this is when we may decide that we have to “quit” Thin Within! But that is the point of the Christian life…to become more and more surrendered to God, to be more like Jesus! 🙂
With Thin Within, we won’t be told what to do and when. The reason is simple…it is based on God’s Word. God gives us free will and His Spirit inside of us to tell us what God asks of us–and to give us the ability to do it in the strength HE provides!
He wants us to learn to lean on Him in the moment. To ask Him, to check in with him. How gracious that he wants to use something so mundane as eating or drinking to invite us to give him glory in the moment! Isn’t that incredible! To do that, we have to live in the moment with Him! To not shut him out! Be conscious of our choice and the ramifications.
This is where my feeling that taking 5 minutes before I eat really comes from. Taking 5 minutes before I eat when I am prompted to eat (for some reason), gives me time to check in with him. I don’t have a prescriptive plan that says it doesn’t matter if I am hungry or not, that I can have so many calories or grams or whatever… Instead, in those 5 minutes, I can say, “Lord, why am I drawn to food right now?” He will show me if it is because of physical hunger or not. If I am not drawn to food because of physical hunger, he will be faithful to show me what it IS about, too. “Lord, I see that I am bored (or wounded, or agitated, or sick, or tired…). I know that food isn’t what I need. Please show me what will satisfy the need in my heart (mind, body, soul, spirit).” He will do it.
I know I have shared this here quite a bit recently. It really does make a difference, so I just wanted to say it again in case anyone isn’t convinced! 🙂 Try it for one day and see if it helps!
Just 5 minutes. Make a boundary of delaying eating for just 5 minutes. It isn’t a rule, it is a boundary. Then use it to reconnect with God. He is faithful! Let’s give him a chance! 🙂
I would love to know how it goes!
by Heidi Bylsma | Mar 21, 2010 | Blog
I have found something that revolutionizes my walking this path to healthier perspectives about food, eating and my body, too. You can do it too, if you haven’t already. Make a running list of God’s attributes. Whether it strikes you as you pray, you are reading the Word, a book, or hear a message, jot down what you learn (or are reminded) about God’s character and how he relates to humans. Then, practice taking time each day to praise Him for some of these things on your list. This revolutionizes our thinking, our living, our “health!”
Truly, so often on this journey we can become so SELF focused. My body, my food, MY eating MY MY MY! Yuck! That has never helped, has it?
As I focus on GOD and lift HIM up, I find that FOOD and EATING and my BODY all begin to subside in their significance and get put in their proper place. I don’t want to eat as much because GOD is GOD and food isn’t. My body (taste buds) doesn’t/don’t have the right to direct my path (tell me what to do)…only GOD does. He is lifted to HIS rightful place as LORD and I am humbled before Him!
It works! 🙂
Happy Sunday!
