In the last couple of days I’ve been struggling. I know part of it has been that I haven’t been renewing my mind as often as I need to be. Thoughts like this keep coming to my mind:
“Why does this have to be so spiritual?”
“Why do I have to think about this so much some times?”
“Why does this have to be so hard at times?”
“It was easier when _____, so maybe I should just go back to dieting.”
These are LIES! I’ve noticed that as I delve deeper into the Word and closer to the Lord in this journey, and the more I’m open and share the positive, godly message of Thin Within (with friends and on this blog), the more I am attacked. Friends, this is spiritual warfare!
The enemy wants me to quit. He wants me to feel like a failure. He wants me to feel scared of being vulnerable. And that just shows me that the message Thin Within has to share is a POWERFUL one because it is backed up by the Word of God. The enemy wants to put those shackles back on my feet, but I refuse!
Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage. Galatians 5:1
I REFUSE to go back to slavery! I refuse to go back to focusing on food, to obsessing over food! Are you in this with me? Are you tired of the lies of the enemy like I am?
The Word of God is our weapon! Let’s raise up our banner. Let’s put on the full armor of God so we can withstand the attacks of the enemy! We are more than conquerors in Christ Jesus!
Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints. Ephesians 6:10-18
I will not give up!
But we do not belong to those who shrink back and are destroyed, but to those who have faith and are saved. Hebrews 10:39
Fight the good fight of faith!
Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. 1 Timothy 6:12
I realize that if I’m not spending time reading through my truth cards and renewing my mind, that I become vulnerable to the enemy’s attack. It’s becoming so ever clear to me how important it is to fight this battle with the Word of God. I am defenseless without it!
My battle plan: to be in the Word, to pray, to thank the Lord, to read my truth cards, to renew my mind, to keep pressing on!
I believe we can learn a lot from observing children and their eating patterns. It’s really quite fascinating when they are purely eating intuitively. I wanted to share a bit of what I have observed and learned over the years.
Years before I had my daughter, I was aware of how children are born normal, intuitive eaters. I had spent some time with a mother who was overly concerned about what her children were eating. I believe the concern stemmed from a fear that her children would be sickly or unhealthy if they ate certain foods. One day, these children were in my care. Her son often asked for food, almost like he was fixated on it. There was a fresh batch of peanut butter cookies in the cookie jar and he knew it. After our lunch, he was alluding to the fact that there were cookies in the jar. I smiled down to him and asked, “Would you like a cookie?” His face lit up and he said, “Yes!” I brought the jar down to his level and let him pick a cookie. I encouraged him to pick the biggest cookie he could find. And then I asked him to pick out a cookie for me, too. He was beaming. We ate that cookies together at the table and savored every delectable bite. And for the first time, I observed him not fixated on food for the remainder of the time I was with him. That scene has played back in my mind so many times over the years. It proved to me that if we are more relaxed about food, that they are more relaxed about food as well.
Years later, this mother realized that she was being controlling about food and asked for my help. At that time I was battling diet thoughts and overeating, but I knew enough about normal eating to give her some wisdom on the subject. I encouraged her to allow her children to guide their eating more. She was so afraid they would only eat candy and sweets at first. I shared with her that it might be that way for a short season as they learn to navigate their food choices, but that after awhile their palate would balance out. I encouraged her to offer a wide variety of choices over time, including the “play food”. I was so proud of her that she took me up on this challenge. And now, to this day, her children have well-rounded appetites and enjoy a variety of foods. They are free to enjoy all foods. And their mother no longer tries to dictate what they can and cannot eat. They are healthy, active, and vibrant children and young adults.
Recently, a mother shared with me that her 10 year old daughter had been watching an episode of The Biggest Loser. Her daughter came to her and with concern, told her mother that she wanted to go on a diet. The mother’s heart felt broken for her daughter. When she told me about this, I encouraged her that we have to be so careful what we allow our children to see and hear when it comes to dieting, eating, and how we talk about and view our body. Children are sponges, and they are soaking up these things. Even as adults, we can be influenced by such things. My heart is saddened to know that we, as a society, have come to the point that young children are concerned about their weight in an unhealthy way. There is so much emphasis put on our outward image, from small children to adults.
As adults, parents, and guardians, I believe we have some responsibility in how we influence children when it comes to eating and body image. I believe children are born knowing when they are hungry and when they have had enough food. It’s simple, biological knowledge that they don’t even really focus on. It’s innate. Intuitive. Natural. But somewhere along the line, children are told to eat more, that they ate too much, that they are too thin, or that they are too big for their age.
I have to admit it’s been fun to watch my daughter as an intuitive eater. I have learned so much from her about what it means to be a normal eater. I’m thankful for the wisdom God has given me about being a normal, Thin Within eater. I’ve read enough books and observed about this subject to see what discourages a child or adult from being a normal eater, and I take that knowledge and do my best to apply it to my daughter.
I do my best to offer my daughter a variety of food. I try my best not to pressure her to eat more than she needs. If she says she’s “all done”, I trust her judgment. I never say, “Eat more peas and then you can have a cookie.” I don’t encourage her to try everything on her plate. I offer her a plate with 3-4 food items, and I let her pick and choose what she wants to eat. Sometimes she eats all the food, sometimes she eats only a few bites. Sometimes she out eats me! She loves fruit, but sometimes she will eat other foods before eating the fruit. Sometimes she eats all of the fruit before eating other things on her plate. I just observe and I don’t make any critical comments about what or how she’s eating. Often, she will ask for more fruit even before eating other foods on her plate. I will put a little bit more fruit on her plate and say, “All done after this, then you can eat what’s on your plate.” She understands that I will not be giving her more fruit and that if she’s still hungry, she can eat the remaining food on her plate. Sometimes I will plan ahead with giving her only half of the fruit I planned to give her, and then when she asks for more, I give her the other half.
I also know that over a week’s time that she will eat a wide variety of foods. I don’t have to concentrate on if she’s getting enough fruits or vegetables verse starches. This isn’t a science experiment–this is her being a natural-born eater. I want to be as hands-off as I can be. I’ve watched her try certain foods and then try to wash that distastefulness down with milk if she doesn’t like a particular food. And then I will watch her eat that same food again a few weeks later and eat it all up. I’ve heard it can take up to 12 times before a child will actually like a certain food. Of course, there are foods I knew she doesn’t care for, but I still offer a little bit of them when we have them for a meal. I don’t encourage her to eat them. I offer and let her decide.
Allowing your children to do what I’ve mentioned above may sound scary and out-of-control. It may make you feel uncomfortable allowing your children to be in charge of their palate. I truly believe the more hands-off you can be, the better.
What if your child is already feeling restricted in their eating? I believe you can help turn it around and guide them back to being a normal eater. You can use the same Thin Within principles for children as you can for adults. It may be harder for you, as the parent or guardian to let this go. Maybe you have fears that they will be overweight or eat in an out-of-control manner if you allow them to eat the foods they enjoy. I want to encourage you to prayerfully consider what’s at stake and ask the Lord for wisdom. He will help you! Also, if you are being an example to them of what it means to be a normal eater, that will help SO much! I believe it starts with the parent.
I read a story once about a mother who was controlling her child’s food consumption. The mother took her child to a nutritional counselor. The counselor asked the mother what her child’s favorite food was. It was M&M’s. The counselor encouraged the mother to buy bags of M&M’s and to fill a pillowcase with the M&M’s. Her child was to have complete control over these M&M’s. The mother was hesitant, but she did as the counselor suggested. At first, the child slept, bathed, and did everything with this pillowcase of M&M’s by it’s side. The mother was not allowed to say anything about when the child ate the candies. After a few days the child was no longer carrying around the pillowcase. The child realized that it could have those M&M’s whenever there was a desire. The novelty wore off. This same sort of thing happens to me when I have a certain kind of food around for a long time: I get tired of it being around, but I know I can have it at any time. It no longer has a hold on me because I know it’s always going to be there and if I run out, I can buy or make more. The conclusion to the M&M story: as the mother relaxed about food and allowed her child to actually eat what he/she enjoyed without criticism or control, the child also relaxed and over time, lost the extra weight and was no longer fixated on food.
Your child, just like an adult, may choose more play food at first when you surrender controlling their food intake. I know I did this. After awhile my body craved other foods and not so many play foods. I don’t even focus on what kind of foods I eat. When I’m hungry, I ask myself what I want to eat. You can do the same with children without emphasizing about a particular food being “good”, “bad”, “healthy” or “junk”. I personally don’t believe in in ‘junk’ food now that I’m more of a normal eater and following the principles of Thin Within. I believe we should treat all foods as the same, especially when starting out on this journey of becoming a Thin Within eater. The true emphasis should be on legalizing ALL foods and acknowledging those signs of hunger and fullness.
A child who hasn’t had much of a say in what they eat, will need to build up the trust that no one will dictate or criticize what they eat. This may take some time, but I truly believe that over time they will be in tune with their hunger levels once again and food won’t be such a fixation. And again, having an adult being an example of a normal eater makes a huge impact.
Pray about what you are allowing your child to see and hear. Is it “healthy” for you to watch shows like The Biggest Loser together with your family? How about those magazines or books? How do you talk about your body? How do you talk about your child’s body?
What can you do to encourage your child to be a normal eater? Do you desire to be that example in their life? Are you willing to let go of that control and let God guide? What can you learn from your little ‘Thin Within’ eater?
Are you looking for an opportunity to dive in deep into the Thin Within workbook material, but value the freedom and flexibility of an online group? If so, you can join us for the launch of our Winter/Spring 2014 Thin Within workbook study starting January 6th.
To Do:
First and foremost, you will need the Thin Within Rebuilding God’s Temple Workbook Kit, available here. If you have previously completed workbook #1, then purchasing and using workbooks 2, 3, or 4 will work just fine as the workbooks are all synchronous. This post describes the workbook #1 kit in some detail. (NOTE: Many have asked if they *have* to have a workbook or can use the trade Thin Within book published in 2002 or 2005. You can use the book, but except in a few instances, there won’t be a good “fit” to match up synchronously with the workbook. For instance, the first lesson in the workbook is on “Hope.” There is no perfect fit in the Thin Within book for that–while it is true that the topic of “hope” saturates all the pages of both books, there is no chapter on “hope” in the book. Just keep plugging away in the book and I am sure it will be an encouragement to you, though!)
Secondly, please sign up to be on the online class email list. You can do this even if you are interested only and not yet committed to the study. This will be informational and you can unsubscribe at any time. I sent out an email to this list already. If you didn’t get that email and wish to view it, see it here in your browser.
If you are on Facebook and want an additional way to connect with class members, please visit this page and ask to be added.
I would love to tell you definitively that I know precisely how this class will run, but honestly? It will be an experiment! There are about 165 people currently on the mailing list. That is wonderful! I know not everyone will really be in the class and we typically end with a fraction of those we start with (life gets busy). Regardless, we have never done a class this size, so we may shift and adjust as the class unfolds. Here is how I think it will run:
Schedule:
Monday, January 6th, 2014, we will host a webinar-style meeting online at this link (it will also be sent to those on the class email list). Each Monday, we will have a LIVE online webinar-style class from 4:30-5:30pm Pacific Time (please check a timezone converter to be sure you know what time this is in your timezone!). As of this writing, we plan to use AnyMeeting for this. It currently is free, because it is ad supported (so please expect ads that Thin Within doesn’t necessarily endorse!). I will use the Class Facebook Group page, the regular Thin Within Facebook page, and the email list to share the link, agenda, and class assignments for the meeting each week. Assignments will also be posted to the blog.
You can join in the class at any time. You can leave at any time.
There is no charge for the class, though if you would like to donate to the Thin Within ministry, I am sure that can be arranged! No one in Thin Within gets a salary of any kind. We all donate our time. Any money that comes in to the ministry is used to run things. Please let me know if you are interested in donating. 🙂
On Tuesday of each week, I will post the assignment for the week here, at the blog. The assignment made on Tuesday will be the “loose” focus for the following Monday’s class. See the tentative schedule below for an idea of what we will be studying during January:
Monday, January 6, 2014 ~ 4:30-5:30pm Pacific Time ~ Online Class LIVE Presentation: Orientation
Tuesday, January 7, 2014 ~ Blog Post with Lesson 1 Assignment for the week – “Hope”
Monday, January 13, 2014 ~ 4:30-5:30pm PT ~ Online Class LIVE Presentation: Lesson 1 – “Hope”
Tuesday, January 14, 2014 ~ Blog Post with Lesson 2 Assignment for the week – “My Body, God’s Temple”
Monday, January 20, 2014 ~ 4:30-5:30pm PT ~ Online Class LIVE Presentation: Lesson 2 – “My Body, God’s Temple”
Tuesday, January 21, 2014 ~ Blog Post with Lesson 3 Assignment for the week – “Identity in Christ”
Monday, January 27, 2014 ~ 4:30-5:30pm PT ~ Online Class LIVE Presentation: Lesson 3 – “Identity in Christ”
Tuesday, January 28, 2014 ~ Blog Post with Lesson 4 Assignment for the week – “Celebration of God’s Grace, Part 1”
Other resources that you might want to make use of include the official Thin Within audio files for the workbook. These are professionally recorded audios that are available at the Sound Cloud website. You can download these files and put them on the device you use to play audio files as an additional means of supporting you on your journey. There is no charge for this. There are a lot of other audio files available there as well…they aren’t professionally done, but crafted from my heart. 🙂
At the YouTube site, we also have the professionally recorded Thin Within files (in addition to a lot of “homegrown” instructional and supportive videos). Here is a playlist of some of the professionally filmed Thin Within videos and here is another similar playlist (though this one is older).
Our final online class meeting will be April 7th (I think).
If everything goes as I hope, I will be able to share a link for the recorded online classes each week. But that one I can’t guarantee as yet. The class email list will be the best source of news throughout the duration of the class.
Would You Like To Lead?
Now is a great time to lead your own live Thin Within group. You could use the material that we generate in our online class and lead your live group a week or two behind us so that you already have familiarity with the material as you present it to your group. What this means is that any videos that I create for our class (something I plan to do each week as part of the weekly assignment made here at the blog), the recordings of our online class (if all works as I hope), support blog posts, and assignments could be used to support you as you support others. If you are interested in this option, I would love to know about it. 🙂
If you have any additional questions, please post them here.
“Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made.”
Luke 10:40
The month of December is packed with crammed schedules, stretched budgets, and the ever present assortment of sweets, alcohol, and all-night shopping. Whatever your particular temptation, it will be waiting for you in abundance. When we add in the visits from family and far away relatives, there is a potent brew of stress swirling around us. We can be so easily distracted by it all, and miss the good gifts God wants to give us this year.
If you tend to get a little (or a lot!) stressed out by Christmas, you’re not alone. Christmas is an emotionally-charged holiday. A Consumer Reports survey found that 90% have at least one thing we dread about the holidays. Dread is a strong word; it implies a gnawing fear about something we have no control over. Let me share my top three things I am tempted to dread, and then I’ll share my secret for stressing less.
1. Body: At Christmas, I often visit with relatives whom I haven’t seen all year. Many times, other women will want to talk about weight and diets. Sometimes, other women might even comment on my weight. Even if they are complimenting me on “winning” the war with the scale, I am immediately tempted into pride or fear or even resentment. Any discussion of weight or diets is like sticking a finger into old emotional wounds. No matter what is being said, it can stir unpleasant feelings.
2. Money: Obsession tends to shift around in my life, looking for a home. If I stop obsessing about weight and food, I can easily start obsessing about money. And during the holiday season, the extra spending makes me feel uncomfortable. I am often tempted to blow my budget, just like it was a diet. “Oh, well,” I might think. “I’m spending so much on everyone else, I might as well blow the whole budget.”
3. Expectations: I want my house to be decorated and clean. I want everyone to be happy and the kids to get along. I want to feel the magic of Christmas in my heart from the moment I wake up until I collapse from exhaustion at night. The problem is, I don’t have a set designer, a food stylist, or even a maid. I do, however, have PMS and occasional insomnia. I just can’t ever seem to meet my own expectations. And neither can Christmas. Sometimes I secretly wonder what is wrong with me…
It would seem that Christmas could give me, and all of us, plenty of reasons to overeat! Christmas can be emotionally-charged because there are so many opportunities to be aware of the aching hole in our hearts. And when we try to fill the hole, we often fill it with the wrong things. Spiritual bondage is defined as filling the hole in our hearts with things that only make the hole bigger.
So how can we navigate the season with joy? How do we fill our hearts with what they need? For me, the secret is thinking small. The bigger my fears, the larger my problems seem, the smaller my focus must become. In particular, I am focusing on 0-5 eating, and here’s why:
Living within the boundary of 0-5 eating seems to pay extra dividends during the holiday season. With all the triggers and temptations around me, staying within safe boundaries eases all my stress. The comfort of this one godly boundary soothes my nerves. It’s like my heavenly Father draping His strong arm around my shoulders.
0-5 eating pays dividends all year long, of course. But during Christmas, 0-5 eating keeps me focused on Jesus. As I focus on following His lead in this one area, all the other distractions and dreads seem to fade into background noise. Christmas, with all its necessary preparations, becomes a quieter, sweeter experience. What comes to me as a test of faith (giving up that extra piece of fudge!) becomes the key to release from all my other my burdens.
How about you?
What is it about the Christmas season that seems daunting to you today? Have you ever noticed that keeping one godly boundary, even imperfectly, seems to make the whole day more peaceful? How could the godly boundary of 0-5 eating bring you comfort and peace this Christmas season?
What does success at Thin Within look like to you?
Like many, when I first stumbled upon Thin Within, I was looking for a way to lose weight. Sure, I wanted to do it in a way that honored God, but really… I just wanted to drop some excess weight and fit into a smaller pants size. And God was faithful, He drew me closer to Himself and He also allowed me to release 40 pounds.
If you read my post on Failure, you’ll know that in the years since first coming to Thin Within, I have regained 30 of those pounds back. And during that time, God has really been challenging me on how I define Success and Failure with Thin Within. In the last 4 months through my coaching with Heidi, I have been able to take a hard look at how I’ve set my standards for what success really is.
In these past fruitful months, God has revealed to me over and over that success with Thin Within is about so much more than just releasing excess weight. It started slowly, but I could hear Him whisper to me each week that went by, “What if my definition of success is more than just losing weight? What if that is just a small piece of the pie?”
He began to show me that success really meant having daily quiet times with Him. Success was about surrendering my selfish ambition, my pride over appearance and my self-centered efforts to release weight. Victory took the form of me depending on him in humble submission on a daily (and often minute by minute) basis. Success was committing to praying against the enemy’s attempts to throw me off track with Thin Within. Victory was inward change in my heart that was reflected in my outward actions.
And as the weeks have turned into months He has shown me more and more about what true victory in Thin Within really looks like. There are so many wonderful ways we can experience success with Thin Within. And I just can’t keep all of these things to myself! Consider the many ways we can experience victory in Thin Within through Christ.
Success is saying no to a second helping when you’ve reached a 5
Success is getting back on the horse if you’ve fallen off
Success is dying to yourself
Success is seeing your faith deepen and your walk with God strengthen
Success is listening to your body and obeying its hunger signals
Success is asking God to help you get through that all-you-can-eat buffet
Success is defeating Satan’s attempts to steer you in the wrong direction
Success is seeking the Lord’s face each and every day in prayer and through His word
Success is rejecting preventative eating
Success is not allowing a “slip up” or failure to hold you down
Success is seeing that your body actually thrives within 0-5 boundaries
Success is being set free from food’s power over you
Success is overcoming a stronghold for the very first time (hallelujah!)
Success is not letting yourself fall into shame if you ate from 6-9
Success is seeing changes in your heart, not just your appearance
Success is running to Him in prayer when you feel tempted to start eating and you’re at a 3
Success is spending just one day where every meal was eaten between 0-5
Success is setting aside attempts to lose weight through your own power
Success is honoring our bodies with foods that make us feel energized and satisfied
Success is giving all the glory to God when you release even a tenth of a pound
Success is allowing His power to work through your weakness
Success is walking in humble dependence on God in this journey
Success is overcoming a challenging situation for the first time (0-5 on Thanksgiving Day anyone?!)
Success is breaking a bad habit
Success is seeing the fruit of Observation and Correction
Success is realizing you are being set free from bondage, one chain link at a time
Success is when Thin Within becomes more about growing closer to our Savior than dropping a pants size
I believe that God absolutely positively allows success to also include the release of excess weight. I’m living proof of that. (Editors Note: Becky has released ten pounds in the past four months!) But that is just one small piece of the victory pie! There are so many other pieces of the pie that He cares more about…like how our hearts are being transformed and how our minds are being renewed and how we are being drawn closer to our Creator.
How about you?
Have you experienced success with Thin Within other than releasing weight? Has God shown you any other pieces of the victory pie in addition to weight loss? Have you experienced freedom from strongholds or broken a bad habit? Did you see anything on the list of successes that you didn’t even realize were successes? Let’s celebrate those together!
Is overeating really sin? Is that one extra bite rebellion against the Lord?
I really struggled with those questions. It was one of the things in the Thin Within material that I had a hard time grasping. To be honest, over the years, when I would get to about Day 7 in the Thin Within book, I wouldn’t be able to push through any further. I really didn’t think I needed God’s forgiveness or grace when I took that one extra bite or overate. I would think, “Come on! It’s just food! It’s just one extra bite! What’s the big deal? Doesn’t God have other things to be concerned about? Why does this have to be so spiritual?”
And then my eyes were opened.
I had been praying about this and asking the Lord what His truth was about it in my life. Then one evening, I really wanted to make popcorn to eat during a movie my husband and I were going to watch. I knew I wasn’t hungry for the popcorn, but I just kept on thinking about it. Finally, I decided I was going to make popcorn. As I poured the freshly popped popcorn into a big wooden bowl, I heard the Holy Spirit gently ask me if I would not eat the popcorn since I wasn’t hungry. And like an annoying fly buzzing around, I flicked that request off. How could I resist now? Oh, the delicious scent of hot-buttered popcorn! And then, as I scooped some popcorn into my smaller bowl, the Holy Spirit asked me again if I would refrain from eating the popcorn. Flick! No thank you, I’m going to EAT this popcorn, thank you very much! So I sat down, began the movie, and about 2/3 of the way through my bowl of popcorn the Holy Spirit asked again, gently, if I would stop eating since I wasn’t hungry. Obediently, I put the bowl down and didn’t take one more bite.
He was so gentle. I was so rebellious. I lusted after that popcorn. I hardened my heart against the Holy Spirit’s guidance. I was like that Israelite demanding my way as I puttered around in the wilderness; just give me the leeks and onions! I didn’t want God’s manna or His provision. I wanted MY way in MY time! In essence, I wanted to go back to that slavery. Instead of deliverance and freedom, I wanted the easy way out.
Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts. Hebrews 4:7b
I don’t want to harden my heart. I want to love the Lord with all of my heart, mind and soul. I don’t want to hold anything back. I have to die to myself, to my fleshly, selfish desires in order to live for Him.
But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts. Romans 13:14
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.
Matthew 22:37
And it was at that moment I realized that I am not honoring the Lord when I take that extra bite knowing I don’t need it or when I overeat. I was placing food over Him.
This has been a hard truth to swallow. I would rather not digest it. I want to be in denial, but I clearly saw my rebellion that day when I hardened my heart. I chose to fall into temptation—to sin. Temptations will come, but I had a choice to make. I chose to follow my flesh instead of following after the Spirit. God provided a way out of the temptation, but I chose to take the other path.
When we are hungry, we eat. Food is fuel for our body. So what happens when we consistently go outside of God’s bounds of eating outside of hunger? We gain weight, we feel stuffed, we don’t like the way we look or feel, etc.
Why would we need food outside of hunger? What are we truly “hungry” for when we want to eat when we aren’t physically hungry?
I could replace that “hunger” with food, alcohol, sex, drugs, or any other substance or addiction, but it will never fulfill what I’m truly hungry for. As Heidi says, only God can fill that God-size hole that needs Him in our heart.
Maybe you are reading this and you might think that this doesn’t make sense for you. Maybe you feel that it’s legalistic to say one extra bite is sin. I would encourage you to ask the Lord about this in your own life. Ask Him to show you the truth about this for you. Maybe you aren’t at that place in your journey where it’s clear. Maybe the Lord is working on other areas right now.
Another thing I do is I check the motivation of my heart. Something I think about often is something that is asked in the book Intuitive Eating: would I deny a bride and groom their bites of wedding cake after the cake cutting if they weren’t truly hungry? It’s not their motive to indulge. There have been times after a meal at a friend’s house where I’m not really hungry anymore, but I will eat a little serving of dessert. I will check in with the Lord and there are times where He says that it’s ok, that my heart is in the right place. But I really think this is something personal between you and the Lord. This isn’t an excuse to eat whenever you feel like it. It’s not to justify eating another bite when you know God is saying it’s time to stop. You will know because the Holy Spirit will show you.
God is bringing me to a place of wanting to honor Him more and more with eating. I want to glorify Him in all that I do. My body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. I don’t want to follow after the flesh. I don’t want to lust after food. I don’t want to harden my heart. I want to follow the Spirit and grow closer to Him.
For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. Romans 8:5
For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say no to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age. Titus 2:11-12
If we do choose to purposely overeat, we can ask the Lord to forgive us.
“The surest way to return to the path of God’s provision is by repentance. As we observe, we identify the truth about our behavior and agree with God that a correction is in order. We then confess the truth we observe, and identify the faulty thinking and fleshly behaviors. He further places with us a desire to make the godly correction. This is repentance, and it results in returning to the path of God’s provision where we are filled with peace, joy, and rest” (Thin Within page 248-249).
And knowing that God has forgiven us as we repent, we can continue on our journey of honoring Him. There’s no need to beat ourselves up with the club of condemnation. You don’t have to eat with the attitude of, “Well, I messed up, I guess I will just eat whatever I want, whenever I want the rest of the day.” This isn’t a diet we’ve gotten off track with or have eaten up all of our daily calories, points, fat grams, carbohydrates, etc. This is observing that we’ve overeaten, repenting, and then continuing on the path of God’s provision. And then you just wait until you are hungry again to eat. I find this so refreshing!
There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. Romans 8:1
There are times I find myself being tempted to eat when I’m not hungry. I’m learning to ask God for help during those times. And He is always willing. We can call upon Him!
I will love You, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised; So shall I be saved from my enemies. Psalm 18:1-2
How about you?
Where do you find your thoughts when you think about overeating or one extra bite as sin? I want to encourage you to ask the Lord what this looks like for you. Are you eating because you are trying to fulfill a hunger only God can fill? Do you find yourself lusting after food and eating with a rebellious attitude? Ask the Lord to show you: He will! And He won’t just stop there, He will show you how you can turn your eyes from lust to fixing your eyes upon Jesus!
