Happy Thanks Giving. This is a day that is so uniquely named. Just the name of it makes us pause to think about a Great Benefactor, to Whom we give thanks on this day.
When the hoped for job comes through, when there is an unexpected check in the mail, when the wayward child returns home, when the test results come back “negative” or “benign,” we eagerly thank God for His goodness.
But He is good no matter what circumstances we face. Even when the job falls through or is given to another, even when there is more month than money, when rebellion strikes our home like a tidal wave, when the doctor begins his sentence with “I’m sorry, but…” God is STILL good. He is STILL on the throne. We live in a Genesis 3 world. It is fallen. Suffering will happen. God is still good.
It is at times like this when this passage takes on a particularly challenging meaning:
And so Jesus also suffered outside the city gate
to make the people holy through his own blood.
Let us, then, go to him outside the camp,
bearing the disgrace he bore.
For here we do not have an enduring city,
but we are looking for the city that is to come.
Through Jesus, therefore,
let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—
the fruit of lips that confess his name.
– Hebrews 13:12-15
Thanks Giving is crying out with Job no matter what circumstances, “Though He slay me, yet will I hope in Him.” This doesn’t come “naturally.” In fact, it is counter-intuitive. But in this giving, in this sacrifice out of desperation, I find myself connected with my God in a way that takes me by surprise. In the midst of the suffering, the grief, the sadness, there is a mysterious joy when I offer the sacrifice of praise.
Lately, I am asking God to cause me not just to endure my crosses in life, but to embrace them as needful tools in the hand of a good, loving, perfect God. Those very things that I rue, are the very instruments through which God is growing me to be more like my Savior–the reason I am on this planet.
As I choose to Give Thanks, I am in a place of humility. In this place of humility, I see God as He is and me as I am. I see all the many good gifts and even the suffering he allows in my life as blessings. This puts me at peace. Surrendering to His good authority. In this place, I don’t grab for more than He has apportioned me. More stuff, more food, more love, more recognition…I don’t insist on having more than my share, more than He has determined that I need.
What challenges is God assigning to you that you might offer a sacrifice of praise?Will you choose to do so today?
I have been so quiet on the blog over the past 18 months (relative to my multiple posting weekly previously) I think because…well…I want to have my “act” together to share something with visitors here. That has been an influence keeping me from writing since I DON’T have my “act together!” Ha! I bet you are surprised to hear that!
Also, I think at some level I feel that pressure all the more because I enjoy occasionally having a writing and speaking ministry. What would happen if people who might consider inviting me to come and speak saw me as I…gasp!…really AM? Oh no! LOL! I am convinced that if you saw the REAL me, you would definitely NOT like what you see, so we can’t let that happen can we?
Additionally, for me, blogging has always been very earthy. It is what I do from my gut, many times on the fly. Since I have done some writing for publication in the past and may in the future, I feel this sense that my blog has to reflect my “good” writing. Well, if I am going to use this blog for the very thing I started blogging for–for authentic processing–that may have to happen when I don’t have time to be sure my writing is “good.” Especially given that it takes a LOT of time for *my* writing to get anything close to “good.” So if you are a potential agent or editor…my apologies. I have to get back to what is most important to me…authentic processing and ministry from that place in the hopes that God will redeem the gunk in my life to encourage other sojourners. That is more important than appearances, a book deal, or what people think of me. God is at work in his people. I SO want people to know that and rest in it!
So when you put all of these factors together, I have chosen not to blog as much.
Today, I am returning to blogging from my gut. I am setting aside my need, insistence, hope (?), that I need to blog only when all is right and my writing’s good :-). In the past–when those things weren’t even on my radar screen–there seemed to be a ministry going on here. Not just me to visitors, but even visitors to one another. I hope for that again. And definitely from the visitors TO me, too!
So starting now, I am going to be real–again. God has allowed the experiences of the past 18 months to blow the lid off the charmed existence I had previously enjoyed. I know my trials are NOTHING compared to what many of you face, but for me–a colossal wimp–these have rocked my world:
My husband–even the easy going, easy-to-get-along-with, rock of a man had a major depression hit him in June of 2011. Although the worst is now behind us (it seems), the affect of the year with depression is still strongly felt. I could stop right here…Truthfully, this has been all it took to knock my legs out from under me.
But, additionally, my “special needs” 19 year old son has dug in his heels and quit school — we are struggling with what “tough love” needs to look like right now (and have for the past three months).
My Mom’s mental health has deteriorated dramatically…just in the past two months.
Saturday I am having to have one of my horse’s put down.
You know what? I believe in the power of praising God through these things. Not as some form of denial, but as an authentic response. In desperation, I cry out to God. I am totally desperate for him. I can’t NOT praise Him. I will choose to fix my eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of my faith. What is seen is temporary and what is UNseen is eternal!
Something happens when I allow my eyes to focus on my circumstances or even the loving people in my life–food seems to be where I go. Yes, even after all this time! I would have thought that this wouldn’t be the case after five years of applying the Thin Within principles relatively “faithfully.” But nope. There is yet a need for my healing. Wow…fancy that. I STILL need a Savior! 🙂
How about for you? Do you have circumstances that are challenging you to fix your eyes on Jesus?
When we feel like we can’t do this thing, when we think we won’t manage life today…Good! We aren’t supposed to be able to do it all in our own strength. We are *supposed* to need Him. When we feel like we can’t manage the “self-discipline” to do what we need to relative to food, eating, an active lifestyle and honoring God with our eating and drinking…GOOD! We are *supposed* to be utterly dependent on Him in the moment.
Let’s do what Max Lucado encourages us to do and turn setbacks into opportunities. If you binged last night, flip it on its lid. Instead of condemning yourself, view it as an opportunity now to grow in dependence on your Savior and Lord. Let’s do this together. THIS is what the Lord is after! Not independent perfection (which we can never attain…), but DEPENDENT need of Him and reliance upon His Spirit.
26 “There is no one like the God of Jeshurun, who rides on the heavens to help you and on the clouds in his majesty. 27 The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms. He will drive out your enemy before you, saying, ‘Destroy him!’
Deuteronomy 33:26-27
God is so sweet to time and again, bring me back to the very things that tether my heart to his. I am being reminded this week of His character.
He rides on the heavens to help me and on the clouds of His majesty. (Isn’t that cool?)
He is eternal.
He is my refuge.
Underneath me are HIS everlasting arms.
He drives out the enemy before me.
1 Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations. 2 Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
Psalm 90:1-2
He is my dwelling place–my refuge. I don’t need to try to find solace in a human (I am so needy that no human can meet that deep need that only God can meet) or a pint of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream 😉 (that definitely doesn’t work).
The truth is, at the heart of my struggle with maintaining an eternal perspective is, I think, I lack of trust in God. I hate to admit that, but if I truly trusted him, I wouldn’t attempt to “wrest” control of my life circumstances from Him again and again. So, being reminded of His character soothes my restless, rebellious, tendencies, but–more–gives me motivation to quit striving with God. Get my mind, feet, hands up out of the temporal and to trust this One who is eternal, powerful, GOOD, loving, gracious, compassionate…
With such a God as this, why wouldn’t I want to have HIS perspective on life? Why wouldn’t I want to trust Him with what He is doing. It is so odd that I trust Him for my eternal destination and security, but not in the day-to-day of life?
Note: If you want to participate in an amazing study, A Heart To See Forever by Catherine Martin, please visit this link. Catherine has audios, videos, blog, and a community for people involved in the study online. I have enjoyed Catherine’s material in the past and this book is already among my favorites!
I am delighted to be involved in a study by Catherine Martin called A Heart To See Forever. God brought this study in my life RIGHT WHEN I NEEDED IT MOST! Even though I have written and spoken on this very thing, I had wandered far from it.
If you are interested in joining Catherine and her community in studying this material, visit her website at http://www.quiettime.org. I am so glad that I have done that.
The eternal perspective affects my NOW. It totally relates to those of us who are struggling with “food issues” in our lives. I had some time this morning before hubby and I check out of our hotel to “wax eloquent” about this, so I recorded a video. I hope that if you listen in, it encourages you. (It isn’t pretty, but the truths are powerful! LOL!)
Thin Within has three “phases.” For some people, these phases are, indeed, a progression. For others, it is more like layers of an onion…they get to a certain “phase” to discover God peels away the onion and they step back and discover a new level to an earlier phase. I will just describe them in a linear fashion though, for simplicity.
First phase is the Freedom Phase. “All things are permissible.” This phase blows the lid off the dieting box! God did not design us to fixate on a number of calories of fat grams per day and to eat without regard for our bodies’ signals. Instead, he designed us to eat in response to the signals of our bodies–the signals that indicate our bodies are physically in need of nourishment and physically no longer in need of nourishment–satisfaction.
When we respond to our bodies in this way, any food is permissible. All the “can’t haves” and “do nots” of the dieting world fall away and no longer make us feel condemned! Freedom! No need to worry about fat grams or calorie content.
Truthfully, many people LOVE this phase and go a bit bonkers with it. Foods that have been “off limits” for years are suddenly “legalized!” When eating 0 to 5, a person can still eat hot fudge sundaes, pizza, full fat salad dressings and still release weight. It is true!
Most importantly, though, the freedom phase is a time of building building building a foundation of my relationship with the Lord. He teaches me to lean on him more and more–especially as I discover that waiting for hunger is REALLY HARD! I have so many reasons I want to turn to food that now I suddenly see myself as being…well…a bit messed up! LOL! Remove my coping mechanism (overeating) and now I have to deal with my heart…God is there to show me He can be relied upon to help with this process of course.
So phase 1 includes learning how reliable He is to help me wait for physical hunger, to heal my heart that has issues that surface and that he can also help me to know when to stop eating. Phase 1 participants are not considering so much the nutrition or benefit to eating one food or another. They are developing that confidence that their bodies are reliable and that God is sufficient for meeting all their needs.
Phase 2 – Discernment Phase is based on the next part of the verse…Since all things are permissible, but NOT all things are beneficial, this implies I need to exercise discernment.
In phase 1, I developed my relationship with the Lord, now I begin to evaluate prayerfully …how does He want me to nourish my body? What foods really work best for me? As I ask, He shows! I begin to see that I have a responsibility and this is an awesome privilege! This is when I begin to scrutinize my choices. Thin Within calls the categories I may place foods in Teasers, Pleasers, Whole Body Pleasers, Total Rejects. This is explained in the book in detail.
I still don’t worry about nutrition labels, but some phase 2 folks have the freedom to be able to read labels and use what they know to ask God for wisdom in feeding their bodies. More importantly than food labels, however, I begin to notice how various foods cause my body to react or feel. I still eat only when hungry and stop when satisfied physically. But I begin to see that my body is amazingly efficient! It gets by with so much less food than I ever thought possible, so I begin to want to fuel it with high octane fuel! Like a high performance race car, I begin to see that different fuels will cause performance to vary! With so little food needed, I really begin to make what I put in my body count. I do this with joy and without a sense of deprivation because the foundation established in Phase 1 is still in place. I am free. All things are permissible! I delight to do God’s will and what that looks like for one person will be VERY different than what it looks like for another.
People in this phase may continue to carve out a little space for what have been their favorite foods or “treats” in the past–typically not as much as in phase 1, maybe…like in Phase 1 we may have had a hot fudge sundae for dinner, typically by phase 2 we aren’t doing that so much any more as we have noticed we don’t feel as energized when we do that. (Just as an example.)
Instead, in phase 2, we may reserve some “space” in our stomachs (within 0 to 5 eating) for a small taste of whatever it is we have always loved so much. We continue to delight in our freedom, but we begin to see that freedom means not just free TO eat, but free from having to have whatever it is we used to live for and lust after! Having a smaller amount at the end of a satisfying meal does as much for us as having the entire thing for dinner did in phase 1.
One other thing about the Discernment Phase…phase 2…is we also begin to scrutinize our choices regarding activity or a sedentary lifestyle. We begin to see that this body, God’s chosen dwelling place on earth, can operate best when it is given some activity. In phase 1 we have delighted in the *fact* that we don’t *need* exercise to lose weight (not if we eat between 0 and 5!!!), but we nevertheless realize that we are free to exercise in a godly way…that this is something that honors the Lord when we do it for His glory instead of our own like many of us have in our dieting/exercising pasts. There are so many thin people who aren’t fit…and we realize in phase 2 (if not sooner…LOL!) that we don’t just want to release extra weight, but we want our bodies to be fit temples as well. We want to be able to go up stairs and not be winded. We want to be able to run and play with our kids, go to the snow, go swimming and splash around…go horseback riding…and not feel like our bodies are going through the ringer! We want to be healthy, vibrant and truly as alive as possible for all the days God ordains for us to be on this earth! That all happens as we worship God through moving our bodies! Be it through dancing to praise music, walking the dog, getting silly with the kids, or our every day chores done with a bit more spring in our step…and some, of course, can even do a regimented workout schedule without becoming obsessed. Some can do it with a worshipful submissive heart! (I hope to some day…I am not free in that way yet…)
Phase 3 – The Mastery Phase – is based on the last part of 1 Corinthians 6:12 “I will not be mastered by anything.” Can I say no to hot fudge sundaes? Sure, they are permissible. And I can choose to have some if I wish…but do I have to have ice cream? (Or whatever it might be for any particular person?)
The person in the Mastery Phase might discover that the brownies the kids made last week got buried beneath mail on the kitchen counter and never got eaten, even though previously she LIVED for brownies! (Can you tell chocolate has been my big thrill in life? LOL!) While the pan of brownies was in the house, it never has the pull the way they did before. Sure, they are “permissible” and sure she can have some…but it just doesn’t matter any more…she doesn’t have to have brownies or any dessert at all! Or she can slide the chips and salsa away at the mexican restaurant without having any because she would rather enjoy the entree! She is no longer mastered by anything but the Lord Jesus as a general rule of life. (Obviously, no one is completely sinless until the Lord takes us home to be with Him…this is a progression!)
I don’t know if this makes sense…and really, these phases are dynamic, not static. You don’t just “arrive” at Mastery and stay there forever *necessarily*. Maybe some people do eventually. But I have found that some of us may always have a “thorn in our flesh” that causes us to keep needing the Lord to help us through…our desire for food may be what God uses to keep us clinging to Him the rest of our lives…but what a wonderful thing it is for something that once caused so much pain in my life (my overeating) to be used of God to call me to himself again and again…Praise Him for redeeming that which the enemy intended for my constant harm all my days!
Foods that have been “off limits” for years are suddenly “legalized!” When eating 0 to 5, a person can still eat hot fudge sundaes, pizza, full fat salad dressings and still release weight. It is true! 
LOL! Remove my coping mechanism (overeating) and now I have to deal with my heart…God is there to show me He can be relied upon to help with this process of course. 