Flesh Machinery – Weather!!!

I meant to post this a few days back…after I had a “blinding flash of the obvious” (BFO), but I haven’t taken the time, yet. So I may as well now.

In Thin Within, for those who don’t know, “flesh machinery” is basically something that sort of kicks us into an unawareness of eating…it is something that sets us into eating. Like for some folks, when the DVD machine starts playing a good movie, there is a call for popcorn and soda. This happens whether we are hungry or not.

PMS is a common one. We use it to justify eating red meat or chocolate or whatever else. Even if we aren’t hungry.

My husband goes out of town a lot and that used to be a “flesh machinery” for me…eat for comfort as I miss him! Running errands (we live a ways away from anything) meant the drive through for milkshakes or more…and the list goes on and on.

Since God has been working on me from the inside out, so much of my flesh machinery has been rooted out and, I believed, cured by the Lord.

A couple of weeks ago, however, I discovered one that I had never thought of before, nor had I thought I possessed. Weather!!!

Here in California, we had the driest January on record in over a hundred years. We had glorious spring weather. I am a fair weather gal through and through. I enjoyed going riding and being outside a lot, as well. Suddenly, things changed DRASTICALLY! We got hit with a deluge of three days of rain. The entire three days, I spent EATING! I couldn’t figure out why such a departure from giving this to the Lord. I wondered what had set me off!

Well, it was flat out doing what I wanted when I wanted, but I wondered what had flipped the switch.

After the storms passed, I was able to take a step back and evaluate a bit. I realized, as I did, that the storm had resulted in a truckload of intense emotions. Here where we live, on the side of a steep hill, rain means a mess down yonder with the horses. It means blanketing the ones that can’t handle the rain, wind and coldness. It means feeding is a mess. It means worry…it means extra work…and add to that, I just don’t LIKE gray skies and rain! If I could have it my way it would be 80 degrees ALL the time!!!

Michaela, my daughter, and I had found a recipe for friendship bread starter on the web a week earlier. Bad timing! We baked the bread during the time of the storms. It seemed SO “homey” having freshly baked cinnamon sugar friendship bread (even with almonds and granola in one loaf!) during the storm. That combination of stuff sure set me off.

So when these latest storms hit us this past week, I was prepared and prayed for by others. I asked them to lift me up in prayer. I have prohibited the baking of friendship bread for a while! LOL!