You have  courageously and energetically run errands all day.
The day has been productive! You are pleased with all that you accomplished.
Now, you are headed for home, returning as the “conquering hero” having defeated the “To Do” list that loomed larger than life at dawn’s first light.
Negotiating the curb into the driveway, Â before you get to the front door, the scent of chocolate chip cookies wafts across the air, superseding even the floral scent of the gardenias. Instantly, your mouth is flooded with liquid anticipation!
Stepping inside, you survey the kitchen. Eyes scan the counter-top. Evidence indicates that your teen-aged daughter has dealt with her after school snack needs by making chocolate chip cookies which are still warm on the cookie sheet. Only one cookie is missing…your daughterâs modest âsnackâ which, you quickly muse, âShe never learned that from me!â
Yummy food! Yours for the taking!
What happens next?
If this happened to you, what really would happen next?
We could have a plan in place for our victory! I would love to see in the comments below what plan, what action steps, might enable you to emerge from this altercation the victor!
Of course, this could become one of those âYummy Food Eatingâ or âGood Food Eatingâ moments that we studied in Barb Ravelingâs bible study. It is also what we might consider âHead Hunger.â The food is there, the moment is ripe, we want it. (I can almost hear Gollum from Lord of the Rings rasping his “The Preccccciousssss….we wants it we does…”)
There isnât really anything necessarily deeper operating. No feeling of “I deserve this!” or “I am angry at my husband for the comment he made about my hips. I’ll show HIM!” đ This time, there isn’t any “poor me” thoughts. No, we didn’t have a terrible day, we don’t feel sad, frustrated or have any other obvious emotion. We just see the food and want it. In fact, chocolate chip cookies werenât on our minds until we smelled them.
What is true at moments like this:
1.) We donât have to eat every good thing that  we stumble upon.
2.) If I am not physically hungry food–no matter how good it may be–won’t taste nearly as good as it will if I wait until I am physically (stomach empty) hungry to eat it!
3.) The chocolate chip cookies (or whatever food it is) are not going to disappear from the planet. This isn’t my last opportunity ever to enjoy chocolate chip cookies (or other tasty morsel of choice).
4.) Right now may seem like an opportune moment to violate my boundaries, but what will be my standard for upholding them? Will I ever feel like upholding my boundaries? If I wait until I never am tempted to break them to maintain them, what might happen? How will I feel and what impact will it have on my physical, emotional, and spiritual health?
Head hunger can come out of nowhere, so it helps to have a plan of action in place ahead of time. Remember these truths:
Giving in to desire eating (a response to head hunger) will not further me down the path of godliness and it will not work the changes inside and out that I desire.
Giving in to desire eating will not train me for the next time I am tempted. In fact, now is a great time to learn to say no to my flesh. If I keep saying yes to my desires, they will rule me.
If I say no to desire eating, I will be able to rejoice in my obedience and know I did what was best for myself physically, emotionally, and spiritually.
If I can find the strength in this moment to say no to temptation, the intensity of the temptation will subside.
I can act NOW while the willingness to be obedient to God is strong and either on my own or with the help from a family member (or friend, depending on the situation) remove the temptation. (At Halloween, this may mean flushing the candy down the toilet! With these chocolate chip cookies, it may mean sticking them in a freezer bag and putting them in the freezer).
What else is true when you say no to your flesh and yes to God by not eating in response to desire (when stomach hunger isn’t present)?
{Note: If you are someone who has a history of not eating enough to sustain your bodyâs needs, the authors of Healthy Eating Abundant Living encourage you to allow Head Hunger to get you on track again. I would suggest praying and asking God to give you the strength to eat when you need it and the food sounds appealing. Anyone with a history of overeating, you may be prone to want to see yourself in this category. Ask the Lord to show you if this does, indeed fit.]
Do you remember being a child, falling down and skinning your knee? Do you remember bringing your wound to your mom or your dad, being comforted, having your tears wiped away and then asked to come into the bathroom where the first aid supplies were brought out? This experience may have been met with not just a little bit of fear and trepidation. Why? Because we knew that our mom or dad intended to clean our wound so we could feel better and avoid infection. But what was sure to happen before it ever felt better?
It would sting.
I believe we have come to that part of our study where our Abba Father calls us to bring Him our wounds. He intends to comfort us with his love, yes. He delights over us with singing! He will wipe our tears if we will let him.
But he also intends to do a deep cleansing of our wounds and this brings pain. This journey can be challenging–especially when we begin to allow him to put that âantisepticâ of the Holy Spirit…that purifying cleansing agent of his holy fire…against our raw, bleeding âskin.â
During our first week of our HEAL – Healthy Eating & Abundant Living – study, we began to see what God says about us in Psalm 139–that we are fearfully and wonderfully made. You dared to step into the life and many of you have linked up with an accountability partner to share this leg of your journey. There is still time to do that for the next 4 weeks! Donât give up on the idea. It will be an invaluable experience to walk side-by-side with someone during the rest of our study.
Last week, we looked some at the mechanics of this journey–
This week, we go deeper, taking steps even closer to the heart of God. Inviting him to show us where we need that cleansing of our wounds, of our sin, of our heartaches. There is great reward for vulnerability, for surrendering to his loving touch, but it doesnât mean it is easy.
Here is the preview video for this week. Again, if you are an email subscriber, you may have to visit the blog to see the video.
The authors point out that we all have a hunger within that craves to be fed. There is a sanctified ache inside of each of us, placed there by God, that hungers for love. It cries out to be satisfied. The authors call this âlove hunger.â We all have this love hunger, but we each get to choose how we will deal with it.
As I mention in the video above, we get to have a look at the story of the woman at the well this week. Again, I urge you to pray that God will make this a fresh experience for you and that your reading of this portion of John 4 will not be diminished by familiarity with this amazing passage. Invite the Holy Spirit to show you this passage afresh and then, perhaps, read it in a translation of the bible that you donât usually use. Bible Gateway has all kinds of translations you can pick from. I chose the message for this week’s study.
The woman at the well is definitely hungry for something. Coming to the well at mid-day when the heat was the worst and no one else would be likely to be there proves that she was a social outcast. Have you ever felt that way? I have. Jesus meets her in her place of need and asks her some penetrating questions. As you look at this story, note how she deflects his questions. Note what she has done to try to feed her love hunger. Can you identify at all?
The authors ask us this week, âWhat is your heart hungry for?â
âHow has your need for security and significance not been met?â
âHow have you responded to this loss?â
âHow have you relied on food or a lack of foodâ (I would add, appearance and perfection) âto comfort you?â
We are challenged with another passage in Psalm 139, verses 23 and 24. Will we boldly invite God to search our hearts and know our thoughts? Will we welcome him to show us what is in our hearts? We know that he has what we need like the children that we are, coming to our good Heavenly Father to get the âmedicineâ that we need…that will bring healing, but that we know will sting (sometimes, horribly) before it gets better.
Through this discussion in the text, the authors point out three kinds of hunger. Be sure to spend time in this. We will be talking about this at the blog this week. Even if you donât have the book, you will be able to be encouraged in your journey, so I do hope you will come along!
This week, complete the Personal Study portion of Lesson 3.
Ask God to continue to show you any lies that you believe and to spend time renewing your mind about these things. If you arenât sure what that might look like, please post here or ask your accountability partner for ideas. You can also go to Barbâs Blog  and do a search for renewing of the mind material. She does a great job teaching what this means. You have heard me say it before, but I highly recommend Truth Journaling.
Do you have a renewing of the mind goal? Would it be helpful for you to develop one or refine or redefine your renewing of the mind goal?
Begin to evaluate each time you  consider eating. Ask yourself, âWhich type of hunger is demanding to be fed right now? Heart hunger? Head hunger? Or Stomach hunger?â
What are some things you can do to feed Heart hunger so that it is being nourished with what it truly needs?
What are some things you can do about Head hunger so that it doesnât lead you to eat when your body doesnât need food? If you struggle with under-eating, take note of what Allie and Judy say about head hunger being helpful. If you arenât sure if you fit into that category, ask the Lord. I believe he will show you.
I urge you to bring your wounds to your Abba Father this week. Let him wipe your tears, embrace you with his love, delight over you with singing and, yes, cleanse the wounds you have. It will sting. Even being open with him about the wounds will hurt some. But it is worth it.
What did God show you in your reading of the story in John 4?
Please feel free to share any other responses to the questions in the personal study in Lesson 3. I would love to hear how God is using this material in your life!
This week we have had the opportunity to look at the freedom we are invited to experience in setting aside dieting rules, dieting laws, dieting “Good Foods” and “Bad Foods” lists and dare to trust the God who created our bodies fearfully and wonderfully.
Is Psalm 139 beginning to take root in your heart? Do you believe you are fearfully and wonderfully made?
In the material we studied this week, what resonated for you? If you aren’t doing the book or your book hasn’t arrived yet, share what  rang true for you or was impressed upon you here at the blog or in the comments. So much wonderful discussion has been going on! I would love to hear from you about it!
Have you been a “die hard” dieter in the past?
Are your dieting thoughts affecting you even now as you try to set them aside?
Do you have an accountability partner yet? If you go to the Accountability page here at the website, post your information and if you see someone you might like to connect with in email, please send me an email. Please don’t post to me in the comments on that page, as I probably won’t see it in a timely manner. Shoot me an email instead.
Turn to page 36 and have a look at the HEAL pyramid. You will refer to that during this video. If you don’t have the book, I think you will be able to visualize the pyramid just fine as I describe it. You will want to have your book or a journal to write down responses to the questions as we go through.
FOUNDATION – Relationship with God. When you get to the spot in the video, turn off the video, pray, then write down what God is leading you to establish as a goal for this level of the HEAL pyramid. What goal will you have for your relationship with God? We would love to hear in the comments, too. What action steps will enable you to realize your goal?
Second Level – Relationship with FOOD. Again, when you get to the spot in the video, stop, pray, and then write down what God is leading you to establish as a goal for your relationship with food. What action steps will enable you to realize your goal?
Third Level – Hunger/Fullness Eating. In the video, I indicate when to stop. Then pray and jot down what God wants for you in this area of your life. What action steps (or perhaps secondary boundaries) will enable you to achieve this goal?
Tip top level – Beneficial Food Choices. I urge you to approach this category with caution. If you have a history of obsession with dieting, it may not be time for you to establish a goal for this area. You want to learn to trust the Lord that you can eat anything between the parameters of 0 and 5 or hunger and satisfaction.
I hope that you have experienced God’s personal leading as you have established your goals in each of the areas of the HEAL pyramid. Please feel free to allow God to lead you to adjust these as we continue.
I would love to hear what your goals are! Let us know in the comments which area of  the HEAL pyramid and what your goal is. If you like, share your action steps, too. In fact, you could use this for your accountability with your partner, too, if you like.
I hope you have been blessed by the focus on the truth God speaks over you, that you are fearfully and wonderfully made.
It has encouraged me to no end to see you participate in the study with one another  in your comments and there are a bunch of you who have posted on the Accountability page! Be sure to email me and let me know if there is someone you want me to send your contact information to. Let’s get paired up for the next 5 weeks. đ I don’t want anyone left behind!
This week, we have a chance to look at the *mechanics* of this way of eating and living. Where last week a foundation was laid for our relationship with our good and patient Savior and establishing the fact that we want to EXALT Him instead of making it be about ME ME ME, this week, we learn to rely on the signals that our Great and mighty, creative, God has put in our bodies. He has made our bodies to be trustworthy indicators–especially as we submit to our God in prayer and ask Him to guide us to be obedient and honest.
Here is today’s video:
You may need to renew your mind if you are fresh out of dieting or if you have been vacillating back and forth between Thin Within and a diet. Just jot down (in a moment when you are convinced)Â truths about eating based on the physical cues of your body vs. eating according to a plan provided by a dieting company or industry (who loves to make money out of our failure).
What IS true about letting your body signal you for hunger and satisfaction? Here are some truths to get you started:
When I am hungry and eat, contrary to popular “wisdom,” I am not going to go into starvation mode and not lose weight. Instead, I am showing my body that it is perfectly safe to get hungry as I will eat when I am hungry!
It may seem like a small amount of food that satisfies me. That is because it is! But I can eat again as soon as I am hungry!
My body is so efficient!
When I eat when hungry and stop when I am not, I choose an effortless, easy way of regulating my food intake.
Eating when I am hungry and stopping when I am no longer hungry is the most natural way of eating the amount that my body needs in order to be it’s God-ordained size.
Eating when I am hungry and stopping when I am not enables me to eat all kinds of foods that I enjoy. I don’t have to count. This works. It has for millennia!
This approach frees me from obsession about food and nutrition information. I am free to use what I know about nutrition and free not to. I can listen to the Lord’s leading instead of the “leading” of the popular diet guru.
God knows me intimately (Psalm 139) so it stands to reason that his way will provide me with what I need.
This is radically different from the world’s way of doing things!
Colossians 2:20-23 confirms this:
You have died with Christ,
and he has set you free from the spiritual powers of this world.
So why do you keep on following the rules of the world, such as,
Such rules are mere human teachings about things that deteriorate as we use them.
These rules may seem wise because they require strong devotion,
pious self-denial, and severe bodily discipline.
But they provide no help in conquering a personâs evil desires.
So let me ask you the same things I ask in the video…the same things we are asked in the material we are studying:
Has being obsessed (even just a bit) with food, eating and your body, hindered your growth to be all that God intends?
This is a convicting question! Notice that it zeros in on being obsessed with food, eating and your body…obviously, God has a plan for all of us that we haven’t yet realized! But the focus here is…what is keeping you from it? Is it possible that the very thing that you pursue because you “want to honor God” is pursued in such a way that it stands  in the way of being what you could be?
If the Father seeks worshipers who worship in Spirit and in Truth, and we are thinking about ourselves so very much…does that, perhaps, tell us the answer?
What self-destructive lies have you believed?
What TRUTHS can you embrace to counter the lies?
Are you willing to befriend your body? What might this look like for you? Do you need to renew your mind about your body in order to do that? Here is what that might look like for me:
My legs have enabled me to hike and bike ride and see amazing scenery where no car can travel.
My abdomen–the one that has stretch marks (now faded)–carried both of my children into this world.
My chest nursed my children to give them a good start. Even if I think I look like “National Geographic Woman” now (everything is dripping a bit south), I know that my body has done a remarkable job!
My hands have played the guitar and keyboard for the worship team and our church family
My teeth have chewed the food I need to get the nutrition I need and while I have sometimes used them to chew more food than I need, I am still thankful for them!
My feet–which I so often criticize for being too big–have carried my body for 52 years (less the first year of my life, I guess). They have taken me all kinds of places!
My shoulders–as broad as they are–have enabled me to be strong to move hay, to carry furniture when needed and other heavy burdens.
I think you get the idea. Sometimes, I need to renew my mind several times a day about whatever it is I am struggling with. To “befriend” my body, as the authors suggest, I might need to review this list a number of times!
How about you? What do you need to renew your mind about as we progress this week and begin to get in touch with our hunger/satisfied signals? Does befriending your body seem impossible and, even, repulsive? Ask the Lord to show you HIS truth!
Assignment:
Complete all of Lesson 2, the personal study and the group study.
Write out your responses to the questions on page 45 under âSharing and Discussion Questions.â
Create personal HEAL goals for each level of the HEAL pyramid (page 36)
Renew your mind about anything that God leads you to renew your mind about. I recommend doing this as part of your time with the Lord first thing in the morning–even if it is in the shower or as you dress and get ready for the day.
Select an accountability partner if you haven’t yet!
Optional:
 Consider memorizing the verse on page 42
Add to your God List and have a praise fest! Do this at least once this week, if not several times.
What do you sense God is leading you to make a priority this week regarding your eating, renewing of your mind, your time with Him, an accountability partner, and anything else mentioned in our study so far?
Much of today’s post will be written by YOU in the comments! I hope you are ready to join in! đ
First, put on your holy  imagination! Pretend we are on a picnic in the middle of nowhere…enjoying a crystal clear blue sky, the music of the meadowlark, the clouds drifting lazily by, and the majestic mountains in the distance. My living room wasn’t available this week!
Yes, I captured this week’s “group session”–our first for our study of Healthy Eating and Abundant Living–while on the road trip with my son! I was thinking of you non-stop as I drove over 4000 miles and so when I saw this view and the relatively quiet opportunity to record some thoughts roadside, I grabbed it!
So, please get your bible. Open to Psalm 139 because we will read it together! Just like we would in person! (If you are an email subscriber, you may have to visit the blog in order to view the video.) – In time, I hope to get better about lighting and all. For now, just know I was TOTALLY enraptured by the joy of being in that beautiful place, imagining you all with me and reading this glorious Psalm!
Are you beginning to believe what God says about you yet? That you are fearfully and wonderfully made? đ
If we were sitting together…all of us…on a lovely picnic blanket under the azure sky, I would ask you the questions in our books:
What does “wonderfully made” mean to you?
And just because I am a maverick, I might also ask:
What does being “fearfully made” mean to you?
This blog and website has been a wonderful place for many of us to share in ways we don’t often with people face-to-face. But in person, I would ask a challenging question, suggested, again, by the authors of our book:
In what areas of your life have you been living in the dark?
Some of us are giving in to tickling the back of our throats again…
Others of us are using laxatives in order to move the (usually large quantity of) food through our systems quicker so as not to absorb it.
Some of us may be “riding the zero”…more than we know God would have us.
We hide our eating by sneaking fast food in the car and then coming home and having dinner with the family as if we haven’t just had a full meal.
Or it might be another way completely.
Jesus tells us in John 8:32 that knowing the truth sets us free and, although he was talking about his teaching specifically, there IS a principle that we can draw from this verse…and it is that running from truth or hiding from truth is not the way to freedom. Facing IN to truth is.
Here is another thought…your truth…is with a little “t.” What if you were to let God TRUMP your little “t” truth with His BIG “T” TRUTH? Your truth may be true (then again, it may not be), but God’s Truth supersedes and overrides and commands all other little “t” truth.
What do you think?
What scares you about living in the light?
Have you hidden your struggles with food and your body from God and others?
Have you visited the Accountability page here? Do you have a prayer/accountability partner yet? How is that going? What can I do to help you with that so that you no longer feel the need to hide, but have someone that is praying you through and that you can support, too.
One of the amazing things in God’s Word is the principle that when we minister to others, our *own* healing takes wing! We experience healing in deep places in our lives when we support, encourage, and minister to others (see Isaiah 58:8-12). Connect with someone and give it a try!
What are your thoughts about being knit together, stitch by stitch, in your mother’s womb? What does that say to you about the God you serve?
How can we pray for you in the week ahead?
Get your typing fingers going and chip in below! đ I love seeing you minister to one another!
