by Heidi Bylsma | Mar 25, 2013 | Blog
And so we begin Week 4 of our Weight Loss Bible Study. You have made it about half way. Don’t worry if you are going at a different pace or are joining us late. What matters is that you persevere. That may look different for each of us. Some may be going along right as I post, doing the studies each week. Others may do one a week or one of the studies every other week. Please know there is NO condemnation for you. I celebrate that you are here, asking God to have his way in this aspect of our lives!
Think back to Barb’s great insight from the Appearance Eating study that if we make this be all about our weight, we WILL be tempted to throw in the towel. But if we realize that this is about so much more than that, we will be more likely to persevere. God is merely using our struggles with food, eating, our size to remind us of how much we need him. It is a training ground for all things godly. For sanctification which will be a process we endure our whole lives long! Let us not grow weary in doing good. Let us keep at it!
With that in mind, have you been continuing to work on your renewing of your mind goal? If not, might I urge you to recommit to that? Back in week 1 of our study, Barb Raveling encouraged us to set a renewing of the mind goal. We can adjust this, tweek it, modify it, but we don’t want to bail on it! It is the heart of change. The core of growth! God says we are transformed by the renewing of our minds, so let’s renew our thinking about what failure really is, shall we?
Here are some thoughts I have as we look ahead this week at our study:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9h0glt0NtZA?rel=0&w=480&h=360
This week we will be focusing on Day 7, Failure Eating, and Day 8, Holiday and Vacation Eating, of Barb’s Weight Loss Bible Study.
Assignment:
1. Complete Barb’s Day 7 and Day 8 materials.
2. Continue with your Renewing of the Mind goal or “tweek” it and continue to renew your mind at the times set you set. This is the heart of what we are doing if we are going to act differently! 🙂
3. Remember to post here this week to have your name entered into the drawing late Thursday night. I announce the winners on Friday. You can win a Thin Within book, a Hunger Within book, or a week of coaching.
What do you think about the thoughts shared in the video?
by Heidi Bylsma | Mar 23, 2013 | Blog
When I create the audios and the videos, God speaks truth into MY life through the process. It reminds me of what is true and how great my God is. He uses my rambling on to you to remind me yet again of what is true and what He wants from me.
I hope that when I create the audios and the videos that you will have yet another modality for learning the stuff that God may want you to know. I hope that he uses it to breathe over you an enveloping peace, a saturating sense of his love, and a call to press on–to pursue holiness and excellence.
You may not agree with everything I say, but I do so hope that you will sense his invitation to intimacy with him and that he wants to use this struggle with food and eating as a forum in your life for a wonderful adventure of dependence on him.
This week, God has used my video and audio creating time to really minister to me. Does that sound just so selfish? As I speak the truth that he has given to me, then as I listen and evaluate, delete, re-record–whatever the process may be–he again and again bathes my mind with the truth. I hope it works that way for you as you listen or watch.
And if it is helpful to you to download the files and put them on your iPod to play, go right ahead and do that. I sure hope that doesn’t sound self-aggrandizing. I don’t mean it that way at all. I just know that, at least for me, every way possible that I can to create a way to bathe my mind with truth, is another step toward renewing my mind and experiencing the transformation promised in Romans 12:2.
This week, we looked at the premium we place on our appearance or weight loss in this journey. Barb has really gotten to the heart of a very important issue. I have an audio here talking about some thoughts I have about this aspect of our journeys. Just so you know, I am experimenting with a plug-in microphone, so I apologize for the fuzziness…the microphone was TOO close to my mouth for part of the recordings…I will improve on that in the future.
Appearance Eating
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Entitlement is a poison that can taint our pursuit of godly character. It affects not only my eating, but my relationships as well. In this audio, I share some of the things that God laid on my heart about entitlement. I have found that this is a perfect example of how God uses this journey about food, eating and my body to show me character qualities he wants to build into my life generally and I invite you to consider that may be the very purpose he has us on this course.
Entitlement Eating
[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/84470916″ params=”” width=” 100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /]
How about you? What connection do you see between what God is doing in the realm of eating, weight, how you view food and your body and growing you into Christlike character on a broader scale? What is God showing you about this connection?
by Heidi Bylsma | Mar 18, 2013 | Blog
How important is it to you to be thin? Do you feel like losing weight will solve problems in your life and just, well, make you happier? What if God were to offer you a wonderful change in your character, a heart that is being conformed to his, a mind that is not burdened, yet you weren’t as thin as you think you should be. Would that be ok?
This week, we have the opportunity to evaluate the premium we place on thinness and if we are thinking God’s thoughts about it or if we have some work to do renewing our minds about how we think about weight and size. I hope that you are encouraged even though the material may be convicting!
We will also have a look at Entitlement Eating–another BIGGEE in motivating much of our eating outside of our boundaries.
We are already in Week three of our Weight Loss Bible Study with a Thin Within Spin. 🙂 If you are subscribed to this blog with email or another reader and the video doesn’t show up, please visit the blog site and check out the video. Here is what is going on this week:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ZASAhFLiGE?rel=0&w=480&h=360
So, this week, be sure to:
- Continue with your renewing your mind goal and taking time to try renewing of the mind.
- Can you resolve to not eat outside your boundaries for three days this week?
- If you haven’t tried Truth Journaling yet, give it a go.
- Read and do the questions and journaling activities for Barb’s Bible Study Day 5.
- Read and do the questions and journaling activites for Barb’s Bible Study Day 6.
- Continue to post here. Each time you do, it enters you in the drawing for a free book or free coaching…each Friday, I draw a name. The lucky winner gets to pick either a Thin Within book, a Hunger Within book, or a free week of coaching. Not only that, but you all are such GREAT support for one another! THANK YOU again!
by Heidi Bylsma | Mar 16, 2013 | Blog
I was asked in one of the comments about the schedule, so thought I would post it as a separate post instead of in a response in the comments where it might get buried. 🙂
Here is the schedule – the first link is to the study at Barb’s site. The second link is to the post here with the videos, assignments, etc:
I will probably add one that Barb doesn’t have — it is unique to 0 to 5 eaters — “Preventative Hunger Eating.” Week 5
Then I will probably have a wrap up during a week 9. A chance for us to debrief about some things and a looking forward to what might be next.
As of now, I plan to use the Thin Within workbook with a RENEWING OF THE MIND focus for a study to follow this one.
So, how is it going for you all? Is this study helpful? Is your thinking changing? Do you see any differences in the way you act that you can tie to changes in your thinking?
If you feel like you are stuck in the same-old same-old, I want to encourage you to ask yourself this question…what am I willing to do differently so that I get different results? If you haven’t been working on the renewing of your mind, start there! 🙂
by Heidi Bylsma | Mar 11, 2013 | Blog
Last week, we did Day 1 and Day 2 of Barb Ravelings Weight Loss Bible Study. If you haven’t yet done that material–no problem. Go at the pace that works for you. Just keep moving forward!
I shared last week that we have to be willing to renew our minds–to think differently, if we are going to act differently for the rest of our days. This will ensure that the transformation we experience is lasting. We made a “renewing of the mind” goal, in fact. How is that going for you? I would love to hear.
I wanted to share some thoughts that I have as I look over my notes from doing Day 2 of Barb’s study. Because I am colossally lazy :-), I will do that in video…
Thoughts on Day 2:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEU_XohAz78?rel=0&w=640&h=480
Here is a preview of what you will be studying this week. Beneath the video, I have posted your assignment for this week.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKvWa7SUZAQ?rel=0
This week:
- Continue with your Renewing Of Your Mind goal. You are proactively taking time to think God’s thoughts (that pass the Philippians 4:8 test) about whatever it is that you need to renew your mind about.
- Additionally, be alert and on your guard to any other thoughts that are NOT His thoughts about your body, size, eating, 0 to 5, boundaries and anything else pertinent to this journey. Take captive your thoughts so they don’t take YOU captive!
- Do Barb’s Day 3 study on “Justification Eating.” Be alert to any mention of “calories” and trade dieting terminology for something that is congruent with 0 to 5 and Thin Within.
- Make a list of lies that you tell yourself to justify eating outside of true physical hunger and true physical satisfaction.
- Complete Barb’s Day 4 study on “Indulgent Eating.“
- Did you take Barb’s challenge last week? To have three days of not eating outside of your boundaries? Why not take the challenge this week. Just three days of truly sticking with 0 to 5. See what happens!
Note: If you are struggling with thinking about food all the time, you have to choose to think about something else. You can’t just tell yourself to stop thinking about food! The best thing I have found to think about is what God says is my true portion…HIM. At my other blog, I have a boatload of resources that can help with that. I especially recommend establishing and adding to a God List and using that to have a Praise-Fest.
- Don’t forget to post here to the blog to support one another, ask questions, share your insights! Each time you do, you get entered in the drawing for a Thin Within book (donated by the Thin Within ministry), a Hunger Within book (donated by Arthur and Judy Halliday) or an hour of personal coaching with yours truly.
