by Heidi Bylsma | Jun 24, 2016 | Blog
This week we are hitting “Night-Time Eating” head on by creating truth cards that will help us fight the lies we believe that cause us to give in to temptation after dinner with TRUTH.
Today, I want to share with you page two in my truth card deck!
After I obsessed and went nuts and dropped all the weight I did, it was clear that I had gone too far. So I am not at that LOOOOOW a weight right now. I am good with that. But what I *don’t* know is if I am where I should be. I don’t think the number matters at all. But night-time eating is sort of a bug-a-boo for me. I haven’t conquered it at all. I know that many evenings, I do “desire” eating. If I were to be obedient during this trouble time, I know that I would have confidence that no matter what my size or number or whatever, I am right where God intends for me to be.
- I need to CHOOSE to surrender my “desire eating” in the evening to God. Will I?
It really boils down to WILL I OBEY GOD? Or my desires?
- Will I call “foul” to God when he asks me to give evening eating over to him?
Is this one of those areas where I retain *my* (supposed) rights? Or am I truly surrendered…”Not my will, but thine be done?” No food tastes as good as obedience feels!
- Is giving up food after dinner (when I am not hungry) worth what I get in return?
There truly is no sweeter sensation–no tantalizing taste-bud thrill–than loving God with my choices. The peace that I experience when I submit to his authority is just SO wonderful!
HOW ABOUT YOU?
Are these truths that you can add to your truth card deck? How is it going for you using your truth cards? What truths can you add to these that I have posted?
by Heidi Bylsma | Jun 20, 2016 | Blog
Do you struggle with eating after dinner? I know that many do. We aren’t typically hungry for the few hours that follow dinner time, yet we nevertheless end up eating. I have three truth cards for that as well. It helps me to read these truth cards out loud just before dinner time. It also helps me to read them out loud just after dinnertime, too. If I find I am tempted, I like to launch Barb Raveling’s “I Deserve a Donut” app (she has an I Deserve a Donut book now too for those without iPhones!) and use some of her questions to illuminate what is going on.
In any event, here are THREE truths that I can say out loud that help me to NIP EVENING EATING in the bud!
- Unless I eat an early dinner (or light dinner, stopping before I reach a “5” on the hunger scale), I simply WILL NOT BE HUNGRY before bed!
Have you experienced this? Where you know that you ate plenty at dinner time, but you know you are planning…actually planning to eat anyhow? Do we want to BE CURED of this overeating and extra weight stuff? Do we really WANT to be obedient to the Lord in eating only what we need for fuel? Then the truth is, unless we eat a very early dinner or an extremely light dinner, it isn’t likely we will be hungry before bed!
- I sleep better when I don’t overeat at bed-time or just before.
Have you ever had a food-fest in the evening while watching TV or a movie or playing games with the family? Or perhaps that is your computer or reading time and you just munch most of the evening? Has it affected how soundly you sleep? It does for many of us who struggle with this. When we use food for fuel, we are able to sleep peacefully!
- When I don’t overeat at night, I wake up hungry for breakfast which is a good thing!
A lot of people assume that they need to eat in the morning when they wake up. Honestly, when I overeat the night before, I am not hungry until 10am or sometimes even 11am! Is this true for you?
How About You?
Do you struggle with night-time eating? Might speaking these truths out loud each morning and again in the evening before you eat after dinner actually help you? What are your strategies for emerging victorious over the temptations to eat in the evening “just because?”
Stay tuned for part 2 of night-time eating Truth Cards!
by Cathie Rosemann | Mar 11, 2016 | Blog
I have come to believe that one of the most disheartening consequences of being overweight is that we subconsciously begin to put on a cloak of shame and wear it daily, particularly when out in front of others. The more we engage in the act of gluttony (eating excessively) the more fitted that cloak becomes, and the less our true selves are seen by those around us. It’s as if we’ve allowed a
n impostor into our life, giving him free reign to swindle us, and cause us to assume a false character or personality. In other words, we’ve let this impostor hide the real us. For that matter, this cloak includes a personal mental covering of the original design God had in mind when He saw fit to breathe our lives into existence. What a shame. No pun intended.
I’ve noticed over my 15 year struggle how many things I’ve stopped doing because I am no longer physically or mentally comfortable in doing so. I’ve been ashamed that I let myself go to the extent I have. In fact, on a bad day when I’ve made a mental agreement with the enemy, I don’t realize it, but I look at myself differently. In some ways, it has been debilitating. For anyone who struggles with this you know what I’m talking about. It’s no longer fun picking out clothes or getting dressed for the day, or swimming (even with your own family), and our comparison to others runs rampant. We dress more to hide ourselves than to reveal. Even the change of seasons can become less fun since wearing shorts is now dreaded and not looked forward to like it use to be.
Just recently I was sitting in church riddled with low self-esteem and comparison. Unfortunately, the enemy had launched several mental assaults on my heart that morning and I made agreements with him, instead of combating him with the truth of God’s word. So I sat, longing to be fit and lovely like the other women in our congregation. And yet I felt inferior, less than, like I didn’t belong. I wanted to go back home throw on my pajamas and crawl into my bed as quickly as I could. Needless to say, that Sunday was not a stellar day with regard to my eating and/or my food choices. And it was my own fault. I know better. I know the Truth!
Before I go further let me qualify the word “overweight” since it is different for everyone. For me, it is refusing to live within the boundaries God has set for me (zero to five eating), thus resulting in excess pounds, which causes me discomfort and a lack of peace. It is also carrying more than God designed my physical body to bear.
On a more encouraging note, the wonderful thing about a cloak is that, according to the Oxford Dictionary, it is “an over-garment, hanging loosely from shoulders”. It “conceals and disguises”. In other words, it can (and should) be removed. When Jesus Christ came to bring us the new covenant he gave us the opportunity to remove the cloak of shame and wear the garment of His grace every single moment of every single day of our lives.
Hebrews 10:16 says, “This is the new covenant I will make with my people on that day, says the Lord: I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds.”
This week I realized afresh just how important it is that I let God write his laws in my heart and on my mind. To live apart from this is to live in shame and defeat. It’s to live contrary to his original design of me.
Psalm 34:4 says, “I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to him are radiant, and their faces shall never be ashamed.”
It’s important that in this “in between” place that we continue to look to him, so that those around us see radiance and not shame. We no longer need to wear the cloak of our old man (shame). We are new in Christ and this means the garments we now wear are new and they are free of shame. Hallelujah!
What about you? Do you find yourself wearing a cloak of shame or of radiance? Are you dreading the upcoming change of seasons or are you looking forward to it? Have you put together some truth cards that God can use to “put his law in your heart” and “write them on your mind”? If not, let me encourage you to do so today. You’ll be glad you did.
by Deanna Lewis | Feb 19, 2016 | Blog, Inspiration, Renew Mind
Do you ever find yourself feeling like this woman in the picture?
Most of the time I think I am doing ok with this 0-5 eating, yet sometimes….well….I fall back into old ways that feel so comfortable and familiar.
I had a few days like that not too long ago. I didn’t mean to eat too much, yet once again, I felt too full and gross. There are times when I feel as if I go into a fog and so I guess it is not the best time to eat. I want to eat. My mouth wants to eat. But my stomach isn’t hungry for it.
Sometimes I stop and think, “Why am I eating this?”
I really want to know the WHY behind my behavior but sometimes I can’t find a reason other than
I JUST WANT TO EAT!
****Sigh****
Once again, I was just slipping back into mindless eating patterns.
So what do I do now?
I can ask myself why I am eating this in a condemning and defeated way, or I can observe and correct.
I decide to flip through my truth cards and I see Romans 8:1 among them.
I realize I need to pray for help.
Lord, how I need You. I can’t do this without Your Spirit, Oh Jesus. I need You to pull me up and away from these desires within me that pull me back into mindless eating again.”
“I need more than a whisper of Your still small voice but a SHOUT to wake me up. To help me know this desire to eat when I am not hungry is TEMPTATION. I need a shout to wake me out of the fog of mindless eating.”
“Lord, my heart aches to do what You want. I want to turn from the food and to eat mindfully. Help me, Oh Lord to think about what I am doing when I am in the midst of it. Help me to make the right choices so that the next time I say “Why am I eating this?” The answer will be “because the Lord has provided it and it is the right time to enjoy it.” Yes, within Your boundaries, Oh Lord.”
“Lord, thank You that this moment is a new moment. Your grace is new each moment and I am a new creation in You each time I turn to Your open arms.
“My child, I love you. Remember that nothing can take away my love. I forgive you and you are set free! I am with You and I will help You. You have to be still and listen for my voice, child. It is hard to be still when you have so much going on, I know, but that is when you have to make a special effort to pause and breathe and listen. You have to take a moment to center yourself on Me. Yes, breathe a prayer and ask for my help. I will give you power over the enemy and the sin and the desires. I will give you power over old habit and old ways.”
“Oh child of mine, you may not know why you did what you did but you can still learn from it. It all comes down to taking the moment to turn to Me. In Me, you ARE a new creation who is free from sin. But you have to remain in ME, child. I am here for you and I love you. Always.”
What about you? What do you do if you find yourself slipping into mindless eating? Do you mentally beat yourself up or do you “Observe and Correct”? Have you been pausing at the table and listening for God’s voice? Remember that God’s power over our old ways of eating is there for us to use. Remember that you ARE a new creation in Him and that no matter what, He loves you.
by Deanna Burris | Jan 4, 2016 | Blog, Inspiration
One of my favorite Christmas songs is “Mary Did You Know” written by Mark Lowry and one of my new favorite renditions of this song is the one performed by Danny Gokey (see it here: Danny Gokey – Mary, Did You Know? (Live) ). It is so powerful, but the true power in this song is in Whom it is speaking about. This song is all about Jesus: what He did, and what He still does today.
It saddens me that as we go into the New Year, there will be many of us who will make a list of New Year’s Resolutions. These lists will include things like eating better, new diets to try or old tried and true ones to go back to (they really aren’t tried and true if you are still seeking to lose weight and keep it lost!), diligent exercise plans, self-improvements galore and many things of the same nature. Maybe your list includes wonderful things like praying more and reading the Bible daily. Those are great things to do and I keep those resolutions myself each New Year. The problem with making resolutions about weight loss and fitness is that they seldom stick. We keep trying to make ourselves fit into a mold of health and vitality and we just don’t get there. And when we fail year after year, we keep beating ourselves up and our feelings of failure just keep us living our lives the same way we always do. Do you want this year to be different? I know I did last year at this time, and I would like to invite you on a journey with me for this New Year. It starts with placing “Know Jesus Better” at the top of your resolution list, followed by “Know Who I am in Christ Better.” It is in these two resolutions that you will find the strength for change.
I really believe that we forget that our God is a miracle worker. Our Lord Jesus who healed the sick and cured the incurable still does that today. In the words of “Mary Did You Know” we hear “The blind will see; the deaf will hear; and the dead will live again! The lame will leap; the dumb will speak the praises of the Lamb!“ When you hear those words in this song or when you read this truth in God’s Word, do you believe them? 
Or, do you believe that was then, and this is now? Do you believe that those healed by our Savior deserved to be healed for some reason and in your own thinking you believe you don’t deserve healing? Maybe you don’t think God cares about healing or fixing problems that we see as things we suffer though because of our own making? Well, I’ve got news for you! Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, God is the same today as He was then and as He will be tomorrow. Jesus Christ performed miracles before He walked the earth, as He walked the earth and as He sits at God’s right hand today. This year let’s develop our FAITH muscle and start truly believing!
Our issues and problems matter to God. He loves having those very things draw us closer to Him. It is through drawing closer to Him that we develop perseverance for this journey. It is through trusting Him to handle the decisions and temptations that He proves Himself faithful and loving. Jesus did heal the sick, cure the dumb and lame, brought the dead back to life and calmed the storm with just a wave of His hand or a word from His lips. 
This New Year, will you allow, once and for all, your Savior and Lord Jesus to calm the storms in your heart? Will you let go of trying to change your own life by making a list of New Year’s resolutions and instead make it your desire to know Him better and to fully accept who you are in Him? Believe me when I say that I now know I can’t change myself. Believe me; I tried more times than I’d like to admit! 
What I can tell you for sure is that God changed my life this past year and I never want to go back to the way it was before. It started with looking for a Biblical way to lose weight and ended up with me fully surrendering the whole issue of weight loss/gain, food focus and disordered eating patterns over to Him. Each act of surrender on my part was met with a greater blessing of the Holy Spirit’s work in my heart and mind. This time last year, I was in your shoes: fearing God would never heal my heart around issues with food and weight. He led me first into a Bible Study that was deep in the Word, but soft around food boundaries. I found I still had too much leeway to try and control food to my own whims and wishes. Through that study, He led me into Hunger Within and the God designed boundaries of eating when hungry and stopping when satisfied. He introduced me to His pleasant boundaries, but I didn’t totally surrender to Him until I woke up to the fact that what was coming out of my mouth in words didn’t match my actions. You see, I was still trying to live up to my list of things to do instead of allowing God’s list for me to take effect. I gave up trying to do this myself and gave control over to God. This change in me has taken work on my part. I have had to use the tools of daily Bible reading/study, renewing my mind through truth journaling, truth cards and scripture praying and I have been involved in the TW/HW community. Doing those things took the focus off of me and placed my focus where it needed to be…on God, the Miracle Worker. The work is simple but not always easy, but the miracle that God has done in my heart is real and a tribute to how He still works miracles today!
Let this New Year be one of great growth and change! Let this be the year to delete, “I blew it again!” from your vocabulary and exchange it for, “Christ Jesus is working a miracle in my life!” Join the journey to true freedom in Christ this year and every year!! Join me in singing these words,
“Oh, the blind will see; the deaf will hear; and the dead will live again!
He’s the great I Am!
He’s for me.
He’s healed me.
He’s the great I Am!
He shall be called Wonderful and Counselor!
He’s the great I Am!
There’s healing in His hands, lightning in His eyes.
Truly this man is… He’s the great I Am, the great I Am!”
