Since I have used this Bible passage as an example of how the Lord God has positively influenced my overeating, this doesn't necessarily reflect the whole meaning of the verse. Debbie

COE Support Note:

If you REALLY want to read how Christ helped me throughout this weight loss and even when I was tempted, you should read some of the 100's of previous posts on https://christianovereaterssupport.blogspot.com/

Trying to Con Myself about Buffets, Potlucks, and Holiday Dinners-

Romans 6: 12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. 13 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.

With a title like Trying to Con Myself about Buffets, Potlucks, and Holiday Dinners, it probably brings a lot to mind if you've ever been an overeater. Even though, God has blessed me by losing my weight and keeping the majority of it off, Satan still tries to work a subtle wedge in my relationship with God through my food. Even though I have a food program that works for me, I am still consumed by those old compulsions when I go to buffets, potlucks, and holiday dinners.

I still find myself rationalizing my actions, thinking that the dishes there are ones I rarely will get a chance to eat for a long time, are my favorites, look enticing, etc. Who am I trying to fool. God knows the truth, although I do a pretty good job of trying to con myself. I rarely leave these without being stuffed, and in hindsight realize that I "woulda, shoulda, coulda," something else. 

The thing is, I feel that God has used my weight loss as a means for sharing my faith with others. When I'm overeating and exhibiting compulsive behavior, I'm not being a good example of how God works in my life.  When my relationship with God isn't sloppy, I am less likely to let my food program be sloppy, and am less likely to be compulsive in these situations.

This is a big eye opener for me. Since I've been writing this blog, I've been trying not to be so sloppy, but went to a buffet recently. I found that my portion control was not aligned with what God has shown me. I ate all my "breads" for the day and then some, even though I didn't eat any sweets. It reminds me that my compulsive behavior sneaks back, in situations like this. I need to either limit how often I go to these places or really make sure I'm focused on letting God guide my food decisions which affect my relationship with God, my family, and myself. Debbie  Romans 6: 12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. 13 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.

Since I have used this Bible passage as an example of how God has positively influenced my overeating, this does not necessarily reflect the whole meaning of the verse.

Don't Let People Tell You Who You Are-

1 John 4: 19 We love Him [Jesus], because He first loved us.
Well, with this said, that means that we, with all our failings, insecurities, and many vices, such as overeating, are lovable, just the way we are. I didn't always feel that way, though. There were times in previous relationships, where the other person made me feel worthless, undesirable, and fat, whether I was actually fat or not.

For a long time, when I was told these negative things, I thought they were true. I thought I was this worthless, undesirable, and fat person, whether I was heavier or thinner.  I kept this negative mental picture of myself in my mind and in my heart and it affected all my interactions with others and, probably, my relationship with God. I ate over the pain and felt fortunate to have someone who would put up with me and all my many failings. It took a very long time for me to heal from these interactions, but God heals all wounds when we turn them over to Him, for God loves me. He gave His very life for me, so I must not be such a miserable person after all. I must be a lovable person, deserving of respect and no less.

With God's healing touch, He led me to realize not to let people tell me who I am. I am worthy of love, positive relationships with others, and to be treated with respect, and that's what God wants for me. We love Him [Jesus], because He first loved us... (just the way we are.)

Since I have used this Bible passage as an example of how God has positively influenced my overeating, this does not necessarily reflect the whole meaning of the verse.


Passing Holiday Treats Around but Skipping Me-

Ephesians 4:32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.

I remember how upset I used to get at my former in-law's home at holidays. My former mother-in-law used to pass trays of elaborate treats around to everyone in the room. She would walk up to each person asking if they would like any of the treats on the tray. When she would get to me, she would say, "Oh, you don't need any," and would walk right past me going on to the next person.

I have to tell you that I didn't appreciate being passed over. Sometimes, I would do something very counterproductive. When she would put the tray down, I would go get and eat some of the treats that I wasn't offered and then some, like I was proving something to her. Of course, I wasn't and made my situation much worse. Then, I not only had to deal with my feelings of being overlooked, but had to deal with the extra weight I gained proving my point, however weak it was.

Even as I write this, I have to remind myself of this verse and pray asking for the willingness to forgive her. Ephesians 4:32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you. Her actions hurt me, but God doesn't want me holding on to bitter feelings to others. Jesus gave His life to save me from all my sins, it's the least that I can do to forgive others. Of course, it's much easier said than done, but it lays the foundation not only for my relationship with God, but my being whole and not feeling led to eat over my hurt feelings. Debbie Ephesians 4:32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.

Since I have used this Bible passage as an example of how God has positively influenced my overeating, this does not necessarily reflect the whole meaning of the verse.


Praying for Those Who See You as the Enemy-

Luke 6: 27 But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you, 28 Bless them that curse you and pray for them which despitefully use you.

You may want to know why I'm writing about enemies in an overeating blog. Well, I found that I tend to eat about feelings and things that stress me more than the specific foods I ate. Well, people that are enemies or those who treat me like I'm the enemy are big stressors for me. It's my nature to try to please everyone, so I have tended to take it personally when someone acts like they don't like me.

There is a lady who works at the gym my grand kids go to, who scowls at me every time I go there. I realize that she doesn't really know me, but it feels kind of personal like she doesn't like me. This has been going on for over six months now. Last week when I went there, I was in prayerful contemplation about this. The thought in my mind, which is often how God works in my life, was that she doesn't even know me to dislike me, so I shouldn't take it personally. The next thought was that her reaction has more to do with how she feels about her life than anything else. Having been there myself, I could understand what that is like.

I remembered this verse and decided to pray for her. I asked God to bless her and to have her feel the healing touch of Jesus in her life. I also asked that she develop a life-long positive relationship with God. When I saw her about a half hour after this prayer, she was laughing and joking around with some co-workers. I had never seen this before and it felt like an immediate answer from God, although things don't always happen that quickly.

When I saw her this week, she was having a positive conversation with another co-worker and had been doing some exercises and seemed to be very pleased. I am so happy about this. I hate for anyone to feel so poorly about themselves or their lives that they can't even smile and all their conversations seems to be negative. What a wonderful miraculous change God brought about in this lady's life. It reminds me to be more prayerful for others who seem to be unhappy or in pain. Luke 6: 27 But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you, 28 Bless them that curse you and pray for them which despitefully use you.

Since I have used this Bible passage as an example of how God has positively influenced my overeating, this does not necessarily reflect the whole meaning of the verse.


Does My Losing the Weight Mean My Faith Is Stronger Than Yours???-

Galatians 2:16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.

Is My Faith Stronger Than Yours?? No way!!! It may sound like I'm a better Christian because God had me lose the 80 pounds and not you, but that's not the case! It's not because my faith is stronger. It's not because I'm a better Christian. It's not because I do more for the needy. It's not because I have traits similar to Mother Theresa. It's not because I do a better job at anything. It came when I asked God to take care of my overeating and my control issues.

It may be difficult to understand, since many of you are very good Christians, much more pious than I may ever be. I was a Christian for over 25 years when this happened, but I never kept any weight off for long on any of the diets I had gone on, prior to this. It took me a long time to figure out why it happened then and not before. I had prayed for God to take care of my weight a million times before. So why now?

All I can figure is that I was so low at this point, that I totally gave up. What I actually said in that prayer is, "God, I can't lose the weight and I give up! If you want me to lose the weight then You'll have to do it because I can't." It was that very day that God had me stop craving sweets, eating between meals, start feeling comfortable with a normal portion of food, and start loosing the weight.  I guess that's the first time I totally turned my control and my eating concerns truly over to God.

To be honest, I really didn't think I was going to loose weight from praying this. I was really just giving up, but I think that is the key. I think prior to that, I prayed, God, help "me" lose the weight, help "me" stop overeating, etc. I wasn't totally turning it over to God before. That's why it is vitally important for me to turn my food, my eating, and my control over to God each and every day. When I get sloppy with this for long, as you already know, my weight and my self-esteem start to suffer from this. Galatians 2:16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.

Since I have used this Bible passage as an example of how God has positively influenced my overeating, this does not necessarily reflect the whole meaning of the verse.

Taking God for Granted-

Deuteronomy 8: 16 Who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not, that He might humble thee, and that He might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end; 17 And thou say in thine heart, My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth. 18 But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is He that giveth thee power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day. 19 And it shall be, if thou do at all forget the Lord thy God, and walk after other gods, and serve them, and worship then, I testify against you this day that ye shall surely perish.

Sitting there thinking about my weight gain after I scheduled some of my blog posts, I realized that I have been taking God for granted. I know He was the one that cured my overeating, but some of my old sloppy eating patterns and unhealthy thinking have been sneaking back lately. So, what does that say to me? It tells me that if I'm sloppy with my eating program, then I'm probably sloppy about my relationship with God, as well.

I go through the motions of a relationship with God, but do I really focus on it and what God wants for me? Obviously, not as much as I should. I think that I've been in a comfortable place for so long (30+ years) and I've taken God and His gift (my weight loss) for granted.

I have gotten too much into the "I's" and "Me's". "I" can have a little bit more of this, "I" can handle it. "I" don't splurge much. Well, it's not me that caused the weight loss. It was totally God. I did nothing in and of myself, except to pray and ask God to take over my overeating and my control because I couldn't do it...and He did!

I've shared before that food had become a false god to me, because I was turning to food to deal with my feelings, concerns, and stress instead of turning to God. Well, my gaining some of the weight back (27 pounds) is a wake-up call for me. I need to be mindful of not starting to think that a sloppy eating program is something "I "can handle or the weight loss is something "I" can take credit for, letting food becoming a false god to me again.

I need to be much more focused on my relationship with God, not because I don't want to gain the weight back (which is only an outward symptom of what I'm not doing). It is because my life has been so wonderful and I have never felt a happiness like this before, that started the day I turned my food and my control over to God. I'm not willing to go back to the way things were before when I always felt terrible about myself.

Since I have used this Bible passage as an example of how God has positively influenced my overeating, this does not necessarily reflect the whole meaning of the verse.


That Picture Was Really Me and All the Pain I Suffered-

Matthew 11: 28 Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 30 For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.

As you will find out in my blog posts, I jump around a lot. I talk about things when I was heaviest, when I was losing the weight, when I had lost the weight, when I was maintaining the weight loss, and when I had gained some weight back. Of course, it's important that you know that it wasn't me that lost the weight, but God, when I turned my eating, control, and feelings over to Him. I am hopeful that it's beneficial reading a variety of post topics. I know it was helpful for me when I heard other overeaters share things that I thought I had only experienced. I never knew that anyone else had felt the same way.

One of the things I want to share today is about when all the weight had been off for some time. I would be in situations that somewhere in the topic, I would mention that I had been very overweight, at one time. I wasn't really bragging, although I might have been in the beginning-I'm not sure. It was mainly because it tied in with the conversation somehow.

Invariably, the person/people I was talking to couldn't believe that I had been that overweight. I started carrying a picture of me at my heaviest in my purse for situations like this. The people would look at it and laugh, saying that they couldn't believe that picture was really me and how much better I looked now.

They didn't mean anything by it, but their reactions really hurt me. It made me cry inside each time they would laugh at my picture. They were laughing at me, because that picture was me! It was the real me inside that has deep feelings that I don't share with others, that I wore on the outside as a cloak of pain, although I didn't know it at the time. It was how I dealt with all my feelings and concerns, rather than turning them over to God, at that time. Fortunately, God has since shown me, "Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest,"Matthew 11: 28

I rarely show my overweight picture to others any more. I only get it when I am trying to share how God worked this miracle in my life, so they can see what a change He made once I started turning to Him with all my feelings and concerns, the same way He can make a change in your life.

Since I have used this Bible passage as an example of how God has positively influenced my overeating, this does not necessarily reflect the whole meaning of the verse.

Eating a Sandwich After the Mayo Side of the Bread Was Stuck to the Floor-

Philippians 4: 6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. 7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

You may wonder why I talk more about feelings than food or eating. Well, that's a good question. It has been my experience that my overeating has stemmed more from the things I felt than what I ate. I have tended to eat when I was exceptionally happy, sad, upset, fearful, angry, afraid of the unknown, etc. It wasn't as much that any particular food was calling me as much as I turned to food instead of dealing with my feelings, some of which I hadn't even realized I had, at the time.

I remember one time, eating fried egg sandwiches. I had already eaten two and made myself another fried egg sandwich. In carrying it over to the table, the sandwich fell on the floor with the mayo side of the bread stuck to the floor. I looked at it on the floor and picked up the bread that was sticking to the floor and reassembled my fried egg sandwich and ate it. Yuck!

 I explained in the last blog post that there was a period of time before I turned my overeating to God, that God had me watching myself and the control food had on my life. It was kind of strange and kind of a miracle at the same time. It showed me that I was turning to food to deal with my feelings and stress instead of turning to God with these.

Well, God had a nudging in my heart. Why had I eaten a third sandwich, especially one that was so gross? I wasn't sure and was prayerful about it. What was in my mind, which is often how God works in my life, is that I wasn't hungry at all. The third sandwich hadn't even appealed to me, yet I still ate it and I wasn't even that fond of fried egg sandwiches. I realized that there was another reason I had eaten it. I was stressed with something at the time and hadn't even realized that I was concerned about it.

I can't say that it was only this experience, but many experiences over months, this being a more memorable one, that led me to see how my overeating was related to something more. I had just thought I was overweight because I was weak and had no control in my life. Actually, the opposite was true.

One of my biggest vices is "control." I tried to control things so much in my life that I didn't turn issues of concern over to God. I figured that I would try to remedy them and if they didn't turn out,  I would turn them over to God. That's not what God wants though. He wants us to turn to Him in all things. As the verse above says, " Be careful for nothing," I found that I'm not supposed to try to handle things by myself, first.  The verse goes on to say, "but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. 7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."

Since I have used this Bible passage as an example of how God has positively influenced my 
overeating, this does not necessarily reflect the whole meaning of the verse.



I Was Consumed With Not Feeling Good About Myself-

Have mercy upon me, O Lord, for I am in trouble: mine eye is consumed with grief, yea, my soul and my belly. Psalm 31:9

I found that when I was heaviest over 30+ years ago, I found that I was so consumed with not feeling good about myself and my body, that it clouded my relationships with my family. I would go to get dressed for church, but my clothes didn't fit well.  I found myself not really wanting to go to church where others would see me in ill-fitting clothes.

During the week, when I couldn't find much to wear, I found myself being cranky with my family who had nothing to do with the size of my clothes. I feel badly about it now, but at the time, that's where I was.

There was a period of time where God had me see how I was acting to others and how overeating food had been controlling my life, how I felt about myself, the things I was willing to do in public, and my interactions with my family. I didn't want to go out into the public unless it was absolutely necessary, which means that my children didn't get to go to some of the activities I might have done otherwise.

It seemed as if I was watching my food related actions/reactions, almost from a distance, as I was in the midst of doing them. All I can say is it was like God was having me see myself doing these things and see how they affected my family, affected me, and my relationship with God. I seemed more "I-me" focused because I was in the midst of pain (grief) and wasn't able to change my actions for long, although I went on many diets. I lost some weight on some, but never kept it off for long, which seemed to make me feel even more like a failure.

When I turned my eating and my vice of control over to God, my whole life changed. I no longer walked about in overtones of grief from day to day. God is the light of my life and saved me from myself and my weaknesses. So, although I will talk on the blog about many of the feelings I had while I was losing the weight or maintaining the weight loss, God has moved me beyond these feelings, although I may find myself slipping back into old patterns at times, especially when I get sloppy with my food program at times like now. That's why it's vitally important that I have an on-going active relationship with God.

Since I have used this Bible passage as an example of how God has positively influenced my overeating, this does not necessarily reflect the whole meaning of the verse.



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