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/

Am I Letting Myself Be Vulnerable When I Start Snacking?

Ephesians 6: 10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might. 11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

I've been very blessed. Over 30 years ago, Christ took away my compulsive overeating and has allowed for the vast majority of the excess 80 pounds to stay off all that time. This came from turning my control, food, eating, body, and stress into God's capable hands instead of turning to food every time I felt stressed, etc. This, along with many other lessons, made such a difference in my life. Christ showed me that when I turned to food to calm my aching soul, I was making it a false god. 

Jesus also showed me that when I was compulsively overeating it not only affected me, but it affected my family and my relationship with Him. During those times, I felt terrible about myself and would be cranky with those I loved and would shy away from going to church or other functions, because I didn't want others to see how fat I was. 

Christ has made such a difference in my life, not only with my faith, my weight, my health, my interactions with my family, but also with my self-esteem. So, when I find myself wanting to snack, I need to listen when Christ reminds me through this Bible verse that slipping back into out eating patterns is leaving myself vulnerable to Satan's temptations! Ephesians 6: 10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might. 11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

Because these posts are examples of how I've applied these Bible verses to my life, they don't necessarily reflect the whole meaning of the Bible verse. Debbie

Not Giving Up...

Romans 12: 12 Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer;

 There have been times when my weight doesn't seem to budge, even though I feel like I'm trying to turn things over to Christ's very capable hands. Usually when this happens, I've found that I've gotten sloppy with my reading the Bible daily and speed read through it while trying to figure out what to do for dinner that evening. Also, I tend to ramble through my prayers, at these times, saying the words, but really focusing on other issues. 

 During these periods, it can be frustrating, because I've drifted further from my Lord and want to regain that same sense of calm that He's given me in the past. Fortunately for me, Christ doesn't give up on me. He shows me that I've been sloppy with my relationship with Him, so I try to be open to all the ways that I've been slack in my focus. 

 When I listen and start paying closer attention to my daily prayers and reading in the Bible which refreshes me and make Christ the priority of my life, I start feeling more connected to my Savior. I start feeling more whole and calm inside, where there had recently been an empty feeling. This has happened so many times now that I'm embarrassed to tell you. This Bible verse reminds me that when I start getting that distant feeling, I need to start praying and ask for God's guidance. Romans 12: 12 Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer;

Because these posts are examples of how I've applied these Bible verses to my life, they don't necessarily reflect the whole meaning of the Bible verse. Debbie

Christ Doesn't Want Us Reacting in Similar Fashion

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.

In recent posts, I've talked about people calling overweight people names or chuckling behind their backs, all of which is rude and insensitive behavior. Sure, it would easy to turn around and say something equally rude back, but that's not what Christ wants of us. 

For many years before Christ healed me of my compulsive overeating, I thought I was a Christian. I loved Him and prayed daily for my family and for Jesus to help me loose weight, but that's just it. I wanted Jesus to help ME Do It! I wanted to be in control, not Jesus. He was supposed to wait in the wings and help me with the things I needed or wanted.

When I finally turned the control of my life, eating, and body over to Christ's capable hands, my compulsive overeating seemed to diminish. As Jesus allowed the weight loss, it did cross my mind to tell off all those people who had been rude and insensitive to me all those years. Then, the Lord reminded me through the following verse that He doesn't want me to respond in a similar fashion. 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.

Because these posts are examples of how I've applied these Bible verses to my life, they don't necessarily reflect the whole meaning of the Bible verse. Debbie

When People Say Mean Things About You

Matthew 5: 10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for My sake. 12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

This post isn't focusing on the real meaning of this passage, which is amazing unto itself. It's being used to address some of the mean things that people say to or about people that are overweight. Things like: Sure she's got big bones!, She should just push herself away from the table, I'd be ashamed! Doesn't she even look in a mirror?, Like she really just eats salads for lunch. We know what she does when no one's looking, and the list could go on and on and on...

Sometimes people don't realize these things are so hurtful, but they are. Sure, we pretend we don't hear them or laugh it off with everyone else, but they hurt to the core, but Christ doesn't want us hurt. He wants to heal us!

Jesus loved me when I was over 80 pounds heavier, but I didn't truly realize it, because I didn't love myself. He doesn't look on us like the people who make crude and rude remarks thinking they're funny. He loves us as we are, fat and all. He wants us whole and the only way we can do that is to turn to Jesus in times of stress, joy, boredom, etc. instead of turning to food, which became a false god to me, although I didn't realize it. I had been turning to food to console me instead of turning to Christ. He showed me that He can heal my aching soul and when He did that, the desire to turn to food diminished. Sure, during my weak times, Satan tries to sneak up and tempt me with turning back to compulsive overeating in times of stress, joy, boredom, etc., but fortunately for me, Christ reminds me of the importance of refocusing on Him, who heals my aching soul. 

Because these posts are examples of how I've applied these Bible verses to my life, they don't necessarily reflect the whole meaning of the Bible verse. Debbie

Valentines Day...Oh, My!

John 14: 27 Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

I picked this verse, because it said to not let your heart be troubled, which seemed a good tie-in for Valentines Day, only I'm going to write from a different perspective.  Yes, I'm married, now, so there's someone in my life, but I remember....

.... I remember feeling worthless and eating, because I didn't have someone in my life. It was like my not having an on-going relationship told me that I was unlovable, but that wasn't true. Valentines Day made me feel like a loser, because I had no date, no one to care for me, no one to buy me a box of candy hearts, but that wasn't true, either!

I had been in an unhealthy relationship, years ago, but it's not worth lowering our standards to accept and unhealthy relationship just to have someone there to prove we aren't a loser. Actually, you lose out when you have to live in an unhealthy relationship day after day, year after year! My life totally changed when Christ started showing me how I was letting food numb me from the pain of that unhealthy relationship. It took time, but Christ showed me that I was lovable and having someone who didn't respect me wasn't what He wanted for me either. After much growth through listening to the lessons Christ had for me, I realized that it wasn't worth it to stay in an unhealthy relationship. I was afraid that I would be so lonely, but I wasn't. Christ comforted me and helped me realize that I deserved only healthy relationships. I wasn't in a hurry to jump into another unhealthy relationship, and eventually Christ led me to someone who respected me and my faith. It was truly worth the wait!

Because these posts are examples of how I've applied these Bible verses to my life, they don't necessarily reflect the whole meaning of the Bible verse. Debbie

The Impact of Snide Remarks

Romans 12: 20 Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. 21 Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.

This isn't all of the passage, nor do I totally understand the portion about heaping coals of fire on his head, but want to focus on if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink. Sometimes I'm with others who will make snide remarks about people they see who are overweight. The not so funny thing is, that the people who make these comments are often not thin, themselves.

 I remember when I was extremely overweight and would hear others giggle or whisper when I would walk by. I felt guilty for being overweight, almost like I should apologize to others for being in their line of vision. Those comments and remarks hurt my self-esteem, or at least, what existed of it, and I felt terrible about myself.

 In this case, my enemy was the hunger, or at least, I thought it was. I would feed it, but felt so guilty for doing so that I would cram much more food down me to punish myself for being such a lousy person. It wasn't until Christ showed me that He could heal that hunger. He did that the day I gave up and told God that if He ever wanted me to be thin, He'd have to take care of it, because I couldn't. I was so amazed that He took that incessant hunger away from me. I found that the more I feed my soul by turning to Christ with my problems instead of turning to food, the hunger subsided and I no longer felt like a worthless person who should apologize for being in the line of vision of others. Christ made me whole and He feeds the hunger in my soul as I read the Bible daily and turn to Him in prayer frequently during the day. If Christ could heal the hunger of the enemy within me, He can most certainly do it for you too, if you ask Him!
Because these posts are examples of how I've applied these Bible verses to my life, they don't necessarily reflect the whole meaning of the Bible verse. Debbie

Being Hungry More Often These Days

John 6: 33 For the bread of God is He which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world. 34 Then said they unto Him, Lord, evermore give us this bread. 35 And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to Me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on Me shall never thirst. 

I realized that I've been hungry lots more frequently than I used to. Trying to be prayerful about this, I realized that I must be getting sloppy with my relationship with Christ. Almost anytime my normal eating doesn't seem to be enough to sustain me, it usually means that I've gotten lax in my relationship with Christ. 

 Knowing this, I have to be prayerful for Jesus to show me what I need to do. He lets me know that I've been letting things and issues become more important, instead of turning them over into Christ's very capable hands. When I'm trying to control these issues, I'm not letting God do it. I hate it when I revert back to old ways! I should know better after all this time!

 Fortunately for me, Christ never says, "I allowed Debbie to lose over 80 pounds and keep the vast majority of it off for over 30 years. She isn't making me the priority she should, I'm going to take that miracle away from her, because she's undeserving of it!"

 Actually, I am undeserving of the miracle that Christ has done for me with giving His life on the cross for my sins, and His allowing the weight loss, and the peace He gives me when I turn to Him with my problems and concerns. Fortunately for me, He's also very forgiving if I ask Him and He leads me down the paths to know His will for me and He refocuses me. I'm so very blessed!

Because these posts are examples of how I've applied these Bible verses to my life, they don't necessarily reflect the whole meaning of the Bible verse. Debbie

Trying to Maintain a Balance, but Falling Short

1 Timothy 6: 17 Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy; 18 That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate; 19Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.

It was a holiday and I had extra time. The main thing I wanted to do is spend some time on the blogs that I feel led to write for Christ. He's done so much for me over the years, like allowing the loss of over 80 pounds of weight and keeping the vast majority of it off for over 30 years, giving me self-respect and self-esteem, when it had been near non-existent at one time, giving me a peace knowing that my Lord will be with me through the good times and the bad...and the list could go on and on and on! I've been so very blessed!

In addition to wanting to work on the blogs, so that I don't get behind again, I realized that there were other things I also needed or wanted to do. I wanted to go through my closet and drawers and weed through things to donate that I was no longer using or rarely used. I wanted to do some craft projects. Our Senior Center makes hats for Cancer patients. I wanted to clean out our room and also rearrange the photograph albums. In addition to this, I wanted to see a friend in the hospital.

Well, after three days, I had cleaned my room, including the closet and drawers and bathrooms. I had gone to the hospital and had done some craft projects, but felt torn because I hadn't found time to work on the blogs, the one thing that I can do for God. Did I make God my priority? NO! I was doing other things for other people, which are nice to maintain balance, but what good is it if I fall short of being there for God???

Jesus Christ didn't say, "Oh, I don't think I want to give my life on the cross, because my room and bathroom aren't cleaned, besides I have these other projects I want to do for the sick and needy, right now." He stopped whatever He was doing and gave His life for us, whether it was convenient timing or not. He gave His life to save us from our sinful and worldly ways. The thing is, I realize that I can do lots of nice sounding things, but without Christ in my life, they are for useless! Christ should be my very first priority in life, instead of putting Him on the back burner for when I have some spare time to do what He wants of me!

Because these posts are examples of how I've applied these Bible verses to my life, they don't necessarily reflect the whole meaning of the Bible verse. Debbie
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)

Links to Other Blogs I Felt Led to Create Below: