My Shortcomings are Many!

 The chief cup-bearer said to Pharaoh, "I'm reminded of my shortcomings." Genesis 41:9 NIV Bible

I have soooo many shortcomings, it would be difficult to mention even half of them! Many of them had to do with being a compulsive overeater for so many years, and I turned to food to comfort me in times of stress, boredom, anxiety, etc. The thing is, when I turned my food, my body, my stress, and my eating over to the Lord God's very capable hands, everything started to change. I no longer continually craved sweets and excessive amounts of food. The Lord had taken those off my plate, pun intended, because when the Lord God took those cravings away from me, those foods were no longer on my plate. Actually, I never really thought of it that way before!

I can't help but think that many people miss out of some of the earlier posts I wrote that can be found on links at my Christian Overeaters Past and Present Support blog site: https://christianovereaterssupport.blogspot.com/ These earlier blog posts tell what it was like along the way, as the Lord allowed me the 80+ pound weight loss. It tells about how I felt about myself and how I felt about my body, during the weight loss. I think these posts might be very beneficial for some.

The thing is, despite all my many shortcomings, the Lord God loves me just the way I am. He loved me when I was extremely overweight. He loved me when I was moderately overweight. He Loved me when I was at my goal weight. He will continue to love me no mater what weight I'm at in the future. I used to worry about what other people thought about me being so heavy, but I didn't realize those things don't really matter so much. With knowing the Lord loves me whatever weight I am, helped me to not worry so much about superficial things like that, and focus on being the Christian He wants me to be! The thing is, the Lord God loves you whatever weight you are, and no matter how many shortcoming you may have, as well!

Obsessing Over Food Has Never Been Beneficial for Me

[Don't] be carried [away] with [diverse, a.k.a. various,] & strange doctrines, [a.k.a. teachings.] For it's a good thing that the heart [is] established with grace, not with meats, [a.k.a. foods,] which haven't [benefited those who] have been [preoccupied with them.] Hebrews 13:9 KJV Bible [paraphrased] 

Whenever I read this passage, it's like looking in a mirror and seeing my reflection. It's not always easy recognizing that we've become preoccupied by foods. I used to plan early in the day, if not the day before, what I was going to eat, eagerly looking forward to that time. This is not the pre-planning that's suggested to balance out your meals, making sure you have the correct amount of healthy non-fattening foods to eat. 

I was soooo obsessed over foods, until I finally gave up one day and told the Lord God, that if He ever wanted me to be thin, He'd have to do it, because I couldn't. I had tried and tried so many different diets, and even retried many of them, but nothing worked. I sometimes lost a few pounds, only to gain back even more than I started with.

On that day that I turned over my control over my food, body, eating, and stress, without even realizing I was doing it, everything changed. Actually, it didn't give up and turn everything over to the Lord, because I expected a change. I just wanted to stop the struggle with trying to loose weight and the self-loathing that came from not being able to do so! Well, that very same day, the Lord took away the urge to eat large portions of foods, especially those that weren't healthy for me. It was amazing! The Lord God has blessed me with an 80+ pound weight loss, and He has allowed it to stay off for over 40 years. This doesn't mean that I don't ever slip back into old patterns, but when I go back to turning all my food, body, eating, and stress over to the Lord's very capable hands every time I eat a meal, or I'm tempted to eat something I shouldn't, He's in control, every time I relinquish my control to not do what isn't beneficial for me!

What About Honest Scales?

Honest scales and balances belong to the Lord; all weights in the bag are of His making. Proverbs 16:11 NIV Bible

Really, in the Bible this Bible Passages doesn't have to do so much with the scales that we weigh ourselves on, but it has to do with the merchants who would cheat the buyer by using unfair scales and weights. The thing is, this relates to me as an Christian  Overeater!

There are times that I remember sleecing my way through a pie, trying to make my overeating undiscovered by my family. I called it a sleece, because that was my version of an extra small slice of pie. The thing is, that would only whet my appetite and I would have sleece after sleece until a third of the pie was gone. Most definitely my family wouldn't have missed a third of a pie that I had just made!!!! Who was I trying to fool???

It wasn't until I prayed that day, telling the Lord God that if He ever wanted me thin, He's have to do it, because I couldn't, and I was giving up! I never in a million years thought that the very same day, the Lord God would turn my whole life upside down! And He took away my urge to eat large amounts of food, and to hide it from others. That doesn't mean that I don't ever start to backslide, but fortunately for me, the Lord has what I'm doing on my heart, and once I put my food, my stress, and my eating into His very capable hands, He puts me back on track!