tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-39067210601100100602024-03-17T10:36:48.916-05:00Christian Overeaters Past and Present BlogChrist Healed Me of Compulsive Overeating 30+ Years Ago and Continues to Heal Me When I'm Tempted to Back Slide. Posts on Thursday a.m.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger945125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-37052549111310948552024-03-14T03:00:00.045-05:002024-03-14T03:00:00.134-05:00Am I Helping Others?<p> <span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b><i>Joanna, the wife of Chuza, the manager of Herod's household, Susanna, and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means. Luke 8:3 NIV Bible</i></b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>I admire those people who are so dedicated to risk their lives to help others in war-torn areas, or places with famines, and inadequate water, food, and shelter. Sure, it's easy to contribute to these worthwhile causes every-now- and-then, but what do I do? Am I helping others?</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>I go through the motions, but when I think about these women, who supported those early believers in Christ, it makes me realize how they must have lived in fear of being caught, risking their lives, to allow others to learn of the salvation that they might receive through faith in Jesus Christ.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>The other portion of this passage I'm thinking about, is that they supported them out of their own means, which means that they dipped down into what was needed financially for their daily needs. Again, it's easy for me to pack a bag or two of canned goods, but it never brings me to the point, of making it where we might not be able to get by financially. I am so blessed, but so were these women. They risked everything to share their faith, but I risk so very little. I'm ashamed to say that I haven't been the Christian these women have been! This is lots for me to definitely be prayerful about!</b></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-61756950563670689912024-03-07T03:00:00.037-06:002024-03-07T03:00:00.153-06:00Lord, Please Protect Me from Myself!<p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b><i>Do not withhold Your mercy from me, Lord; may Your love and faithfulness always protect me. Psalm 40:11 NIV Bible</i></b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Sure, it's easy for me to say to the Lord, protect me from everything that might be a temptation to me. But what really is needed, is that I ask the Lord for protection from Myself. I get arrogant, without even realizing it, thinking that I can maintain my weight loss, faith, and interactions with others.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>When I get in this complacent mode, I am tripping my own-self up! At that point, I'm the one who is drawing close to crossing the line of vanity, self-absorption, and sinful lusts. I need the Lord, to protect me from myself! </b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Whenever, I realize I'm starting to slip down a slippery slope, the good Lord, is always there with open arms to welcome me, and refocus me with the needed mind-set, focused on Him, and not on myself. Oh Lord, please give me a humble spirit, so I don't lose my way. Keep me focused on Your will and not mine! Amen.</b></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-2810115996884568792024-02-29T03:00:00.032-06:002024-02-29T03:00:00.135-06:00Am I an Example of My Faith?<p> <span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>But someone will say, "You have faith; I have deeds." Show me your faith without deeds & I will show you my faith by my deeds." James 2:18 NIV Bible</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>So, this lets me think deeper into this passage, reflecting on what the Lord has for me to learn through this post. Do I truly show my faith in the Lord God, through my deeds?</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>My first instinct is to say, "No way! I am a sinful human being, and I can never come closing to being the example I should be of the positive impact the Lord has had on my life!" Actually, quite the opposite is true! I think that the Lord, instead of using me as a stunning example of how I should be as a Christian, He utilizes some of my many, many flaws, to show how He loves me despite all of them. </b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>He loves me whether I'm thin, or I'm heavy. He loves me whether I share my faith, or I withdraw into a corner and hide from others. The Lord God loves me unconditionally. The thing is, His love for me, despite my many flaws, moves me to attempt to be a better example for others! Of course, I can't totally be that example, but hopefully from sharing how the Lord God opens His arms wide to me, welcoming me back, no matter whether I've gone on an overeating binge, or I've been impatient or intolerant of others, demonstrates how amazingly wonderful and forgiving the Lord God is!!!</b></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-14734439834519295512024-02-22T03:00:00.029-06:002024-02-22T03:00:00.144-06:00What Am I Up To?<p> <span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Now I rejoice in what I am suffering for you & I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ's afflictions, for the sake of His body, which is the church. Colossians 1:24 NIV Bible</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>The Apostle Paul suffered through so much, in order to be able to share faith in Jesus Christ, the Risen Savior, with others. What am I up to? Actually, that's a good question, because I'm not sure which was the Lord God is leading me on this one!</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>I think it may be that I get complacent and go through my normal routine, without giving specific focus on what the Lord God wants me to be doing. I do what's comfortable and don't push myself beyond my comfort zone. Fortunately for me, Jesus Christ didn't do the same thing!</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>He didn't say, They are going to mock Me, whip Me, and even spit on Me, I'm not so sure that Debbie, going through her routine activities, as if they are on My behalf, is really worth all that pain and effort! He loves me as I am, heavy, thin, complacent & devoted, but I think that through this post, He's guiding me to be much more devoted and focused on what He wants me to do on His behalf!</b></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-88658853576339451752024-02-16T03:00:00.030-06:002024-02-16T03:00:00.163-06:00What Am I Hiding From?<p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b><i>Rescue me from my enemies, Lord, for I hide myself in You. Psalm 143:9</i></b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>What am I hiding from? Is it people who look down on me, because I'm not stick skinny, I'm not wealthy and drive an expensive car? Is it those who don't like the way I share my faith, because they feel differently? Is it really that I'm hiding from my sinful human nature?</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>You know me how I am Lord! You know my faults and my many insecurities! I can hide those faults from others, but I can't hide those faults from You, O Lord. What's remarkable, is that You still love me anyway, despite my many faults and insecurities. </b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Do I have to look a certain way or have a certain number in my bank account? Do I have to be on every church committee that exists? No. You love me as I am! Sometimes, I'm my own worst enemy, so I pray, </b></span><b style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: large;"><i>Rescue me from my enemies, Lord, for I hide myself in You. </i></b></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-59667438225277176332024-02-11T18:15:00.001-06:002024-02-11T18:15:02.539-06:00I Am With You<p><i> <span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>I am the Lord, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt, so you will no longer be slaves to the Egyptians. I broke the bars of your yoke and enabled you to walk with heads held high. Leviticus 26:13 NIV Bible</b></span></i></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>I just walked by the TV on the way to put this belated post on the blog. I heard the sports hero who was being interviewed state that he felt so alone. We have all felt that way one time or another, whether for different skin colors, weight, income levels, ethnicity, politics, etc. Fortunately, the Lord God said, I Am with You.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>So, that means that whatever situation we come across where we feel less than the wonderful person the Lord God created us to be, we know within us that the Lord God said, I Am with You. With you through thick and thin, no pun intended. </b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>It's amazing with all the Lord God has done for us, it's so easy to overlook this, when others put us down, or look down their noses at us. But the Lord God wants all of us to walk with our heads held high through faith in Him.</b></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-14351734785461974902024-02-01T03:00:00.052-06:002024-02-01T03:00:00.137-06:00Who Am I Trying to Impress?<p><i> </i><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b><i>Those <u>who want to impress people by means of the flesh</u> are trying to compel you to be circumcised. The only reason they do this is to avoid being persecuted for the cross of Christ. </i>Galatians 6:12 NIV Bible</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Well, this Bible verse doesn't have much to do with this post, but the underlined portion does. When I was younger, I knew of someone young, who gave all of a family member's jewelry away. As I got older, I realized that person did this, because she didn't feel good about herself and wanted to buy friends. In fact, I might not have been very understanding that she would do this.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Now, many years later, I found that when I had a disagreement with someone, I, too, was trying to think of ways to butter up that person, so the discord would disappear, and we'd be friendly again. It was after lots of prayerful contemplation, I was doing the exact same thing as that young girl, I didn't understand.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>On thinking about this, I've tried to compliment people, or do favors for them, trying to get in their good graces. When I think about it, I'm not so different from that girl! I remember that I prayed for God to 'help me' loose the weigh, thinking that I would have lots of friends, if I were thinner. It didn't happen until many years later, when I put my food, eating, stress, etc. into the Lord God's capable hands, that He allowed my weight loss of 80+ pounds and to keep the vast majority of it off for over 30 years. I think it was probably the first time that I turned the total control over to the Lord God, instead of asking Him to 'help me' loose the weight. </b></span></p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-19130934559735201602024-01-25T03:00:00.039-06:002024-01-25T03:00:00.144-06:00It's Not Too Hard for the Lord!<p><i> </i><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b><i>"Is anything too hard for the Lord? I will return to you at the appointed time, next year and Sarah will have a son." Genesis 18:<span>14 NIV Bible</span></i></b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b><span>This post has nothing to do with having children. It has to do with nothing being too difficult for the Lord God! It has to do that for many, many years, I would pray and ask the Lord God to help "me" loose all my extra weight. </span></b></span><b style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: large;">It wasn't until I had prayed this after many years of dieting, to no avail, loosing a little, but gaining more back, and I said, "Lord, I give up! I can't do it and if You want me to loose weight, You'll have to do it Yourself, because I can't!"</b></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b><span>Actually, I wasn't expecting anything to happen from this prayer, that ended up turning my whole life around! For it was that very same day, that the Lord God took away the urge to eat sweets, and excessive amounts of food, as if to fill in the hole of my sagging self-esteem. I had been turning to food all those years for comfort, and it became a false god, instead of turning to the Lord God! He allowed the loss of over 80 pounds and for the vast majority of that weight to stay off for over 30 years. </span></b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b><span>I think it's because I always wanted God to help "me," instead of giving up control and turning it over to His very capable hands. I think it's the first time I let Him be in control, in my life, instead of me wanting to be in control. Nothing is too difficult for the Lord!</span></b></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-7704137933647896742024-01-18T03:00:00.038-06:002024-01-18T03:00:00.152-06:00Over Committed!<p> <span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b><i>The next day, Moses said to the people, "You have committed a great sin. But now I will go up to the Lord; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin." Exodus 32:30 NIV Bible</i></b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Although my post doesn't exactly relate to this particular Bible passage, it does relate to my situation in a more personal way. It's about how I allow myself to become over committed, which ends up being a sin, that I do this!</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>I have certain projects the Lord God has on my heart to do for Him, like this blog, to show others how He works in our lives, despite our sinful ways, and low self-esteem. But I get too busy by taking on too many other commitments, that I fall behind in doing what the Lord wants of me. </b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>I checked on this blog and my last post went out yesterday, and there were no others scheduled ahead to post. There were times it crossed my mind to schedule some posts for it ahead, but I just kept kicking the can down the road. Sometimes, I find it easier to say, "Yes," to other people and put Christ on the back burner for another time. It's a real-eye opener for me and it makes me think that when it came time for Jesus Christ to give His live for our sins, although He had never sinned, He didn't kick the can down the road and say, "I'll do it later, when I have more time." Fortunately, the Lord has a BIG heart and is very forgiving, even of my MANY sinful actions and brings me back to refocus on Him and His love for me! He love you too, and will do the same for you, as well, if you only let Him!</b></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-38277945694609750622024-01-11T03:00:00.021-06:002024-01-11T03:00:00.139-06:00Lord, Don't Let Me Slip Through Your Fingers!<p><i> <span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>The law of their God is in their hearts; [so] their feet don't slip. Psalm 37:31 NIV Bible</b></span></i></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Since I wrote the previous post about trying to play God, I've had a lot of soul searching to do. I guess I become complacent and don't realize what my actions are really saying to the Lord. It's kind of ironic, since I have a blog titled, What Do Your Actions Say to Jesus? </b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Anyway, today I was praying, Lord, don't let me slip through Your fingers! I got to thinking about this. It's just like when I ate whatever I wanted, regardless that I knew how it affected my body, my weight, my moods, my self-esteem, and my family, but I would pray, God, please help me loose weight!</b></span></p><p><b style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: large;">It's similar in both prayers, that I wanted to do whatever I wanted, but I put the burden on the Lord God, and He was supposed to make sure things turned out the way that I preferred. The Lord isn't Who would be letting me slip through His fingers! It's me and my arrogant, self-righteous attitude, thinking I know what's best, and I leave the Lord God to pick up the pieces. Christ has many lessons for me through all of this!!!! </b></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-87247192922602456632024-01-04T03:00:00.035-06:002024-01-04T03:00:00.138-06:00Instead of My Playing God<p><i> <span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>And and the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds, in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:7 NIV Bible</b></span></i></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>It wasn't very long ago that I was praying about a situation. In my prayer I asked for God's peace that passes all understanding, so I put my concerns into His very capable hands, instead of my playing God.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>It wasn't until that time, that I realized that I go through the motions of trying to play God, without even realizing it! I was asking God to have "this and that" happen in a specific way I desired. </b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Who did I think I was kidding? God knows what is best in every situation. I was trying to control the situation and asking Him to only have the outcome I desired. I really had my eyes opened up! The thing I'm concerned about, is that I will become complacent and forget this insight the Lord gave me related to my interactions with Him! I pray He never tires of reminding me, and bringing me back into focus again the same way He reminds me when I start returning to food for comfort, rather than turning to my Lord and Savior in matters of stress, etc.</b></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-49278647431576184022023-12-28T03:00:00.035-06:002023-12-28T03:00:00.130-06:00Second-Hand Fear<p> <span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b><i>Fear and trembling seized me and made all my bones shake. Job 4:14 NIV Bible</i></b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>It was the night after we had gone to visit a family member who was taken to the ER. I had been so afraid that person might not make it, that all I wanted to do was stress eat. Fortunately, God talked me out of it, but I still bought the bag of unsalted peanuts in the shell.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>It turned out that the family member that we had gone to visit was O.K., but I still had the whole bag of unsalted peanuts that I bought the night before. I had been so stressed over the ER situation, all I had wanted to do was eat to calm my nerves! The funny thing is, I still felt something like residual fear over the situation the night afterwards and I still wanted to eat the bag of peanuts.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Somehow, I talked myself into thinking it would be alright to eat it, even though the Lord had it on my heart the night before not to do so. I am to turn to the Lord God for comfort and not food, which becomes a false god in situations like that. But did I listen that night? No, I ate the whole bag of peanuts, somehow feeling that I deserved it after all the stress that I went through the previous night. What a silly thing to do! I was deluding myself into thinking that second-hand fear justified eating an amount that was unhealthy for my body. Fortunately, the Lord God welcomes me back, when I stumble, but I shouldn't have pushed my relationship with Him to the limits. I'm so sorry about doing that!</b></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-2329582577056900602023-12-21T03:00:00.031-06:002023-12-21T03:00:00.171-06:00I Was Caught Between Sanity and Insanity!<p><i> <span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Do not be afraid of them; the Lord your God , Himself will fight for you. Deuteronomy 3:22 NIV Bible</b></span></i></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Recently, I visited a family member who got sick and was taken to the ER. The situation was so scary, I was afraid that person might not make it! It was about dinner time and we stopped by a local grocery store to get something to eat. My fear was so strong that my stomach was tied up in knots!</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>I was caught between sanity and insanity. One part of me really wanted to eat the whole bag of unsalted peanuts in a shell that I put in my cart. The other part of me, knew I picked it up, because of how afraid I was about the health of that family member. The sane part of me got some yogurt and oatmeal.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>I had a war going on inside of me! I prayed and God let me know I shouldn't eat the nuts to relieve the stress. I had Him to turn to instead of food for comfort. Fortunately, I listened to the Lord God and had oatmeal and yogurt for dinner that night that felt much more soothing on my stomach. The Lord shows me what's good and not good for me, if I'd only ask Him.</b></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-16626549103119407152023-12-14T03:00:00.032-06:002023-12-14T03:00:00.133-06:00Should I Have All the Food I Want?<p> <span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Your threshing will continue until grape harvest, and the grape harvest will continue until planting, and you will eat all the food you want and live in safety in your land. Leviticus 26.5 NIV Bible</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>So much of my life, including now, thoughts of food will creep in and try to kidnap me to days long ago, where my every waking thought revolved around food, what to eat, what not to eat, what I wanted to weigh, etc. I let food and my weight control my life. I ate when I was hungry, when I was bored and thought I was hungry, and when I was worried and felt like I was starved.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>The Lord God showed me many years ago, that when I'm turning to food for comfort, it then, becomes a false god to me. I was turning to it, rather than putting these things in Christ's very capable hands. Once I did, food, the numbers on the scale, and all my concerns, no longer felt so overwhelming to me. I had this sense of calm, because the Lord had lifted all of these concerns off my shoulders.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>It doesn't mean that I never had things that stressed or worried me. It doesn't mean that the scale numbers were always what I desired, it's more that I desired to be in an active relationship with Christ, and everything else fell in place. When Jesus, my Savior is first and foremost, these other things aren't worrisome, because I feel the Lord right beside me through thick and thin. </b></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-80795487722693140282023-12-07T03:00:00.054-06:002023-12-07T03:00:00.142-06:00I Should have been Full, but Still Wanted More!<p> <span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>My mouth is filled with Your praise, declaring Your splendor all day long. Psalm 71:8 NIV Bible</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>I had a nice lunch out with a friend, but I still wanted more. When I should have felt full and satisfied, I wanted something sweet to eat. I'm hypoglycemic and I don't handle sugar well, so I try to stay away from sweets, other than fresh or frozen fruits. I can't say that I never eat sweets, but I have to make sure it's worth it, and that I consider it an 8, 9, or 10.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Well, we were at a Mediterranean Buffet and they had Baklava, rice pudding, and many other yummy, tempting things. I had been to this restaurant several times before. I had chosen both Baklava and the rice pudding, after my more than filling meal. </b></span><b style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: large;">I had a relative whose hypoglycemia turned to diabetes after eating too many sweets. So, a</b><b style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: large;">fter a previous visit, I had decided that I should choose between either Baklava or rice pudding but not both. </b></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Although Baklava is a 10 to me, I chose to get rice pudding, because it reminds me of when my mother used to make rice pudding and other puddings when I was younger. That decision in itself, wasn't so bad, but it was when I heaped it up on my plate, that should have caused me to rethink this! Although, I try to praise the Lord for all the wonderful things He's done for me, I found myself being greedy and focusing on food instead. I'm not proud of this, but fortunately for me, the Lord is very willing to refocus me, when I ask Him, and He can do this for you, if you truly ask Him. </b></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-82138955336100014612023-11-30T03:00:00.060-06:002023-11-30T03:00:00.152-06:00I Got the Big Potato! <p> <span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Do not have two differing measures in your house-one large, one small. Deuteronomy 25:14 NIV Bible</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>My husband and I recently got to-go meals from a place that has large servings. The plan was that we would each get a meal we liked and divide it in half. We would each one half of ours that night, and the other half of the dinner the next night. </b></span><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Since I had gotten out the knife to cut my meal in half, I asked my husband if he'd like me to cut his meal in half, while I was at it, and he did. </b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>I opened the top of both meals and was delighted to see what a large baked potato they had given me in my meal. I noticed that the baked potato in my husband's meal was a normal sized baked potato. </b></span><b style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: large;">All of sudden, it was like I had hit the jackpot. I had gotten the big potato! For a split second, it crossed my mind to let my husband have the bigger baked potato, and I'd take the smaller one. But just as quickly, I thought of 30 reasons why I should leave it as it was! </b></p><p><b style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: large;">In that brief amount of time, food had become a false god to me again, where it became too important in my life. The Lord showed me many years ago, when food becomes too important, when I'm focused on it, instead of Him, I've lost my focus. Although there was nothing wrong with having or eating the larger potato, but it became too important to me. I find when I'm truly focused on my relationship with Christ, eating becomes something I do to fuel my body. This just shows me, I need to be prayerful about turning my food, my eating, my stress, and my body over into Christ's very capable hands!</b></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-69660750917698167862023-11-23T03:00:00.042-06:002023-11-23T03:00:00.144-06:00What Seemed Like a Good Deal, May Have Come at Too High a Price!<p> <span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Sell us food to eat and water to drink for their price in silver. Only let us pass through on foot- Deuteronomy 2:28 NIV Bible</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>A younger relative wanted to take me to the newest, biggest grocery store that had recently opened up in our area. When I went in, a displace for discounted walnuts caught my eye. One pound of walnuts sold for $6.95 cents. I decided that I was going to buy and freeze two bags of walnuts. My family member showed me the coupon above it that said that if I bought $15 of their store brand nuts, I could get an additional $3.00 off the price.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>I didn't want to buy a third bag of walnuts, because that would mean I was paying almost $21 to get $3.00 off. So, as I walked through the rows, I noticed a display of peanuts in the shell for $1.95. I immediately realized, that if I bought a bag of roasted peanuts without salt, that I prefer for health reasons, I could use the $3.00 coupon and get all of it for a little more than the required coupon price. </b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>I decided that since I got this wonderful deal, I would treat myself to some peanuts that evening. Although I had a filling dinner, I poured out a heaping bowl of peanuts in the shell to enjoy to celebrate getting this good deal. The thing is, this whole experience brought me back to a point in my life, where food became a false god. I turned to food when I was stressed, worried, or glad, instead of turning to my Lord and Savior. I realized that I was doing the same thing again, without even realizing it! This good deal came at too high a price!</b></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-77326191275364815232023-11-16T03:00:00.033-06:002023-11-16T03:00:00.155-06:00The Pant Legs on My PJ's Seemed Too Tight<p> <span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Each is so close to the next, that no air can pass between. Job 41:16 NIV Bible</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Although this may seem like a strange Bible Passage to include, it's exactly how my P.J. pant legs felt. This tells me significant things, because since the Lord allowed the loss of 80+ pounds over 30 years ago, I rarely get on a scale. The scale had sort of become a false god in my life. I turned to the scale to tell me if I was good, or if I was bad, like my weight increases or decreases conveyed what type of person I was. I found out that I should have turned to the Lord, God with these concerns, instead of my scale.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>So, Christ guides me by things like my pant legs being too tight. This in turn, lets me know that I have not only not been following what the Lord has shown me is good and healthy for my body, but my relationship with my Savior has gotten off keel.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Of all the things, being out of alignment with my relationship with Jesus, is the absolute worst thing, far worse than any weight I may have gained back. It lets me know that I need to apologize for becoming complacent in my relationship with my Savior, and ignored what He showed me about how I had been eating and how I've neglected focusing on Him. Fortunately, when I realize how off-track I've been, the Lord always gladly welcomes me back!</b></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-8347586304038766242023-11-09T11:00:00.004-06:002023-11-09T11:00:37.044-06:00I Was Feeling Sad<p> <span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Frustration is better than laughter for the heart, because a sad face is good for the heart. Ecclesiastes 7:3 NIV Bible</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>I was feeling sad and sorry for myself, every time I've been sitting at my computer, taking off the videos that I had put on the Christian Overeaters Past and Present Blog over the years. One reason it was tedious, because I had 927 posts over the years, and the vast majority of these posts had weight loss videos at the bottom of the posts, and it was time consuming.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>The main reason I was feeling sad, is these videos seemed like they were a piece of me, that I was deleting. I would spend lots of time selecting what I thought were potentially empowering videos for viewers. </b></span><b style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: large;">But after finding this Bible verse, I'm not feeling so sad about it. I was trying to think what the Lord might be showing me through all of this. For one thing, I need to be more humble and not think highly of myself, because these didn't define me as a child of God. </b></p><p><b style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: large;">Too many of the videos were causing me to get indexing notices for those pages, where the videos were no longer active on YouTube. The upside of all of this, is by removing all the videos, when they become no longer active, it won't hinder blog viewers from getting the message of how the Lord God, has worked miracles in my life, far beyond any weight loss, and He can in yours. as well.</b></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-33025293262073181672023-11-02T03:00:00.038-05:002023-11-02T03:00:00.143-05:00Am I Really Honest with Myself?<p> <span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Use honest scales and honest weights, and honest ephah and an honest hin. I am the Lord your God, Who brought you out of Egypt. Leviticus 19:36 NIV</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>This Bible passages is primarily talking about using honest, fair measurements when selling things to people, so they don't take advantage of them. But, it still relates to me, in that, when I'm taking portions of food, I know what an honest portion size is, but do I ignore that information?</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Am I pleasantly oblivious when I heaping up my plate, and not being honest with myself? Well, the truth be told, I've done this far too many times, and I'm not proud of it. when I'm not being honest with myself, I'm also not being honest with Christ, my Lord and Savior. He loves me just the way I am, heavy or thin, but He knows that food, the thoughts of food and weight loss, became a false god in my life.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>I turned to food for comfort, especially when stressed, instead of putting these issues into Christ's very capable hands! Once I started putting my life, my food, my stress, and eating into His hands, my whole life, and my focus on excessive amounts of food changed! Every time, I put invisible blinders on when I'm heaping on food, without taking honest portions, I allowing that food to work a wedge in my relationship with Christ and with myself and my family. I don't want to go slip-sliding back into old eating patterns. When this starts happening in my life, the Lord is very gracious about allowing me to return to Him, and He reminds me when I start to stray again!</b></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-83320578918514921402023-10-26T03:00:00.023-05:002023-10-26T03:00:00.153-05:00What's Confidence Got to Do With It?<p> <span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>So do not throw away your confidence, it will be richly rewarded. Hebrews 10:35 NIV</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Actually, after I typed the title of this blog post, it reminded me of the late Tina Turner's song, What's Love Got to Do With It? But confidence has a lot to do with the 80+ pound weight loss that Christ did in my life, and He allowed me to keep the vast majority of it off for over 30 years.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>You would think it might be that I'm supposed to have confidence in myself, but that's far from what this is about. In fact, it's quite the opposite. After going on what seems like 30 million different diet plans, and some of them several different times, I thought that if I went on my "Good Diet," I could loose all my weight. Now, that's confidence in myself. What happened is, I lost a few pound here and there, but I would always gain back far more weight than I ever lost.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>It wasn't until I gave up and put my food, eating, and stress, into Christ's very capable hands, the weight started coming off after all those many years! I had told God, "I can't do it. If You ever want me to be thin, You'll have to do it, because I can't!" In reality, I didn't pray this thinking anything was going to happen, but it did! Then, I realize that I have to have confidence in my Lord and Savior to be in charge, and to realize that when I start to stray with my food, I'm more apt to stray with my faith, because Satan uses our weaknesses as a wedge to work into our daily lives. My confidence has to remain focused on my Lord!</b></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-70424667647831346622023-10-19T03:00:00.034-05:002023-10-19T03:00:00.154-05:00Making Food Compomises<p> <span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Will traders barter for it? Will they divide it up among the merchants? Job 41:6 NIV</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>You need to be aware that this post isn't what this Bible verse is really talking about. It's just the closest I could get to being somewhat related to the topic I want to share.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>I really enjoy going to this one particular Asian restaurant. They have reasonable prices, give lots of food, and it's very yummy! Yep! I'm a Christian Overeater, at heart, but I try to turn my heart and my stomach over to the very capable hand of my Lord and Savior! Although I try, I sometimes end up backsliding, at times.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>I usually order Cashew Chicken, mainly because I enjoy eating the crunchy cashews. I don't go there often, but when I went this summer, I realized that it was sweet, when I was eating all the many veggies and chicken, thinking it was a somewhat healthy choice for me. I tried to convince myself that it really wasn't all that sweet, but it really was! So, basically, I was trying to barter and focus on a lie, instead of the truth.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Later in the summer, I went to that Asian restaurant with someone else and they were asked if they wanted the brown sauce on their Cashew Chicken or the white sauce. Well, I had eaten it for years with the sweet brown sauce, so I was willing to barter and see about having it with the white sauce, instead. I asked the co-owner about the white sauce, and she told me that it didn't have any sugar, at all. I tried it and she was right! I was able to eat all the healthy vegetables, chicken, and my crunchy cashews, but do it in a healthy way! Fortunately, the Lord God, had me realized I was trying to fool myself into believing the other one wasn't sweet, and once I admitted it was, He showed me a way to still enjoy it without all the sugar!</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-11708628174208121992023-10-12T03:00:00.032-05:002023-10-12T03:00:00.197-05:00Through the Eyes of a Glutton!<p> <span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>They shall say to their elders, "This son of ours is stubborn and rebellious. He will not obey us. He is a glutton and a drunkard." Deuteronomy 20:21 NIV</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>As a Christian Overeater, Past and Present, I have to admit that I have been a glutton many times over the years, much more than I would ever like to admit. During the main portions of the pandemic, they discouraged going to buffets, for fear of exposure to COVID. That took eating at buffets, off my plate, both literally and figuratively!</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>About a year ago, I realized that there was an ethnic buffet in our town, but I still wasn't going into restaurants that might be crowded. Later, the glutton within me, came up with this plan that I thought was brilliant. If we went to the ethnic buffet at 11:00 a.m., we would be there shortly after they put the food out, but before very many people would have arrived there. </b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Basically, that plan worked, but the concern here, is when I'm letting the glutton within me, make plans that could lead me back into slip-sliding back into old eating patterns that aren't good for me! I don't want Christ saying about me, "Debbie is a glutton and she won't obey us!" Fortunately for me, the Lord God, reminds me when I'm starting to stray with my food, which is often an indicator that I'm weak and may stray from my faith in Him. That's something I never want to do!</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-88988575468600066152023-10-05T03:00:00.043-05:002023-10-05T03:00:00.140-05:00Why Am I Visiting This Again?<p> <span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>Of them the proverbs are true: "A dog returns to its vomit," and "A [female pig] that is washed, returns to her wallowing in the mud." 2 Peter 2:22 NIV Bible</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>This Bible verse answers this question about as good as anything else! The other day, I fell back into old eating patterns, and overate when I knew I was no longer hungry. I didn't want to consider taking some of the food home in a "to-go" box. I didn't want to consider leaving any of it on my plate.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>I WANTED to eat every single bit of that large meal. It was a good deal, with large portions! Sure that's a good reason for making yourself sick to your stomach??? It would be one thing if the Lord God hadn't shown me so many lessons related to food and my eating, but that wasn't the case! He had shown me years ago, that food had become a false god to me. I was turning to food for comfort, instead turning to Christ for comfort. </b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>I thought I was long past this! But this just goes to show me, I can't become so comfortable with what the Lord has shown me about my counterproductive eating patterns, that I forget those lessons and flop back down in the feeding trough and wallow in the mud!</b></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906721060110010060.post-50885294323459771552023-09-28T03:00:00.031-05:002023-09-28T03:00:00.146-05:00My Eyes Were Bigger than My Stomach, but Did that Stop Me?<p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of lights. Matthew 6:22 NIV Bible</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>My eyes were just too big for my stomach, but did that stop me? No! I ate every last bite, although I knew it wasn't good for me. Why did I do this when I knew better? I was proud of picking such a reasonably priced meal that gave more food than the meals that cost almost double the price. </b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>The thing is, I already knew this, but I did it any way! I was trying to show the people with me what a good deal that this particular meal was. Actually, I think it backfired on me. Instead of realizing what a good deal it was, the look on their faces seemed to say, "I can't believe she's eating all of this!" That wasn't exactly the messages that I was trying to get across.</b></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: medium;"><b>In the first place, why am I using food to get attention from others? I shouldn't need their admiration to bolster up my self-esteem. Actually, when I ate all that food, trying to make a point about how much food that meal choice provides, I made myself nauseated by eating all of it. To top it all off, I was nauseated with what I had done! I had reverted back to old patterns of using food for comfort, instead of turning to the Lord God for comfort, that goes far beyond one meal, since He's there for me for a lifetime, provided I don't let myself drift away by worldly things!</b></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com