Too Soon for an Update?
I really don't intend for my blog to focus on heavy things all the time. I really appreciated the sweet response to my post about my struggle with food and weight loss. I received texts, phone calls, facebook messages and it really encouraged me to keep going in my journey. I am excited that for the first time in over 15 years of this yo-yo mentality I finally feel like I have the tools I need to make a change.
I am only into the second chapter of the Made to Crave book but I just had to share part of it with you. Have you ever met someone that you think....surely we were just sisters separated at birth? I have a friend like that. We send texts about the same thing on the same day even if we haven't talked in a month. We both buy the same thing for our boys without knowing it. We both struggle with weight. Well, clearly we were triplets separated at birth because this Lisa lady writes like she is stealing all of my lifestory and putting on paper.
The first chapter of her book focuses on the fact that as humans we were made to crave. We crave all sorts of things. Money, power, food, sex, recognition....this list goes on and on and it varies from person to person. As one of my friends pointed out, I have the sometimes fortunate and sometimes unfortunate of craving something that other people can see. In some ways I am glad to struggle with such a tangible thing because people can really call me out on it. Although sometimes I wish I struggled with something I could keep a secret because then everyone wouldn't know!
Lisa uses the example of Jesus being tempted in the desert to illustrate the ways Satan uses cravings to drive a wedge between us.
1. Cravings of the sinful man (ie misplaced physical desires)
2. Lust of Man's Eyes (wanting stuff!!)
3.Boasting of What We've Done (filling our need for significance outside of God's will)
Think about the 3 temptations....physical cravings for food....the promise of an entire kingdom...and proving significance by bossing around the angels. Jesus was no stranger to temptation. But he CRAVED that relationship with his Father more than food, power or significance.
Ok fast forward to chapter 2. This is where I SWEAR this lady has been sitting in my bathroom watching me every morning for the last 15 years. She talks about the morning "weigh-in" routine. How she takes off every shred of clothing....even her ponytail holder. She gets on the scale and in her mind is saying, "This will be the day. This will be the day." I can't tell you how many times I've done that! It's like I think if I had a salad for dinner the night before all the sudden magically I'll be at my goal weight the next morning and my life will change for the better!
After weighing in, and of course being disappointed with the results she heads downstairs for breakfast. Her resolve cracks when she sees the cinnamon rolls her daughter has lovingly baked. It would be mean to refuse one right? So she has one....then two....then three. And since she's already screwed up for the day she might as well start eating healthy TOMORROW so she proceeds to eat whatever she wants for the rest of the day! UGH!!! Been there and done that....day after day after day!
Later she talks about not wanting to tell anyone about her struggle. Why? They might want to keep her ACCOUNTABLE!!!! And who wants your girlfriends telling you "are you sure you want that large Chic-Fil-A milkshake?" when you are out for a playdate lunch? Anyway even if they don't call you out you can always justify it by tell them you are starting your diet tomorrow!
I don't need to diet because I'm fat. I do have some extra weight that I need to get rid of for health reasons but I'm not obese. I know that. And anyone looking at me knows that. But I have to learn to CRAVE the right things! And because food is my temptation that means while I work on my heart I must also work on my stomach! Our spiritual health may not be as obvious as our physical health but it is WAY more important.
I encourage you to sit down and really evaluate what you CRAVE. Are you putting your desire for that thing....money, recognition, skinny jeans....before your desire for Christ? I am praying for you too as you start your journey!!
I am only into the second chapter of the Made to Crave book but I just had to share part of it with you. Have you ever met someone that you think....surely we were just sisters separated at birth? I have a friend like that. We send texts about the same thing on the same day even if we haven't talked in a month. We both buy the same thing for our boys without knowing it. We both struggle with weight. Well, clearly we were triplets separated at birth because this Lisa lady writes like she is stealing all of my lifestory and putting on paper.
The first chapter of her book focuses on the fact that as humans we were made to crave. We crave all sorts of things. Money, power, food, sex, recognition....this list goes on and on and it varies from person to person. As one of my friends pointed out, I have the sometimes fortunate and sometimes unfortunate of craving something that other people can see. In some ways I am glad to struggle with such a tangible thing because people can really call me out on it. Although sometimes I wish I struggled with something I could keep a secret because then everyone wouldn't know!
Lisa uses the example of Jesus being tempted in the desert to illustrate the ways Satan uses cravings to drive a wedge between us.
1. Cravings of the sinful man (ie misplaced physical desires)
2. Lust of Man's Eyes (wanting stuff!!)
3.Boasting of What We've Done (filling our need for significance outside of God's will)
Think about the 3 temptations....physical cravings for food....the promise of an entire kingdom...and proving significance by bossing around the angels. Jesus was no stranger to temptation. But he CRAVED that relationship with his Father more than food, power or significance.
Ok fast forward to chapter 2. This is where I SWEAR this lady has been sitting in my bathroom watching me every morning for the last 15 years. She talks about the morning "weigh-in" routine. How she takes off every shred of clothing....even her ponytail holder. She gets on the scale and in her mind is saying, "This will be the day. This will be the day." I can't tell you how many times I've done that! It's like I think if I had a salad for dinner the night before all the sudden magically I'll be at my goal weight the next morning and my life will change for the better!
After weighing in, and of course being disappointed with the results she heads downstairs for breakfast. Her resolve cracks when she sees the cinnamon rolls her daughter has lovingly baked. It would be mean to refuse one right? So she has one....then two....then three. And since she's already screwed up for the day she might as well start eating healthy TOMORROW so she proceeds to eat whatever she wants for the rest of the day! UGH!!! Been there and done that....day after day after day!
Later she talks about not wanting to tell anyone about her struggle. Why? They might want to keep her ACCOUNTABLE!!!! And who wants your girlfriends telling you "are you sure you want that large Chic-Fil-A milkshake?" when you are out for a playdate lunch? Anyway even if they don't call you out you can always justify it by tell them you are starting your diet tomorrow!
I don't need to diet because I'm fat. I do have some extra weight that I need to get rid of for health reasons but I'm not obese. I know that. And anyone looking at me knows that. But I have to learn to CRAVE the right things! And because food is my temptation that means while I work on my heart I must also work on my stomach! Our spiritual health may not be as obvious as our physical health but it is WAY more important.
I encourage you to sit down and really evaluate what you CRAVE. Are you putting your desire for that thing....money, recognition, skinny jeans....before your desire for Christ? I am praying for you too as you start your journey!!
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ReplyDeleteHave a great day!
Laura, I so appreciate you honesty about this! You're right, it is hard to have a craving issue that others can notice. My sinful cravings are often much easier to mask and therefore much more easily stuffed down and not dealt with. Unless I make the decision to be honest with God, myself, and others, that is.
ReplyDeleteThe part of the book you reference where Lisa said she had blown eating healthily for the day so she might as well put off her diet until tomorrow reminds me of a visual my Bible study leader shared with me a few months ago on 1 Cor. 10:13 - "No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man ; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it." She said to imagine a staircase, and at every step there is another exit door. And so even if we've given into the temptation and taken the first step up, at that step there is an exit to leave. And at the next, and the next, and the next. She said in sin we often get this idea that we've blown it by giving into it once, so we need to keep climbing the staircase up to the end. But that simply is not true. God has provided a way of escape for us. This visual has been extremely helpful for me as I FREQUENTLY react in anger to my sons. Often I would think that I was already angry and I couldn't stop myself from lashing out at them. But it isn't true - just because I've given into an angry outburst doesn't mean I can't stop right there, confess my sin to God and to the offended person, ask for forgiveness, and move forward in kindness and gentleness.