Random thoughts about obedience
Lord – I put today in your hands. Help me understand how you want me to live, and how you want me to interact with those you’ve put in my path today. Above all, teach me patience and obedience, as I wait on You to show me Your way.
On one hand, the mechanics of weight loss or weight maintenance is fairly easy – take in the same amount of energy through food that you body needs for the day, and you will maintain your weight. Take in more than you expend, you’ll gain; take in less, and you’ll lose. Take in the same amount, but increase your activity (burn more calories), and you’ll lose. Decrease your activity, and you’ll gain.
On the surface, this appears fairly simple. This is a physical law of nature that Satan can’t touch – he can’t cause weight gain if your input and expenditures are equal. However, nothing in life is simple, is it? However, what he can do, what he’s really good at, is deception – he can deceive us into inaction (sloth, laziness, etc.) so your output decreases and you gain, or he can deceive us into overabundance (greed, gluttony, drunkenness), so that input increases, and you gain. Throw in the deceptions of food as comforter, food as healer, food as stress reducer, etc., and you can see how it’s easy to be overtaken and fall into unhealthy patterns.
For those who struggle with weight issues, I truly believe it all boils down to an obedience issue. Unfortunately, we tend to spend the majority of our focus on the effect (weight issues) rather than the cause (disobedience).
Case in point – my own life right now. As I mentioned in a previous post, I’m currently on a low-carb diet. Initially I went on this diet with the exclusive reason to lose weight. I had never done a low-carb plan before, because I felt I couldn’t give up my breads, sugars, desserts, etc. Then it hit me – the phrase “I couldn’t give it up” indicated I had an obedience issue. I loved sugar and the feeling it gave me, more that I loved God and the joy He gives me. Sounds crazy, doesn’t it? But it’s true – my love for sugar was greater than my love for God – it was on my throne of worship, taking the rightful place of God on that throne. When I cut out the sugar and the carbs from my diet, my body physically rebelled for a period of time, but more revealing was the rebellion my mind went through. I can only imagine that the thoughts I was feeling must be similar to someone addicted to alcohol, or prescription painkillers, or any other drug – it was awful. I currently don’t feel the same pull as I once did, praise God, and I can only attribute it to the strength Christ has given me to overcome it.
Will I ever reintroduce carbs? I think I can only answer that with another question: will I be in such a place in my walk with God that the carbs and sugar don’t take the place of God on His throne, and in the center of my life? I hope that I can get to that place – not so I can introduce carbs back into my diet, but because it will indicate the strength and health of my relationship with Christ.
I’d love to get your thoughts on this topic, so please feel free to send me your comments.
