HCG.1 Day Six part 2

It's the evenings that get me.

I can go all day without eating but I love to eat in the evening. Family dinner or date dinners with Kev. Snacking on the couch after the kids go to bed. Late-late night snack. We stay up pretty late around here. Happy Eating!

Over the last couple of days I've listed to two podcasts from Focus on the Family. The guest was Lysa TerKeurst, author of the book Made to Crave: Satisfying Your Deepest Desire With God, Not Food.

She sort of rocked my world, actually. She read the entire Bible from the prospective of a person who struggles with food and found SO many amazing verses and applications. If you're interested, you can find the two-part interview here and here or here. I wouldn't be able to do her interview justice in this blog but she really spoke to my heart. If you have an unhealthy relationship with food, I encourage you to check it out and I'd love to know your thoughts.

* Food should NOT consume me. Consume. Get it?

* Cravings are from God and completely Biblical...how am I using FOOD to take the place of God?

* I was born to crave (to want deeply, desire greatly)...am I craving the One I was born to crave more of??

* Matt 6:25

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? ²⁶ Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷ Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?"

I think I have always taken this scripture (especially the bold text) completely wrong. He says to not WORRY about things. This is not a verse talking about vanity. Or an easy go-to excuse for eating whatever I want or look good or bad ("because He loves me just as I am!"). It's about putting my focus in the wrong place. Because...

*Matt 6:32-34

"For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³ But seek first (CRAVE!) his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴ Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."

I'm getting the book. There was a lot of good stuff in the interview. For crying out loud, she read the whole Bible from the perspective a person with food issues! And took from that experience that food issues are a big deal.

Think of Esau giving up his birthright for a bowl of soup!

For that matter, think of EVE! The fall of man. An apple. I mean, come on!?

It's interesting. I look forward to learning more.

I was really struck by what Lysa said toward the end of the second interview. She talked about Triggers and Truths. She tweeted recently "We must deal with triggers - identify places of emotional emptiness and admit how futile it is to try and fill those with food". On Facebook she writes, "‎The only way to negate my eating triggers that will inevitably come is to match them with God's truth."

Mateo's crying fits make me want to slam my head into the fridge (hopefully landing on something soft and tasty...). I recognize that I was dealing with a frustration trigger here. So I pray. For Mateo. For his mom. For my kids. For the school. For the teachers. For the families of the kids that go to school...I think you get my point.

Once I took my mind off the desire to fix my frustration (trigger) with food - I was able to have a really sweet prayer time. It was great!

My other triggers seem to include stress, fatigue, HAPPINESS!, boredom, anxiety and road trips. :) I could link a verse to (almost) every one of these triggers. Ultimately, the anecdote - the TRUTH - is to put my full focus on God. I've let food fill parts of my soul that are the exact area's God wants to take over. It's a win-win. AND I get to loose weight along the way? How sweet are you, God?!

Anyway, when I mentioned fasting the other day. This is the role I had in mind but didn't have time to explore. Then came Lysa and her words of wisdom and it all became clear. I'm so stoked.

Not to be on this hellacious diet. I'm not stoked on that. I'm sincerely excited to grow closer to God and to fix the parts of my heart, mind, body that are out of focus. It's good.

And it's late. And I'm hungry.

But my heart is content.