God Is Doing a New Thing

In Isaiah 43:18-19 God says: Forget the former things;do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland. ~ God is doing a new thing in my life. This blog chronicles my journey to become more like Jesus in all respects. This blog began in November of 2006 and continues. Food, eating, and body issues have remained my greatest nemesis. Nevertheless, God is transforming my life.

If we allow ourselves to be conscious of His presence in the rhythms of life, we won't hesitate to include Him when we eat. Thin Within, page 153.

God has been working on me in a BIG way in my prayer life. There still seems to be a disconnect, but it is being worked on! Because of reading partway through the book, Soul Revolution, I set my timer on my watch to go off every hour. When it goes off, no matter what I am doing (well, most of the time), I try to reconnect with God. Sometimes it is a "Hi, Lord. Thank you for being constantly mindful of me." Sometimes it is "I praise you for being Almighty King..." Sometimes it is "Thank you for stopping me before I made a bad choice" or "Lord, I confess that I am in sin in this moment and I choose to set my flesh aside in favor of your will over my own..."

It really makes a difference.

Obviously, sometimes I use the reminder to lift up a specific prayer need as well.

If I am in a conversation with someone, the reminder causes me to commit my words to Him.

Please know that I don't believe for one minute this practice makes me some sort of "super Christian," either! In fact, what it does is humble me as so often, my heart is SO far from the Lord when the reminder comes that it blows me away...I mean, if I am to pray without ceasing, then I wonder what about the other 59 minutes in each hour! Yikes! I have set my timer more frequently, but it seemed to get a bit laborious.

It is something else when I am in the midst of eating beyond satisfied and the timer goes off. :-/ God's timing is impeccable!

Today I will do the favorite meal exercise that is on page 154 and 155. I hope you will do the same. Tell us here what you plan to do for your "Perfect Meal" and/or report what you experience. I would LOVE to hear about it. This is where the practical "rubber hits the road!"

I plan on buying some Chinese food at the local restaurant and bring it home to enjoy. I will be totally, 100% at a zero when I do this, will play some favorite soft music and make it a time of wonderful fellowship with the Lord, as well.

I am looking forward to it!

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BEFORE

BEFORE
June 2006

Progress...

Progress...

Progress...

Progress...

After

After
December 2007

Gone TOO far...

Gone TOO far...
September 2008

Now

Now
A healthier weight than the "After," but I am unsure that this is where God wants me. I may have gained too much due to giving in too much to what *I* want!

About this blog

Some of you may be coming to this blog for the first time or may not have a clue what Thin Within is. You may have done a Google search for Christian dieting or diets or bible based weight loss. The great news is, Thin Within is even better than a diet or weight loss program! Totally based on biblical principles, the message is refreshing and freeing!

Thin Within is a book by Judy and Arthur Halliday and it is also a website available at http://www.thinwithin.org/. It is an approach to life--not just eating. It is surrendering who I am to the Lord, inviting him to invade my life completely. He becomes my sufficiency, my satisfaction, my strength. When I am excited, depressed, anxious, instead of turning to food, I learn to turn to Him to satisfy the heart hunger.

Thin Within teaches me to eat only when I am physiologically hungry and to stop eating when I am physiologically satisfied or not hungry any more. We call that 0 to 5 eating.

No foods are "off limits." So I released 100 pounds while eating chocolate, pizza, mexican food, McDonalds french fries (don't be disgusted! LOL!).

As time progressed, however, I found myself gravitating more towards more beneficial foods. I still eat Godiva chocolate and french fries (have had both today, in fact), but the goal is that NO food will have mastery over me.

This way, not only is the weight released from my body, but it is done in such a way that I can live this way for the rest of my life. I released all of the extra weight by eating normal foods only when hungry. While I live a relatively active lifestyle, shedding the extra weight involved no obsessive exercise. If I have a more active day, I am likely to be hungry more frequently. If I am hungry, I am free to eat! No calorie, fat gram, or point counting.

I am free!

Once I am no longer hungry or "satisfied" I stop eating.

The trick is all those other reasons many of us eat! My heart is to turn to the Lord anytime I have a desire to eat when I am not physically in need of nourishment.

Thank you, Lord, for relieving my body of 100 pounds!

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