The joy of obedience

There really is joy in obedience. I have really struggled with eating between hunger and satisfaction for breakfast and at bedtime. This has shown up in a little weight gain. I spent a lot of time in prayer the night before last and asked the Lord to help me just for the next day to be obedient.
It was 915 before I reached hunger. I usually get up and eat no matter what but continued in prayer and was able to not give into temptation. Instead of the usual hunger at about 1030 requiring a snack, I was not hungry. Then at lunch it took very little to get me to a point of satisfaction. I felt such joy.
If I sense this kind of joy over one act of obedience in this area there must be joy if I seek to be obedient in other areas as well.
The other thing I feel like the Lord is once again speaking to me is that my motives are to be for His glory. That is when this will work. Sure diets help people release weight even if the motive is a smaller size, but we as Christians need to want this for the glory of God. When someone asks or notices it is a tool I can use to lead them to the Lord or into a deeper relationship with Him.

Jeremiah 29

In early prayer I had been praying to the Lord and confessing my sins and telling Him how helpless I am to help myself in the area of eating and in the indirect way I express my anger.
Just when I think I am making progress I stumble.
I opened my Bible during early prayer and there before my eyes was Jer. 29 verses 11 through 14. For I know the plans I have for you says the Lord. They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me in earnest , you will find me when you seek me. I will be found by you, says the Lord. I will end your captivity and restore your fortunes. I will gather you out of the nations where I sent you and bring you home again to your land.
In times of trouble when I feel I am not making progress in these areas of my life God has not forgotten me. God may be preparing me, as He did the people of Judah, for a new beginning with Him.
May this first day of March, where there is hope of Spring, be a new beginning.

Seeking His Plan

I was so touched by a post on the TW forums. There was a lively discussion going on about 2 different Christian weight loss programs. About which was best, pros and cons etc.
Someone posted that all of the authors are human and therefore err. That only God is perfect and we need to go to Him for our guidance.
This is so true. He wants me to be at my ideal weight. He created us, He loves us, and He will show us the way for our lives if only we will trust Him and obey.
To obey does not mean I have to be perfect. It means I need to confess and repent on a regular basis and follow His guidance as He directs in the Word and as He speaks to my heart.

FLesh Machinery

After reading from TW about flesh machinery I realize that food still means too much too me. I still eat for pleasure and comfort at times.
I want God to be first in my life and for Him to satisfy me even more than the richest of foods.
I want Him to be my all.
Help me Lord to have no other Gods before you. You are enough.

21 days

We had the most wonderful sermon about taking 21 days to form a habit.
I want to practice what I heard and spend 21 days recommiting to this program. I want to invite the Lord into every eating occasion instead of trying to do this on my own and then to be obedient to what I feel I hear.
As soon as I think I do not need to pay attention and try to do this on my own I fail.
I think God allows this thorn in the flesh to keep me dependent on Him. To show me just how much I really need Him. That I can't even take care of simple meals without Him.

trusting God

After being retired for 2 years God is calling me back into the workforce. I was fearful and prayed a lot about this. Every day God assures me that when He calls me He equips me. That it is not me but Him.
This makes me think of my eating too. The more I rely on Him and the less I rely on me the better this will work.
If only we could learn to trust Him more and rely on Him more in all areas.

Our bodies are fearfully and wonderfully made

God has made our bodies in such an awesome way. No human can ever come close to His creation.
He built this hunger mechanism into our bodies. I have noticed that some days I require more.
Wednesday I exercised in the morning and went to a dance in the evening. I had a lot more activity than usual. Thursday I was so hungry every 2 hours so I ate more. My body needed more.
Over the Holidays I ate more rich food than usual but still between hunger and satisfied. Now my body is telling me to eat plain wholesome food.
Another thing I have noticed is that our brain is a fabulous computer created by Almighty God. Our eyes, ears, nose and mouth program the computer. I do not want a junky computer so I want to program it properly with the Word of God, positive confession, listening to wholesome things and never looking at evil such as what is so often at the movies and on tv.