In recent months I've been focusing on relearning how to think about the foods I consume. I had gained 50 lbs since getting married in 2004. I could blame my husband, but all you get as a prize for blaming someone else is that you get to stay the same.! That wasn't an appealing option. So I started reading and praying about weakness. I've been employing simple tools like writing down at night what I'll eat tomorrow. After deciding what I'll eat the next day, I put it in containers that fit perfectly into my lunch bag. I can keep the containers in the fridge overnight and just grab and go when it's time to head out the door in the morniing.
This practice alone is revolutionary for me! It takes the guess work out of lunch. I don't let myself go "grazing" in the neighborhood for ideas of what to eat anymore. I'm not open to eating just anything my eyes happen to catch a glimpse of, because my meals have already been decided.
I bought a food scale to weigh my portions [I'm restricting myself to 4oz of protein and 10oz of vegetables at lunch and dinner, 8oz of yogurt for breakfast (or 2 eggs) , and a fruit at breakfast and lunch, etc.], so I know how much I'm taking in. When I was eating out regularly last year, I lost track of how much I was taking in and that made it really easy to overeat.
Also, I'm practicing eating three meals a day with no snacking in between. This ritual is teaching me to wait until mealtime to eat rather than consider myself "open-for-eating-all-day-everyday".
Some of these things are embarrassing to write because I feel like this stuff is so basic and used to be the way people thought about meals: It was a "three times a day" kind of thing; but just like so many other things we used to keep within parameters, food is accessible any time you get the inclination. And I can get the inclination a lot (i.e. I'm bored, happy, mad, sad, etc.)! In fact, I was eating in a what that was totally out of control and felt helpless to change until I remembered that 2 Corinthians 12: 9 says, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Maybe God was using my weakness to help me really see his power to work even in me! I love the ERV translation of 2 Timothy 1:7b which says, "His spirit is a source of power and love and self-control".
Here, I'd had access to God's spirit of self-control, but hadn't been using it to navigate this "instant gratification" world we're living in that was setting me up to overeat most days. When I finally saw that clearly, I knew I needed to tap into God's strength to make some changes.
Today, I'm committing to myself to abstain from daily treats that I tend to eat in excess (i.e. candy, cookies, cakes, and pies, etc.). Foods of this nature will be consumed on rare occasions and in small portions.
"Whoever fears God will avoid all extremes", Ecclesiastes 7:18b. I think in all things this scripture is a wise one to be guided by as long as you're not battling a food addiction. In that case, it's probably best to abstain from sugar and flour completely.
Which weakness of yours is trying to teach you something lately?