Envy...

Lord -- help me not to feel so envious when I hear of others losing weight ... succeeding with the very program I'm *supposed* to be diligently following. I get so depressed when I hear them post of their successes! But, I'm truly happy for them, too!

... I just wish I had something positive to post as well, that's all. It's been a long time. :-(

Help me to be patient, and to rejoice with my fellow sisters in their progress. :-?

Amen.

I'm Believing God!

...well, not yet. But, I'm going to!

I've begun reading Beth Moore's book, "Believing God", with some online friends, and it's amazing -- as are all of Beth's books (that I've read, anyway). ;o)

I have always had "trust issues". Why, I'm not sure. This is God we're talking about, after all! I *should* trust Him! He's proven Himself faithful to me, over and over in my life.

So, what's the problem, then? I honestly don't know.

I suppose it could be that I view God as another "human", most times. Not purposely, but that's how my brain tends to view Him... as someone capable of disappointing me, as so many others in my life have done. Or, as someone who'll abandon me.

I've always had this funky, distorted view that God reacts to my behaviour... If I do good things, God blesses me; if I do bad things, God makes my life a living disaster! So, when things go wrong in my life (as they're often prone to do), I tend to think I must've upset God, and I'm being punished for something. :-?

Whatever gave me this idea?

As I was reading my One-Year Bible the other day (or, perhaps it was while doing my Bible study homework: "Breaking Free" by Beth Moore), I came across a passage that basically said that, looking at life this way (punished for bad; blessed for good) is a very selfish thing. What makes us think the world revolves around us like that? Then it went on to explain that God doesn't do that... He doesn't "punish" for any little thing, or "bless" for trivial things.

(I don't feel like I'm explaining this right, and I wish I knew where I'd read this -- I'll have to look it up and re-write this later! LOL)

Sure, God *does* discipline us when we've gone against His will. But, not just for merely straying from the intended path.

And, yes, God *does* bless us... but, it's usually when we've walked obediently with Him.

I pray that God will change my view of Him -- make it so that I see Him for who He really is... GOD! (and, in the "Believing God" study, the first "faith statement" is that I believe "God is who He says He is").

God said 'No'

God works in funny ways... He makes me laugh!

I'd asked Him to show me whether or not I should remain a member of that group I'd joined the other day (the one where the group owner was a WDW leader). And, the next thing you know, my computer crashes again! LOL
(mind you, the thing crashing again was NOT funny at the time!)

Also, I flipped open my Bible -randomly- and landed in the book of 2 John. Prior to opening up the book, though, I'd asked God for a word about this group -- whether or not I should stick with it. Well, the book of 2 John is all about staying clear of "false teachers", and not even communing with them, because then it's like you're condoning their behaviour! LOL

Okay... so there's 2 "hints" that NO, I should not remain a member of the group I joined.

So, I promised God that, if He'd get my computer back up and running (via my tech-savvy hubby), I'd immediately unsubscribe from the group... He did, and so I did. ;o)

But, I'm anxious for a place to talk with others about a "heart change"... about a "renewed mind" in conjunction with Christian weight loss (more specifically, the hunger-fullness method of weight loss). So, feeling there wasn't anything ELSE I could do, I started up my own group! (Renewed Minds)

Now, whether or not it'll last, that's another story. I often get these great ideas for groups, so I'll start them up, but then I don't have a lot to say (I'm usually expecting the others to have something to say that I can respond to), and the other group members remain silent, so I end up having to shut the group down. I'm hoping I won't have to do that with this one, but time will tell.

Insights...

From the reading, online, I've been doing lately (via groups, blogs, etc), God's showed me a few things:

- I'm still making this weight-loss journey about me... it should be about God, and my relationship with Him... about what HE'S doing in my life!

- I'm still "walking the path of MY performance"... still trying to do things MY way (which NEVER works, anyway!).

- I'm making plans (setting goals) without consulting God, and then hoping He'll bless them ... should be asking what HE wants me to do, and then being obedient!

- I'm still seeking the "world's" solutions, instead of going to my "Source" (God).

This last one came from reading a lady's story in an e-group I joined last night. She talked of how she'd bought this great hairdryer, and how it had an attachment. Well, the attachment got broken, and so the lady went to the store where she'd purchased it, and tried to get a replacement. The store kept "forgetting" to call and try to help her out. Finally, after trying *everything* else, the lady thought to call the manufacturer! She called the "maker" of the product, instead of the "seller"... And, this led her to see that, in her spiritual life, she often goes to the "seller" for a solution, instead of straight to the "Maker" (God)... the "Source". ;o)

I really liked this analogy! Especially since I could soooo relate! ;-P

Anyway. I'm a little cautious of the new group I joined. Through reading the old messages, and some of their linked articles, I've discovered that the group's owner is a WeighDown Workshop leader. The group is great because it talks all about the hunger-fullness method, but I'm afraid to be inundated with WD "theology", and be "duped" like I was when I first read the WD book. I had thought it was "Christian", since it was peppered with Bible verses, etc. But, little red flags had been going off in my mind as I read it, saying that something wasn't quite "right".

So far, the group seems "fine"... the messages are MAINLY just devotionals written by author Neil T. Anderson. I trust his writings.

But I've prayed and asked God to make it very clear to me whether or not I should remain as a member there. I will follow HIS leading. ;o)

Letting God Lead

Ha ha! God is certainly speaking to me about a LOT of issues! But, I'm hearing them! ;o)

This time, it's about letting Him lead. Remember, yesterday, how I quoted "Bruce & Stan" about how we try to make our plans without consulting God, and then ask His blessing on our plans AFTERWARD?

Well, today, I was doing my Beth Moore, "BREAKING FREE", Bible study homework, and it was about God's "Daily Rule". In the third paragraph, Beth says, "For years I asked God to bless what I did. Talk about the clay trying to spin the Potter!" And, I just about laughed out loud!

Loud and Clear, God! Loud & clear! LOL :-P

Beth goes on to say that we are "wise & blessed to learn to walk with God instead of begging Him to walk with us".

This is because God knows the path He planned out for us -- and our knowledge of said path is "little more than hoped-for theories". God is Sovereign. He knows what will happen before it does, so we're wise to trust HIS leading.

So often I try to make my plans, and then ask God to bless them. And, I've been doing just that with my weight loss. I keep making up challenges for myself, or following other peoples' challenges, and then I ask God to "bless me" in my efforts. But, God wants me to ask HIM what HIS ideas are... where HE wants me to go... how HE wants me to go about things! And, if I choose to go with HIS ideas, then I will be blessed just for being obedient.

This one is gonna take a whole lot of God's strength! ;o)

"'Not by might, nor by power,
but by My Spirit,'
says the Lord."
~ Zechariah 4:6

More On Thoughts...

Well, it seems like God wants me to think on this verse, as I've come across reference to it (or, something similar) TWICE now, today! LOL

I like the way The Message version puts it:

[3-6]The world is unprincipled. It's dog-eat-dog out there! The world doesn't fight fair. But we don't live or fight our battles that way—never have and never will. The tools of our trade aren't for marketing or manipulation, but they are for demolishing that entire massively corrupt culture. We use our powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ. Our tools are ready at hand for clearing the ground of every obstruction and building lives of obedience into maturity.

Take note that it says EVERY thought... not just "some" thoughts. So that means that thoughts about eating are included here! So often, when this verse is referenced, it's to things like immorality, and promiscuity, and things like that. The "big sins". But, God says "overindulging" is a sin, too! Not in so many words, of course, but...

Ephesians 5:5b says, "...the greedy person is really an idolater who worships the things of this world."

And, of course, there's gluttony...

Like I said in an earlier post, Satan wants us to believe that our overeating is "no big deal"... that God doesn't really care if we overeat. But, that's a LIE! Overeating/gluttony (and, when I say this, I'm thinking *deliberate* overeating... choosing to "plug our ears" before "jumping into that pit") is a sin! And, we're to *hate* sin!... as my friend, Heidi, says, we're not just to "avoid" it, but to all-out DETEST sin!

I am praying that I will get to the point where I see overeating as the sin it is, and that I will hate it -- that I will confess, repent, and be able to turn away from it for good!

In her E-newsletter today, author Susan May Warren, talked about being careful of what we expose ourselves to: television shows, news programs, music, books... these can lead us to thoughts that aren't in line with Biblical principles.

My mother always used to like to say, "Garbage in, garbage out." She said that what we allow into our heads/minds is what's going to show itself in our behavior/words later on.

In an online excerpt of the book I mentioned in my last post, "Every Thought Captive", Proverbs 4:23 is quoted. It says:

"Above all else, guard your heart,
for it influences everything else in your life."

And, this is what it had to say about that verse:

"Every act, whether beautiful or heinous, starts in the mind. Every charitable act begins with a loving thought, and every sin grows out of a distorted thought. We sin, in large part, because we hold on to and live out of toxic beliefs. So whether we are aware of the depths and brokenness of our thoughts or not, they are very real, and they influence us more than we even know."

So, my challenge to myself for the next week is going to be to watch my thoughts -- and to watch what I allow to *influence* my thoughts. And, if when I find any negative thoughts, or thoughts that disagree with God's Word, I'm going to "take them captive" and lay them at His feet. ;o)

I challenge you to do the same!

Our Weapons ... Every Thought Captive

Lundie, over at FaithLifts, has posted a fantastic article on the "unearthly" weapons we use to wage war on the spiritual front, and our need to "take every thought captive". ;o)

Check it out!

I'll post more of my thoughts on this verse soon, too! ;-)

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Every Thought Captive: Battling the Toxic Beliefs that Separate Us from the Life We Crave By Jerusha Clark

This is a book I put on my wishlist a short while back... now I think I'd like to get it sooner (will move it up on my wishlist), thanks to Lundie's article! :-D

(click on the book's cover to read it's description)