Finding Peace in Your Relationship with Food

When most people write about stress during the holidays they address the hustle and bustle of different parties and the weight of feeling the need to do everything.  But God put it on my heart to address another aspect of Thanksgiving and Christmas that brings stress and anxiety to many people. This article is going to address the anxiety that food brings to the table(no pun intended).  

When I opened my email today I received one entitled "How to survive Thanksgiving".  At first it sounded interesting so I clicked it to read their tips and as soon as I started reading I heard the Lord tell me to stop.  So I closed out the browser and He began to speak to me about my own anxiety when it comes to parties and food. He showed me How deeply saddened He is that a time that was meant to be full of thanks has turned into a time of anxiety about what to eat and how to burn the extra holiday calories off.

As He was speaking to me about this someone sent me a video on a new eating disorder called "EDNOS" or "Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified".  As I watched this video my heart broke, especially when the girl referred to her disorder as "Ed".  The number of Americans, especially women, who have eating disorders is growing by the minute.  Everywhere we turn we are told we need to look a certain way in order to be valued and loved. If we weren't born naturally thin we will go to great lengths to ensure we fit the norm.  

When I was a teen girl(and even throughout my early twenties) I would go in cycles where I would binge or starve myself.  I remember in the times I was starving myself I would have nightmares that I was eating junk like pizza or donuts.  I would wake up terrified and disgusted with myself.  Because of this I know all too well how much of a death grip food can have on your life. If you are addicted to food, or the lack there of, you will rearrange your entire day around it.  If you are addicted to eating it you are concerned about what the next meal will be even while you are eating the first. If you are addicted to withholding food from your body then you will decline certain party invitations if you know it will be too tempting to eat food.  You will retreat and isolate yourself to a place where you feel in control.  To put it simply, satan has you on a chain and the idol(food) is leading the way.  It tells you when to go and when to stay.  God has no voice in your life when you are in bondage to food.  

For those struggling with something like this, Thanksgiving and Christmas, times that are meant to bring joy and peace, can bring nothing but anxiety and wishing you could just play sick for all the family gatherings.  I can tell you that God has set me free from this cycle of bondage but it is something that I must keep submitted to Him or it will rear its ugly head.  

Here are two key truths in finding peace with food and your body:

1. Food is Fuel.

Food was created by God to fuel our body. However, from the beginning of time satan has used food, a beautiful thing God created, to get between us and God. Food was never intended to be our enemy or an idol in our life. 


There is nothing more true than the statement "Eat to live, don't live to eat".  I remember when binging on junk food was a bondage of mine I  meditated on this truth often.  God's word says in 1 Corinithians 10:21 "So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God."

Pray before you go to the Thanksgiving feasts or Christmas parties.  And pray often.  Even as you are loading your plate, ask God to give you wisdom and self-control.  Ask Him to show you how to enjoy the food but not over indulge. Reevaluate often and ask if your behaviors are bringing glory to God.  Ask questions like: am I at war with food?  Am I using it to fuel my body or to fill a desire only God can fill?

2. You are not your own. 

 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 says  "Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body."

If you are a born again believer your body is a temple of the most High God.  He dwells in you and you in Him.  There is not one moment of any of our days on this earth that this is not true. There are no exceptions or special holidays when our bodies are no longer temples. So when we enter into holiday parties we must keep this perspective. Does God want us to enjoy a yummy meal with our family and friends?  Absolutely.  But does He want us to go to an extreme and either starve ourselves out of fear of gaining weight OR go the other way and binge until we feel we are going to throw up?  Not at all.  Do everything in moderation and with a sound mind and God will bless your temple.  

If this article spoke to you today I encourage you to take a few moments and talk to God about it.  Ask the Holy Spirit what He is asking you to give up this holiday season or enjoy with no guilt.  He cares about every single detail of your life and food is no exception. In fact, food was His idea.

I pray you all have a Happy Thanksgiving and Merry Christmas! :) 

If Mirrors Could Speak

by Hannah Morris

“Mommy, it looks like there is a baby in your tummy. Mommy, your booty is soooo big. Mommy, when you walk your booty goes like this (hand motion for jiggle)!” 

These were my 4-year-old daughter, Willow’s comments to me while I was getting dressed one morning. Don’t you just love kid’s honesty? They call it like they see it, literally.  

I immediately had several options on how to respond. I could: 

1.  Start sobbing  
2.  Justify my belly because I ate a big breakfast, and as for that“jiggly” booty; well, you gotta shake what yo’ momma gave ya, right?  
3.  Laugh it off since she is only four. 

I went with the third option, but if this conversation had happened a few years ago, you would have probably found me in a corner crying.  

I consider myself a physically healthy person, but it took me a long time to become healthy in the way I see myself. Go stand in front of a mirror. What do you see? 

I am pretty sure that most of you will say that although you see some good things in that reflection,the majority of your focus will be on your weaknesses. Do you immediately see your stretch marks or wrinkles,your cellulite or big tummy?

For me, it didn’t matter if I was 9 months pregnant feeling like the baby was literally about to fall out, or if I was skinny and toned. I always seemed to focus on my imperfections. It was like the Fun House mirrors they have at the State Fair; you know, the ones that distort your reflection? They make you look short and wide or tall and thin? We all know which reflection we would rather see! 

That distorted view was how I used to see myself. My husband would tell me that I looked good, but I always responded with “thanks, but I need to work on…”.  I was my worst critic. 

Then God did something in my heart a few years ago that completely changed the way I see myself.  I saw a video of a woman who went out on the streets and asked other women to describe their body in one word. Here are some of their answers: 

• imperfect 
• very average 
• frumpy 
• stubby
• overweight 
• several of them even said disgusting   

At the end of the video she asked one question,“How am I going to teach my daughter to love her body if her Mom can’t do the same?”  

That question changed everything for me. I want my daughter to love her body and see her beauty, inside and out. I have to model that for her. I never look at Willow and see her imperfections; she is absolutely beautiful in every way. The Bible says that we are made in God’s image, and if that is true then we are all beautiful, because He IS beauty.  

1 Peter 3:3-4 says,“Do not let your adornment be merely outward—arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel— rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God.” 

I can honestly say the most beautiful people I know are the ones that truly exemplify the heart of God, because your heart shines through to the outside. The Scripture doesn’t say that it is wrong to wear jewelry, makeup, or fix your hair,but it says that true beauty comes from the heart. Incorruptible beauty is a gentle and quiet spirit and is precious in the sight of God. It is a beauty that lasts forever.  

I asked my kid’s to give me one word that describes what makes me beautiful to them. Grady said “kindness” and Willow said “precious”.Then I asked them the same question to describe Willow and they said “funny-ness” (that is in a 7-year-old’s vocabulary) and“cuteness”. I wasn’t sure what they would say, but I really thought their word would describe a physical attribute. Instead, they saw the heart shining through and THAT was beauty to them.  

If a seven and four year old can get it, I think it’s time that the rest of us understand this truth too.  

Real beauty comes from the inside; it shines brighter and makes more of a lasting impact in others lives than any physical attribute we possess. Focusing on the condition of our heart and allowing that beauty to shine;THAT is what true beauty is. 

So when I see my imperfections now it is so much easier to look past them and focus more on the condition and beauty of my heart. It allows me to have a healthy view of myself and I can find joy in the reflection I see in the mirror.  

If your mirror could speak to you today,what would it say? 

Meet the author:

Hannah Morris is a stay-at-home mom taking care of her two kids, Grady and Willow. She recently celebrated her 11 year anniversary with her husband, Josh. She believes that the greatest calling on earth is to do exactly as Christ commanded, which is to love God and love others. She's passionate about seeing this fulfilled in her life and the lives of others around her

Confession Time

I am beautiful.  

Wow, I can't believe I just said that!  God gave me a post to write a few months ago and the name He gave me was "I am beautiful".  You might have guessed it but the blog post has sat around for several months because I have argued "Lord, how can I title a blog post that?  Or say to the world that I think I am beautiful?  How arrogant!  And on top of that, there are days that I simply do not feel beautiful so I wouldn't want to lie".

Have you ever looked in the mirror and said out loud "I am so beautiful!"?  I never have and the Lord asked me to do it.  I have to admit that when I did immediately lies jumped in saying "yes but look at your belly, you still have stretch marks.  And do you see those bags under your eyes? You look like a hot mess."  I now realize that the reason God asked me to say this out loud to myself in the mirror is to bring those lies from the darkness into the light.  You see, we all have thoughts in our head that are not true but we don't realize we are being driven by those lies because we don't give them a chance to surface.

I believe if these lies aren't brought into the light our entire life is driven by the lies we have believed.  When I don't allow God to address those lies all of the sudden I am willing to spend way too much money on beauty products, do crazy dieting methods and sit around in my "shell" all day feeling sorry for myself that my body looks different than it did before having kids.

John 8:32 says:

Then you will know the truth and the truth shall set you free.

As I continue to expose these lies in my head and bring them to the Lord He sheds light and truth on them.  I am the only one who has the power to bring them into the light.  Anyone who knows me well can tell you that I really dislike confrontation.  Thanks to my husband I have become more and more comfortable with it.  The thing I have seen as I face confrontation is that anything that was hidden and secret now has light on it.  Yes, it can be scary to bring it into the light.  But the alternative of living with that darkness is so much scarier than the brief moment it takes to bring it into the light.

Tell me....when was the last time you said "I am beautiful"?  Give it a try today and see what God reveals.

Here is what God's word says about our beauty:

• Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. Proverbs 31:30

• He has made everything beautiful in its time.  Ecclesiastes 3:11

•  But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart. 1 Samuel 16:7

• Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight. 1 Peter 3:3-4

God clearly has a different definition of beauty than we do.  Will you bring your ideas of beauty into the light today?  You are beautiful!  

Are you THIN?

 A few nights ago I was eating a bowl of Cheerios at 10:30pm(not the norm for me) and stumbled upon a documentary called  "Thin".  I couldn't help but watch it as it was a show following women with eating disorders through their time at a rehab facility for their eating disorder.  I was so moved that I began to write down quotes from some of them when they were in group counseling:

• A 25 year old admits she attempted suicide after eating 2 slices of pizza
• A 15 year old admits she started dieting at the age of 12 because she cared so much about what people thought of her(she now has hair loss, liver failure and constant trembling)
• A girl admitted "this is the one thing I have ever wanted...to be thin. Even if it means dying to get there". 
• Another girl admits "it's a control thing. It's like the one thing I can control...what goes into my body".
• Another girls says "I don't even know how to show love to other people, how can I show love to myself?"

These were just a few of the many things they said but one of things I noticed was that these girls would literally cry and tremble as they ate something small.  They were terrified of gaining weight because to them being thin was all they had.  The saddest part was that these girls each finally got up to around 100 lbs at their stay at the facility but in the follow-up all had lost that weight again and one had passed away at the age of 33.  They used all kind of methods to lose weight: anorexia, bulimia, diet pills and over exercising.  They literally were willing to risk their own life for the sake of being thin.  But as you may have guessed, in their minds they were not thin.  In fact, many of them still viewed themselves as fat.

My heart is still hurting for these girls because, like many women, they did not know real love from their heavenly Father which is what lead them to go to such extremes for attention from others.  

As I sat and ate my bowl of Cheerios and watched this documentary I couldn't help but see the freedom the Lord has brought into my life.  If you are anything like me, you too can relate to the feelings of terror those girls felt about gaining weight.  The crazy thoughts of being willing to do whatever it takes to be "thin".  

I have been wanting to write an article on simple tips to lose weight but, to be honest, our society does not need another article written on how to lose weight.  Don't get me wrong, as a group fitness instructor and chiropractor's wife I am all for taking care of our bodies, eating healthy and exercising. But you don't have to go searching for those articles, they simply come to you via Facebook, Google and standing in the check-out line.  Weight loss is everywhere.  So instead I am choosing to go somewhere very few are willing to go and share my own personal testimony of delivery from eating disorders and self-esteem issues(gulp).

I could write a book on my "life story of yoyo dieting" so in efforts to make this article a little shorter I want to simply highlight those moments:

• I grew up a chubby girl...ie: no one noticed me
• I lost a bunch of weight in high school...ie: lots of people noticed me and I liked it
• Went to college and dealt with starvation, binging, diet pills and over exercising.
• Got married & pregnant and realized "hmm I have a problem" when I would cry at weight gain
• I LET GOD IN TO THIS AREA OF MY LIFE
• I rediscovered food and fitness in GOD's light 
• I am healthier now than I have ever been and weigh less than I did before having 3 babies

Did you notice how the cycle ended for me?  I LET GOD IN.  I began to receive love from my Father God. If you remember one of the girls in the documentary said she doesn't know how to love others so how could she love herself?  She brings up the heart of the matter of eating disorders....if you have never known the love of your heavenly Father you will believe the lie that you must earn love from people. I believe that the enemy begins attacking us women at a very young age in the area of self image.  He knows if he can get us to believe some root lies(like our worth is only in our appearance) than we will be forever in bondage.  You see, bondage in this area of overeating, undereating, binging, purging and self hate does not end on the scale in your bathroom.  It flows over into every area of your life.  

The only way you can lose weight and keep it off is by letting Jesus into this area of your life.  I am not talking salvation but I am talking about allowing God to show you lies you have believed.  Allowing God to help you see food as health and wellness to your body rather than a bunch of calories that may make you gain weight.  

Many people who know me now, and who did not know me when I was self-hating and abusing my body, think I am a health nut.  What they don't realize is that I did not make myself that way but God did.  I did not flip the magic switch and all of the sudden crave vegetables and other healthy foods.  I did not flip a switch that keeps me from binging on Oreos and donuts.  No, that miracle was all God.  

I've learned that the more time I spend with God the less I crave junk food.  Can I be honest and tell you I still have struggles today.  In fact, that bowl of Cheerios I mentioned at the beginning of this post?  They were an emotional eating thing after a long week of sickness in our family.  Do you know that if I don't allow God into this area of my life daily that I too find myself dreaming of a box of donuts along with the crazy solution that will burn those calories off the next day?  It is a daily decision to allow God into this area of our lives.  

Will you let Him in?  Will you ask Him these hard questions:

• Are there any lies I have believed about my body and my worth?
• Do I crave food more than you?
• Do I have more faith in the latest diet than I do you?
• Have I ever truly received your love?

The weight loss secret is simple....allow God into this area.  As He downloads His love and truth into your life you will see changes in yourself that you could have never done in your own power.  Trust Him, he cares about all areas of your life and He wants to see you healthy and whole in your mind, soul, body and spirit.  

I feel like someone needs to hear this today....you are loved right where you are and you are ENOUGH(no matter your shape or size)!!