How to be Victorious in Losing Weight for the Last Time
I have an awful weed spreading furiously over the rock landscaping around our house.
The rock has landscape fabric underneath so there can’t be that much dirt between the stones for this weed to get a hold of.
Really, it should be a piece of cake to pull out.
But it’s not.
The roots aren’t that impressive, but every time I try to pull it by the leaves, they tear off, leaving the root behind and allow the plant to keep spreading.
It drives me NUTS!
Yes, I can tear off all the leaves and make the rocks look nicer for about two days, but after that, the weed is back AND with a vengeance.
This weed is a lot like weight loss.
Sure, we can lose weight.
We look better for a short time.
Then we fall back into old patterns and habits. Pretty soon, the weight we lost (and usually more) is back. Along with the weight, our commitment, our resolve, or our belief in God’s good plan for our life has significantly diminished.
All because we just pulled at the leaves.
We never got to the root.
What is the root of weight loss?
Good question, friend!
The root of weight loss is what we BELIEVE (the thoughts we think over and over).
- If we believe that we are fat, we will take actions that make us fat.
- If we believe that food is meant to soothe us, we will use food to comfort us.
- If we believe that exercise is too hard, we will make exercise too hard for us to do.
On the other hand...
- If we believe that our bodies are precious temples, we will take actions that show our bodies are precious.
- If we believe that food is meant to fuel our bodies, we will use food as fuel.
- If we believe that exercise can be fun and rewarding, we will make exercise fun and rewarding.
Losing weight and keeping it off comes from a very different place than just losing weight.
One focuses on the actions we need to take.
One focuses on our mind that changes the actions we take.
I love how the Easy Read Version captures this…
We live in this world, but we don’t fight our battles in the same way the world does. The weapons we use are not human ones. Our weapons have power from God and can destroy the enemy’s strong places. We destroy people’s arguments, and we tear down every proud idea that raises itself against the knowledge of God. We also capture every thought and make it give up and obey Christ. 2 Corinthians 10:3-5
Don’t try to lose weight as the world loses weight. It is a losing battle (haha, get the pun 😉).
Satan doesn’t want you to get to the root of the problem. You might actually fix it and never be overweight again. You might even ditch the shame, guilt, frustration, and exhaustion for confidence, joy, and energy leading to being a light for Christ and following his calling for your life.
My most fervent prayer is that Christian women will internalize this to their core and fight back.
The enemy won’t win the war; we know this. But, don’t let him win this battle either.
