Craving What?

“The rabble with them began to crave other food, and again the Israelites started wailing and said, ‘If only we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost—also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic. But now we have lost our appetite; we never see anything but this manna!’” (Numbers 11:4-6 NIV).

Do you ever crave a food? What do you crave? Craving is an all-consuming desire. Women who have experienced pregnancy probably can share something they craved. Sometimes there are other health factors that create cravings. If you desire chewing ice it may be a sign that you are anemic. There may be others; please share. 

Though I’m no longer pregnant or anemic, ice cream is my nearly constant craving. Is it the dairy content or the creamy, smooth, comfort food characteristic? I wish there was some physical reason I crave ice cream but I’m afraid it is just its cool deliciousness.

Imagine the life of a prisoner of war being fed a basic minimalistic meal of bread and water. I wonder if he/she craved anything specific. I can’t really imagine being lost in the desert and provided one thing to eat for weeks, months, or even 40 years!

I’m pretty sure I would have been one of those complaining, not thanking God for His provision every day like clockwork. Not thanking God for doing all the work of preparation and delivery of a healthy meal that was filling and nourishing.

God is so good to us, even when we don’t appreciate it. Although we can’t eat a diet of candy bars or sweet cakes and pies and brownies and lasagna and chicken and noodles and prime rib and ice cream all day long, every day, we canmake choices, healthy choices that will give our bodies what they need to function and be strong.

Thank you, God for helping us appreciate what we have. Help us make the decisions that are best for our physical and mental health. And thank you for ice cream, too.

By Gloria D. Stewart

Caring for our temples

Caring for our Temples

This week the Holy Spirit placed on my mind the verse “Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit.” (1Cor.6:19, NIV)  As I reflected on this verse I have to first of all, determine what is a temple?  In my thinking, it is a holy place, a sacred place, a place of worship and adoration.

            Wow!  That makes me stop and really think—a holy place, a sacred place.  How does one take care of a holy place?  Certainly with reverence, maintaining it well.

            I need, to tenderly, lovingly care for my body, a holy place.

            Then, I realized I had to determine how to do that.  I think the answer is found in the mantra we’ve heard for years:  rest (7 to 8 hours of sleep a night), exercise (250 minutes a week), and eat a healthy diet is a partial answer to the question

            That last one is where we Americans can so easily get tripped up.  Watch TV for two hours in the evening and record how many food ads you see about unhealthy foods (i.e., junk food).  Open a Good Housekeeping magazine or a Woman’s Day magazine and count the food ads for unhealthy foods.  We’re bombarded with “Buy this; no, buy this.”

            When we enter the middle aisles of a supermarket, the potato chips, Oreos, chocolate chip cookies or Twinkies almost jump off the shelves into our carts.  We justify buying them with, “Well, Bill or Bonnie (spouse) likes chips,” or “The kids love Oreos.” 

            The question is this:  Does Bill or Bonnie or the kids need the junk food any more than we do?  Of course not, for their bodies are “temples of the Holy Spirit” also.  Since we are all members of the Body of Christ it’s up to all of us to care for and about ourselves and each other.  We need to tenderly, lovingly care for our temple and help others care for theirs.

                                                                                                            Sharon Witty

                                                                                                            August 16, 2018

Inside Out

Last time Sharon shared that we need to call on Jesus sooner in our struggles with food. And do we ever have struggles!

Society doesn’t make eating healthy easy, does it? Turn on the television and commercials bombard our minds with tempting-looking, steaming hot pizza and juicy burgers, with melted cheese stretching across the screen. Restaurants call us in with bargain prices and banners or posters with bigger-than-life meals. Every grocery aisle is packed with displays of sweet treats, yummy-looking baked goods and store-made desserts. Magazines are filled with perfectly manicured foods that lure us into the quicksand of empty calories.

“Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you,” (Romans 12:2 MSG).

Scripture tells us we need to fix our attention on God (away from the TV and flashing signs of distraction) and allow Him to change us from the inside (where our stomachs and brains are). Let’s allow God to bring out the best in us. He will give us the ability to calm our cravings, choose healthy options, take a walk around the block, and make mature choices. 

We aren’t alone in this walk. We have a life-partner in Jesus Christ who can help us through all our struggles. And Sharon and I are here, too.

Blessings,

Gloria D. Stewart

Pride

This past weekend became a difficult one.  Oh, not on the outside.  Someone watching me may have commented, “Sharon’s having a good weekend,” as she observed me buying healthy foods at the Farmer’s Market, then finding bargains at a yard sale and even sitting on my patio, reading a fictional novel.

            But the watcher would not have been able to see the battle going on in my mind and heart, a battle between food cravings and me.  Had oatmeal raisin cookies, caramel nut ice cream and/or Fritos to be found in my cupboards or freezer, I’m not sure they would have still been there at 9 p.m. on Sunday.

            Did I turn to the Holy Spirit during this battle?  Nope.  I kept fighting on my own power, which was exhausting.  Finally, finally, I cried out to the Lord, “What is going on?”

            The answer came quickly, “You’re bored.”  That answer was right on.  I had been looking to myself as to what I needed or wanted to do, rather than asking the Holy Spirit, “What next?”

            Paul tells us in 1 Thessalonians to “Pray without ceasing” (5:17, New American Bible).  Personally, I don’t think this means to be using words all the time, but to be aware of God’s constant presence, of the Holy One’s unfailing love.

            What would have happened had I cried out “Jesus, help me,” early on during my struggle?  I suspect help would have come, my cravings ceased and peace descended into my heart.

            Now I pray this lesson learned be a lesson applied.

                                                                                                                        Sharon Witty

                                                                                                                        July 19, 2018

What About Portion Control?

Sharon Witty and I started this blog one year ago at the end of July. So Sharon will get the honor of writing an anniversary blog in two weeks. In 24 blogs we have discussed eating, dieting, and trusting God in many different ways, but I haven’t discussed one of my problem areas: portion control until today.

I have been using a small dinner plate for several months now, to try and scale (ugh) back the size of my portions. But, that isn’t working very successfully so I think it is time to start weighing my portions. There are some healthy foods (mostly vegetables and fruits) that I have been serving up rather liberally. It’s time to reel in the elastic pants and faithfully measure my food. I’m nearing a nice weight loss goal (one of several on my journey) but it has taken me far too long to reach it. I need to step up my progress and portion size may be key to achieving it.

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship” (Romans 12:1 NIV).

God wants me to be transformed in His image. I still have a long process of change ahead of me. I’ll never be perfect like Jesus, but my life is a constant gradient of striving toward that impossible goal. God wants to help me every step of the way. I just need to surrender to His will and do everything I can to move forward, even when I end up backsliding for a stretch.

We never face the struggles of our lives alone. God is with us, even when I’m reluctantly setting up the food scale on my counter. He will count it all joy. And so will I.

Gloria D. Stewart

I am sooooooooo. . .

I am sooooooooo. . .

“I am so angry.  I am so overwhelmed.  I am so tired.  I am so hurt.  I am so depressed.”

Do these statements of emotions sound familiar to you?  This morning as I write, I wonder—how many times do we overeat because of our emotions?

On Thursday, Friday and Saturday of last week, Gloria and I and Marilyn Schuler from Grinnell attended the Cedar Falls Christian Writers Conference.  Having attended this conference last year, I looked forward to gaining information to help me improve my writing skills and to be inspired to write, write, write.

By Thursday evening, my mind was swirling with information—What did it mean to me to be a successful writer?  What does my heart want me to write? Media in which to publish. . .  Overstimulation caused limited hours of poor sleep.

On Friday, further information swirled through my head—The Five Love Languages for Writers, Creating my Digital Footprint by Using Social Media, Travel Writing. . .By dinnertime my brain was scrambled and my head ached.

Sitting next to Gloria at dinner, eating my second serving of spinach manicotti, I asked, “Why do I get so hungry at these events?”  Quickly, I realized the answer to my question, “I’m not hungry.  I’m eating to stuff down my fatigue, my being overwhelmed, my ignorance.”

My subconscious brain had been asking, ‘How can I comfort myself, make myself feel better?  FOOD!  Of Course’!

As I’ve reflected on emotional eating, I’ve had various thoughts.  The need to begin my day with prayer, asking the Holy Spirit to give me strength and guide me in what I do, say, think, feel—and eat.  And to keep my mind focused on Jesus 24/7 as Paul reminds us in Colossians 3:2, “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” (NIV)

If I do this, I pray I can take those emotions to Jesus and talk them over with the Holy One.

                                                                                                                        Sharon Witty

                                                                                                                        June 21, 2018

P.S.  The conference was wonderful with inspiring speakers and fellow participants.

Catch Up Days

Recently, I’ve been doing better on my healthy plan - logging my food, exercising, eating the right foods most of the time, and staying active. But, I’ve noticed I still have one bad day a week. Usually it follows several really good days or a day of heavy exercise. I feel like those bad days undo all the work I’ve done the rest of the week.

So I need to control myself some how on those “catch up days”. Do you have days like that? When you feel you could eat anything in sight or within reach? Maybe our bodies are trying to tell us something. And we should listen. Did I have enough protein the day before? What did I miss on my plate? Was it a balanced diet? Am I constipated? It’s always good to stop and ask yourself why? And it would be best to stop myself before I have the day of non-stop eating.

There are always challenges. Right now these “catch up days” are my problem. I’m searching for answers and will try to do better in the weeks ahead. The important thing is to not give up. ‘Don’t throw the baby out in the bathwater’…so they say. 

Take heart, the Bible says, “The righteous eat to their hearts’ content, but the stomach of the wicked goes hungry,” (Proverbs 13:25 NIV).

Have a blessed day.

Gloria D. Stewart