5/22/10 The Battle For Balance Continues....

I guess with all these changes in my food and exercise habits comes the awkwardness of adaption - the desire to pull away and go back to where I was.  Sometimes I feel completely on top of this healthier new lifestyle and other times I seem to barely stay afloat when my old, less-than-healthy habitual self cries out "What about me?"  "Did you forget about my needs?"  That's when I'm most vulnerable to overeat or make an addictive food choice.  

                                
For a couple weeks I had some sugar free candy and pudding on hand for those less than courageous moments.  It's funny but when I'm on my trips for work I don't battle that little food addict's voice like I do once I'm home in my familiar territory and daily life.  Looks like I have more praying and work to do on kicking the psychological side of food addiction.  

"If we allow the Bible to reveal the unseen spiritual realities behind addictions, we suddenly realize that addictions are more than self-destructive behaviors. They are violations of God’s laws: His laws that call us to avoid drunkenness and immoderate self-indulgence (Rom. 13:13), His law that calls us to love others (1 John 4:7), and His law that calls us to live for Him rather than ourselves (1 Cor. 10:31). This means that addiction is more about someone’s relationship with God than it is about biology. It reveals our allegiances: what we want, what we love, whom and what we serve. It brings us to that all-important question, “Will you live for the fulfillment of your desires or for God?" Edward T. Welch "Blame in on the Brain?" P&R Publishing, 1998, p. 193.

 When I start to lean too much on myself, I get a reality check that I can't do it alone.  Packing food from home for my trips is helpful and so is having good food in the pantry, but without dependence on the Lord and His Holy Spirit dwelling within me, my personal resolve only goes so far.

I am strengthened most by reading God's Word and standing in His promises.  Prayer is another powerful exercise of faith and trust that lays the foundation for each day.