Food As a Gift from God

Excerpt from Healthy Eating, God’s Way: Weight Loss Devotional and Challenge by Cathy Morenzie

 

Day 1

Food as a Gift from God

Scripture Reflection

“And people should eat and drink and enjoy the fruits of their labor, for these are gifts from God.” ~ Ecclesiastes 3:13

Overview

My husband often wishes that he could just take a pill everyday that fills his belly so he does not have to think about food. To him, food is an annoyance and an inconvenience that interrupts his day. I’m the exact opposite…from the moment I wake up, I think about food. It’s one of the highlights of my day and, unlike my hubby, I think that much of my life is centered around it. Because it’s that important for me, it’s important that it’s nutritious.

If you’re anything like me, food fills your thoughts, conversations, time, and energy. Whether it’s planning, tracking, shopping, preparing, or eating, the goal is to eat nutritious, nourishing foods that leave me feeling satisfied and content.

Despite how much attention we give food, we are no wiser about how to stop ourselves from the lure of an un-nutritious foods, or how we’re to eat to maintain a healthy weight once we have achieved it.

It’s enough for us to want to surrender with the white flag and say, “Pass the Häagen-Dazs!”

We’re so busy trying to figure out calories, points, and the latest low-carb foods that it allows the enemy to have a field day with us. He’s won again by keeping us distracted and focusing on minutiae that was never meant to take up so much of our time.

We’ve made food a mystery to be solved, a puzzle to be pieced together, and a vault to be entered into with a magical combination. But it’s so much more than any of these approaches. Food is a gift from God (Ecc. 3:13) and the sooner we can see it from this perspective, the sooner we will be free from the bondage of food and its minions of guilt, shame, and bewilderment.

So just how do you have a conversation about healthy eating without making food the enemy? That’s what we’re about to explore.

This devotional will give a biblical approach to healthy eating—especially as it relates to weight release. More importantly, it will give you the freedom to enjoy the nutritious food without turning it into a production, feeling like you need a degree in food science to figure it all out. You will learn that you can eat in a way that honors God as you learn to honor your temple. Though the Bible doesn’t specifically talk about eating for weight release, there are numerous passages that talk about food, dietary practices, gluttony, discipline, self-control, eating clean food, cooking food and specific foods—all essential topics related to healthy eating.

Someone once wisely said that “there is only one way to eat an elephant: a bite at a time.” This means that everything in life that seems overwhelmingly and even impossible can be at a time. That’s exactly how you will approach this devotional and challenge. One day at a time, one small challenge at a time. Each day will introduce you to one small principle that you will practice for that day. Surely you can do anything for just one day, right?

Get ready to challenge yourself each day. Get ready to discover how to eat healthfully and how to make choices that honor God with your body! Know that this important decision about what is “healthy” has to do with more than just the nutrition facts label! You will discover how your health impacts your body, soul, AND spirit.

In this devotional you will:

• Develop an appreciation of God’s gift of food
• Practice a daily healthy eating challenge
• Understand what you’re really craving
• Develop a biblical model for healthy weight release
• Study what God’s Word says about food and healthy eating
• Learn how to put and keep food in its proper place in your life
• Practice healthy eating habits

Action

Just for today… Start the process by establishing a starting point. Sign up for MyFitnessPal, or another tracking tool. Watch this training video to learn how:

weightlossgodsway.com/myfitnesspal

Reflect

1. What’s your biggest challenge with healthy eating? Emotional eating? Portion control? Late-night eating?

Prayer

“Lord, I thank You that You and You alone will satisfy me. Despite my attempts to find the right foods to end these cravings, I know that true satisfaction can only come from You. So as I embark on this time of searching for the right foods and right diets, remind me that it’s not about what I eat that will make me feel whole, but what You can and will do in my life when I lay down all of my idols and everything that keeps me from having fellowship with You. As I discover new insights in this devotional, remind me that information without revelation from You will not transform me, so I continue to press into You. I feed on Your Word and move away from everything that keeps me from having sweet communion with You. It’s Your Word that I’m really craving, and I purpose to stay full of it each and every day. In Your Holy Name, I pray. Amen!”

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