Excerpt from Transcending the Everyday Temptations of
Overeating
Part One—There is a better way
Battle weary
We are very weary in the struggle with overeating. We
wage this battle every day while discarded days of defeat mount up rapidly
behind us. Yet each day seems like an eternity when resisting temptation.
We're tired of the familiar pattern in the quest for weight
loss: pick yourself up from the last failed attempt, motivate to begin again,
learn a new strategy, apply willpower, then keep on self-monitoring. Each new
attempt meets with ever-diminishing success. Whether we have ten pounds to lose
or one hundred, the pattern is the same.
Occasionally, we see someone emerge victorious, looking
healthy and slim. We view them with a mixture of jealousy and admiration.
Chances are we had some glory days too. Somehow, we managed to summon the
enthusiasm and discipline to conquer the problem, at least temporarily. Yet, we
know that trouble lies ahead for that new victor. There will be a gradual
lessening of motivation, a growing tendency to cheat on the diet,
ever-weakening willpower, and more excuses for not exercising.
We long to give up on the battle and turn our attention
to other matters. But how can we? Do we give ourselves over to decreasing
mobility, discomfort, and susceptibility to disease-not to mention the
depressing search for bigger clothes? Do we just smile and accept ourselves
while we continue to abuse our bodies with too much food?
Why is it that there are countless numbers of competent
people, who are disciplined in so many ways, yet totally at the mercy of this
temptation? This one, very basic aspect of life has become a never-ending,
losing battle.
We search through stacks of diet books for answers. We
listen to talk shows for a bit of sage advice. We scan the covers of magazines
for clues. People step forward to tell us their stories, and there are many
suggestions that make sense. A few years ago, I read an opinion page in a
national magazine, written by a man who had solved his overeating problem.
Every time he wanted to reach for food, he sat down until his feelings of
anxiety subsided. He concluded that, if everyone did that, there'd be far fewer
weight problems. I wish that were so. He's lucky he has just one reason he
overeats; and to his credit, he found a way to stop his pattern. Many
overeaters are not so fortunate. We must fight the battle on many different
fronts.
We're helplessly confused in the complexity of the
problem. We overeat for a variety of reasons. As soon as we subdue one reason,
another rises up and tackles us from behind. We eat to calm ourselves in
emotional stress. We celebrate with food. We eat to relieve boredom. We eat
when we feel insecure. We love to taste, chew, and warm ourselves with food. We
examine ourselves and search out the reasons for our behavior. It's apparent
that eating has become the catchall response to any kind of discomfort, need,
or longing.
Food surrounds us constantly, keeping us in a perpetual
state of conflict. It's exhausting to referee these clashing desires. We
desperately want freedom from the prison of this inner struggle. We long for
some reliable measure of self-mastery amidst temptation. Yet, the power to
succeed has completely vanished.
In the numbness of confusion and weakness, we realize
that only God can help us. We know we can't fight this on our own anymore.
We've stretched the limits of our human capacity to change. We feel powerless.
We've been knocked down one too many times, and we can't stand up. With fervent
longing, we turn to God. And he is there. We are not alone and we need God
desperately.
Tragedy and temptation make us realize that we need God. In crashing waves of tragedy and dangerous whirlpools of temptation, we reach for the hand of God.
O Lord, all my longing is known to you; my sighing is not
hidden from you.
My heart throbs, my strength fails me;
As for the light of my eyes-it also has gone from me.
Psalm 38:9-10
End of excerpt from Part One of Transcending the Everyday
Temptations of Overeating
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