Finding food for the soul
A visitor to our sites shared this with us:
"I struggle with compulsive overeating. When I’m bored, stressed, depressed, joyful, (or for almost any reason really), I will turn to food as a way to deal with whatever emotion I may be feeling. I subconsciously try to feed my heart with physical food.
I am learning to deal with the inner issues of my heart, to feed it first with truly satisfying soul food. Otherwise, my instinct is to turn to physical food, which doesn’t satisfy and often even makes me feel worse inside. Jesus said, “I am the Bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry; he who believes in me will never thirst.” (John 6:35) I’m learning to digest this truth and let it nourish my life. When I am full of Jesus – his words, his teachings, his truth, his love – my spirit is satisfied and I am less prone to overeat. And I am less prone to try to satisfy my inner heart with other fleeting pursuits like approval of others or success in the eyes of my peers. Jesus’ words are life."
This person found the power to change something that was holding them prisoner. What is it in your life that you feel powerless to overcome on your own?
3 Responses to “Finding food for the soul”
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POWER TO CHANGE MINISTRIES © 2008
October 17th, 2007 at 10:53 am
I spent many years of my life struggling with an eating disorder. It was overwhelming at times as I realized I lacked the ability to separate truth from lies when it came to perceptions of myself. With a lot of hard work, I broke free from the prison of my mind by learning that I was responsible for EVERY thought! I actually could stop myself and review the thought I had just had, define it as a lie (often writing it down) and then writing the truth beside it. It was difficult to realize that I was the only person who could make me well. This applies to many lies we tend to believe and act on. Freedom is really one thought away (each time it comes)
October 17th, 2007 at 2:01 pm
I felt encouraged and empowered reading your story, Kara! Sometimes I would prefer to say I don’t have any control over what’s happening so that I don’t have to make the tough changes. What you said about being responsible for my thoughts really made me think. Not wanting to own my actions is often what stops me from having victory. For me it’s my pride: I don’t want to admit the choices I have been making or the thoughts I’ve been allowing to control my life are my own and are continuing because I’m not taking action.
But I also know that the journey of change doesn’t begin and end with me. In the Bible, in a book called Romans (chapter 7), which was written by a man named Paul, he talks about being frustrated with himself for not being able to do what he knows he should and constantly doing what he knows he shouldn’t. He’s caught in this place of frustration because he’s come to a point where he knows who he wants to be and he even knows what he is suppose to be doing, yet he seems powerless to stop being a man he hates. I have read this chapter many times because I have felt that way: frustrated with myself because I couldn’t seem to make the changes on my own.
I know the conclusions I have come to and I can share more about that but maybe you could tell me, Kara, more about how this experience was for you. Have you ever felt like that in your battle with an eating disorder?
April 10th, 2008 at 7:57 pm
I have the same sort of struggle. I have recently realized that I tend towards food before I tend towards God when I am upset emotionally or feeling unloved. I know that I need Jesus to fill the void I am feeling, but honestly, I haven’t been feeling full for a long time. Even when I read the Bible, when I pray heartfelt to God, I don’t know what to do anymore. I feel like giving up; everything I try fails, and I still feel empty inside.