My deadly sin

I woke up at 4am on Sunday and could not go back to sleep. I tossed and turned in bed and after nearly an hour, I decided to get up. I began to do my devotions and really felt God speaking to me about something that I have struggled with for a long time. It is one of those hidden sins that most people struggle with but never admit to. It is a subject that is rarely mentioned in Christian circles, but gluttony is mentioned as being one of the deadly sins.

St. Thomas Aquinas described gluttony as: eating too soon, eating too expensively, eating too much, eating too eagerly, eating too daintily, and eating wildly. I think that all of us could say that we fit this description on a regular basis.

My personal struggle is eating too much sugar.....I just can't get enough of it. It is especially hard for me to be self controlled at night. I'm usually really tired after a busy day, just wrestled the kids to bed, and am wanting something to satisfy the palate. I end up consuming and consuming. I've felt an inner struggle about my lack of control for a long time. I attempted on my own to free myself of this struggle and I failed time after time. It was finally on an early Sunday morning that I began to study God's word, research the topics online, and realized that I had failed to include God as a solution to my problem. I won't ever see success until I give this struggle to him.

I found a great resource online that gave steps for overcoming gluttony. I failed to write down the source and can't give the author credit, but I printed this out and have it posted on my refrigerator. I plan to read through it every day as needed to help remind myself of what I need to do to overcome my problem. Just because someone is at a healthy weight, it does not mean that they don't struggle with some type of overeating.

Here are some helps to overcoming weight problems which usually come about through lack of knowledge or lack of discipline or lust for food:

(1). First, repent for yielding to the temptation of lust for food.
(Phil 3:19, "Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things.)

(2). Then, submit to God and ask Him for the power to overcome gluttony through His Holy Spirit and resist the devil through prayer and obedience to God.
(James 4:7, "Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you".)

(3.) Next, ask for God's plan for your weight loss. Allow Him to lead you as to what He wants you to do. He knows your body and He will direct you as to how you are to eat. Ask for a desire for healthy foods and ask Him to remove your cravings for unhealthy foods.
(1 John 5:14-15, "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us-whatever we ask-we know that we have what we asked of him".)

(4.) Daily, thank God for setting you free and do not allow the devil to discourage you by his condemning whispers to your mind. Sometimes the Lord does a quick work at other times it may be slower. Don't be discouraged even if at times it seems slow or you fail occasionally.. Remember, this came "little by little" and it is sometimes more healthy to lose it "little by little" (Losing as little as 2 lbs. a month amounts to 24 lbs. in a year). In the process you will be developing new habits and disciplines that will eventually become established eating patterns.
(Romans 8:1-4, "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering . And so he condemned sin in sinful man, in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit".)

(5.) Add fasting periodically as the Lord leads. Even fasting one meal or one day a week will help in disciplining your body to be subject to your spirit man.
(Matthew 6:17-18, "But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret will reward you.".)

1 Corinthians 6:19-20, "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body!".

I am learning that I can honor God by enjoying ALL foods, but eating them in appropriate quantities. God calls us to control our appetites, rather than allowing them to control us. "Let your moderation be known to all men. The Lord is at hand". Philippians 4:5

What about you? Do you struggle with this? Do you feel convicted to make a change?