Diet IS a 4 Letter Word ~
Let’s be rebels! Let’s not diet anymore. Let’s not swap healthy foods for low calorie chemical filled replacements. Let’s drink 1 pop instead of 6 diet pops (that’s soda or coke for my friends outside of the Northeast Ohio Region). Let’s eat 1 real normal size cookie (usually around 70 calories) instead of the pack of 15 to 20 small pieces of flavored crackers that are found in the 100-calorie pack). Let’s focus on eating the things that God created for us to eat, instead of the processed, pre-packaged food that big industry creates. Let’s keep in mind that God loves us and wants us to thrive and that big business doesn’t know or care about us and just wants to make money.
Trust me, I’ve been there! I have 3, now adult, daughters. I was, I am a working mom, with 3 girls – born 11 months apart. Since 2 of them are twins, I essentially had 3 babies at the same time J. I bought the pre-packaged, processed foods, because I wanted the quick fix meal, the easy snack, and the grab and go. At the same time, I starved myself, and ate a lot of ‘diet’ foods – because I wanted to be as thin as I was before babies. I now regret both decisions, and here’s why.
As an adult who is no longer sleep deprived, I have the ability to see things a little clearer than I did when my kids were young. As an adult, I struggle with several chronic illnesses that have negatively impacted my overall health and wellbeing. I believe at least some of those chronic illnesses, are the result of the chemicals I ingested while trying to stay thin. My motives for staying thin were to be thin so I would be visually appealing to others, and so that I would like how I looked, when I looked in the mirror. I had no thought of being healthy; no thought of taking care of the body that God gave me, because He gave it to me. I had one motive, which was the result of me believing people would only truly like me if I were thin. Crazy you say? Well, back when I was a kid, and when I was a young adult, people often made fun of those of us that were not thin. Those comments, from people I knew, from the media, from magazine ads and articles, the list goes on and on…. Those comments combined with my own lack of confidence, resulted in me ingesting food that was low calorie but not necessarily healthy. At the time, I did not truly know God, nor did I have real respect for myself. I thought I did, but I didn’t.
As an adult, who has recently had and taken the opportunity to build a relationship with God, to better understand who He is, and what He would like from each of us, I have come to really respect my body and myself. I realize it is just as easy to cook a few chicken breasts with some fresh vegetables, and fresh fruit to serve as a meal for my family as it is to open the pack of pre-packaged macaroni and cheese, or frozen meal, and cook it up. In the long run, this would have been healthier for both my family and me.
I do think the bag of cheerios is a great grab and go for the kids when they are babies. I did not realize, though, how many awesome grab and go foods God has made for us too though. Perhaps I was unable to clearly see all that God has provided, because I was not really a true believer until this past year. I don’t know. I see now though that God has made so many grab and go items for us; including fresh fruits, vegetables, and nuts. Water is the best beverage, I do have a filter pitcher at home, since we humans have done much to tarnish the quality of the water that we have available to us. I realize now that God created us, in His image no less, AND God really loves us! Why would He create us, and not effectively provide for us? The best food for us, the healthiest food for us, is the food God created for us!
I no longer want to be thin to impress others. I no longer even care if I am thin. I would like to not gain additional weight because I don’t want to have to go out and spend money on more cloths, but that is quite different than hating myself for being large. This is a HUGE (no pun intended) mental accomplishment for me. I am 52 years old and have struggled with body image and weight issues since I was 9 years old, which was the first time I remember being made fun of for my weight.
I now just want to be healthy. I want to eat the food God has provided, because God entrusted me with this body. He wants me to take care of it, so I can live a long life and tell others about how absolutely awesome He is. I want to show my respect for God, by taking care of this body, because He gave it to me. I want it to last a long time, so I can share His message with as many people as possible, and so I can be there for my family and my friends when they need me. I want to see my kids, and my grand kids and my great grand kids grow.
Most of all, I want to let everyone know how great God is!
~debbie
