Are You Comfortable?

Do you ever say you’ll do something for God and then have second thoughts when you find out how hard it is?

I’m guessing that’s how Peter felt when he found himself walking on the water in the midst of a raging storm. What have I gotten myself into?

His enthusiasm for Jesus was enough to get him out of the boat, but it wasn’t enough to sustain him once he got an eyeful of the waves.

What strikes me about this passage* is that Peter wouldn’t have been in such a pickle if he hadn’t loved Jesus so much. If he had just stayed in his nice, safe, comfortable boat, he wouldn’t have been in a position to panic.

It was when he loved Jesus enough to get out of the boat that all his troubles started.

I see this at work in my own life. I want life to be easy. I want it to be comfortable. But I also love God, and He keeps asking me to do things that are uncomfortable and difficult.

The worst thing I can do—and it’s often the thing I find myself doing—is to say yes to God, leap out of the boat, and then forget about Him while I look in dismay at all the waves lapping at my feet.

Especially when Jesus is standing there with His hand reaching out to take hold of me.

It’s the worst of both worlds. Not only do I miss out on the comfort of the boat, I also miss out on the comfort of His arms wrapped around me in the midst of the storm.

Not to mention the fact that I can’t walk on water without His help.

Like Peter, I need to be reminded to grab hold of His hand.

Today—thanks to His help in the middle of the night—I’m remembering.

And even though I’m uncomfortable . . . I’m comfortable.


* Matthew 14:23-33

Breaking Free from Strongholds: Are you expecting too much too soon?

Imagine this: you’re sitting at your desk sipping a vanilla latte when your boss walks in. He sits down, leans forward, and says, Joni, I have a job for you. I want you to run in a marathon eight weeks from today.

How would you respond?

Need Help Renewing Your Mind?

I can do easy things through Him who doesn't need to give me strength because I can do them on my own.

Wait a minute . . . did I quote that right?

No. Let me try again.

I can do fun things though Him who doesn’t need to give me strength because I actually like to do them.

No. That’s not it either.

Wait a minute . . . I have it:

I can do . . . all . . . things through Him who gives me strength.

In a follow-your-passion, life-should-be-easy world, I keep forgetting I can do all things through Him who gives me strength.

Instead, I think that if it’s not easy, I can’t do it.

And if it’s not fun, I shouldn’t do it.

So I tend to avoid things that aren’t in the fun and easy category.

Just like some people avoid things that aren’t productive. And others avoid things that make them uncomfortable.

I have one thing working in my favor, though: Renewing my mind is fun and easy for me. I actually like doing it.

So even though I think writing is hard and boring, I’m willing to sit and renew my mind so God can change my attitude towards writing.

And even though I think eating with control is hard and boring, I’m willing to sit and renew my mind so God can change my attitude about eating.

But what if you’re a person who thinks that renewing your mind is hard and boring?

That’s a problem.

Because if you think renewing your mind is hard and boring—or unproductive and uncomfortable—you won't do it.

The thought will pop into your head, I should really renew my mind, but it will be immediately followed by another thought:

No, that’s too much work.

Or that doesn’t sound very fun.

Or I really should get that project done first. I’ll renew my mind later.

Those thoughts will keep you from renewing your mind, just like my thoughts left to their own devices keep me from writing.

So what’s the solution?

I think the solution is to renew your mind about the renewing of your mind.

Look at it this way. When I see writing from God’s perspective, I actually want to write, even though it’s not fun and easy.

Likewise, if you see the renewing of the mind from God’s perspective, you’ll actually want to renew your mind even if it’s not fun and easy.

If you want help on how to see the renewing of the mind from a biblical perspective, check out this post: How to Make Yourself Truth Journal. The post is on truth journaling but it could also apply to Scripture prayers or quiet times.

I’ve also spent the last year working on another tool that's easier for some people to use than truth journaling. I’m not sure when I’ll be able to get that out, but it could be soon if I decide to put it into an e-book or self-publish.

Since I find all parts of the writing/publishing process to be hard and non-fun, I would really appreciate your prayers on figuring out what to do next with this new tool.

I hope you have a good week renewing your mind.

And if you’re tempted to think, Maybe I should clean the house, instead, tell yourself, No, it would be more productive to clean my mind.

(I know, lame ending. Why can’t I resist lame endings?)

Are You Tired of the Struggle?

I’m just so sick of the struggle. I feel like I’ve been fighting this battle my whole life and I’ll never get over it.

Those are the words of a dear woman in one of my Bible studies last week. She had been renewing her mind for about six months, had already experienced quite a bit of victory, and then slipped back into defeat for a few days.

She was frustrated and discouraged.

Can you relate to her? I remember feeling that way for more than twenty years, on and off, including the early days of renewing my mind about eating.

If this is how you’re feeling today, I want to encourage you. Here are a few questions that help me when I'm going through a tough battle. I'm hoping they'll help you, too:

1) Are you expecting it to be easy?

It’s natural to get caught up in unrealistic expectations for quick and easy success, but those expectations can get you down. Think of it this way: if you’ve been overeating for thirty years, you’ve got thirty years of lies to dig through on your way to recovery.

It’s going to take awhile to dig through all those lies.

If you’re tempted to get discouraged, think of a stock market chart. Even the best stocks out there never go up in a smooth, continuous line. It’s always up, then down, then up again. That’s how your battle with eating will be.

2) How long have you been using spiritual weapons to fight the battle?

The woman in my class had been fighting the battle for thirty years but she’d only been using spiritual weapons for six months. So in a sense, she’d really only been fighting the battle for six months. Remember 2 Corinthians 10:3-5? If it’s a spiritual battle, you need spiritual weapons to fight it. Thirty years of dieting isn’t the same as thirty years of fighting lies with truth.

3) How diligent have you been with your weapons?

Sometimes we think we’re working on a problem when we’re really just obsessing over a problem. Here’s a question I ask myself sometimes just to keep myself honest:

On a scale of 1 to 10, how much effort are you putting into renewing your mind?

I can tell you from experience that I see almost no change when my number is less than a 5, very little change when it’s less than an 8, and lots of change when it’s a 9 or a 10. So what do I do if I really want to change? I make it a 9 or 10.

4) How often are you using your weapons?

The more I work on issues in my own life, the more I realize: if I want to change, I need to renew my mind every time the issue comes up. Even if the issue comes up so often I’m sick to death of renewing my mind about it.

It’s a lot of work, but it’s worth it. Not only because I’m breaking free from my obsessions, but also because I’m growing closer to the One who loves me and longs to show me the way to victory.

5) What are your motives?

I’m hesitant to include this last question because I think if we have the wrong motives, God shows us when we renew our minds. But it might be worth thinking about.

Here’s why: If we’re only going to God so He can make us skinny, He might not be inclined to change us. Why? Because if we feel like we have to have skinny, there's a good chance we're making an idol of skinny. And God doesn't want us to have any idols.

He knows that only in Him will we find lasting peace and joy. So He may decide to help us find peace and joy by not giving us skinny until we can handle it.

I hope these questions will encourage you to persevere in the battle even if you’re exhausted. I’m going through a battle of my own right now, not with food, but with some other things God wants me to give up.

Why don’t we press on together?

If It Don't Come Easy, You Gotta Let It Go

It’s been more than twenty years since Tanya Tucker came out with her hit, but the song’s message lives on: If it don’t come easy, you gotta let it go.

She was talking about relationships, but how often are we tempted to apply the same principle to eating?

Bored with my boundaries? Gotta let it go.

Tired of renewing my mind? Gotta let it go.

Frustrated with the whole battle? Gotta let it go.

The song is fun, but I’m not sure it’s scriptural.

Think of what Jesus said to His disciples: If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross and follow Me. *

That doesn’t sound like a Man who would say, If it don’t come easy, you gotta let it go.

We all have days we want to let it go.

Those are the days we need to renew our minds more than ever. Press into God. Let Him replace those song lyrics running through our minds with the truth of His Word.

And always remember: If it don’t come easy, it’s an opportunity to grow. (Sorry, I couldn’t resist.)

To think about: Are boundaries usually easy to follow, or do have to give up something to follow them? Is Christ usually easy to follow, or do you usually have to give up something to follow Him?

*Matthew 16:24

P.S. You may have noticed I'm back to writing my blog. It's not coming easy, but I'm going to try not to let it go!

P.P. S. If you want to watch a good video by Francis Chan on growing through trials, check out this link: The Holy Spirit's Power and Our Effort - Part One.

Hopelessness

Have you ever felt hopeless when it comes to your eating issues? I felt that way for years, and I’ve had many other women tell me they felt the same way. You fail over and over again, and it’s hard to believe you’ll ever break free of it.

I’ve been truth journaling for eight years now, and God has used it to help me break free from worry, resentment, discontentment, living up to the expectations of others, and emotional eating. By far, the hardest one of those to deal with was the emotional eating. In fact, if God hadn’t given me success in some of those other areas first, I don’t know if I would have believed that it was possible to also experience success with emotional eating.

I’m having the same struggle now with procrastination. That also seems to be a huge one to break free from—at least it is for me.

The thing God keeps showing me over and over again, though, is that you have to change the way you think to be successful. I can't just keep trying to force myself to do the things on my to-do list everyday and expect to overcome procrastination. Instead, I need to change the way I think about work, and see it from God's point of view.

Transformation starts on the inside and radiates out. And it’s often just as hard to make yourself work on that inner transformation as it is to make yourself go to the gym (which I have to admit, I don't make myself do).

I’ve often felt like there’s a brick wall in front of me when it comes to certain areas of my life—that it seems almost impossible to even make myself work on the problem.

My only hope is going to God for help and to His Word for strength. If it’s too hard to truth journal, I pray Scripture. For some reason, that seems less intimidating.

What we need to remember in these struggles is that we're in the midst of a spiritual battle. If we're Christians, we have an enemy, and he doesn't want us to break free from the things that control us.

Battles aren't pleasant, and they're not easy. The soldier has to be prepared, and he has to use the right weapons if he wants to succeed.

Today, I encourage you to take up the Word of God and use it in this fight. Yes, it’s hard. Yes, it seems hopeless at times . . . but life isn’t always what it seems, is it?

Running the Race

There’s no way I could run a marathon in eight weeks, even if I really wanted to. Why? Because I’m not a runner. Not only am I not a runner, I don’t even like to run.

It would take me far more than eight weeks to develop the discipline to run on a regular basis, much less the stamina to run 26 miles. I’d only be setting myself up for failure if I set out to complete the process in eight weeks.

It’s the same with emotional eating—you can’t expect to conquer it in eight weeks if you’re not used to doing what it takes to gain victory.

What I’d like to do today is compare a person setting out to run a marathon with a person setting out to gain freedom from emotional eating. Both goals require lots of effort and work, and both goals will require different amounts of time depending on the individual’s starting point.

I’ve listed below six possible starting points for a person setting out to run a marathon.

1. Couch potatoes
2. Casual exercisers
3. Regular Exercisers
4. Casual Runners
5. Faithful runners
6. Marathon runners

I think it’s obvious that the further up the list you are, the less time it would take to prepare for a marathon.It would be almost impossible for me to run a marathon in eight weeks, because not only am I in the casual exerciser category, I have no desire to do the things I’d need to do to move up to the marathon runner category.

Sure, I’d like to be in shape enough to run a marathon, but I wouldn’t be crazy about all the work required to get there. I’d either have to move very slowly so I developed that desire, or I’d have to have someone hold me accountable to doing even the things I had no desire for.

It’s the same way with breaking free from emotional eating—the further up the “list” you are, the easier it will be to gain freedom. Let’s see what a list might look like for breaking free from emotional eating.

1. Couch potato
• Never has quiet times.

2. Casual exerciser
• Has an occasional quiet time or may have a short little devotion each day.

3. Regular Exerciser
• Has an intimate relationship with God and enjoys regular times with Him each day.

4. Casual Runner
• A person who has an intimate walk with God, plus uses God’s Word at least every once in awhile to break bad habits or strongholds. (This could be through truth journaling, Scripture prayers, specific Bible study, etc.)

5. Faithful runner
• A Christian who has an intimate walk with God and is using God’s Word on a regular basis to break bad habits and strongholds.

6. Marathon runner
• A person who is applying God’s Word on a regular basis to break the stronghold of emotional eating.

Now here’s the problem. None of us would expect to run a marathon if we only read books about marathons and went on runs occasionally. We’d expect that we’d have to train and suffer for it, right?

But when it comes to so many other things in our lives, we expect it to be easy, and then get discouraged and give up when it’s not. It’s the same way with emotional eating. If you’re back at the first or second stage in your relationship with God, it’s going to be hard to make yourself spend the time required to break free from emotional eating. That’s okay, though, as long as you don’t expect results without the work.

You may just want to work on doing the Bible study right now and skip the truth journaling. Whatever you do, don’t expect yourself to move from the #1 to #6 in a few weeks. You’ll only get discouraged and want to give up.

When I started working on emotional eating, I was already at level five—and it was still hard. I’m not trying to discourage you—I just want to help you dispel the myth that it’s going to be easy.

If you’re gung ho for the whole process, go for it—the more time you spend with God the better. The more time you spend truth journaling and praying through Scripture the better. You will definitely change faster if you put more time into the process.

But if you’re like me with running, you may not be capable of adding Bible study, Scripture prayers, and truth journaling to your life all at the same time. You may need an accountability partner just to get yourself to do your Bible study.

Remember, God is a God full of grace and mercy and strength. He’s not the perfectionist father waiting to yell at you as soon as you mess up, but He's also not the laid back dad that says, "Sure, do whatever you want - as long as you're happy, that's the main thing."

He does want you to keep moving forward. Go slowly if you need to, but keep going. Because that’s the only way you’ll get where you want to go.