Hungering and thirsting…..

I have been utilizing a popularly advertised mail order diet program for a couple of months and have lost 13 pounds. I am getting close to breaking a barrier that I crossed nearly five years ago! But I am feeling a little less confident, fearing that I’ll bump against this barrier as I have several times in the past and get stuck there again!

A friend called my attention this week to an online Bible study weight loss program. As I was reading the website I had a realization about something that had not occurred to me before.

For years I have known that I had security fears that manifested themselves in financial ways. Once our children got out of college and our finances finally began to level out and we could save money, the fears in that area began to diminish. But, just as that “hunger” for financial security began to diminish, that’s when my “hunger” for other things began to expand. I’ve gained nearly 60 pounds in the last 10 years! Until tonight I had not seen the connection between the two. I’ve battled some degree of weight issues since adolecence, but nothing like what I’ve experienced the last 10 years. So it seems to me that, while weight and self image “hunger” was present, it took a back seat to the financial security “hunger”. Once that one was somewhat satisfied, the other one took over as the primary force seeking to defeat me.

I had done a weight loss Bible study 8-10 years ago- Weigh Down Workshop- and found it interesting, but not especially helpful at the time. This one seems more introspective and has the additional advantage of being FREE and done on one’s own time schedule. I’m going to enroll in this online study as an additional motivator, along with my purchased nutrition program, and will hopefully be able to move beyond the obstacle that has defeated me several times in recent years.