33. Heavenly Father, a wonderful thing is happening within me as I take control over my food addiction. I no longer feel condemnation. I know that You have forgiven me, and I am beginning to forgive myself. The scale is no longer an obsession. The mirror does not point back an accusing finger at me. I am beginning to feel better about myself. I heartedly thank You for Your help in this troublesome area. I pray this day for continued grace and renewed strength that I might not slip back into the sin of gluttony. Be my strong tower that I can run to in moments of weakness, in Jesus’ name. Amen

Day 38 Scripture: Romans 14: 17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit,

Application: Once more through another Scripture passage we are told what the Kingdom of God is not all about. It is not about eating and drinking in which we devoted so much time and pursuit into. And now that we are dieting, this is so true now. We cannot become obsessed about how we will face the day being so restricted in our caloric needs, but instead our every day focus should be on righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, I call Him the forgotten one of the Trinity. How many of you are in Him every day? How many think of Him as Scripture tells us as the Helper and the Comforter? He was given for us that we might have power to be the children of God. We need to develop a relationship with Him which results in righteousness before God, and peace and joy in our lives. Food and drink, with all its time consuming demands would not be such an unsavory master over us. Perhaps before our dieting efforts begin in earnest, we need to do a little soul searching to see why we prefer the false comfort of food over the One who gives us true comfort. A good adage to quote here is, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” We need to analyze why we would forfeit righteousness, joy and peace for the temporary satisfaction that food gives. God is greater than our undisciplined appetites. I seek this well being which the Holy Spirit gives instead.

Prayer: Thank You Father for the gift of the Comforter. May I allow Him free reign in my heart and life so that I may truly know You and Your Kingdom instead of the temporary pleasures of the earth which will some day perish. I commit this day to learning ever new things about the third Person of the Trinity, and may He be pleased to dwell within me. Amen

My Commitment Today:

32. Lord God, I sought You and You were found. I turned to You for help in overcoming my bondage to food, and You were there all along to help me be free. I thank You for caring for my needs. I am glad I have turned to You for support and guidance. I pray for Your continued strength and blessings this day. I will not become over confident in myself, but I will continue to lean on You for Your help. Bless my meals today and make them nourishing. Keep me aware of Your Presence throughout the day so that I do not stray from this path to wellness, in Jesus’ name I pray. Amen

Day 37 Scripture: 2 Corinthians 5: 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

Application: The reason why the Christian does not fear relapse or weight gain again? It is here in this Sciprture. If we are in Christ and remain in Christ the things we have learned throughout our dieting sojourn will be ingrained in us eternally as Christ Jesus Himself is. If we have made the necessary confession and genuine repentance of our old habits and patterns that once got us into trouble, behold, the old has gone, the new has come! What an exciting Scripture to know that He makes all things new. I can’t slip, slide, or revert to my old habits because they are now gone. The new ones have come, and I am enjoying them so much more because they come from His hand in my life.

Prayer: Almighty God, by faith I claim this Scripture as my own. I believe that I will never have to look back to my old ways again. I believe that You have molded me into a new creature. I believe the past is gone and forgiven. I thank You for the opportunity to be sculpted in Your image and to please you as a new creation in Christ Jesus this very day. Amen

My Commitment Today:

31. Almighty God, how good it is to be able to come in confidence before Your throne knowing that You dwell in the midst of praise from Your people. I extol Your mighty name today and I thank You for setting me free from the bondage of overeating. My struggle with food is lessening and I give You all the glory for that. I pray that my discipline and obedience remain intact this day. I pray that I might only boast in Your powerful name and not in any of my merit. I pray for continued strength today and I ask that You oversee my meal times. I thank You for forgiveness of sins and this new beginning, in Jesus’ name. Amen

Day 36 Scripture: 1 Corinthians 9: 24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.

Application: Dieter’s are taught to give themselves little rewards for certain milestones like a 5 or 10 pound loss increment, or falling below a certain number on the scale. But in a real race, it is only the one who crosses the finish line who receives the prize. There are no trinkets and door prizes passed out along the way in a race. We are told to compete, or run in such a way as to get the prize just as if there were only one reward for the winner. Rewarding yourself is not a bad idea along the way, as long as that reward isn’t food. Unfortunately I have heard and seen time and time again that people treat themselves to a favorite, more than healthy portion of something extra for being so faithful thus far. Better to do as this passage suggests, run the dieting race with one goal in mind, crossing the finish line so that you will have the joy of receiving the reward of a perfectly sensible body again. Your Father in heaven will openly reward you at that moment.

Prayer: Father, I know that I shall have immeasurable eternal reward some day because Your Word promises me that. I am grateful for this opportunity to re-enter the race of life and be a competitor once more instead of unhappily sitting on the sidelines. Help me to run the race well and if I complete it knowing I have made You proud will be my reward in itself. Amen

My Commitment Today:

 30. My God, You have been instructing me and guiding me in healthy eating habits. I have yet to achieve perfection, yet I can see the wonderful work that You are doing for me. I fear now failing. I do not want to turn back to bondage and bingeing. I am putting my trust in You and I am leaning on Your grace and strength. I ask that You keep me from over indulgence today. I ask that I do not become careless in my newly found eating habits. I pray that You will spare me from going astray. May I turn to You this day if I feel weak that I may receive Your strength. May I turn to You today if I feel myself becoming careless. May I turn to You today for the sheer pleasure of seeking Your face, in Jesus’ name. Amen

Day 35 Scripture: 2 Corinthians 4: 17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.

Application: We discovered yesterday that we are to glorify God in our eating and drinking. Until we restore our body to its former glory our dieting efforts may appear a light and momentary trouble, but when we reach our desired weight we will have accomplished at least three things. Eternal glory by honoring God in all we do, pleasing God, and obeying God’s commands once more. Yes, we will have reached goal weight, but the eternal glory is far more lasting than the magic number that we hit. If you can’t get motivated to do it for yourself, that is all right because we should do it for God first, and then for our eternal glory which will be given to us in heavenly currency.

Prayer: Father, help me to put away the “I feel sorry for myself dieting” mentality. Help me to remember that this journey I am on to restore my body is farther reaching than just hitting a certain number on the scale so I can be through with it. You observe my motives and actions, Lord, and may they be pleasing in spirituality which outweighs the physical in Your Kingdom. Amen

My Commitment Today:

 29. I thank You, Lord for a day of strength,  day by day. My food addiction is being put behind me. I have hope and joy in You. For so long I tried to use my willpower and failed. When I earnestly began to cry out to You for Your help, You came to my rescue. As I sit at meal today help me to stay in control. Help me to eat a normal portion. Help me to be satisfied with my daily bread. Keep me strong and vigilant. I know that You will not fail or forsake me. Keep me sheltered today from sin and straying, in the name of Jesus I pray. Amen

Day 34 Scripture: 1 Corinthians 10: 31 So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.

Application: Another Scripture which clearly defines boundaries for us. Not only as we learned yesterday that we are to honor God with our body, but here we have also that whether we eat or drink we are to do it for the glory of God. I did not honor God with my body, or glorify Him with my eating and drinking habits. Would you offer Jesus a coca cola, or a cool cup of water? We know which one the Lord would choose, so to glorify Him we also must choose the same things. You can glorify God while you are dieting by discipline and obedience to your plan. When we cheat, we rob Him of glory and honor and we become a dishonorable vessel. It all is so clear and makes so much sense that God created the body in His image, and for that reason we need to keep it a holy place, honoring and glorifying Him in all we do, even in our eating and drinking habits.

Prayer: Thank You Lord for the vision of what my body’s function is made so clear to me through the Scriptures. May Your habitation place of my temple be fit and honorable for You to dwell there. Amen

My Commitment Today:

Day 33 Scripture: 1 Corinthians 6: 20 You were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.

Application: It is very plain that we are given the choice to honor God with our body, or to dishonor Him. This Scripture is clear that we are not our own. We were bought and redeemed with a great price and sacrifice by our Savior. Is it too much for God to expect that you should take care with your body? “God is not mocked; whatsoever a man sows, that he reaps”. Overindulgence left us with bodies less than desirable. God is giving us a second chance to restore our bodies, and we are grateful that we can. We not only do it for ourselves therefore, but we do it to honor God. This makes our commitment to lose so much more worthy. It is for a spiritual principle which we have neglected. The aspect of this Scripture makes us desire to please God with all that we do with our bodies. This is a motivating Scripture which takes action on our part. Now we know the truth, and the truth will set us free.

Prayer: Lord God, thank You for Your Word that guides us and keeps us on the right path in life. Teach me how to honor you in all I do and say, and yes, even in how I treat my body, let it please You. Amen

My Commitment Today:

28. Lord God, today I lift my voice to You in praise for the marvelous way you have delivered me from my food addiction. I will remember however to continually lean on You and ask for daily grace and strength. It is becoming easier to rejoice and to eat as if my addiciton has become conquered, and yet I know that if I fail to give You all the glory and honor, I might become puffed up and fall into bondage again. So I heartedly thank You for strengthening me, for loving me and for making my path straight. I ask for normalcy in eating today. I ask for the fruit of the Holy Spirit, self control. I asked that You prevent me from taking a wrong turn. I ask this day that You be with me throughout the day. And I ask that no temptation take me by surprise and conquer me, in the name of Jesus. Amen

Day 32 Scripture: 1 Timothy 4; 7b-8 7 Train yourself to be godly. 8 For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.

Application: The value that physical training has upon the dieter is obvious. Of people who lost weight and kept it off, 95% introduced exercise into their weight loss efforts and subsequent maintenance plans. You may lose while dieting in the beginning, but eventually you need to add activity, and especially if you intend on keeping the weight from returning. You can train yourself to be godly spiritually at the same time. Use a Walkman to listen to Bible reading tapes, or listen to some of your Gospel song favorites and try singing along. You can also use your exercise time as your prayer time. At home you can prepare a list of people that need your prayers, and out on a walk you can smile and pray for every person you pass. You can also pick one Scripture a day to memorize while you are exercising. You would have 30 Scripture passages stored in your heart at the end of one month! What an accomplishment you would show while not only trimming and firming your body, but spiritually exercising at the same time. You will be preparing for both the present life and the life to come.

Prayer: Father, help me not only to be committed to exercise for the physical body, but also the gentle stretching of my spiritual life. Help me to learn to love to move and to grow upwards in Your Kingdom, while also preparing the tabernacle of my body to be a fit place for Your Presence. Bless my efforts, Lord God, that I might please you in all my endeavors. Amen

My Commitment Today: