Round 3

So here I am again.  The second 40 days ended July 17.  Now I think I'm ready to start again.  I feel the Lord telling me to continue with chocolate and sodas, but He has added candy to it, as well.  Things like gummi bears and twizzlers, etc. are off my list.

God is so awesome and faithful!  You see, candy was my "cheat."  I still wanted sweet things and while I couldn't have chocolate, no one said anything about other candies.  But God has called me on it this time.  It will be even harder for me to resist temptation, but I know I can trust Him.  I'm excited to see what He will do in my life through this!  

" 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.'  Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.  That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties.  For when I am weak, then I am strong."                                    2 Corinthians12:9-10    

Reasons for Continuing

I mentioned in the previous post that I had reasons for re-instating my Lenten fast even though Easter had passed.  In order to fully explain those reasons, I'll need to go back a little to when I first started getting interested in my health.

All of my life, I have never had to struggle with my weight.  I have always been small and petite.  And I didn't do anything to stay that way.  I ate whatever I wanted, as long as it tasted good.  I hardly ate any vegetables and, as I mentioned before, I loved sweets.  Me eat a salad?  Never.  I ordered my tacos without lettuce and my hamburgers dry.  And, interestingly enough, I grew up suffering from chronic sinus infections.  Admittedly I was a busy girl--active in band, choir, drama, dance, and church while also maintaining an "A" average.  I would burn both ends of the candle until I would get sick.  The sinus infection almost always went into strep throat.  

I never connected my sickness with my eating habits.  Sadly, it was not until after college that I made that connection.  I made some changes in my eating and I noticed that I did not get sick as often.  I also learned to not let myself get so stressed and busy (thanks to my husband) and that also seemed to have an effect.  I saw trends in my eating habits:  if I ate a lot of sweets then I would often end up with sinus issues.  Slowly, I began to understand that what I put into my body affected how well it would work.

I have to stop here and thank my mother-in-law.  She is very knowledgeable about health and was instrumental in helping me on my journey.  She lent me a book entitled "What the Bible Says About Healthy Living," and as I read through it, I was amazed.  God created all the foods we would need to live on this planet, and live well.  It is man's attempt to improve on these foods (AKA processed foods) that have led to so many health problems.

So began my efforts to really change my eating habits--eating less processed foods and fewer sweets.  I noticed that I cycled between eating healthy and eating unhealthy.  It was difficult to control my cravings so I would fall back into old habits, usually until I got sick.  Then it was easy to start eating healthy again until the next round hit.  And so it would go, over and over.

I lacked the discipline to say "No" when a craving would hit, whether it was for fast food, chocolate, or something else.  That is one reason the Lenten fast from chocolate was so appealing to me.  I wasn't just saying, "Oh I'll do better this week."  I made it a vow to God that I would not eat chocolate.  If Jesus could go without food and water for 40 days, then surely I could offer this small sacrifice to God.  And it was only for 40 days.  It's not like I would be denying myself forever.

During that time, I was in the second trimester of my second pregnancy.  (At the time of writing this I am 36 weeks along.)  I craved more sweets during this pregnancy than I did with my first, so it was very difficult at times.  I would sometimes stand in front of the candy at the store and say, "Lord, I want this so badly.  Please help me to resist."  God was so faithful and I celebrated victory after victory.

After Easter, I allowed myself to eat chocolate again.  The rest of April passed, as did May.  By June, I was feeling out of control again.  I prayed about doing another 40 days and I felt the Lord agreeing with me.  But this time I vowed not to eat chocolate or drink sodas.  

There were still many instances in which I struggled.  But having tasted victory before, I knew it was possible with the Lord's help.  

 

Beginnings

Well, I finally did it. I've read plenty of other people's blogs, but I never thought I would have one of my own. The purpose is to share a journey I have been on, and one I intend to continue.

It all started back in February.

As a protestant, I never practiced Lent. In fact, I don't think I even knew Lent existed until junior high or high school. A couple of my friends observed it and that was fine. I had no interest nor did I ever feel a need to participate.

However, this year my Sunday School teacher brought it up. He gave some of the historical background behind Lent and we spent some time discussing WHY anyone should observe this practice of sacrificing something for 40 days. What was the point? It's not a requirement for salvation. Lent is not even mentioned in the Bible. So why do it?

It brings up the true meaning behind sacrifice. If I give up something that is not very important to me, is that really a sacrifice? No. A sacrifice always costs something. The Israelites knew this. Imagine having to give up your best animals because you chose to sin. The size of your herd was a sign of your wealth. Keep sinning and your herd could be severely reduced. Costly stuff, that sin.

To make a long story short, as we discussed this in our class I felt the Lord telling me to do it. To give up something for Lent, not for the sake of Lent, but for the discipline of sacrifice.

So I did.

I prayed and vowed to God that I would not eat anything chocolate for 40 days. That included candy, cookies, cakes, or anything with chocolate in it. For some people that might not be much of a sacrifice, but I have an unbelievable sweet tooth and I LOVE chocolate. Actually, I found that I had difficulty controlling my sweet tooth. I felt out of control and I did not like that feeling. I am the master of my body, but I felt like my body was the master of me--that I was a slave to my desires. So by giving up chocolate, not only would I be sacrificing something I really liked, but I would also be addressing this issue of mastery.

So I went through the Lenten season and did not eat any chocolate. Some days were easy and some days were very difficult. For instance, I attended a wedding shower for a cousin and I mentally prepared myself the night before, reminding myself that I could not have any chocolate cake or chocolate covered strawberries, or anything with chocolate. However, I was caught off-guard by the bowls of M&Ms that were on the table. Five different varieties of M&Ms, right there in front of me. AND NO ONE PRESENT KNEW I WAS DOING THIS!! I could easily have eaten some and no one would have been the wiser. In fact, I'm sure no one would have condemned me for doing it. It was a difficult battle and one I'm proud to say that I won, but only with the Lord's help. I prayed and prayed for him to help me resist. He was faithful and brought me through it.

There were other times like that, when I wanted so badly to give in. It was through His strength that I was able to persevere. Easter Sunday came and I was free. I began eating and enjoying the things that I had not been able to during Lent.

There is more to tell, but I'll have to continue in my next post about how I came to re-instate my next 40 day fast.