Diets Don’t Work

“Since you died with Christ to the elemental spiritual forces of this world, why, as though you still belonged to the world, do you submit to its rules: ‘Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!’?  These rules, which have to do with things that are all destined to perish with use, are based on merely human commands and teachings.  Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence.”

Colossians 2:20-23 (NIV)

 

As Americans steadily gain weight, a national obsession with dieting has occurred.  Diets have been held forth as the “solution” to weight problems, but they have failed, miserably.  Yet even with a literal epidemic of dieting failure they have somehow managed to succeed in the grandest dupery of all time--leaving dieters feeling like they are the failure (because they didn’t have enough “willpower”) instead of the solution being given them.  Most people end up physically and psychologically worse off than if they had never started on a diet in the first place.  Americans, many of them Christians, are being given a false “solution” to the wrong “problem”.  It’s time for that to stop.  Overweight is not the problem, overeating is.    

But it takes two to tango, as they say, and we are responsible for our part Church.  You would think that after decades of dieting failure (individually and collectively) people would stop embarking on the next diet, but many still look to diets (and now their substitute cousin—drugs) as the answer as if totally oblivious to dieting failure.  The Church, much like the world, is still abuzz with new and improved diets as if believers don’t have discernment or because the flesh pulls us to try to “fix” a problem that is bigger than ourselves.  If you look to the next new diet, perhaps you have been convinced that it was your lack of “willpower” that resulted in failure in the past.  Or maybe you have been convinced of the newest diet since you know someone who has lost weight in the short-term (and I stress short-term).  I find it particularly uncomfortable that brothers and sisters in the Church, with their extra measure of credibility in Christ, give praise to the fad diets even when the authors promote philosophical agendas in their books that contradict God’s Word.  Perhaps many believers so easily follow what is popular in the culture as if that is their only option because it is the only option being given, one that seems to make “sense”, often proffered by self-proclaimed “experts” and wholeheartedly supported by the medical profession and Christians alike. 

 

But dieting for weight-loss is not your only option.

 

In fact, it shouldn’t be an option at all.  God has a much better way.

 

N.E.W. LIFE is very effective for weight-loss (95% of the people who have come to a N.E.W. LIFE program have raised their hand when I asked who was there for weight-loss), but God’s plan goes FAR beyond just losing weight.  In fact, the reason why N.E.W. LIFE is so effective for weight-loss is precisely because we take the focus off of weight and put it on behavior and health instead.  N.E.W. LIFE stands for Nutrition, Exercise, Wellness for LIFE—notice there’s no “diet” in the name.  My prayer is that the words I share and the work of the Holy Spirit will help the reader to break any “diet mentality” that may be present.  A diet mentality is in direct opposition to God’s Word, so it is no wonder that it leads to physical, emotional and spiritual havoc in so many lives.  Diets are based on “man’s law” instead of God’s law, and even God’s holy law can only show us where we fall short.  The law shows us what is required but has no power to help us do it.  It is the job of the Holy Spirit, a gift of a deposit in those who have received Jesus Christ, to make happen what the law says should happen but doesn’t have the power to make happen.  It is by the power of the Holy Spirit that we can become free from bondage, walk in optimal health, and live an abundant life. 

“I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.  For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.  But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. . . But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.  Against such there is no law.  And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.  If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.”  Galatians 5:16-18, 22-25 (NKJV)

Are you beginning to see how your relationship with God, and walking in the Spirit, is where you will find the power to overcome the desires and fleshly behaviors which you may be in bondage to?  But how does one “walk in the Spirit”, be “led by the Spirit”, “live in the Spirit”?  The believer who has repented for sin and believed and received the sacrifice of Jesus Christ as his/her Lord and Savior is saved (by grace, through faith—Ephesians 2:8) and is filled with the Holy Spirit in an initial baptism of the Spirit, a conversion to a new man having been born again spiritually.  Then and only then can one be filled with the Holy Spirit, and then it is up to us to live a life in step with the Holy Spirit.  An important part of the process which follows salvation (which is called sanctification) is to continue to be fed by the Holy Spirit-inspired Word of God to grow and continue to be transformed.  The Holy Spirit saves and sanctifies.  Our role is to believe and to surrender, and that is an ongoing process.  Read the Word of God daily and see what happens.   

In future posts I will discuss why the “diet mentality” will not only fail you (God won’t), but  how diets are actually harmful—very, very harmful.

 

Dear Lord, Thank you for sending Your Holy Spirit to us and for your Holy Spirit-inspired Word that we can continue to be filled with and strengthened by.  May Your Holy Spirit minister, teach, lead and heal.  In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

 

 

N.E.W. LIFE Books and Services

 

                    N.E.W. LIFE Print Book $20

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Nutrition Counseling

  

 

Free Indeed Freedom

“To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, ‘If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples.  Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. . . Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.  Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever.  So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.’"

John 8:31‑32, 34-36 (NIV)

 

Food is a BLESSING from the Lord, but for a variety of reasons it is being misused and abused resulting in a national epidemic of “lifestyle” diseases.  Furthermore, a hurting world is reaching out to find ways to fill emotional hunger and anesthetize pain.  Many of us allow food to take an inappropriate role when we use it as a substitute for our relationship with other people and/or God.  Millions have developed an emotional or addictive relationship with food.  The lack of God in peoples’ lives has left a void which cannot be filled no matter how much sex, alcohol, drugs or food is used (it is interesting that at the same time as God was kicked out of America the obesity rate went up).  The Church may be at particular risk for the consequences of food abuse because Christians believe that promiscuous sex, alcohol and drug abuse are sinful and grievous offenses.  However, legitimate needs go unmet and people often turn to the “legitimate” comfort of food.  Meanwhile, a national obsession with food, body image, diets, and an epidemic of eating disorders are robbing our nation of its physical, emotional, and spiritual health.

There is also a lot of misinformation in nutrition and weight-loss, often from self-proclaimed “experts”.  People need clarity in an area that has become confused with opinions, half‑truths, and contradictions.  God's way is Perfect and it is only by receiving and being obedient to His truth that we can attain complete Healing and live His best plan for our lives.  My prayer is that while I share from my professional and personal experience that the Holy Spirit will speak to the issues with which each reader may be dealing.  I have been free from the bondages of food abuse, diets and preoccupation with body image for over 30 years.  I define freedom as the ability to grieve the real pain of life without the aid of food.  I am the most amazed person on earth that I actually forget to eat even in response to deep pain whereas previously it had unyielding power over my life.  Anorexia, bulimia, and compulsive overeating are the extreme manifestations of a growing epidemic of eating disorders, and there are an immeasurable number of people struggling with bondages to food, body image and emotional eating in-between those extremes.  My heart goes out to the women, men and children who struggle with food addictions, emotional eating, and eating disorders, as well as to a Church burdened with disease due to out-of-balance eating behaviors.  I want to share what God has done for me, and for others, and what He can do for you.  My intention is to share my professional and personal experience, and Scripture, to bring light into this area of nutrition, health and the food/dieting struggle many believers are engaged in.

 The “free indeed” freedom that Jesus offers is not about dieting to get free of overeating and overweight.  Diets don’t work--the reasons why will be the topic of future blog posts.  Diets substitute one form of bondage (to food) with another (to diets).  “Free indeed” freedom is about Healing from underlying pain that often drives food addiction.  Jesus actually ransomed us—bought us—out of the slave market of sin and death to free us, His Sacrifice given for us to be Forgiven by God.  Jesus became the prisoner so that we might become free.  Free indeed freedom because His work on the Cross was not lacking.

 

Dear Lord, Your Word provides everything we need to live a godly life and is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path.  May your Word lead us step by step out of bondage to freedom.  In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

 

 

        N.E.W. LIFE Books and Services

 

                    N.E.W. LIFE Print Book $20

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Nutrition Counseling

  

   

 

Wecome!

Welcome to The Seed blog, written after 30 years of teaching and assisting people with behavior change as a nutrition educator/registered dietitian nutritionist.  But I also share as one who previously binged 5x/night for 15 years straight (no Sundays off!) and who is completely free for over 30 years from a bondage to food and body image which resulted in a 5-tier, 15-year addictive relationship to food, diets, body image, exercise and the scale.  I write each post to share with you what God has taught me and done for me, and what I have shared with thousands of individuals that has helped them to improve their health and energy, and to become free from bondages to food, diets, body image and emotional eating.

This blog post is the first in a new series of blog posts that coincides with the recently published book, N.E.W. LIFE (Nutrition, Exercise, Wellness for LIFE): Biblical Support for Health and Freedom from Bondage to Food and Diets.  Each post will share from the book and will often expand on topics further.  While each post can stand alone to benefit the reader some readers may want to also purchase the N.E.W. LIFE book for a more comprehensive understanding of each topic in context which the book offers.  A link is provided at the end of each post for individuals who would like to purchase the N.E.W. LIFE print book or e-book.

The N.E.W. LIFE book, and the Seed blog, is written for the Church--a 30-year-burden on my heart--and as much of the world as will have it.  My hope and prayer is that what I share will help people who struggle with a poor relationship with food to better health, for individuals in bondage to food and diets to find freedom, and to help those who have settled for a relationship with food to discover the incomparably more satisfying relationship with God and the abundant life that Jesus died to give us.  I hope that what I share will edify the Church and that the reader will find support in what I share on a journey to better spiritual, emotional and physical health and a deepening relationship with God.  And for any who read these pages who have not yet come to a saving knowledge and relationship with Jesus Christ, that they will come to repentance and redemption through God’s saving Grace.

God bless you and to God be the Glory!

 

 N.E.W. LIFE Books and Services

 

                    N.E.W. LIFE Print Book $20

 N.E.W. LIFE E-book $10

 

                                                                         N.E.W. LIFE Booklets $10/each

Nutrition Counseling

  

                

Purifying the Bride of Christ

The Church is described in the Bible as the Bride of Christ (the bride imagery is eventually expanded to include all the saints from before and after the Church age when God brings home a Bride for His beloved Son).  The bride of the Lamb is described more fully in Revelation 21 as the Holy City Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God.  The City is called the Bride because it takes on the character of its inhabitants:

“One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, ‘Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.’  And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.”

 

Revelation 21:9-10 (NIV)

Read the rest of Revelation 21 for an amazing description of “the new Jerusalem”.

 

Jesus told His disciples that He has gone to prepare a heavenly home for His Bride and will return to take her home with Him:

“Do not let your hearts be troubled.  You believe in God; believe also in me.  My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.  You know the way to the place where I am going.”

 

John 14:1-4 (NIV)

 

This will happen at the rapture of the saints:

“Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope.  For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.  According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.  For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.  After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.  And so we will be with the Lord forever.  Therefore encourage one another with these words.”

 

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 (NIV)

 

Jesus told the parable of the ten virgins describing His coming for the Bride to take her to the wedding:

“‘Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.   Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish.   Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.   But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.

^‘And at midnight a cry was heard: “Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!”   Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps.   And the foolish said to the wise, “Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.”   But the wise answered, saying, “No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.”   And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.

^‘Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, “Lord, Lord, open to us!”   But he answered and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.”

‘Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.’”

Matthew 25:1-13 (NKJV)

 

After the rapture the Church will celebrate the marriage supper, be rewarded, and later return to earth with Christ when He comes again to set up His kingdom.

Meanwhile . . .

We are living through a day of many trials.  God is purifying His Bride and strengthening souls:

“In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.  These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.  Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”

 

1 Peter 1:6-9 (NIV)

 

“Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.  Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.  And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.  To him be the power for ever and ever.  Amen.”

 

1 Peter 5:8-11 (NIV)

 

“And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope.”

  

Romans 5:3-4 (NKJV)

 

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.  Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”

 

James 1:2-4 (NIV)

 

As a result of faith believers receive constant deliverance from the power of sin now and finally the full redemption of our bodies in salvation.  With this in mind Peter explains how we are to live:

“Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming.  As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance.  But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy.’

 1 Peter 1:13-16 (NIV)

 

God’s people are called to “be holy in all you do” because God is holy.  We glorify God best by being like Him.  Furthermore, godliness is the greatest witness of testimony to the power of Jesus Christ.  Robert Murray M'Cheyne said, “A holy minister is an awful weapon in the Hands of God.”  While becoming holy is a work of the Holy Spirit in us, and we cannot make ourselves holy without His help, notice that the command to “be holy in all we do” indicates that we have a responsibility in the matter.

 

Similarly, John wrote:

“Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.  And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.”

1 John 3:2-3 (NKJV)

Living in the reality of Christ’s return should make a difference in the believer’s behavior. We will someday be like Christ and a desire should be growing within us to be like Him now. This would be a good time to stop and evaluate if that is happening. Remember, sanctification is a process, but we should make sure we have not come to a standstill. God’s purpose is to save and sanctify His children and as He does so with each individual He is purifying the Bride of Christ. He is Faithful, and He will do it—if we let Him:

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

“Do not quench the Spirit.  Do not despise prophecies.  Test all things; hold fast what is good.  Abstain from every form of evil.

“Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.  He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.”

 

1 Thessalonians 5:16-23 (NKJV)

 

God Himself will sanctify us completely, but we are to “not quench the Spirit” and “abstain from every form of evil”.  So while we can’t sanctify ourselves we do have a part to play, and God expects us to be responsible to play it.  We have to desire to honor Him more than we desire things that do not honor Him.  If you find that difficult to do ask Him to sanctify your desires and spend time in the Word and with Jesus.  Think of a bride who is consumed with getting ready for the wedding day—do you see Him as the promised Groom for His Bride, the Church, your Beloved?  The more we love Jesus the less other affections will have a grip on us.

Paul agrees with the Father’s will for a purified Bride for His Son:

“I hope you will put up with me in a little foolishness.  Yes, please put up with me!  I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy.  I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to him.  But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ.  For if someone comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the Spirit you received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it easily enough.”

 

2 Corinthians 11:1-4 (NIV)

 

While Paul was specifically sharing his concern about false teachers he was also expressing his deep concern for the spiritual purity of the Corinthians and wanted them to be pure until the “marriage day” finally arrives as described in Revelation:

“Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory!  For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.”

 

Revelation 19:7 (NIV)

 

Worthy is the Lamb.  Ask yourself, am I a worthy bride?  Am I making myself ready?  Do I have an adulterous relationship with food as an idol?  We fall far short of God’s holy standard daily but because of the righteousness of Christ imputed to us we can be “holy and blameless in his sight”:

“For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.”

Ephesians 1:4 (NIV)

  

“For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

 

2 Corinthians 5:21 (NKJV)

 

“. . . that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith”

Philippians 3:8-9 (NKJV)

 

“Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.”

 

Ephesians 5:25-27 (NKJV)

  

Notice the “purifying” effect of His love.  Will you allow God to sanctify you?  Don’t quench the Holy Spirit, but instead respond to the prompting and conviction of the Holy Spirit and submit to God as He purifies the Church and readies the Bride for the Groom coming for the wedding day. 

Your Christian dietitian and friend in Christ,

Diane 

The Bride of Christ

God wants relationship with His children.  To clarify further—God desires intimate relationship with us.  The Bible describes God’s relationship with His people in several intimate ways—Father and son/daughter, Husband and wife, Bridegroom and bride, Friend.  The Husband-wife references are particularly to Israel, the Bridegroom-bride Scriptures refer to Christ and the Church and eventually expands to include all the redeemed of all the ages as becomes clear in Revelation.

Paul explains that marriage between a human husband and wife is a representation of the union between Christ and His Bride, the Church:

“Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord.  For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior.   Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.   Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.  In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies.  He who loves his wife loves himself.  After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church—for we are members of his body.  ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.’  This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church.”

Ephesians 5:22-32 (NIV) 

Elsewhere Scripture describes the relationship of the Bridegroom with His bride:

“Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory!  For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.”

 

Revelation 19:7 (NIV)

 

“One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, ‘Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.’” 

Revelation 21:9 (NIV)

 

“The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come!’”

 

Revelation 22:17a (NIV)

 

“And Jesus answered and spoke to them again by parables and said: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come.’” 

Matthew 22:1-3 (NKJV)

 

“Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another—to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God.  For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death.  But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the spirit and not in the oldness of the letter.”

Romans 7:4-6 (NKJV)

 

Christ’s divine love for His Bride is a purifying love.  In His prayer to the Father for us Jesus says that he sanctified Himself in order to sanctify His Bride:

“My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one.  They are not of the world, even as I am not of it.  Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.  As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world.  For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.”

John 17:15-19 (NIV)

 

God’s divine love seeks to completely cleanse those He loves from every form of sin and evil.  For the reader who has developed an unhealthy relationship with food, if you experience conviction be thankful--you are dearly loved by God!  Submit to Him and He will take you through the temptation and bondage to cleansing and freedom.  Since it is not sin to enjoy food the Holy Spirit will not convict you of simply enjoying food.  Since it is sin to make food an idol a believer may be convicted by the Holy Spirit regarding their relationship with food but it is important to distinguish between the conviction of the Holy Spirit and the condemnation from the enemy because there is a lot of false guilt imposed by the culture in the area of food and body image.

 

“There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.”

Romans 8:1 (NKJV)

 

If you struggle with bondage to food I pray that you will know God's love for you and exchange your bondage to food with the incomparably more satisfying relationship with God.

For more encouragement you can check out the N.E.W. LIFE e-book which includes further support, the N.E.W. LIFE Eating Plan and additional nutrition information.

Your Christian dietitian and friend in Christ,

Diane