I know it seems like a random question, but just indulge me for a moment! Most people, if asked to choose, would prefer shaving over tweezing because it hurts less. You get the same results with less pain. The only issue is that you have to shave more often than you tweeze because the hair grows back quicker. Since you are only cutting off the head of the hair follicle and not pulling out the root it is going to grow back faster than if you had plucked those hairs.
In the area of weight loss, we are chronic shavers. We do all these crazy things to loose weight and physically discipline ourselves, but we refuse to do the spiritual work as well. Let’s be honest, gluttony is a sin and sin is a spiritual problem. There is a reason why you cannot exhibit self-control with food and as warm and fuzzy as we want overeating to make us feel, its not okay and it dishonors God. We do everything we can not to deal with the reason why we overeat. We will do crazy workouts, stop eating meat, do a juice fast, take diet pills all in the hopes of losing weight. And sometimes we are successful and lose weight; we reach our goals. But in the same way shaved hair comes back quick, so do our food problems – why? BECAUSE WE HAVE FAILED TO PLUCK OUT THE ROOT- OVEREATING! I wish all of you could understand this important fact. It would save you so much time and money! All you need to lose weight is already inside of you. Healthy food and exercise are important components of honoring the bodies that God gave us, but they should not be your primary route to the land of weight loss. Obedience to his direction of moderation in eating should be your first point of attack in dealing with your weight issues.
The real back breaking work is dealing with your spiritual issues of sin. Once that root has been plucked out of your life the weight will come off. You won’t have the attachment to food like you do and will realize that every time you overeat you dishonor God. Your focus will be on your relationship with Him and how you can grow spiritually. For those of us who use food to cover up something deeper, you’ll be able to work through those issues. While that process might be painful in the beginning it is a necessary step to insure healthy emotional healing.
Take a look at the following verse with me:
Matthew 18:7-9 –
8 If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9 And if your eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell”
What Jesus is talking about is the the idea of sin preventing obtaining eternal life. However, we can still apply it to our situation because in our lives sin is preventing us from growing spiritually and experiencing the abundant life on earth that God desires for us. Now, abundant does not necessarily refer to wealth or even a life free of physical sickness. However, he does mean that if we live life as he intended for us to live we can AVOID many issues that cause emotional and physical pain in our lives. We can take a “detour” around the things that will make our experience on earth much harder. For example, God desires sexual intimacy only to be experienced in a monogamous married relationship. What we are currently seeing in our culture is the consequences of people not living in obedience to that principle of godly living. We see the rise of AIDS and STDs, issues of adultery, and children growing up in broken families. Much if not all of this could have been avoided if we as a culture had just been obedient to the Word of God. In the same way, if we were obedient with our eating we could avoid many of the weight related issues we experience. It is better for you to deal with that which causes you to sin, than to continue carrying your burdens and wounds.
Bottom line: God loves you very deeply and wants the best for you. Although it might be hard and painful at the beginning, dealing with the root of the issue is the best way to guarantee long lasting freedom. Believe you are worth more and start working towards getting to that better place today!
So you choose: Do you want to do crazy stuff to try to lose weight only to see it creep back weeks, months or even years later? or do you want to lose the weight permanently for life?
It might hurt more in the beginning, but plucking lasts a whole lot longer than shaving does…some of you need to stop playin’ and go and get some “tweezers”:)
-much love…
