Why God wants us to be emotional eaters...

Hi, friends! I have officially hit the third trimester...
HALLELUJAH!

When asked recently why I haven't blogged in a while, I have been responding with, "WELL, I got a little fatter. And I don't wanna talk about it."

Which is quite silly, considering that this blog is ALL about being overweight! 

So, I thought I would share some of my struggles about weight gain and also share what I'm learning to truly believe about it as well.

Struggle #1: I am an emotional eater

I eat when I am happy, sad, thrilled, disappointed...etc. Negative OR positive. Had a bad day? A snickers bar. Had a good day? A snickers bar. Obviously, no waistline can handle such nonsense. So here's what I found on the matter:

Lesson #1: God wants us to be emotional eaters.
<shock and awe>
Now before you go crying, "blasphemy!"...lemme 'splain.

(For those of you wondering where I got this scripture from, please msg me and I will explain!)

Doctrine and Covenants Section 59:16-20

"Verily I say, that inasmuch as ye do this, the fulness of the earth is yours, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the air, and that which climbeth upon the trees and walketh upon the earth;

Yea, and the herb, and the ^agood things which come of the earth, whether for food or for ^braiment, or for houses, or for barns, or for orchards, or for gardens, or for vineyards;

Yea, all things which come of the earth, in the season thereof, are made for the ^abenefit and the ^buse of man, both to please the eye and to ^cgladden the heart;

Yea, for ^afood and for raiment, for taste and for smell, to^bstrengthen the body and to enliven the soul.

And it pleaseth God that he hath given all these things unto man; for unto this end were they made to be used, with judgment, not to ^aexcess, neither by extortion.

Doesn't that sound like a description of emotional eating to you?? It sure does to me. Textbook definition.

Now, if I could sum up these scriptures in one picture, it would be this one!

Heavenly Father WANTS us to giggle about what we eat...and crave it...and dream about it. And, I believe, to rely on it to comfort and please us. But, there are a few key points, that I bolded, that must be met in order for Him, and our souls, to be pleased with what we are eating.

I believe that emotional eating is a God-given blessing of mortality and can bring immense joy and satisfaction, IF, and its a big IF, it follows God's guidelines from these verses...so here they are with a personal interpretation from my own thoughts(not doctrine). :)

Guideline #1: The good things which come of the earth

I'm not sure that Snickers bars qualify...even if they have yummy peanuts! I think God knows that the purest, and healthiest foods bring us the MOST joy, not only to our bodies, but to our spirits as well. In fact, He even likens the joy of living the Gospel of Jesus Christ to eating a delicious fruit. 

He knows better than anyone what happiness is and how to get it. The more we listen(me especially) to His counsel on eating, the happier we will be. 

Guideline #2: The fullness of the earth

To me, this means eating a variety of foods and experiencing all that God made for us. I can't say that I'm the best at this, but I have found that the more open I am to trying new things, the more things I learn to love and the healthier. 

Quinoa? Why not? I don't even know how to pronounce it, but it just might change my life.

Guideline #3 To strengthen the body and enliven the soul

When is the last time junk food "enlivened" your soul?? To be honest...never. I really mean that. I always think that somehow, ice cream sandwiches are going to feel like hugs, but they never do!

So, why doesn't ice cream( in all honesty) enliven our souls? Because it doesn't strengthen our bodies..! SO thats it! 

I think most of us know that bad food isn't good for our bodies, BUT, what I didn't realize is that I am eating the wrong kind of comfort food!

Guideline #4: To please the eye and gladden the heart

Now, really, how eye pleasing is this??

It doesn't take an artist to realize there is no eye-pleasing going on here...

This, however.

...is gorgeous!

Guideline #5: To be used with judgement, not in excess or extortion.

What would excess or extortion look like in relation to cherries?....hmmm. Like this, maybe?

Now, am I saying its a sin to eat cherry pie? No. Definitely. I AM saying, that this is exactly what God warns will NOT bring us comfort...in fact, it brings the opposite. Because, it is in excess and extorts cherries in their natural state and purpose.

If that sounds political, somehow, I apologize. But, it does bring to light what man has done to God's version of comfort food. We have perverted it. And wrapped it up to look like happiness when in reality, it often brings heart ache(literally) and despair. 

SOOOO, whats the point of me saying all of this.....? I am living this way now. Heavens, no. Far from it. But thats obvious to anyone who has seen me lately.:)

This is how I want to live. HEALTHY FOOD IS THE ORIGINAL COMFORT FOOD. Only man decided to change that, not God.

But, with all good things that we learn, there must be a change of heart and mind to cause those truths to really change our lives.

So, my new goal is to learn to love the REAL, God-given, sanctioned, comfort food. 

When I have a bad day, I want to binge out on pineapple.

When we get a raise, I want to celebrate with yogurt.

When I feel like the world is ending, I'm gonna drown my sorrows in grape juice....

Because I would like REAL comfort food. Yes, please!