Food For Thought - April

[MajestyJo]

Tuesday, April 1, 2014

You are reading from the book Food for Thought

Came to Believe

Perhaps we have believed in a Higher Power all our lives, or perhaps we have been agnostic. In either case we have been unable to apply faith and belief to our greatest problem - compulsive overeating.

OA asks only that we be willing to believe and that we keep an open mind. As we hear the stories of members who have come to believe through the program, our own faith grows. As we experience God's grace, our belief increases.

Steps One, Two, and Three work together. Only by admitting that the problem has us defeated, that we are powerless - only then do we become open to a Higher Power. If there is no way that we can stop eating compulsively by our own strength, then we require a strength greater than our own. Others have found this strength in God, as He is understood by each individual. When we turn our will and our lives over to our Higher Power and practice the Twelve Steps every day, we apply our belief and faith. The belief may be very small and weak in the beginning, but like the mustard seed, it grows. Gradually, we become convinced of what we had known all along, but were afraid to believe.

Strengthen my belief, I pray.

Thought these were included with the other readings or I would have posted them.

[MajestyJo]

Wednesday, April 2, 2015

You are reading from the book Food for Thought

Food Is Not God

Though we may not have admitted it, food was probably the most important thing in our lives when we were overeating. How many times did our relationships with family and friends suffer because of our slavery to our appetites? How often did we hurt those we loved by placing our craving above their needs?

Instead of loving God first, most of us . . .

Anything we put between us and who and what God would have us be and do in today, becomes our 'god' of the day. Is food your idol? Is it your false idol?

[MajestyJo]

Friday, April 3, 2015
You are reading from the book Food for Thought

Trusting God

Most of us have spent a great amount of time and energy trying to order and arrange our own lives. We have searched frantically for something to hang on to which would solve our problems - a new diet, a new job, a new lover. Nothing has worked permanently. The harder we have tried to straighten ourselves out the more our problems have defeated us.

When we came into the OA program, we were advised to "let go and let God." At first, this may have seemed to us to be a huge cop out. The idea of passively waiting for a Higher Power to do for us what we could not do for ourselves was an insult to our pride and our illusions of self-sufficiency. We were afraid to let go.

Our Higher Power requires that we be willing to trust Him with our lives in order to receive His strength and direction. From our vantage point of limited knowledge, there is a risk involved in letting go. If we are willing to take this risk and if we have the courage to face our fear, we will eventually receive the peace and support which we so desperately need. Besides, what do we have to lose except our own weakness?

Grant me courage to trust You completely.

[MajestyJo]

Saturday, April 4, 2015
You are reading from the book Food for Thought

Resting

We compulsive overeaters often used food as a stimulant when we felt the need to be busy about something. Of course, food did not keep us stimulated for long, since we usually ate too much and ended up in a stupor.

With this program, we can be more in touch with how our bodies really feel. There are times when the craving for food may mask our fatigue, times when what we need is rest, not food. When we are tired and feel that we cannot continue with what we are doing, it is very possible that we need to rest rather than eat. A short nap can refresh us much more than unnecessary food.

True rest for our spirit as well as our body comes from our Higher Power. A period of meditation can lift us out of mental and emotional depression. Only a brief moment is required to take our attention away from the daily routine and let our consciousness be drawn to God. These frequent pauses during the day tap a vast storehouse of energy and power.

I rest in Your greatness, Lord.

[MajestyJo]

Sunday, April 5, 2015
You are reading from the book Food for Thought

Fears

Do you eat when you are afraid? Many of us do. When we were babies, being fed brought the safety of our mother's arms. As adults, we subconsciously give food a sort of magic ability to ward off real or imagined danger.

There are times when food may serve as a temporary tranquilizer, but overeating prevents us from facing what we fear and learning how to deal with it. Eating compulsively, moreover, usually produces a feeling of guilt and a fear of "getting caught." The fear that we will not be able to stop eating is added to the fear that prompted us to reach for food, and the more we eat, the greater our fears.

Many of our fears are groundless and irrational. Through contact with our Higher Power, we are given the sanity, which causes them to disappear. Those fears that remain are often the result of the self-centeredness, which prevents us from turning our lives completely over to God. When we give Him absolute control, we have nothing to fear.

May I love You enough to let go of my fears.

So much of my life was fear based. I can remember being fearful at 6 years old. I had a safe place, a woods between my grandparents farm and home. Once I reached that place, I was okay. It was to that safe place I went to in meditation when I came into recovery, where there were birth and maple trees, black-eyed Susan's, daisies and buttercups. Whether they were groundless or not, they seemed very real to me. I had to feel safe in order to let them go. With my God, I felt safe and learned to have faith in Him.

[MajestyJo]

Wednesday, April 8, 2015
You are reading from the book Food for Thought

The Enemy Within

Why do we self-destruct? The problem of evil has been with us ever since the serpent tempted Eve to eat the apple. We often feel at war internally, one self-fighting another self.

There are forces that would have us abandon our program, and usually we find the temptation coming from within. We become careless, bored, lackadaisical in our efforts. Instead of disciplining ourselves to further spiritual growth, we rest on our oars and then wonder why we are drifting downstream!

There is nothing wrong with our bodily appetites, except when we allow them to take control. Then they will destroy us. Sane, healthy living requires that we acknowledge our spiritual needs. When our Higher Power is in control, we work for emotional and spiritual growth as well as physical satisfaction. Instead of being divided internally, we are integrated. The enemy within is subdued in the only way possible - by God's power.

Defeat the enemy within me. Lord.

[MajestyJo]

Thursday, April 9, 2015
You are reading from the book Food for Thought

Retreats

OA retreats are a wonderful way to recharge our batteries and gain strength through sharing. Whether for a day or for a weekend, the retreat is an extremely effective tool for growth in our program.

If an organized retreat is not available when we need it, we can arrange our own personal retreat for a day or two. Choosing a day or a weekend when we can concentrate on our program may give us a boost we need when we are having difficulty. If a minimum of time is spent on necessary tasks, there will be many hours free for reading, writing, and meditating. We can plan our abstinent meals ahead of time so that they require as little preparation as possible.

A personal retreat may take place at home or, if there are many distractions and it is possible to leave for a day or two, we may go somewhere away from home where we can be quiet and reflect. Extra time spent in prayer and meditation yields enormous dividends, and we return with increased strength and perspective.

I seek the refreshment that comes from You.

[MajestyJo]

Friday, April 10, 2015
You are reading from the book Food for Thought

Increasing Joy

Before we found OA, many of us felt depressed much of the time. The combination of too much food and too little inspiration was lethal. We existed and we did what we had to do, but there was a lack of deep joy in our lives.

When we get the poisons out of our systems, which have been deposited by refined starches and sugars and by overeating in general, we feel one hundred percent better. As we get rid of the poisons in our minds and hearts, our joy increases.

Gradually we are relieved of the guilt of overeating. We are also relieved of envy, anger, and fear - all of the negative emotions, which have poisoned our hearts.

Deep joy can only come from the deepest part of ourselves. That is the place where we find and come to know our Higher Power.

Thank You, God, for increasing joy.

[MajestyJo]

Saturday, April 11, 2015
You are reading from the book Food for Thought

Deliverance

OA is here to say that compulsive overeaters have been delivered from compulsive overeating! We have found a way of eating that delivers us from fat and, even more important, we have found a way of living that delivers us from fear.

The price is high. We find that in order for the program to work, we need to give ourselves completely to it. We have proven over and over that half measures do not succeed. Unless we keep our will and our lives entirely in the hands of our Higher Power, we will fall back into the trap of compulsive overeating and compulsiveness in other areas.

Every day when we wake up, we give thanks for another day of abstinence, and we put ourselves under God's care and direction. We ask that we be guided in all our activities and that we may follow His will for us in all that we do. Then, whatever happens during the day, we accept it as part of God's plan, and we play our part as He directs us. The outcome and results belong to Him. We are delivered from self-centeredness and freed from compulsion.

We celebrate our deliverance.

[MajestyJo]

Sunday, April 12, 2015
You are reading from the book Food for Thought

Compulsive Means My Will

When I am compulsive about something, I "have to" have it or see that it is done. I am insisting on my will, my way. I forget that the world does not revolve around me.

Going against the laws of the universe inevitably brings trouble. I cannot willfully consume everything my uncontrolled appetite demands without hurting myself and others. I cannot arrange other people's lives to suit my time schedule. I cannot adjust the world to me; I can adjust myself to what is, to reality.

Giving up my selfish, egocentric desires is probably the most difficult task I have. "He who masters himself is greater than he who conquers a city." I cannot do it alone. Through the fellowship of OA, with the help of the program, and by the grace of my Higher Power, I seek to turn from my will to His will.

Thy will be done.

[MajestyJo]

Monday, April 13, 2015
You are reading from the book Food for Thought

Greed

How many of us are killing ourselves with our own greed? In spite of all that we take in, we remain empty. Excessive consumption depresses our spirits even before it destroys our bodies.

Why are we so empty? Is it because we search for fulfillment in the wrong places? Do we expect permanent satisfaction from new clothes, more food, a bigger house? When the acquisition of these things fails to satisfy us for long, we then think we must go out and get more clothes, better food, a more elegant house.

Sometimes our greed arises out of fear, fear that we will not have enough. Kahlil Gibran says, "What is fear of need but need itself? Is not dread of thirst when your well is full, the thirst that is unquenchable?"

We are all children of a Father who satisfies our need but not our greed. To trust Him to abundantly supply all that we truly require is to give up fear as well as greed.

Take away my greed, Lord.

[MajestyJo]

Tuesday, April 14, 2015
You are reading from the book Food for Thought

Gluttony

In the Middle Ages, gluttony was considered one of the seven deadly sins. Now that sin has become an unpopular concept, we are inclined to overlook gluttony. It is still listed in the dictionary and defined as "eating to excess." Every compulsive overeater knows only too well what that means.

OA says that gluttony begins with one bite too much. When we give in to that first compulsive bite, we walk from the protection of our Higher Power into the snare of self-indulgence. Sometimes we are lucky enough to escape before the consequences are disastrous, but usually we are caught in our own trap.

There is no cure for gluttony, but we can stop practicing it. We can refuse to take the first extra bite. We can so strengthen our minds and hearts with the gifts of the Spirit that we do not need to eat to excess. The time we spend each day working the steps of our program is our insurance against gluttony.

By Thy grace, protect me from gluttony.

[MajestyJo]

Wednesday, April 15, 2015
You are reading from the book Food for Thought

A Daily Reprieve

Through the grace of our Higher Power and by means of the OA program, we compulsive overeaters are given a daily reprieve from our disease. This reprieve, however, is dependent on our spiritual condition. If we do not stay in touch with our Higher Power and if we do not practice the OA principles each day, we lose the reprieve and fall into compulsive overeating.

Our program comes first; other concerns are secondary. OA is not something which we can tack on to our schedule when it is convenient. To be effective, it requires top priority. This does not mean that we spend all of our time involved in OA activities. It does mean that all of our activities are guided by spiritual principles.

Impossible? Only if we refuse to turn our lives over to our Higher Power. When He is in control, our work, recreation, and rest all come under His direction. We are spiritually in tune each day and safe from our disease.

Thank You for saving me from my disease today.

[MajestyJo]

Thursday, April 16, 2015
You are reading from the book Food for Thought

Helping Others

Twelfth Step work is essential in OA, since in order to keep the program ourselves we have to give it away. Each of us finds opportunities to share what we have received.

It is discouraging when someone we wish to help turns down the program. It is hard to know what to say or do when a friend who needs OA responds to our efforts with indifference or hostility. Sometimes, those we are trying to help take advantage of our time and patience. Often, we feel inadequate when we encounter a person with seemingly overwhelming and insoluble problems.

As we go about our Twelfth Step work, let's remember that the best way we can help someone else is by maintaining our own abstinence. Let's also remember to turn over our perplexities to our Higher Power. We do the best we can, according to the insight we are given at the time, and we leave the results to God.

Show me what to do for those I would help.

[MajestyJo]

Friday, April 17, 2015
You are reading from the book Food for Thought
Easy Does It

Strain and struggle abound when we try to do everything ourselves, our way. We want positive change to occur immediately and expect miracles to happen according to our personal timetable. We sometimes feel that if our Higher Power is guiding us, we should be able to accomplish great and marvelous things constantly.

To remember "easy does it" is to humbly realize that we are not all powerful and that God does not expect us to be all things to all people. Growth is slow, time belongs to God, and change will occur according to His plan. If we do the jobs we have been given for this 24-hour period, our Higher Power will take care of tomorrow.

How much more agreeable life is when we do not overextend ourselves but admit our weakness and trust God to take care of us. We do not shirk our share, but we do not try to carry the whole load. Only our Higher Power is strong enough to do that.

Take from our lives the strain and stress.