Weight Just A Minute!

A couple of weeks ago, I posted the first part of my musings on the Bible’s creation story that dealt mainly with the blame game.  This week I wanted to share my thoughts on what happened immediately after the newlyweds, Adam and Eve, ate the forbidden fruit. Aside from blaming others and refusing to take accountability for their misdeeds, it feels like what follows is worthy of a Paul Harvey commentary … And now for the rest of the story. There are some eye-opening concepts that need a little rumination.  

At that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves. Genesis 3:7 (Emphasis mine)

I recently heard a sermon on this passage of Scripture. Prior to eating from the forbidden tree, Adam and Eve walked closely in the garden with God. (I’m not going to lie – I’m pretty envious of this). Preceding their epic failure – they didn’t notice their nakedness. It’s been suggested they were clothed in the light of God, which was so bright, they could see nothing else. When God confronted the duo after they ate from The Tree, Adam initially kind of threw Eve under the bus – just a little bit. Ultimately though, he made the decision to stand by Eve. That decision cost him and the rest of humanity dearly. He effectively chose to separate himself from God. In Adam’s defense, perhaps he had no idea what the ramifications of standing by his wife would mean. It literally was “his first rodeo,” so to speak. Because of that separation between the Creator and man, the light of God was removed from Adam and Eve. Without that light, the couple noticed their nakedness.

There they were naked as newborns (which they kind of were, when you think about it) and instantly In the blink of an eye – their first gut reaction was SHAME!

Once Eve took a bite of that forbidden fruit, she opened up a Pandora’s Box of food-related dysfunction and body issues. Man’s (and woman’s) original sin was the temptation to defy God. The crafty serpent convinced them they would be like God once they partook of the forbidden fruit. That temptation pushed them to do what they were told NOT to do, which led to the second temptation … eating prohibited FOOD.

Is it any wonder that women have been plagued with body insecurities for generations?  Since the beginning of time, women – well, maybe not ALL women, but the number is quite substantial; have struggled with comparing ourselves to our peers. With the invention of television, mass marketing and especially the internet, we girls feel as though we cannot measure up to the beautiful people.

Our ancestral mother, high-school prom queens, Vogue, the swimsuit issue of Sports Illustrated, size zero celebrities and starlets, Victoria’s Secret and oy vey, let’s not forget those Kardashian/Jenner women – have set the beauty bar pretty darn high. The result is as one would expect. The rest of us “ordinary and average” females have blasted off the launch pad of insanity, hitting all the Rest Stops along the way. Body dysmorphia, low self-esteem, self-loathing and hatred of our God-given bodies, plus a never-ending love/hate relationship with food! THIS must surely be the reason that women insist on asking that eternal, unanswerable and fully loaded question: … “Does this outfit make me look FAT?”

Liposuction, Botox, cosmetic surgery, butt lifts, face lifts, breast lifts and implants, nose jobs, body contouring, tummy tucks, eating disorders, anorexia, bulimia, exercise junkies and gym rats, fad diets, counting calories, portion control, calculating points, low-fat, no-fat, no-carbs, no sugar, keto, vegan, intermittent fasting … yadda, yadda, YADDA! You get it, and probably like me, have undoubtedly staked your ground and parked your trailer at any number of these diet insanity destinations.

This is the craziness that has fueled the multi-billion-dollar business of weight loss obsession and anti-aging beauty products. We obsess over every lick, bite and taste. We panic over every unwanted pound, every new gray hair, blemish, spot or wrinkle.  The human flesh is fixated with chasing beauty, longing for an impossible, unquenchable desire to have that perfect body.  Those of us of “a certain age,” have hopefully realized that there is no such thing as “the perfect body.” The only thing the never-ending pursuit of perfection produces is unhealthy obsessions that morph into unhealthy addictions. Our inability to find satisfaction in who we are with our “imperfect physiques” is why we are prone to “shame hangovers.”

You’d be hard-pressed to find a woman anywhere (at least here in America) who doesn’t struggle with some sort of perceived flawed body part. Even the women who appear to have it all together and look amazing on the outside, oftentimes wrestle with inner demons and go to great lengths to disguise or camouflage that which they cannot stand about their face, hair, teeth, tummies, thighs, ankles, breasts, bottoms and even their height.

Celebrities are the perfect example. Millions of dollars are spent on maintaining youth and pursuing perfection. More often than naught, these many expensive procedures can take a hard turn. The hunt for flawless, unlined faces and cellulite-free thighs and tummies, big pouty lips or Brazilian butts – pushes those with the cash to fund their Hollywood dream of unnatural Barbie bodies frequently go too far. So far in fact, they become unrecognizable with their Michael Jackson noses or faces so full of fillers they look like cartoon caricatures of their former selves.

As easy as it is to say, “just get over it!” and just be YOU – we seem to be inherently predisposed to be ashamed of our God-given bodies – all thanks to Adam and Eve. We despise our nakedness rationalizing that “if I could just lose this last 10 or 20 pounds” or “get veneers for my teeth,” or “grow five inches taller or shorter,” well – then I would be happy. Guess what? No matter how many fixes you undergo – you won’t ever be satisfied this side of heaven.

I was praying over this and pondering my own sordid past of bodily dysfunction and food addictions when I stumbled upon a devotion that spoke to my soul. One Scripture in particular presented an interesting truth that I’ve been chewing on for many days.

My servant grew up in the Lord’s presence like a tender green shoot, like a root in dry ground. There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance, nothing to attract us to him.   Isaiah 53:2 (NLT)

God definitely knows a thing or two about true beauty. There are numerous Scriptures that directly address physical, outward appearances. There are many men in the Bible that are described as exceedingly handsome; David and his son Absolom, Joseph, Saul, Daniel and his three friends, to name just a few. Beautiful women are well represented as well; Bathsheba, Rachel, Abigail, and Job’s daughters – were all very beautiful women. Abraham’s wife, Sarah, was said to be so beautiful well into her 80s and 90s, Abraham made her lie to two different kings and say she was his sister. He feared that if they knew she was his wife, they would kill him so they could have her for themselves.

Thanks to DNA, superior gene pools and the hand of God – good looks and natural beauty is simply part of who some people are. But when it came to the Son of God, Jesus was described as average looking. Perhaps he didn’t want people to follow him based solely on the fact that he was extremely attractive. He didn’t want a bunch of shallow groupies hanging off of him because he was DDG (drop dead gorgeous).  What Jesus wanted were people who would willingly follow him because he was the embodiment of love. People were drawn to him because the light of the Spirit emanated from him.

I don’t want to be like the rest of the world and constantly worry about my looks, my weight, the shape of my hourglass body that continually has more sand in my bottom half.  I don’t want to obsess about the fact that I am getting older, and my hair is whiter at the roots than it used to be. I can do a million push-ups but the chance of me whittling down my baggy bingo arms is pretty unlikely. Spending tons of money on creams, lotions and assorted skin care products or expensive make up that promise to smooth out my wrinkles or hide my age spots, isn’t really turning back the clock, but merely postponing the inevitable. The mere fact that I can so quickly itemize my “flaws” is proof that I continue to struggle in this area.

Growing old with grace doesn’t mean that we completely stop caring. I will likely always exercise on a regular basis because I know there may come a day when my physical body may not allow me the ability to do so. I still intend to wear makeup and cut and color my hair. I will continue to try to manage my weight without obsessing over every single calorie or pound of flesh – because, hey … at my age and with my unfortunate Sicilian DNA, I’m going to continue to encounter some pushback from Father Time and Mr. Gravity.

In life there must be balance and as I strive to do my part to keep my mind and my body healthy, it means I need to be spending equal amounts of time, money and energy in developing my character and my relationship with Jesus Christ. I am after all an ambassador for Christ.

We are Christ’s ambassadors. God is using us to speak to you: we beg you, as though Christ himself were here pleading with you, receive the love he offers you—be reconciled to God. 2 Corinthians 5:20 (The Living Bible)

This Scripture means that everywhere I go, I am a walking, talking, breathing messenger for Jesus. I don’t have to look like I stepped off the pages of a magazine, but I want to always strive to be the best representative for my Lord, as is within my power. I pray that the closer I get to Jesus, the more HE will shine through me, thereby transforming my outward appearance with a supernatural beauty.

It’s not what’s on the outside that really matters. When the beauty of the Lord radiates from your very soul, the love of Christ will shine through you and transform your appearance and your character – inside and out.

Don’t be an Eve. You are not destined to live a life of shame. Surrender your will and your food and all of your bodily insecurities to the Lord. Invite him into your heart and your life so that his Spirit will dwell on the inside of you. Stop spending money on lotions and potions that will minimize your pores and allow the love of Jesus to radiate through every pore in your body. His light will transform you into the beautiful child of God that he created you to be.

Someday … I pray that when I am complimented on any aspect of my physical body I will have my go-to auto-response locked and loaded and be able to humbly reply … Why, thank you! I look just like my Father!”

QUOTE OF THE DAY:

Weight For It – “It’s Not MY Fault!”

A couple of days ago I was reading the book of Genesis which is the first book in the Bible. I’ve read Genesis multiple times and thought I had a pretty good understanding of the whole creation story. But, as I was re-reading Chapter 2 specifically, there were a couple of passages that seemed to leap off the page and smacked me right in my supposed understanding. 

It was one of those situations where I found myself asking, “how have I never seen this before?” Or “hmm, I wonder if this was just recently added?”

The text I am referring to is Genesis 2:15-21. 

 The Lord God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to tend and watch over it. But the Lord God warned him, “You may freely eat the fruit of every tree in the garden—except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die.” Genesis 2:15-17

God created man in his own image and placed him in the Garden of Eden. God gave Adam explicit instructions about tending the Garden and warned him that he could eat whatever he wanted, just so long as he didn’t eat the fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

So far this is nothing new. The story continues and explains that Eve was deceived by the serpent, and SHE ate a piece of fruit from the restricted tree and then shared it with Adam. While most of us have heard this story a bazillion times, we’ve all come to accept that Eve, our matriarchal mother figure, was the first one to eat the fruit.

Adam always defends their actions by blaming God for “the woman you gave me.” We women have been taking the blame for this fall from grace forever. We’ve always been the GUILTY party.   But – are we? Really?

After re-reading the Scripture, if we read these verses and accept them at face value – Eve wasn’t even created yet!.

WAIT A MINUTE! What?

God instructed ADAM, and Adam alone about what he could and could not eat. It is in verse 15 that God gives Adam the conditions about what would happen if he ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. 

Sorry boys – Eve wasn’t even there! At least according to this Scripture. Eve didn’t come along until verse 22, so she didn’t get the menu outline instructions directly from God.  Adam was preparing to dine alone, a pitiful party of one when God recited the special of the day.    

¹⁸ Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper who is just right for him.”

²¹ So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep. While the man slept, the Lord God took out one of the man’s ribs and closed up the opening. ²² Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib, and he brought her to the man. Genesis 2:18, 21-22

Hello there! Table for two, please!

The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the Lord God had made. One day he asked the woman, “Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?”

² “Of course we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,” the woman replied. ³ “It’s only the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden that we are not allowed to eat. God said, ‘You must not eat it or even touch it; if you do, you will die.’” Genesis 3:1-2 (emphasis mine)

Did you notice what Eve did? She added that part about them not being allowed to even touch the tree. God never said that to Adam. Which means they could probably have touched it all they wanted; they just weren’t allowed to eat from The Tree.

This was eye-opening for me because it means that it was Adam’s responsibility to relay the exact instructions to his new wife regarding what they were AND WERE NOT allowed to eat.  Clearly, Adam erred in his explanation to Eve about eating from the restricted fruit tree. In fact, the way he finally explained things to Eve must have been like that old game of telephone, because Adam mis-communicated God’s guidelines. Either Eve didn’t correctly hear all of the precise rules from Adam, or she heard them and embellished for dramatic effect when responding to the serpent’s temptation.  In either scenario, there was miscommunication and misunderstanding between Adam and Eve.

I make no claims about being a Bible expert or a Theological scholar. I know there are many arguments about who should take the blame for the “original sin.” Adam immediately wanted to blame God for “the woman YOU gave me.”  Some say Adam alone is to blame because God created him first. He received the instructions about The Tree directly from God so it should have been his responsibility to act as Eve’s protector and her covering.

Many people (especially men) seem to think Eve is to blame because she ate from The Tree first and then offered it to Adam. Yet Eve blamed the serpent for tempting her and deceiving her.

Clearly men and women have been struggling with communication and blame since the beginning of time. Communication between the sexes is very challenging.  I think that’s how it’s supposed to be, because God purposely created us to be very different from one another. In our differences, God created us to balance each other. Where one is weak, the other excels. When one gets puffed up with pride and ego, the other brings them back to earth.

As for the blame game – that too, has been an issue since the beginning of time. It is inherently hard-wired into our genomes to “pass the buck.” Toddlers are a great example of this. If something gets broken – the little brother or sister did it. Or the dog ate my homework! An only child will blame misconduct on a playmate or imaginary friend.

We adults know a thing or two about blame.  “Look what YOU made me do!” Or, “YOU make me so angry!”

The fact is no one can MAKE you do anything you don’t want to do. Assigning blame is how we excuse our behavior or transgression. If we can find someone – anyone else – to take the blame for what we have done, it takes the heat off of us, so we do not have to admit our fault. By blaming others – it shifts responsibility to anything or anyone other than ME.

Our prisons are filled with people who are “innocent.” Washington D.C. is overflowing with politicians who always want to blame the opposing party. “Well, these problems all exist because of the previous administration!” The democrats did it. The republicans did it. Toxic masculinity is the reason. White, straight males, fatherless homes. The drugs are the cause, Big Pharma … blah, blah, blah!

It’s always somebody else’s fault.

Yet, while we get caught up on placing blame elsewhere, nothing ever gets resolved. Blame is nothing more than an inflated ego and wearing a mantle of pride. While people volley their accusations back and forth – the true culprit falls at the feet of Satan. He knows that with blame comes conflict, guilt and shame. If he can make you feel bad about yourself or run from God because of your guilt – he has won the battle; which is his overall end game. He wants to keep you from serving Christ. When we practice humility and forgiveness, we are the embodiment of Jesus. It’s rare when someone willingly stands up and proclaims, “I did it. I am guilty. I am ashamed of myself.” 

We want to blame our parents for our troubled childhoods. We want to blame our ex for the disintegration of our relationship. Our car breaks down, our bathroom pipes burst – we blame the mechanic or the dealership. We blame the plumber who supposedly fixed the problem or we blame the contractor who built the house.

When we get really fed up, like Adam – we want to blame God. I know. I’ve been there. For a long time, I blamed God for my dysfunctional childhood. I blamed God for my weight gain and food addictions. I blamed God for giving me this body that holds on to fat making weight loss impossible. I blamed God for my thick thighs and my short squatty body. I blamed God for the way He made me and putting me with the family that I grew up with.

Just writing all of this makes me ashamed. He is God and He loves me. All that I was and all that I am and all that I will be – He has always had a plan and a purpose for me. In the family I grew up with. For the body that I have. For my short legs and thick thighs. For my hopes, my dreams, my fears and my failures. He knew me before I was born. (Psalm 139) He knows my beginning and the end. I am not an accident or an afterthought. It’s sad to think I wasted so many years laying all my flaws and problems at the feet of Jesus.

Because God is all omnipotent – he could have at any time, stepped in and saved me or you from the abuse, the car accident, the illness, the poor financial decisions. He could have – he should have – why didn’t he … and on … and on … and on it goes.

Yes, He is God and He could have at any time. There comes a point in our lives when we have to stop blaming others for our mistakes and unhappiness. God gave us free will which allows us to make our own choices. If we mess things up, God can turn the bad into good. He rarely wastes our pain or failures. Every failure is an opportunity for personal growth. If we mess up, we dust ourselves off and learn from those mistakes. Sometimes the mistakes were the point all along and meant to teach us something that we would not have learned any other way. The failures allow us to grow in character and maturity.

Taking responsibility is the responsible thing to do. Politicians and prisoners – take note.

Fess up. Take your lumps. Suffer the consequences – because, yes, depending on the infraction – there may be consequences – but in the end you will grow in character and integrity. If only Adam and Eve had learned this lesson – who knows where the world would be today.

We can only run from our failures for so long. Why not run to Jesus. He is waiting for you. He loves you. He died for you. He wants to give you a future and hope. He wants you to stop running and come to Him willingly. He will not force you. If you die today – where will you spend your eternity? If you end up in hell – who will you blame?  

QUOTE OF THE DAY: