First I want to extend a lot of compassion to you if you have tried to strive before God or earn goodness through your food and exercise choices. This makes a lot of sense given the culture we live in that glamorizes the pursuit of weight loss and extreme exercise.
I have seen a few Christian-based books and podcasts and even bible studies that (IMO) aren’t as helpful as they could be because they seem to intertwine our goodness with our food choices and/or body size and I just don’t find that encouraging. This is not every Christian book or bible study out there! Just a few I’ve stumbled upon and I think it’s a testament to how pervasive diet culture really is.
Before I really start, I want to pose a question – do you think God cares about the fat on our bodies? Because I doubt He does. I think He cares about our heart and how we’re stewarding the gifts, resources and time we’ve been given. You can be misusing the gifts God gave you in a small or large body.
I’m praying that whoever reads this sees these words with fresh eyes and a cleansed heart. I’d also like to say (1) there’s an incredible amount of nuance when it comes to eating and (2) everyone understands the bible in his/her own time. I’m not trying to replace your therapist/dietitian or your relationship with God.
Here’s what the bible says about eating and to some extent what it says about idolatry and freedom because preoccupation with food and our bodies really is a form of bondage.
19 Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20 you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20
Worshipping our bodies has become so commonplace it’s hard to realize we’re even doing it. In a world that feels broken and scary and unpredictable, it makes sense that we’d want to preserve our “one sacred vessel.” We want to protect ourselves as much as we believe we can from the dangers of the outside world and time in general. But the truth is time is passing and eventually our bodies will fail us, regardless of how many vegetables we eat every day. Instead of striving in your own strength to preserve it perfectly, know that our bodies were given to us by a God who loves us. Jesus died for us because he loved us so much. Over the years I have found it helpful to shift from trying to love my body to learning to care for it (or maybe just tolerate it!), which in turn honors God because I am able to focus on so many other things, including spending time with Him (an ongoing process!).
For me, caring for my body looks like:
13 No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide an escape, so that you can stand up under it. 14 Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry.
1 Corinthians 10:13-14
Idolatry happens when we worship something other than God. It becomes the thing we seek to please or achieve instead of the love of God. It’s dangerous because it can come in the form of many things that are otherwise quite good. For some, food and exercise can be idols. They can distract and discourage us from our relationship with God. They’re false — they’ll never provide us the safety and security we’re looking for. For a long, long time, I idolized my body size and my food choices and that never allowed me to live out my values. It just took up a lot of brain space and actually made me really irritable and anxious.
There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death
Romans 8:1-2
I could really talk about this one for a long time but to sum it up: Shame about food does not come from God. God created our hunger and wants us eat so we can stay alive. I don’t believe he is partial to any type of diet but rather a way of eating that takes up the least amount of brain space possible. Eating a variety of nutritious and delicious foods, eating what’s available and tastes good. Moving on once we’ve finished. If you feel shame after eating, I encourage you to choose curiosity over judgment. Ask yourself, “Why am I feeling this right now? Where is that coming from? Can I acknowledge that feeling and move on, knowing it doesn’t come from God?”
We are not made righteous by keeping the law but by faith.
Galatians 3:9-14
This is not a free pass to sin or do whatever I want. It’s a reminder that religious activity without a change in heart condition does not bring me closer to God. Similarly, I might say I do X or Y to “be healthy” or “get in shape” but if it’s rooted in a deep desire to earn the love of God or someone in my life or cope with something that I feel challenged by, it’s not glorifying God. It’s deceiving Him and myself.
This is a very nuanced topic. As I was reading The Great Omission by Dallas Willard I stumbled upon this quote that I found so helpful: “Grace is not opposed to effort. It is opposed to earning.” There is nothing wrong with engaging in the spiritual disciplines (prayer, reading, praying, silence, solitude, worship, service, etc) or health-promoting behaviors, but it always comes down to the condition of our hearts.
Take these examples. Both are doing the same action but with different intentions — either striving in our own strength or trusting in God’s grace.
1)
Am I going to wake up early to pray because I’m afraid God won’t love me if I don’t? Striving
Am I going to wake up early because I’ve been doing so every so often and I feel at peace with myself and God afterward? Trusting
2)
Am I going for a run because I feel obligated even though I feel sick and tired or because I ate too much and am trying to compensate? Striving
Am I going for a run because it will feel good even though it won’t change my body size? Trusting
Eat anything sold in the meat market without raising questions of conscience, for, “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof.”
1 Corinthians 10:26
God created food as a gift, and it is good. We are allowed to eat all meats and foods without questioning the goodness of these foods. There was a time when certain foods were not allowed to be eaten and were instead sacrificed to God. But when Jesus came and died for us, he provided the ultimate atonement. We no longer have to provide sacrificial meals to God. (For the record, I have no problem with vegetarians/vegans. I don’t personally subscribe because it can become something for me to obsess about.)
Nothing outside a person can defile them by going into them. Rather, it is what comes out of a person that defiles them.
Mark 7:15
It is not what we put into our bodies that is our danger, it’s what comes from our heart — our intention behind our actions — that is potentially dangerous. We have a sinful nature and are in need of being saved by none other than God.
As with all nutrition topics, there’s a lot of nuance here too. A big takeaway is that if you feel like your body size and food choices are more central to who you are and how you define yourself, they may be inhibiting your relationship with God. I want to reiterate that I say this from a place of empathy and compassion because I was in that place for a long time. Until I realized my position in Christ, I was not truly free from the hold disordered eating had over my life. While I consider myself “recovered” this is an ongoing process and one that I will work on for the rest of my life.
Do you have other questions about faith and eating? I’d love to know!
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