Q: I really still have absolutely no idea why I overeat. I would love to know so that I could allow the Holy Spirit to show me how to deal with it, but I just don’t know!
A: Over the years of working with women who struggle with overeating, I’ve noticed that the reasons for overeating are at two different levels: 1) coping with uncomfortable emotions/compensating for fulfillment you wish you had from other areas of life, and 2) fear of experiencing imagined negative consequences of being thin (perhaps you saw a couple of my relatively recent blog posts on this topic). The Weight of Grace is designed to take you through foundational biblical concepts that set the stage for you to hear very specifically from God about what exactly is motivating your overeating and then learn from Him and His Word how to neutralize those motivations in light of His provisions through His love, Word, Body (other Christians), and grace. You are not the one who is best equipped to figure out what is motivating your overeating, but the Holy Spirit will show you. If you don’t know right now, it is not the time for you to know. Our tendency is to think that overeating and overweight are hideous flaws that really ought to be “fixed” immediately, but my experience is that God knows what issues are actually most pressing according to His timetable of transforming us into the image of Christ. Hang in there. He will show you what you need to know when you need to know it and how He is addressing it so you can be free.