For those reading for the racewalking tidbits, this will be a bit different, so read or not read as you wish. I haven't blogged as much about faith of late, but for some reason it just seems appropriate right now. I know some have separate personal and training blogs, but for me, it's all part and parcel of who I am, so I can't really tease them apart and don't want to.
At New Song today, Sam talked about food in the context of "I am the bread of life" - John 6. Excellent - lots of food for thought. Some ideas I plan to reflect on further -
1. Feasting & celebration - how to enjoy food in its proper place. This is a challenge for me, as I have used food wrongly for so long that sometimes I'm not sure how to use it rightly. Believing and fellowship are activated by eating. How true - gatherings and social interactions and getting to know others better seems to happen much better somehow in the context of food. Food is about communing, not about consuming. Particular foods remind us of things are are a window to memories and shared experiences. For example, in our family, we have a Christmas bread that we eat on Christmas Day and no other time. It just wouldn't be Christmas without it, and the food brings meaning to our family bonding experience.
2. In the context of faith, to believe and to trust involves eating - the physical act of taking communion is about deep trust and fellowship and relying on God for one's sustenance, both physical and spiritual.
I think in the recent past, I've avoided celebratory food (#1 above) out of fear of overindulging. I can often plan for it and enjoy it, but I tend to be more conscious of it than I'd like. Some of that is unavoidable, because I am a former food abuser, and like the alcoholic, will always have to take precautions. But I do want to really enjoy the food in its wider and most appropriate context of relationships.
Thinking about #2 is a bit easier. For a long time I used food as an attempt to fill my emotional and spiritual needs, unsuccessfully. It made me fat, not happy (I am happier now that ever before, even though I'm eating less!). I still have that tendency, and am pretty aware of the importance of filling those needs in more appropriate ways. Not that I do it all the time - but it is slowly getting better. It's a long process, but well worth the effort.
2 comments:
I totally relate. Being in a right relationship with food is one of the hardest parts of losing weight and maintaining that loss. It is good, and there for our nourishment and pleasure. When dieting, for me anyway it's easy to start to see food as purely functional at best, or a burden at worst. Or something to be afraid of. I like the food chapter in Lauren Winner's MUDHOUSE SABBATH...I think it's helpful in thinking about all this.
Very insightful! Thanks for sharing this. Personally, I'm learning how to distinguish between when I'm actually hungry and when I'm bored or eating to fill an emotional/spiritual need. Sometimes I have to stop and actually say to myself, "Wait--am I really hungry--physically hungry?" I'm surprised to find that more often than not, the answer is no.
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