On the Road to Change

10/27/1999

From a sister... This was written to encourage some sisters that had struggled to lose weight, or had struggled with other foolish sins, and had asked for help over time. I think you’ll find the application in dealing with other types of fleshly indulgence (and sin in other areas) is obvious also. Obviously there is much more that could be said on any such subject, but she was writing to a number of people that she knew very well, and you’ll find this reflected in the personal and specific nature of what follows. Yet, I think you’ll be encouraged by this, as many have been. Give it some thought and prayer! :-)

Hello Everyone,

I found myself praying for an individual recently who seems to be desperate for some True and lasting changes in her life. As I pictured her and the future in my mind’s eye, I found myself asking: How will this time be any different than all previous attempts? It wasn’t a lack of believing that the person COULD change, but I wondered what components would need to be in place for there to be permanent, supernatural, set-free-forever-from-specific-sinful-ways, type of change. Then I thought about how the whole process of “needing to lose weight” (or overcoming the lack of self-control or laziness that is at the root of this condition in most cases) is a very tangible type of battle. It is JUST LIKE other sins that need to be conquered, in many ways. Here are some thoughts...not in order of importance, necessarily...

1) You have to really be sick of being a slave to your flesh, your mind, and the enemy... and dishonoring to Jesus. Read, if you will, Romans chapters 3 to 8, that many have considered recently. As an individual, you don’t want that separation from Jesus’ Pleasure that you sense in your Spirit when you willfully sin. You’re sick of wounding Him and walking at a distance to Him, unnecessarily. Beyond this personal aspect, there are additional and large implications for others that are also effected by your sin. You should know that His Testimony in His people is also in jeopardy by our sins of self-indulgence and other willing lawlessness. You are “punching a hole in the ozone layer” in the Spiritual Realm by willful sin, and allowing potential harm to others as well as yourself. Consider Achan and Ai, as well as 1 Corinthians 5. You have to have grit inside of you enough to look in the mirror and ‘fess up and say “You know what, self? You, when giving in to that which is NOT Jesus, living unnecessarily in the mud below Jesus’ Life, and you’re not going to stay that way ANYMORE!!” (a “lazy bum” or a “whining wimp” or a “selfish imp” or a “flesh-feeding Cipher” or a “spineless coward” or WHOEVER you currently are impersonating outside of Jesus’ Spirit) and THIS MUST NOT CONTINUE!!! I will NO LONGER hurt Jesus this way! It MUST STOP!!! IT does seem like something inside has to be alive enough to be calling out for resolve to change—“calling on the name of the Lord,” “conscious of God,” “heartily, as towards the Lord Himself.” Okay. That’s a good starting place. Along with, of course, “Jesus CAN change me, and He WILL change this counterfeit expression that isn’t Jesus... if I trust Him.” So it MUST be a vertical thing. Not driven by selfish desires to be different or other motives to please people or “be more spiritual” or to be “more likable ” or “more in the mix” or whatever. Those are very weak, and thankfully, God won’t let you get very far if your motives are mixed.

2) Weight doesn’t melt off by desire alone or “wishing real hard it were so.” (There’s a little PS at the bottom, if you’d like.... :) Sins that you have tolerated don’t generally just disappear without addressing them clearly and decisively. You must have clarity in your mind as to what it is you are going to shove in the enemy’s face. This is true for any bondage we are experiencing. We must have a plan that STARTS with clearly seeing what you are battling. If it is materialism, or sloppiness, or man-pleasing, or worldly-driven priorities, or irresponsibility with requests that are made of you—name it as sin and be responsible, voluntarily, to others about your intentions to change. And perhaps even ASK to be called on the carpet if you are “cutting corners.” If you constantly make jokes and are the slap-happy guy or gal, cut it out. Tell those close to you that you really desire to offer the gift of “change” to Jesus. Ask them to pray for you. Take a “fast” from joke-telling or play-on-words type stuff. DECIDE, and DON’T do it anymore. If you are always looking for entertainment and “good times” with people; a meal out, a video here, a fun time there...if that’s what you do, don’t be afraid to fast from initiating any such thing for a while. Perhaps even have someone else be your decision-maker in that area. (These are potential “ideas,” “strategies” for getting on a path to change—not “rules to follow,” obviously). If you crave people’s attention, or compare yourself constantly to others, somehow resolved to change. Somehow, get it clear in your mind and with God, and do let others know about it. Which leads to point #3...

3) You WILL NOT be able to conquer ANYTHING on your own, “lest any man boast.” God alone reserves the power and the life from Heaven that can and will overthrow the enemy. And His Plan nearly always includes the Church—other saints whose lives are knitted with yours on a daily basis. The Chruch, which is the Pillar and Foundation of Truth... the Church that the gates of Hell cannot prevail against. The Church, which makes known the manifold Wisdom of God, now, to the principalities and powers... the Church which is becoming a habitation of God, by the Spirit. Remember, the gates of hell tend to prevail against individuals, since the Promise was about those whose lives are “of one accord” “contending as one man for the Faith,” “joined and knit together by every supporting ligament”—a true church. Even though you may be placed in the midst of a local assembly of Jesus that is truly functioning as the body of Christ on a daily basis—if you choose to be independent and “handle it yourself,” you will generally get nowhere. Talk with others openly about who you are and HOW you are progressing towards the image of Christ. How sweet the truth is when we respond to God: “Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.” Find specific ways to be responsible to others in those areas of weakness. INVITE their help and input. If we REALLY want change, no measure will be too great.

4) Expect pain. Any one who has ever lost weight will tell you, IT IS PAINFUL at times. There is nothing you can do or should do to avoid hunger. That pain, and at times BIG temptation, are part of the process of change. “Therefore, since Christ suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind, for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for the will of God.” If there is NOT pain, pretty regularly as you are fighting for real change, then probably you are deceiving yourself, and you’ve “lost no weight” at all. A few choices of turning away from having a snack DOES NOT equal faithfulness towards God in the area of self-control. Four weeks can go by and because you “feel better” and haven’t been “tempted much,” it would be easy to think your weight thing is better when you haven’t lost a pound! Know what I mean by that?? Somehow, we have to take a “true reading” on the changes we desire in our lives. Have you REALLY gotten those emotional tantrums under control? Have you REALLY been more devoted to spending time with Father about His things? Have you REALLY not sown seeds to entertain your flesh? (“Ohhhhhhhh... that looks SOOOO good!” Lust is LUST! It is sin, whether you eat it or not!) Are you REALLY different internally? I know that I have blind areas, and I don’t have it all under control, that’s for sure, but somehow, I know that if pain has not been a part of the process for things I’d like to see changed in my life, then probably, nothing much has changed at all. It’s got to cost me, and just like a person who has lost 40 of their 80 pounds will tell you, it has been costly, and they can TELL you the times they’ve NOT sown to the flesh (very consistently), so will it be for other areas of our lives. It is a consecutive day-in and day-out devotion to sowing good seeds. And that brings the next point.

5) Have in mind a three or six or nine month season of sowing good seeds every chance you get. “In due season....in due season....” Anything of lasting value takes time. There needs to be purposeful, tangible, measurable times of sowing good seeds consistently in a certain area of life. Weight loss does not happen in a week. At least not the kind that will last. Let’s honor God, regardless of what can be measured EXTERNALLY, by week after week and month after month of sowing good seeds, making sacrifices, experiencing whatever pain may come with His joy, and turning away from temptation. It is a time of BUILDING GOOD HABITS. It is a time of ripping out self-centered thinking and replacing it with Jesus-centered desires, motivations, and actions.

If you had 80 pounds to lose (or some other large-scale sin habit), it could be pretty overwhelming if you let it be. But what are you going to do about it? Cry? Whine? Indulge the sin? Eat more and gain more and make the problem worse and more overwhelming? Start for two days, get discouraged and quit? What will you do in the face of an overwhelming area of life in which you have sown rotten seeds for most of your life? It is a big task, isn’t it? Just like 80 pounds will not come off in one or two months, so neither will a life-time of fear or flesh-pleasing orientations, comparisons to others or talking out of the flesh change overnight. You know, I’m NOT giving any one an EXCUSE to say “Oh...this takes time. You can’t expect me to change so fast...” We just need to resolve to dig in and get to work.

6) We MUST be talking with Father in a consistent devoted way, and asking others to pray for us as well. Apart from Him, we can conquer little to nothing. GOD is the only one who can change us, but He’s looking for people who are serious about it for the long haul. Not just a jumpstart here or a “springing up with great joy” there, or a fleshly “flash in the pan” thing. He’s looking for serious-minded, devoted people who are in it for the long haul in specific areas of their lives. And they keep on knocking, keep on knocking...They EXPECT to pay a price. They KNOW it will not be easy. They expect it will be WORK to rip up rocky ground and mile-high weeds and hard, untilled soil. They KNOW it means sowing seed without growing weary.

I know there is much, much Hope and Provision for any of us who will look our Father in the face, ask Him for the washing of His forgiveness through His Son, and believe that He has the power to change us and set us free. MUCH hope, MUCH provision, MUCH grace. We can be different people. We really can.

I’m sure these points aren’t exhaustive on the subject of being truly changed within, but they are at least some current thoughts on my mind...Really hope it is helpful as we move forward to be more like Jesus and pleasing to Him...

Love in the Father,

PS I thought’d take the opportunity to say that I am coming to believe more and more that gimmicky diet plans are cheap substitutes and the world’s way of approaching weight loss. Being overweight has its roots in a SPIRITUAL PROBLEM. So WHY in the world would we turn to worldly “programs” as a primary means to solve a SPIRITUAL problem? We need GOD, first and foremost, for ANY type of sin, food or otherwise! HE has thoughts of how we can change. Granted, some diets could help, but not if it’s built on worldly principles. Recently, a sister and I discovered that many diet plans have this objective: lose that unwanted weight while still stroking your flesh. You can ENJOY your plate of food by making it look sooooo good. Pretty colors, pretty parfait bowls so you can still idolize your food. Yeah, you’re only consuming 800 calories, but you can still be finding a way to please your sensual lust and taste buds in the process. It really is crafty of the enemy to make you think you are doing something good, and meanwhile reinforcing the love of food. The ROOT issues are never dealt with. On the simplest level, the root could be just a dullness about food. But TYPICALLY, the reason is because we love food, we want food, we think about food, and so we eat what we want when we want and have not learned to curb our fleshly appetite of pleasing our palette and having a full belly. Here’s the reason. Most people who have extra weight are the way they are because of BAD eating habits, a lust or laziness, and lack of letting the Spirit of God control their desires and decisions.

Gimmicks and crash diets and weirdo foods and pre-planned diet meals do NOT help a person change their HEARTS or their EATING HABITS. They could lose 60 pounds over a year, and once off the “diet plan” or out from under “the law” they put it back on. The law is meant to drive us to Jesus in the midst of losing the weight. Learning how to turn to HIM in times of crisis, pain, and temptation with food. Begging God to be different on the inside in how we relate to food. Seems that for a person to lose significant weight and keep it off, they have to change their eating FOR A LIFETIME, not just three or six months. And isn’t it that way with other areas of sin, too? You wouldn’t cut out lusting after video games for six months and then go right back to it when the “law” was lifted. The law is meant to lead us to Jesus and to real, internal change for the rest of our lives. Wow, good stuff. :)

•  A. W. Pink