Cleaning out the Lies
My family and I recently moved to Florida from Louisiana. Being a prior military family, this is not the first time we have moved to a new state for my husband’s career. In over 20 years of marriage, my husband and I have made ten moves across five states. Six of these moves have included kids. As part of these moves, I have come to love “cleaning out” my house and giving away or donating items we no longer need or use.
When it comes to food, exercise, and my body, my eating disorder mindset of 32 years fights against the “clean out” of the lies it has believed for so long. It tries to convince me that I am safer if I remain in control by adhering to what culture says is acceptable in these areas. Cultural messages that constantly tell me I will find peace and happiness once I attain a certain weight, or keep a certain diet, or pursue a certain exercise plan. It has only been within the last several years when I stumbled across FINDINGbalance and began listening to the Old School Food Freedom podcast and other podcast messages like it, that I began to see how much I need to regularly “clean out” these lies that are no longer serving me and replace them with God’s truths.
The truth is, God does not accept me because of how “healthy” or “unhealthy” I eat, or how much and how hard I exercise or do not. Those things, in and of themselves, will NEVER earn me the acceptance for which I am longing. God’s truth is that I am already accepted by Him.
“To the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace.” - Ephesians 1:6-7 (NIV)
The inner joy and peace I long for can be found in pursuing Him and Him alone.
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” - John 14:27 (NIV)
When I focus on lies of the world about body image, I only find that I focus too much on myself and experience more inner turmoil and dissatisfaction.
As my children have gotten older and have moved more, we talk about how hard moving can be, while simultaneously being a gift. We get to experience many new things that a lot of other families do not have an opportunity to do. We also get to master the art of being the new family, which means being friendly, putting ourselves out there, and taking risks to make new friends. And most importantly, we learn to be on the lookout for the next “new person” so we can reach out and make him or her feel welcome and accepted. As I tell them these things, I often think to myself, if I am so focused on my calorie count, my exercise plan, or my body size, I won’t have time to notice the beautiful and new things all around me, or the person who may need me to be a friend to them, just as much as I need them to be a friend to me. To embrace the beauty God has for me in our moves, I am learning I need to take care of the body I was given. This means NOT listening to culture’s messages about body size, and diet and exercise plans, but instead eating foods that feel good to me, trying new foods, and being flexible in my food plan each day. It means honoring my body with the food that it needs instead of what a diet tells me I should eat. It means extending myself grace when I eat too much or too little or don’t take the risks with food I wanted to. It means telling myself that tomorrow is a new day, and I can always try again. It means kindly moving my body when it has been still for too long and allowing it to rest when it is tired or sick, not forcing it to exercise because an exercise plan tells me to.
I often tell my kids, it takes time to build a new community of support and make good trustworthy friends when we move to a new place, but in time those things will come. God has always provided them in every single move we have made. I must believe the same is true of recovery. It takes time, sometimes years to uncover and replace lies that we have believed for so long. But let us not give up! Let us keep fighting for God’s truths and shutting down the enemies lies! Little by little, with the grace of God, we will get closer and closer to the food and body freedom we all long for!
-Jill Palmer
Passionate Seeker of Jesus. Wife to a Retired Navy Officer and Current Sports Management Professional. Mom to Four Soccer Loving Boys and Two Gymnastics & Dance Loving Girls. Family Taxi Cab Driver. Craver of Soulful Conversations with Good Friends. Overcomer.
FINDINGbalance is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization providing non-clinical support and encouragement to those battling food issues. The contents of this blog article, including any attachments, are for educational purposes only and are not intended to diagnose, treat, or prescribe a particular course of action. If you or someone you care about is battling an eating disorder, please seek care from a licensed professional. If you are in crisis and need immediate support, please call, text, or chat 988 to speak with someone at the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, 24/7
