In preparation for writing this post, I pulled out old journals from the time when I struggled with food and body image issues the most. The war that was waging in my mind was so evident on those pages. I desperately wanted to be free, but I was stuck in a cycle of thinking and behaviors that had me trapped.

In those pages, I routinely pleaded with God to heal me and take away my struggles. One entry from March of 2010 says “What is going on with me? Why do I binge eat? What am I trying to feel? I hate doing this. I so desperately want to change. God, I need Your help. I can’t change without You. Even though my faith is weak, please help me. I don’t want my life to revolve around food.”

At the time that I was writing those words, I was a new mom of 18-month-old twin boys, and I had a loving and supportive husband so practically speaking, life was good. Yet my mind was consumed with my weight and how much I ate and how much I exercised. Those journal pages would continue to be filled ...