17 days without coffee. (offers invitation to my daily pity party) This has led to #coffee addict confessions on friend's facebook pages.
I am learning. I am. Self denial is hard. I am also learning that I am an absent-minded eater. I eat and don't even think about it. For example within a week I have without thinking ate a goldfish cracker and a raisin I plucked from my child's cereal. I didn't even think twice about it until I swallowed both. Oops!
I have switched my list a little bit so to bring everyone up to speed my 7 foods are:
1. eggs
2. wheat bread
3. rice
4. broccoli
5. cheese
6. chicken
7. peanut butter
So breakfast: eggs and toast; lunch: peanut butter sandwich; supper rice/chicken/broccoli combo.
Moments of weakness:
• Sonrise Easter Service -- Getting up early and getting 4 kids dressed to go without coffee flowing through my veins proved difficult.
• Rainy mornings and chatting with friends (miss chatting over a cup of joe)
• Tubs of Easter Candy sitting on my fridge
• Birthday party - cake/punch/snacks
• Craig cooking homemade spaghetti sauce on the stove - the smell so delish smelling I was about ready to leave the house.
Remind you it has only been a week. My biggest challenge lies ahead - trip to Worlds of Fun with the youth group. Will be up all night with no coffee. Eating out and Steak and Shake. This alone has kept me up at night justifying that I can take one night off. I am sure the council would agree. I need a stricter council. My unofficial council is Craig (who would let me off the hook because he thinks I am cute and he is tired of hearing me complain) and Christie (who also loves coffee and is kind enough to tell me one day would be fine and remind me of my promise to not make this legalistic) But even one sip, one taste would undo me I am afraid. I wouldn't go back. I must push forward, stick to my guns.
So far I have been plugging through this food challenge alone. I was really hoping Craig would join me. Christie did the clothing challenge with me last month and it was so great to know someone else was not wearing shorts on those warm spring summer days. Yes yoga/fleece pants it was. That bonded us. So I wrote to Jen Hatmaker, who wrote the 7: book asking if she knew anyone who was doing the 7: challenge right now and I got hooked up with a group at Bibledude.net. They are actually on clothing right now and I am on food but next month we will be on the same chapter. (I went out of order) Jen does a video with them each month as well. :-D
I know this food challenge is crazy -- but I encourage you (especially my small group and my husband if you are reading this) to do it in your own way. There is still a couple weeks of April left. My challenge to you is give up a food item that you love for 7 days. Or give up sweets for 7 days. Or go wild and do the only 7 foods for 7 days. Surely, you can do 7 days. God is teaching me a lot in this process and I just want to give you the opportunity to be part of it in your own way. If you decide to take the challenge please let me know. :-) I'd love to hear about your 7 days.
What are you learning? For some reason only eating 7 foods has shown how very "flesh-like" I am. I really never would of thought of food as my weakness, but it is. I shared with a friend the comfort snacking brings me. It was my husband's comment that really floored me.... (after probably hearing my whine the upteenth time that day) aren't you doing this to be thankful for what you have and all your doing is complaining about what you can't have. Isn't that missing the point?" My first reaction was to challenge back that at least I am doing it, attempting it, what was he doing?! I'm kind of mouthy like that, but surprisingly I didn't. I knew he had hit upon a truth. God further convicted me later that week as I read through Numbers. Suddenly I was an Israelite wandering in the desert complaining about the food God provided for me:
And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food.” 6 Then the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died. - Numbers 21:5
How I like to judge those Israelites who saw all the miracles of God to get them out of Egypt and then they go and complain and forget all that God did for them. How could they? He parted the stinking RED SEA people. Yet when He provided food, it wasn't good enough. Manna, manna, manna, day after day. It wasn't good enough so He gave them quail until it was coming out of their ears. They got tired of that. See where I am going with this... I have been so focused on what I don't have I am not thankful for what I do have. I have 7 foods to choose from - not just manna, manna, manna. Those words in that passage stood out to me in the form of my ungratefulness to the provision God affords to me daily and abundantly -- WE LOATHE THIS WORTHLESS FOOD.
So at the end of this first week I find myself checking my "wants" vs. my "needs" in many areas of my life. Is what God povides enough for me or do I want more? Do I turn to the world for more?
Also, I am finding that in order to distract myself from all the "snacky" cravings that I am going to prayer more. I am reminded that at one time my son was lying on the streets some where with nothing to eat, to weak to even walk, while I sat and had plenty. It happened just last night. Craig brought home groceries and Zalen ran to the door super excited. He pressed his face into the glass peering out at Craig carrying in several bags full and excitedly shouted, "Food, Food, Food!" When was the last time I rejoiced because I had ample food to eat? I take it for granted. I am praying that God will change that in me.
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