What Won't I Look At?

(painting by Sarah Boardman)

Various topics can bring feelings of sorrow or sadness, just as some can bring feelings of joy and anticipation. But, what about when you can’t put your finger on what you’re feeling – or what brought those feelings on in the first place?

Today I looked at an internet piece on emotional eating, it was aimed at readers that may be eating for emotional reasons, not simply because they’re hungry.

Let’s face it, we eat for lots of reasons. There’s an old saying that goes: We are Americans; we eat when we’re not hungry, we drink when we’re not thirsty and we spend money we don’t have. It’s not really a saying that we, as Americans want to aspire to, but, too often, true.

Sometimes we eat because we’re sad. Sometimes because we’re celebrating, sometimes simply because the food is in front of us and we mindlessly put it into our mouths.

And if that wasn’t bad enough, most of the time the things we consume are a conglomeration of toxins we poison ourselves with; not really even food at all.

That brings us around to a topic that should make us sad and even angry.

If we stop and ask ourselves right now, knowing no one but God can hear our thoughts and answers: What emotions am I feeling right now? What answers will we list?

Then if ask why we’re feeling this way? How do we explain ourselves?

Some of us don’t resort to eating, we resort to shopping, or overworking ourselves, or we become addicted to working out, or we gamble or get drunk as often as we can. Why? An attempt to avoid facing something about our lives or ourselves that makes us ache?

What could be so bad about us, or about our lives that we can’t face it? In light of the fact that we’re not facing it alone, but with Almighty God – and all the resources of heaven, shouldn’t it be easier to look in the mirror and see our whole selves? If there’s a change we can make, why not make it instead of running from the reality of the need and hiding behind food or other addictions?

Ponder this with me, if you would. Give me your input, offer up some insight that might help us all. I'm looking for your comments and suggestions. I hope one of my next posts will shed some light on the subject with a mixture of your thoughts and mine.

James 1:22-24  Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.  (NIV)