Lord's Table Testimony: Traci

I have struggled with my weight since I was young, and have always had a preoccupation with food. It was and continues to be a focal point of family life in regard to get togethers, celebrations, and fellowship. Somewhere along the way, I let my view of food get out of balance. It became an idol for me, and not just the eating of it, also the preparation of it and the serving of it. I equated my value with what I cooked and how good it tasted. My eating of the food was somewhat secondary, but as I became a better and better cook, I became a better and better eater, without restraint or limits.
I have tried one other diet, one other weight loss program, and tried to do it myself. I lost a lot of weight with those programs, but still found that I struggled to keep the weight off. It was at that point that I determined it was a heart issue, not just a health issue and that I needed to get to the root of my food problem. I was cruising through a ministry blog and found a comment by a woman who said she had lost 70 lbs through memorizing scripture and the help of this program. So I decided to give it a try.
God revealed to me through this study that I had a couple of sin issues: gluttony and laziness and that the root of these was idolatry. I had raised my own desires and gratifying my flesh above knowing and pleasing God.
I appreciate the direct approach from scripture that this program is based upon. God created us, and only by being obedient to Him, will we find true freedom from our bondage.
Upon taking Setting Captives Free--The Lord's Table, I have found new satisfaction in reading scripture and "filling up" on God, first. When I put the principal of Feasting on God's Word as the primary focus, first thing, I find God gives me a fulfillment that no food has ever been able to take care of. I don't get as hungry, I don't think about food as much, and it doesn't take as much food to fill me up. If I decide not to put God first, I still struggle. It's as simple as that. God showed me He was in this study many times, as I was struggling with a particular issue or thought, and I would open up my study for that day, and the scripture and/or topic would be like it was written just for me at that moment for what I was going through.
Am I completely, 100 percent free of my food issues? No, not on this side of heaven, but I do know if I'm obedient to God and choose to put Him first, I have a freedom from food that I've never known before. The key is the choice I need to make each day in being obedient to Him.