May 20, 2025 • 20 mins
In this episode Leanne explores the question: “Is my obsession with food a spiritual battle?” Drawing from her personal journey and the experiences of countless women, Leanne delves into the idea that struggles with food and body image are not merely about willpower or discipline but are deeply rooted in spiritual warfare, and how the enemy often uses lies and shame to keep us trapped in cycles of obsession and self-condemnation.
Leanne offers a compassionate and faith-filled perspective, encouraging listeners to shift from self-condemnation to curiosity, to take their thoughts captive, and to invite God into their healing journey. She underscores the importance of recognizing food as a gift from God, not a master, and our bodies as temples to be honored, not projects to be perfected. Through practical steps and biblical truths, this episode serves as a guide for those seeking freedom from food obsession, reminding them that they are not alone and that true healing is possible through partnership with God.
HOST: Leanne Ellington // StresslessEating.com // @leanneellington
To learn more about Leanne, head over to www.LeanneEllington.com, and to share your thoughts, questions, feedback, or guest suggestions instantly, head on over to www.WhatsGodGotToDoWithIt.com.
Follow Leanne on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leanneellington/
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:08):
If you want to go on a journey, if you're skeptical,
don't worry now here to preach. I'm gonna keep it
clean and talk to me and recall where faith need
spiles of nature and get in touch with your creat
with a bacon, love and.
Speaker 2 (00:24):
Jew She even speaks Hebrew. What's that, Ganzato?
Speaker 1 (00:31):
What's that? Well?
Speaker 2 (00:37):
Sabosation? Should talking? Transformation? What's that? Donzato? Hey? Hey, and
welcome back to What's God got to do with it?
It is lee Anne here and today we're diving into
something that's near and dear to my heart. And it's
a question that I get asked all the time and
one that I wrestled with myself for on years, and
(00:58):
we've talked about a lot on this podcast, but from
a different perspective, and it's this idea of is my
obsession with food actually a spiritual battle? And So if
you've ever found yourself in that exhausting, soul sucking cycle
where food feels like the boss of you and where
your day is dictated by what you eat or how
much you eat or what you're trying not to eat,
(01:20):
you are so not alone. I have been there, My
clients have been there, and maybe you're there right now,
you know, wondering if this is just you know, the
cards that you got dealt in life, or maybe you're
saying things like I just need more will power, or
why do I have no control? Like this is the
one thing I can't get my brain around, or you know,
maybe I am just wired this way, or maybe you
(01:42):
found yourself kind of swinging between that pendulum of restriction
and binging, praying that the next Monday will finally be
the Monday that you get it all together. But what
if the reason has been so hard is because it
isn't just a food issue. What if this was all
so a spiritual battle, and so let's talk about that.
(02:03):
And for years I thought that my struggle with food
in my body was you know, a discipline issue, like
I just hadn't found the right system yet, or like
if I could just find the perfect meal plan, the
right workout, the ideal accountability structure, I could just fix it.
But here's what I've learned. This stuff goes way deeper
than food. It's about how we see ourselves, and it's
(02:25):
about the stories that we've been told and the ones
that we tell ourselves, and we picked up along the ways,
and it's about control and identity and comfort and even safety.
And it's about the enemy using those struggles to keep
us stuck. And so the Bible says in Ephesian six twelve,
it says, for our struggle is not against flesh and blood,
(02:48):
but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers
of this dark world, and against the spiritual forces of
evil in the heavenly realms. That means that our battle
isn't just physical, it's also spiritual. And it's not just
about calories or cravings or carbs. The enemy is after
your identity and your peace and your connection with God.
(03:13):
And if he can use food to distract you or
shame you or separate you from your God given worth,
he absolutely will. Right, And so let's talk about some
of the lies that the enemy whispers when food has
become a stronghold. Okay, it tells you like you'll never
be free from this, or you're too broken too change,
(03:33):
or like if you can't control your body, like how
could God love you? Right? Like this is this is
something you should be able to control, or just telling
you like hey, just give up, like you've already tried everything.
And that's where I have to call this out and
tell you, like, these are the lies, and the enemy
loves using lies to keep us in cycles of shame
and striving. And he knows that if he can keep
(03:55):
you obsessing over your weight or your food choices, then
you're not showing up like your own fullness of who
He designed you to be, because you're distracted or discouraged
or just sitting there doubting yourself. But here's the truth.
God created food, has a good gift, like not a
master that you are a slave to. And He created
(04:17):
your body not to be hated or micromanaged, but honored
as his temple. And First Corinthians six nineteen through twenty says,
do you not know that your bodies are temples of
the Holy Spirit. You are not your own, You are
bought at a price, and therefore honor God with your bodies.
And this is where you might also need to hear
(04:39):
that honoring your body doesn't mean obsessing over it or
shrinking it, or punishing it or controlling it. I confuse
those two things. I was like, this is how I
take care of my body. I shrink it, I obsess
over it. Right, But Honoring your body means partnering with
God in how you treat it. And it means releasing
the lies that say that your worth is tied to
(05:01):
a number or your self control. And so here's something
I wish somebody had told me sooner. You know, anything
that consumes your thoughts more than God has the potential
to become an idol. And like, I never thought of
it like that before. I'm like chasing weight, chasing a
number on a scale, chasing appearance goals that could be
(05:22):
an idol. And before you feel called out, this is
something that I had to look in the mirror and
say myself. You know, when I was in the thick
of my my struggle, food ruled my thoughts like every meal,
every event, every mirror moment, I was either you know
air quotes being good or messing up. Like it was
this constant noise. And as I was entering into relationship
(05:43):
with God after you know, not having one for so
many years, I started asking myself, like, what if this
obsession itself is like a spiritual battle, Like I've been
treating it like it's physical, but what if it really
is spiritual? Right? And so what if the thing that
has become your mental focus. What if it's pulling your
attention away from God right now? And the cool thing
(06:04):
about that God, right is that he doesn't shame us,
like he just invites us to bring these struggles to
him and he meets us in our weakness, like he
walks with us through the healing that we need. But
first we have to acknowledge it, and like, we have
to accept that this is where we are, like not
accept it as in resign to it or like quit,
(06:26):
but accept it as in, like, this is where we
are right now, and this is how our brain got wired.
And so if any of this is resonating with you,
I want to walk you through, just like I put
it down into five practical steps, like five practical but
powerful steps that you can start taking two day or
at least get this conversation going okay. Step one is to,
instead of condemning yourself, start getting curious. And so you've
(06:47):
probably heard me say this before, but it bears repeating.
Healing doesn't start with shame, It starts with curiosity. And
when I first started to dig into my own obsession
with food and body image, I wasn't even aware that
I was obsessing again like I just thought I was
being healthy or you know, trying to lose weight the
right way this time, like whatever I was saying, But
behind every food rule, every moment I beat myself up
(07:10):
for what I ate, every moment that I was like
criticizing myself was a deep fear that I wasn't enough.
And I didn't call it then that then right, But
I had this fear that if I could just you know,
get it together, then I'd be lovable or worthy or
acceptable or happy. And and that fear is what kept
me in a loop. And I couldn't see that loop
until I got curious. And so the first step is
(07:33):
about pausing long enough to just ask yourself some honest
questions without judgment, like what am I really feeling when
I turn to food? Or what am I not feeling
because I'm numbing it out right? And what do I
believe that food is going to give me that I
can't seem to find elsewhere? And what's the story that
I'm telling myself about my body today right now? And
(07:54):
then where might I be filling a spiritual or emotional
need with physical food? Like this is what I mean?
I get curious, right, You're not telling yourself who you
think you are. You're asking yourself new questions, and I'll
be honest, some of these answers might be in your
blind spot unless you have somebody to actually help you
walk through this. But it's really important that you know
that this is not about interrogating yourself. It's about gently
(08:17):
and lovingly inviting truth to the table. Because when you
can name what's going on underneath the surface, that's when
shame loses its grip. And so from a neuroscience standpoint,
naming what you're experiencing is literally a form of regulation,
like you're regulating your nervous system because it engages your
prefrontal cortex, the conscious part of your brain, which is
(08:40):
also the part responsible for logic and reflection. And then
because of reciprocal inhibition, that fear driven part of your
brain has to shut down. Like if I flex my bicep,
my tricep has to shut down or stretch, And the
same thing is true. When you engage your prefrontal cortex,
you're amygdala, or the fear driven part of your brain
has to down regulate. And that's also the part of
(09:02):
the brain that's responsible for those impulsive like I can't
stop eating feelings that we get right, that we think
are hunger, but it's not. And in fact, again because
of the law of reciprocal inhibition, when you are switching
into regulating your nervous system, that fight or flight part
of your nervous system again, the amygdala that's driving the
(09:24):
impulsivity has to shut down. And I'll be honest, this
curiosity thing you know, that I'm inviting you into doesn't
just change you overnight, but it opens the door for
what's possible. The next practical step is just to take
(09:47):
your thoughts captive. And second Corinthians tells us this. It says,
take every thought captive and make it obedient to Christ.
But can we just talk about the reality of how
hard that is? Sometimes? Right, because our thoughts are sneaky,
especially when it comes to food and body image, and
they show up like you know, you shouldn't have eaten,
that you've ruined everything now, like you're never gonna get
this under control, or you don't deserve to feel good
(10:09):
in your body look what you're eating, right, And so
those aren't just thoughts, they're accusations, and they don't come
from God, right, And so taking a thought captive doesn't
mean that you pretend that it's not there. It just
means that you pause and notice it and hold it
up to God's truth like a flashlight, right, and just
ask yourself, like, does this thought bring me closer to
(10:30):
God or further away?
Speaker 1 (10:31):
Right?
Speaker 2 (10:32):
Or is this how God would speak to me? Right?
And now the depths of this conversation about we're talking
about beliefs and taking your thoughts captive, that is a
bit beyond the scope of this episode. Like I couldn't
teach you how to do it in one episode, right, Like,
this is a lot of the work that I do
with my clients over an intensive sixteen week period. But
in some way, shape or form, you've got to learn
how to take your thoughts captive, not just logically doing so,
(10:55):
but in a way that resonates with you deeply. And
here's what I know to be true. God is never
the one shaming you. Right. Conviction, Yeah, like God can
convict you, right, You could absolutely be convicted by God's
word and the Holy Spirit by your own actions. Right,
It's like a mirror that's being held up to you,
you know. And convictions absolutely part of this. But condemnation
(11:16):
never God will never condemn you. He will never shame you. Conviction, yes,
condemnation absolutely not, okay, And on a brain level, this
is where that neuroplasticity kicks in, right, Like your brain
wires itself around the thoughts that you repeat most often.
And so that means that every time you interrupt a
toxic thought and you choose truth or reality or data
(11:38):
over drama, you're building a new neural pathway and like
a new road for your brain to travel down. And
so when we're talking about all of this, you know,
rewiring stuff, it's not about perfection. It's about practice, okay,
And yeah, it absolutely takes practice for this to become
your normal. But according to the laws of neuroscience, because
it's taking the stuff we're talking about here, it's taking
(12:00):
you in the direction of positive neuro associations, like it
feels good, it resonates, it will stick in your brain
after you practice it enough. Right, We're not talking about
roses and butterflies like you are worthy, you are enough
without like backing it up. I'm talking about believable truths
that actually meets you where you are again beyond the
scope of this episode. But that's the kind of conversation
(12:20):
I'm inviting you into. And then the next step, conveniently
is to invite God into the conversation. And it might
sound obvious, but honestly, how often do we do that? Right?
And for years I talk to myself about food, and
I talked to my friends about my body, and I
talked to diet apps and fitness trackers and books, but
I didn't talk to God about it. And maybe I
(12:41):
didn't think he cared about something you know, as air quotes,
surface level, as my gene size, or maybe, hey, I'll
be honest, I was probably too ashamed to bring it
to him. Right. Either way, I was carrying it alone.
And so let me say this to you very clearly.
God cares about every part of you, including your relationship
with food in your body. And he doesn't just want
(13:02):
to be invited into, you know, your Sunday morning or
devotional time. He wants to sit with you when you're
standing in front of the fridge at ten pm, right,
And he wants to be in the room when you're
trying non jeens that don't fit. And he wants to
comfort you when you are tempted to turn to food
because the pain is too much right, and so start
(13:23):
simply like you don't need this perfect prayer. You can
literally just say, God, I am tired of fighting this alone.
Show me what you see. Be in this with me,
and you'll be amazed at how much lighter it feels
when you don't have to carry it all on your own.
Step four is to reframe the journey. And so often
we approach healing from like obsession, right, or we approach
(13:47):
food obsession or body image shame like a race or
a competition, And so we tell ourselves like, once I
lose the weight, or once I stop binging, or once
I fix this or address that. But what if instead
of thinking of it as something that you have to fix,
you thought of it as a journey that you get
to walk with God. Like if you're gonna be on
the journey anyways, why not look at it as a
(14:08):
journey that, Wow, this is something that I get to
do with God that I've never done before. Because you know,
healing isn't a straight line. In fact, more often than not,
it's like a spiral, right, And sometimes you feel free
and other days you fall back into old thoughts. But
that doesn't mean that you've failed it just means that
you're human, right, And so when you can reframe the
process from performance to this kind of like partnership, like
(14:30):
a co creation with God, everything shifts and instead of
saying like I have to fix this myself, it becomes okay,
God and I are working on this together. And instead
of okay, I'll never get this right, like, it just
now becomes hey, God's not done with me yet, Like
there's nothing to get right because I'm still in it
and God's with me and He's not done with me yet,
and so this isn't just like feel good talk. Reframing
(14:53):
is a technique that it's used in and a lot
of research. It's like used in a lot of cognitive
behavioral therapy and trauma recovery, and it literally changes the
emotional charge attached to your experience and it helps you
show up with more resilience and less shame. Again, beyond
the scope of this one episode, but just laying it
all out there for you, and then of course we
have to anchor this all in truth, right, anchor yourself
(15:16):
in truth, because let's be real, on the hard days,
it's easy to forget what's true, okay, And you might
know logically in your head that you're loved and that
you're enough and that God is with you, But what
about your heart, like, what about your emotions? And if
you're anything like I was, they're probably screaming a different story, right,
And that's why you do need anchors and scriptures and affirmations.
(15:37):
But you need reminders that are grounded in God's character
and your true identity. And it's got to resonate with you.
And again, talking about new beliefs is beyond the scope
of this of this one episode. Again, it's a lot
of the work I do with my clients. But if
we are just talking about scripturally anchoring ourselves in truth,
here's a few that you can keep close. So Psalm
(15:58):
one thirty nine fourteen says, I pray you because I
am fearfully and wonderfully made. Romans eight says there is
no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus right
when you're feeling yourself shame in yourself right. Ephesian says,
I am God's masterpiece created for good things. And Philippians
(16:18):
four seven, the peace of God guards my heart and mind.
I love that feeling like peace is what's guarding my
heart and mind. Now again, it's so important that things
resonate with you. So find a few scriptures that really
anchor you in truth that it's got to resonate with
you so that it brings on positive neuro associations, because
if it doesn't resonate, it's gonna actually lay down negative
neuro associations. And so find one's truths that really like
(16:41):
you can literally type into Google, what does the Bible
say about my body image? What does the Bible say
about my relationship with food? Find scripture that really resonates
and speaks to you, and you're like, yes, that's the one, okay,
And then write them on post its or put them
on your mirror or put them in phone reminders because
the world and the enemy are loud, right, but you're
true is your anchor in that loud storm, or at
(17:03):
least it absolutely can be if you choose it, and
from a neuroscience perspective, rehearsing a new truth. But here's
the caveat. It can't just be a random positive affirmation
as long as it resonates or at least doesn't cause dissonance.
New truths, when you rehearse them and practice them, they
build new default pathways in your brain that again, if
(17:24):
they have positive neuro associations, will just become the way
that you think. But if they don't, they have negative
neuro associations, they're gonna go out the window, right, And
that's why a lot of these like kind of fake
positivity stuff doesn't work. It doesn't resonate, it's not ours.
But if you do it right, it's like planting seeds
that over time grow into a whole new mindset. And
so if you've been living in a cycle of obsession
(17:46):
over food, your body, your lovability, your worth, you are
not broken. You are not too far gone. And this
is not the end of your story. Everything that we're
talking about here is transformable. And this is a battle
that you don't have to fight alone. God sees you,
he loves you, He's in this with you, and so
taking the next small step is the key. And that's
(18:08):
where no matter what step you take, whether you're doing
it on your own or whether you're getting supported by somebody,
just ask God to come into the process. Just say, hey, God,
come come walk with me on this process. As you
get curious, as you take your thoughts captive, and as
you remind yourself that freedom is possible because it is
so Thank you so much for being here with me today.
(18:28):
If this episode spoke to you, just perhaps share it
with a friend who needs to hear this too, you know,
maybe somebody who's been silently battling and needs a reminder
that she's not alone. And if you haven't already, I
go into depth about the neuroscience of what all of
this looks like to really take back power from food,
rewire your brain, your nervous system, your self image for freedom,
and I'm breaking down the five step process that I
(18:50):
teach my own clients to get off that endless cycle.
So you can head on over to stressless eeating dot
com if you want to check out how I do that,
because this journey doesn't have to be a struggle, the
struggling kind. Okay, and we will be back next week
with more of the God Pod, so buy for now.
We'll be back with more What's God Got to do
(19:12):
with It? But in the meantime, I would definitely love
to hear from you, So just tell me where you
are in your story or maybe what questions you have,
like where do you feel you need clarity or support
or wisdom in your own journey. I definitely want to
hear from you, So head on over to What's God
Got to Do with It? Dot com and scroll down
(19:33):
to the form to share your thoughts, your questions, your feedback,
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to Do With It? Dot Com You'll find all the
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(19:53):
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really means so much. What's God Got to Do With
It is an iHeartRadio podcast on the Amy Brown Podcast Network.
It's written and hosted by me Leanne Ellington, executive produced
by Elizabeth Fazio, post production and editing by Houston Tilley,
(20:17):
and original music written by Cheryl Stark and produced by
Adam Stark.
If you want to go on a journey, if you're skeptical,
don't worry now here to preach. I'm gonna keep it
clean and talk to me and recall where faith need
spiles of nature and get in touch with your creat
with a bacon, love and.
Speaker 2 (00:24):
Jew She even speaks Hebrew. What's that, Ganzato?
Speaker 1 (00:31):
What's that? Well?
Speaker 2 (00:37):
Sabosation? Should talking? Transformation? What's that? Donzato? Hey? Hey, and
welcome back to What's God got to do with it?
It is lee Anne here and today we're diving into
something that's near and dear to my heart. And it's
a question that I get asked all the time and
one that I wrestled with myself for on years, and
(00:58):
we've talked about a lot on this podcast, but from
a different perspective, and it's this idea of is my
obsession with food actually a spiritual battle? And So if
you've ever found yourself in that exhausting, soul sucking cycle
where food feels like the boss of you and where
your day is dictated by what you eat or how
much you eat or what you're trying not to eat,
(01:20):
you are so not alone. I have been there, My
clients have been there, and maybe you're there right now,
you know, wondering if this is just you know, the
cards that you got dealt in life, or maybe you're
saying things like I just need more will power, or
why do I have no control? Like this is the
one thing I can't get my brain around, or you know,
maybe I am just wired this way, or maybe you
(01:42):
found yourself kind of swinging between that pendulum of restriction
and binging, praying that the next Monday will finally be
the Monday that you get it all together. But what
if the reason has been so hard is because it
isn't just a food issue. What if this was all
so a spiritual battle, and so let's talk about that.
(02:03):
And for years I thought that my struggle with food
in my body was you know, a discipline issue, like
I just hadn't found the right system yet, or like
if I could just find the perfect meal plan, the
right workout, the ideal accountability structure, I could just fix it.
But here's what I've learned. This stuff goes way deeper
than food. It's about how we see ourselves, and it's
(02:25):
about the stories that we've been told and the ones
that we tell ourselves, and we picked up along the ways,
and it's about control and identity and comfort and even safety.
And it's about the enemy using those struggles to keep
us stuck. And so the Bible says in Ephesian six twelve,
it says, for our struggle is not against flesh and blood,
(02:48):
but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers
of this dark world, and against the spiritual forces of
evil in the heavenly realms. That means that our battle
isn't just physical, it's also spiritual. And it's not just
about calories or cravings or carbs. The enemy is after
your identity and your peace and your connection with God.
(03:13):
And if he can use food to distract you or
shame you or separate you from your God given worth,
he absolutely will. Right, And so let's talk about some
of the lies that the enemy whispers when food has
become a stronghold. Okay, it tells you like you'll never
be free from this, or you're too broken too change,
(03:33):
or like if you can't control your body, like how
could God love you? Right? Like this is this is
something you should be able to control, or just telling
you like hey, just give up, like you've already tried everything.
And that's where I have to call this out and
tell you, like, these are the lies, and the enemy
loves using lies to keep us in cycles of shame
and striving. And he knows that if he can keep
(03:55):
you obsessing over your weight or your food choices, then
you're not showing up like your own fullness of who
He designed you to be, because you're distracted or discouraged
or just sitting there doubting yourself. But here's the truth.
God created food, has a good gift, like not a
master that you are a slave to. And He created
(04:17):
your body not to be hated or micromanaged, but honored
as his temple. And First Corinthians six nineteen through twenty says,
do you not know that your bodies are temples of
the Holy Spirit. You are not your own, You are
bought at a price, and therefore honor God with your bodies.
And this is where you might also need to hear
(04:39):
that honoring your body doesn't mean obsessing over it or
shrinking it, or punishing it or controlling it. I confuse
those two things. I was like, this is how I
take care of my body. I shrink it, I obsess
over it. Right, But Honoring your body means partnering with
God in how you treat it. And it means releasing
the lies that say that your worth is tied to
(05:01):
a number or your self control. And so here's something
I wish somebody had told me sooner. You know, anything
that consumes your thoughts more than God has the potential
to become an idol. And like, I never thought of
it like that before. I'm like chasing weight, chasing a
number on a scale, chasing appearance goals that could be
(05:22):
an idol. And before you feel called out, this is
something that I had to look in the mirror and
say myself. You know, when I was in the thick
of my my struggle, food ruled my thoughts like every meal,
every event, every mirror moment, I was either you know
air quotes being good or messing up. Like it was
this constant noise. And as I was entering into relationship
(05:43):
with God after you know, not having one for so
many years, I started asking myself, like, what if this
obsession itself is like a spiritual battle, Like I've been
treating it like it's physical, but what if it really
is spiritual? Right? And so what if the thing that
has become your mental focus. What if it's pulling your
attention away from God right now? And the cool thing
(06:04):
about that God, right is that he doesn't shame us,
like he just invites us to bring these struggles to
him and he meets us in our weakness, like he
walks with us through the healing that we need. But
first we have to acknowledge it, and like, we have
to accept that this is where we are, like not
accept it as in resign to it or like quit,
(06:26):
but accept it as in, like, this is where we
are right now, and this is how our brain got wired.
And so if any of this is resonating with you,
I want to walk you through, just like I put
it down into five practical steps, like five practical but
powerful steps that you can start taking two day or
at least get this conversation going okay. Step one is to,
instead of condemning yourself, start getting curious. And so you've
(06:47):
probably heard me say this before, but it bears repeating.
Healing doesn't start with shame, It starts with curiosity. And
when I first started to dig into my own obsession
with food and body image, I wasn't even aware that
I was obsessing again like I just thought I was
being healthy or you know, trying to lose weight the
right way this time, like whatever I was saying, But
behind every food rule, every moment I beat myself up
(07:10):
for what I ate, every moment that I was like
criticizing myself was a deep fear that I wasn't enough.
And I didn't call it then that then right, But
I had this fear that if I could just you know,
get it together, then I'd be lovable or worthy or
acceptable or happy. And and that fear is what kept
me in a loop. And I couldn't see that loop
until I got curious. And so the first step is
(07:33):
about pausing long enough to just ask yourself some honest
questions without judgment, like what am I really feeling when
I turn to food? Or what am I not feeling
because I'm numbing it out right? And what do I
believe that food is going to give me that I
can't seem to find elsewhere? And what's the story that
I'm telling myself about my body today right now? And
(07:54):
then where might I be filling a spiritual or emotional
need with physical food? Like this is what I mean?
I get curious, right, You're not telling yourself who you
think you are. You're asking yourself new questions, and I'll
be honest, some of these answers might be in your
blind spot unless you have somebody to actually help you
walk through this. But it's really important that you know
that this is not about interrogating yourself. It's about gently
(08:17):
and lovingly inviting truth to the table. Because when you
can name what's going on underneath the surface, that's when
shame loses its grip. And so from a neuroscience standpoint,
naming what you're experiencing is literally a form of regulation,
like you're regulating your nervous system because it engages your
prefrontal cortex, the conscious part of your brain, which is
(08:40):
also the part responsible for logic and reflection. And then
because of reciprocal inhibition, that fear driven part of your
brain has to shut down. Like if I flex my bicep,
my tricep has to shut down or stretch, And the
same thing is true. When you engage your prefrontal cortex,
you're amygdala, or the fear driven part of your brain
has to down regulate. And that's also the part of
(09:02):
the brain that's responsible for those impulsive like I can't
stop eating feelings that we get right, that we think
are hunger, but it's not. And in fact, again because
of the law of reciprocal inhibition, when you are switching
into regulating your nervous system, that fight or flight part
of your nervous system again, the amygdala that's driving the
(09:24):
impulsivity has to shut down. And I'll be honest, this
curiosity thing you know, that I'm inviting you into doesn't
just change you overnight, but it opens the door for
what's possible. The next practical step is just to take
(09:47):
your thoughts captive. And second Corinthians tells us this. It says,
take every thought captive and make it obedient to Christ.
But can we just talk about the reality of how
hard that is? Sometimes? Right, because our thoughts are sneaky,
especially when it comes to food and body image, and
they show up like you know, you shouldn't have eaten,
that you've ruined everything now, like you're never gonna get
this under control, or you don't deserve to feel good
(10:09):
in your body look what you're eating, right, And so
those aren't just thoughts, they're accusations, and they don't come
from God, right, And so taking a thought captive doesn't
mean that you pretend that it's not there. It just
means that you pause and notice it and hold it
up to God's truth like a flashlight, right, and just
ask yourself, like, does this thought bring me closer to
(10:30):
God or further away?
Speaker 1 (10:31):
Right?
Speaker 2 (10:32):
Or is this how God would speak to me? Right?
And now the depths of this conversation about we're talking
about beliefs and taking your thoughts captive, that is a
bit beyond the scope of this episode. Like I couldn't
teach you how to do it in one episode, right, Like,
this is a lot of the work that I do
with my clients over an intensive sixteen week period. But
in some way, shape or form, you've got to learn
how to take your thoughts captive, not just logically doing so,
(10:55):
but in a way that resonates with you deeply. And
here's what I know to be true. God is never
the one shaming you. Right. Conviction, Yeah, like God can
convict you, right, You could absolutely be convicted by God's
word and the Holy Spirit by your own actions. Right,
It's like a mirror that's being held up to you,
you know. And convictions absolutely part of this. But condemnation
(11:16):
never God will never condemn you. He will never shame you. Conviction, yes,
condemnation absolutely not, okay, And on a brain level, this
is where that neuroplasticity kicks in, right, Like your brain
wires itself around the thoughts that you repeat most often.
And so that means that every time you interrupt a
toxic thought and you choose truth or reality or data
(11:38):
over drama, you're building a new neural pathway and like
a new road for your brain to travel down. And
so when we're talking about all of this, you know,
rewiring stuff, it's not about perfection. It's about practice, okay,
And yeah, it absolutely takes practice for this to become
your normal. But according to the laws of neuroscience, because
it's taking the stuff we're talking about here, it's taking
(12:00):
you in the direction of positive neuro associations, like it
feels good, it resonates, it will stick in your brain
after you practice it enough. Right, We're not talking about
roses and butterflies like you are worthy, you are enough
without like backing it up. I'm talking about believable truths
that actually meets you where you are again beyond the
scope of this episode. But that's the kind of conversation
(12:20):
I'm inviting you into. And then the next step, conveniently
is to invite God into the conversation. And it might
sound obvious, but honestly, how often do we do that? Right?
And for years I talk to myself about food, and
I talked to my friends about my body, and I
talked to diet apps and fitness trackers and books, but
I didn't talk to God about it. And maybe I
(12:41):
didn't think he cared about something you know, as air quotes,
surface level, as my gene size, or maybe, hey, I'll
be honest, I was probably too ashamed to bring it
to him. Right. Either way, I was carrying it alone.
And so let me say this to you very clearly.
God cares about every part of you, including your relationship
with food in your body. And he doesn't just want
(13:02):
to be invited into, you know, your Sunday morning or
devotional time. He wants to sit with you when you're
standing in front of the fridge at ten pm, right,
And he wants to be in the room when you're
trying non jeens that don't fit. And he wants to
comfort you when you are tempted to turn to food
because the pain is too much right, and so start
(13:23):
simply like you don't need this perfect prayer. You can
literally just say, God, I am tired of fighting this alone.
Show me what you see. Be in this with me,
and you'll be amazed at how much lighter it feels
when you don't have to carry it all on your own.
Step four is to reframe the journey. And so often
we approach healing from like obsession, right, or we approach
(13:47):
food obsession or body image shame like a race or
a competition, And so we tell ourselves like, once I
lose the weight, or once I stop binging, or once
I fix this or address that. But what if instead
of thinking of it as something that you have to fix,
you thought of it as a journey that you get
to walk with God. Like if you're gonna be on
the journey anyways, why not look at it as a
(14:08):
journey that, Wow, this is something that I get to
do with God that I've never done before. Because you know,
healing isn't a straight line. In fact, more often than not,
it's like a spiral, right, And sometimes you feel free
and other days you fall back into old thoughts. But
that doesn't mean that you've failed it just means that
you're human, right, And so when you can reframe the
process from performance to this kind of like partnership, like
(14:30):
a co creation with God, everything shifts and instead of
saying like I have to fix this myself, it becomes okay,
God and I are working on this together. And instead
of okay, I'll never get this right, like, it just
now becomes hey, God's not done with me yet, Like
there's nothing to get right because I'm still in it
and God's with me and He's not done with me yet,
and so this isn't just like feel good talk. Reframing
(14:53):
is a technique that it's used in and a lot
of research. It's like used in a lot of cognitive
behavioral therapy and trauma recovery, and it literally changes the
emotional charge attached to your experience and it helps you
show up with more resilience and less shame. Again, beyond
the scope of this one episode, but just laying it
all out there for you, and then of course we
have to anchor this all in truth, right, anchor yourself
(15:16):
in truth, because let's be real, on the hard days,
it's easy to forget what's true, okay, And you might
know logically in your head that you're loved and that
you're enough and that God is with you, But what
about your heart, like, what about your emotions? And if
you're anything like I was, they're probably screaming a different story, right,
And that's why you do need anchors and scriptures and affirmations.
(15:37):
But you need reminders that are grounded in God's character
and your true identity. And it's got to resonate with you.
And again, talking about new beliefs is beyond the scope
of this of this one episode. Again, it's a lot
of the work I do with my clients. But if
we are just talking about scripturally anchoring ourselves in truth,
here's a few that you can keep close. So Psalm
(15:58):
one thirty nine fourteen says, I pray you because I
am fearfully and wonderfully made. Romans eight says there is
no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus right
when you're feeling yourself shame in yourself right. Ephesian says,
I am God's masterpiece created for good things. And Philippians
(16:18):
four seven, the peace of God guards my heart and mind.
I love that feeling like peace is what's guarding my
heart and mind. Now again, it's so important that things
resonate with you. So find a few scriptures that really
anchor you in truth that it's got to resonate with
you so that it brings on positive neuro associations, because
if it doesn't resonate, it's gonna actually lay down negative
neuro associations. And so find one's truths that really like
(16:41):
you can literally type into Google, what does the Bible
say about my body image? What does the Bible say
about my relationship with food? Find scripture that really resonates
and speaks to you, and you're like, yes, that's the one, okay,
And then write them on post its or put them
on your mirror or put them in phone reminders because
the world and the enemy are loud, right, but you're
true is your anchor in that loud storm, or at
(17:03):
least it absolutely can be if you choose it, and
from a neuroscience perspective, rehearsing a new truth. But here's
the caveat. It can't just be a random positive affirmation
as long as it resonates or at least doesn't cause dissonance.
New truths, when you rehearse them and practice them, they
build new default pathways in your brain that again, if
(17:24):
they have positive neuro associations, will just become the way
that you think. But if they don't, they have negative
neuro associations, they're gonna go out the window, right, And
that's why a lot of these like kind of fake
positivity stuff doesn't work. It doesn't resonate, it's not ours.
But if you do it right, it's like planting seeds
that over time grow into a whole new mindset. And
so if you've been living in a cycle of obsession
(17:46):
over food, your body, your lovability, your worth, you are
not broken. You are not too far gone. And this
is not the end of your story. Everything that we're
talking about here is transformable. And this is a battle
that you don't have to fight alone. God sees you,
he loves you, He's in this with you, and so
taking the next small step is the key. And that's
(18:08):
where no matter what step you take, whether you're doing
it on your own or whether you're getting supported by somebody,
just ask God to come into the process. Just say, hey, God,
come come walk with me on this process. As you
get curious, as you take your thoughts captive, and as
you remind yourself that freedom is possible because it is
so Thank you so much for being here with me today.
(18:28):
If this episode spoke to you, just perhaps share it
with a friend who needs to hear this too, you know,
maybe somebody who's been silently battling and needs a reminder
that she's not alone. And if you haven't already, I
go into depth about the neuroscience of what all of
this looks like to really take back power from food,
rewire your brain, your nervous system, your self image for freedom,
and I'm breaking down the five step process that I
(18:50):
teach my own clients to get off that endless cycle.
So you can head on over to stressless eeating dot
com if you want to check out how I do that,
because this journey doesn't have to be a struggle, the
struggling kind. Okay, and we will be back next week
with more of the God Pod, so buy for now.
We'll be back with more What's God Got to do
(19:12):
with It? But in the meantime, I would definitely love
to hear from you, So just tell me where you
are in your story or maybe what questions you have,
like where do you feel you need clarity or support
or wisdom in your own journey. I definitely want to
hear from you, So head on over to What's God
Got to Do with It? Dot com and scroll down
(19:33):
to the form to share your thoughts, your questions, your feedback,
and you can do that instantly. So What's God Got
to Do With It? Dot Com You'll find all the
ways to do that. And if you like this podcast
and want to hear more, go ahead and follow, like,
and subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts to get your
weekly dose of What's God Got to Do With It?
(19:53):
New episodes drop every single Tuesday, and while you're there,
be sure to rate and review to show your it
really means so much. What's God Got to Do With
It is an iHeartRadio podcast on the Amy Brown Podcast Network.
It's written and hosted by me Leanne Ellington, executive produced
by Elizabeth Fazio, post production and editing by Houston Tilley,
(20:17):
and original music written by Cheryl Stark and produced by
Adam Stark.
Host
Leanne Ellington
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