Faith and Coffee
Relying on Jesus All day Long
Desire for Food vs. Desire for God
Posted on September 17, 2024
It’s no secret that I’ve dealt a lot with food, I’ve shared a lot about my food/weight struggles. Food has been a comfort to me in times of bad, and good. It has been something that I use knowing that I have full control on what I eat and how much I eat. Unfortunately, food is something that brings me great peace, and happiness.
Obviously food is not bad, and loving food isn’t bad. God gave us food because He knew we needed it to survive.
“Everything that lives and moves will be food for you. Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything.” –Genesis 9:3
Looking at this verse we see that God told Noah and his sons that all the animals would fear them, and that every living thing will be available for them to eat. So looking at this verse, we know that God intended for us to be able to eat, because He knows that we need it to survive. The Lord knew we needed food even after he created Adam and Eve.
“Then God said, ‘I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food’.” –Genesis 1:29
From the beginning of creation, God knew that we needed food. Once Adam and Eve sinned, it became more important that we have food. Having a feeling of craving for food isn’t what’s normal.
We aren’t designed to crave food. We’re designed to crave the Lord. In my opinion, Lysa TerKeurst says it best:
“God made us capable of craving so we’d have an unquenchable desire for more of Him, and Him alone. Nothing changes until we make the choice to redirect our misguided cravings to the only one capable of satisfying them.” –Lysa TerKeurst, Made to Crave
Our desires, our cravings, should be in the Lord and not food. While food gives us the temporary good feelings, the peace and strength that we can get from the Lord is far better! We were created to desire Him, and to want Him and Him alone.
“Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on Him, God the Father has placed His seal of approval” –John 6:27
“Then Jesus declared, ‘I am the Bread of Life. Whoever comes to Me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in Me will never be thirsty'” –John 6:35
We need to crave the Lord the way we crave food. He is the only way we’re going to find that fulfillment, and acceptance. Yes, food is incredible, and definitely fills a temporary void. But that’s just it, it’s temporary. If you’re like me, when you feel bad about something you’re going to turn to food and binge eat. Then after you’re done, you’re feeling disgusting, and awful, about what you just did. Imagine if I took that desire to eat, and turned it into prayer!
“Each time I craved something I knew wasn’t part of my plan, I used that craving as a prompt to pray. I craved a lot. So, I found myself praying a lot.” –Lysa TerKeurst, Made to Crave
Can you imagine the difference that this mindset can do in our lives? To turn our focus from food, to the Lord. To take time to pray to Him whenever we’re feeling the desire to fix our problems with food, we take a temporary fix and do a permanent fix. Of course this isn’t something that can be done overnight, or even in a few months. Like anything, it’s going to take time to retrain our minds to make turning to the Lord the priority over food. But if we truly make it a habit, and work on it continually, it’s going to be something that happens without us even thinking of it! I know I still struggle doing this, but it’s something that I feel myself trying to do more of. I want the Lord to be the only thing to help me, to be the only thing I need to feel fulfilled. However, I know that we live in a fallen world where Satan is going to take any of our weaknesses and use them against us. So my friends, if this is something that you feel like you’re struggling with, I want you to know that you’re not alone, and I am praying for you! I would like to leave you with a question that Lysa TerKeurst asks in her book:
“Is it possible we love and rely on food more than we love and rely on God?” –Lysa TerKeurst, Made to Crave
Is it possible? Until next time, friends!
Having Patience
Posted on November 11, 2022
If you ask my husband what is one word to describe me the best, I’m pretty sure that word wouldn’t be patient. Not that he would ever mean that in a mean way, but my patience runs very, very low. I’ve always been a person who wanted fast results. I hate waiting for things to arrive, and I hate when things take so long. If I am given an option to go home with something right away, I want to do that! If I can make something come in an overnight shipping or two-day shipping, then I’m going to pick that! But when I know I have to wait longer, I get very impatient. Not just with those things, which I know seem very trivial, but also when it comes to my kids helping me in the kitchen. I wish I could be that kind of social media mom that loves baking and cooking with her kids, and posts pictures of them laughing and smiling, having a grand time. But I’m not. I’m really not. Obviously I’ll do it because I love them, and they get so excited to do it with me, but if I could pick to not have them help, I would.
However, there is one big thing that I struggle with, when it comes to having patience, my weight loss journey.
The Struggle with Patience
I’ve never always been the weight that I’m at now. I used to be very skinny, because I played a lot of sports as a kid. The weight gain has been in the course of 12 years, from trauma, and emotional eating. I understand that it’s really not an excuse, but that’s how my story started. Trying to lose weight has always been something I’ve wanted to do, but I’ve never wanted to work hard for it. I always wanted to do the fastest way possible. It took a long time for me to realize that I can’t do it that way. I’ve tried diets where people claim to have fast results, and I’ve even tried taking some green coffee bean pills that were supposed to work fast as well.
One thing that I’ve learned is being impatient will not get you what you want sooner. When it comes to my weight loss, I know that trying to get it done quicker is going to actually cause more damage to myself than good. I could get hurt, or even not allow myself the healthy amount of calories because I’m so impatient with losing the weight, that I do things that can actually hurt me. All for the fastest results.
One thing that really makes being patient hard is when I know I’m feeling so much better than I did when I was eating whatever I wanted. But then when I look in the mirror, I can’t see the change. I feel like I am stuck and have lost nothing. Do my clothes fit better? Yep. Do I feel like I have way more energy? Yep. Am I seeing the scale drop? Yep. I can see all these things, and know these things, but it doesn’t seem to get any easier, and my impatience keeps running wild!
Gaining Control of Our Patience
Being patient is truly one of the most difficult things to deal with, and I feel that struggle more when it comes to my weight loss journey. I know I need to have control when it comes to being patient. I know that big weight changes will not happen overnight, and that’s okay. What I cannot allow myself to do is get discouraged and depressed because the numbers aren’t changing as fast as I want them to. I see the non-scale victories, but the numbers are still high. So how do we gain control of our patience?
I honestly wish I knew the answer to that. But one thing I know is that the Lord is in control of my life, and He knows my deepest desires. I need to be patient and rely on Him, because He is the one who is guiding my way.
The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.
Exodus 14:14 NIV
But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.
In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.
Romans 8:25-26 NIV
Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
Romans 12:12 NIV
There are many other verses that show how important it is to be patient and wait on the Lord, and to rely on Him and His plans for us. It’s not a simple thing to do, because I’m still working on it! But I know that if I continue to trust in Him, and to be patient in Him, then I know the Lord will do what He knows is best for me!
My friends, I don’t think having control of our patience is ever going to be something that we will be perfect at. I think we’re always going to have these moments of wanting things done when we want them. But I believe that if we wait on the Lord, and we are faithful in the things that we have to do, then our reward will be great!
This week, instead of getting impatient with myself, or mad, or discouraged, I’m going to work on my patience. I’m going to work on telling myself that slow and steady wins the race, and to be encouraged by all the non-scale victories! If you struggle with patience as well, maybe not in the same way I do, then that will be my prayer for you this week!
Until next time, friends!
Learning to deal with Emotions
Posted on November 3, 2022
I have never been one who could handle emotions well. I get overwhelmed easily, and I shut down. Emotions, especially negative ones, really scare me. My emotions range from all different things. Cravings for foods that I can’t eat on this new health journey, my kids not being treated fairly by friends, anxiety different things, the constant feeling of depression, and so much more. It’s hard to understand the emotions we’re feeling, and even sometimes why we’re feeling these emotions. This doesn’t mean that our emotions aren’t valid, because they are. But I believe it means that sometimes we have to learn to control them. Are we handling the emotions in the way we’re supposed to, or are we letting our emotions handle us?
Emotions are not Bad
It’s not bad to have emotions, or to let yourself feel these emotions. God made us with the purpose of feelings these emotions. But just like everything, sometimes we can let our emotions get out of hand.
There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:a time to weep and a time to laugh,
Ecclesiastes 3:1; 3:4 NIV
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
I love this verse because it doesn’t take away the importance of our feelings and emotions, but it reminds us that there are times for those emotions. There are certain times that it makes sense for us to feel a certain way.
This afternoon I was in the car with my husband, and I started crying because I was hungry and I was really just wanting to eat. I knew we have one of my favorite snack foods in our freezer, and I told my husband, while crying, that I was really tempted to eat those even though I knew I shouldn’t. Was that wrong of me to have that emotion? Absolutely not. I have to be gracious to myself and remind myself that I’m on this health journey where I am completely changing my eating lifestyle. I’m going from eating whatever I want, not caring about the outcome, to actually be cautious and disciplined. Of course, this emotion is going to come up!
When my kid is having a hard time with one of her friends at school, and she tells me the things her friend has said to her, am I wrong for having this angry emotion? No! Because my kid is being hurt by someone else’s words and actions. I’m allowed to be upset. These feelings are valid, and the Lord created us with them. They’re not bad. We just need to learn to control them.
When Emotions are out of Control
I believe there are times when our emotions can be completely out of control. I’ll use the two examples I used before.
Although I have every right to be having a hard time with not being able to eat, I need to be careful that I don’t let that emotion control my day. Okay, so I cried about it to my husband. Fine. But now it’s time that I let go of it and give it to the Lord. I can’t allow myself to sit here and focus on the fact that I can’t eat, and allow it to take over my day, so I am crying all the time, and ruining my family’s day. That’s not okay. I am now taking my emotions and forcing my family to feel the same way. Remember the verse from before? The time I spend with my family is not the time to cry over the foods I cannot eat. Does this mean we can’t still feel the emotions? Absolutely not. We’re human. We’re going to continue to feel the emotions. However, I will not let it ruin the time I have with my family. After all, this was my decision to begin this healthy lifestyle, not theirs.
When my kid is being treated unfairly by a friend, I may feel upset about that and that’s my right as her mom. However, I shouldn’t hold on to that feeling of anger. Instead, I need to help my daughter learn how to deal with people like that, because we all know it won’t be the last time she encounters situations like that. It’s also not my husband’s fault that kids are being mean to her, so thinking I have the right to take that anger out on my husband is wrong of me. What am I teaching our daughter by doing that? I’m teaching her that it’s okay to not control your emotions, and that isn’t okay!
How can we Control these Emotions?
So, how do we control the emotions when they want to pop up? Because they’re going to. We’re human, and it’s hard to stay in control of our emotions. It’s hard to not let an emotion affect an area of our lives that it has no right being there. Emotions are such powerful things that sometimes we forget we need to control them, that there is a time and a place for certain emotions.
I can do all this through Him who gives me strength.
Philippians 4:13
When we face a situation where our emotions, about something else, are trying to make their way into our current situation, we need to learn that we really can’t face it on our own. We need to let go and let God handle it all. We need to turn to Him and pray that He helps us through this, and that He allows us to keep those emotions under control.
If I’m feeling hungry and upset that I can’t eat that slice of pizza, or drink that cold Pepsi, I need to turn to the Lord ask Him to help control these emotions, and to not let it ruin the time that I have with my family. I know I can’t do it without the Lord’s strength. I’m too weak, and I will allow all the emotions to rule over me.
Your word is a lamp for my feet,
Psalm 119:105
a light on my path.
This verse helps to remind me to turn my mind to the Lord, and to read His Word, because that’s where I’m going to find the strength I need to overcome all emotions. He has given us a clear path to follow, and I need to start using it! Going to the Lord in prayer is something that can help us control our emotions as well. We sometimes forget that we have this amazing God who loves us and wants to help us. We think we can control things on our own, but we can’t. Satan works overtime to get us to sin against the Lord, and sometimes it starts with our emotions and attitudes.
My friends, our emotions can be beautiful because it’s how God made us! But we need to remember that they can also be used against us, and used for evil. My prayer is that we can all lean on the Lord for His guidance, and figure out when our emotions are being used at the right time. It’s hard, and I won’t ever claim to be perfect at it, but it’s something that I want to challenge myself to change, and I challenge you as well! But be encouraged, friends! Remember that the Lord loves you and wants nothing but the best for you! He is ready to help us!
Until next time!
Relying on the Promises of God: Part Two
Posted on October 12, 2022
Welcome back, friends! I know that once again; it has taken me a bit of time to get out another post. But any parents know how difficult it can be with kids! Thankfully, the Lord has given me the strength I need to push through, and the ability to sit down and write to you all!
I wanted to get the part two of relying on God’s promises out to you all, because it has been encouraging for me, and I truly hope it’s encouraging for you!
In part one, we looked at a promise and what a promise means. We looked at the worldview definition, but then we also looked at a biblical definition. Both definitions held the same meaning.
That we will do what we said we will do.
Except there is one thing that differs between the definitions.
That God is unchangeably committed to His promises. And we, as believers, can totally depend on it!
The worldview definition never used those words. They said that a promise was something that someone said they would definitely do. Never did it mention how that means we can totally depend on them doing what they said they would. That’s because people can sometimes have a hard time keeping a promise. I realize that not all broken promises are done from a hurtful place, but sometimes it’s an accident, or you just couldn’t keep the promise because of something being in the way.
There are so many promises that the Lord has made to us, that it would be many parts to write about them all! So let’s look 4 different promises of God that we know we can fully depend on!
1.) He is the only way to Heaven!
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
John 14:6 NIV
There’s the first promise! He tells us that He is the way, the truth and the life! We aren’t able to get to Heaven unless we have accepted Him in our hearts! There is no other way to get to Heaven. We can’t get to heaven by doing good works, or being kind to people, or being a good person. We have to believe that Jesus died on the cross for us, taking our sin upon Himself, then rose again on the third day! That’s the only way to Heaven, and it’s a direct promise to us that it’s the only way!
2.) We can turn to Him when we are feeling sad or heavy-hearted!
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
Matthew 11:28-30 NIV
Whenever we feel upset about a situation that we can’t change, like losing a loved one, or losing a job, the Lord wants us to know that we can turn to Him for the strength that we need! We have a mighty Lord on our side, who will be there to lift us up, and He will give us the rest that we need. He will be there to help us through any hardships. He is the strength that we can depend on! What a powerful promise to remind us that we don’t have to go through these trials alone. We have this strong, amazing God, who is going to be there for us, and to strengthen us!
3.) That He will never leave us or forsake us!
No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.
Joshua 1:5 NIV
This one gives me goosebumps! I love the fact that we can fully depend on the Lord, and to always know that He will never leave us! We will never walk through life alone, because we have this Almighty God that is walking next to us! We may not see Him, but sometimes we can feel His presence! There have been many times where I have felt alone, and that I had no one I could turn to. I felt like I had to go through one of my biggest trials with no help, and a feeling of complete loneliness. But God is good, and I knew He was with me every step of the way! Does this mean we will never go through any trials? Of course not! It just means that we will have our amazing God on our side!
4.) He is coming back one day!
And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.
John 14:3
One of the most amazing and most powerful promises of them all! He is coming back for us! He has gone to Heaven to prepare a place for us, but then He will come back for us! What a great promise to hold on to! One day we will be with Him in Heaven to live forever with Him!
Friends, God’s promises are powerful and incredible! They are the promises that we can cling to, knowing that they will happen! We never have to worry about whether He is being truthful to us, because we know He is the only one that keeps His promises! What an amazing God we serve!
I hope this encourages you to rely on God’s promises, and to dig deeper and learn more about them. Not just the ones I wrote about, but all the other promises that He has given to us! Continue to trust in Him, and remember that you are never alone!
Until next time, friends!
Dealing with Change
Posted on August 22, 2022
Hello friends! It has definitely been quite some time since I have posted anything on here! My, how the times have changed, and things have just gotten even crazier! So let’s start with a little life update!
What has been Happening in our Lives Lately:
When I first began this blog, we were living in a small upstate New York town. My husband was pastoring a small church there, and we had lived in this town for close to 7 years. We loved the town, and all the people that we grew very close to. However, the Lord slowly showed us that it wasn’t where we were meant to be anymore. My husband then put his resume into different churches that were looking for a new pastor. I had known that things at our current church were no longer good, but had turned more toxic. My husband was coming home from meetings so discouraged and upset. He no longer felt he could minister there anymore, as he was being fought at every turn. I was hesitant to move because I had some really amazing friends there, and are our kids grew up there! I had known we were meant to close the chapter with the church, but why couldn’t we just stay in our town? Couldn’t my husband find somewhere else to do the Lord’s work while remaining living there? Can you believe that? Could I BE anymore selfish?? (Now say that with Chandler Bing style. If you know, you know.) I knew I needed to let go of my desire and trust that the Lord knew what He was doing and knew where He was leading us. So my husband then went through the interview processes with a couple of churches, and there was one church that we really connected to. So, on February 12th, 2022, we moved to an even smaller farm town in Pennsylvania where my husband is now pastoring! And guess what, we couldn’t be happier!
Yes, it was hard for quite a bit of time. The kids, especially our oldest who is 11, struggled the most with this change. But now if you ask her if she would want to move back to where we were, she would say no. She would say she would want to go visit more, because there are people she misses, but she loves her school, and the church, and is happy where we are. Dealing with this change had come in so many different emotions, and learning to handle them has been difficult. I wanted my kids, and myself, to feel the loss of the friends that we had because I felt it was important. But I also wanted them to understand that when we follow the plan that the Lord has for us, there are blessings in that! I wanted them to understand that they still had to be respectful to my husband and I, and even to the new church members that they would meet. It didn’t take long for them to fall in love with the area and church. For that, I am so thankful that the Lord allowed it to be a bit easier than we expected!
Change is Inevitable:
Change is inevitable, and also never easy! I don’t claim to be an expert in dealing with change, because I am not perfect at that, believe me! I still fight change when I can, but there is one verse I had clung to during this whole transition. In fact, I cling to it every day, because it is my life verse.
For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Jeremiah 29:11 NIV
As much as I struggled with many emotions about moving, I knew that none of them would compare to the plans that the Lord had for us! I knew He wasn’t doing this to us to hurt us, or to make our children want nothing to do with Him, but He did this because He was giving us hope and a future! He was giving us a future that I never saw for our family, and it’s so much better than the plan I would’ve had!
Since we’ve moved, there have been many blessings that I never really knew our family needed. Would we have gotten these blessings if we stayed where I wanted? I’m not sure, because thankfully we didn’t stick with my selfish desires. I do know that I don’t have the desire to find out what could’ve been. Did I struggle with the change? Yes. Do I still sometimes struggle with the change? Yes, but only when it comes to missing certain people. Am I going to not live a life pleasing to the Lord because we aren’t where I thought we should be? Absolutely not! If anything, moving here has ignited a bigger desire to know, love, learn, and live for the Lord!
My friends, the Lord has that perfect plan for you! I’m not saying that everything will always be good, because we all know it won’t be! Even when we follow the Lord’s plans for our lives, we are still going to experience trials!
Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
James 1:2-4 NIV
Trials are going to happen, whether or not we follow the plans that the Lord has for us. However, these trials are going to produce steadfastness in us, and a hope that we can only have in the Lord! Friends, I encourage you to continue trusting in the Lord, and surrendering your life to the plans that He has in place for you! The joy you will receive will be overwhelming!
Until next time!!
Faith and Coffee 
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