Articles

Weigh down: testimony from a juvenile-onset diabetic

Through God's Grace the Workshop has been responsible for many changes in my life. Most important is my spiritual growth. I find myself reading God's Word more now than ever. I pray and seek His will much more often. Not only do I pray and seek His will but I also ask for His help with controlling my hunger feelings as well as the problems in my everyday life. Even if I had not lost a single ounce while in Weigh Down, this growth in my spiritual life has been worth any price paid for the program. Please don't misunderstand my thoughts, all of us as Christians know that God's grace and our salvation is a free gift and can't be purchased at any price.

The physical changes that have taken place are to me simply icing on the cake compared to the spiritual growth I have experienced. Now let me tell you a little bit about that icing.

I have been a Class 1, totally insulin dependent, two-shot-a-day diabetic for the past 33 years, since I was nine years old. As a general rule my diabetes has been pretty well under control, but my weight over the past few years has been ever so slowly increasing. A few pounds a year, nothing to worry about, right? Wrong!

In January of 1993, my doctor told me I needed to lose about 30 pounds. Well, after a couple of attempts to diet I had only gained four pounds. Then I began to notice that some good friends at my church, Cheryl and Troy, were starting to disappear before my very eyes, weight-wise that is. When I asked them how they were able to lose their weight, they told me all about the Weigh Down program. Troy told me that he would be starting a class. Seeing such good result?, I decided to sign up. After sharing a good final meal with my family, I started my first class of Weigh Down, and my journey through the wilderness toward the "Promised Land" began.

I caution anyone who is a diabetic like me or people who have physical problems to seek the advice of their doctor before starting this program. They should also get on their knees and seek God's advice before they start. Personally, I had very good results with the program, and except for some adjustments in my insulin injections, I had no problems adjusting to the new eating habits. But as we all know, everyone is different.

What the Lord did for me that first night and has continued to do for me many times since is something I will never forget. I had made a vow to wait for true stomach hunger before I ate. I had even made it through the 10 p.m. late night snack time without eating. Anyway, at about 2:30 in the morning I woke from a deep sleep. I must have been dreaming of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. When I woke, the first thing I thought of was the food in the refrigerator. Then I thought of what Gwen had told us about asking the Lord for help when we had desire eating. I was not hungry, so instead of going to the refrigerator, I knelt by my bed and prayed. I asked the Lord to fill me with His spirit and to take away the hunger feeling I had.

The false hunger feeling left immediately. I went back to sleep and didn't eat a bite for hours. Praise God, what a filling of His Spirit can do! Ever since that first night, if a temptation creeps into my mind to eat when I am not really hungry, I simply ask God to fill me with His Spirit. Believe me, it works.

To make a long story a little shorter, in five months I was able to lose 44 pounds. Years later, I haven't gained or lost a single pound. My doctor was impressed, to say the least. I am now able to take half the insulin that I used to take and feel great (plus save money). No longer do I have heartburn and indigestion every day as I used to. The fact is I never get it anymore, which is good because I never did like antacids anyway. I sleep better and have a lot more energy. One thing I can do now that I once could not is bend over, tie my shoes, and talk at the same time. I don't remember all of the measurements that I took of myself, but somewhere I have managed to misplace 101/2 inches from my abdomen and 4 ? inches from my waist measurements.

There are many more good things I could tell you, but I feel that I must tell you some of the things that are going to regrettably happen to you if you are successful in losing weight. First you will have people asking if you have been sick. Then you are probably going to hurt your mother's feelings because you didn't eat double helpings of her Sunday dinner that she worked so hard to prepare. Sorry, this one really hurts: you are going to have to go and buy some new clothes because the old ones just don't seem to fit anymore!

*21\237\2*