by Carolyn McCulley
QUESTION: Where does contentment fit in with issues of looks and appearance? I’ve been dealing with different bouts of discontentment with looks and my figure. Eating too much, then too little, running and exercising, and just a general obsession that steals the joy out of my Christian life. I’m thinking, "Hmm, should I eat more of this, less of this, exercise more?" The problem is real and I’m not sure how Christ fits into this. I wonder what freedom would look like?
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I recently learnt some things from the article about the dangers of dating in your mind and from John Piper’s Speak Truth with your Neighbour that DESIRE is a perfectly normal thing.
It is perfectly normal and perfectly fine.
It is an okay thing.
It’s good to desire.
However, it is when DESIRE becomes a DEMAND, things start getting dangerous.
The thing that makes desires bad is when they come from deceit.
When desire goes after wrong things, becoming an, "I Must.." then it becomes a bad desire.
When it becomes an absolute must to have what you desire, you have been deceived about what is TRULY desirable.
Continuing from that, the DEMAND creates an expectation.
Expecting to get what you desire, when that DEMAND is not fulfilled, it results in DISAPPOINTMENT.
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Seeing all that, the way to avoid this DISAPPOINTMENT, is to hold DESIRE with an open hand.
DEMAND is to close your fist over DESIRE.
When you find your fist closing over your good desires and making them demands, STOP.
Open that clenched fist and hold that desire up in prayer.
A starving (okay!) not-so-starving artist, a fashion student, a crafty cat, a FunkyMonkey
I do not presume to know about a lot of things. I merely wish to promote good discussion about some topics that tickle my curiosity. I may be right or i may be wrong, but then, that's my prerogative, isn't it? *grin*
