WLS....a spiritual issue?

[ShavieLou 0]

PhotoNut....never thought that for a moment, darlin'!

[SherryW 4]

Vines....I'm thinking the way you've put it. Very well thought out and said I've always felt any medical helpers or cures are only there because God put that person here for a purpose. We're all here for a purpose....some will figure out why...others will live their lives without ever realizing what that purpose is. Every single person touches another person in one way or another for sure.

The responses here have touched me.

[PhotoNut 7]

If you are questioning your decision to get the lapband, the best advice I can offer is to get on your knees and talk to the Lord. :pray:

I just couldn't let this pass without bringing more attention to it. This IS the best adivce anyone could offer. It is the answer to the question. The rest is merely the opinions and thoughts of us silly mortals who think we have it all figured out. :amen:

PS

Thanks ShavieLou! I haven't been called darlin' in a long time. Made me smile!

[Mikey 0]

Great topic! This thread succeeded in bumping me from lurker to actual poster!!

Before I go on, I should mention: Any opinions expressed in this post are not necessarily those of management! And no animals were harmed in the writing of this response... And if you don't feel like reading a long post - skip to the end for the short version!

I believe that, like everything else, it CAN be a spiritual issue - depending on the person/situation.

Is it a sin to be obese? Is it a sin to go through with WLS (or NOT go through with it)? Maybe. Or maybe not.

From a purely Christian perspective, these questions can't really be answered without more information. Specifically, why? Why am I obese? Is it because I disobeyed the 1st commandment (of the famous 10) by putting food before God in the priorities of my life? Is it because I choose to practice a form of idolatry by making that 'full' feeling my sole source of comfort in life, ignoring all that I know God has done for me? Then yeah, my obesity is probably sinful.

On the other hand, am I obese because of other physical, medical, or emotional reasons over which I had very little control? Am I obese, but still clear that God is God, and I'm living that truth to the best of my ability? Then no, my obesity is probably not a mortally sinful failing on my part.

Am I having WLS because I don't believe that God has my best interests at heart? After all, if he did have my best interests at heart, why would he have made me this way? Well, fine! I'll just do it myself - and have a potentially hazardous surgical procedure just to spite him! Then yeah, the choice for WLS is probably sinful.

On the other hand, am I going through with WLS because after a significant amount of prayer, discussions with spiritual people that I trust, and a generous helping of common sense, I recognize that this is an opportunity that God has placed before me? Do I realize that WLS is a demonstration of the fact that God loves me and really does have my best interests at heart? Well then, no - it's probably not sinful at all!

And ya know what the most beautiful part of all this is? Even if the initial pieces of this puzzle are rooted in sin, a Christian perspective means that we can change that completely! Maybe it started out badly - but one of the most important themes in the Christian belief system is that God can and does make Good come from Evil.

One of my favorite verses is 1 Corintians 10:13. "No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it."

That's the New International Version.

Here's Mikey's Version:

"There's nothing that has happened to you that hasn't happened to someone else - so get over it... you're not alone. And God rocks! If you are tempted, it's because he knows you can deal with it - because he will give you what you need."

For me, WLS is a gift from God - it's a door he opened for me as a fulfillment of that promise he made to give me what I need.

[JanetC 2]

For me food is an issue. It is almost sinful, if not totally so. As I’m eating Breakfast, I’m dwelling on what I’m going to eat for lunch. As I eat lunch… etc. When I’m in church & things are quiet, it’s a lovely time to think about the delicious, huge, satisfying lunch I’m going to have. When things go late I get panicky, worried that I’m not going to get to eat before the “food headache” sets in.

I do believe that I have made an idol out of food & I worship at it 3-6 times daily, if not more. And when I’m not currently worshiping, I’m thinking about how wonderful the last time was, or how good the next time will be.

I need to get it under control. I want to get it under control. It’s killing me spiritually, let alone physically, emotionally, etc.

I’ve prayed & prayed & prayed to get the demon of food off my back. I’ve submitted myself to God’s control, I’ve had hands laid on me, I’ve done fasts & every diet known to man. I, however, am a weak creature. As it’s been said, “The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” “I don’t do what I want to do, but the thing that I don’t want to do, that’s what I end up doing." Yeah, I took ’em out of context, but it so sums me up.

But seriously, I eat for more reasons than that it’s my idol of choice. It drugs my anxieties, fills my voids emotionally, etc, etc. And now, after years & years of food worship, my need for food is so strong that it will take a miracle to change me. It would be wonderful to go to church Sunday & suddenly not crave food ever again. To have my miracle without any non-spiritual intervention. But we can’t all be that lucky.

I believe that God has brought this tool, the miracle that is lap-band, into my life to help me overcome my sin. I have proved over & over & over that I am not strong enough, even with His help. It seems I’m not able to turn myself over completely enough or something. I continuously find myself back worshipping at the food altar.

I trust & believe that through the lap-band, I’ll be able to control my urges, with His help. This is not a miracle pill. We won’t suddenly be thin & over our food issues. But He WILL be there every step of the way… holding our hands, welcoming our attention as we focus it back on Him.

And hopefully as I gain control over food, as I’m able to stop stuffing my face BEFORE it hurts & quit worrying about where the next meal is coming from, I’ll be able to focus on the other issues, the REAL reasons I started over-eating to begin with. And as they pop to the surface I’ll need His help to deal with them, to bring them under His control. The process terrifies me, but I’m trusting Him to be there when I cry out in fear.

So basically, I believe that God is using the lap-band as a tool to bring me back under His umbrella, to hold me tight & show me that I AM worthy & that I AM loved.

P.S. You can see why Mikey & I are together, lol, it’s so we can give long-winded speeches to each other!

[leatha_g 4]

Can I hear an Amen? You go Mikey.. God DOES Rock! And I do thank Him for my band every single day.

Great topic! This thread succeeded in bumping me from lurker to actual poster!!

[I'llsucceed 1]

I am a Christian. I pray to Jesus every night that my body will except this tool "He" has given me to help me on my journey. That my body will not have problems with it & that I will be able to utilize it to the greatest potential. I believe that the Lord blessed me every way through my process & is very proud of me his "daughter."

I think if you make a decision & pray on it, that God will tell you what to do. He did for me, clear as day! It was awesome. SO pray on it & you will know his will.

[vluckey 1]

I love this question. My having surgery was such a dilema for me. I felt that it was obvious that God would want me to lose this weight the old fashioned way, because that would mean that I would develope a ton of discipline and get victory over an area of my life that was out of control. We have a guy at our church who lost over 200 lbs the old fashioned way, wrote a book on it and has been on Good morning America this month with some weight loss thing. I almost felt like my having surgery was cheating when you have a guy like that around.

I didn't tell anyone at my church except 1 friend. I didn't tell my Pastors (although God did, which is a great story for another day). I now realize that it was out of shame that I kept it to myself.

But, I prayed at the beginning of this journey and asked God to guide me. I told Him that if He told me to not do it that I would obey. I know His voice and would have listened. I never felt that He wasn't displeased with this decision.

Now, I am very pleased with this decision and confident that God will use this tool to help me. I still have to make good choices every day and I can glorify Him in that.

The scripture in my signature really tells us what God wants for His children. We live in a day with many medical advances available to us and we are blessed to live in countries that have great medical care.

[dylansmom 27]

What an awesome topic thread. I too am a born again Christian. I prayed very hard and long before making the decision to have the LapBand surgery done. I felt that it was God's will for me to have it done, so that's when I decided to go ahead with it.

I love what PhotoNut said in her initial post. I ditto it.

[NeenBand 7]

Many of you stated that you prayed to God that if this was something you should do and recieved an answer.

It would be interesting to me what your "answer" was? How did it come?

:-)

[the best me 6]

I believe that glutony, which is basically serving the flesh, is a sin.

those of us who refuse to deny ourselves for the sake of treasuring the healthy and life that God gave us is a sin.

I am ashamed to admit it, but I believe the above about myself.

I suppose my biggest idol is myself.

I idolize the need for ME to be the one to take care of me and my needs, rather than God.

So I pick food, not God. And how the heck does one DO that anyway? I'm hungry...should I memorize another Bible verse? Pray...again?!!!!

Oy Vey!! I admit it's exhausting to feel so ashamed and spiritually deficient because I'm so FAT!

If someone could talk me out of it, that'd be great.

Somebody quote some more scriptures, please! And let me hear an AMEN!!! :amen:

[the best me 6]

One of my favorite verses is 1 Corintians 10:13. "No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it."

That's the New International Version.

Here's Mikey's Version:

"There's nothing that has happened to you that hasn't happened to someone else - so get over it... you're not alone. And God rocks! If you are tempted, it's because he knows you can deal with it - because he will give you what you need."

[red highlights mine] excellent paraphrase. welcome out of lurkdom and thanks for your thoughts.

[vluckey 1]

For me, when I get an answer from God regarding any situation it is a feeling in my spirit. It's hard to explain, and it has taken me many years to understand it. It comes with a relationship with Him through prayer, knowing (not just reading) your bible and worship.

I don't always listen (because I'm not perfect. Jesus was the only one who always listened), and I've made mistakes, but I have learned to really listen and make fewer and fewer mistakes and misjudgements as the years go by.

Sometimes we can know God's will simply by knowing His Word (the bible). Other times we can know His will by knowing Him. He promised to lead and guide us if we acknowledge Him.

Proverbs 3:5-6

5Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

[gadgetlady 4]

Wow! What a topic!

Here's my $0.02. Obesity is much more of an issue in 2006 than it was 20 years ago, which was more than 50 years ago, which was more than 100 years ago, and so on. If we adhered to a Biblical diet, in other words the guidelines for diet given to the Israelites in Leviticus, we most likely wouldn't be having obesity issues. But we don't live in that time and we don't adhere to that diet (it would be pretty tough).

I believe we face a lot more temptations in this day and age, due in large part to our busy lifestyles and the ease of selecting processed and unhealthy foods. (as an aside -- if you look at people who have a problem with pornography, they struggle more now than people 50 years ago because -- hello! -- pornography is more readily available). So being constantly bombarded with horrible food choices and huge portion sizes, those of us with a proclivity to overeat or make bad selections are more likely to have issues.

There may be an aspect of laziness here on some level, but really the issue in my mind is that living your entire life trying to exhibit huge amounts of restraint every minute of every day is practically impossible. I've always said that being on a constant diet is a horrible way to live. And for anyone to consistently eat 1200 calories a day (which is what I need to MAINTAIN my ideal weight!!!), it's just an awful way to live.

I'm sure you've heard this before, but alcoholics have it easier. They just need to avoid alcohol altogether. Food-addicts still have to eat several times a day, but they're expected to choose well and stop eating when sometimes 3/4 to 1/2 of what they were served is still left on their plate! No wonder many of us fail!

So back to the question of whether using WLS to control obesity is a sin? I believe God gives us tools to bring our lives into conformity with His will, some of those tools are technology, and those tools vary depending on the person involved. Heck, I use www.biblegateway.com to look up Bible verses all the time! Technology can be a blessing!

Is it a sin to seek counseling when God gives us all the answers in the Bible? Is it a sin to wear a prosthetic if you lose a limb, because maybe God wanted to you struggle without a limb to learn something? Is it a sin to get a pacemaker, hip replacement, or have an operation to cure a defect in an unborn baby? Is it a sin to take Vitamins because you should be getting all of the nutrients you need out of what you eat? Of course not -- these are all tools.

WLS certainly isn't the EASY way out. It'd be nice if there were an easy way out!!! It is simply the recognition that, for us, losing weight and keeping it off has proved to be, over the course of years and years, unsuccessful. And we are therefore choosing to use a tool to force us to control our intake.

[PhotoNut 7]

To The Best Me..

Cathy, we all struggle with the battle of serving our own flesh and you took a HUGE step in your life to win that battle when you submitted yourself to surgery and forced modification of your eating. Do not condemn yourself for weaknesses, but rather admit them and ask for continued strength to continue the battle. I have a feeling that God is smiling at you right now. He does love a humble and 'broken' spirit, for it is then that we truly find him. You're doing great, girl. Smile and keep going.