Discipline Isn't Your Problem, This Is...

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but the power of love, and self-discipline.” 2 Timothy 1:7 

Most women try to build discipline on top of:

• Fear of weight gain or past trauma
• Shame about their body or unkind comments from someone.
• Urgency to “fix this fast”

When your body feels threatened:

• Hunger hormones spike
• Cravings intensify
• Obsession increases

How to Regulate your Nervous System:

• Predictable hunger and a body who trusts us to fuel her properly.
• Natural stopping points when eating so we’re not bingeing or eating beyond our needs.
• Reduced obsession. We think less about food and more about honoring God with our choices and our bodies.

Journal Prompts:

• Have I been trying to force fruit from depleted soil? What do you need to change today to refocus your efforts? What do you need to repent from? What would love look like instead of pressure? Do you believe that you can truly change when you let God lead? 

God, I repent for believing fear was wisdom. I repent from striving instead of trusting, praying and obeying. Restore safety in my body and clarity in my mind Lord, I ache to give you this area of my life. Thank You for Your fruit Father, let it grow inside of me like a sweet tasting treat. Let discipline grow naturally in me Lord as I work to rebuild trust with myself. Thank you Father for this body, let me love her as she deserves. Amen.

Are you sick of trying diet after diet and NOT losing weight?

Hey there friend, I'm Lindy Schlabach, Christian Fitness & Nutrition Coach. I gained 100 pounds in my late twenties and struggled for years to get it off. Seven years ago, I found a basic system that worked and has helped me lose 90 of those pounds. I’ve been working with women in online fitness and nutrition ever since to break chains of diet culture, embrace their bodies and fueling instead of dieting.

In this podcast, I'll teach you how to:

• • Lose Weight in a Way that honors God without obsessing about the scale
  • Meal Plan and Prep for Your Family
  • Follow a MACRO based plan that allows you to eat the foods you love.
  • Recognize and pray through triggers keeping you stuck.
  • I’ll help you Plan your week and schedule your self-care time.
  • Cultivate a spirit of self-discipline in your workouts you actually enjoy.
  
  It's time to give God your health journey and watch Him make you new, from the inside, OUT.

Join The Biblical Weight Loss Framework: https://www.herweightlossmindset.com/framework

Join my FREE Community: https://bit.ly/JoinTheChristianWeightLossCommunity

Join my Insiders List with weekly tips for weight loss for Christian women: http://herweightlossmindset.com/herweightlossmindsetinsiders

Transcript

Let me say something right now that I think might surprise you. You do not lack discipline. Discipline is a fruit of the Spirit of God.

So if Jesus is the Lord of your life, you have discipline. We just need to cultivate it by His Holy Spirit power. Because if you lack discipline, you wouldn't start over again and again.

You wouldn't research plans. You wouldn't pray about your health. You wouldn't feel guilty when things don't go well.

The problem isn't that you can't be disciplined. The problem is that discipline has been demanded from a body that doesn't feel safe. And unsafe bodies, they just don't cooperate.

They protect. So stick with me here. I think this will make sense.

Are you sick of trying diet after diet and not losing weight? Are you tired of doubting your ability to actually lose weight in a healthy way? Do you wish you could find a laid out for you plan that will help you stay accountable to your goals?

Hey, friends, I'm Lindy Schlabach, Christian Fitness and Nutrition Coach. I gained 100 pounds in my late 20s and struggled for years to get it off. So grab your pre-workout and let's chat.

I would like to invite you to join the Biblical Weight Loss Framework and take a Holy Spirit led approach to weight loss, God's way. Listen, I gained 100 pounds in my late 20s. I know how hard it is to get the weight off.

I know the struggle of weight coming back and having to deal with the emotional things that go with it. But God calls us to live a very specific life in obedience to the Holy Spirit, regardless of the rest, regardless of the outcome.

So if you're ready to finally release the weight, join the Biblical Weight Loss Framework. You can join us at herweightlossmindset.com/framework. I've shared the link in the show notes below.

That's herweightlossmindset.com/framework. So this verse was my lifeline when I first gave my life back to Christ in 2016. I actually tattooed it on my forearm and today as I look down, it's faded off.

But the reminder is always there. Comes from 2nd Timothy, Chapter 1, Verse 7. It says, For God has not given us the spirit of fear, but the power of love and self-discipline.

I want you to notice the order of that verse. It says the power of love and self-discipline. Power, love, then self-discipline.

Discipline is not born out of a spirit of fear. It flows from safety and love when you let God lead this weight loss journey. So, let's take a look at why discipline collapses, especially as we age.

Most women are trying to build discipline on top of fear of weight gain or past trauma, or shame about their body or unkind comments from someone, or urgency to fix this fast or to lose weight by a certain event.

But fear-driven discipline always backfires. When your body feels threatened, your hunger hormones spike, your cravings intensify and your obsession increases.

Have you ever said, I'm not going to eat sugar for the week and then all you can think about is sugar? Yeah, because God typically isn't going to demand us to do those things unless it's in a series of progression over time.

And then it becomes about weight loss instead of honoring God with your choices and your bodies as He's called us very clearly in His word to do. Your body is not resisting discipline, she's protecting you from yourself. Think about this spiritually.

God never leads through fear. The enemy does, our flesh does, and we have to discern the voice that we want to obey. Do we want to listen to the Lord, to the enemy, or our flesh?

I mean, we know the answer here. Of course, we want to be obedient to the Holy Spirit. So think about this.

When your motivation sounds like, I have to get this under control, or I can't let myself mess up, or I'm going to start over tomorrow and I'm going to be stricter. That is not the Spirit of God speaking.

And we have to take those thoughts captive and make them obedient to Christ. We have to learn to regulate our nervous system. When we do that, we create predictable hunger and a body who trusts that we are going to fuel her properly.

We regulate our nervous system when we have natural stopping points when we're eating so we're not binging or eating beyond our needs. This also reduces obsession. We think less about food and more about honoring God with our choices and our bodies.

This is why rigid plans might work briefly but then collapse. They do not build trust. They build compliance.

And compliance always rebels in the end. We're just not created that way. God loves us too much to keep us stuck.

So when we think of self-discipline as fruit, fruit cannot be forced. Have you ever tried to grow fruit in your garden? Have you ever tried to force a strawberry plant to grow?

You have only at work that way, right? Like fruit along with anything else we try to grow, ourselves included, only grows where the environment is safe. So ask yourself as you journal this week, have I been trying to force fruit from depleted soil?

And what do you need to change today to refocus your effort? What do you need to repent from? And what would love look like towards your body in this weight loss journey instead of pressure to look a certain way or weigh a certain number?

And do you believe that you can truly change when you let God lead? Discipline is not your problem. If Christ is in you, you have the Spirit of Discipline.

But you have to let His strength and His power lead you. And then you have to be willing to do something you've never done before and say, Yes, Lord, this is where I know you are leading me.

Give me Holy Spirit strength to do what you need me to do today, Lord. He knows you can't do this on your own. He doesn't want you to try.

Surrender. Lay it down. Let Him take over.

Holy Father, I repent for believing that fear was wisdom. I repent from striving instead of trusting, praying, and obeying. Lord, restore safety in my body and clarity in my mind.

I ache to give you this area of my life, Jesus. Thank you for your fruit, Father. Let it grow inside of me like a sweet tasting tree.

Let discipline grow naturally in me, Lord, as I work to rebuild trust with myself. Thank you, Father, for this body. Let me love her as she deserves today.

I ask in your name. Amen. Hey, sis.

I hope you enjoyed today's episode. If so, would you take 30 seconds and share it with a friend? Also, please leave a quick review for the show on Apple Podcasts.

It lights me up to know this podcast is helping you. Okay, it's time to go make a protein shake and get my sweat on. No more standing in the kitchen waiting for motivation to appear.

I will meet you back here for another episode. God bless.