Ask DJ Lyons: See myself as Jesus would see me

Introduction: Christ Jesus was able to heal a man with a withered hand because he saw the man as he truly was – a man with two healthy hands. Similarly, we need to strive to see ourselves as Jesus would see us – not as a person who is overweight – but as a person who is beautiful, healthy, whole, and loved unconditionally. In conjunction with that imaginary inner child called Portion Control Kid, let’s team up to make that premise become reality.

To read the introductory story on HubPages, please read:

Ask DJ Lyons: Introducing Portion Control Kid

To those of us who have been overweight for years, a feeling of helplessness or hopelessness may permeate. This negative emotion could be one of the reasons why we continue to hold on to this extra weight. We hope to regain our slender size from years ago. We take steps to try to make this happen. Perhaps we lose a few pounds only to regain them, or perhaps we seem to have reached a weight plateau from which there seems to be no budging.

Stymied in this manner, we may conclude, “I guess it is just not possible for me to lose weight. I’ll just have to resign myself to being this weight from now on.” This hypothesis could cause us to feel so discouraged that we give ourselves permission to overindulge in eating pies, cakes, candy, chips, or other forms of comfort food. So what is to be done?

Let’s imagine that our inner child named Portion Control Kid feels overwhelmed as well. He or she has tried to make his or her voice heard entreating, “Please remember to exercise at least thirty minutes per day. Please strive to drink at least eight glasses of water per day. Please concentrate on maintaining a 1600- to 1800-calorie balanced diet of foods fitting the following six categories: grains, vegetables, fruits, oils, milk products, and meat and beans.”

When we choose to ignore our inner guidance system and throw half a bag of Cheese Puffs or potato chips or two slices of cake into the mix, our poor inner child throws a tantrum. Portion Control Kid feels so much angst that he or she no longer tries to team with us to achieve our weight loss goals. Instead, he or she feels so out-of-control that extra pounds gets added rather than lost. So how can this situation be rectified?

Let’s consider the Bible story of the man with the withered hand as detailed in the books of Matthew, Luke, and Mark. Instead of being born with a normal body weight that eventually transformed into an overweight body, this man was born with a withered hand. You can imagine how discouraged and hopeless he must have felt. He was that way as a baby. He was that way as a child. He was that way as a teen. He was that way as a man. And most likely, he felt certain he would be that way until the day of his death.

In my case, I was slender until the age of twenty-two. I practically had no hips and no breasts until that age. Slowly, I took on curves. As the years passed, I also took on weight. By the age of fifty-one, I had doubled in size from those early days. Food had become my drug of choice.

Let’s imagine that my inner child named Portion Control Kid really exists. Can you imagine how hopeless she must have felt that I had ignored her entreaties all these years to eat responsibly and in balance? I’m sure she wouldn’t have minded if I indulged occasionally in a piece of cake or pie. I’m certain she did mind that I also indulged in other forms of comfort food in large portions. Feeling frustrated and ignored, she might even have tried to get revenge by helping to pile on those extra pounds.

Back to the story of the man with the withered hand, you may recall that the Pharisees had all sorts of prohibitions about what you could and count not do on the Sabbath Day. Ironically, it was the Sabbath Day when Christ Jesus met this man. To add to the irony, the meeting took place inside a Synagogue.

To our modern eyes, healing a man of an infirmity on the Sabbath day and inside a synagogue seems most appropriate. Unfortunately, the Pharisees did not feel that way. Should Jesus choose to heal this man, the Pharisees would use this fact as ammunition against him. Fortunately for the man with the withered hand, Jesus did not let anything stop him from doing His Father’s work.

Just like in this story, many of us, this author included, can easily find all kinds of reasons to put off eating responsibly. Do any of these excuses sound familiar?

* I’ve had a bad day. I need some comfort food.

* I’m at a party.

* It’s the holidays.

* I don’t wish to be rude to the host by refusing to partake in the offered dish.

* I’ll wait until the first of the year to begin my diet.

* Why diet if I’m just going to hold on to this extra weight anyway?

* I love to eat.

* Eating is my only source of entertainment.

* That piece of cake is calling my name.

* Food is love.

Just like Jesus did not let anything stop him from doing good, we should not let any excuse stop us from working to maintain or regain a body that is healthy and whole. Let that inner child named Portion Control Kid know, “Hey kid, I’m so sorry that I have ignored you all these years. I realize now that you have tried your best to help me. I would like us to be a team from now on. I will try so hard to do a better job in eating responsibly and in a healthy manner.”

Back to the story of the man with the withered hand, consider these verses: Jesus turns to the man and states, “Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it out and his hand was restored whole as the other.”

I think that Jesus was able to heal this man because Jesus did not see the withered hand. He only saw a man, a fellow child of God, with two healthy hands. Because Jesus was able to see the true man, his hand was healed.

Let’s imagine that we are graced with a visit from Christ Jesus. I think that He would not see us, a fellow child of God, as an overweight person. Instead, He would see us as a person with a “normal” healthy weight. He would see the true man or the true woman; thus, we would be transformed to match His correct vision of us.

So my prayer is that I can see myself as Christ Jesus sees me. I also pray that you can see yourself as Christ Jesus sees you. Also, that we can see each other as Christ Jesus sees us – beautiful, healthy, whole, and loved unconditionally.

Portion Control Kid, please join me in this journey to see ourselves in this exalted manner. It IS possible for us to release this extra weight. We no longer need this extra insulation. It IS truly safe and possible to be slender. As one spiritual teacher often states, “Well-being abounds.” Working together as a united team, we can achieve our weight loss goals.

The Man with the Withered Hand found in The Gospel according to St. Mark 3: 1-5

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