“For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age…”
Titus 2:11-12
Consider the Marshmallow test. Researchers took a group of five-year-olds, put them in a room with just a table and a chair, and placed a marshmallow in front of them. “You are allowed to eat the marshmallow right away,” they said, “But if you can wait for 20 minutes, when I come back you can have two marshmallows.”
What happened next was both fascinating and hilarious. After the researcher left (and watching each child behind a one-way mirror), some children immediately devoured their marshmallow. They did not hesitate. Others sat quietly and patiently as they awaited their reward. Some children launched an epic battle against themselves, touching, holding, and even licking the marshmallow. They would sit on their hands. They would jump around the room in mental agony. They would struggle to resist the magical pull of the jet-puffed treat. Some of the children simply had the ability to say “no” to themselves, while others did not.
Here is what is more fascinating: Researchers tracked these kids as they grew up and discovered that the more self-control these children displayed at age five, the greater future scholastic and career success they enjoyed. Something about their ability to delay gratification at a young age carried over into adulthood and allowed them to make better life choices. So what am I getting at? Our ability to say “no” to ourselves -to momentary pleasure- in the service of longer term goals might be the number one discipline for us to acquire from a “life-success” point of view.
I’m not even talking about just our eating or our weight. I’m talking about EVERYTHING. Money, relationships, watching our tongue, keeping our temper. These all require the skill of impulse control.
Getting this skill right is the difference between success and failure.
Back to food and weight loss. This is why you’re here, right? I want you to consider another thing about fighting the temptation to eat. The book of Titus teaches us that it is God’s grace that teaches us to say “no” to these sorts of earthy passions. The prize isn’t a slimmer body or greater self esteem, though better daily food decisions will produce both. The prize is Christ himself. The context of the Titus passage is waiting for Christ’s return. Here is the second half of that passage at the beginning of this post. We are called to say “no” to the flesh…
“…as we await the blessed hope and glorious appearance of our great God and Savior,
Titus 2:13-14
Jesus Christ. He gave Himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds”
Through grace, Christ saved us for himself. Not so that we can turn heads on the street with our stunning beauty. He redeemed us “for his own possession”. Our battle against the flesh is not primarily self-serving. The ultimate goal is that by putting to death our earthly nature with its cravings we might become zealous for good deeds.
In other words, learning to resist the urge to eat in an impulsive, uncontrolled way is a spiritual goal with a spiritual end in mind. Remember, that the flesh (your body) counts for nothing (John 6:63), even if that flesh is fit and beautiful. If you have found after many years that you still are unable to say “no” to the flesh, then consider whether you understand God’s grace; the thing that teaches you to say “no” in the first place!
Your weight is merely a red flag that marks a spiritual problem with a spiritual solution. It’s not about the mere marshmallow. It’s about your integrity with God and yourself.