You are in the fight of your life. You are in a fight for your life.
And you are fighting not only for your life, but other peoples’ as well.
Time is getting short. The world is getting darker.
Many people are lost, especially young people. They don’t know what to believe.
Because this world is getting darker, people need to see the light of Jesus’ love in action.
That is where we come in.
Letting Our Light Shine
In John 13:34, Jesus said:
By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
Others need to see the light of God’s love lived out before them.
But many Christians are unable to answer the call; they are trapped in cycles of destructive habits, like emotional eating.
I know this well because I was there.
When I suffered from overeating and bingeing, I once counted the number of times each day I thought about food.
I counted 77 times.
If I wasn’t thinking about what I was eating, I was thinking about what I had eaten, or what I was going to eat next.
The enemy likes it that way.
The more he can get us fixated on food, the less time we have to focus on fulfilling God’s purpose for our lives.
Make no mistake: This is Spiritual and emotional war, not just about finding the right diet or exercise program.
It is about living as a fit and healthy person each day because we play a key part in God’s redemptive plan of salvation.
As children of God, our role is to help those who are lost find Jesus.
If you are in bondage to negative habits right now, like emotional eating, then I’ve got encouragement for you:
The enemy’s only authority is that which you choose to give him!
The fight may not always be easy. But do not quit. Ever.
The Lord is on our side.
Fighting from Victory through Jesus
We are fighting from a position of victory. The war has been won.
Now, some days may be harder to get through than others; some days, we may fall short.
However, remember this assurance from Jesus:
“These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world (John 16:33).”
Satan will try to convince us that we are victims.
- He wants us to believe that we are defeated, failures.
- He wants us trapped in fear, shame, guilt, past hurts, and condemnation.
- He wants us oppressed through mental strongholds.
But Jesus came to set us free. Here is his mission statement:
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,
Because He has anointed Me
To preach the gospel to the poor;
He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives
And recovery of sight to the blind,
To set at liberty those who are oppressed;
To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord (Luke 4:18-19).”
Did you get that Jesus said “liberty” twice? He wants you to live in freedom in Him!
Think about where you are right now:
- Are you poor is spirit? The kingdom of heaven is yours.
- Are you brokenhearted? Let Jesus heal you.
- Are you bound by sin? Let Jesus free you.
- Are you Spiritually blind? Let Jesus open your eyes.
- Are you oppressed? Walk through the door to freedom that Jesus opens for you.
I get so mad when I see Christians, who should be living in victory as lights of the world, under the sway of darkness.
I lived like that for so many years. But I didn’t know any better.
I did not know that God wanted more for me. And he wants more for you too.
As a daughter or son of God, arise to your true position in Him. You are the righteousness of God in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21).
Through the Holy Spirit and God’s word, you have what you need to think right, speak right, and live right.
You do this for the glory of God because you are not your own. You were bought with a price.
Walking with the Lord is a day-by-day process. You will face challenges that may seem impossible to overcome. But you will overcome with God’s help.
Remember, the war is already won – but you need to claim your share of the victory.
This is your inheritance.
This is your destiny
Here is my prayer for you this day from Ephesians 1:15-21:
“Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come.
And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.”
Keep renewing your mind to God’s word every day so that His truth becomes a part of you.
Let Jesus live His life through you.
You have a reward waiting on you and will hear the sweetest words ever uttered:
Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of your Lord.”
That is what I am living for. How about you?
Let’s run our race well, take as many people with us as we can so they can celebrate with us in victory!
Be Blessed with Health, Healing, and Wholeness,
Kimberly Taylor
Author of the Take Back Your Temple program
P.S. Do you struggle with overeating sugar? If so, you are not alone!
Overcoming sugar addiction was a key factor on my weight loss journey; I lost 85 pounds and dropped from a size 22 to an 8.
In our 14-day Sugar Detox Challenge online course (inside the Take Back Your Temple program), you’ll get the same success strategies and support to gain peace in your eating habits and achieve lasting weight loss.
Click here to learn more about the Take Back Your Temple program.
“Prayer for Weight Loss”
Phil S. I keep reading that this is a program for women but it is alright for males also and it is no problem me being here, right? I have been a member for many years but never actually used the program when the fact is I need a program. Thanks…
Hi Phillip,
This is Mike Taylor and I am the TBYT Membership Coordinator and Virtual Assistant.
YES INDEED MY BROTHER!
Our Program is for women AND men. We have men who have joined the program and will occasionally post comments within the articles & online community.
I am only guessing without checking our database and say that perhaps just one percent of our membership is comprised of men but they are HERE nevertheless, just not as open as the women are (smiles)
Woops, I left my comment on a different article. Just wanted to say I really resonated with this: “If I wasn’t thinking about what I was eating, I was thinking about what I had eaten, or what I was going to eat next.”
Praising the Lord with you for the ability to change, Rosalie!
Thank you.
Terry Madas
You are welcome, my Sister!
Thank you again Kim, I have been on sso many diet’s in my life that all I want to do is learn how to eat like I’m supposed to and I know the weight will come off just doing the right things….So I will continue to Pray for all my Sister’s and myself to get our mind’s body and Spirit’s in line with the Word of God .Daily….God Bless.
Thank you for your prayers, Ms. Spicy! Remember: Your body needs care – no matter what size it is, no matter what day it is, no matter your life circumstances. Just as you wouldn’t brush your teeth one time and think that absolves you from brushing again, so it is with maintaining your body. Even when you reach your ideal weight, you’ll still need to do the things you did before to maintain it so that your body functions properly. With God’s help, He will remind you 🙂
My mind know this, but my heart is learning to listen. Thank you I know I’m an over Comer because of Christ Jesus.
Excellent, Renee! We sometimes have to remind ourselves of the truth so that we “get it” at a deeper level 🙂
Thanks for the encouragement, Kimberly! This is blessed news and just what I needed to hear at this moment in time.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and your husband, may God be with you.
I appreciate that feedback, Holly – we must never forget that the Lord loves us and has a great plan for our lives. He is committed to completing the good work He has started in us. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family as well!
Your emails and articles and teaching are so helpful! I appreciate you and your ministry so much. It helps me primarily in my health/lifestyle/eating choices, but they are also applicable in other areas of my life, too. Thank you Kimberly and thank you, Jesus!
Wonderful, Gladys! Let our aim be to finish our race well in the Lord and take as many people with us as we can 🙂
Oh Kimberly….God knew I needed to read this right now in this moment. It was at the top of my email list when I booted up my computer before all the other emails were downloaded, so it caught my attention. I won’t go into all the details, but I have felt very strongly, more than ever within the past week God calling me to surrender this for good and quit taking it back from Him – that there are those I love who will not see His true power to transform if I don’t. Also, that my unwillingness to do so keeps robbing me of His best for me and the intimacy with Him that I crave. Thank you so much for always speaking His Truth from His Word!
I am so grateful you took the time to let me know, Cindy! God’s plans for us are better than any we have for ourselves and I love how He sends us a “just-in-time” word. He is good!
I read this with relish today. Thank you Thank you. God bless you and increase your wisdom and your influence today, I ask in Jesus ‘ name. Amen. A. H.
I receive that prayer and thank you SO much for it. It means more than you can ever know! May the Lord increase you more and more in your sphere of influence as well, and may you and your family prosper and be in health even as your soul prospers!
God bless you Kimberly! I needed that reminder!
You are welcome Joy. We must engage in the fight each day in confidence that we have the victory in Jesus!
Hey Kimberly, I love your articles; they make me really think. Yes, you are not kidding about this world getting darker; it’s shocking. I often wonder if this what is was like during the days of Noah. Worse, Sodom and Gomorrah. Honestly, how people treat one another affects me especially when their treatment spills unto me. I wish I loved people like Jesus/ God does. Even more, I wish Jesus would come back tomorrow and get His followers to be quite frank. I’m a funeral director/ embalmer and it’s even bad among my coworkers. I often wonder if I helped anyone with their grief but then I remember what Paul said and let The Holy Spirit work through me. Eh… Keep up the good work because your articles are really helping me.
I am glad the articles are helping you. You have a tough job, but I know and believe that you can do all things through Christ who strengthens you. And you are a minister of those who need comfort and the Lord will reward you for your faithfulness 🙂
So good!! Thank you for sharing! Very inspirational and true to consider the freedom Christ wants and paid for for all of His children to live and walk into. May His healing and freedom transform the lives of His saints more and more and may the light shine brightly to and through His people. All glory be to God and Jesus for their great grace!!!
Amen Juli – awesome prayer!
Thank you so very much. I am believing for victory in fasting in my life which is the first step. I am also believing for steadfastness in every area of my life!
Your blog and emails are very encouraging. They come at the time when I need them most.
Praise God, Faith – we serve an on-time God!
That definitely is the enemy’s job. I was in a abusive relationship emotionally, mentally and physically with my child’s father and it caused me to gain like 60 pounds due to stress and emotional eating. It was so bad he, my child’s father, even realized when I stress I eat so he’s applying stress to attempt to do just that, but the devil is a liar!! Please pray and be in agreement with me, that God is helping me out of this gluttonous depressed place because I know what I’m going through is not about me , but about not only my son but about those whose destiny’s are attached to me.
Amen, A – I agree with you in prayer according to Isaiah 54:17 – “No weapon formed against you shall prosper, And every tongue which rises against you in judgment You shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, And their righteousness is from Me,” Says the Lord.”
Thank you for this encouraging article. In this journey alone, except for God. Sometimes just need to be reminded to keep on going. It’s worth it.
Amen Trina!
Kim, thanks so much for raising the call to arms and reminding us of our position in Christ. Our enemy’s plan is to keep us distracted, depressed and powerless. But as you said, Jesus has already won the victory!
I pray for all believers we keep our eyes focused on the Lord Jesus, the author and FINISHER of our faith! Love your blog!
Thank you so much for your confirmation, Rick! May God continue to bless you 🙂
Thank you! Amazing words of encouragement for Christ the King Sunday!!!
Appreciate that, Marcie – God is good!
I’m fighting the battle. I just can’t seem to get the want to. I’m sad, sorry for being honest! I know why I eat, I know a God loves me in my head, just hasn’t opened my heart yet. I wont give up, but I’m bigger than ever. I don’t even want to go out publically, I’m mad that I am in this bondage. Oh Lord have mercy on me.
Hi Cris – I am praying for you and ask that you please take a look at this article: When Darkness is your Closest Friend
Ask the Lord to open up your Spiritual eyes and show you the fear that is holding you back from opening your heart to healing. Sometimes the enemy can convince us that it is safer to stay where we are. Even though we may be miserable, we think ”At least its misery I know!”.
But don’t you think it would be sad to reach the end of your life and realize you were living out a lie rather than the truth? Plus, missed out on all the freedom and blessings you could have had in the Lord? Not to mention the people you were meant to inspire and impact because you chose to get free?
So much is at stake! I pray that the Lord give you a new vision of what is possible when you choose to walk out this journey with Him day by day.
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new (2 Corinthians 5:17).”
Wow!!! By far one of the most uplifting, encouraging, and “dead on” devotions yet! Spiritual warfare is ever present today. Even as the enemy seeks to pit my own “lost” husband against me I will rebuke and cast him and all his legions of demons from this home, family and marriage. By the authority of HIM, I declare this by the power of the blood of JESUS CHRIST!
My diet and food choices make a crucial difference in how I feel.
It seems that Depression is a tool that the enemy is using right now. I, too, have been under terrible oppressive depression for the last 7 months. I have been sick (fibromyalgia, autoimmune illness) and being sick for so long has been taking a terrible toil on me. I’ve just recently recognized that the enemy’s goal is to kill me, or at least be sure he takes all the life out of my living, so I am trying to start fighting back.
“You are in the fight of your life. You are in a fight for your life.” That is an accurate statement for me right now. I have been dealing with bombarding thoughts to just end my life. It is a daily consideration for me. I will not do it, but I am wondering why am I even alive if life is so painful, nothing seems to work? I tithe, I go to church, but my heart is not even in it. Even doubting that God is real. I was saved almost 15 years ago. I remember the day and the following years. It was a true love affair btn me and the Lord. But I had this marriage for which I spent the better part of it on my knees and face praying for a God loving husband. It literally spent me in all ways. I feel used up. Well guess what, he is now serving God and here I am dealing with these unrelenting thoughts and feelings. I have spent the past 3 years trying anything and everything to feel better. I started exercising which is the only thing I look forward too, but to no avail I don’t lose. I have been to several practitioners and nothing is found. I am dealing with being exhausted, uninterested in life, hating my job, just going through the motions. I have been wavering in my faith for the last 2 months. I even said to my husband today that I don’t believe today. I can’t bring myself to even read the word and I have become one of “those” people. I don’t want to give in but I don’t have hope that any of this even works any more. It is like I am dead inside. So I am going to print this article off and try reading it again.
Hi E – I respect your feelings. It sounds like you are having a “valley through the shadow of death” experience as David described in the 23rd Psalm! While your feelings are true, they are based upon lying thoughts. You are under Spiritual attack and you can’t fight a Spiritual attack with natural means. What is the source of your hope? If you have placed it in your husband, weight loss, job, or anything else, then you can get depressed if any of these things aren’t “working” the way you want them to.
Remember, the enemy wants to steal, kill, and to destroy you. It sounds like the thoughts that he has placed in your mind have taken up residence and become strongholds. However, if you are willing to do the work, they can be torn down.
I am praying for you. I recommend going back to the beginning. What lead you to accept Jesus as your savior? Revisit that because Jesus is the author and finisher of your faith. I recommend checking this out: https://www.everystudent.com/features/gettingconnected.html.
Why do I say this? Because you are going through a season of Spiritual dryness. Check this out, especially #1: https://takebackyourtemple.com/how-to-shut-temptations-door/
I also recommend these articles:
https://takebackyourtemple.com/3-ways-to-lift-the-spirit-of-heaviness/
https://takebackyourtemple.com/do-you-have-spiritual-caller-id/
https://takebackyourtemple.com/8-ways-to-be-happier-happy-bible-verses/
As I said to another lady who is dealing with a similar issue, my prayer is that you reconnect with the source of your strength and hope. I am encouraging you as I encouraged her: Your destiny is to get through this season in your life and come out on the other side victorious! Believe it.
This is how I am feeling, and I know our feelings lie to us. I don’t feel loved for so many reasons, no family around, divorced. I do the Church thing, or at times stay home because I feel so empty. Anyway, I’m thankful to read of another struggling so deeply. I have Lymphedema of my legs from ca. Surgery. My legs are so Hugh from that swelling, I’m ashamed. There is no cure, the Dr want me to loose weight. Jesus I need your help. Amen ) :
Hi Cris, I’m praying for you right now. God sees you and He loves you. “My child, listen and be wise: Keep your heart on the right course.” Proverbs 23:19 We have to be mindful of what we feed our spirit. Be blessed!
Kimberly:
Thank you!! Your timing couldn’t be better. I’ve been struggling for a while, and have really gotten discouraged. I’m a caregiver for my Mom, who’s having some health issues. Add to this I’m a graduate student. When you add work and household duties to the mix, it makes for a tired puppy who’s not resting well at all. The constant sleep deprivation has my desired exercise schedule off course, so I’ve been really frustrated. Your words remind me of why I need to press forward. Satan will NOT defeat me!!!!
Thank you! Boy did I need this today. I have been struggling recently with little victory and wondered if I should quit. No way, He will be my strength. The battle is His.
Sue
I just read this article today. I notice I have been feeling very tired, weak, emotional and sad along unsure if I can do what God needs me to do. I can’t be Jesus but I do I be like him. I have been diagnose with major depression along with PMS. So I have lost motivation to do anything. I don’t know what to do. I desire to read God word and listen to God related things. I either let myself get distracted or give up and think God hates me and I have been in this works based relationship with him. I know how to receive or accept Gods love for me. I also need to be healed from the sexual, mental, emotional, and spiritual abuse that I have not surrender along with eating issues to God. Please help me?
Hi Andrea – I am praying for you. You are under Spiritual attack. The enemy hates God’s people and will do anything he can to oppress them. While your feelings are true, they are based upon lying thoughts. A psychiatrist once said that people who are dealing with neurotic disorders, such as depression or anxiety, almost always have a habit of fault finding. Either they focused on faults within themselves or faults with other people. No matter what was good in their lives, they always focused on what was wrong and what was lacking. When I used to suffer from depression years ago, I was like that. But you can turn things around with God’s help.
I recommend going back to the beginning. What led you to accept Jesus as your Savior? Revisit that because Jesus is the author and finisher of your faith. I recommend checking this out: https://www.everystudent.com/features/gettingconnected.html. If the enemy is telling you that God hates you and you believe that then it is difficult to trust Him with anything! I’d recommend checking out these articles to help also:
https://takebackyourtemple.com/3-ways-to-lift-the-spirit-of-heaviness/
https://takebackyourtemple.com/do-you-have-spiritual-caller-id/
https://takebackyourtemple.com/who-i-am-in-christ/
As you review each resource, then write down the thoughts that come to your mind, allowing the Holy Spirit to minister to you. Sometimes when you see your thoughts in black and white, they do not hold the same power over you. My prayer is that you reconnect with the source of your strength and hope. Your destiny is to get through this season in your life and come out on the other side victorious!
Wonderfully said. Thank you for the loving admonishment. Your words, as well as the Scrpture you shared will boost my strength and determination today. May God bless you for your steadfastness in Him.
Thanks Julie – stay encouraged – this is a day-by-day process. And remember that the enemy knows what your emotional triggers are. So be careful to shut the following doors everyday to which he commonly tries to gain access into our lives: Spiritual hunger and thirst (not taking time to feed your spirit man daily in prayer, praise, awareness of God’s presence, etc.), lying thoughts (those thoughts that are not in line with God’s word. You shut those doors closed when you take your thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ), emotional manipulation (he knows what emotional strongholds will drive you to want to practice destructive behaviors to comfort yourself. So it’s important that you submit those to God in prayer for healing and comfort to shut that door), and finally, environment suggestions (for example, putting unhealthy trigger foods around you that make it easy for you to go back to practicing the negative behavior). Wow, this is another article in itself! I am inspired, praise God!