I was born an addict. I truly believe I came out of the womb craving. I desperately craved love, food, and as I entered my teen years, drugs and alcohol.
If you have been here before, you are well aware of my many struggles with a variety of addictions. When I gave up alcohol and drugs over 14 years ago, I replaced them with the acceptable white powder- SUGAR…
Sugar has become my obsession. It supplies me with friendship when I am lonely, joy when I am sad, and peace when my anxiety is about to blow into a far too common panic attack.
Regardless of the incredible dangers of sugar, it is seen as the tolerable addiction. We have permission to gorge on this substance.
Lysa TerKeurst leads us to a verse that challenges this thought in her book, Made to Crave…
There is nothing beneficial about binging on sugary, nutrient-deprived foods every day.
I can’t agree enough with Lysa’s feelings on how poor food choices affected her entire being:
“Poor food choices were sabotaging my body, my mental energy, and even my spirit. Food had become like a drug. And honestly, it’s a good drug choice for a Christian woman.”
AMEN, sister…
Because it is permissible, I can choose sugar over my other addictions and feel vindicated. I can proudly remain a card-carrying Christian.
It is time for me to change this mindset. I don’t want to be physically, mentally, and spiritually drained anymore. I deserve more. My husband and children deserve more. God deserves more.
Abstinence is possible. I did it before. I quit eating sugar, flour, and wheat for 31 Days in my series on food addiction. After the initial withdrawal period, I felt amazing. Even my incredibly strong sugar cravings disappeared.
Unfortunately, the series was in the month of October, ending on Halloween. I thought I could have a little of my son’s candy for a treat. It has been all downhill since then. My poor son still has no idea all of his Halloween candy is gone…
I am scared, just as I was when I began my 31 days of abstinence. I think this time is even scarier because I failed before. Even without past history repeating itself, my fears are abundant. If I leave behind my sugar addiction, what will I use to satisfy my deep, massive cravings?
The answer is, of course, God…
We were made to crave— long for, want greatly, desire eagerly, and beg for— God. Only God. ~Lysa TerKeurst
I will continue to swap out addictions until I get this truth instilled in me.
This is it. The end of the road. I am exhausted and ready for the relief only He can provide.
Who’s with me?
You are tempted in the same way all other human beings are. God is faithful. He will not let you be tempted any more than you can take. But when you are tempted, God will give you a way out so that you can stand up under it. ~1 Corinthians 10:13 (NIRV)
Great post. This six week journey is the beginning of lifestyle changes! One day at a time, one hour at a time, one minute at a time, one craving at a time! We are going to take back what the enemy has stolen!
I completely agree, Kelly! I am definitely taking it one minute at a time right now. Thanks for the encouragement!
This is beautiful Candace! We do have to replace our craves with craving God and only God! I love I Cor 10:23….we just need to ask ourselves if this is beneficial before we do it. We need to eat to live not live to eat. That has been my struggle. I don’t think I could pin it on one certain food I just love food period! Especially when I’m stressin! You got this girl….you can do it!
I have turned to that verse many times this week, Tonya. My grandmother used to say that phrase- eat to live, don’t live to eat :). Love it! Always a pleasure to have you here!
Thank you for this post! Sugar (both real and fake) and carbonated drinks are two of the hardest things for me to break. But, I, like you, know I MUST break them. They have too much power over me and my focus is not on God–it’s on sweet. I have broken the carbonation curse very quickly this time, but the sugar part is hard. I know I have succeeded and failed before, but I’m holding onto the words in the Made To Crave blog that said “This time it’s different.” Thank you for being REAL and encouraging those of us who have similar issues.
Thank you for the “this time it’s different” reminder, Rebecca! I should write that down and hang it in my kitchen. I want to give up fake sugars as well. I think they are worse than real sugar. I’m taking it one step at a time, starting with sugar, and when I run out of my splenda infused latte syrup, artificial sweeteners will be cut out :).
I have a sugar addiction. There…I admitted it. I ate less yesterday, and will do so today. I feel better today for having done so. It’s not much, but I can’t say no to cookies and desserts at work. I can at home, but not at work. I will be praying for strength to fight this, and I am armed with scripture to get me thru. I can do this. If you can do it for 30 days, I can too. Thank you for the encouragement.
Admitting it is the first step, Cindy! You can do this with me! Even if you just cut out sugar at home while still eating a little at work, it is a step in the right direction. Praying for you!
Love this, Candace! I’m in for sure on this. I have recently lost 32 lbs. but need to lose more! About 10 years ago I lost 140 lbs. in 18 months! Whew, was I tired from working out several times a day, starting @ 3:45 a.m. every morning and then going to work! But, I am 10 years older now (hopefully, more wiser re working out) and trying to stabilize my eating habits! I have always used WW and it works, but this time with this Bible Study, I am trying to learn to eat normal food in much smaller portions so as not to deprive myself and eat tons more! I must learn my limits. Everything is not beneficial!
So glad you are in this with me, Mary! It sounds like you have a great plan, eating normal food in small portions. My husband lost weight once from working out several times a day. He gained it back though. We really have to do something that is sustainable. It is truly a lifestyle!
I have faith that you can do this again…and for good! You go, Candace!
Thank you, LuAnn! I really appreciate your sweet support!
You can do it! And as always, thanks for the inspiring verses.
I am trying to remember to use verses more in my life, especially to fight these cravings. I need to write them down on notecards and carry them with me. It’s always great to see you, Roaen!
You can do it, Candace! Just focus on God’s strength and how great your body felt before, off the sugar. I too, fear committing to something like this (especially publically!) because I have failed in the past. Many. Many. Times. But God’s word is full of wisdom telling us to HOPE. We can HOPE that this time will be different. And regardless of the outcome, we can choose to be obedient and God will smile.
Thanks for the encouragement, Paige! Sharing it with the world can sometimes help by adding accountability. The blog series I did really served me in sticking with the plan. I didn’t want to have to admit defeat in the middle of it. Unfortunately, as soon as it ended, so did my healthy eating… As you said, I can still choose hope for success this time, which is what I’m choosing to do :)!
While I really don’t want to, I am with you. Sweets are my addiction and I KNOW I will feel better if I give it up. Ugh! But the withdrawal….
I won’t lie to you, Debi. The withdrawal stinks, but it is well worth it. I have felt rough today, and I’m just a few days in without sugar. Last time, it was much worse when I gave up sugar, flour, and wheat at once. I am taking it in steps this time. After the detox though, the cravings are almost gone!
You can do it! Dairy is my poison. I’ve mourned the loss of it in my diet, but now, after a long time, I no longer miss it because I can’t function when I eat it, and I NEED to function with 3 boys and a husband and an active life. I love this bit from Exodus 14:13-14
Do not be afraid for you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today, you will never see again. The LORD will fight for you; you only need to be still.
Praying that Jesus will wipe out that sugary Egyptian for you.
Thanks so much for the verse and prayers, Elizabeth! It is amazing when we get these things out of our bodies, we don’t want them anymore. I’m feeling pretty dysfunctional lately, and I have a husband and kids I want to have fun with too. I can relate!
Hey Candace, I totally understand your sugar addiction. I crave sugar all the time too. I know it’s hard to have sugary items in the house that other people eat. I ate a lot of my kid’s Halloween candy too, but I just start over each day and try to do better. I’ve made a lot of progress and I have faith that I can conquer sugar too.
Thank you, Sonya! It’s nice to hear you can relate. Sugar is so addictive! I’m trying to get rid of all the junk food in my house. It is not an easy process :).
I struggled with sugar addiction my whole life until I gave it up at 19. I was sick, tired, depressed and overweight and only 19 years old. I also had a seizure condition that was actually caused by my high glycemic lifestyle. Now, today, I can say I’ve been 10 years “off” sugar and wouldn’t have ever looked back. Being able to live without seizure medication, constant addiction to sugar, etc. was the best thing I ever did for myself, and it helped me, find health for the first time in life. It’s amazing how clear you can think”off” sugar. I am so inspired by your blog, and you hang in there! Halloween was the 1 month anniversary for me when I first started abstaining from sugar at 19. I can remember that 1 month day, being so tempted with all the candy around the house. I even reached for some, late at night when no one was watching, preparing for my binge. Then, I stopped myself, fully conscious that I would hate myself the next morning. Me drawing my hand back from that candy was the most empowering thing I ever did for myself,and I would never have thought I could do it.
Motivation comes from many things, but mine came with being tired of being “sick and tired” and always caving in.I couldn’t have done it without God’s help and for the first two months, wrote down every single day why I wanted to change, and how I would do it.
Thank you for this inspiring post! You are quite an amazing woman, and you CAN do this!!! You email me if you ever need support<3
Thanks so much for your always incredible support, Heather! I didn’t know about your seizure condition. That is very eye-opening because my son has seizures. It is controlled by medication, but I never thought to relate it to sugar. I did consider a gluten free diet for him when he was first diagnosed, but of course, the doctors said it wouldn’t help. It frustrates me how most doctors are so much happier to prescribe pills than a healthy lifestyle. I love your empowering moment pulling your hand from the candy dish! Good for you, my friend!
Great post I with you! One day at a time. God bless. met you at “Sorry, not sorry social” thanks for sharing. 🙂
Thanks for coming over from the social, Gracie! Blessings to you!
Good for you on overcoming your other addictions. As an addiction counselor I can relate all of the things I teach my class participants to my addiction to sugar, but it is so hard to follow those tips. I love the verse, “everything is permissible, but not everything is beneficial”. I didn’t avoid all of my cravings today, but I did avoid the 15 varieties of candy bars on the desk at work by repeating that verse every time I walked by.
Great job with the candy bars, Jamie! The work environment can be a dangerous place. I completely understand your difficulties with following the tips. Addiction advice is so much easier to give than to live by :).
Thanks for your post! I found it on the M2C blog hop 🙂 We are struggling with the same issues and I am searching for beautiful Christian woman to encourage me in this journey! Here’s my own post about this first week. https://cravingsconfidential.blogspot.com. God bless!
Hi Miriam, Thanks for visiting! I will check out your post.
I’m with you – sugar is/was my addiction, and why is gluttony a sin that we accept? I’m trying to cut it out, to cut it back, and the amount of headaches it has given me at the start just proves that I was using it as a crutch. Thanks for the challenge, and pointing me to Scripture.
My headaches have been terrible too, Kitty! I think that really says something about the effects of sugar if we have to go through actual withdrawal pain. I bring up gluttony a lot when people start going on about how bad a certain sin is. There is no hierarchy. Gluttony is the same as any other sin. So glad you are with me! We can do this :)!
Great thoughtful post! It is so true that we can eat sugar, but it doesn’t mean its good for us. I am also passionate about eating healthy and I find the Bible actually has a lot to say about this!
I have been pleasantly surprised at finding out all the Bible says about eating healthy. It is very motivating for me. I hope to be able to say I’m “passionate about eating healthy” soon! I’m getting there :)!
I can relate to your post. Being a recovered alchoholic, sugar is what got me through the first hard year without alcohol. Once I accepted Christ into my life, I asked him to take away my sugar cravings just as He did the alcohol addiction. And He did! Now I still enjoy sugar but not in the binging addictive way I used to. I can have one or two cookies rather than ten! I would like the challenge of going sugar, and flour free for a while. Not sure I could do 31 days (the inconvenience of providing meals for the kids) but I have done one or two days, and even that made me feel better!
Thank you for the wonderful encouragement and hope from your story, Laura! I traded alcohol for sugar too. I have not really ever thought about asking God to help me with sugar cravings until the last few months. It is a daily prayer now, and it’s really helping! Feeding the family can be difficult when you are abstinent from sugar, flour, and wheat, but it can be done. You just need the willpower to skip whatever grains, etc. you make for them. It sounds like you are quite strong in self-restraint though :)!
Thank you for sharing this. I struggle with sugar but with breads & chips and all that yummy white flour stuff. I eat a sugary treat then I want something salty and it becomes a vicious cycle. The answer is God and I am proud to be on this journey with you. One of the things I have been thinking about as I make my food choices, is I ask “Would I feed this to Jesus if he came to dinner?” Trying not to think about what I would serve for dessert but sticking with the main meal. Seriously, there is no way I would serve Jesus a McDonald’s Extra Value Meal. 🙂
I love the question you ask yourself, Melanie! What a great way to inspire your meal planning. Thank you for sharing it with me. I am so glad to be on this journey with you as well!
Thank you….sugar/food addiction and being obese have made me feel like a hypocrite for far too long…as well as my health/knees being in trouble. I want to be here to raise the little girl that has been given to me and know that to do it, I must get the weight off. Lord help me to crave you, instead of food….
Praying for you, Marilyn! We can do this. I plan to be around for my grandkids :)!
Goodluck on your Sugar abstinence challenge.
Coming from the Love Blog Hop. Come-by my site. Thanks
Thanks for connecting, Mika! I will definitely come visit you :).
Candace,
I am excited to discover your website. I am also a Christian and recovering codependent and food addict. I just implemented a new food plan, and I know that I need a lot of support and accountability to get through it. Food–especially sugar and bread–are what I use to attempt to fill emptiness and longing in my soul that only God can fill. I maintain sobriety with food for long periods of time, but I always end up back in the same place of defeat and self-destruction, fooling myself into thinking that I can eat “normal”. Only when I am exhausted and at the end of myself do I surrender this socially-acceptable addiction back to God.
These verses spoke to me this morning:
I Cor. 6:12-15
You say, “I am allowed to do anything”–but not everything is good for you. And even though “I am allowed to do anything,” I must not become a slave to anything. You say, “Food was made for the stomach, and the stomach for food.” (This is true, though someday God will do away with both of them). But you can’t say that our bodies were made for [overeating]. They were made for the Lord, and the Lord cares about our bodies. And God will raise us from the dead by His power, just as He raised our Lord from the dead. Don’t you realize that your bodies are actually parts of Christ?
One day at a time…
Anjie
I’m so glad to meet you, Anjie! Food addiction is tough to overcome. Sugar can get such a hold on us. You may want to check out Food Addicts Anonymous. I love their website! I have some links to their food plan and some other resources in my 31 days series. I look forward to getting to know you better!
Candace … I happened on your blog site randomly looking through pictures posted on the MTC/ACTION OBS. WoW!! What an inspiration this has been. I, too, have been addicted to sugar for comfort since I was 6yrs old, my first memory of eating sweet small handfuls of baby aspirin because they tasted so orange-y sugary satisfying. After reading MTC last fall, I honestly believe the 50 year addiction to sugar is finished, done, over, NO MORE! Praise God! I resonated with so many things shared on your blog site, even our mantras are very close: “Not perfect, but better.” I really could not leave your site today without saying, “Thank you,” for sharing your journey with others and for being such an encourager. You’ve touched a life and made a difference to someone (out in the middle of nowhere in rural eastern Washington), and I’m grateful for your goodness! Blessings to you, Susan
You have made my day with your sweet comment, Susan! Thank you so much! We sound a lot alike. I love your mantra! I’m so sick of striving for perfection and just giving up completely. I still want to give up sugar but now is not the time for me to do that. I’m working on adding healthy foods to crowd out some of the sugar. This has been the best week I have had in a while. It’s so nice to meet you and I hope to see you again! Blessings to you!