Women Food and God by Geneen Roth has shone a spotlight on compulsive and binge eating. The author’s premise is that “how we eat is how we live.” She says that our eating behavior expresses our emotions, life approach, and even how we view God. The latter connection is what drew me to the book. This review is written as information if you are seeking a Godly solution to healing binge eating.
Now I must say upfront that I approached the book with a certain expectation; I suffered from compulsive eating for over 20 years, eventually reaching 240 pounds. But through the power of God, I learned to manage my emotions and restored a right relationship with food. I ultimately ended up losing 85 pounds and have kept that weight off for several years. My healing would not have been possible without a personal relationship with God. Through the person of Jesus Christ, I came to know God as my Redeemer, Healer, Strength, Wisdom, Joy, and Comfort.
So it was the God who loves me that I was hoping to see in Women Food and God. The book started off promising – it affirmed the importance of refraining from self-condemnation. This is an important key to healing. Condemnation makes you feel ashamed, frustrated, and depressed. The bible tells us that there is no condemnation in Christ Jesus. God is always about restoration, not condemnation (Romans 8:1).
I also found value in a startling conversation in the book; a woman revealed that she compulsively overate because food was her only source of comfort from emotional pain. That is a core issue of healing binge eating; because the woman believed as truth that food was her only comfort, she defiantly told Ms. Roth that she would not deprive herself of it.
However, I cannot recommend Women Food and God for those seeking a Godly solution to overcoming binge eating for one reason: On page 16, Ms. Roth says “It doesn’t matter if you believe in one God, many gods, or no god.” This contradicts the bible: “Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel, And his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts: ‘I am the First and I am the Last; Besides Me there is no God” (Isaiah 44:6).
As Christians, we are told to gird our waists with truth. In ancient times, the waist/stomach area was viewed as the seat of the emotions. So we are to secure our emotions with the truth. We believe there is only one God and we use the bible as our source of truth.
I chose not to continue reading Women Food and God because by Ms. Roth’s statement, she says that you can take God out of the picture and her methods would still work. If that is the case, then what role does God play in her book? Is it God as he defines himself or is it god however the reader defines him? From personal experience, I found that having a stable view of God’s love as expressed in the bible, knowing that he has a future and a hope for me, and believing that I could trust him in my healing was vital to my success.
Again, this review was written to help you make a more informed decision about the book before purchase. I urge everyone to please use spiritual discernment regarding your ultimate buying decision.
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