Esther White - Less Me and More Free: Making peace with and caring for the body God gave you

Less Me, More Free:

Making Peace With and Caring for the Body God Gave You

Esther White MS, RDN

Copyright 2020 by Esther White MS, RDN, Real Well U.

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author/ publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

Disclaimer: This book is to be used for education and informational purposes only and does not constitute a medical professional- client relationship. Information herein is not a substitute for individual medical or health advice from a licensed medical professional.

Front and Back Cover created by Kristen Becker at
www.kristen-becker.com

Printed in the United States of America

First Printing, 2020

Electronic ISBN = 978-1-7349736-1-7

Paperback ISBN = 978-1-7349736-0-0

CONTENTs

Acknowledgements

Preface

Part 1 My Story

Chapter 1 My Heritage

Chapter 2 Married Life

Chapter 3 Walk by Faith

Chapter 4 Expanding Our Family

Part 2 Making Peace with Ourselves

Chapter 5 Your Faith Journey

Chapter 6 Battling the Old Way

Chapter 7 Defining Ourselves

Part 3 Caring for Our Bodies

Chapter 8 All Shapes and Sizes

Chapter 9 Mirror, Mirror on the Wall

Chapter 10 The S-word

Chapter 11 Body Acceptance

Chapter 12 Making Peace on the Inside

Chapter 13 Freedom the F.A.S.T. Way

Chapter 14 Activity

Chapter 15 Structure

Chapter 16 Time

Chapter17Starting is the First Step

Chapter 18 Connecting with God

Chapter 19 Where Do I Go from Here?

Appendices

Small Group Guide

Scriptures to Help You Find Freedom

Music to Encourage You on Your Journey

Online Resources

Acknowledgements

My God: How do you thank the one who created you, led you on a journey to know him and then opened your eyes to the greatest love story your heart could desire? There are no words that you havent already given me, there are no ways to show you that you dont already know. Yet I humbly say thank you for your gift of love and relationship that has changed me from the inside out. I am nothing without you and all I do, I want to be for you. You are my eternal love. May I live completely for you!

My Family: First of all, thank you to my sweet husband who selflessly gives to our family. You always put us first in that quiet, behind the scenes way. Yet I think you are all the more heroic for it. Years have passed and we are a little older, wiser and hopefully more dedicated to God and one another. I love you and never want a day to go by without saying it! I cant wait to continue this adventure of life together that God has given us.

And to the rest of my boy crew, I know this has been a work for all of us. Hours spent typing away on the keyboard, late nights, early mornings, weekends and sorry Mom is writing her book right now. Thank you for your patience, kindness and love. Someday, I hope you will look back and think- if Mom can follow God to do hard things, I can to.

My Circle: So many sweet friends and clients were willing to be open, honest and vulnerable to share their stories in these pages. Others gave of their time and energy to read, edit, give feedback and cheer me on from the sidelines. You are all appreciated more than I can express. I want you to know that I treasure each and every one of you and thank God for getting to be a part of your life. May you come to know him more and dwell in the freedom of his love to be exactly who he created you to be his beloved girls!

A special note of thanks to my editor , Elizabeth Oates- you are a gift! When I didnt even know where to start, you helped me shape a distant dream into an idea, an outline and eventually a book. I consider you a mentor and a friend. Thanks for everything, I loved our collaboration.

preface

Have you ever looked at yourself in the mirror and stuck your tongue out at what you saw? Or perhaps you felt shame and disgust over your body and overall appearance?

The anxiety that results from what we think and feel about our bodies can overwhelm us. Too fat, too thin, too short, too tall, too round, too square, too soft, too bony... and the list goes on.

Several things can happen with these feelings. We can ignore them and pretend everything is O.K. while trying to press on through life. We can let our self-loathing feelings paralyze us, remaining imprisoned for life. Or we can grow tired of these feelings dictating our lives and decide to find healing and hope.

How do I know? Because I sat in the throes of all these feelings and more. As I have opened up about my struggles, heartache, and journey, you all have told me that you have felt these things, too.

Therefore, I write this because I have been on both sides of these destructive feelings and the problems they create... and I have found healing. Even though it is scary for me to tell my story, I can no longer remain silent and let you continue to struggle. You are too precious, and you deserve to find healing, hope, and freedom, too!

I will begin by sharing my story with you. Then we will dig into how we see ourselves, and well compare and contrast that with how God sees us. Lastly, we will spend time looking at how we can care for the bodies God gave us and find renewed hope and health for our lives.

Are you ready to start the journey toward making peace with the body God gave you? Are you ready to learn how to care for it and find freedom as you become the healthiest version of yourself?

Great! Then lets get started. Just turn the page.

Part 1
My Story

CHAPTER 1: My Heritage

Where do you start when you try to tell your story? Do you stick with the details of the present that seem the most pertinent? Or do you go all the way back to the beginning? Honestly, it feels awkward and vulnerable to write about myself. But if sharing what God has done in my life allows you to see how good He is and how He can heal you, then it is completely worth it. I know if God can heal and change me, He can do the same for you!

So, lets start at the beginning.

I was born at home in the woods of Bemidji, Minnesota to my Jesus-loving hippy parents. I was the second daughter to enter the family in their first two and a half years of marriage.

My parents met in the era of communes. They were two of many Christians exploring what it meant to live together following the model of the early church in Acts. In the big woods of Minnesota, God brought them both to a Christian camp and commune where my dad worked, and my mom served as a camp counselor in the summer. Their faith walks were completely opposite, but they found common ground at the camp. They fell in love shortly after they met and were married 9 months later.

My dad was born in the 1940sa surprise baby and the youngest child by 10 years. His parents were already in their 40s when he was born, and their home was a traditional, Southern Baptist, work-hard-and-get-through-life kind of home in Fort Worth, Texas. Despite his traditional upbringing, my dad rebelled during his teenage years by getting into drugs and other kinds of trouble. God continually pursued him, drawing him back home to his faith. Eventually, God connected my dad with other believers who slowly helped him see the truth of who God was for him. Some of these believers invited him to live and work in fellowship with them at their Minnesota commune.

My moms story was completely the opposite. She grew up in a large, northern, Catholic farming family as the fourth of nine children. Her family faithfully attended mass each week but didnt know Jesus beyond that. When she was in high school, God surrounded her with friends who helped her learn about Jesus and she gave her life to him. She never looked back. God stretched her faith after high school when she became a summer counselor at a Christian camp at the same Minnesota commune where my dad already worked and lived.