An ever-increasing epidemic

There is no question about it -- obesity statistics are staggering. The rate of obesity has doubled in the last 15 years and shows no sign of slowing. Scientists are calling it an “epidemic,” indicating a condition spiraling out of our control.

Diets Don't Work

Diets, pills, surgeries, and extensive government programs have failed to slow down this nationwide avalanche of eating problems and disorders. Today’s government is desperate to intervene because obesity has become the #1 cause of disease, leading to ever-increasing health care costs. The amount of federal Medicare dollars spent on obesity-related conditions and disease is skyrocketing. The obesity problem affects us all…from the youngest to the oldest, richest to the poorest. It is truly a global problem.

So what is the answer?

Not dieting! Again, quick fixes and extensive government programs have failed to slow down this nationwide ballooning of America.  The common popular diets even cause more obsession with food and eating, which exacerbates the greed for more food and larger portions, leading to even more excess weight.

The Weigh Down Workshop teaches how to break this vicious cycle:

#1. . Focus off of diets, calories, fat grams, and diet foods…and focus only on loving Jesus Christ enough to follow in His steps – Christ stated that His food was to do the will of the Father and to finish His work (John 4:34)  

#2. Tell yourself that despite what the world has taught for so long, you don’t deserve to eat more food than your body is physically calling for!  Stop eating to reward yourself, comfort yourself, or to compensate yourself for a tiring day. Start eating only the amount of food that your body is actually calling for.  
 
How will this work for me?

Up until now, you have been wholly focused on and devoted to food – when you will eat, how much you will eat, what you will eat, what you can/cannot eat, what other people are eating, etc. You have felt the pain of this self-focused dieting slavery. Starting today, you will begin transferring this devotion and focus on the food over to a whole-hearted devotion to God, and you are going to be amazed at how God can fill your heart so much better than the excess food.

The overweight epidemic represents a growing greed for MORE in today’s society. But Christ teaches us to deny self-wants and self-desires and live for God’s will instead. You cannot simply get rid of the focus on food – you must fill that focus with God! People cannot do this without God, or they end up emptier than ever. The result of a wholehearted focus on the Creator instead of the food He created is true peace and permanent weight loss.

Self-control and true freedom

So the answer lies with Jesus Christ and His example of “not my will, but Yours be done” (Luke 22:42).  The holy word of God also teaches personal responsibility – you can make this choice with God’s Spirit in you. Self-control is a fruit that results from the presence of the Spirit of God – we are not to live out-of-control lives with out-of-control eating habits. This answer brings true freedom from the slavery of obsessive dieting, calorie counting, bulimia, anorexia, or surgeries. It is life-changing.
 
How did Weigh Down begin?

The Weigh Down Workshop was developed in the 1980s by Gwen Shamblin, R.D, M.S., in an effort to help people combat overweight and eating disorders by teaching them to turn to God instead of to food. The Weigh Down classes quickly caught on and were launched nationwide in 1992, reaching worldwide status within 5 years. The Weigh Down Diet book, released in 1997, quickly became a million-seller and continues to be highlighted on news programs and talk shows.

What are the main concepts of Weigh Down?

Weigh Down is a Christian-based weight loss program that teaches people how to transfer a relationship with food over to a loving relationship toward God. Weigh Down teaches people how to eat food only when they are truly physically hungry and how to find the control to stop eating when that physical hunger has been satisfied. Any desire to eat other than for physical hunger is termed “head hunger,” and participants learn how to run to God with these desires, instead of to the chips and dip.

Weigh Down teaches that we are to take personal responsibility in our eating habits – no more blaming genetics, the food content, or stress for our weight gain. The main reason for overweight is overeating – putting more food in the body than what it requires…no matter what the content of that food might be. People in Weigh Down enjoy eating regular, everyday foods – no more diet foods or fat free foods – with self-control, and the excess weight comes off!

We have a personal responsibility before God – to not only take care of the temple He provided (the body), but also to have no other passions or loves before Him. We have been asked by God to worship Him and Him alone. Yet, in today’s world, everything has become a passion or an idol: food, money, sports, sex, drugs, TV, shopping…you name it, and it has become an idol. As Christians, we are called to live a life wholly devoted to only one God, the One whom Jesus Christ referred to as “Abba, Father” in Mark 14. This is a choice of gods…and you can choose to worship the Creator instead of the things He created. The choice to change yourself instead of the food or anything else in the world is everything!

Faith-based programs are everywhere…why does Weigh Down continue to be revolutionary?
 
Faith-based programs are popping up on every corner as hurting people are trying to find an answer. But in spite of the number of church buildings that have been built in this country, God's true house has been neglected. Jesus’ words of “not my will, but Yours be done” have been neglected. Humility, selflessness, and personal responsibility have been neglected. The road of taking personal responsibility for your own behavior is a narrow road, but this road makes all the difference.

Weigh Down does not hand participants a list of “good” foods and “bad” foods. We don’t hand participants a calorie-count or fat-gram or carbohydrate list. We don’t hand participants a schedule of aerobics or exercise classes. We don’t hand them diets, pills, shakes, or surgeries. We hand them a Bible and guide them through this journey into God’s Word. We help them discover what God’s Word is and what His will is regarding the body and our call to be holy and set apart. We show them scriptures like those mentioned above that continue to be left out of today’s worldly church services. There is a personal accountability we have before the Creator, and Weigh Down shows participants how to accept that accountability for themselves.

The result? Amazing testimonies of weight loss that are practically unheard of in today’s world…150 pounds, 200 pounds, 250 pounds. All without pills or surgeries. Weigh Down is a LIFE change, and that is why these weight losses are permanent, and why you will hear person after person proclaim that they will never gain the weight back again.

Our prayer for the future

The prayer at Weigh Down is that this message will reach those humble in heart around the world. We believe that this message is fundamental and essential for the salvation of all people everywhere, besides being the sought-after answer for good health and permanent weight loss. We believe that there is one universal truth - and you will recognize that truth by the fruit it produces. The fruit of Weigh Down is undeniable. It is a beautiful gift of God to be able to make the right choices – the choices that produce this fruit in our lives instead of leaving us on a church pew unchanged, year after year. Weigh Down is a ministry that helps people along the narrow path. This is true religion and true Christianity.