Knowing Me, Knowing You
By Annmarie Miles
(From the October - December 2021 issue of VOX)
Regular readers will know that I have been making efforts to reduce the square footage that my frame takes up on this earth. Weight and food and eating have always been difficult subjects for me and it’s only in the last four or five years I have allowed God into those areas of my life. The Lord has been very gracious to me and though I put on weight in lockdown, I’m already back to losing again.
I have written a lot about my journey. My book on the subject is in a perpetual state of editing. Recently I have felt an urgency to share my story, so I have started a podcast; sharing some of my old writing on the subject, talking about the physical and emotional consequences of being overweight, and seeking to bring God’s wisdom into it. All with (hopefully) a good dose of humour thrown in. I’ve had great feedback, which is encouraging, as I’m just getting going. But here’s one comment that blew me away, which I’ve been given permission to share.
“I know I’m not alone but I’ve never heard anyone say it out loud. I’m worried for you though. What about listeners who have never been obsessed with food, never craved comfort from chocolate and chips, never hated their body, never experienced that despair… What if they don’t understand what we’re going through and hate us even more for it? I know people who think I’m just fat and greedy. Maybe that’s true but I’m also desperate to change. So, thank you for saying what I can’t.”
WOW, right?
The most WOW thing about this is the person who wrote it. I never thought of her as overweight, and certainly didn’t realise she was struggling with food. It reminded me again that no one knows what is going on in the heart of anyone else. I made an assumption about this wonderful woman because of the way she looked. What a sharp lesson I’ve learned.
“You don’t know what it is like to be me. I don’t know what it is like to be you. That simple truth should propel us all to mercy, grace and patience.”
You don’t know what it is like to be me. I don’t know what it is like to be you. That simple truth should propel us all to mercy, grace and patience.
Oh, Lord! Help us all, we pray, to see each other like you see us, with eyes of love and tenderness.
As I say goodbye, for now, to all you wonderful readers I want to thank you for the encouraging messages I get every so often. I’m glad you’ve enjoyed my Confessions… My journey with God is full of my gaffs and grumbles and I am so grateful for His amazing grace; and that He has given me brothers and sisters in Christ to walk with in this broken world.
With love
your ever Feint Saint x
(Thanks to Olly Blake, Andrew Garvey-Williams and Donal Casey for their artisic contributions over the years!)
Annmarie Miles is originally from Tallaght and now lives in her husband Richard’s homeland, Wales. As well as VOX articles, she writes fiction, devotional pieces and has recently launched a podcast called ‘Words, Wobbles and Wisdom.’ You can find out all about it at www.annmariemiles.co.uk On social media she is @amowriting.
