Guest Blog: Anna Meadows
Fat or Fit?
Recently I’ve lost around 60 pounds. With a loss of this magnitude it’s inevitable that one gains a new way of thinking. Since dropping the weight, I’ve become less inwardly-focused, and less concerned about what others think, because I am no longer insecure with the way I look. It’s freed me to be who I am, freed me to focus on others, freed me to engage in activities I would never have considered before.
During this time of transformation, I realized a parallel to ministry. Before LifeChurch.tv came into my life, I had a consumerist mindset. I would have called myself a “fat” Christian. I thought the church was here for me, looked to ministries to fill my needs, complained if the worship didn’t move me, or if the message wasn’t deep enough. Since becoming a part of LifeChurch.tv, I’ve learned the difference between being a “fat” Christian and a “fit” Christian.
Fat Christians say…
“Why don’t you have this ministry at your church?”
Fit Christians say…
“Can I start a group that does this kind of ministry? Maybe there are other people who would like to join…”
Fat Christians…
…sit in the same pew each week, and rarely venture out of their circle of friends.
Fit Christians…
…find opportunities to change things up, and try to involve those on the outskirts.
Fat Christians focus…
…on how to better themselves.
Fit Christians focus…
…on those who don’t know Jesus.
Fat Christians do…
…what’s easy and safe.
Fit Christians do…
…what’s difficult and counterintuitive.
Fat Christians think…
…it’s all about them.
Fit Christians know…
…it’s all about HIM.
I’m working every day to be a fit Christian, and to inspire those around me to this way of thinking. What are your thoughts?
Visit 
Recently I’ve been trying to loose a few pounds and get back into shape just to physically feel better. I’ve found that the discipline that I’m having to learn to get git applies to all parts of my life. I have become a more disciplined student, person, and follower of Christ.
[...] Posted by nathan on 30 Jul 2007 at 08:27 am | Tagged as: churches on the ball. If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!Just read a great blog entry by Anna Meadows over at the Swerve blog. I wanted to pass it along for you to think about. [...]
Hey, there’s 1/2 of Anna Meadows!!!
I’ve found when it comes to health, it’s good to realize the long-term impacts of day-to-day fitness (whether exercise or dieting).
Do you want to be healthy enough to stick around to see your grandkids?
Do you want to be vulnerable to diseases and health complications because you didn’t properly care for your body in the past?
You can also get into all kinds of scientific explanations about how exercise and right eating affects your mood as well.
First and foremost, according to 1 Corinthians, your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. Though we are broken flesh, shouldn’t His Spirit compel us to keep His temple clean and well-maintained?
i think it is unfortunate that you started your post the way you did. i mean i agree with what you are saying, but i think the whole weight think is a tricky subject and a bad metaphor. especially for individuals who may have struggled with eating disorders or the like in the past. in a world that too often defines worth by your appearance, finding love, affirmation and worth in christ can be difficult when bombarded with one message after another about how we are “supposed to look”. i had a close friend who struggled with an eating disorder and watching her struggle with her weight and identity issues was painful. her healing came when she realized how beautiful she was in christ all the time. that he loved her, loved her loved her. i mean the whole fat/fit thing is hard for me because of the nature of “fat” carrying a negative connotation. if i read this blog and was maybe defined as fat by the world, i wonder if i would leave reading this post thinking “fat = bad “. which is what happens in our world isn’t it? to be fat is bad, to be skinny is good… not sure if that is how jesus is defining it…….
First of all, Congratulations Anna. If you are anything like me the feeling of exercise and energy is addictive and will only grow as you get in better shape.
Second, you hit something that really drives me. If only we were all Fit, rather than Fat. As LifeChurch has described this in the past, it is the difference of “contributors” and “consumers”. If only we were all contributors…
The tithe would reflect His wants before ours.
Sunday would be viewed aa time for those who do not know Christ; we could take care of our needs Monday-Saturday.
All the ministries would be filled with willing leaders.
We would smile more at lives given to Christ and argue less about the style of worship.
Good Post
When we comes to being “Fat” or “Fit” Christians, it is important to be cognizant of the fact that if we do not stay focused on what’s important, we can easily slip from “Fitâ€? to “Fat.â€? This same concept applies to our bodies going from “Inâ€? to “Outâ€? of shape. It’s great to have Anna on my team because she inspires each and every one of us to be “Fit Christians.” It’s also cool to see the word “pew”; I have not seen that in awhile.
[...] I thought this was a great look at the Christian life and a telling sign of where I am and you may be in your journey: From Lifechurch.tv Fat or Fit? [...]
I lost 80 pounds myself. I know the feeling.
I love Fit vs Fat Christians comparisons. I am definitely trackbacking this.
First off, How did you do it? 60 pounds WOW.
I’m glad you put this out this morning. It’s not about the weight of our bellies that you are addressing here, it’s the MINDSET of it.
I really like the differences you make clearly of the fat Christian (consumer) and the fit Christian (the servant).
Thank you!!!
I agree completely with you Anna…when you have something that is constantly reminding you of negative things - it can separate you from God. But when you get rid of it…it can free you amazingly so you can once again have God’s plan on your mind!
Part of my ‘workout’, “Show me where I can give today”
I’m with Neeraj; there’s got to a better way of communicating the insights in this post. Weight loss is a fantastic goal, but this post sounds too much like it’s just putting overweight people down.
Neeraj and Nick…that’s not at all what Anna is trying to convey through her thoughts…
She is not trying to say fat people are bad! She is saying that when she lost the weight she grew closer to God because she felt that her weight was causing negativity - which was constantly in her thoughts - instead of God - so it was separating her partly from God. And when she lost her weight - she grew closer to Him - because she could fully focus on Him.
It’s not a story meant to convey how being overweight is bad - but how freeing yourself from being overweight can help you grow closer to God - that is the message I think Anna is trying to put out.
I understand what Anna was trying to convey; my point was that the use of “Fat Christians” as a metaphor for self-centered church attenders is kind of insensitive. People who are overweight or who suffer from eating disorders get teased a lot, and even though Anna didn’t say that fat people are bad, describing lazy/selfish believers as “fat” seems to imply that fat people are bad.
There should be a way to communicate spiritual truths without comparing moral error to some undifferentiated group of people like the overweight. Jesus used parables about everyday activities like sewing seeds or running a vineyard or fishing. And when Jesus’s stories had villains, they weren’t entire groups of socially marginalized people, they were the proud or selfish individuals in the story–ungrateful servants or a proud older brothers.
Thanks for the comments and discussion… Steve, you make me laugh!
Neeraj and Nick, I’m not saying that fat=bad… instead I’m saying that fat=bondage. At least it did for me. When I carried the weight I also carried a MINDSET of selfishness. (I’m not saying that every person who struggles with weight has this mindset, I’m just saying what it was like for me.) That bondage kept me from being the person God intended me to be because I was always worried about what people thought. I held myself back because I didn’t feel free to be myself.
That’s the parellel I’m drawing to ministry. When we’re fit in Christ we’re free. When we carry extra “weight” we’re bound by rules, regulations, religon, and not free to focus on the only thing that matters: those who don’t know what freedom really is… We’re bound by a self-centered thinking that gets in the way of what we’re truly here to do.
To answer the other questions… how I lost the weight. I finally realized that being fit isn’t just going on a diet. Being fit means to completely change your lifestyle… making better choices when it comes to food, eating less and working off more. But the real reason behind the loss is because I realized who I was in Christ and the transformation happend from the inside out. I believe that the outward body is a sign of what is going on, on the inside. So when I realized freedom from within, the outward followed.
I can’t really explain how it happened I just know that it did… and now I want to help others experience the freedom and joy I’ve found in losing not only the physical weight but also the weight of consumeristic thinking… because it’s just better.
What a great challenge! I think it’s one of the biggest challenges for the church in America. To say that we are not influenced by the consumerist environment we live in would be foolish. This post is an appropriate reminder of where our focus should be.
Love your blog, You guys are creative gurus at Lifechurch.tv, so I would love for you to interact with this post and get any feedback, if you have any. I am trying to refine and hone some thoughts on this subject.
http://provocativechurch.blogspot.com/2007/07/5-ways-to-spark-creativity.html
Thanks,
bill
Great blog!!
Consumer or Contributor?
As followers of Jesus we often struggle with being influenced by our consumerist society. We let ourselves become consumer oriented/driven in regards to our faith. As a leader in ministry I’ve actually fed that tendency at times. And for this
I find it interesting when a person writes on a blog about a personal experience they have been through that the value of what was learned can not be applied because of being insensitive or offensive to “some” group or individual. Jesus didn’t worry about being insensitive when he spoke the truth in love. Why then do some find it necessary to come to the aid of those they think might be offended? When we can’t learn from what others have gone through it may tell us we aren’t very open to what God is saying to us. The truth can be very tough, especially if we continually remove ourselves from it.
D.A.
@Nick: I understand your what you’re trying to say. Yet the statement about Jesus simply isn’t true. Jesus called the Pharisees and Sadducees names all the time. [Matthew 23:33] is one example. He even spoke to a Canaanite woman and called her a dog. [Matthew 15:21-28]as another example.
It wasn’t that Jesus didn’t love these people, He knew their heart and often called things the way they were to reveal the truth. I don’t think Anna was intending on slamming people who are over weight, but if you are over weight physically, spiritually Anna has confronted the truth of it, and it appears to me has dealt with it. Congratulations Anna and great revelations.
Oh yer gonna hate me now. Shame. A topic I know well. Love. Now that’s a difficult topic. But shame? We can chew the fat on that one all day. Did your button get pushed? Marginalized people and the Bible. Doesn’t that just some it all up? Are you a Pharisee or a Tax collector? Demon possessed or a Leper? Mary or Martha?
The only perfect person in the entire history of man according to scripture is Jesus. All the rest of us are marginalized. And we spend all day trying to marginalize each other so we can feel better about ourselves. IMHO, of course(grin).
I’ll trade you my darkness for your fat any day of the week. But it wouldn’t matter. It’s a matter of perspective, not degree. Pride, Shame and Self-hatred. And the greatest of these is…
neeraj & nick,
I’m a little chubby myself, (middle-aged guy losing hair and gaining weight) and i thought this post was really eloquent. The word “fit” was used, not skinny. She was excited because her mentality changed, not just her weight. I think the criticism of this post is a little much. But, I guess i’m no better for criticizing your criticism
Heath
Really appreciate you sharing and providing an insight the YOU took away from the whole experience. I totally agree too that when it comes to Christians and the church, way too many people make it all about them and how they can get filled up on more and more great “church” stuff. Yet ask them to serve, pray or reach out to others and they’ll tell you they’re too busy (feeding themselves while others are starving for a kind word, expression of love or the truth that Jesus loves them) Thanks again for sharing.
i appreciated the dialogue and the main point of this blog. DA i appreciated your comment as well… there are definitely things I can learn from this blog….
Great post Anna. I agree. When we realize who we are in Christ on the inside, we turn from being someone who is focused on ourselves to someone who is focused on how we can impact others.
Neeraj and Nick-
Your heart for those who are struggling with eating disorders and the like is awesome. I truly applaud that. Just make sure that does not get in the way from understanding the spiritual principle that Anna was trying to get across here
Good point, Carrie. I wanted to put my objection out there so that everyone could think on it, but there’s no doubt that Anna is laying down some great insights in this post.
This is one of THE most poignant blogs - to the point, underscored, full of truth and love. AMEN Sister! God bless you!
Anna, love how you hear God’s voice and act on it! What a wonderful example you are for all of us to OBEY AND to know who we are in Christ! :O)
Thanks, everyone!
I wanted to reply a little deeper on the more practical subject of weight loss because I know how it can be when dealing with this very difficult subject. There are a few very practical things I did to drop the weight and I’d love to share them with you if you are interested. Shoot me an e-mail and we’ll chat a little more in depth…
anna.meadows@lifechurch.tv
As a big man I can say I am happy being big, but not stratified. Its a health, issue with me. As with the church, its a health issue. Even a FIT christian can be unhealth. There is a right and a wrong way to be fit, in my opinion.
Hey Nick, as far as being teased, I did say I am a big man…..
Fat or Fit?
A few years ago, Rick Warren’s Purpose Driven Life confronted me head on with these words: “It’s not about you. The purpose of your life is far greater than your own personal fulfillment, your peace of mind, or even your
After reading all the blogs posted, I am very discouraged. Most of them were directed to the losing weight issue. That should not be the point of her story. If the only way we as individuals can feel good about ourselves is to lose weight and get fit and trim, I don’t think we can call ourselves Christians at all. Yes we may look better, but are we any better? We can still have the same attitude about life, fit or fat. Attitude as a Christian starts in our heart. God is in our heart. If He isn’t, then we need to get Him there. He won’t care what we weigh, or if we are pretty or handsome.