God’s wisdom
I knew God told me in 1977 to “Stop eating sugar. Eat more meat, fruits and vegetables and stop eating so much bread.”
It sounded impossible. And yet I knew the Scripture, “What is impossible with man, is possible with God.”1
I also knew, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”2
Still, there was a great disconnect about how all of this could and would happen in my life.
Time and again I would whine to God. He would either tell me what He’d just told me, or He would be silent. I felt I was talking to an empty sky and an impotent God.
In effect, I had rendered Him powerless with my I-can-do-it-myself attitude. See, even though I was asking for help, I hadn’t surrendered the one thing He had clearly showed me during my prayer time to stop.
I rationalized it as a suggestion because surely He couldn’t mean that I had to give up something I loved so much for the rest of my life.
The truth is, He knows me so well,3 that He knew the only way I would be successful in releasing the weight was giving up what I had become a slave to—processed sugar.
In His direction was embedded the message of free will. I asked what I needed to do. He told me. However, I have the freedom to choose to do it or not do it.
I didn’t feel I was cut off from God in other areas of my life, but I know beyond a shadow of a doubt, He was not willing to promote me in the areas of my dreams if I could not follow this directive.
God promotes those who are ready, those willing to follow His suggestions for abundant life.
My personal belief is this wasn’t an ultimatum. I wouldn’t go to hell for not giving up sugar. It was His wisdom and direction for my life.
Janet Perez Eckles 
Shawn Akers 
Abby Trivett 
