Each month, you’ll hear from one of us what we’re reading and a little bit about the book. Enjoy!
I’m reading Made to Crave by Lysa TerKeurst. It had been on my To Read list for years, and I’m thrilled it finally made its way to the top.
First, a little about the book:
Made to Crave isn’t a how-to book or a diet plan. The truth is, it’s much more than that. It’s the missing link between a woman’s desire to be healthy and the spiritual empowerment needed to make it happen. Lysa Terkeurst taps into the desires God gave us to consume food without letting it consume us. She reminds readers that craving isn’t a bad thing, but we must remember that God wants us to crave more of Him, not food.
Y’all, I’m just going to put this out there: I love food. I love cooking, I love sharing meals with friends, and I’ve been known to do a happy dance in my chair when food is particularly tasty. But when I first started reading Made to Crave, I wasn’t sure if Lysa’s convictions about food were applicable to my life. Sure, I love food, but I was pretty sure it wasn’t something that affected my spiritual walk.
Throughout the book, Lysa tells the story of her journey to a healthy lifestyle, and what she learned in her relationship with God through the process. While she does outline the changes she had to make in her diet to become healthy, the book really focuses on the changes she had to make in her heart to live a healthy life, both physically and spiritually.
You see, Lysa came to realize that she was craving food in a way that we’re only created to crave Christ. She would eat to fill emotional emptiness, feel heaping burdens of guilt afterwards, and still end up feeling deprived.
Lysa beautifully explains that we were, in fact, made to crave. Our souls were designed to long for wholeness, joy, and satisfaction, but when we look for any of that in something other than Jesus (be it food, relationships, alcohol, possessions, or anything else), we’ll still come up empty.
I’ll let Lysa explain. Here are some of my favorite quotes from the book:
“Food can fill our stomachs but never our souls.
Possessions can fill our houses but never our hearts.
Sex can fill our nights but never our hunger for love.
Children can fill our days but never our identities.
Jesus wants us to know only He can fill us and truly satisfy us. He really wants us to know that. Only by being filled with authentic soul food from Jesus—following Him and telling others about Him—will our souls ever be truly satisfied.”
“I don’t want to live as an enemy to the cross of Christ. In other words, I don’t want to live resistant to the power of Christ because I can’t walk away from my unhealthy cravings.”
“Think of an old-fashioned scale. On one side, I place my chips and chocolate and on the other side I place my newfound courage to say ‘I can.’ There’s no comparison. My courage is so much more valuable and beautiful and empowering and lasting.”
“Remember the ultimate goal of this journey isn’t about making me a smaller sized person but rather making me crave Jesus and His truths as the ultimate filler of my heart.”
As you may have guessed, my idea that Lysa’s convictions didn’t apply to me was false, and I’m so grateful for Lysa’s vulnerability in sharing her struggle so that others may benefit from her wisdom.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone who finds themselves seeking fulfillment in anything outside of, or in addition to Jesus. Whether a hard day has you reaching for a box of cookies, any man within an arm’s length, or your credit card, this book will empower you to notice what you’re truly craving, and will lovingly point you to the only One who will satisfy all of our desires.
Heather Warfield, the Lifeway Women Marketing Coordinator, is an optimist, coffee lover, and guacamole enthusiast from Michigan who currently plants her feet in the sweet, sweet south. Her favorite things include, but are not limited to: lakes, trees, sunshine, good talks, fair trade chocolate, new experiences, and people who think she’s funny.
