Lord, please help me to change - Judith Couchman

HIDING FRO M JO YChrist can heal the humiliationof who we are and what we've done.s l° n g a s s h e can remember , foo d playe d a n importan trole i n Maria' s home life . Her parent s love d t o eat. T othem, foo d symbolize d famil y togetherness an d thei r ric h ethni cheritage.So growing up , Mari a didn't lear n ho w t o manage food—o rrealize tha t there' s a limit t o ho w muc h a person ca n ea t befor ereaping the consequences ."If you didn't ea t second an d thir d helpings , i t offended m ymother. Sh e would thin k w e didn't lik e her cookin g and tha t sh ehad faile d a t takin g car e o f us , s o we shovele d i t in, " explain sMaria."Besides, m y mom wa s a great cook, " she adds wit h a weaksmile.Maria turne d int o a great cook , too . B y age thirteen , sh eoutweighed he r friends but could outperform mos t women i n he rability to create a mouth-watering feast ."I was proud o f m y cooking ability . I t gained m y family'sapproval, and tha t bolstere d m y self-esteem," she says .go