Guntersville’s Littleton finds ministry in weight loss

Dana Littleton was totally broken. Her beloved father died when she was only 10. She experienced two painful back-to-back miscarriages and at the height of her depression, weighed nearly 250 pounds.
   
“I was an emotional and physical wreck … and I never let my cheery façade fade,” Littleton said. “I acted like I was fine. I switched to autopilot and just went through the motions of taking care of my two beautiful girls and husband. But somewhere along the way, I lost me.”
   
Then, on Jan. 2, 2003, she cried out for help. Littleton had given her life to Christ at a young age and realized that she could lean on Jesus. So she lay face down on her living room floor and asked God for strength for the “long fight back” and willpower over food. In her prayer, Littleton unexplainably asked God to let her do this for Him “in a big way,” and His answer exceeded all of her expectations.
   
“What is so remarkable is how God took a very broken woman who weighed 250 pounds and how He lovingly put me back together in such a way that I could have never imagined,” she said. “There are no limits to what God can do. Forget counting cards and carbs. Use common sense. Get moving. But most importantly, lean on Jesus to be lean.”
   
After losing 116 pounds in one year, 33-year-old Littleton now speaks at churches, conventions, retreats, universities, corporations and hospitals around the country telling others about her deliverance.
   
“I love to tell my story and tell everyone how good God is, how He is the diet pill the world has been searching for, how He can sustain you and pick you up when this world knocks you down, how He is everything to me and how He wants to be everything to everyone,” she said. “I find that if I am still or aware that God sends me opportunities and blessings that I can only see when walking with Him.”
   
Littleton’s pastor, Joel Samuels of First Baptist Church, Guntersville, said she has been a great inspiration to many people struggling with their weight in the church and community.
   
“More so than just her inspiration to them to lose pounds, she has been an inspiration to them to look deeper than just their physical appearance to figure out why they have a problem of overeating or being overweight,” Samuels said. 
   
He added that Littleton struggled through her experience and now sees “herself in a different light through the eyes of the Lord.”
   
Repeatedly she has witnessed how God used her testimony to reach hurting people.
   
“They have shared with me their pain and feelings of worthlessness and hopelessness,” Littleton said. “They are all looking for a way back, a sweet release, an unexpected answer and all-encompassing joy, and all those roads lead quite simply to Jesus. There is nothing stronger or more lasting. There is nothing that Jesus can’t help you overcome.”  
   
Appearing on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” and “Extra” and featured in O, The Oprah Magazine, news articles and on various radio shows, Littleton has found a common thread with others struggling with weight issues and uses those opportunities to share her faith and draw the attention to God.
   
“It is a fantastic springboard for sharing how God wants to be involved in every aspect of one’s life,” she said. “[People] were surprised that I credited Jesus with my weight loss, for my strength and renewed zest for life.”
   
Littleton often tells people, “I believe if Jesus can save the world from sin, He can surely help me lose my rear end. That is a wonderful feeling to be able to tell someone that they can count on Jesus. People will fail you but Jesus will run every mile with you.”
   
After her television appearances, she was delighted to receive countless calls, letters and e-mails. Soon  Littleton will be featured in Good Housekeeping magazine with Winfrey’s personal trainer, Bob Greene, whose fitness plan helped Littleton lose the weight.
   
“I was asked by Oprah why this time was different for me losing weight,” she said. “I was so proud to say, ‘This time, I learned to find comfort in God instead of in food.’ That felt so good to honor my God. I had said what I had gone there to say, and I knew without a shadow of a doubt that I was in His will.”
   
Littleton continues to help women in desperate situations, spending many hours in phone conversations, grocery store aisles and other meeting places.
   
“Some days, I get phone calls from women whose husbands have left them because of their weight, who are considering suicide or who have lost a child or from women who just want to lose weight,” she said. “But my favorite calls are the ones who say, ‘Tell me about your Jesus.’ Those calls are the ones that make you so incredibly joyful and thankful that you were able to see a glimpse of heaven and Jesus at work. I know it has absolutely nothing to do with me, and I am just so overcome with humility that Jesus trusts me with His own.”
   
As an extension of her ministry, Littleton has created www.danalittleton.com. Her Web site includes a forum designed to help women support and strengthen each other.
   
“The girls are so uplifting and encouraging to one another,” she said. “They share everything from low-fat recipes to marital advice.”
As a result of Littleton’s testimony and ministry, many women have given their lives to Christ.
   
“There is nothing more powerful and real than seeing someone saved,” she said. “It is an experience that I will always carry with me, and I thank my God for letting me see it.”
   
Over the years, Littleton feels she has grown much closer to God.
   
“It is an all-encompassing joy to come full circle and to know that I have many adventures left to experience with Him,” Littleton said. “For me, it was very soothing to my soul to see something good come out of my losing our two babies. I have been able to help people in a way that I wished someone would have helped me.”
   
And she hopes to continue reaching out to others in the future.
   
“People are so wonderful,” Littleton said. “Many are hurting terribly. They just need hope and to know that someone loves them unconditionally. In the South, it is so hard for us to believe but many people don’t know Jesus at all. We need to get busy.”
   
She encourages others to join her efforts. “Don’t ignore people who are hurting,” Littleton said. “Put your arms around them and be patient with them. God is at work. This ministry isn’t mine — it is all of ours.”