"So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." 1 Cor. 10:31
This verse keeps coming back to me. God's so good and He continually brings me to the parts of His Word that most affect my life right now. And right now, I needed the reminder that I'm not on this healthy lifestyle journey to fit into a bikini, I'm on it to gain Him glory. So, in the hopes of gaining Him glory, here's my latest update:
I'm injured. My right hip/knee have been killing me for a few weeks and I finally gave in and went to physical therapy. Turns out my IT band on the right side of my right leg is super tight and pulling at my hip and knee joints. This means I can't do any Zumba or other high impact workouts until I'm all fixed up. I'm sure physical therapy will help me get back to my normally scheduled activities eventually, but for now getting a workout in is tricky. Which means losing weight is tricky. Or at the very least it's slower. That's the bad news.
The good news? God's still answering my prayer to get down to 170 by the cruise date. By His goodness and grace alone, I weighed in this morning at 171.4! With 5 days to go before we leave for the cruise, a pound and a half is completely do-able! And the fact that I really do believe that, even though I'm injured, is a complete miracle. I don't believe I can do this. But I believe God can do this.
Injuries and sickness have plagued my weight loss journey for the last 6 years. I'd get a decent rhythm going for awhile, workout like crazy, eat better (but not great) and start losing weight. Inevitably soon after, though, I'd throw my back out (I have two herniated discs in my back that sporadically act up) or I'd have a Mono relapse (at the time I didn't know that could even HAPPEN) or some other variation of my body giving out on me would occur. Dieting without being able to exercise was always pointless in my mind, and so, frustrated and feeling defeated, I'd head back to the fat wagon.
That is why I can say that me believing God can get me down to 170, regardless of my injury, is such a miracle. Carefully restricting what I ate was never really an option in my mind before now. This time around, however, it's different. I'm different. And how I think about food is very different. I want my life to reflect 1 Cor. 10:31... that whether I eat or drink, I do it to the glory of God. I couldn't ever say that when I was consistently ordering takeout with extra guacamole. I wasn't glorifying God with my food choices. Now, however, I want to. Which doesn't mean I can't ever have chips and guac again. It just means I'll eat them in reasonable portions and with the right mindset. I won't let food rule me. By the Holy Spirit, I will practice self-control and rule my food. Those of you who know me know just what an incredible miracle that is.
So there's your update. I pray it gains God glory and maybe even inspires someone out there to trust God with their weight loss journey, instead of their own abilities. Because I know for me, what it came down to is not letting my appetite be my king. I'm ruled by Jesus Christ, not my cravings for a cheeseburger. And as long as I let Him rule, there's nothing I can't do.
I'll try to write again (even if just to say "I MADE IT!") on Wednesday night or Thursday morning. However, if life gets too crazy, you can count on an update at the beginning of November when Ben and I get back from our cruise. :)
Oh, that reminds me... Please please pleeeease pray for me while I'm on the cruise. Living in a land of 24 hour room service and buffets will be a decent test of my newfound spiritual discipline muscles. My goal is to maintain my weight on the cruise, so I'm not looking to lose any weight while I'm gone, but I do not want to fall back into my old "food rules" habit. As always, this can only happen if I cling to Jesus and His strength.
Much love!
<3 Leigh
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