We've been back from our holiday for a little more than a week, so I thought I should update. How glad I am to be able to say my effort to abstain from overindulgence was successful! Oh, I wasn't perfect, by any means, I sometimes ate more than I should have, but overall I managed to eat moderately. I ate what I wanted, but simply chose smaller portions and also tried to split meals when possible. I enjoyed treats, but limited the amount. Best of all, I continued to exercise throughout, with the exception of the last week while we were on the road.
In years past I've put myself under tremendous pressure to lose weight before going away, only to embrace a defeatist attitude that there was no point, because I'd just gain it all back while away. This year taught me that I can go away, enjoy my family, and even enjoy eating out as often as we did and do so moderately.
I'm not down, weight-wise, but neither am I up. That feels and tastes like success to me!
How thankful I am for the Lord's enabling power. I'm learning that by placing even this area of my life under His Lordship, He readily equips me to stand.
1 Timothy 4:4-5:
"For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving."
Lord, today as I speak of *my* success, may I be ever mindful that it is You who enables and equips Your children to walk in obedience in every area of life. Thank You, Father, for Your constant and tender mercies toward me.
Monday, April 14, 2014
Sunday, March 9, 2014
Holiday Challenges
For the past nine weeks I've been fairly mindful about choosing my meals carefully, and have also been exercising regularly, trying to build muscle and bone, as well as heart health, and overall it hasn't been too difficult to manage. Until now.
What is it about going away on a holiday which makes us think we ought to be able to throw restraint to the wind and overindulge ourselves? I haven't. But I've surely been tempted!
The first week wasn't too bad, as we visited friends in Virginia and the dear lady of the house is also watching what she eats, so it was an encouragement to both of us, I think, to choose wisely and moderately at meal time, and delicious meal times they were! My friends and her daughters are excellent cooks and wonderful hostesses, so the temptation to overindulge three times per day was definitely there, but being under the watchful eye of my sweet friend kept me on the straight and narrow. ;-)
This week we're in Florida and there's just something about being here which makes me want to eat, and not just eat, but to eat every and anything my eyes fall upon, and in great abundance! I sort of feel like Pavlov's dogs, I suppose, having conditioned myself over the past many years to believe that holiday time is a time to let my hair down, to overindulge in this area. It's such a silly thing, really, and it's high time I realized that I'm able to have a perfectly wonderful time with my precious family without indulging in every craving. I've almost a week under my belt here and have not only continued with my exercise program, but have also limited my calorie count. Perhaps this will be the year when it finally sinks in, where my desire for obedience to God and better health takes precedence over my short term wants.
Oh, and have I mentioned that as of this morning I'm down 13.5 lbs.? Not a huge amount, but definitely progress! :-)
And wouldn't you know it? My hubby and girls just came back from playing mini golf and what have they brought? Yep. Pizza. And my favourite! Hawaiian! Ha!!
1 Corinthians 10:13: There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
Thank you, Lord, for your enabling when it comes to resisting temptation in this and every area. May Your Name be glorified in and through my every thought and every deed. For the cause of Christ, I pray.
What is it about going away on a holiday which makes us think we ought to be able to throw restraint to the wind and overindulge ourselves? I haven't. But I've surely been tempted!
The first week wasn't too bad, as we visited friends in Virginia and the dear lady of the house is also watching what she eats, so it was an encouragement to both of us, I think, to choose wisely and moderately at meal time, and delicious meal times they were! My friends and her daughters are excellent cooks and wonderful hostesses, so the temptation to overindulge three times per day was definitely there, but being under the watchful eye of my sweet friend kept me on the straight and narrow. ;-)
This week we're in Florida and there's just something about being here which makes me want to eat, and not just eat, but to eat every and anything my eyes fall upon, and in great abundance! I sort of feel like Pavlov's dogs, I suppose, having conditioned myself over the past many years to believe that holiday time is a time to let my hair down, to overindulge in this area. It's such a silly thing, really, and it's high time I realized that I'm able to have a perfectly wonderful time with my precious family without indulging in every craving. I've almost a week under my belt here and have not only continued with my exercise program, but have also limited my calorie count. Perhaps this will be the year when it finally sinks in, where my desire for obedience to God and better health takes precedence over my short term wants.
Oh, and have I mentioned that as of this morning I'm down 13.5 lbs.? Not a huge amount, but definitely progress! :-)
And wouldn't you know it? My hubby and girls just came back from playing mini golf and what have they brought? Yep. Pizza. And my favourite! Hawaiian! Ha!!
1 Corinthians 10:13: There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
Thank you, Lord, for your enabling when it comes to resisting temptation in this and every area. May Your Name be glorified in and through my every thought and every deed. For the cause of Christ, I pray.
Thursday, January 30, 2014
Diet & Exercise
The two go hand in hand, really, and this quote sums it up rather well:
"You can't out-exercise a bad diet."
I've been watching my caloric intake daily, keeping it between 1200 and 1400, usually around 1300, and have also implemented an exercise regime. I do a low-impact cardio routine for 30 minutes per day, and add a 20 minute weight training segment in three times per week. According to everything I'm reading, I should be doing 45 to 50 minutes of cardio daily for sustained weight loss, but for now this seems to be working and perhaps in time I'll increase it.
The interesting thing about my exercise routine is not so much that I've lost a bit, it's that I genuinely feel so much better physically since implementing it. It's amazing how vigorously moving the body each day loosens up the tendons, gets the joints lubricated, and provides an overall energy boost. We are fearfully and wonderfully made indeed.
"Lord, thank you for the strong, healthy heart and lungs you provided me with, for the sound limbs, muscles, ligaments and tendons. Help me to use these good gifts to glorify You, the Creator, in Jesus' Name."
"You can't out-exercise a bad diet."
I've been watching my caloric intake daily, keeping it between 1200 and 1400, usually around 1300, and have also implemented an exercise regime. I do a low-impact cardio routine for 30 minutes per day, and add a 20 minute weight training segment in three times per week. According to everything I'm reading, I should be doing 45 to 50 minutes of cardio daily for sustained weight loss, but for now this seems to be working and perhaps in time I'll increase it.
The interesting thing about my exercise routine is not so much that I've lost a bit, it's that I genuinely feel so much better physically since implementing it. It's amazing how vigorously moving the body each day loosens up the tendons, gets the joints lubricated, and provides an overall energy boost. We are fearfully and wonderfully made indeed.
"Lord, thank you for the strong, healthy heart and lungs you provided me with, for the sound limbs, muscles, ligaments and tendons. Help me to use these good gifts to glorify You, the Creator, in Jesus' Name."
Wednesday, November 13, 2013
Dear Diary
Dear Diary,
Yes, I've been avoiding you. For very good reason.
"For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good. Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me." ~ Romans 7:15-20
Sigh.
Yes, I've been avoiding you. For very good reason.
"For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good. Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me." ~ Romans 7:15-20
Sigh.
Thursday, October 3, 2013
All Kinds of Gluttons*
*This excellent article can be found over at "The Christian Pundit" blog. I'll give you a bit of a teaser here, but do ensure you click on the link and read the whole thing. It hits the nail squarely on the head!
"Thing is, almost nobody is seeing the fat issue as an expression of a heart issue: an idolatry of food. That’s what gluttony is, whether or not our BMI is over 30. Because gluttony is a heart issue, it’s not just overweight people who are sinning here. There are all sorts of ways to be gluttonous while maintaining a socially acceptable figure. Here are a few:"
http://thechristianpundit.org/2013/10/02/all-kinds-of-gluttons/
"Thing is, almost nobody is seeing the fat issue as an expression of a heart issue: an idolatry of food. That’s what gluttony is, whether or not our BMI is over 30. Because gluttony is a heart issue, it’s not just overweight people who are sinning here. There are all sorts of ways to be gluttonous while maintaining a socially acceptable figure. Here are a few:"
http://thechristianpundit.org/2013/10/02/all-kinds-of-gluttons/
Day Thirty
I've not been faithful to the Lord, nor to my plan. I've allowed myself to become derailed, choosing licentiousness over obedience and, for the most part, I've chosen the former for the better part of a week.
Some, no doubt, would wonder at my using such a strong word as licentiousness in this regard, but when I consider it's meaning, I believe it wholly appropriate.
LICEN'TIOUSNESS, n. Excessive indulgence of liberty; contempt of the just restraints of law, morality and decorum.
As Christians, we somehow think that God's Law, His morality, applies only to the "big" sins, sins like fornication and murder, etc., and yet, while thoroughly enjoying God's good gift of great food in moderation is just fine, making it an idol is not.
IDOL'ATRY, n. [L. idololatria. Gr. idol, and to worship or serve. ]1. The worship of idols, images, or any thing made by hands, or which is not God.
Sometimes my thoughts are consumed by food, particularly when I choose to deny myself, and I've heard others say they experience the same thing. I can't help but believe that I've set food up on a pedestal, given it a place of prominence in my life, as opposed to keeping it in it's lawful place, that place of sustenance, rather than worship.
I don't believe food ought not be thoroughly enjoyed, on the contrary. It is, as I've said, God's very good gift to us. As He's provided us with so much variety and the creative ability to prepare it in myriad ways, there's no doubt it's to be enjoyed in all of its forms and with great gusto. The caution is to enjoy it while not permitting it to assume an unlawful place in our lives. And therein lies my sin, my idolatry.
"Lord, here I am yet again, bowing before you in humility, asking for forgiveness and for the ability to obey you in all things. This I know, I can do nothing in my own strength, but rely wholly upon your equipping and enabling. Help me, Father, to order every area of my life in a way which honours you. I pray this and all things in the Name of Jesus, that One who alone is able to save and to help."
Some, no doubt, would wonder at my using such a strong word as licentiousness in this regard, but when I consider it's meaning, I believe it wholly appropriate.
LICEN'TIOUSNESS, n. Excessive indulgence of liberty; contempt of the just restraints of law, morality and decorum.
As Christians, we somehow think that God's Law, His morality, applies only to the "big" sins, sins like fornication and murder, etc., and yet, while thoroughly enjoying God's good gift of great food in moderation is just fine, making it an idol is not.
IDOL'ATRY, n. [L. idololatria. Gr. idol, and to worship or serve. ]1. The worship of idols, images, or any thing made by hands, or which is not God.
Sometimes my thoughts are consumed by food, particularly when I choose to deny myself, and I've heard others say they experience the same thing. I can't help but believe that I've set food up on a pedestal, given it a place of prominence in my life, as opposed to keeping it in it's lawful place, that place of sustenance, rather than worship.
I don't believe food ought not be thoroughly enjoyed, on the contrary. It is, as I've said, God's very good gift to us. As He's provided us with so much variety and the creative ability to prepare it in myriad ways, there's no doubt it's to be enjoyed in all of its forms and with great gusto. The caution is to enjoy it while not permitting it to assume an unlawful place in our lives. And therein lies my sin, my idolatry.
"Lord, here I am yet again, bowing before you in humility, asking for forgiveness and for the ability to obey you in all things. This I know, I can do nothing in my own strength, but rely wholly upon your equipping and enabling. Help me, Father, to order every area of my life in a way which honours you. I pray this and all things in the Name of Jesus, that One who alone is able to save and to help."
Wednesday, September 25, 2013
Day Twenty-Two
Things have been pretty busy around here, so I haven't had much opportunity to post. I'm still working on making lifelong changes, have had a few episodes of three steps back, two steps forward, but overall, I've been doing well, meaning, I haven't thrown in the towel. :-)
The one thing I'm trying very much to remember is that every minute of every day is a new beginning, and that maxim is applicable to every area of life in which we struggle or have set backs. Prior to this go-round, I was, in many respects, an all or nothing person. I'm trying to re-set that mindset with the mindset of the Lord, remembering that He's a God of new birth, of new beginnings, that we don't have to become enslaved to past performance, to previous failure. It's a bit of a learning curve.
I had something of a test a week or so ago, with the Lord showing me my heart, compelling me to challenge my motives. I've claimed since the beginning that this was a battle more of overcoming gluttony, of dealing with sin, than of weight loss, but the Word of God is so true, in every respect of course, but in this particular instance when it declares:
"The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" Jeremiah 17:9
I stepped on the scale and after a couple of weeks of eating moderately and of walking relatively faithfully, it indicated I'd only lost a pound. I was so disappointed. I was sure it would be more than that, particularly as you tend to get that little microburst of weight loss when you first begin. I felt robbed.
As I contemplated things, however, I realized that the Lord was challenging me to be honest about my motives, was compelling me to examine my heart, to ask myself, was this really about being an obedient servant of the Most High, or yet another selfish and self-centered pursuit? The answer really doesn't need to be stated, does it?
And so, I pray...
"Father, reveal my heart to me in this and every matter, that I may subject every area of my life to You and become a faithful daughter, one willing to stand upon Your Word and confess it as absolute without expectation of personal benefit. Let my motive in all things reflect a deep and abiding desire to humble myself before You, to walk in obedience in this and every area, regardless of the cost . I ask this, Lord, in Your Name, that Name above all names, Jesus."
The one thing I'm trying very much to remember is that every minute of every day is a new beginning, and that maxim is applicable to every area of life in which we struggle or have set backs. Prior to this go-round, I was, in many respects, an all or nothing person. I'm trying to re-set that mindset with the mindset of the Lord, remembering that He's a God of new birth, of new beginnings, that we don't have to become enslaved to past performance, to previous failure. It's a bit of a learning curve.
I had something of a test a week or so ago, with the Lord showing me my heart, compelling me to challenge my motives. I've claimed since the beginning that this was a battle more of overcoming gluttony, of dealing with sin, than of weight loss, but the Word of God is so true, in every respect of course, but in this particular instance when it declares:
"The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" Jeremiah 17:9
I stepped on the scale and after a couple of weeks of eating moderately and of walking relatively faithfully, it indicated I'd only lost a pound. I was so disappointed. I was sure it would be more than that, particularly as you tend to get that little microburst of weight loss when you first begin. I felt robbed.
As I contemplated things, however, I realized that the Lord was challenging me to be honest about my motives, was compelling me to examine my heart, to ask myself, was this really about being an obedient servant of the Most High, or yet another selfish and self-centered pursuit? The answer really doesn't need to be stated, does it?
And so, I pray...
"Father, reveal my heart to me in this and every matter, that I may subject every area of my life to You and become a faithful daughter, one willing to stand upon Your Word and confess it as absolute without expectation of personal benefit. Let my motive in all things reflect a deep and abiding desire to humble myself before You, to walk in obedience in this and every area, regardless of the cost . I ask this, Lord, in Your Name, that Name above all names, Jesus."
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