Monday Musings...

I hope that you made it through Valentine's Day without indulging in too much chocolate and baked goods! I certainly enjoyed my little bits of dark chocolate that I had last night. My dad was so thoughtful and bought a package of dark chocolates just for me! And I had to laugh as my 3 year old sister, Bethany, tried a bit of the dark chocolate and exclaimed, "Yuck! They forgot to put the sugar in it!!!". Well, all the more for me, I guess. :-)

I think it's important to keep "real life" at the forefront of our thoughts, especially when we're trying to achieve what seems like an impossible goal. For example, I was only able to exercise 3 days last week, instead of the usual 5. We had a busy schedule, and it just didn't work out. (No pun intended! LOL) Now, I could be stressing out right now. I could be racking my brain and trying to come up with ways to compensate for that unexpected turn of events. (However, I was NOT going to give up my chocolate last night - NO WAY!)

But I'm not stressing. Because that was real life. I had a busy week. It's going to happen like that sometimes, and I need to just go with the flow and compensate the best that I can without flipping out. So what did I do? I watched my calories closer and cut the unnecessary things out. And I picked back up today right where I left off last week! You've got to be able to put the past behind and keep moving onward. I can't get stuck in what I wasn't able to do - I have to be able to focus on what I need to do today. I need to live in the present, not the past or the future. Yes, I can certainly learn from the past. I can look for ways to change and improve, and maybe do things differently next time. But I can't get stuck in regret....gotta keep moving on.

On a different note, have you been watching the Winter Olympics? I have just LOVED watching the athletes compete. It is so inspiring! The amount of training and dedication it takes to compete at that level (which is the highest in the world!) is astounding. I have been motivated and challenged to perform at my best as I've watched them give their all to achieve their goals.

And that reminds me of Paul's encouragement in 1 Corinthians chapter 9. He likens our spiritual journey here on earth to a race, a race of Olympic proportions!
In 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 we read, "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified."

There are so many rich parallels and spiritual analogies that we can learn from this short passage of Scripture! So I'll just mention a few that I've been thinking about. (And then you can post other analogies that come to your mind!)

First off, verse 24 sums up what our mindset should be as Christians. We are in a race! And we are seeking the prize (which in this context, is leading people to Christ). There is no time for walking. There isn't even time for jogging. It's time to run! I was challenged to stop wasting time and "taking breaks" by doing things that I feel like doing. How foolish would it be for an athlete to show up at the Olympics and expect to win the gold by leisurely skiing down the hill or just performing a few simple turns on the ice? They would be laughed out of the competition! We must run to obtain. Yes, it's tiring. (Have I mentioned before how much I despise running?) And yes, it can be humbling if we're near the back of the pack. But our eyes should not be focused on our surroundings. Those who look back to size up their competition often get beat out, because they weren't completely focused on the goal. Our eyes need to be glued to Christ!

Secondly, I appreciate how Paul doesn't just leave this goal as a spiritual one. He also states that an athlete exercises (which means it's not always pleasant!) self-control in all things. Guess what? That includes what I eat and how I treat my body. You see, I should be glorifying Christ and making Him known to others by every means possible. And how can I preach that Christ sets captives free, if I myself am still bound by the chains of gluttony? How much of a testimony is that going to be? (OUCH!) I don't want people to look at me and instantly "disqualify" me and everything I'm saying because they see a glaring blind spot, a huge discrepancy between what I preach and how I live. That is why God (through Paul) encourages and admonishes us to discipline ourselves, in whatever area(s) where we are weak. We must keep our "self" under control!
But this doesn't happen overnight. I didn't wake up with 2% body fat the day after I decided to fight this battle with food. :-) This is not a sprint race, it's a distance race. A marathon, if you will. And the only way that we won't be disqualified by others, is if we run the race as He intended us to -completely dependent on Him. Our Lord is so full of grace and mercy that He promises to supply whatever we need. Strength for the weak, grace for when we stumble, light in the times of darkness, hope when we feel despair. He supplies all of our needs, according to His riches in glory.

So run! Don't walk. Don't give up. Run! Push through the doubts and fears. Lay aside your weights that are pulling you down. And with every step, depend on His strength.

Running with you!
Bekah