Monday Musings...

"Have you ever tried going on a juice fast?"

Thank you again, to Hannah, for commenting and asking that question. I appreciate your willingness to comment to encourage me and to offer some helpful information! I'm constantly amazed at how many people read this blog (there are more of you than I realize!) and am so blessed by those of you who take the time to write.

So, to answer Hannah's question. Why haven't I ever tried a juice fast? It's an easy diet, in that you don't need a lot of different meal plans or recipes. You just drink juice, veggie and fruit juice. The best way to do it is if you juice the fresh produce yourself, instead of buying juice from the store. It can be a great way to cleanse your body of toxins and boost your immune system. And because fresh produce doesn't contain many calories, your body automatically loses weight because it is forced to use up the fat stores in order to supply enough fuel for the body to function. It's an excellent question and I have a lot of respect for those who have done these types of fasts. I've seen people who have had amazing results - so why wouldn't I like to try it and get results like that?

Well, my reason is purely my opinion and it simply reflects where I am at in my spiritual journey and my physical journey right now. Though I am focusing on losing weight, at the same time, I'm not focusing on losing weight. That's a very confusing statement, so let me explain. I want my body to be pleasing to the Lord. I want to be in good physical shape and I want to treat my body as a temple of the Holy Spirit. I don't want anything about my flesh to hinder me from the work He has for me to do. I'm striving to get to a place where my weight is healthy, that I'm not putting myself at risk for certain ailments caused by excess amounts of fat on the body. In short, I want to be directing people to Christ with all that I am, including my physical health. This goal is important to me, and though I'm not striving for the "perfect body" (which doesn't exist anyway) I am striving to be healthy. For me, that means losing about 20 more pounds.

But even more than losing weight, this is a spiritual journey. Since day one, the Lord has been working on my heart, exposing my sin and wrong thinking about Him, about food, about my body, about pride, and so many other things. And in His eyes, my spiritual growth is the most important thing. At the end of the day and in light of eternity, my weight doesn't matter. And recently, He's been showing me (again!) that if my heart is right before Him, everything else will fall into place - including my weight. If I'm abiding in His presence, I'm not going to fall prey to emotional eating, because my emotions are surrendered to Him and under the Spirit's control. If I'm seeking Him with my whole heart, I'm going to work hard in everything and be disciplined in exercising and correctly dealing with stress.
My eyes keep getting off track, and the Lord has been faithfully reminding me -"Bekah, I AM THE KEY TO YOUR SUCCESS!!!" It's not a specific diet or exercise regimen. IT'S ME!". And right now, I need to "let go and let God". I'm seeking to use the knowledge He's given me to make the right choices and stop stressing about the number that pops up on the scale. Because of that, I'm not looking to go on any diets or fasts right now. The Lord is challenging me to live my daily life and glorify Him in that. To move past the cravings and into His arms!

So, please don't think that I am against juice fasts! I'm not, and I may do one someday. But right now, it's not for me. I've got work to do in surrendering my daily food choices and habits, and it would be easier for me to "deny myself" certain foods and just stick to juice. I could do that. It would be tough ('cause last time I checked, chocolate isn't from a fruit...lol) but I know myself well enough to realize that I need to get my flesh submitting to the Spirit in the daily things. Because once I would go off of the juice fast, I might be 5 pounds lighter, but I'll pack them right back on if I can't get my day-to-day living under control.

I hope that makes some sense! And I'm glad you asked, Hannah. To be honest, I'd recently been thinking about doing something like that....until the Lord showed me that I was looking for the "easy way out".

And again, this is different for everyone! If the Lord speaks to you and asks you to do a juice fast, them be obedient and do it. But He's pushed the "hold" button for me on that right now.

I'll conclude with some passages from Romans chapter 8 that have been ministering to me these past few weeks. Praise the Lord for His written word!
"You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit"........"For all who are lead by the Spirit of God are sons of God"....."Likewise, the Spirit helps us in our weakness.".........."No, we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us."

Finding Him faithful,
Bekah