I can feel the Lord working in my life…Really, I can! I know that may sound crazy to some of you, while other know exactly what I am talking about. Some may say that it’s just a change in my attitude, while others would say that because of the Lord working in my life, my attitude has changed.
Now, I’m not saying that every day I wake up feeling good and ready to jump feet first into whatever I encounter. No…that’s not it at all. There are just things that I cannot explain away with “simple” logic. Let me give you a huge example, one that has really just hit home with me today.
Recently at New Hope, we were going through a series on recovery from our addictions, hang-ups, etc. I kept trying to figure out what my hang-up was. I conquered my smoking addiction a while ago, so that couldn’t be it.
Could it? No, because when I say I conquered it is because I finally had no more temptation to pick up a cigarette. Could my hang-up be overeating or eating too much junk. Yeah, that
could be it, but I like just as many healthy foods as I do junk foods, and I’ve really been doing well at controlling the junk-food cravings and eating healthier foods. Could it be laziness? I don’t do nearly enough physical activity, and it is causing me some health issues. Yeah, I
suppose that could be it, too.
There were so many things that I thought could be a hang-up, but I felt that it was a hopeless situation to try to pinpoint just one on which to focus my efforts. I kept asking the question:
Why is it so easy to get addicted to bad things, like smoking or drugs, yet it is so difficult to get addicted to things that are good for you, like eating right and exercising? What’s up with that?
How quickly things have changed for me! I prayed about these things during the recovery teaching series at New Hope, and I was getting frustrated that I couldn’t find my answer. Then, about a week after the series ended, it hit me! I finally pinpointed one thing that could really improve my life and the lives of those around me. I realized that my biggest hang-up (right now, anyway) is being lazy. Now, that may not sound like a major thing to most people, but it is a major thing with me. I don’t want to do anything. I go home, eat dinner, and sit around doing nothing. Sure, once in a while I clean a little, do dishes, work outside, but not nearly like I should…and my health is seriously paying the price. I have gained a lot of weight, which is causing problems with my breathing and my blood pressure, not to mention my sore feet from carrying all this extra weight. My doctor actually told me last year that if I don’t lose some weight and bring down my BP, it will kill me. It's also keeping me from skating with Curt, from getting more involved in teaching skating, and from playing with the kids in our lives.
Okay…so I found my hang-up. Now, what do I do about it? I still was not motivated. Instead of actually doing something, I would sit and think, “I should be…”
One morning, I said to Curt as he was leaving for work, “I found my hang-up, and it’s laziness. Have to stop being lazy, get off my butt, and do things. I’ll start by moving the Wii so I can do the Wii Fit more often.” He leaned over, kissed me, and said, “Well then, do it!”
That’s all it took! It seems like I actually had to tell someone about my hang-up before anything started working. I moved the Wii, and I’ve been doing some Wii Fit Yoga, aerobics, and balance games every day. I started about two weeks ago now, and I could only do two Yoga poses, one or two balance games, and about 10 minutes of aerobics (about 15 minutes total). I didn’t even think about the strength training exercises! Now, I’m up to 4 Yoga poses, 20 minutes of aerobics, and three balance games, about 30 minutes total. (I’m still not even thinking about the strength training. I’ll save that until next month since my muscles are sore enough as it is!)
I’m feeling motivated like I never have before. I no longer feel like I have to do this; I want to do this. I feel that the Lord has some plans for me, and this was another step…getting my body back into shape. (The first step was the conquering of the smoking habit…not the quitting part, the conquering part! Maybe sometime, I’ll explain that better, but this is already getting really long!)
I realize that I have other hang-ups, faults, addictions, etc., but I just keep thinking about the saying I’ve seen many times and in many places over the years,
“Please be patient. God isn’t finished with me yet.” I truly feel Him working in my life right now, and I can’t wait to see where He leads me next!
