Monday, July 30, 2012

Missing the rainbows because of the clouds

Ok.  Time for a deep, dark dirty little detail about myself… Smile

I.

Am.

Perky.

I know, I know.  You’ll notice that I said detail and not secret.  It’s kinda hard to keep “Perky” a secret.  In our recent Bible Study one of the questions ask was if you were making a movie about your life who would you want to play yourself and I said Lucille Ball.

While I am not June Cleaver perky I do have a habit of finding the silver lining in just about anything.  So much so that I tend to keep my mouth shut when the “positive” pops into my head because quite frankly people do not always want to know the bright side.  They like to wallow in the dark (another post for another day) or they are just not ready for the “bright side”.

That being said when something happens that I struggle with the bright side it’s pretty serious.  Here recently in my drive back from Gainesville I was talking to God about a problem I was facing.  It was not even my problem it something I needed to be supportive in that I was really struggling with.  While truly feeling I know God’s will and His Word in this situation I was struggling handing it over to God, already taking any possibility of failure on as my own fault and not wanting to relinquish the pressure that put on me.  Even though it involves other people and is totally out of my control other then to be supportive.

So as I am driving home I went through some ideal liquid sunshine (rain and sunny at the same time) and I began to look for rainbows.  As I spotted a faint one I felt God impress on me how easily I could’ve missed the rainbow if I had only  been looking for the gray clouds.  How easily I could forget His promises if I didn’t stay in His Word.

Sometimes we can totally miss the promise of His rainbow because we are so worried about the storm.  We all have moments that we can forget that the simplest promises God has made us because we have so much going on and coming at us.  One of the best things to circulate the web is the What WE say vs.What GOD says.  Here is one I found online and pasted here:

"OUR THINKING vs. GOD'S PROMISES"

MAN/WOMAN: "It's impossible"
GOD: All things are possible (Luke18:27)

MAN/WOMAN: "I'm too tired"
GOD: I will give you rest (Matthew 11:28-30)

MAN/WOMAN : "Nobody really loves me"
GOD: I love you (John 2: 16 & John 13:34)

MAN/WOMAN: "I can't go on"
GOD: My Grace is sufficient (II Corinthians 12:9 & Psalm 91:15)

MAN/WOMAN: "I can't figure things out"
GOD: I will direct your steps (Proverbs 3: 5-6)

MAN/WOMAN: "I can't do it"
GOD: You can do all things (Phillipians 4:13)

MAN/WOMAN : "I'm not able"
GOD: I am able (II Corinthians 9:8)

MAN/WOMAN: "It's not worth it"
GOD: It will be worth it (Romans 8:28)

MAN/WOMAN : "I can't forgive myself"
GOD: I forgive you (I John 1:9 & Romans 8:1)

MAN/WOMAN: "I can't manage"
GOD: I will supply all your needs (Phillipians 4:19)

MAN/WOMAN: "I'm afraid"
GOD: I have not given you a spirit of fear (II Timothy 1:7)

MAN/WOMAN: "I'm always worried and frustrated"
GOD: Cast all your cares on me (I Peter 5:7)

MAN/WOMAN: "I don't have enough faith"
GOD: I've given everyone a measure of faith (Romans 12:3)

MAN/WOMAN: "I'm not smart enough"
GOD: I give you wisdom (I Corinthians 1:30)

MAN/WOMAN: "I feel all alone"
God: I will never leave you or forsake you (Hebrews 13:5)

Storms come.  They can be scary, lonely, some are loud and fast, others are slow and deadly, some are over before you are even aware it rained and other’s seem as if there will never be sunshine again.… The storm is not what we need to focus on…we need to be looking for the rainbow.  The promise God has made us for every storm this world can throw at us.  Remember you are loved by an all-seeing, all-knowing God that never looks away from you, never stops thinking about you and He gave us a rainbow so we would remember His promises.

God Bless!

Monday, July 23, 2012

Refiners Fire

Ok – So I am on week 3 of Fluffy to fit and I have to admit God is showing me some things about myself that quite frankly I don’t care a bit for.  Part of doing this blog is sharing what God shares with me so here’s where I’ve gone so far:

  • I have a bad habit of setting a goal for myself and almost immediately following it with the excuses reasons why I will fail.
  • I justify…dear goodness I justify…Why it (read: extra scoop of mac-n-cheese, starburst, a soda) is ok THIS time…conveniently ignoring what I justified less then 24 hours ago.
  • I am scared of who I can be.  Of what is under all this fluff.  What I imagine and what is reality are not connected at all.
  • I have a TON of excuses for why things don’t get done.  Excuses I would not except from my 6 year old yet I expect others to except from me.

So that’s the bad….the impurities as I am refined in the fire.  Floating to the top and not as easy to scrape off as one might think.  I have to keep myself on guard and constantly listen to the self talk.  Watching the things I let float around in my head and (mostly) squelching those things that if left to roam would set me back.

Yes there’s a lot of crud coming to the top but I am also being left with pure gold.  Seeing things about myself I didn’t know were there before I started on this journey:

  • I like working out
  • I am capable of doing more then I give myself credit for.
  • I am capable of doing more physically then others give me credit for.
  • I am able to survive sore muscles.
  • God listens to me.  His eyes are always on me and He is always thinking of me.  He does not need to look away from one thing so He can pay attention to me ( I still struggle with this one).
  • I will succeed this time because I am not doing it alone.  God is doing it with me. 

It’s amazing the things you come up with as you set out on a journey that is so against who you thought you were.  Fluffy is as much apart of me as my hands and feet.  It’s been 15 years since I could describe myself as anywhere near fit.  I have been scared for a very long time of what may be under all this fluffiness.  I admit that some of what I am uncovering is unpleasant… excuses and ideas I have allowed because of the fluffiness.  Justifying wrong thinking because of my fluffiness.  I have also discovered things I didn’t realize I was capable of…working out at least 4 days a week.  Working out on an ELLIPTICAL and enjoying it!  Making better choices in what I eat, believing I am worthy of God’s attention and that I have it, the challenge ahead of me is not one I will ever face alone, not because I have good friends but because I am the daughter of an amazing God.  Who is there to catch me if I fall, pick me up, kiss my boo-boos and encourage me to try again.

So I challenge you to challenge yourself.  That thing you’ve been feeling like you want to try but your scared you’ll fail.  That “feeling” could be God’s way of encouraging you to go do something GREAT!  Go and Do it!  Knowing that you are not alone, not because I will be cheering you on (and I will), not because your kids will admire you or you’ll be tickled with yourself but because God will be with you and it could be an awesome opportunity to draw closer to Him as you believe that if He asks you to fly He’ll not only give you the wings but He’ll give you the breeze to lift you up.

So.  How will you challenge yourself today?

God bless,

Melissa

Friday, July 13, 2012

My own worst enemy…

own worst enemy

So as of Sunday (July 15th) I will have finished up my first 2 weeks and as I round this first milestone a full 7lbs lighter I have realized something rather shocking about myself.

I am my own worst enemy.

Humph.  I would never have accused myself of such a thing except that with the 7lbs a few things have been revealed.  I don’t like to fail or disappoint.  I already kinda sorta knew that.  BUT there is a fine line to wanting to make others happy (good thing) to not really trying or making excuses ahead of time so that when I fail/disappoint I can fall back on all the reasons (excuses…lies)why I never should’ve really been counted on in the first place to succeed (bad thing).

excuses

OR jumping in with both feet and then coming up with reasons I can’t.  I have been big for so long that I can’t remember me when I was a smaller size (read: Healthier size – skinny does not equal healthy but neither done a size 26 and 270).  I have always been that “fluffy” friend.  Making up for that falling short feeling I get when I look at any other woman I know by being funny and kind (I am 99% sure I’ll still be like that when I reach my healthy size).  Used to not being the first choice… just happy to be A choice.  Never worried if I looked as nice or as “put together” as the women around me because I knew from the get go I didn’t.  There’s a freedom in “fluffiness”.  I can only buy certain clothes, do certain hairstyles and go to certain places because my size/weight limits me.  I didn’t hold myself accountable to look as nice because I already knew I couldn’t.  Pointless to run a 5k because I knew I would fail.  Comfortable to have a fail proof excuse for anything going wrong.

Wanna know a secret?  Tell NO ONE.

I am terrified of the small, healthy me, of what she may be capable of.  These past almost 2 weeks I have caught glimpses of her.  She felt energized (huh?), and was focused (say what!).  SHE CRAVED WATER PEOPLE!!! 

stick

So today I had so many reasons(excuses/lies) why I was not behaving.  Just a miserable day for intake and I barely moved enough to counter anything I ate and I caught my self thinking the most awful thought…

“See You are already slipping… You knew you would.”

I had a different response to it then I normally would’ve.  I didn’t agree.  I didn’t slump my shoulders and slink off knowing that there would be an “easier” time in the future.  I simply let myself have today be a “bad” day with the promise tomorrow would be a “better” day.

You see THIS time.  I am not doing it alone.  I am doing it with God.  By myself I would’ve already failed and slipped off, licking my wounded “I wishes” and ready, fully expecting, to fail.  By myself.

With God I know it’s not by my power but by HIS power and through Him ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE!  If I had a doubt God showed Himself through a text from my dear friend who has been gone for a week (and has been such an awesome motivator and encourager…bleh I am tearing up) I couldn’t have gotten even this far without her, there to tell me all that I am capable of and believing for me until I am able to believe on my own.  She just wanted to see how I did this week, set up plans for next week and to schedule coffee and brunch one day.  And the timing was perfect.  I had just gotten the girls down and could actually have a text talk with her without constant interruption. 

lappingthecouch

as if that wasn’t enough.  I found this when I was looking for other pictures…SO TRUE!

Well friends.  I am yawning so hard my eyes are having trouble opening back up so I am going to take that queue and head off to bed.  God Bless!

Monday, July 9, 2012

2 StePs FoRwaRd. 1 SteP BaCk.

Ok…So I spent a week getting my body in whack to spend 2 1/2 days to knock it out of whack.  Nothing like a weekend at Mom & Dad’s to use as an excuse to follow NO rules.  Boy did my body let me know too!  It’s amazing how sometimes you don’t realize how bad you felt, until you’re going back there from feeling so much better.  For the first time in a week I woke up sore, almost hungover feeling.  My head hurts, my body aches, I slept over 8 hours and feel like I just dozed off. 

While I gained 5 pounds (bleh bleh bleh) the silver lining is that still puts my total loss at 4 pounds and I am almost positive that since I barely drank 1 ounce of water this weekend it’s mostly water weight.  So back on the water drinking train I go. 

The next time we go to Mom and Dad’s I will have to make sure that I follow the 16oz of water before 12oz of soda rule or suffer the consequences.  We are also back on the eating right train today.  Weeeeee.

God Bless!

Thursday, July 5, 2012

Rounding up week 1…

…I survived!!  Not only that I thrived.  I think I may really like working out.  No one has told my fluffy self that I am in the wrong place and I think besides the standard answers to Why do you like working out? I feel better, I have more energy, I am getting healthier… my favorite part of working out is the coffee when we are all done, getting to sit down and take 5-10 minutes just to touch base with these amazing women.  It’s like the cherry on top of the getting healthier sundae…though that may not be the best analogy and I’ll try to have a new one by my next post… Baby Steps ladies… Baby Steps!

AND I AM 9LBS LIGHTER!!!

That’s right ladies…my little butterfly on the little ticker weight gadget thing-a-ma-bob(courtesy of www.myfitnesspal.com ) at the top of this page has MOVED!!  I know as I get further into fitness it will not take such leaps and bounds but it was mighty nice that it did this first week.  Kinda confirms that something somewhere is being done right.

I have planned out my workout schedule for next week.  My menu has not been planned out too much simply because we leave tomorrow for my parents house for the weekend and while I am not going to go on a binge eating everything carpy in sight I am also not going to hold the reigns as tightly there.  Hoping my dear dad makes some French Toast on Saturday.

Off I go…Melissa

Monday, July 2, 2012

Change is hard, God is good.

Ok…so if you can’t tell by the little ticker weight gadget thing-a-ma-bob(courtesy of www.myfitnesspal.com ) at the top of this page I am on the road to weight loss.  If you want you can join me on this journey and in this post I am going to share my first day:

A dear friend from church has been encouraging me for awhile to workout with her at the gym.  She knew it was something I wanted to do and I think she also knew it was something that just intimidated the stuff right out of me.  It was something I had tried before and failed at miserably. 

Not a big fan of failures, especially repeating them.

So suddenly there is this desire to stop wishing for my outside to match my inside but to actually start actively pursuing it.  Stop wishing that Walmart would get some of the cute little person clothes (read: anything size 18 or smaller) in plus sizes and just get to a size that can wear them off the rack.  Stop wishing my kids would settle down and start having the energy to engage them.  To stop being less then God made me to be and start being the best weapon in His arsenal, to do that I don’t have to be skinny but I do need to be healthy.  To stop being the butt of my own jokes to offset my insecurity.  I just needed to start moving so I could start stopping all these things.  So I could start being a better example to my kids, to hopefully start teaching them the way to eat at 6 and 2 so that when it may become an issue it won’t be because they’ll already eat the right way.

So I took a leap and took this dear friend up on her offer to workout together.  As I was getting ready and heading there I had about 4 times that I just felt like bawling my eyes out.  The little doubter inside me questioning what it was exactly I was hoping to prove.  Did I really think that THIS time would be any different then the last 20?  I had tried before and was obviously much better at being  fluffy then I could even hope to be at getting fit.  As I started to believe and agree with what I was telling myself I prayed that God please give me the strength, the tenacity and the ability to do this, to be more then I was now.  To silence that doubter and replace with an “I can” voice.

I was reminded of this verse:

Matthew 19:26
Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

So though I was still afraid (and feel silly saying so – afraid of exercise really?) and still had doubts, overwhelming all that was this feeling that this time would be different.  THIS time I was not doing it alone.  THIS time I was doing it with God and with God ALL things are possible.  Including the things I had failed at alone before.

As I am walking into the Y a Christian friend drives past me waving, I saw 3 friends within 2 minutes of going inside and my dear friend was there to not only pooh pooh my fears but to insist that I do the ELLIPTICAL TRAINER and not the treadmill for 15 minutes.  She hopped on the one next to mine and though the first 5 minutes were (I am certain) life threatening, we got so caught up in talking that the next thing I know she’s saying we’re done and we went and had coffee with another friend.  God sent me someone to be the “I can” voice that I couldn’t be for myself, that sees in me the things I can’t yet. 

Change is hard…God is GOOD.

So…tomorrow’s goal…20 minutes on the ELLIPTICAL TRAINER!