21 Day Challenge: Day 6

Here is is already day 6 in the January 21 Day Challenge. I'm amazed how fast time flies. When I step back and look at it, it also becomes clear why I've gained weight in these past years. When I walked through life with the "I'll start to do something about my weight tomorrow" mindset, one day blended into the next and the only thing I was doing about my weight was adding to it.

Losing weight is a process. One day of healthy eating and exercise is just that one day. When we learn to string them together, it can be called a lifestyle. That's my overall goal for this year. To develop the habit of a healthy lifestyle. Saying that, today I'd like to talk about excuses.

Excuses are the reasons we come up with for why we don't eat healthy and/or don't exercise. Believe me, I'm a writer, I can come up with some creative reasons for why not to eat right and probably even more excuses for why I didn't exercise. That's one of the reasons I'm a member of the No Excuses Workout System. I think many of our excuses are a result of our busy lives...or at least that's what we blame it on. But think about it. Are we really so busy as to have no time for ourselves? For our health? If we are, then that needs to change.

My life as a writer and editor is busier than ever. I have another book coming this year which is in editing (which takes time), the sequel to Beyond the Fifth Gate which 3/4 written and is supposed to be finished soon, editing a non-fiction book for epress-online, and a host of articles to write and more. I think I work more hours now than ever, but this 21 Day Challenge, I've made exercise and fitness, in general, a priority. I set an appointment to exercise and so far I've made them. Even in below freezing weather, I've walked 9 miles so far this week! That's progress. Tomorrow I'll step on the scale and see if I've met my goal of losing one pound a week!

Power to Change

It's the holidays! So hard for me to believe that it is the end of the year. Seems like I was just holding my breath about the Y2K threat and now that's almost 10 years ago. Time moves swiftly and that's why it's important to take advantage of each day...to make a difference...even with your health and fitness.

For myself, I know I don't have the strength or power to stay on a diet 100 percent of the time. In fact, the term diet is something most of us think about as "starting" and when we reach our goal we're done, and most of the time we revert to our old ways and gain back the weight and many times more. Healthy eating goes beyond dieting. And the power to go beyond dieting to healthy eating is not in myself, but in my Lord.

My current life lessons involve "deny yourself". I awoke Sunday with that Scripture in my thoughts and went to find it. First I came across the Scripture in Mark where Jesus calls Peter and his brother to follow him. They were in the middle of work, casting their nets and they left everything and followed him immediately. They didn't say, "Let us finish what were doing and then we'll follow you." What struck me was "immediately". They didn't say, "I'll start Monday."


Then I found the Scripture I was looking for in Luke and was reminded that we are to deny ourselves daily--pick up our cross and follow him. In this case the word "daily" stood out. It's a lifestyle to be followed each day. We're either following or we're not.

Finally, I ended up in Titus where I read about how our actions will show that we follow Him--even in eating and exercise.

So deny yourself is immediate, daily, and our actions will show it. When I want to reach for those chips when I'm not even hungry, I know I'm not following him...I'm not denying myself. This of course is the short version, but if you want to read the Scriptures I read here they are:

Matthew 4:17-20
Luke 9:23-26
Titus 1:15-16


And in closing let me remind you "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." (1 Cor. 10:31)