Thursday, February 23, 2017

I Miss It!

I'm not gonna lie--I miss sweets.  A lot. 

I went to buy groceries yesterday and bought my hubby some Oatmeal Cream Pies, because they are one of his favorite treats.  And I was hungry. So as I loaded up the car I thought for a split second, I'm gonna have one of those!  In the past, I would have--in fact I probably would have had two or three on the drive home.  Instead, I reached over into the bag of apples, and had that instead.  While it is easy to say now that I am proud of that decision I made, I honestly wonder--can I keep this up for the rest of my life?  I know I need to.  I know I WANT to even.  But can I...?

How can I know in my head what is best for me, yet my heart still wants something different?

Why don't I crave God like I crave sweets?  I wish I did. 

That is my prayer today--"Dear Lord, help me crave You above all things."

--Amen

Thursday, February 16, 2017

A Secret....

263.2.

It's like a secret you don't want anyone to know.  Because if they don't know--then maybe you won't seem as fat.  Right? 

Ridiculous, I know. 

So at the beginning of 2017, I had no grand plans for going on a diet, losing weight, or any of the "resolution-y" type things that many people are spurred on to do.  Instead, I just started reading a book that encouraged thirty minutes of quiet time every day.  And while I had thought this for a long time, suddenly I knew it was TIME--God was nudging me, and telling me it was time to break up with sweets. 

To be honest, I believe I have an addiction to sugar.  I could make a cake for my daughter's birthday, and the next day eat four pieces before thinking, "maybe I should quit..."  I was drinking at least one if not two 20 oz. Cokes a day.  I relished having candy in the house for holidays, and could eat a whole bag of mini Reese's Peanut Butter Cups in one sitting.  I would love it while it was happening--and regret it as soon as it was done.  Regret that I had been out of control.  Regret that if I kept eating like this, I was just going to keep gaining and gaining.  And yet, I couldn't stop.  I had friends who had quit sugar completely and I thought this was probably what I needed to do--though I  doubted I ever could.  But hey, it was worth a shot! 

So on January 17, I began.  I decided I would eat whatever fruits, vegetables, meats, and nuts I wanted...but no sugar.  No flour.  No milk.  Man, what a headache the first few days.  And my daughter's birthday just happened to be the 18th.  (What?!?  No birthday cake?!?)  But I had made a decision, and it actually was kind of easier that I had a line drawn in the sand as far as what I would or would not eat.  And God gave me the strength to persevere.  I know it was Him because I am 40 years old and I couldn't ever do it on my own. 

So here it is, February 16. 

And now the number is 245.2.

God is great.