Our Cheerleader!

Good evening! It's been too long since I have been on here to write something! I have been so busy that I have neglected sitting and listening to what God is telling me. I am getting back to that now and have some things on my heart. Lately I have been feeling sluggish, exhausted, and not motivated at all. Yesterday I was chatting online with a friend and we got to talking about doing something to better ourselves. I personally need and want to lose weight. I have done it before and felt so great seeing and feeling how my body changed. Now granted it wasn't a huge loss, but still a loss. I keep thinking about the triathlon I did two years ago. I was probably in the best shape mentally and physically that I have been in a very long time. I was able to swim longer than I had been able to, lift weights that before seemed to weigh me down, ride a bike for 7 miles, and actually run! It was an amazing feeling. Now why, you ask, would someone ever want to let that go? Laziness..pure and simple. It's so much easier to just allow food to fill the void and the time. It's easier to sit on the couch with the computer in front of you and "snack" while you surf. Well, here was my wake up call. How on earth am I glorifying God by sitting on my butt in front of the computer playing and eating? Here's the answer...I'm not!! Yes, some things are very beneficial on the computer, but the things I have been allowing to take up my time are not beneficial at all. So, back to my conversation with my friend. She sent me a link to look at. It was for a friend of hers that had begun a weight loss journey and blogged about her entire walk. I was skimming over it and she has a list that caught my eye. It was thoughts that she had before she lost weight and the positive things that she replaced them with now. She has lost over 100 pounds in less than a year. You talk about motivation!! I sat there reading through my tears. The thoughts she had put down are thoughts that I have had many times over the years. Thoughts such as crying in the dressing room, being out of breath just by walking up some stairs, not being able to play with my nieces the way I want to, hearing people snicker at you, not being able to cross your legs, not being able to fasten your clothes. When you sit down and think about it, possibly even write a list, you start to realize that you have made excuses for too long. Here's my question: "What is keeping you from getting off the couch?" So, here is a thought for you, do you know that you have a permanent cheerleader? My good friend sent me a text message yesterday that said, "God is your personal trainer!" What an awesome thought!! So, I have had that thought in my mind since she told me. Yesterday, I decided if I wanted to lose weight and change my life, it needed to start now. I went to the pool to swim. I love to swim and it's a great form of exercise and therapy. I have been swimming all my life and it comes naturally to me. I was disappointed because I couldn't do as many laps as I wanted to, but I did as many as I could. Today, I went back to the pool determined to keep with my lifestyle change. As I was swimming my first lap, I looked down to the end of the pool. I noticed that the lines for the lanes make a cross at the very end of the pool. The lines don't run all along the bottom of the pool and stay connected. There is a break from the bottom and the end. I really started to ponder that cross. The more I looked at it, the more I could see the Lord at the end of that pool, standing in front of that cross cheering for me. I could hear Him telling me how much He loved me and how He was proud of me. That's what our Daddy does, He cheers us on when nobody else is. With each lap, it got easier to keep going. I had an awesome swim buddy that trained me for the triathlon. I miss her terribly and she was always cheering me on. She continues to do so, even 5000 miles away. I have other cheerleaders in my life as well. People that keep me accountable to my goals. I am so very grateful that God has placed these people in my life. We need cheerleaders for many different things in our lives. The one cheerleader who never moves though, is the LORD! He has been swimming in the pool with me cheering me on to keep swimming. I am a temple of the Lord and I need to take care of my body. Yes, He loves us as we are, but He also wants us to take care of what He's given us. We need to rejoice in the fact that we are fearfully and wonderfully made! We were created in His image! Do you think God sits up in heaven on a big comfy couch all day? (Granted He could, but I would guess not!) Here is another question, "How do you see God in your workout? Do you see Him there as your cheerleader?" Look for Him! Ask Him to show Himself to you and He will! If you are using food as a comfort or because you are bored, stop and think before you eat. Instead, go to His word and let Him fill you up. He will do that too! God knows your heart and no matter what, He is cheering you on! Even when nobody else is physically around, He is there with you encouraging you to press on and persevere. If you aren't sure where to start, ask Him to show you that as well. He is waiting for you, will you let Him be your cheerleader? I pray that you will have the motivation you need for whatever you need and know that I am cheering with you even though we are not physically close by! Always remember, God is the greatest cheerleader we can ever have!! Romans 5:4 states, "Not only so, but we rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit whom He has given us." YOU CAN DO IT!!