Its a concept we understand in the tangible world and it works. If you want something -- you pay for it. Good parents are teaching their kiddo's from a young age...if you want something -- you have to earn it. What a disservice we do our young if we give them what they want for nothing!
At some point the life lesson has to morph to include morality, relational and integrity issues. That is where this next phrase nails it on the head -- you reap what you sow. You have a good work ethic, you reap a raise and high fives on your "honor and integrity" counter. You treat others with fairness and compassion you gain friends and a good reputation. You lie -- you become known as a liar and most often lose your friends and certainly cannot be trusted.
I was thinking about this on my way to the gym and realized that our choices are also ACCUMULATIVE -- that is, over time our choices add up and often times we do not understand the cost until time has passed. And the greater danger is when our bad choices gain in power due to accumulation and suddenly become habitual.
Take type 2 diabetes. This disease hits later in life and usually in someone who has carried around too much weight, for too long, if you are predisposed to it. This dragon sneaks up on you, "out of blue", but does it? In high school I hit a normal weight for my stature when I lost 70 lbs and was very active. I walked 3 miles to and from school. I had my gym class each day. After school I got back into my gym clothes and started jogging for fun and worked up to jogging 5 miles each day. Five days a week I did this and slowly the weight melted off. Too bad I did not keep it off after high school.
With graduation came working full time. I was tired after work and gradually I began to slow down. I figured I was getting enough activity working. Yeah...not so much. Don't get me wrong, I was very active working but it was not purposeful-keeping-in-shape-for-health exercise. By the time I got married at age 23 I'd regained 30-lbs. By the time I was 40 I'd gained another 20. The thing is it was gradual. I did not set out to accomplish this. Truth be told, I was busy taking care of my family and was active full time in ministry.
I did not have time to take care of myself because I was so busy taking care of everyone else. Women are so prone to this! During that time that little dragon-gene sat in my DNA getting bigger and stronger until BOOM! He roared to life.
I realized just as the adage I taught my children was true so was this one.... I was suffering from the choice of complacency. Accumulative complacency. Isn't it just like a human to think, there's always tomorrow? TOMORROW I will start my diet. TOMORROW I will go for a walk. TOMORROW I will work out. And there you are... every choice costs you something. The question is....can you afford it?
So here I am with ice on my shoulder and heat on my thighs embracing the pain when I realize...I'm turning the tide. See this works both ways. The current has been running the other direction...an accumulation of seemingly small, insignificant choices that had me heading toward death. Each little choice of complacency was accumulating in strength and I was headed the opposite direction of where I wanted to be. Alive and healthy.
So now I must go against the flow. I'm moving against the motion of diabetes as I head toward vitality. And no wonder my legs are sore! it's hard work creating new momentum but its doable. And it all started with one choice. And I remember its all about perspective. This month is better than last month because last month I decided to join the 12 week challenge. Last Saturday was better than the day before because I overcame my fear and walked through the doors of Physique Gym. And today I am stronger than Monday because of the accumulation of my choices...I've got 2 hard workouts under my belt and my determination is even stronger as I fight to turn the tide.
It's all about pursuing health and life. With each class I attend and every day I follow the plan I will push back against the Dragon. I enter class with a sense of trepidation knowing my weakness will once more be challenged. But its then I am reminded of 2 Corinthians 12:10 which says,
"That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong".
How does this apply? When we are in training, though we hate to fail, isn't it good to find out where our weaknesses are? It is, because we learn. We learn how to strengthen our weakness. And I know from experience that there are many times I do not have the strength to push through and it is THEN, I rely not on myself, but upon the strength I garner from God! It is HE who makes me strong when I cannot be.
I know there will be other days when I do not think I can do this. There will be days of low tide. And I think that is when we have to hold and remember the following words of wisdom:
"the lowest ebb
is the turn of the tide"
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
~and~
"Never give up!
For that is the place and time
that the tide will turn".
Harriet Beecher Stowe
Sidenote - though our weigh ins are every Monday, I jumped on my own personal scale today and hit a wonderful benchmark. Today I weighed the lowest I have weighed in over 33 years. How is THAT for hard work??
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