When the Weight Won’t Come Off
I’ll admit, I’ve been pretty consumed lately with losing this postpartum (or maybe pre-baby) weight now that I’ve passed the one-year mark. It's not something I am trying to focus on so much; it's just that I’ve tried everything to meet this goal and nothing seems to be working, and it has become somewhat consuming. I believe it stems from a place of control, it so normal in society to set a goal, work really hard and get the results you are after. Not to mention all of the quick results methods shown all over social media. But what about Christians who are called to do things differently than what we see in the world? We are called to not be conformed to the world, which means that we are to approach our goals with God in mind.
Honestly, sometimes I just want to conform to what I see around me because it looks easier and more efficient. And trust me, I do conform to what I see, until I hit a wall of exhaustion. In those moments, I am reminded that my life is supposed to be surrendered to the Lord. Not just the parts that I want to surrender, but every part. Including weight loss. It’s not that my effort is in vain; it's more so that the Lord wants to be invited into every goal I set for myself because He has the capacity to walk me through the ups and downs and to sustain me when I feel unable to. He is a God of pruning and growth. He wants more than external results, but change from within.
Let’s say you have a goal of being more present. The Lord would love to help you meet this goal, but He sees things from a different perspective than we do. He wants to change the habits that are leading to distractions. He wants to interrupt those habits and help you refocus your time and energy on being present. Ultimately, God wants to do the necessary pruning to get us lasting results.
In my case of weight loss, I feel as though I’ve tried everything outside of a GLP-1, non-invasive procedure, or some other outside help. I’ve considered it all. The reason why I haven’t gone down that road is because I know that God is trying to change more than my physical appearance. Oh boy, do I try to ignore this truth and do things my way! But He is a good God and knows that if I can let Him lead me in this journey and help me create better, sustainable habits around food and physical activity, the results I desire will come in time. And because He is such a good Father, He will let me run in circles until I run to Him. I thank God for not letting me have my way and for loving me so much that He will take the desires of my heart and allow me to grow spiritually as we walk together through this journey.
My prayer for anyone reading this today is that you take a moment to think about the areas of your life that you may be leaving God out of. I pray that you invite God into every desire you are pursuing, especially the desires that may be consuming you. I pray that you carry this truth with you: if He has given you a desire, He wants to walk with you through it. Lastly, I pray that if the weight won’t come off, whether that be spiritual, emotional, or even physical weight, you trust God enough to lead you to your desired goal, knowing that His plans are always greater than we can imagine.
