Lysa TerKeurst _{Leading Women in the Adventure of Faith}

Last night I had the most interesting conversation with a friend of mine who lives in Hollywood. This person lives in the midst of glitz, glamor, and extreme excess. They very much live in that world but refuse to live like that world. They are determined to teach their kids something rare… the courageous choice.

It’s funny though we weren’t talking about food, I kept thinking about you, my blog friends, throughout this conversation. I kept thinking about you because the courageous choice is exactly what’s at the core of the food issues we tackled on the blog yesterday.

You see, there are two kinds of courage. There’s the courageous act which is what makes our heart beat fast when the knight fights the dragon or the firefighter rushes into the burning building. These are extreme events most of us won’t ever face. And because most of us aren’t put in positions to participate in a courageous act, we don’t necessarily think of ourselves as courageous.

But there’s a second kind of courage that dare I might say is widely available but not widely embraced. It’s the courageous choice. This is the decision to do the right thing even when it’s unpopular, uncelebrated, and probably even unnoticed.

In the context of our discussion yesterday, the right thing is to make healthier choices for ourselves. The right thing is to find the satisfaction to our deepest needs with God not food. It’s the choice to walk willingly on the path of discipline in the area of our food choices. It’s coming to the realization that changes need to be made and making those changes in the quietness of our pantry when no one else is looking.

It’s me respecting myself enough to be courageous for me.

When I am courageous for me, I am sticking a stake in the ground and saying I’m more than the sum total of my screaming taste buds. My heart doesn’t want that junk food. My arms don’t want that junk food. My legs don’t want that junk food. My soul doesn’t want that junk food.

And my hiney certainly doesn’t want that junk food.

It is possible to silence the screaming taste buds sweet sister. It is possible to quiet the battle in our minds. It is possible to make the courageous choice. It is possible to stand in that pantry and declare you were made to consume food but food was never meant to consume you.

It is possible to consume only that which will add to your health and not take away from it. It is possible.

So make that choice.

And then make it again.

And then make it again.

And I’ll be right here to cheer you on every step of the way.

You are a courageous woman. Now, go out and prove it to yourself.

Leave me a comment today proclaiming you are a courageous woman and I will pray specifically for you today.

Also, check out these links for further encouragement on this topic:

http://lysaterkeurst.com/2009/04/no-sugar-thing/

http://lysaterkeurst.com/2009/04/not-to-beat-dead-snake/

http://lysaterkeurst.com/2009/04/and-then-my-hunger-pains-just-wore/