Lysa TerKeurst | 2010 October

Thursday, October 28

You!

Each morning as I sit at my kitchen table writing this blog, I think about you. My bloggy friends. Oh how you have encouraged me these past three years. You make ministry so much fun.

How I wish we could all gather somewhere for a few minutes this morning to meet in person and chat it up about life. Of course, I’d make you all try my favorite coffee which isn’t really coffee at all. It’s a big cup of steamed skim milk with a tiny drop of coffee. I’m such a coffee drinker wanna be with taste buds too immature for the real deal.

We could compare notes on great Scriptures we’ve recently discovered, hormones, and why in heavens the fall weather always brings an influx of wasps and granddaddy long leg spiders into my home.

Oh and I would also share that my air conditioner just broke. Isn’t that a complete hoot? I was just complaining about those cold temps and wham, the cold temps are no more. I was a happy girl until I realized Art plans to get it fixed. And it will cost mucho dinero. Bummer.

Enough about me. I want to hear about you. So, instead of wondering about you today, I thought I’d ask.

Click on the word ‘comments’ below and tell me some stuff.

I’d love to know what state (or country) you live in…
Are you married or single?
Do you have kids? How many?
Do you have a blog? If so, leave me a link.
How did you find out about my blog?

I’m so excited to read all about you. And for those of you who get this blog emailed to you… don’t sit this one out. Come on over to www.LysaTerKeurst.com and tell me about you too!

When the end goal seems too hard

No matter what your struggle has been, victory is possible today. However, most of us don’t think that’s true. The problem is we tend to only measure long term success while downplaying the absolute victory found in small successes.

Yesterday, a friend of mine called to say she’d read the blog and as a result she walked away from indulging in a bag of M&M’s. That’s a victorious small success. Now, I can’t say that her scale will stand up and clap and reward her with much lower numbers today. But, if she builds upon this small success- choice by choice, day by day- she will see positive changes.

We’ve been talking about getting healthy lately but this principle applies to other struggles as well.

If I choose not to snap at my child and instead respond with tenderness, that’s a victorious small success.

If I choose to pause before responding to the rude sales clerk thus giving her a smile instead of perpetuating her smirk, that’s a victorious small success.

If I choose to give my husband the benefit of the doubt rather than jumping to the conclusion he meant to hurt my feelings, that’s a victorious small success.

Sometimes victory seems so far away because we measure it by the end goal. And end goals can seem overwhelmingly huge, daunting, and just plain hard to reach. Instead, if we start measuring our victories by
the smaller choices we make each day, victory won’t seem so impossible.

Big things are built one brick at a time.

Victories are achieved one choice at a time.

A life well lived is chosen one day at a time.

“…make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance…” 2 Peter 1:5-6.

Remember to go to this post if you are interested in my ‘Made to Crave’ webcast.

If you live near San Diego, CA I will be speaking at a Focus on the Family event as a part of their Celebrate Family Tour on December 9. Would love for you to come! It’s free! Click here for more info.

Something FREE you don’t want to miss…

Three years ago I was stuck in a rut of wishful thinking and excuses with my weight loss. At the beginning of each day I would say I wanted things to be different. I would vow in my heart to make things different. I would even make a plan to stop the snacks, increase the veggies, and say no to the desserts.

But then life would happen. And the excuses were so very plentiful. So, my resolve would melt away like butter on a hot yeast roll.

Of course the next morning I would always get up and weigh myself hoping that somehow magic would have happened over night. Despite my indulgences from the day before, maybe just maybe the numbers would have
gone down.

But the scale was not impressed with my wishful thinking. It could only tell the truth and nothing but the truth. Even when I tried to be tricky and stand on one foot, it never rallied behind my cause.

And so you know who I’d get mad at?

God.

Seriously, I would have little conversations with God about how unfair it was that I was saddled with this issue. I’d be mad that He wouldn’t give me the strength to overcome this issue. I’d beg Him to help me one minute while scarfing down an order of fries the next. And then I’d be doubly mad He didn’t steer my car away from that drive-thru.

I deemed myself a victim of tragic genetics, overactive taste buds and a stomach that demanded large portions.

What I failed to realize for years is there was a much more significant issue going on with me.

More important than the ever increasing size of my jeans or the muffin top of skin that bulged over the top of my jeans was the deception going on inside my heart. My weight was outside indication of an internal situation. There was a crucial spiritual situation that needed to be addressed.

I was relying on food to be my comfort, my ever present help, my guide, the thing that got me through the valleys and the first thing I wanted to celebrate with in the good times. Honestly, I might as well have taken Psalm 23 and replaced the Lord’s name with various food choices.

My proper little Christian self would have never expressed that out loud. Oh heavens no. Nor would I have dared to admit it in the depths of my heart. No. No. No. But, my body wouldn’t keep secrets. I had an issue. And the ever increasing size of my body demanded the REAL issue be addressed.

I don’t write to point out anyone else’s issue. There are certainly medical situations that can cause weight gain. But my issue was truly a spiritual one. And no diet would have ever been permanently successful until I got to the real root of my problem.

The root of my issue was craving food more than God. I desired and depended on the instant high of physical gratification because I hadn’t learned how to let God satisfy my deepest needs.

Could this be your call to action as well?

In essence, my weight issue was actually a gift in disguise. I never thought I’d say that. Never ever. And yes, three years ago I would have rolled my eyes at someone saying that too.

But I don’t say it as a Pollyanna lollipop girl with too much air between her ears and no cellulite on her hiney.

I know this is a tough issue. I’ve walked through the tears and the feelings of failure. Remember, I was the girl mad at God about this whole deal. So, hear me out.

Yes, I lost the weight. But that wasn’t the real reward. It’s what I gained with Jesus in the process that became the best part of my journey. And I wouldn’t have wanted to miss this new found closeness with Him for anything in the world.

“For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men. Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food,” Romans 14:17-20.

If you’d like to learn more, be sure to mark your calendar for a FREE “Made to Crave” Webcast Bible Study I’m doing starting January 10th. You can watch this right from your home computer. It’s easy. No special equipment or computer savvy needed. You simply pull up the website address I’ll give you and you’ll see me teaching LIVE. (That LIVE part should prompt you to pray for me-okay? Live will be fun for you, scary for me… smiles!)

It’s as easy as watching TV… only better. There will be no annoying commercials!

It will be every Monday night for six weeks from 8-9pm Eastern Time. And did I mention, it’s FREE? We all love free. A very kind donor has stepped up to underwrite this endeavor. That makes me so happy. I just think this is so important, I don’t want anyone to miss out.

If you think you might join in, leave a comment today and I’ll be notifying you of some special opportunities just for those participating in this “Made to Crave” webcast.