It's time to lose some weight


If suits could talk, mine would say, "it's time to lose some weight." What better time of the year than New Years to commit to getting healthier and losing some weight. If you are like me, the "holidays" (liberally construed in my house as Halloween through New Years Day) can be quite difficult if you are trying to lead a healthy lifestyle. Too much food and too much drink, make the last quarter of the year a battle with the belt.

So, when co-workers mentioned a fitness/weight loss challenge at work just after the New Year, naturally I was all in. I desperately needed to refocus my attention on eating less and exercising more. Stepping on the scale at the office for the Day: 1 weigh in, I knew the number would be ugly, but not even my middle school mullet photos were as scary as staring down at the digital...269.4. Yeah, the scale threw in the extra .4 just for good measure, in case any ounce of pride or self respect remained.

I'd like to tell you it was my dress shoes that tilted the scale, but we both know not even concrete boots couldn't account for that much extra weight. That number is within a few pounds of my heaviest weight, but hold the trophies. I've heard that happier people tend to gain more weight. That is either a medical fact, or a cool thing we chubby people tell ourselves to at least point out that this season of life is good, despite our double chins.

So something has to give. When I've told people that awful number above recently, the obligatory "you don't look that heavy" or "I never would have guessed you weighed that much" only slightly removes the sting of being far too overweight for my frame and for my future. So something has to give. I've started to eat less carbs, less sugars, less caffeine, consume less alcohol, and exercise more. I want the heaviness removed and I want to feel good again.

As I started thinking more strategically about my days and weeks to ensure a successful run at a healthier lifestyle, I started thinking of all the focus on physical health around New Years. Commercial dollars in January I'm sure are astronomical, no doubt to attract people to gyms and to lure people into certain diets and diet products. Think for just a moment about how many people you've heard (other than my ramblings above) talking about their resolutions to be "healthier" this year. Now think for a moment about how many people you've heard talking about their plans to grow in their faith and to turn things over to God more this year?

I remember being a kid and going some Sundays to a small country church with my Grandpa. Although the choir and congregation would never be accused of being a grammy award winning gospel group, you could tell they believed every word than sang and they sang every word with heart and with purpose. I remember a "go to" at Moran Baptist Church was, "What a Friend We Have In Jesus." I particularly loved the opening..

  1. What a friend we have in Jesus,
    All our sins and griefs to bear!
    What a privilege to carry
    Everything to God in prayer!

I loved that song as a kid because it made me feel good. It made me feel loved and cared about, it still does. Jesus is King of Kings. He is our Savior, but He can be my friend too? The kind of friend that loves me and wants to bear my griefs and my sins? I can carry to Christ what I've been carrying around all day, and He will graciously and gladly take it from me? Wow. How awesome is that?

A verse from Psalm chapter 55 supports the song lyrics above, "Cast your cares on the Lord, and He shall sustain you; He will never let the righteous be shaken." God is glad to carry your burdens and give you the daily strength you need. Similarly in Matthew chapter 11, we receive a personal invitation from Jesus, "Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." In Psalm chapter 34 we read, "The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears, and delivers them out of all their troubles."

This evening you need to know something...God knows you, God hears you, and God loves you. He stands ready to remove your cares and your burdens.

If you are a single mother who is struggling with life and with parenting, carry it to Him. If you are the provider for your family and the stack of bills is taller than the stack of cash, carry it to Him. If you are sick and hurting, and the reports and the tests deliver only grim news, carry it to Him. If you are just out of school and you are starting your life and you're looking ahead to a difficult future, carry it to Him. If you've suffered a loss in your life, the likes of which robbed the very breath from your chest, and you are stumbling about and broken hearted, carry it to Him.

When your arms can no longer hold the heaviness and the demands of this life, carry it to Him. Do you want the heaviness removed? Do you want to feel good again? Then something has to give. It's time to lose some weight.

Much Love, Adam

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