30 Days of Hearing God, Day 26

I woke up this morning in a funk.  Correction:  I woke up this morning, stepped onto the scale, and got into a funk.  I know, I know.  I shouldn’t let a number on a scale determine my mood or my worth.  I know the number doesn’t tell the whole story of what is going on inside my body, that muscle weighs more than fat, that my cardiovascular system and bones and internal organs all benefit from my healthy lifestyle regardless of these 18 pounds, and people all over the world are suffering intolerable things far worse than stubborn weight.  I get all that.

I don’t want it to bother me that I’ve gained back all of the four pounds that I lost in the last two weeks because medication and age are completely screwing up my metabolism.

I don’t want it to upset me that 80% of the clothes in my closet don’t fit at all, and the other 20% don’t fit me well.

And I don’t want it to phase me in the least that I’m working out so hard and so often that my muscles or knees or shoulders are sore every single day.  Even as I step onto the scale my legs hurt from yesterday’s workout.  That I’m doing everything right and my body is not responding.  I know none of that should bother me.

But it does.  It bothers me very much.

And so this morning, after I snapped at my husband and yelled at my son and locked the bathroom door so I could have a good cry in the privacy of my own toilet, I pulled it together enough to drive my sweet children to school.  And I turned on the radio and the DJ was reading this:

“If you decide for God, living a life of God-worship, it follows that you don’t fuss about what’s on the table at mealtimes or whether the clothes in your closet are in fashion. There is far more to your life than the food you put in your stomach, more to your outer appearance than the clothes you hang on your body. Look at the birds, free and unfettered, not tied down to a job description, careless in the care of God. And you count far more to him than birds.


“Has anyone by fussing in front of the mirror ever gotten taller by so much as an inch? All this time and money wasted on fashion—do you think it makes that much difference? Instead of looking at the fashions, walk out into the fields and look at the wildflowers. They never primp or shop, but have you ever seen color and design quite like it? The ten best-dressed men and women in the country look shabby alongside them.


“If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don’t you think he’ll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.


“Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.

(The words of Jesus, Matthew 6:25-34, The Message)

I love how God knows where I am, and is somehow able to get my attention long enough so that I hear the perfect words for me today.  I love how God’s word spoken 2000 years ago on the side of a mountain in the Middle Eats applies to me in 2010 in the carpool line in The Midwest.  I love how,even in my frustration, God’s word simultaneously severs my heart and floods it with peace.

So, now that I’ve got my meltdown out of the way for the day, I’m going to meditate on these verses and allow God to help me see myself and this very disheartening situation from His perspective and in light of eternity.

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For the lighter side of this issue, visit my fitness blog:  Eating for weight loss–or–How did I gain back 3.5 pounds?”

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What is God saying to YOU?  Has He spoken to you through His word lately?