God, you love me like this?

This morning, after dropping my youngest off at daycare, I got back in my car, turned back onto the main road and began to focus my thoughts on the Father. This has become somewhat of a ritual as I do this almost every weekday during my commute to work. The car, for a couple years now, has been my place of solitude with the Father. It has become my main prayer closet. I am a wife and a mother of three young children and we live busy lives at times. The car simply became the perfect place for me to enjoy consistent intimate time with my Daddy in prayer. :)

I usually begin by focusing my attention towards the beauty of the sky, as this helps me enter into worship. But today, no words immediately came to my lips. I was lost in thoughts of His Greatness. As I marveled in silence, I was amazed at His love for little ole' me. I am always amazed. Over and over again I am simply amazed that He loves me.  How a God so big, so majestic, so full of Goodness and Glory, could love each and every one of us individually. He actually came down from Heaven, limited Himself, walked with us, talked with us, ate and slept with us, then died a gruesome death for us, because He loves us! We are as little specks compared to His greatness! As little ants in His eyesight! Yet, He has numbered the very hairs on our heads and knew us before we were ever formed in our mother's wombs! Selah!

Challenge: BE a Proverbs 31 Woman

31 Day Challenge: Be a Proverbs 31 Woman

God recently laid on my heart to begin confessing and personalizing Proverbs 31: 10-31. Well, I have to admit that I'd completely forgotten that He spoke this to me. It wasn't until the other day when I reached out to a sister in Christ to pray for me in an area that I had been struggling with that I was reminded of His instruction. Her response to my request was simple, yet heavy, she said "You are ALREADY that woman (paraphrased). Just begin to walk in it". She then advised me to declare and decree Proverbs 31.

That rocked me to my core! 

I am ALREADY that woman!?!?
(It was one of those things that I knew, but hadn't really received)

And did you see what God did there??? 

God will gently remind His children!

So, everyday since that day, I have been personalizing and confessing Proverbs 31:10-31 over my life. I have been decreeing that I already am who God has created me to be. No matter what it looks or feels like!

My fitness and why I share

A little about my health and fitness journey:

In 2007, I dropped 30 lbs after having my second child. And again, in 2009 I dropped 25 lbs. after having my third child. Both times I achieved weight loss through excessive cardio and a low calorie diet.   I was obsessed with the scale. Sometimes weighing multiple times daily. If the scale went up I was confused and frustrated. If the scale went down I was happy and excited. I was on an emotional weight loss roller coaster.

I kept the weight off for a while, but when I went back to work in 2011, the scale slowly started creeping back up. I knew that I needed to get the weight back down so I started to do what I'd always done, low cals and lots of cardio...and then I came across P90x.
Little did I know that it would be a struggle to challenge my body that way and stick to a low calorie diet.
I wasn't losing any weight, I was hungry and I was frustrated. 

The Scale: Friend or Foe?

This is one of many fitness related topics that I have been eager to write about for a while. I thought this would be a great time because so many people, especially women, are trying to shed those extra pounds as the new year just hit and spring/summer will be rolling around before we know it.

Now, I am NO expert, and do not claim to be, but I read A LOT. I do my research. I ask dozens of questions of experts that I have come to know AND I have been living by everything that I am going to share with you. I also have a long list of resources below that you can read when you have some free time.
You can read a little bit about my journey here and learn more about why I desire to share this information with you.

So, let's get to the scale. Can it really be trusted? The answer: Not really.

I like to call the scale a two-faced liar.
One day it's your best friend, whispering sweet losses in your ear.
The next day it breaks your heart and makes you cry!
Why should we trust something that treats us this way?

Don’t get me wrong, the scale can be a great tool when used correctly and with wisdom. But when used incorrectly, and ignorantly, it can sabotage all of our efforts and put us in a mental place of defeat that is hard to escape from.

The scale is one of many ways to measure progress. It should not be used as your only measure of progress. I rarely use it at all anymore. The scale simply cannot tell you everything that is going on with your body.

I work out hard, I’m slowing replacing unhealthy foods with healthier selections, and I am seeing results, even if they don't show up on the scale. 

Are they quick results? Some have been quick, but most have been gradual, because slow and steady is what wins the race.  Remember the Tortoise and the Haire?