Count the Cost

It’s been two weeks. Actually it’s been more than two weeks since I’ve been on my regularly scheduled workout routine. The challenge? To come back from those two weeks of travel having not gained any weight. WHAT IN THE WORLD WAS I THINKING!?!?!?

I’ve been to a women’s retreat, a cruise to Alaska, and a week with my family at a Christian camp.  Why did I accept the challenge?  I can honestly say that when I was staring down those rows of chocolate chip cookies and barrels of ice cream on the cruise ship, I couldn’t think of one good reason why I would do that to myself.
Cookies Nope. Not in the heat of the moment.  There didn’t seem to be one good reason to talk myself out of hiding extra cookies in a napkin for later consumption.

My decision to put my best foot forward in fighting the #fatdemon came before the seventeen days out of town. The decision was one made on fact and not on feelings.  I was focused and determined NOT to lose any of the ground I had covered in my weight loss journey.

Before I jumped on a plane and disrupted my rhythms, I was wholly, well mostly, committed to my fitness regimen and to my food choices.  And the benefits of that commitment were beginning to show.  A few pounds had decided to melt away and I was a little excited… Excited enough to take a challenge not to put on weight while traveling. So even while I was headed into a treacherous arena for battles with food, I had counted the cost of maintaining my progress in my weight-loss journey and I had deemed it worthy of the effort.

Just like Paul I have a thorn.  While some people have thorns they can hide, mine shows up quite visibly in extra hips, thighs, and “fatback” where my triceps should be.  I have accepted that my life long struggle has been and probably will be my weight.

I really do desire to have victory in this area of my life.  Not just because it would be nice to look better in my clothes, but also because I know I have a role in maintaining good health over the long term.  I can live a better life if I’m not carrying around unnecessary weight.  I don’t want to miss anything that God has for me because I was too tired, lethargic, or sick to live the life that he hands me.

But I’d be lying if I told you that I was thinking about any of that “big picture” when I was staring at those cookies and ice cream.  All I could see in that moment was the “tiny picture” – that brief moment when that sugar would hit my tongue.

Being a Kingdom Woman is a challenge.  It’s a “big picture” decision that we make when we can clearly see how our commitment to the principles of Godly living will pay off.  It’s a choice that we make based on facts and the long-term benefits of a life well lived.  But there are moments, lots of moments, when we are tempted to throw in the towel because throwing in the towel is easier.  We have lots of opportunities to indulge…

 

  • in that brief moment of anger and letting off steam as we yell at a family member.
  • in a conversation that goes a bit too long with a man that is not our husband.
  • in that romance novel that is way too graphic for a single or married woman to read and maintain pure thoughts.
  • in that great pair of shoes that are not in our budget but that we have to have.
  • in spending more time on our smartphone than we do in God’s Word.

 

And in the heat of any one of those moments, we may not be able to remember or WANT to remember why we challenged ourselves to be kingdom women in the first place. Because it doesn’t FEEL good to rise to the challenge. That’s why the decision to be a kingdom woman and take the high road is a decision that is made based on fact. Feelings won’t always be show up when you need ’em too.

If I take in less calories than I expend, I should lose weight.  That’s the fact.  That fact doesn’t change based on whether there is a salad in front of me or my brother-in-love’s peach cobbler (help me Jesus).  Either way, I have a choice.

And you have a choice. If you make the daily decision to do things God’s way – not perfectly (help us Jesus) – but press towards the mark for the prize of your high calling (Philippians 3:14), you will, over time,  be more like the kingdom woman God created you to be. That daily decision is a choice you make, in advance, before you find yourself tempted to act on your feelings.it’s better to plan to walk away rather than stay and act or speak out of anger.

  • it’s better to establish boundaries in advance for where and when you will have private conversations with a guy and how long and how deep those conversations will be.
  • it’s better to give away those novels.
  • it’s better not to even go into the store if you can’t control the urge to “pay-with-plastic”.
  • it’s better to turn off your phone if that’s what it takes to focus on spending time with the Lord.

 

Have you counted the cost of your journey as a Kingdom Woman? Sometimes it will mean that you are headed into treacherous territory in your battles with emotional self-control, lust, purity, finances, commitment to the Word, and many others. So you have to count the cost and determine ahead of time that you are committed to maintaining your progress in your Godly womanhood journey.

And just like every pound lost is worth the cookies denied, every day gained in your journey as a Kingdom Woman is worth the effort.  It’s worth the legacy you’ll leave, the peace you’ll have, and the blessings you will enjoy in eternity.