Armed and Ready

This time last year, I began one very difficult personal battle and simultaneously lost another equally difficult battle.  It was around this time that Mitch, our shepherd mix, badly injured his foot, resulting in three major surgeries (costing over $1,000) and a few months of inactivity (for him and me).  You see, Mitch is very active, and the only way to keep him settled was to be settled myself.  If I was up and moving around, he wanted to be too.  If I exercised, he wanted to exercise.

The battle I had been fighting and winning was that of living healthy.  For several months up to that point, I had been eating the right foods in the proper portions, exercising daily, managing my stress, getting adequate rest, etc.  But from the first night we brought Mitch home from the vet, all my efforts went out the window.  Sleep was not happening, since I jumped at every whimper he made.  Daily stress drove me back to my poor food choices, and I felt I needed chocolate and caffeine to survive.  Before long, my inactivity caught up with me, and I found myself sluggish and moody.  The battle that had been going so well was quickly lost, and a new battle of fear and worry required all my time and effort.

Since Mitch's recovery, I've been striving to get myself back on track with my healthy living plan, but there's always been some excuse to put it off.  "The holidays are coming.  No sense in trying to eat right now."  "I would, but now is just not a good time for me.  There's too much going on.  Maybe when things settle down."  In fact, over the past six months, I've put forth a half-hearted effort to get my eating and exercising back on track, but my motivation usually melts as quickly as the chocolate chunks in my latest batch of brownies.  It's too hard.  I'm too stressed.  I want to change, but I don't want to put forth the effort and do the work that's required to see those changes take place.

Well, my friends, by God's grace, that ends today.  And one reason I'm sharing this with you is because it adds a little extra motivation to the mix.  (I can't very well back out now after I've told all of you that I'm going to change, can I?)  Seriously, I think a lot of the problem is the feeling of loneliness that accompanies a new health plan.  I know God is always with me, but sometimes it's nice to have a fellow human going through the same struggle I'm going through.  It's during these times and in this way that we can help and encourage one another.

Such is the basis for a new group I'm starting on Facebook.  I hope to have it up and running some time next week, but to do that, I need your help.  First, I'm trying to think of a good name for the group.  The site will be a place where Christians can gather to share healthy recipes, diet ideas, healthy living book reviews or suggestions, diet-related prayer requests, articles on food, nutrition and/or exercise, and anything else you can think of along the lines of living healthy and glorifying God with our bodies.  With that in mind, I've created a list of suggested titles, and I'd like to get your feedback on them.  You can go here and vote for your favorite title:  http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/MCG8RB5

Second, I need you to help me spread the word.  Tell your friends and family, and hey, even invite your enemies.  I want this site to be a haven and a source of strength and encouragement to all of us who are struggling to make difficult changes for the health of our bodies and in the process, our spirits.

I'll be sure to let you know as soon as the group has been formed and everything is ready to go.  I'll also be creating a separate blog for diet/health related articles and devotions.  I'll let you know as soon as that's ready too.  This is a big project, and I was a little scared about adding something else to my schedule, but I feel it's something the Lord wants me to do, and I also feel it is a vital step in getting back on track in my own healthy living plan.

For now, I'm off to war.  Will you join me?