When God Seriously Expects Great Things...

I am a little hesitant to post this blog post.  There is a lot more to be accountable for when you put your thoughts into words for everyone to read.  It strikes a chord of fear when I think "but what if I never get there?"  You are probably wondering "What is Ruth rambling about now?"  Well here it is.  Out there for you read.

I have been praying about what weight God would have me to reach.  I have prayed several times concerning this because I am a goal setter.  Several times the same numbers have come to mind.  My first response was "SERIOUSLY LORD?  You do know who I am, right?  I am Ruth and I can't remember the last time I weighed so little."  I prayed again and a day or so later the same numbers came to mind out of the blue.  This time I said "But Lord, that is half of where I started.  I would be half of me."  I prayed again, gave it much thought, and once again the same numbers came to mind.  My response this time was "But Lord, what about all the excess skin?"  Now, I realize that with exercise, there will be some help in that area but when you are talking over 150 lbs lost, there is bound to be some excess "baggage" that sags and such.  As I was playing this out in my mind, I actually said in my heart "But Lord, I cannot afford plastic surgery to fix the excess skin issue."  (I know, probably way too much TMI...but this is something that concerns me.)  Today before Sunday School I was thinking about this again and my mind became at peace.  I remembered once again that God is not limited by statistics or by money.  If my desire is to keep my body in submission to Him, then I just need to do the next thing to get there.  I cannot worry about the outcome because I honestly do not know what the outcome will be until I get there and to let fears control me is to be sinning.  I want my testimony to be what people see, not my obese body.  I truly believe my physical state right now could keep someone from seeing Christ and their need for Him because I have lived for self, and all the gluttony.  What God desires of me is to do the following:

"But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest... I myself should be disqualified." 1 Corinthians 9:27 (ESV)