From Appealing to Appalling

As I was doing my morning devotions today, this thought came to mind.  Excuses often times seem so appealing.  We can excuse away anything if we really want to but that is not in our best interest.  Christ doesn't want us to excuse away doing what He wants us to do.  What does it take for an excuse to go from appealing to becoming appalling?  This was the question in my mind today.  I don't want to excuse away being overweight with:

I am a stress eater so therefore I overeat.
I am bored so therefore I overeat.
I don't want this food to go to waste so therefore I overeat.
I have tried before and failed so therefore I overeat.
I have a coupon for this so therefore I overeat.

You can fill in whatever your excuses may be as well.  Today all of those excuses started to become appalling to me.  They have not helped me, but have rather hindered me to becoming the person I know God created me to be.  As I thought about this, Matthew 19:21 came to mind. "Jesus said unto him, if thou wilt be perfect, go and sell all that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me."  It is impossible to make excuses and still follow Christ.  Simple as that.  Christ doesn't want us to sit and juice in the things that are keeping us from Him.  He wants us to give them up and desire Him more than those things.  Following Him isn't something to take lightly.  It involves our whole heart, mind, and body.  Earlier in Matthew we read "Then Jesus said unto his disciples, if any man will come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me."  Matthew 16:24  It is through denying ourselves that we become filled.  If we want to conquer living our lives by making excuses, we need to give those excuses to God.  These thoughts today have been overwhelming.  I have, over the course of the past few months, distanced myself from the One who loves me more than anyone and who wants to see me become the person He desires me to be.  It is a lonely place of grieving.  It is a lonely place of longing.  It is a place that only He can fill.