I wanted to speak a little on that this morning.
We've got to remember that our next step determines our future. Whether that's in your parenting, your marriage, your friendships, or your weight loss journey. That very next step helps determine your future!
We have to make the COURAGEOUS choice. Saying I'm sorry, admitting you were wrong, asking for forgiveness or throwing out that food that keeps taunting you.....those are the choices that take COURAGE to make.
It's a choice. We have to choose to be courageous and not stay stuck in those moments. We have to choose not to be consumed.
Remember, one healthy choice helps you move forward toward wholeness in your marriage, friendship, or health. And when you went two steps forward and one step back, you STILL WENT ONE STEP FORWARD. Hold on to that victory and celebrate it. Thanking God for it! Don't let Satan keep you defeated.
1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 says "May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it." (emphasis mine)
The meaning of sanctify is to set apart. The God of peace wants to set you apart by your spirit, soul and body. I love how he throws body in there. In this healthy lifestyle journey I have to remind myself that I don't have to be faithful - I just have to stand with the One who is faithful. Allow the temptation I'm facing to remind me of the Holy Spirit's power INSIDE OF ME to fight back and win. I can't do it on my own strength, but I can on HIS.
Lysa Terkeurst says in "Made to Crave" that "God will give you the power to become more courageous than you ever knew you could be."
Genesis 50:20 tells us that what Satan intends for evil, God changes and uses for HIS GOOD.
It's Monday. A new week is starting. Maybe you failed miserably over the weekend. You said something you shouldn't have. You made a terrible decision. You completely failed your health. Whatever it was - leave it there. Spend time this morning thanking God for the ability to fight back and win through HIS POWER. Ask Him for courage. Ask Him for strength. Ask Him to set you apart and give you the freedom you need to move forward, even during a hard moment or season.
It's a brand new week. Dedicate it to Him and push forward. Make the courageous choice!