Do you ever struggle with weight loss impatience? I know the feeling!
But the following short story and Biblical principle may help.
A Proper View of Time
A mature lady in her 60s decided that she wanted to become a doctor. She told a friend about her intention.
But instead of support, the friend scoffed.
She said, "Are you crazy? How long is that going to take...8, 10 years? Why, you'll be in your 70s by then!"
The lady looked at her friend and replied gently, "Time is going to pass anyway. I choose how I want my time to pass. I am choosing to pass my time working on my dream.
And if God should grant me to live into my 70s, I will get there AND I will have my medical degree!"
Weight Loss and the Power of Time
To bring this story back to weight loss, let's say that you decide to lose 50 pounds. You thought it would take 6 months, but 6 months have passed already and you are disappointed that you've "only" lost 25 pounds.
What do you do with your time after that?
- Choice #1: Go back to your old habits. Since they made you gain the excess weight in the first place, you'll regain the 25 pounds you lost and likely more. As someone once said, "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing, but expecting different results."
OR
- Choice #2: Say to yourself "I guess this is going to take longer than I thought," and celebrate the 25 pounds you did lose. Then recommit to giving the process the time it needs to finish. You decide to keep working on your dream each day, confident that your choices are leading you to become fitter and healthier.
Just like the lady in the story, you realize that time is going to pass anyway - whether you are pursuing your dreams or not.
You choose how you want your time to pass.
Choice #2 implements a Biblical principle:
"...that you do not become sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises (Hebrews 6:12)."
Did you get that? It takes two things to inherit God's promises: Faith and patience.
Many people have faith, but don't exercise patience. So they abort the change process because they get impatient and quit.
But here is the sad part: A few months later, they catch a glimpse of a fuller face in the mirror, see a new roll of fat on their bodies, or have problems getting into an old outfit.
They get depressed and to make themselves feel better, they start a new diet. But it doesn't last either. The newness wears off after about 10 days.
Impatience rears its ugly head again. Soon afterwards, they quit again.
It is like night following day!
That is a losing cycle. To get out of it, you must get the following reality into your heart. Repeat this statement out loud:
"Impatience leads to quitting. Quitting increases my chances to 100% that I will never reach my dream. Quitting is not an option. I will add patience to my faith each day and LIVE in the meantime. With faith and patience, I will obtain God's promises."
Stopping the Insanity of Impatience
Think about this principle another way: A farmer plants corn seeds because he wants a cornfield. But suppose the farmer goes back to look at the garden he planted, but the plot of ground looks exactly the way he left it. The farmer says to himself, "This is taking too long!"
The farmer proceeds to dig up the seeds he planted.
He moves to another plot of ground, planting more corn seeds. But again, after a week, the same thing happens. The garden plot looks the same on the surface.
So he digs that one up too.
If the farmer kept repeating this pattern with new plots of ground and seeds, wouldn't you say that he has a short-sighted outlook?
Wouldn't you advise him to stop moving about and just work his plot of ground faithfully, watering and taking care of the seeds he's planted until the harvest comes?
That farmer failed to understand the process of time is built right in the middle of seedtime and harvest. God designed it that way and there is no way around it:
“While the earth remains, Seedtime and harvest, Cold and heat, Winter and summer, And day and night Shall not cease (Genesis 8:22).”
Time is the great multiplier. Our daily choices build upon one another (compound) over the years.
So spend your time working on your dream, even if you do something small to move you in the right direction.
Praise God during the process, cultivating a thankful heart. Praise gives you strength and it will help you grow in patience.
Remember, you can't get God's promises without patience. So add patience to your faith and keep praising during the process. With time, you will obtain God's promises!
"Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers (3 John 1:2)."
Be blessed in health, healing and wholeness,
Kimberly Taylor
Author of the Take Back Your Temple program
P.S. Do you struggle with eating too much sugar? If so, you are not alone!
Overcoming sugar addiction was a key factor on my journey to losing 85 pounds and dropping from a size 22 to a size 8.
In our 14-day Sugar Detox Challenge (inside the the Take Back Your Temple program), you’ll get the same success strategies and support to gain peace in your eating habits and achieve lasting weight loss success.
Click here to learn more about the Take Back Your Temple program.