Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Healthy Girl 365, Day 29 - Prayer and Reflection

You would be forgiven for forgetting that at some point when I was starting this project, I promised it wouldn't all be about weight loss. I've kind of largely focused on that, I guess because it's the most urgent part of my journey that needs fixing. Anyway. Because I work at the most amazing place in the world, I get to go on an annual staff retreat in Mandurah! 2-3 days of bonding with my co-workers, good food and a little bit of vision/planning sprinkled in. Chris and I are so lucky! Today we were given an hour of personal prayer/reflection time after an all-staff catch-up over cake and hot beverages. Now, I haven't brought my faith into this blog yet (other than mentioning that I work within a Church office) but today I will and I hope not to alienate anyone by doing so! I believe that God can and should be my ultimate source of strength in all areas, including my attempts at gaining better health. I've clearly demonstrated throughout the years that I'm weak in this area, and so I am trying to lean on Him through prayer. I absolutely fall short, but I try. Prayer and reflection time is something that I admit I don't engage in nearly enough. Today's time was good. I found a bench near the resort where the retreat is being held and I sat there for an hour, reading, praying and listening. I spotted a bird flying over the water, and instead of gliding gracefully through the air it was flapping speedily the whole time. It occurred to me that birds are designed to fly without very much effort - they flap their wings and hold them at the right angle, and they literally glide through the air before having to flap again. They have some kind of aero-dynamic system built into their design. I don't know how it works so that's as science-y as I get! This bird wasn't relying on its built-in aero-dynamic support system. It was just flapping crazily and energetically, putting all the effort of flying solely into the movement of its wings.
All I can say is... I seem to be flapping a lot, and my arms are going to get tired sooner or later if I keep going in my own strength... Through this journey I've got an amazing support system of friends, many of whom are travelling similarly at the moment! That in itself is an amazing start support-wise but still doesn't compare to doing things in God's strength rather than my own.
If you believe in God, then I encourage you to bring Him into your journey of health! He knit you together before you were even born, and His intention for you is not that you trash your carefully designed body by being overweight and unfit.

No comments:

Post a Comment