Gaining peace

Sorry I haven't been too good about posting lately. I stayed in over my lunch hour and just finished a nice salad. Between that and a pop-in visit from Jordan, one of my favorite students here at Bradley, I am motivated to check in here in again. Jordan tells me he has lost 30 lbs. since August. How cool is that?
I am so proud of him. He's one of those rare college students who weighs less now than when he came in as a freshman. He still wants to lose a few more pounds, but he looks wonderful. Of course, he always has!
I haven't gotten on the scale lately. It scares me to get on there because if I don't lose as much weight as I think I should, I get discouraged. So I'm better off staying away from the scales. Besides, I wasn't feeling the best for a few days last week and didn't get to work out like I normally do. I was back at it this morning, though. So between working out and staying in and eating a salad, I'm feeling really good about my efforts!
Oh, and yesterday, we were celebrating a birthday in the family and my sister made one of the recipes my niece Laura has tried as part of her anti-inflammatory diet. She is trying this new eating lifestyle in an attempt to beat migraines. You can find her blog at spicingupmylife.blogspot.com. Her blog includes recipes...we had the Southwest Chicken Tostadas, only we had flour tortillas (she had a whole wheat tortilla) and made them into tacos. Delicious, and guilt-free! Look it up and try it. I especially like the lime in the recipe...and my sister added corn to the recipe, too.
With Lent approaching, I am committed to being more faithful in my quest for inspiration by thinking and studying and writing about peace. Yesterday in Sunday School, we began a Lenten study. We watched a 10-minute video, then had a discussion. In the video, Adam Hamilton, the leader, talked about Luke 23:34 where Jesus is on the cross and says, "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do."
Adam makes the observation that "them" refers not only to the people there that day who wanted him crucified, but he was referring to all of us. He said that God's forgiveness, His love, was there waiting for us before we were even born. He drew an analogy saying it's like Christmas, when you have gifts under the tree. The gifts have been bought and are ready to be opened, but it's not until you open them on Christmas that you use them.
I especially am encouraged at the thought that people I know who do not believe in God also have their unwrapped gifts of love and forgiveness waiting for them. Talk about a giving tree! God keeps giving us more and more gifts every day. I found such peace in all of this. Knowing that God loves me this much, that he has even more unwrapped gifts waiting for me--some of them waiting for me as I follow Him more diligently and lose weight and get to do more of what He has planned for me--gives me such a thrill and a feeling of true peace.
As I've said before, this is the first time I've brought prayer and meditation into my weight loss journey. Wow, what a difference it makes. Today, I think about Jesus on the cross and know that essentially He was saying, "Father, forgive Nancy for she knows not what she is doing." This gives such an overwhelming peace. I mean, I've been foolish to not watch what I ate more closely all of these previous years. Yes, I've gone on diets and I've lost weight, but then, I've gained it all back and more. I didn't know how foolish I was being. I didn't think about consequences...I was thinking in the moment.
One dessert won't hurt me. A second helping won't hurt me. Now here I am, definitely slowed down by my weight and concerned that it could affect my health more than it already has. I was foolish, but I am at peace knowing that God is ready to help me, ready to hand me one more gift and then another if I will only follow Him...and if I do slip, He'll be there with a helping hand to lift me back up.
Now knowing that is true peace of mind!