Getting Back On Track…part 2

So in my last post, Getting Back On Track, I talked about how I made a “wrong turn” on this journey.

Now, you would think I would have immediately recognized the shift.  After all, clothes may fit a little tighter than before, but we blame that dryer for shrinking our clothes.  The stairs I used to take…I am not out of breath because of weight gain. No, they must have added stairs, and I am a little older, so that must be it.  There is clearly a reason for why I am here…and it is all these external factors, and not me.

As I think back to when I lost the weight, I have to admit that I do not think I fully recognized the work I had to do in order to get there. Full transparency, I did not think it was what I was doing, but rather the side effect of the medication that caused the rapid weight loss.  This was one of the first mistakes I made: I did not acknowledge the work that was put in to get me to my new place.  While I may have experienced it, I allowed the mind to “justify” what had taken place.  

This led to my second mistake: I did not continue/maintain that which I had learned. Now, granted, my life did shift. I had moved across the country, started a new job, and lived in a hotel for 6 months.  So I did what seemed to make sense at the time: nothing and all the wrong things at the same time.  Salmon and broccoli was no longer my go to meal. Working out, flipping tires, lifting weights? Nope! Not in the cards.  My life had shifted. The problem is, I did not have, or make a plan to adjust with the changes.

You see, life happens.  Things will change and shift on us.   The key is to not lose sight of what we do to get to the place(s) in our lives where we desire to be, especially spiritually.  This is where I am finding myself right now.  As I look back over the journey, this was truly a walk of faith. There was some intense praying and fasting that took place. There were some sleepless nights, as I chose to spend time in prayer and meditation.  I was in my own “spiritual boot camp”.  And as I experienced my “spiritual boot camp” my spiritual muscle grew and the weight of sin/the world/etc. fell off.  But, just as I allowed the shift of life to get me off course with my workout, I found myself shifting in my spiritual workout.  Now, don’t get me wrong, I was still praying, but honestly, I had pulled back from the intensity I was used to. I got comfortable and eventually complacent.

How often do we find ourselves in this same place?  We worked hard to get to a particular place, and now, we are tired and just want to enjoy the fruits of our labor. And while there is nothing wrong with enjoying the rewards, we must remember to maintain what we did in order to get to this next level, otherwise we run the risk of reverting back to the old.

So, if you find yourself, like me, where you have stopped your “spiritual boot camp” wagon, it is not too late to start again.  Take a moment to reflect on, not how you got off track, but rather, what you did when on track.  The enemy wants to play with our minds and make us doubt ourselves. We are great at justifying and beating ourselves up for getting off track. The key is not to focus on getting off track, but rather staying on track.  Yes, we acknowledge it happened, and it may be helpful to recognize the triggers that may have gotten us off, but we can not stay there.  Instead, focus on moving forward.  

Andraé Crouch’s song “Take Me Back” is so fitting. Remember where you were, and how you felt when closer to God.  Know that He is waiting for you (us). He will wipe away our tears.  He is still calling.  Clearly what we are doing is not working.  So instead of continuing the bad habits we reverted back to, let’s get back on track.  We have the necessary tools already: so let’s pick up our Bible again, pick up our prayer routines again, and use the same intensity of spiritual boot camp we experienced to get here, to continue to grow into the people God has designed us to be.