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Reaching for a goal in slimming or otherwise.





Recently I decided to lose some weight.  I had a little health scare that turned out to be nothing, but by then it had given me the impetus to lose weight.  I set myself some targets to tick off on the way.  I had books from a well known slimming group from a previous time when I had slimmed with them.  I decided I would do it alone as long as I was succeeding.  After all why pay out good money for something I was confident I could do on my own. Since February I have lost a stone.  That’s fourteen pounds to my American friends. I’ve plateau-ed a bit now but I’m getting through that.  I’m keeping a diary of what I eat and comparing it with my daily weight.  Yes, I know they tell you to weigh once a week, but I find it helpful to keep a close eye on things and it doesn’t discourage me because I can usually see a reason for any ups and downs in weight. 

  So how much value do I put on physical well-being within the picture of my spiritual life? I haven’t suddenly turned into someone who must be ultra-slim and ultra-fit.  However it makes sense to look after the bodies God has given us.  If we are fit enough to go out and about and meet other people we are more likely to be a witness to them of the Christian life and our Saviour. If we can set ourselves goals for our bodies maybe we can set some for our spiritual lives.  However just as there are fad diets that get you nowhere there is a lot of phoney advice on how to improve your spiritual lives.  One of these is the Read the Bible in a year scheme.  It sounds like a good idea and can certainly make you feel super spiritual, but the amount you need to read each day practically inhibits you from really taking in the message of each passage;  far better to read the Bible at a slower pace and take it in and by all means work through the whole Bible. If you like make an attempt at the Bible in a year but don’t be despondent if you can’t keep it going; you are not alone. There are no brownie points in heaven for me losing weight and that is the same for the Bible reading scheme. We are saved by faith alone in Christ alone and not by how many hoops we can jump through that our Pastor produces for us.


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