Dave 25- Vanity

Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity. Ecclesiastes 1:2

I myself find this to be a very true statement.  All is vanity or as the NIV Bible says "Meaningless".   Today was a day of feelings and emotions.  Truth be told, I sometimes wonder why in the world we had to have them.  Let me give you some background and then tell you about today.

I have spent 11 years at the exact same weight.  I hadn't gained and I hadn't lost any weight (despite the numerous attempts).  In October of 2011,  a foot condition that I had battled with before returned and this time sat me down for several months.  After numerous attempts to correct the problem surgery became necessary, which is the surgery I just had 2 weeks ago.   Anywho...(yes, I said who)...during this 6 month stretch of Dr. recommended foot elevation and not being able to hardly walk most days....this sister gained a whopping 15lbs.

....Back to today..... 

So, after months of sweats and pjs, today I decided to wear real clothes.  I put on my jeans and found out where I gained my weight at as I pulled them up and had to force them over the great rumpbehinya (or shall I say behindme).  The thighs of my pants were also so "Skintastic".  This was so to the point that though it was not a problem to fasten them, I was not being seen by anyone in them.  This brought me to that place that anyone struggling with weight has been a million times.

....In the past......

In my past today would have sunk me.  I would have cried, been ashamed, and let it ruin my entire day as I wondered what people thought of me because I DID NOT LIKE ME!  You heard it right.  There was a time in my life that I hated what I saw in the mirror, that I was ashamed of myself and that I did not possibly understand how the entire world did not see the same thing that I saw and if my pants didn't fit I acted as if it were the end of the world.

What changed me?  God changed me!  I knew God's Word to be true and I begin to studied who the Word says that we are to have a foundation to stand on when I needed encouraging.  Along the way, God showed me how much he valued me.  I then began to speak the Word that I had studied and had taken notes on each time that I felt down on myself.  The Holy Spirit had shown me that if I lost weight, it would not make me feel any better because the real battle was in my mind and that had to be conquered first.  God began to change my thinking and each time an occasion arose for negative thinking, I quoted the scripture and it brought me through.  I then learned that there were so many others with the same problem I had of devaluing themselves as we looked to the standards set on TV instead of finding their true value in God's Word.  With the Holy Spirit's guidance I wrote a series on loving yourself.  This was a major step in my healing.

...Back to today....

So, I am at the place of my pants are too tight and I know it ain't right!  Instead of handling it like in the past....I handled it the way that wisdom taught me to handle it so that I can always have victory.  I took off the jeans and dressed all the way up so that I would look good, feel good and leave no room for the enemy as I reminded myself that it was all vanity and I encouraged myself!  I told myself that I would not allow my clothing to dictate my mental or emotional state of being.  You see, I learned years ago that looking good can make you feel good so I don't worry about the occasion when I come to one of these moments, I just dress up.  I dress up and I don't give myself time to even ponder on the meaningless event of the day. (Thinking on things and replaying them in your mind is like packing a back and the more times you replay it the more junk you are putting in it and then you carry it around with you.  When you learn to let it go, there is no baggage and you can freely move forward.)

God loves us (John 3:16) and he created us for his pleasure(Colossians 1:16).  There is no where in the Bible where it says that if you are overweight, bald or have any other physical blemish that He will stop loving you.  God loves you and this is what matters!  I encourage each of you to learn to love yourself as you study who God says we are.  Learn to focus on what does matter, God!

Blessings.