The Weight Loss Pill

I’m in the fourth week of an intensive exercise and diet regimen that a personal trainer friend gave to me.  I’ve been working out hard for 60 to 90 minutes a day, six days a week, and I’ve stuck to the eating plan, with only a couple of minor exceptions.  After four years of P90X, I was ready for a new challenge, and this one has been great!

As I was driving home from the gym last week, I heard a commercial on the radio for a new “break through” weight loss pill.  The advertiser claimed that it is so easy!  All you have to do is take this pill and the weight will fall off.  You don’t have to change the way you eat and you don’t even need to exercise.  This pill will make you lose weight with no effort at all!

I laughed as I listened to the commercial, and thought, “Why am I working out so hard and watching my diet with such discipline?”  The answer to that question is this … because I want my results to last.  So many people are so focused on the immediate goal of losing weight they will try anything to do it.  But soon after they lose the weight, they put it right back on.  They have their eyes on a short-term goal, and fail to make the lifestyle changes that are required to maintain a healthy body.  To get results and make them last, you have to have a long-term plan.  A lifetime plan that requires a change in the way you live.

I thought about how we often treat our Christianity the same way.  We come away from church feeling convicted after a sermon, or we read a book that talks about changing the way we live, and we take a stab at changing, with no commitment to a lifetime change. We feel great for a short time, and then lose interest in growing in our Christian walk.  It’s no wonder we often experience spiritual highs followed by a crash back down to our old reality.  This is very common after a short term mission trip.  It’s easy to evangelize in a different country where nobody knows you and will never see you again.  But to evangelize among our friends and live as a “letter from Christ” at home takes commitment.

I’ve been working on this commitment for the past year, making the effort to deepen my relationship with Christ and to seek His face daily.  I encourage you, my friends, to make that commitment as well, if you haven’t already done so.  Don’t just lose the weight.  Get healthy!