What Will You Resort To?
ing Then Rachel said to Leah, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.” Genesis 30:14 (NKJV)
From my Bible commentary: The mandrake was thought to be a fertility aid. This interaction between Rachel and Leah reveals the continuing tendency of this family to resort to magic and trickery rather than to God. God had the last word: Rachel remained barren; Leah gave up the mandrakes, but she conceived.
I’ll first note that this devotion has nothing to do with family planning. God has gifted us with medicine and brilliant doctors who can help with all types of medical concerns. What the Holy Spirit showed me when I read this verse was how to apply it to our fitness.
Instead of a conversation between two women about fertility, imagine a conversation between two women about how she lost all her weight. The first thing one wants to know is how she did it. “What’s your secret? I want to try it too!” We’ve all been there. And if you didn’t ask her about it directly, you likely scrolled through her social media and read all the comments until you figured out how she did it. What was the magic pill, plan, or program?
You don't have to resort to diets to lose weight. The magic is in the simple and routine. It starts with building on a foundation of faith. Click To TweetIf you’re looking for magic, it isn’t in a diet plan. The magic is in routine. It’s in the simplicity of applying faith to every area of your life, including your health and fitness. As one of the women in the Faith and Fitness Membership Community said, “It’s so simple yet it’s made all the difference, and that’s the magic of it.”
Before I realized this, I resorted to whatever promised to help me lose a few pounds. Just like Rachel, I would’ve done anything. And I did! I took so many pills and supplements, having no idea if they were safe or not. I just knew that they promised to help me lose weight. Bonus if it targeted belly fat! I tried every diet there was. I was desperate to do whatever it took to move the needle on the scale.
But this kind of life was exhausting. Trying to manipulate my lifestyle to manipulate my body was exhausting. It was like a full-time job to search for and try every “trick” out there. (Speaking of job, it cost a lot of money too!)
But when I, like Leah, gave up the gimmicks and stopped buying into all the tricks that diet culture used on me, I learned a way to live a healthy lifestyle that is sustainable. I don’t need to resort to diets, gimmicks, and quick fixes anymore. (They didn’t work anyway!) And you don’t either. It was only when I gave up that pursuit that I had peace of mind and was able to live fit and free.
Action Step: Do you need to stop chasing “magic potions”? Will you entrust your health and fitness to the Lord? When you do, He will lead you and guide you and set you free.
Happy Sunday!
If you don’t know where to start, check out my Faith and Fitness Framework™.
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