"Faithbit"

                A year ago I received a Fitbit from my children as a Mother’s Day gift. It has been a great source of motivation to me. This device tracks my steps, miles walked, and calories burned. Additionally, it tracks my sleep pattern. Upon awakening each day I can view a report that tells me how many hours I slept, how many times I awakened during the night, and how much time I was restless.

                I was thinking about the sleep report today as I took a walk. Logging my miles I began to talk to the Lord, telling Him how much I regret the time I’ve lost to worry.  You see, worry and fear are two of the things I struggle with.   As I continued walking and praying, I was struck by a thought.  The time I spend in “restless” mode each night accomplishes nothing. It neither refreshes me nor strengthens me.  Tossing and turning only frustrates and agitates me.  Pondering these thoughts, I felt the Lord say to me, “So it is with worry, Leslie”.  Worrying doesn’t refresh me nor does it strengthen me. In fact, worrying does quite the opposite. 

                Tossing and turning in frustration in my bed is no different than tossing and turning something over and over in my mind. I have a choice and I am not powerless in this situation.  I can choose to toss and turn and struggle with my fears and doubts or I can choose to trust and rest in the Lord. Worry is simply choosing to meditate on the “what ifs”. There is another choice. I can choose to meditate on God’s promises, His goodness, and His love. 

                At this point many of you may be saying, “if only it were that easy”.  It isn’t an easy choice.  Choosing faith over fear is often a battle. Our flesh and minds cry out in fear and we need to silence that fear. How? I’m learning that the deeper I am in the Word, the more I praise Him, and the more time I spend communicating with Him, the stronger my spirit grows. 

                Our walk with the Lord is a lot like continuously training. When I began my Fitbit journey last year, my body whined and complained. I kept moving forward and gradually increasing my steps and miles, knowing strength and endurance are being built with each step. I’ve also learned to rest and hydrate myself properly.  So it is with the Christian walk. We need to truly rest in the Lord, filling ourselves with the living water of His word.  Only then will we have the strength to continue on and run the race. 

                I don’t want fear and worry to hold me back or slow me down. Both of these are just sins used to distract me. When I’m tempted to give in to these tactics of the enemy, I need to dig deep into the Word of God to remind me of His great faithfulness.

“Since we are surrounded by so many examples of faith, we must get rid of everything that slows us down, especially sin that distracts us. We must run the race that lies ahead of us and never give up.” (Hebrews 12:1 GWT)

                My Fitbit allows me to set goals and gives me feedback on my progress. I like having goals and I appreciate feedback.  When it comes to my faith, I want to be like Paul.

  “However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.” (Acts 20:24)

                May the Lord richly bless each of you with refreshment, strength, and endurance!

                                                                                                Leslie