The Meandering Mind of a Christian Woman

            In my previous post I mentioned my weakness for chocolate. I tried to do better this past week but, yet again I failed. You see, I have a tongue that likes to be the boss of my body; it frequently argues with my brain, my stomach and my joints. Today, the argument is between my knee and my tongue. My tongue has been winning in its temper tantrums for Diet Coke and chocolate and today my knee decided it was time to speak up to let me know it is time for water and complex carbs. (My knee is very wise.)             There are times my tongue prefers to be independent, it desires counsel from nothing. This can be a problem when it cuts loose without the consideration of the brain first. My brain always wants to throw common sense into the mix while the tongue takes great pride in a quick (usually sarcastic) comeback. Regret often follows. If I can control my tongue, hold it in check, the bible says I can; turn away wrath, produce wisdom, and be a tree of life among other

Sin. No one likes to admit or even speak of it. The idea of original sin raises much debate too. Simply put, sin is anything that separates us from God. The other thing about sin is that it usually looks so appealing, in the short term. Living in an instant gratification type world, sin is even more appealing. Lately, I have been getting a little discouraged with my journey to better health. The scale has been stuck in the same place for a while and Satan has used that discouragement and the temptation of temporary pleasure to pull me off track. I can feel him nudging me and saying “c’mon, a candy bar won’t hurt, you’ve been so good.” He is sneaky that way, one candy bar won’t hurt but my problem is that one leads to two which leads to three and so on until I have binged and the scale has moved… the wrong direction. Please, do not misunderstand me; I am not saying candy in itself is sinful, nor is being overweight. But it is a slippery slope for me to glide right into poor healt

            If someone had asked me about running a few years ago I would have said “never”. However, I have several friends who are runners and I have been intrigued by their passion for the activity. As I have started to participate in the running culture, I am beginning to understand the passion behind it. I don’t really see myself running a marathon but I no longer say “never”. I was inspired and influenced by my friends and by the desire to improve my health so I can look forward to productive retirement years (still more than a decade away).             Who do you influence? I had an interesting discussion with a young friend this week; she is not a believer. She doesn’t believe that we have purpose or that we meet people for a reason. She does believe each of us is a singular being without effect and when we die it is all over. I was saddened. I shared my beliefs and pointed out that she has influenced people and that in turn will influence other people in a ripple effect