Posted on December 30, 2009 - by Mary

Romans 12:1

Last night as I drifting off to sleep, God brought to my mind Romans 12:1-”Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God-this is your spiritual act of worship.” And as I laid there meditating on this scripture, God revealed why he laid it on my heart.

One of the things He showed me is that He created our bodies. This is obvious to most, I know, but let me clarify. As I continued to meditate on that thought, I realized not only do I not offer my body as a living sacrifice – holy and pleasing to Him – I also abuse my body. I have not taken care of the earthy vessel God gave me to worship and please Him with. I have all but destroyed it with the partying I did when I was younger, the promiscuous lifestyle I lived, over eating, not exercising, not eating enough of the good foods God created, and hating my body all of my life.

As I laid in my bed, I prayed and asked God to forgive me for not taking care of my body, the gift He gave me. And He has. So, now what am I going to do with this awesome gift I’ve had my entire life and never appreciated? I’m going to start exercising (actually I already began (again) the Fat Loss Quickie workout system the day before-hmmm, you think God knew when to speak to me about this???) and eating right, which means more fruits and veggies, cutting down portion sizes (who needs to eat that much anyway???) and drinking lots and lots of water.

I want to honor God with my body, with my whole being, not just in words and deeds, but with every aspect of my life, the life God has given me.

I was so blessed by this “revelation” and I wanted to blog about it right then and there, but I was already off my new schedule I just set for myself and frankly was dog tired. So, I prayed and asked God, that if He wanted me to blog about it, to share what He revealed with me to others, to bring these thoughts back to me this morning because I often get ideas for blog posts when I go to bed, but forget them in the morning (note to self: get a notebook and pen and place it on my nightstand). And guess what? He did, obviously because I’m typing this post. But, what’s interesting, to me anyways, is how He did it.

In my new schedule I set for myself, I start out the day with an hour devoted to God, reading a devotional, the bible and praying. My husband, son, his girlfriend and I recently started attending Celebrate Recovery at our church. I started attending in support of my son who is an addict, but of course God knew what He was doing and the program has been helping me to see and deal with a lot of issues I buried. I have dealt with most of my issues since my Salvation back in 1997, but there are a couple I haven’t thought about nor dealt with. But, I digress…back to the point. As I was going through my CR booklet, guess what today’s scripture is? Yep, Romans 12:1. I absolutely love it when God does that. I believe He was preparing me last night to receive that scripture just as I needed to today. Thank you Lord for loving me the way you do and knowing exactly what I need, when I need it and how I need it, in Jesus Mighty Name.

If you’re struggling with hearing from God and knowing His plan for your life, I want to encourage you to set a regular schedule for yourself. I am not one to live by a schedule normally…I’m more of a live by the seat of your pants kind of girl…and look where it’s gotten me…fat and in debt. Get on a schedule for yourself and start out your day with God. Share with him what’s on your heart, no matter how bad you think it is, or how big you think it is. God is BIGGER than your worst problems and He wants to help you through them. All you gotta do is ask and be open to receive and trust that He will never lead you astray or fail you. And though prayers may not appear to be being answered, trust me, trust God, they are. He is working it all out in His timing and in the way that is BEST for you.

What are some ways God has spoken to you in the past or recently?

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1. The Real Me
2. How a Heart Attack Changes Your Life
3. When You’re feeling the Squeeze, God has room to Move
4. You Were Created for this Exact Time and Place
5. Breaking Food Addiction