Holiday Season ~ Resist temptations or indulge?

Halloween, where we are loaded up with sweets that could last us more than a year, has already past.  Thanksgiving is just around the corner with Christmas following closely behind.  This is probably the hardest time for anyone who enjoys nearly any kind of food that exists because the worst of it is brought out.  All the fats and the breads.  Not to mention the cooler temperatures which I believe make us more inclined to indulge in all the fattening foods.

Since my last post I have not gained any weight.  In fact during the month of September I lost an additional 10 lbs!  I could not believe it.  Since September I dropped another 2 lbs, but I have been going up and down 5 lbs over the last several weeks.  In total I have lost almost 70 lbs.  Not quite, but I am close.  I am confident I can at least reach that much by Christmas if I can make it through all the holiday parties.

The benefit of taking this long with my weight loss is that I have established a lot of healthy habits. Habits that are not easily broken.  Okay, so more recently I have not been counting calories or exercising as much.  But I still continue to eat the right stuff and I do try to stay active throughout the day if I don't exercise.  It is evident to me that I have changed.  I don't even feel guilty allowing myself to have a few foods that may not be so healthy to me, but I know my limit.  I have come a long ways from the person that I once was over two years ago.  I don't beat myself up as much if I am not as strict on my diet and exercise because I know that I can always get back to it the next day.  Before, I would beat myself up and then I would abandon what I learned and gain all of my weight back.  Then I would beat myself up some more because I allowed myself to gain the weight.  This is not how God wants us to be.  He did not create us so that we could continuously beat ourselves up every time that we feel that we failed at something.  He created us in His image.  The last two years I have learned to love myself the way that I am.  I know that I am not perfect and there is always room for improvement, but God created me.  My body is created to be His temple.  His home should be a place of love, not of disgust, pity, self-doubt, or even hatred.  With all of these holidays approaching, remind yourself that your body is created by God in His image.  Take care of it.  Ask for Him to give you strength where it is needed and He will help you to resist that second helping of potatoes, sweet rolls, pumpkin pie, etc.  But also know that it is okay to eat those foods that you rarely have a chance to partake of.  All you need is a little taste.  Don't beat yourself up if you do indulge or fall into temptation, there is always tomorrow to start fresh.  Whatever you do, take care of the body that God has given you.