permission to *not* take the pill
*Super duper important DISCLAIMER: Before you read this, I need you to know that I am in no way talking about or implying anything about anti-depressants when I’m talking about “not taking the pills.” I am a FIRM believer that anti-depressants save and change lives for the better, including my own. It’s ok to love Jesus, go to counseling, AND take that kind of pill.
Hey lovely!
Is there a pill for this?! You’ve asked yourself this, right? Even if you’re anti-medicine and all the things...you’ve HAD to have asked yourself, at one point or another, if there’s a magical pill that you can take that would drop those pesky pounds, kick that addiction to the curb, or *poof* fix that relationship causing you all types of stress.
I get it. In fact, I did it. Not just asked myself if there was a pill. I actually paid money for the pills. Took the pills. And paid the price. For the full story, you’re going to want to watch or listen to this week’s episode of the Megaphone podcast, but here it is in brief:
I discovered I had a problem. I was feeling a little “fluffy.” I had tried on a pair of shorts that I was pretty confident fit loosely last summer and they were, to put it mildly, a bit snug. Among several other small moments of that nature, I decided - ok, I officially had a problem.
And, if I was honest with myself, I knew the cause. I was showing absolutely zero restraint when it came to my consumption habits. If I wanted it, I ate it or drank it. Down. the. Hatch. I was treating my body like a dumpster. Never in my life have I ever eaten as poorly as I have this past few months. And I just felt gross. From the inside out, which is even worse than feeling great on the inside but thinking you look bad on the outside.
I knew the solution. BUT. I didn’t want to do the work. Say no? Stop buying manager special bakery goods on impulse at Kroger? Not finish all of the kids’ leftover Easter candy? Pass.
And then I thought, you know what it must be?! My age. My metabolism is slowing down. I’ve heard about this. It’s finally happening. But I still didn’t want to do the work. So, I found the magic pills.
Well, to be fair, they found me via an intro ad on a YouTube video. Done and doner. The sales guy had me at “Did you know that the average adult has 5-20 pounds of poop just wasting away in the linings of their intestines?! Causing this and that and this and that….” And that was all it took. I was sold that this was my problem. We had suspected it, but now it was confirmed by science. I was full of….ummm...poop.
I’ll fast forward this part of the story. Bought the colon cleanse. Took the colon cleanse pills as directed. Suffered the consequences. And did enjoy the rewards of a couple pounds down and bloating all but gone. Yay me, and sorry to anyone that I knocked over on my mad dashes to the public restrooms.
Thankfully, I used this momentum as a catalyst to actually do the work. And so now I’m doing the work. AND FEELING AMAZING INSIDE AND OUT. But usually, let’s be honest. We don’t. We don’t do the work. We want the pill. The quick fix. The short cut.
I don’t want to be consistent in counseling -- it takes too long. I don’t want to stick to a workout routine -- it’s been 3 days and all I am is sore. I don’t want to take the time to learn a new skill -- I want to have it mastered in a week or I quit.
We do this! And there are several reasons (excuses) that point to some deeper issues. Fear of failure, laziness, victim mentality, impatience, depression. These all make sense, but they are the things holding us back from becoming the women God created us to be.
You either want the result or you don’t. That’s the tough love I had to eventually give myself (and I do over and over during every silly season -- pill or no pill.) I want the result. So that comes down to pain. We’re going to experience pain either way. The pain of discipline or the pain of regret.
Discipline sucks. It’s hard sometimes. I don’t want to say no to donuts and yes to steamed broccoli. I don’t want to stand firm on my boundary because I don’t want to hurt your feelings. I don’t want to. There’s pain associated with discipline. But if we don’t use our discipline (AND tap into the power of the Holy Spirit who gives us all the strength and discipline we need to accomplish His plans within us!), we’ll experience the pain of regret.
The pain of regret, when you have to go buy new shorts in a bigger size for the summer. Regret when you signed up for that half marathon and your 5-mile training run isn’t quite cutting it. Regret when you’re still dealing with that massive, crippling insecurity months and months later because counseling was pretty tiring.
You’ve got to choose, sweet friend. And as you do, remember that you’re never ever alone. The pain of discipline will not only produce incredible results, it will produce a perseverance within you, a trust stronger than you thought possible in God, and a refined character with an incredible testimony to lead others out of where you’ve been.
Choose that.
And listen to this week’s podcast episode -- where you’ll hear some of these truths, and a lot more hilarity, because, let’s face it. When 2 BFFs get together and talk about colon cleansing -- things just happen.
Hey, if you’re needing a little boost, download your free copy of Deeply-Rooted, the 12-Day Devotional Journey that will help you take intentional steps in getting anchored in that power we talked about earlier.
AND! AND! Join us, please please! For the Maximize Your Me-Time Workshop -- either LIVE on Saturday, May 15th in the Indy area, or virtually (on-demand, on your own time!) Get your tickets here. It’s going to be GREAT.
Ok, friend...I talked too long. But I just love ya! And want freedom and growth for you so badly! Dig in and enjoy!
xoxo,
Lisa
