Lessons

I know...don't laugh...I tried something new today!

Kickboxing!!

Let me start at the beginning. My good friend, Abby, invited me to go with her! I'm all for new things, but I had one MAIN hesitation. You see, she goes at...hahmmm...6:00 AM!!! I shudder as I type it!

I am NOT a morning person and rarely see 6:00 am....or 6:30....I could go on. But, in order to be there at 6:00 am, gasp, I had to set my alarm for 5:30! (This is when I'm thankful for small town living and the fact that it takes less than 5 minutes to get anywhere!) Unfortunately I'd gone to bed at my "regular" time (late) and then my daughter woke me at 4:00 am...and there wasn't much sleep until 5:00. It would've been so much better for me to just get up! But I couldn't! My bed was too warm!!! Then it happened...

My alarm went off. I had fallen into such a hard sleep I couldn't figure out where the noise was coming from! I hurriedly hit the snooze so not to wake my daughter...and laid there thinking about all the reasons why I should send Abby a text and tell her I couldn't make it!

1.) I didn't sleep well....
2.) I had cheese tots with bacon at 10:30 pm last night...
3.) I will look like an idiot....

4.) What if I have to go to the bathroom?  Have you seen that bathroom? I went in there and obviously little boys had been in there. There were 2 toilets and both were stuffed with all sorts of things...every container was... "Kristi! Are you going to get up?!"

Oh my goodness I must have dozed off to sleep! What a crazy dream! I've never even been to this place! WOW, my body really doesn't want me to go!!

I grabbed up my stretchy pants and T-Shirt laughing about the goofiest dream of the dirty bathroom, threw myself together and headed downstairs.

I bundled up and thought I had better get some water...so I placed my cup under the ice machine...and apparently fell back to sleep because the next thing I know ice is all over the floor....seriously...me and mornings are NOT friends!

Then, I did what every good woman does...I went to the bathroom "one more time!" You know, just in case the bathroom there was actually as my dream had depicted! I laugh!

I have to say...I had fun, though I did receive a boo-boo from the gloves I had to wear! I didn't look any funnier than anyone else as they tried to raise their legs up to kick that "good mommy" bag! I got a lot of good punching in! It felt good! And I never had to locate the restroom!

I came home still laughing at myself...and starving after working off the late-night cheese-tots!

I started thinking about obedience! When God asks us to do something...do you find your "body" (flesh) fighting against that obedience? 


It's so much easier to stay in our "comfortable bed" and keep our eyes closed to all the work that surrounds us.  


Paul says of his flesh, " I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do." (Romans 7:15) 


I knew that kickboxing would be good for me! 


We know to obey is the right thing to do...but do we? Obedience is so big to God that He talked about it a TON in Scripture! 


And, another thing...I came home hungry! And I'm not a breakfast person either!


I'm certain of one thing, once we begin to take in more of God we become more hungry. When we learn to obey and that becomes practice, we hunger increasingly for more of what God has for us!

If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father'scommands and remain in his love. John 15:10.


When we are obedient as a habit, we learn that we can't get enough! And we are changed in some way...even if it hurts a little it's so good for us. (My boo-boo still burns.) You see, I don't obey God to receive blessings. But, when I obey God, I am blessed! It's a great cycle: love God, obey, change, blessings, love God more, obey, change, blessings...it continues.


I'm thankful that God doesn't give up on us after one missed attempt at obedience. 


He keeps persisting...just like my friend Abby! Now I have some others to work on...gotta run!