Run the race...Just be sure to run your own!
Real talk: Sometimes, I get intimidated by people at the gym.
Take a couple of weeks ago, for example: there was a gal in there who was, by all stretches of the imagination, petite. Yet she was pulling down 100, 120 lbs of weight like it was NOTHING. I can barely lift a 45-lb weight on my own, let alone set it back on the stand. J usually has to help me.
Guys are in there with biceps as big as my face, benching God-knows-how-much like it's NOTHING. I can't even lift the bar.
Intimidation. Ya feel me?
In other areas of my life, the intimidation looks a little different. I think we call it comparison. I know I tend to camp out there sometimes. Seeing all the happy couples on social media, it gets me thinking, "Gee, I bet they have a great marriage. They probably don't struggle as much as J and I seem to at times. I bet their communication is great and they never disagree."
Comparison. Ya feel me?
At the gym, as I was watching Petite Beast do her thing, I remembered something that my Refit instructor Nicole has said many times: "We are all on our own fitness journeys. It's never going to look the same for two people, and that's okay." Refit celebrates different bodies, different life journeys, different sizes. At that moment, I stopped and told myself, "I am on my own fitness journey." I hope that the next time I go to the gym, I will remember to tell myself that, knowing that who I am and where I am is perfectly fine, and I don't need to feel bad about where everyone else is compared to where I am.
Petite Beast and the big guys who can bench hundreds of pounds, at one point all started out at the same place: started small, getting their feet wet, gently testing their limits, taking time to build up to where they are now. And I can ask any married person who's been married longer than 5 minutes, and they'll tell me that every "happy" couple on social media certainly is not happy 100% of the time, does not go without struggles, and has crappy communication and disagreements.
Thinking about all of this led me to remember a passage in Scripture...well, a couple, actually:
"The peace that surpasses all understanding."
Hopefully, the next time I'm tempted to camp out in comparison, or be intimidated by those at the gym, I'll remember to fix my eyes on Jesus. Hopefully, I'll remember that we are all running a race, this race of life, and the only one I need to focus on is the one that Jesus has laid out before me. His ways are higher, His word is Truth, His love covers all, His grace is enough, and He knows every detail of our lives.
And guess what? He's totally okay with my weight lifting skills...or lack thereof. Whew!
Take a couple of weeks ago, for example: there was a gal in there who was, by all stretches of the imagination, petite. Yet she was pulling down 100, 120 lbs of weight like it was NOTHING. I can barely lift a 45-lb weight on my own, let alone set it back on the stand. J usually has to help me.
Guys are in there with biceps as big as my face, benching God-knows-how-much like it's NOTHING. I can't even lift the bar.
Intimidation. Ya feel me?
In other areas of my life, the intimidation looks a little different. I think we call it comparison. I know I tend to camp out there sometimes. Seeing all the happy couples on social media, it gets me thinking, "Gee, I bet they have a great marriage. They probably don't struggle as much as J and I seem to at times. I bet their communication is great and they never disagree."
Comparison. Ya feel me?
At the gym, as I was watching Petite Beast do her thing, I remembered something that my Refit instructor Nicole has said many times: "We are all on our own fitness journeys. It's never going to look the same for two people, and that's okay." Refit celebrates different bodies, different life journeys, different sizes. At that moment, I stopped and told myself, "I am on my own fitness journey." I hope that the next time I go to the gym, I will remember to tell myself that, knowing that who I am and where I am is perfectly fine, and I don't need to feel bad about where everyone else is compared to where I am.
Petite Beast and the big guys who can bench hundreds of pounds, at one point all started out at the same place: started small, getting their feet wet, gently testing their limits, taking time to build up to where they are now. And I can ask any married person who's been married longer than 5 minutes, and they'll tell me that every "happy" couple on social media certainly is not happy 100% of the time, does not go without struggles, and has crappy communication and disagreements.
Thinking about all of this led me to remember a passage in Scripture...well, a couple, actually:
"And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith..." -Hebrews 12: 1b-2
"Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you. Give careful thought to the paths for your feet, and be steadfast in all your ways. Do not turn to the right or the left..." -Proverbs 4: 25-27I'm supposed to fix my eyes on Jesus, not on those around me, not even on what others around me may be thinking. What would our lives look like if we focused on Him, and not on the thousands of daily distractions, or the worries of what others may think, or comparing our journeys to others? I imagine it would bring about, oh what does the Bible say...
"The peace that surpasses all understanding."
Hopefully, the next time I'm tempted to camp out in comparison, or be intimidated by those at the gym, I'll remember to fix my eyes on Jesus. Hopefully, I'll remember that we are all running a race, this race of life, and the only one I need to focus on is the one that Jesus has laid out before me. His ways are higher, His word is Truth, His love covers all, His grace is enough, and He knows every detail of our lives.
And guess what? He's totally okay with my weight lifting skills...or lack thereof. Whew!
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