A few years back, I completed the Spartan race. One of the events was the bucket brigade. For about 400 yards, I had to carry a 5-gallon bucket filled with concrete weighing in at around 50 lbs. As you can imagine, it was challenging and cumbersome. If I tried to grip it under the bucket, the sharp edge would cut into my hands. The best way was to bearhug it using every single muscle I could to make sure that bucket did not slip out of my muddy grip. 

The whole time I was thinking about that load I was carrying.  I wished I could just put it down and take a break. I did my best to get comfortable with it never got easier. 

Have you ever tried to run or walk while holding something heavy in your arms? Maybe you did an event like me, or you’ve grabbed a few dumbbells and went on a run. 

The weight has a way of slowing you down and stealing your focus. 

In my 20s, the unnecessary burden I was carrying wasn’t a physical load during a fun event. It was an emotional and relational burden. One that I held for over a decade. 

To put it bluntly, I hated my body.  I was ashamed of the neglect I’d shown myself. I was so desperate to change how I looked that I would cycle between punishing myself at the gym and restricting my foods to becoming so burned out and overwhelmed that I gave everything up. 

I was so myopically focused on the outward appearance that I never realized what it was doing to my relationships.

Even more so, the unnecessary burden was keeping me from living the life God created for me.

Thankfully in 2017, I put that weight down. You can read about it here: Prioritizing Spiritual Growth.

What is the unnecessary weight you are carrying? What’s keeping you from confidently pursuing God’s purpose He created just for you? 

Like me, maybe the burden of poor body image keeps you from fully showing up for life.

Sister, it’s time to put that weight down.

It’s time to see yourself as Jesus sees you – lovely, wonderfully made, and worth pursuing. 

Stop looking to the scale for acceptance. Seeing a certain number on your tag is not an invitation to finally love your body. 

A number will never define your worth.  

God does, and you are worth dying for  – Jesus proved that on the cross.

We must get rid of everything that slows us down, especially sin that distracts us. We must run the race that lies ahead of us and never give up.

Hebrews 12:1