This week was a Button Victory: 5 pounds lost in one week! And it is a particularly sweet victory, after my very difficult week last week (See previous post Wobbling In My Button Journey). It is also a Button Victory because up to this point I had not lost more than 2 pounds in a week, and most of the time was plugging away at losing just 1 pound a week.

There are so many lessons, and so many spiritual parallels in this Button Journey of mine, that at times it is both frightening, and joyful. Frightening because it takes courage to be this transparent, and joyful because I am learning so much about myself.

Here are just a few Victory Lessons I have learned in the past 3 months while traveling my Button Journey.

Victory Lesson #1

I cannot lose weight, or accomplish anything else that is a challenge for me without asking God for His help and strength.

There is a reason that the Apostle Paul said, “I can do all things through Christ who strengtheneth me.” (Philippians 4:13) Paul understood, that in God he could do much, but without God he could do little.

The Apostle Paul also said in Romans:

For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate…For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.

So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.

Paul understood, that despite our best efforts and intentions, we can fail. Many times we fail, not because we want to, but because we are weak by nature. As the Psalmist aptly put it, “He knoweth our frame, and remembereth that we are dust.” (Psalm 103:14)

Let’s face it, we are weak. We lose our temper, we show our selfishness, we struggle with jealousy, or any number of other things that are not Christ-like. At the end of the day, we look in the mirror and are disappointed at the person we were that day. We did not do what we intended to do. We did not example Christ. We fell short. We failed.

And it is in those moments, that we make crucial decisions that affect our future.

That’s where I was last week. I failed. I was tired. The excitement of my Button Journey had worn off. And I really just felt like chucking it all. But as I sat there on the side of my imaginary road, a spirit of encouragement swept over me. Why? Not because of anything I had done. But because I had applied Victory Lesson #1 from the start of My Button Journey. I had invited Christ into it. And I had acknowledged over and over again that I absolutely cannot do thing with out God.

And that is what the Apostle Paul was trying to teach the New Testament Church. He was, in essence, saying;

“You can do anything with God’s help – anything! But you aren’t going to do it perfectly, and you aren’t going to do it without setbacks. You will however get there, if you just remember to always, ALWAYS ask for God’s assistance. And not just in the pre-project excitement stage, but all along the way, and especially so when you have failed. Because you see, God is interested in progress not perfection. So as long as you keep trying, keep inviting Him into your situation, and keep repenting of your shortcomings you will get there.”

Amen, Apostle Paul! Amen!

Victory Lesson #2

I cannot do this without the help of others.

Whatever type of change you are trying to make, chances are it will not happen without the help of others. We were created for community. God made us to need each other. The family unit is one example. But so is the church, our jobs, and our neighborhoods. We were designed to grow and thrive in a communal environment.

There is strength in community.

Several weeks ago, I wrote about joining the Dick Pond Athletic’s Walk 2 Run program. (See original post Dick Pond and Me) In the post, I said that what struck me the most about this group of runners and walkers was the camaraderie and encouragement between the participants. As I walked along the edge of the track at a very slow 24 minute mile pace, runners would shout a word of encouragement to me as they ran by. And then afterwards, they would come up and tell me how proud they were of me, and how I inspired them.

There is strength in community.

I have also experienced the strength of community through posting about my Button Journey on social media. So many, many people have offered an encouraging word to me as I’ve posted about my buttons. And others have touched me so deeply by picking out special buttons to give me. Their kindnesses, their thoughtful button gifts, and their love has ministered to me so very deeply.

Victory Lesson #3

Success will not happen without accountability.

Accountability sounds great when we are at the peak of our motivation. In those moments, we are fully confident that we will succeed, so we happily invite others to cheer us on in our success. But when we fail,accountability is excruciating.

Who wants to tell the world, or even one trusted person that you compromised? That you went back on your commitment? That you fell off the wagon? That you sinned?

No one does. Yet, accountability is meaningless unless we are willing to be completely transparent.

You see, I know who I am.I also know that my weakness has enough of a hold on me that the only way to kill it at the root is to crucify my pride. I do this through transparent accountability.

For me, any attempt for genuine, heartfelt change that does not embrace accountability is a farce. My cake will not rise without the yeast of accountability.

Your Turn

What about you? What changes are you trying to make and how will you get there? What lessons have you learned on your journey to personal growth? Leave a comment, and let’s talk about it.