Without Works

This past Sunday we had a wonderful lesson on Faith. As I've indicated before, Faith is the first step to change. The lesson manual states:

Faith is a principle of action and power that motivates our day-to-day activities... Each day we act upon things we hope for when we cannot see the end result. This is Faith.

Now that I've put off the idea of dieting I realize that sitting around waiting for change to happen is stupidity. Although it's liberating to say that I am not ever going to diet again, I still have to put my faith into action.

Where does my Faith lie? Definitely not in my self. I think that is where fear comes in. I've done the day to day actions having faith in myself, relying on my own strength to change. Every time I failed when I attempted change in that way.

Now my Faith has to lie in my Redeemer and the Atonement. I have to start working towards that change. You've heard that old saying/scripture: Faith without works is Dead.

I now have to ask myself what changes do I want to make? Who is the person I want to be and how do I accomplish that? Most of these changes are the same when I relied on my own strength to change.

Changes I ache for:

A healthy relationship with Food
Eat more fruits and veggies
Drink more water
Be confident in the person I am and love myself for those truths
Be a size 12.

Since change takes faith and action, what action plan am I going to go with?

I think I'm going to start simple. I keep thinking of the Bob Greene book, The Best Life Diet. Out of all the diet books that I have ever read, his was the most loving and kind way to treat yourself. His first strategy is to simply change your eating habits. Eat breakfast, lunch, afternoon snack, and dinner. So that is my first goal for the next 2 weeks. I'm just going to eat what I eat, but at those designated times. I'm also going to follow the food guidelines in Women Food and God. She urges you to eat when your hungry, eat what you want, and stop eating when your full. I have to have a beginning point. This is not asking much, but is asking me to be somewhat disciplined.

In addition to the physical change that I want to make, I'm going to take action spiritually. I am going to make a greater effort to study the atonement, renew my covenants and read my scriptures. This is KEY to the change that I want to make. This is where the real change will come. Believing truths about myself through the gospel of Jesus Christ.

I'm not sure how long this change will take. This where the day to day action without seeing the end results comes in. I want change to come instantly, but it doesn't. It never does. I have to remember to keep going and NEVER give up. Enduring to the end will reveal the change that has come over me!