Life Plan Devotion #132 [Forward-looking Faith]

Hi, Everyone.
I don't know about you, but it is hard for me to envision myself at goal weight, and I'm realizing that it is a barrier to my progress. I'm working on putting this devotion and scripture into practice in my life. Yes, the writer of this devotion has feet of clay and needs your prayers.

Life Plan Devotion #132 [Forward-looking Faith]

Scripture woven within devotional.

     We know that "without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him" (Hebrews 11:6, NIV). We have an excellent example of what it is like to live by faith in Abraham, the Old Testament patriarch.
     Abraham was not perfect, though. He had times when his faith faltered. It was hard to wait 25 years for the fulfillment of God's promise, that he would be a father and the father of many nations. Yet, "Abram believed in the LORD; and he credited it to him as righteousness" (Genesis 15:6, NIV). The Amplified Version for Genesis 15:6 says, "He [Abram] believed in (trusted in, relied on, remained steadfast to) the Lord, and He counted it to him as righteousness (right standing with God)."
     This endorsement of Abraham is reiterated in the New Testament. "He believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness" (Galatians 3:6, NIV). Consider the Amplified Version of Galatians 3:6, "Abraham believed in and adhered to and trusted in and relied on God, and it was reckoned and placed to his account and credited as righteousness (as conformity to the divine will in purpose, thought, and action)."
     Believing God is so much more than saying, "I believe in God." It's even more than saying, "I believe God." Believing God means trusting Him, relying on Him, remaining steadfast in Him (no matter what's going on). Believing God is sticking to Him like glue!
     Abraham had forward-looking faith. He could envision the promises of God long before he saw them come to pass. Abraham had God Thoughts and God Ways. I know this because of what it says about God in Romans 4:17, "...God who gives life to the dead and calls those things that are not as though they were" (NIV).

What this has to do with weight loss: It's hard to see yourself at goal weight, to envision that until it's so strong a picture that you can almost feel it, but that's what we should do. If God "calls those things that are not as though they were," we can do that too. Call yourself whole, envision yourself whole, and allow it to come to pass. It's not something to fear.

Confession:
God is pleased when I envision myself as whole (nothing missing, nothing broken), because that is how He sees me. God calls me blessed, and I call myself "Blessed of the Lord!"

Blessings,
Mary