The Thief of Gains - Don't Allow This Destructive Mindset to Rob You of Your Results!

Would you willingly open the door of your home to a thief and allow them to come in and rob you of your most valuable possessions? I'm venturing a guess here, that your answer to this question is definitely "no" and that you probably assume such a question is ridiculous for me to even ask! Friends, I pose such an absurd question to illustrate the fact that many of us would never intentionally allow someone to rob us, yet many of us at this very moment, by living with a particular destructive mindset are allowing ourselves to be robbed of our desired results on our journey to becoming healthier! I have mentioned in prior posts that losing weight is just as much a mental battle as it is a physical one and that in order to be successful in losing weight, you must first win the war within the battlefield of your mind. Being victorious on the mind's battlefield involves removing every destructive thought and mindset, never allowing their harmful seeds to germinate, take root and grow inside of you. If ignored, negative thoughts and mindsets are very much like a fire, they start as a tiny spark, yet, if left unattended they rapidly spread and burn like a wildfire, eventually consuming you. There are many different types of hazardous thoughts and mindsets that can hinder your success on your journey, but the most destructive mindset that you will ever encounter on your journey, is fear. Fear is a liar and a thief, which is why I have labeled it the "thief of gains" and nothing can bring your journey to a dead stop more quickly than fear.

Merriam-Webster defines fear as "being afraid (of someone or something), to expect or worry about (something bad or unpleasant)".  Fear always begins as a thought but can quickly spiral into something that controls us and prevents us from doing something in our life.   Fears' tactic for bringing you down works by telling you that the dangers or risks of doing something are too high and if you accept this mindset, you've just been robbed by the thief of gains! Often times, we fear the unknown, the "what-if's" in life and let's be honest, it's difficult to step out of our comfort zone into the unfamiliar.  But my friends, if you stay in the comfort of your familiar nest forever, opportunities will just pass you by and you will miss the joys that you can only encounter when you jump out of that sucker and fly! Nobody is exempt from encountering the strong emotions that fear can illicit while on their journey.  Everyone will be faced with fear at some point.   Fear is the ultimate distraction, it will take you as its' prisoner, wrapping you up in chains that are so heavy, that taking a step forward towards your goal is nearly impossible.  There are many people who never reach the finish line of their race in life because fear has crept in and robbed them of achieving their dreams and fulfilling their destiny.  Many times we minimize the influence that seemingly "small" fears have on our decisions and ability to move forward. These small fears tell us we can't do something or shouldn't even bother based off our track record. When it comes to weight loss, these "small" fears may sound something like this, "I'd like to try a low carb diet but I love carbs so much, I'd never last a day" or "The kickboxing class at the gym looks like a great workout but I'm so uncoordinated that I could never keep up". It's easy to be dismissive of these small fears, but they are robbing you of your results and hindering your success! I have shared with you in my post, Breaking Free My Journey to Losing 160 pounds , how I encountered fear at many points on my road to successfully losing 160 pounds, including the fear of going to the gym and being judged by others, the fear of trying new things, and even the fear of sharing my success story with others for fear being mocked and criticized. Yet even greater than the above fears, I've also been faced with the horrendous fears associated with having a 5 year old son with cancer who continues to fight a battle for his life as I write this very post. So friends, to say I've encountered fear on my journey is perhaps an understatement, because fear has come in and tried to rob me so many times it's not even funny.  It's with great humility that I pray that the fears you may encounter on your journey are never as great as those I've faced on mine. But in overcoming the many fears I've had on my journey, I can now shed some insight to you, give you hope and tell you that the greatest way you can overcome fear is by faith and I encourage you to boldly face whatever fears you may be facing today.

When it comes to facing your fears, do so quickly, don't allow fear the opportunity to grow and consume you. I wish I could say that my response has always been to face fear immediately with great faith, but like many, I have had to learn the hard way and it's only now in hindsight that I can see that I would have achieved my goals much sooner, had I not allowed the "thief of gains" to take up residence in my mind. As a teacher, I have an awareness that there are always lessons to be learned from everything we encounter in life and that mistakes can be our friends, as long as we have learned something valuable from them.  Perhaps the most valuable lesson I have learned in regards to facing my fears, is to just do things that I fear afraid instead of letting them stop me. Just do it afraid my friends!  You'll be surprised, often times that fearful thing that seemed impossible for you to accomplish, once you face it, you will realize it really wasn't that horrible at all!

I have mentioned many times in prior posts that my faith in God is what has been the game changer on my journey to losing weight and that prior to involving God in my journey, my attempts at losing weight always ended in failure.  When faced with the fears I have encountered on my journey, I have learned the importance to trust and lean on God and his word to help me break free from the chains of fear. God's love for us is perfect and there is no fear in perfect love. 1 John 4:18, tells us that "his perfect love casts out fear".   We need to be so full of God that there is no space for fear to dwell within us.  He will bring us peace that surpasses all understanding.  So even when we are scared, we can still be at peace.  I can attest to you, my friends, the validity of this concept; as a mother on a journey with her son fighting cancer, in the middle of all the chaos and so many unknowns, I have a supernatural peace that could only come from God because in the natural it makes no sense.  I don't know what tomorrow may hold but I do know that God will never leave me or my son (or you!) to face anything in this life alone. There are hundreds of scriptures that address fear and the Bible makes it incredibly clear that we are not to live in fear.  God wants us to walk by faith, not by fear! 2 Timothy 1:7 tells us that, "God gave us not a spirit of fear but of power, love and self-control".  Victory is on the other side of fear and you can conquer your fear through exercising your faith.   Exercising your faith against your fears, can be done by doing the following things:

1. Prayer- Ask God for the courage to face your fears, for the strength you will need, etc. 
2.  Read his word- Reflect on the many promises that God has for you, plans to prosper and not to fail.
3. Speak Life- Our words carry power, speak words of life over your journey! 

So the next time you feel fear creeping in on you, turn to God and I promise that when you do, the thief of gains will find his way out very quickly and you'll be on your way to success!

Sources:
Definition of Fear