seven: the journey

day one: August 1

one month. seven foods. quinoa, chicken, tomatoes, spinach, plain greek yogurt, strawberries and eggs. i got ready and had my quiet time. and right off the bat, i felt God speaking to me.

this is what i read:
deut. 8:10-18  When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the Lord your God for the good land he has given you. ¹¹ Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day. ¹² Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, ¹³ and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, ¹⁴ then your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. ¹⁵ He led you through the vast and dreadful wilderness, that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions. He brought you water out of hard rock. ¹⁶ He gave you manna to eat in the wilderness, something your ancestors had never known, to humble and test you so that in the end it might go well with you. ¹⁷ You may say to yourself, “My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.” ¹⁸ But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today.

i felt the Lord telling me to be thankful. remember all he has given me during this time. and know that it is all from him.

my day was going to be great. the Lord was already revealing himself and it wasn't even 6:30am yet!
then on my way to work, i got the sweetest text from a dear friend, courtney. it read: thinking of you this morning, sweet friend! you and your family are in our prayers as you start this incredible new journey. i can't wait to hear about the ways God reveals himself to you and how close you feel to Him!! have a wonderful day :)

i arrived at work feeling pretty confident. then, BAM, out of nowhere...pickled okra!! one of the sweetest girls i work with had brought it and was so excited to be sharing it with me. so, the explaining began. "i'm only eating 7 foods for the month. i read this book. jen hatmaker. decrease so God can increase. i can't eat the pickled okra." Lord help me. this is going to be hard!

for lunch, i was having some grilled chicken with quinoa and sauteed spinach and tomatoes that i had made the night before. it wasn't bad. but some of the girls i work with decided to order pimento cheese from the athens favorite, marti's at midday! homemade pimento cheese and pita chips, i die.

i decided the best thing for me to do was eat and leave. i had to run to the bank so that was my excuse for gettingtheheckouttadodge. on my way to the bank, i prayed. i prayed that God would give me strength to get through this month. i mean it was all i could do to get through the day. i needed help. but while i prayed, everything i was giving up kept coming to my mind. and it wasn't just food. it was the "gathering" that i was missing. we gather at work when we eat. we gather with friends on the weekends to eat and fellowship. i felt like i was losing that.

i got home from work and had three eggs and a glass of red wine, don't judge. pulled up facebook to read some of the comments on our group 7 page to see how everyone else was doing. i'm being honest, i was glad to see people so opened with their struggles. one sweet girl described how there weren't any fireworks like she had expected. there was no sparkle. just struggle. and that was exactly how i was feeling. i didn't hear anything from God. nada. nothing. zilch. zero.

but this morning, day 3, i read more comments. so uplifting and encouraging.
one person commented that when we feed our flesh, our spirit starves. but when we feed our spirit, our flesh starves. that is what i want. a full spirit.  full of jesus and empty of myself. i want to focus on what my spirit is receiving not what my flesh is missing.

and then someone else commented...the fireworks, they come at the end. yes, they will.  He promised.

James 1:12  Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him