Down, down, down.... blam!

I went from 200.8 to 200.6 to 200.4 to 200.2 losing a quarter pound a day and then today, BLAM! I woke up weighing 202.4! What happened? I think I know. Sleep is very important for health. You won't lose weight and keep it off if you're not getting enough sleep, and last night was a wing-dinger! Remy spent the night with us, but refused to sleep in her bed; the same bed in which she takes two naps every day. All I can figure is that it is pitch-black in that room at night, and she's used to soft light in her room. During the day it's no problem, but at night is a different story. I felt so sorry for her! I tried twice to get her to go to sleep in there, and each time I ended up picking her up and comforting her. She was not just fussing (that's not unusual), she was crying. Poor baby.

So long story short, I decided to let her sleep in the studio with me. Therefore, I got very little sleep. And at one o'clock, she woke up and refused to go back to sleep until three. Even then, 'though she slept well, I slept fitfully. And then we got up at 6:00.

My body did not get the chance to absorb the fluids that make up "water weight gain." I know this is so, because I have, in the past, gotten up during the night and weighed myself, only to lose 3-5 lbs by morning.

So I'm not panicked, although I was looking forward to being almost below 200 again. So to get my mind around the whole picture, I have two inspiring quotes for today.

"It may be hard for an egg to turn into a bird: it would be a jolly sight harder for it to learn to fly while remaining an egg. We are like eggs at present. And you cannot go on indefinitely being just an ordinary, decent egg. We must be hatched or go bad." 

        - C.S. Lewis

Useful Vessels

From Journey - a daily devotional by David Jeremiah

     For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you,

    not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think

             soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith.

                                                              Romans 12:3

Bertoldo de Giovanni is likely an unknown name, even amongst art lovers.  He was the teacher of Michelangelo.  Michelangelo was only fourteen years old when he came Bertoldo, but is was already obvious that he was enormously gifted.

     One day he came into the studio to find Michelangelo toying with a piece of sculpture far beneath his abilities.  Bertoldo grabbed a hammer and smashed the work into tiny pieces, shouting this unforgettable message, "Michelangelo, talent is cheap; dedication is costly!"

     How easy it is to envy those in God's kingdom with very visible talent, wishing we, too, had our share of the limelight.  Likewise, it is easy for those with such talent to believe their gift is more important than those of other believers.  God by His Holy Spirit, gives the church, in the form of differing spiritual gifts imparted to every believer, everything it needs to prosper.  Every gift is vital.  So, it's not the gift, but what you do with it that counts.