Life isn’t comfortable these days. I’m on a diet and I’ve reached one of those awkward moments — I’m in between notches on my belt! If I use my normal notch (you know what I’m talking about), it’s too loose and I feel like my phone case is going to fall off my waist. If I tighten it one notch, then it’s just a little bit too snug for comfort. I don’t like how it feels in the old notch and I want to get to the new notch, but that’s going to take some more effort on my part.

As I reflect on my Christian journey, I realize that my spiritual life went through a similar process. I reached a place where I didn’t really like who I was, and I wanted to reach a better place; to be a better me. The first step, as with my diet, was to realize that changes needed to be made, and I needed to know how to go forward. When I reached out to my health coach, he didn’t beat me up for being “fluffy” (I am, after all, a sheep that belongs to the Great Shepherd — sheep aren’t fat; they’re fluffy). We discussed the various aspects of my condition and developed a plan to go forward. I stopped eating the things that aren’t good for me and started eating things that are. Pretty simple concept; it’s executing the plan that’s difficult. The first week my coach would call every night and we’d look at every meal or snack and analyze the progress. Once he saw that I was on track, the calls were less frequent, but he was always available if I had a question or if a problem came up.

King Jesus is my life coach. He didn’t condemn me — He told me that there was a way to shed the weight: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses [all the previous spiritual-weight-loss believers], let us lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus” (Hebrews 12:1-2). The Greek word for “weight” here is onkos: “a noun, denotes a bulk or mass; hence metaphorically, an encumbrance” (Vine’s Expository Dictionary). I had to want to shed that weight of sin through confession so that I could move forward with spiritual power to begin a life transformation.

In the early stages, it seemed as if He was always there (He is still always there). As I began making progress, He graciously allowed me to go forward on my own, learning new life tips from Scripture. Just like with my diet, I had to learn to give some things up that were hindering me from reaching my goal. Looking back, I realized that it wasn’t so much having to give things up as it was getting rid of those things in my life that made me want to change to begin with.

My health coach is always posting photos of his success stories on his Facebook page, which is part of what motivated me to start the program. He posts a lot of “before and after” pictures of his clients, and I’ve seen some incredible transformations. He shares the stories of people sharing their progress, healthy habits, and increased energy levels. I’m not quite ready to send in my “before picture.” The last thing the world needs to see is a picture of a shirtless old guy in the mirror. Maybe I need more humility. I believe that Jesus, my life coach, has a picture of me in His wallet in Heaven. He’s showing the angels my “before and after” pictures before He puts them in His scrapbook (the Book of Life, don’t you know).

He’s got a picture of you as well. Where are you on His improvement program? Still need to take that belt in a notch or two? You have the best coach ever — He always gets the results He wants. He wants you to share your “success” story with everyone around you. What say ye, Man of Valor?