Plateaus

Where have you heard the word plateau recently? Well if you are a woman in your 30s like me, you have heard it referring to weight loss in countless magazines and books. One can not open up a fitness/style magazine without those articles teaching you how to rise above your plateau. How miserable it is to work so hard and then not see any results. Many at this point usually give up and go back to their old habits. Their fitness goals are dashed to pieces on the rocks below. Yet there are a few who stick with their routines and rise above.

As I was thinking about this, it reminded me so much about my walk with God. Oh how I long for those mountain top experiences. Remember those times when Jesus truly is the topic of all your conversations, when the Word of God is like a match that keeps your passion for Him burning. Oh those are the greatest times when God shows Himself so clearly in our lives.

For most of us those mountaintops precede those moments of flatness, those times when opening our Bible takes every ounce of strength we have. It's difficult to hear God's voice. We don't know which direction to turn and what is the best next step to take. These are the plateaus which many of us dread. Do we have what it takes to rise above. Can we get past this flatness? For many, these are times when we give up and rebel. We just don't see the point. (No pun intended)

This is where faith is required. What if we kept pressing on? What if we cried out to God to hear our prayers. What if these times when we are having difficulty seeing God even with our bifocals or trifocals, what if we stepped out in faith. Trusting Him even when things are so blurry. What if during these times we remained disciplined and continued reading God's Word even when it doesn't make sense. What if we decided that even though life seems a little blah, we opened our mouths and lifted our voices in praise to God. What would happen then?

Well like those fitness/weight loss plateaus, we would see true transformation. If we persevere we will see results. In fitness/weight loss goals, bodies are transformed with continued discipline. When we choose to remain disciplined regarding our relationship with Christ we can break through our plateau. We would see more than our bodies being transformed, but we would see our entire lives transformed. How different our world would be if more of us persevered instead of hanging our heads and throwing in the towel.

Paul writes in Corinthians that we are to run the race with strict discipline hoping to win the prize. We are not persevering for earthly riches, but for a crown that will last forever. By doing this and remaining disciplined in serving and living your life for Christ, you are not the only one whose life will be changed. For when we choose to run this race, whole nations can be changed.

So when you find yourself stilled by a plateau, keep running. For we can be confident that He who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. (Phil 1:6) The transformation is worth all the sweat and tears.