There's Beauty in the Process

I used to wish that I could lose all of my excess weight in the blink of an eye. Honestly sometimes I still do, but I’ve started to realize that in order to have long-term success, I’m going to need to practice making good decisions. Over and over, time and time again, in many different situations and seasons, I’ll be faced with choices. Should I go for a walk? Should I eat that? When should I go to bed tonight? There are so many choices we are all faced with every day. The culmination of those choices become our lifestyle, and that lifestyle affects our bodies.

Most people have heard some form of the saying, “It’s about the journey, not the destination,” but have you ever stopped to think about why? Why is the journey so important?

I was reflecting about the value of the journey. What does it have that the destination doesn’t? As I’ve overcome personal challenges in my life, I’ve noticed that it was during the waiting and perseverance that I grew the most in faith and obedience. Obedience is making the right choices with the faith that I will achieve my goal. That can’t happen if we’re handed our goals without the process. It will be through faith and obedience that I will be anchored in this new territory.

It’s also in that waiting and perseverance that value is added to the end goal. You think you want something really bad right now? Just wait until you’ve had to sacrifice for it, make mistakes for it, work hard for it. How much more value will it have then?

I’ve become so passionate about the journey. Most days it’s not easy to make the right choices; bad habits are hard to break. But in that process you learn things about yourself that you didn’t even know were there. You learn about what grace looks like, what true kindness looks like, what kind of support you need… and for me, I’ve also learned a lot about my community. Without the journey, I would feel overwhelmed with all the change. Walking it out allows me to see where I’ve come from, see where I’m at now, and also get a clear view of what is coming. That information is vital to making sure I’m able to adapt to the new ground that I’m running towards.

There’s so much beauty in the process. Make sure you take the time to look around- what you see and learn might surprise you.