Honor Your Word… To Yourself

Bein’ Silly, January 2015

There is a saying in the bible that comes out of James chapter 5. It talks about letting your yes be yes and your no be no. It’s the whole idea of taking your words seriously. If you say you are going to do something then do it. If you say you are not going to do something then don’t do it. Simple enough, right?

I was reminded of this in my car yesterday as I was making my 5 hour round trip drive to my physical therapy appointment. The running thing has been in a standstill since surgery, so has my coveted podcast listening time. Marta (Selah Reflections) texted me yesterday and reminded me about Donald Miller’s Podcast and that this drive time was perfect for catching up on what I had been missing. What I heard was great for where I am right now.

This particular show was an interview with professional golfer, Ben Crane. Among other things, he was talking about how his hip had been hurting due to the way he has twisted his body over the years swinging his golf clubs. He sought out the help of a physical therapist 18 months ago and has proceeded twice a day every day since to put the work in to see if the exercises made a difference in how his body was feeling. Ben figured that this Dr. had put years of training into learning how the body best functions and if  he was going to take the time to go to the appointments then he was going to make the effort to do what he was asked to do. He made the commitment first to himself and then to his Dr. He also admitted that there has not been one morning when he actually wanted to get up and do the stretches but that he does it anyway.

This got me thinking about how I am doing at the commitments that I have made to myself and to others.

• How good is my word?
• Am I doing all that I can to make my body stronger so as to make recovery easier after my next surgery?
• Am I going to wish that I had done more?
• What other areas of my life need evaluating to make sure that I am doing what I said I would do?

Don’t get me wrong, I have been doing the stretches… some of them. I’m in, but not all the way in. This is how my eating life has gone lately as well, I say I am grain free but grains somehow keep sneaking their way in.

So, it’s back to the scheduling drawing board for me. I need to write down the things that I know I need to do, have a space in the day carved out to do them and then get er done. At the end of the day the one I am truly letting down is me. No one else cares if my body hurts or that what I am eating could at the least make me gain weight or at the worst make the cancer cells in my body start to grow. I want to be a person of my word first to myself and then to others. I don’t want to make commitments that I cannot keep nor do I want to just “intend” to do what I have said I will do. I’m not sure what the future holds but I do know that I am going to do my part so that I never need to look back and wish I had done a better job at holding up my end of the agreement to me or to anyone else.

How are you at yes and no? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Have a great day my friends!

Tiffany