"Don't do it!" - Big Fun (fictional band from the movie, "Heathers")
The other day when it was found that actor Andrew Koenig ("Boner" of "Growing Pains" fame) had taken his own life at a favorite park of his in Canada, it brought back some memories that weren't so favorable in my life. Hearing reporters, friends, & even his parents talk about Andrew's bouts of deep depression brought me back to my college days. I knew exactly where Andrew was on the day he ended his life because I had been there but thankfully stepped back from the edge.
My first (and only) year at college was an overwhelming experience for me. I had lived a pretty sheltered life, my parents had divorced when I was 12 or 13 & my mom kept me under her thumb until I was 18 years old. I was originally set to go to GVSU, but later changed my mind and headed down to Kalamazoo to join some friends that were going to Western Michigan University. Being 45min from home isn't that far, but for an 18 year old freshman on his own for the first time - it was like being a million miles away.
I was late in the game to apply & be accepted so I ended up in the very last orientation class which was held a few days before college officially started with the campus move-in day & class registration. It was lonely being in that dorm room by myself for those first few nights. I'd wander the campus after orientation, check out the local video store, & basically get my bearings before the entire student body arrived.
My roommate showed up that weekend, a sophomore that wanted to have his own room but was stuck with a roommate until one could be found. Did I mention he was a 6'6" black guy that liked Mad Dog 20/20 (we were on a non-alcohol floor) & pornography? The classes were over my head as well, such gems as Political Science 101, Black American Theater, Philosophy 101. I kid you not, I had to take BAT because it was the only class available to get me to my full credit status.
I had been used to 20-25 students in a class and I believe the lowest class size I had was around 75 students. Instead of a name I was a number. I was not prepared for this. Things got worse as people I basically grew up with went down different paths. One became a drug addict & the other one turned to alcohol. I felt even lonelier.
I began retreating more & more into myself, skipping class, sleeping late, eating in the cafeteria downstairs at least 5 times a day. I really didn't care anymore. Thanksgiving approached & I got word that they were shutting down the dorm for the week. Anyone staying in the dorm during that time needed to access it through the basement maintenance corridors. I opted to stay instead of going home, by then I had hit rockbottom.
The more time I spent alone, the more worthless I felt, the more worthless I felt, the more depressed I became until I hatched a plan to end it all. The dorms were deserted by then, I carried out my departure from this earth. I went to the local video store and stocked up on my favorite movies, headed over to the taco stand and picked up a dozen greasy turkey tacos (how appropriate), sat there for a few days, watched the movies & contemplated suicide.
I had a knife, a mother-of-pearl pocketknife that my father had given me a few years prior. It was sharp, made sure of that. Then the time came. I sat in the suite shower for what seemed like hours, the warm water splashing down on me. I thought of the surprise my roommate & suitemates would find, a blue & bloated corpse sitting in their shower. I thought of all the girls that had hurt me, all the taunts I received, the abuse I had gotten, my college experience was the last straw.
I was ready. I was primed. Everything was starting to fall into place, but I hesitated. Deep down inside I felt something. A tiny voice deep inside telling me, "Don't do this, you don't have to do this." I had never heard that voice before. It got stronger & louder as I sat there until I dropped the knife & began to weep. I let the emotions come out. I got up, shut off the shower, closed the pocketknife, & cleaned up. I "checked out" of college after that, skipping all classes & just basically living in the dorm.
That was the lowest point in my life. I admit that I do get depressed from time to time, but I don't allow it to get bottled up or build to the levels that led to my attempt. Blogging, praying, meditation, & just plain talking help me through those times.
I share this story because I never want anyone to feel that helpless ever. There is help out there, talk to friends, family, find a support group or counselor. If you're a friend or family member and you notice changes in someone - withdrawn, mood swings, depressive talk, don't explain it away or gloss over it. These are cries for help. I pray no one has to go through what the Koenig family has had to go through.
You're not worthless, you're priceless - remember that...
MattyV
www.iweighedmorethanjared.com
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Friday, February 26, 2010
"Winners Never Quit..."
Out on my run this morning I was thinking about this quote for one reason or another. Thanks to Seth Godin, I see that quote as false. In his book, "The Dip", Seth explains that the adage needs to change to:
"Winners know WHEN to quit..."
Winners tend to stop doing something when either they lose traction or the "opportunity cost" outweighs the benefits. It's better to quit something when it becomes less than stellar than to slog through to mediocrity.
I see that in my own life now that I have time to reflect. When the relationship is stagnant or remains superficial, it's time to cut loose & move on. I know that sounds harsh & cold, but would you rather waste energy & emotional investment in 10 friendships that never go anywhere or would you rather have 3 friendships that become deeply rooted & meaningful?
I would hope that for the most part you would want a deeper friendship than a purely superficial one. The trouble is not being able to recognize right away if the friendships are worth going further with without making a significant investment. But that's life.
I have also seen it in my weight loss journey as well. Trying new things, new paths, experimenting with different ideas & concepts I have read about. Making investments to really give them an opportunity and finding that the fit just isn't there or the results are not as expected. Cut the losses and move on.
It's painful at first, thinking of all the energy & emotional investment hoping that things work out but finding that your efforts are meaningless. But when you switch tracks, you often find that it was the best thing you have ever done.
I like the quote I posted by Tim Cook of Apple. I imagine they switch tracks often once they realize the one they're on is going nowhere or doesn't lead to their destination.
Seth Godin - "The Dip", I highly recommend it...
MattyV
www.iweighedmorethanjared.com
"Winners know WHEN to quit..."
Winners tend to stop doing something when either they lose traction or the "opportunity cost" outweighs the benefits. It's better to quit something when it becomes less than stellar than to slog through to mediocrity.
I see that in my own life now that I have time to reflect. When the relationship is stagnant or remains superficial, it's time to cut loose & move on. I know that sounds harsh & cold, but would you rather waste energy & emotional investment in 10 friendships that never go anywhere or would you rather have 3 friendships that become deeply rooted & meaningful?
I would hope that for the most part you would want a deeper friendship than a purely superficial one. The trouble is not being able to recognize right away if the friendships are worth going further with without making a significant investment. But that's life.
I have also seen it in my weight loss journey as well. Trying new things, new paths, experimenting with different ideas & concepts I have read about. Making investments to really give them an opportunity and finding that the fit just isn't there or the results are not as expected. Cut the losses and move on.
It's painful at first, thinking of all the energy & emotional investment hoping that things work out but finding that your efforts are meaningless. But when you switch tracks, you often find that it was the best thing you have ever done.
I like the quote I posted by Tim Cook of Apple. I imagine they switch tracks often once they realize the one they're on is going nowhere or doesn't lead to their destination.
Seth Godin - "The Dip", I highly recommend it...
MattyV
www.iweighedmorethanjared.com
Friday, February 19, 2010
My Take On Obesity (from an obese person's perspective)
I've been obese most of my life. I have a rather lopsided view of life because of it. Lopsided towards cynicism because that is what I have developed over years of taunts, abuse, neglect, rejection, & other stumbling blocks along the way. Instead of seeing the glass half-full or half-empty, I often see the glass and wonder "will I get blamed for the missing half since I'm fat?" I have met & seen obese persons (like myself) fall into 3 distinct groups - Accepted, Admitted, & Determined.
Those that accept their obesity feel that it is their lot in life and nothing can change it. These types have formed support groups to help nurture their own acceptance of their obesity & in some instances to force the public into accepting it as well (I think of the National Association for the Advancement of Fat People - the NAAFP, a real organization). Lobbying congress & businesses to recognize obesity as a disease with no cure. Other have built careers around their obesity and use it to gain acceptance from society (the two that come to mind are Ralphie May, winner of "Last Comic Standing" & Gabriel Iglesias who's first album was titled "I'm not fat, I'm fluffy"). I used to fall into this category. I learned early on to become either a bully or "the funny fat guy" because of my weight. I chose to be funny since I'm a lover, not a fighter.
There are those that admit to their obesity and know they need to do something about it. The trap is that they either go about it the wrong way or have done it in a half-assed fashion. I have met (and know a few) people that have had the surgery thinking they had been given the "magic bullet" of weightloss. Not following the life plan required after having the surgery. Losing hair, sallow skin, even gaining back the weight lost, all tragic & unfortunate fates for those that have admitted their need to lose weight. I think of celebrities such as Kirstie Alley & Ron (from "The Biggest Loser" Season 7), Kirstie lost her weight through Nutri-System but failed to stick with the program while Ron (even though now he has lost weight & kept it off) had the surgery years prior before it became a "safer" & homogenized operation & eventually reversed the procedure by stretching out the stomach pouch.I had upgraded to this group in high school when I joined Weight Watchers (dropped out shortly after because it was a room full of overweight moms) and later when I had my heart palpitations, turning to prescription medications to help with weight loss.
The last group is one that I intend on staying with. The Determined are on a quest to lose weight safely & properly. They understand that it will be a hard journey and that it will last the rest of their lives. The Determined many times have been a part of the other groups but one event in their life changed their status to "determined". Mine happened in an elevator several years ago. I had a revelation, an epiphany, everything I had learned about weightloss & about the surgery finally "clicked" with me. My life event was almost signing on the dotted line to have the surgery. I knew I had to change, but I was smart - I did my research. After processing the info & praying about my decision I realized that I would have to change my lifestyle regardless. Whether having the surgery or not, I would have to change the way I eat, exercise, & deal with stress differently. The Determined group is a small one as statistics show only 10% of those that lose large amounts of weight keep it off.
I have been a part of all three of these groups at one point in my life: I have accepted my role of "the funny fat guy" for a time, toyed with the notion of losing weight knowing that it is something I needed to do, but eventually I became determined to lose weight & keep it off. I aspire to become a 10 percenter, encouraging others to evaluate their lives & make their own decision to become determined to lose weight.
Here's to becoming a part of the 10%...
MattyV
www.iweighedmorethanjared.com
Those that accept their obesity feel that it is their lot in life and nothing can change it. These types have formed support groups to help nurture their own acceptance of their obesity & in some instances to force the public into accepting it as well (I think of the National Association for the Advancement of Fat People - the NAAFP, a real organization). Lobbying congress & businesses to recognize obesity as a disease with no cure. Other have built careers around their obesity and use it to gain acceptance from society (the two that come to mind are Ralphie May, winner of "Last Comic Standing" & Gabriel Iglesias who's first album was titled "I'm not fat, I'm fluffy"). I used to fall into this category. I learned early on to become either a bully or "the funny fat guy" because of my weight. I chose to be funny since I'm a lover, not a fighter.
There are those that admit to their obesity and know they need to do something about it. The trap is that they either go about it the wrong way or have done it in a half-assed fashion. I have met (and know a few) people that have had the surgery thinking they had been given the "magic bullet" of weightloss. Not following the life plan required after having the surgery. Losing hair, sallow skin, even gaining back the weight lost, all tragic & unfortunate fates for those that have admitted their need to lose weight. I think of celebrities such as Kirstie Alley & Ron (from "The Biggest Loser" Season 7), Kirstie lost her weight through Nutri-System but failed to stick with the program while Ron (even though now he has lost weight & kept it off) had the surgery years prior before it became a "safer" & homogenized operation & eventually reversed the procedure by stretching out the stomach pouch.I had upgraded to this group in high school when I joined Weight Watchers (dropped out shortly after because it was a room full of overweight moms) and later when I had my heart palpitations, turning to prescription medications to help with weight loss.
The last group is one that I intend on staying with. The Determined are on a quest to lose weight safely & properly. They understand that it will be a hard journey and that it will last the rest of their lives. The Determined many times have been a part of the other groups but one event in their life changed their status to "determined". Mine happened in an elevator several years ago. I had a revelation, an epiphany, everything I had learned about weightloss & about the surgery finally "clicked" with me. My life event was almost signing on the dotted line to have the surgery. I knew I had to change, but I was smart - I did my research. After processing the info & praying about my decision I realized that I would have to change my lifestyle regardless. Whether having the surgery or not, I would have to change the way I eat, exercise, & deal with stress differently. The Determined group is a small one as statistics show only 10% of those that lose large amounts of weight keep it off.
I have been a part of all three of these groups at one point in my life: I have accepted my role of "the funny fat guy" for a time, toyed with the notion of losing weight knowing that it is something I needed to do, but eventually I became determined to lose weight & keep it off. I aspire to become a 10 percenter, encouraging others to evaluate their lives & make their own decision to become determined to lose weight.
Here's to becoming a part of the 10%...
MattyV
www.iweighedmorethanjared.com
Tuesday, February 09, 2010
A simple compliment...
Received a compliment last night that at first didn't seem like one but after thinking about it, it is one amazing compliment. One of the members of my Saturday men's group shot me an email asking if I had worked at Star Theater at some point in time. Yep, I told him, worked as a manager there from '94 to '96 (actually started as a lowly usher in 1992 and worked my way up through the ranks to the "glass ceiling". The last position above mine was that of General Manager, and of course there's a waiting list of more-qualified candidates when an opening like that comes available - a RARE occurrence) but I was about 150lbs heavier back then. I love his response:
"knew it! I worked with you when I was in high school. You look younger now than what I remembered from back then, that's why I didn't ask before..."
It was a Dr. Oz or Dr. Huizenga (from, "The Biggest Loser") moment right there in my inbox. For those that don't get the reference, both doctors have done "real age" studies on their respective shows that give the participant what their body thinks it's age is rather than a chronological age. Many times a person's body age is 10 or as much as 30 years older than their chronological age because of their obesity or bad habits (like smoking). It's a real wakeup call to do something about it and oftentimes the participant does!
To hear that I look younger now than I did at 450lbs is a great compliment to receive. I still have a ways to go to reach my goal (and the rest of my life to maintain it), but to get encouraging compliments like that help to make the road to wellness & health that much easier to bear. Puts a little 'pep' in your step, brings your self-esteem up a notch or two, strengthens your commitment, encourages you to spread that feeling to others.
Have you complimented someone recently? You'll make them feel good and make yourself feel good at the same time, a win-win!
MattyV
www.iweighedmorethanjared.com
PS - Thanks, Tyler!
"knew it! I worked with you when I was in high school. You look younger now than what I remembered from back then, that's why I didn't ask before..."
It was a Dr. Oz or Dr. Huizenga (from, "The Biggest Loser") moment right there in my inbox. For those that don't get the reference, both doctors have done "real age" studies on their respective shows that give the participant what their body thinks it's age is rather than a chronological age. Many times a person's body age is 10 or as much as 30 years older than their chronological age because of their obesity or bad habits (like smoking). It's a real wakeup call to do something about it and oftentimes the participant does!
To hear that I look younger now than I did at 450lbs is a great compliment to receive. I still have a ways to go to reach my goal (and the rest of my life to maintain it), but to get encouraging compliments like that help to make the road to wellness & health that much easier to bear. Puts a little 'pep' in your step, brings your self-esteem up a notch or two, strengthens your commitment, encourages you to spread that feeling to others.
Have you complimented someone recently? You'll make them feel good and make yourself feel good at the same time, a win-win!
MattyV
www.iweighedmorethanjared.com
PS - Thanks, Tyler!
Friday, February 05, 2010
What the world sees vs. what God sees...
Had this as my devotion this morning, I'll comment on it below...
I try to be a good father. Give my kids mulligans. Work nights to pay for their text messaging. Take them to swimsuit shoots. But compared with Dick Hoyt, I suck.
This love story began in Winchester , Mass. , 43 years ago, when Rick was strangled by the umbilical cord during birth, leaving him brain-damaged and unable to control his limbs. "He'll be a vegetable the rest of his life;" father, Dick, says doctors told him and his wife, Judy, when Rick was nine months old. "Put him in an institution."
But the Hoyts weren't buying it. They noticed the way Rick's eyes followed them around the room. When Rick was 11 they took him to the engineering department at Tufts University and asked if there was anything to help the boy communicate. "No way," Dick says he was told. "There's nothing going on in his brain." "Tell him a joke," Dick countered. They did. Rick laughed. Turns out a lot was going on in his brain.
Rigged up with a computer that allowed him to control the cursor by touching a switch with the side of his head, Rick was finally able to communicate. First words? "Go Bruins!" And after a high school classmate was paralyzed in an accident and the school organized a charity run for him, Rick pecked out, "Dad, I want to do that." Yeah, right. How was Dick, a self-described "porker" who never ran more than a mile at a time, going to push his son five miles? Still, he tried. "Then it was me who was handicapped," Dick says. "I was sore for two weeks."
That day changed Rick's life. "Dad," he typed, "when we were running, it felt like I wasn't disabled anymore!" And that sentence changed Dick's life. He became obsessed with giving Rick that feeling as often as he could. He got into such hard-belly shape that he and Rick were ready to try the 1979 Boston Marathon.
"No way," Dick was told by a race official. The Hoyts weren't quite a single runner, and they weren't quite a wheelchair competitor. For a few years Dick and Rick just joined the massive field and ran anyway, then they found a way to get into the race officially: In 1983 they ran another marathon so fast they made the qualifying time for Boston the following year.
Then somebody said, "Hey, Dick, why not a triathlon?" How's a guy who never learned to swim and hadn't ridden a bike since he was six going to haul his 110-pound kid through a triathlon? Still, Dick tried. Now they've done 212 triathlons, including four grueling 15-hour Ironman in Hawaii . It must be a buzz kill to be a 25-year-old stud getting passed by an old guy towing a grown man in a dinghy, don't you think?
Eighty-five times he's pushed his disabled son, Rick, 26.2 miles in marathons. Eight times he's not only pushed him 26.2 miles in a wheelchair but also towed him 2.4 miles in a dinghy while swimming and pedaled him 112 miles in a seat on the handlebars--all in the same day. Dick's also pulled him cross-country skiing, taken him on his back mountain climbing and once hauled him across the U.S. on a bike. Makes taking your son bowling look a little lame, right? Hey, Dick, why not see how you'd do on your own? "No way," he says. Dick does it purely for "the awesome feeling" he gets seeing Rick with a cantaloupe smile as they run, swim and ride together.
This year, at ages 65 and 43, Dick and Rick finished their 24th Boston Marathon , in 5,083rd place out of more than 20,000 starters. Their best time'? Two hours, 40 minutes in 1992--only 35 minutes off the world record, which, in case you don't keep track of these things, happens to be held by a guy who was not pushing another man in a wheelchair at the time.
"No question about it," Rick types. "My dad is the Father of the Century." And what has Rick done for his father? Not much--except save his life. And Dick got something else out of all this too. Two years ago he had a mild heart attack during a race. Doctors found that one of his arteries was 95% clogged. "If you hadn't been in such great shape," one doctor told him, "you probably would've died 15 years ago." So, in a way, Dick and Rick saved each other's life.
Rick, who has his own apartment (he gets home care) and works in Boston , and Dick, retired from the military and living in Holland , Mass. , always find ways to be together. They give speeches around the country and compete in some backbreaking race every weekend, including this Father's Day.
That night, Rick will buy his dad dinner, but the thing he really wants to give him is a gift he can never buy. "The thing I'd most like," Rick types, "is that my dad would sit in the chair and I would push him once."
- Rick Reilly, "The Strongest Dad In The World"
The world saw something different than what God saw in Rick. God clued his parents in to what He saw when Rick followed them around the room with his eyes at 9 months. His parents began to see the person inside the disabled shell. Thanks in part to modern technology, Rick is able to share himself & communicate with others through the specialized computer device he uses. Rick is intelligent, funny, & loving.
The world saw something different in his father Dick as well. Telling him that he couldn't run races with his son, telling himself that he couldn't compete in triathalons or mountain climb or many of the other things that he eventually was able to accomplish with his son. God clued Dick in to what He saw and that gave him the confidence and drive to step out in faith and do it. And he did. My friend Matt Hoover (of Biggest Loser fame) completed an ironman recently. From the stories and video I saw of his accomplishment, I couldn't imagine doing such a race carrying/dragging/pushing an additional 110lbs - but through strength & trust Dick did just that not once, but many times all across the country.
So many times we look at ourselves the way the world sees us. My prayer today is that God clues us in to what He sees when He looks at us and that we gain strength & courage from that. I'll be meditating on that today and see where it takes me...
"This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!" 2 Cor 5:17, NLT
MattyV
www.iweighedmorethanjared.com
I try to be a good father. Give my kids mulligans. Work nights to pay for their text messaging. Take them to swimsuit shoots. But compared with Dick Hoyt, I suck.
This love story began in Winchester , Mass. , 43 years ago, when Rick was strangled by the umbilical cord during birth, leaving him brain-damaged and unable to control his limbs. "He'll be a vegetable the rest of his life;" father, Dick, says doctors told him and his wife, Judy, when Rick was nine months old. "Put him in an institution."
But the Hoyts weren't buying it. They noticed the way Rick's eyes followed them around the room. When Rick was 11 they took him to the engineering department at Tufts University and asked if there was anything to help the boy communicate. "No way," Dick says he was told. "There's nothing going on in his brain." "Tell him a joke," Dick countered. They did. Rick laughed. Turns out a lot was going on in his brain.
Rigged up with a computer that allowed him to control the cursor by touching a switch with the side of his head, Rick was finally able to communicate. First words? "Go Bruins!" And after a high school classmate was paralyzed in an accident and the school organized a charity run for him, Rick pecked out, "Dad, I want to do that." Yeah, right. How was Dick, a self-described "porker" who never ran more than a mile at a time, going to push his son five miles? Still, he tried. "Then it was me who was handicapped," Dick says. "I was sore for two weeks."
That day changed Rick's life. "Dad," he typed, "when we were running, it felt like I wasn't disabled anymore!" And that sentence changed Dick's life. He became obsessed with giving Rick that feeling as often as he could. He got into such hard-belly shape that he and Rick were ready to try the 1979 Boston Marathon.
"No way," Dick was told by a race official. The Hoyts weren't quite a single runner, and they weren't quite a wheelchair competitor. For a few years Dick and Rick just joined the massive field and ran anyway, then they found a way to get into the race officially: In 1983 they ran another marathon so fast they made the qualifying time for Boston the following year.
Then somebody said, "Hey, Dick, why not a triathlon?" How's a guy who never learned to swim and hadn't ridden a bike since he was six going to haul his 110-pound kid through a triathlon? Still, Dick tried. Now they've done 212 triathlons, including four grueling 15-hour Ironman in Hawaii . It must be a buzz kill to be a 25-year-old stud getting passed by an old guy towing a grown man in a dinghy, don't you think?
Eighty-five times he's pushed his disabled son, Rick, 26.2 miles in marathons. Eight times he's not only pushed him 26.2 miles in a wheelchair but also towed him 2.4 miles in a dinghy while swimming and pedaled him 112 miles in a seat on the handlebars--all in the same day. Dick's also pulled him cross-country skiing, taken him on his back mountain climbing and once hauled him across the U.S. on a bike. Makes taking your son bowling look a little lame, right? Hey, Dick, why not see how you'd do on your own? "No way," he says. Dick does it purely for "the awesome feeling" he gets seeing Rick with a cantaloupe smile as they run, swim and ride together.
This year, at ages 65 and 43, Dick and Rick finished their 24th Boston Marathon , in 5,083rd place out of more than 20,000 starters. Their best time'? Two hours, 40 minutes in 1992--only 35 minutes off the world record, which, in case you don't keep track of these things, happens to be held by a guy who was not pushing another man in a wheelchair at the time.
"No question about it," Rick types. "My dad is the Father of the Century." And what has Rick done for his father? Not much--except save his life. And Dick got something else out of all this too. Two years ago he had a mild heart attack during a race. Doctors found that one of his arteries was 95% clogged. "If you hadn't been in such great shape," one doctor told him, "you probably would've died 15 years ago." So, in a way, Dick and Rick saved each other's life.
Rick, who has his own apartment (he gets home care) and works in Boston , and Dick, retired from the military and living in Holland , Mass. , always find ways to be together. They give speeches around the country and compete in some backbreaking race every weekend, including this Father's Day.
That night, Rick will buy his dad dinner, but the thing he really wants to give him is a gift he can never buy. "The thing I'd most like," Rick types, "is that my dad would sit in the chair and I would push him once."
- Rick Reilly, "The Strongest Dad In The World"
The world saw something different than what God saw in Rick. God clued his parents in to what He saw when Rick followed them around the room with his eyes at 9 months. His parents began to see the person inside the disabled shell. Thanks in part to modern technology, Rick is able to share himself & communicate with others through the specialized computer device he uses. Rick is intelligent, funny, & loving.
The world saw something different in his father Dick as well. Telling him that he couldn't run races with his son, telling himself that he couldn't compete in triathalons or mountain climb or many of the other things that he eventually was able to accomplish with his son. God clued Dick in to what He saw and that gave him the confidence and drive to step out in faith and do it. And he did. My friend Matt Hoover (of Biggest Loser fame) completed an ironman recently. From the stories and video I saw of his accomplishment, I couldn't imagine doing such a race carrying/dragging/pushing an additional 110lbs - but through strength & trust Dick did just that not once, but many times all across the country.
So many times we look at ourselves the way the world sees us. My prayer today is that God clues us in to what He sees when He looks at us and that we gain strength & courage from that. I'll be meditating on that today and see where it takes me...
"This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!" 2 Cor 5:17, NLT
MattyV
www.iweighedmorethanjared.com
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