Chicken Wing Chicken Wing

I got a confession to make.  I love me some wings!  There ain’t nothing like a good plate of crispy, juicy, wings. I’ve been eating them a lot lately too.  Since I’ve been doing these shops, I’ve been collecting bonuses and rewards at all of these places.  Guess what I’ve been getting with them.  If you said wings, you would be correct! 

Recently I went to BJ’s and got some wings. (they are not the wings in the pick. I just thought I'd show another wing place we went to!)  These are pretty good because they are slow roasted.  They're a bit different from the ones you get from Buffalo Wild Wings.  Buffalo Wild Wings are fried. They got a nice crisp but they stay real juicy.  This is one of my favorite places to get wings.  They got a deal on Wednesday, five wings for $5. Maybe I should get a sponsorship from them? Anyway, I ordered 15 wings.  They were all so delicious. 

I was talking with my wife Grace earlier and we were thinking about how differently we eat now in comparison to how we ate before.  We spoke about how now we eat things to enjoy them.  Once we’ve enjoyed them then we are free to put them away.  We don’t have to finish all of it.  There's no need to eat the entire portion given to us.  The portions in the US are super large and there's probably no need for that much (though I am grateful haha!). But as we talked about that, Grace said, “Yeah that is nice, but I can’t do that with fries!”  I replied “I feel you, except that’s meat for me!”

So back to them chicken wings.  I ordered 15 right.  But as I began eating them I could sense I was getting full. And when I had six left, I was contemplating on just taking them home. I did. I asked for a to-go box, packed them up, and saved them for later.  

As Grace and I walked back to the car, I asked her if she remembered the conversation that we had about the foods that are hard for us to stop eating. She replied “I could see your soul at war with those chicken wings today!” Haha, that’s so funny to me.  I physically demonstrated the inward battle I had with putting that chicken away at lunch! That's so crazy. Grace said she was proud of me. That made me feel good. 

I say all that to say this.  Sin is a struggle.  It's hard to walk the path you know is the right one.  That’s the reason few walk it. We each have our own struggles, but we all have struggles.  For me (if you couldn’t tell by my weight) it is food.  I love to eat.  But by God’s grace, I am slowly but steadily overcoming these things.  And we will slowly and steadily overcome all sin. We will recognize sin more clearly and have greater strength to defeat it. This is the promise that God allows us to walk in. So may you stay focused on the Savior and cast the sin that entangles you aside.

Because I didn’t eat those wings, I had plenty of calories to eat dinner and a snack too!  I’m on a health journey where I watch my macronutrients. If I would have eaten the rest of the wings, it would have been very difficult to fit in a meal.  I either would have gone over what I intended for the day or I would have gone to bed hungry.  But because I endured this slight trial and temptation (haha!) I was able to reap the benefits! Ice Cream and Cookies!

That's exactly the same with sin. When we defeat sin we reap the benefits.  We get to share the testimony of victory with our brothers and sisters.  We get to feel the strength of our relationship with Jesus.  And the walk actually is easy.  I know the feeling of defeat when sin breaks us.  It’s like those viral videos “Day one of (insert something you want to do)” The person doing the video just keeps saying day one (sometimes with a defeated look) because they continue to fail.  But it's so incredible and powerful when we see day two and day three.  We look back and we realize it's been weeks, months, and even years.  

May you grow in your relationship with the savior as you defeat sin, second by second, hour by hour, day by day, week by week, month by month, and year by year.  May we both draw near to him and see our lives forever changed because he is infinitely worthy! We got this!

For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. Mathew 7:13-14

being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6

No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it. 1 Corinthians 10:13

Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat. 32 But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers Luke 22:31-32