Take (deny) something away

[Erudite]

Well, friends, on my other board (sparkpeople.com), I issue a "healthy focus" each week. This last week's healthy focus was "take something out". I issued it because the week before I'd spent most of the week playing spider solitaire and watching netflix "watch instantly" shows. It was an incredible waste of time that put me behind in my work and thus if I'm willing to get behind to play and watch, I've got a sort of addiction. So this week, I went cold turkey and did NO spider solitaire and NO netflix viewing on the computer. It has felt GREAT, because what I filled that time with was considerably more valuable. More scripture study, more reading, more writing, more doing.

So, I'd like to continue that this week! And I'd like to invite all who would like to pick something and do it with me. It's a challenge for you...to pick a vice and do without it for a week. On the other board, several people picked to do without "negative thoughts" in the effort to become more positive people, which is such a wonderful goal. But me...I'm really trying to stay in my calorie range, so I'm going to do without tortilla chips. I know, I know what is up with that? But tortilla chips are my downfall. I can't eat just one or even just nine (which is a serving), so this week I'm denying myself tortilla chips. (And I can try to do without negative thoughts too.)

For those of you who are LDS, the idea comes from Moroni 10:32 "deny yourself ungodliness" and Alma 22:18 "give away all my sins". And there's a great talk by Sheri Dew from like 10 years ago that discusses doing this too. So who's with me? What will you deny yourself over the next week in order to be a better you? C'mon, you can do it!

PS It seems like there's a private discussion going on about this topic, that I elected not to join. I don't mean to step on toes or throw you off track or anything, but I wouldn't mind some support as I work on my tiny goals.

[Mamallama]

Thanks for the invitation ER!
I'd like to give away my fear and replace the fear with more faith. I'm going to look up some scriptures on the subject, print them out and post them around my house. Then when I feel the wave of fear coming on, I'm going to keep reading them until the fear goes away.

Some decisions dh and I have made will cause some big changes in our lives....I know the decisions are correct and yet waves of fear and panic keep creeping in as we face the unknown.....

I feel better just choosing to get rid of fear....now I need to go pick my scriptures. I'll let you know what scriptures I pick.

Thanks ER!

[Erudite]

Well, I made it two whole days without tortilla chips. Ugh. I guess I need to not have them in the house or put them up higher or something. I'm trying to build up my resolve to work on the whole weight loss thing again, but it just isn't happening quite yet. Exercise is such a toughie and I just can't get across the mental barrier of weightloss without exercise, so I have trouble doing anything at all. But I know that about myself, so hopefully I can learn to do better.

ML, your challenge sounds like a great one!!! How's it going for you? What scriptures did you find? Are they posted?

I recently found Psalms 16:8-9. It has brought me so much comfort I'm considering putting it on a wall somewhere or having some artwork made for it. Everytime I've felt bad in the last two weeks, I've re-read that scripture (it's on a post-it next to my bed) and I just find myself really digging into "hope" even though my flesh feels terrible (you have to read the scripture for that to make sense). But there's my testimony that your plan can work!