Operation Putty in HIS Hands

*WARNING.....Very long blog post. It's been a while. I've got a lot to say.

So I've been praying for a while for Heavenly Father to make and shape and mold me into the woman that he wants me to be. I have MANY flaws....some BIG and some that are just a rough edge here and there that need smoothing. He has been guiding and directing this change for many months now. I know that my fab 5 (named by Christine) came to me as a result of divine inspiration. And when I am consistent with scripture study, prayer, 8 hours of sleep, exercise (6 days a week), and healthy eating on a daily basis I can SEE and FEEL such a tremendous difference that you would think that I would never NOT do all 5. It is seriously like I am a whole new person when I am consistent with my fab 5 over a period of more than a few days.
But.
I lack will power.
I stay up way too late.
Then I get up late because my body really likes 8 hours (or more) of sleep.
When I get up late and my girls are already up, then I typically miss out on a meaningful personal scripture study. And I almost never exercise if I get up later than 6:45. So even though I know what to do, I need help getting it done.
So. I have been praying for help. And change. And growth.
Looking back I can see that Heavenly Father has been conditioning me for this upcoming change for many months. In February I kind of fell into a twice weekly exercise class. This had not been on my radar as far as plans and goals. I like to exercise first thing in the morning and this was at 7:30pm. I thought I'd just do it for a month to jump start my motivation. Four months later I have gained motivation, strength, commitment, and desire. Participating in this class with Renae and Salena led me to run my first ever 5k earlier this month.
I didn't know I could do that.
The feeling of accomplishment was overwhelming. I hope it's okay to say that I was very proud of myself. And at the same time I had to thank my Heavenly Father as I neared/crossed that finish line because I KNOW that I was only able to do it because of HIM. I have also lost 16 pounds and strengthened and toned muscles that I wasn't even aware of in January.
All this time I have continued to pray for Heavenly Father to help me know and shape me into the woman that HE wants me to become. There have also been little messages every where I have turned. Conference talks, Sunday school lessons, the testimonies of others, Ensign articles, past presidents, Jay Patterson, counsel in fitness magazines and from Prophets and General Authorities.
And even in scripture.
Doctrine and Covenants section 88, verse 124 states, "Cease to be idle; cease to be unclean; cease to find fault one with another; cease to sleep longer that is needful; retire to they bed early, that ye may not be weary; arise early , that your bodies and you minds may be invigorated."
It took me a while to get the message. But that is okay, because I needed time to adjust to the idea.
Starting tomorrow I will be getting up at 4am Monday through Saturday.
I know.
CRAZY.
But I absolutely cannot deny that this is what Heavenly Father wants me to do. This week I had an experience that confirmed this for me. I have known for a few weeks now that this is what I have needed to do, so I have been sleeping in almost every day for about two weeks in preparation. One day this week I was reading in Matthew chapter 7 I think. That led to doing a personal assessment and thinking about what I needed to change and again asking for HIS help. Later I was thinking about this getting up at 4am business and how much I am (and am NOT) looking forward to it. I had the thought that maybe I could start with 5am and ease my way into it.
Very distinctly and clearly I had the thought.....that is not what I asked you to do.
So 4am it is.
But. I wasn't going to tell anybody.
Not even Derek or the girls.
Then this morning I woke up with this blog post in my head, complete with title.
*sigh* Now you all know. And you can ask me how it's going.
Starting tomorrow.
Cold turkey.
I know that you are all probably wanting to know what I will be doing up this blasted time of day that some call holy.
Three days (M,W,F) I will have a body blast class (with the same instructor that I've been working with since February) from 6-7am. On Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday I will do cardio on my own from 6-7.
So what will I be doing every day from 4-6 am?
Well, this post is already REALLY long and I don't want to be late for church........






I'll have to tell you later.