DAMAGE ASSESSMENT

A treat here and a treat there. The odd indulgence followed by more indulgences. Two weeks of inhospitable weather in Scotland that limited exercise. Three weeks away from my Monday morning appointment with Weightwatchers. And before you know it, I'm 12lb up on what I was before Christmas.

I weighed in today and that's the official extent of the damage. Ironically it's exactly what I did over the holidays last year! But that's okay, because it's over. I am now officially back on track.

There's no such creature as the perfect weightwatcher, we all have our ups and downs. Weeks of keeping on track can still give way to a binge on a boring evening when you scour the house for anything edible and end up eazting stuff you don't even like. But it's the long-term that matters - kinda like it is in life too.

Having pastored way longer than Peyton Manning has lived, I can reliably state that there is no such thing as the perfect Christian either. There are ups and downs on that journey too, failure and disappointments with oneself litter the path. Regaining focus and keeping going is essential over and over again.

And the bottom line of course is that God loves us when we've lost our way as much as he does when we're surging forward.