I don’t know about you, but I’ve had more than my share of back-sliding when it comes to health habits and sin. Though I’m substantially “recovered,” compulsive eating and compulsive dieting aren’t things you necessarily shake off overnight. They’re problems you continue to work out until rapture comes.

A few months ago, my pastor, Craig Groeschel of Lifechurch.tv, talked about how we respond when we backslide into sin. His message inspired me to write a blog article on this subject because it’s relevant to weight control and our other health concerns, like relapse into drug and alcohol abuse, etc.

In his sermon, Pastor Craig talked about our two common reactions to back-sliding. One response is to feel remorse, e.g., “I feel bad about what I did.” Sometimes, our remorse is coupled with guilt, depression, etc. We beat ourselves up over our mistakes. But he said nothing good comes from this approach and I agree.

The better way to respond is to repent. Repentance is different from remorse because repentance is more than just a feeling. It includes action. It’s the “I’m sorry, God,” that you feel in remorse, but it also includes the “turning away from sin” part. Repentance involves literally moving away from your mistake and moving toward where God wants you to be. Repentance can be seen not just in your emotions, but in your behavior, too.

Are you catching my drift, here? If you backslide and gain a couple pounds or [insert your vice here], don’t just “feel bad,” actually “do things differently next time.” Change your behavior by going back and doing the things you did before, when you were on track.

During your ups and downs, remember that your mistakes don’t define who you are. They’re just a reflection of your actions during snapshots in time. As my pastor said, “Failure is an event, never a person.”

In case your vice happens to be in the area of food and eating, please allow me to give you a free gift. Between May 7th-11th, my condensed e-booklet on weight control ("The Eden Diet: Condensed Version) will be TOTALLY FREE on Amazon.com. You don’t even need a Kindle to read it. You can download a free tool from Amazon.com to be able to read my booklet on your pc. In case you want the freebie, wait until May 7th and visit this site:

The Eden Diet: Condensed Version, Free on Amazon.com May 7-11, 2012

Feel free to post this link on your Facebook wall or tweet about it. Share it with your family and friends. Amazon.com allows you to give away books for FREE for only 5 days after the book is published, so take advantage of this freebie while you can! And PASS IT ON!

See Also:

Keys To Weight Loss: The Apple Test