How often do you feel physical thirst? What is the best way to quench it? By drinking water, of course. Water has many important qualities and is a huge component of our physical well-being. [Source]

We are all well aware of this. You might also be aware of some common issues relative to dehydration and thirst:

• people often don't recognize their thirst, mistaking it for hunger
• not getting enough water each day
• trying to satisfy our thirst with other things such as coffee, soda, juices, etc

You know what is even more interesting? Many of us are experiencing at least one of the above without even realizing it. Even if you are drinking a gallon of water a day. You might still be thirsting. For what? For living water. For something more out of life. [Source]

This past week we started a series in our church that is widespread. It is being discussed in our Sunday classes, in worship, and read in a study book throughout the week. The study, John Ed Mathison's Treasures of the Transformed Life, warrants this much attention because it discusses very relative issues. I hope that you will read through this, as I approach it in a way that I believe we all can relate to. What are you thirsty for....in life?

One of the biggest hurdles we may encounter in our lives is feeling unsatisfied and empty. Consider the things society claims will satisfy us. Money, power, material possessions, strength, beauty, control, popularity, etc. Do you think these things satisfy for the long haul? We can probably all agree that the above are nice to have, and satisfy for a time. But those things are not guaranteed. They do not last. And we will undoubtedly come to a point where even with all of that it is still not enough. In essence, we are trying to satisfy our thirst for pure water, by turning to other options that still leave us dehydrated and craving more. I know that I could strive and strive and strive to be extremely fit, to have an extremely popular blog that goes somewhere, to be the best mom, etc. But depending on those things would still leave me empty because I wouldn't have anything lasting to depend on. By trying to gain control over everything, I would still end up spinning my wheels because there is always something or someone else bigger, better, greater. [Source]

Another problem is that we may not even realize we are empty and thirsting for more. Our lives might be sailing smoothly along and we are quite content. But what will happen when our shiny bubble bursts? What will happen when a challenge presents itself and you have no control over it? Suddenly the emptiness will reveal itself. There will be a need for something greater to help lift you up. For me, the knowledge that God is committed to me and loves me keeps me thriving and living a joyful life, despite the frustrations I currently face. I can vividly picture where I would be right now if not for my faith. And it isn't a pretty picture by any means. Faith in God's love can fill you up in the every day moments and the challenging moments. You never have to worry about being empty when you know God is simply crazy about you.

And just like with physical thirst, we may experience spiritual thirst by not getting enough of that living water. God is undoubtedly committed to us, but we must also be dedicated to Him. We must be willing to reach out and make an authentic relationship with Him to truly feel the joy, peace, and satisfaction He can bring.

[Source]

Our pastor shared some lyrics from a song that really rang true to me...

We go through life, parched and empty, standing knee deep in a river...dying of thirst.

How insane is that image? Someone dying of thirst, yet surrounded by water. That is the way we may be living. We may feel a desire for more out of life. For more satisfaction. More happiness. More fulfillment. And all we have to do is reach out and drink. All we have to do is make the commitment to recognize we are not alone and we need help. All we have to do is embrace the love that our God has for us and give love in return. He doesn't expect us to be perfect. He just expects us to love Him, love others, and do our best. That's not a tall order in my opinion...especially when you receive the gift of never going thirsty again.

• What do you think satisfies you? Has something you thought satisfied you, left you hurting?
• What situations leave you feeling empty? Do you think faith could alleviate that feeling?

Throughout yesterday and today, I have had something repeatedly come to mind. I've been thinking about how much we can underestimate our metabolism and daily activities and think that our daily calorie burn is much less than the reality. Yesterday I didn't get in a formal workout, but I know my leisurely hike got my body moving. Today, I spent a little over an hour cleaning our downstairs. I also did laundry and chased after Makenzie while she "helped".

When I came to the end of my cleaning spree, I know I probably burned close to what I did during my morning spin class. But how easy is it to just ignore that fact? And think that the only activity that "counts" is what you put in at the gym, on the pavement, or with a Jillian Michaels/Cathe/Turbojam DVD?

[Source]

Before I go any further, please note that I do not try to tally how many calories I burn in a day. I actually don't care. What does sadden me though, and leads me to this post, is when I see people focused on a reaching a calorie burned goal during a workout or equating how much they worked out with how much they should eat for a day. There is so much more to our activity than our workouts.

Everything burns calories. From breathing to digesting to studying to running to sleeping to laughing. It all adds up. We need to begin focusing on our lifestyles as a whole. Our daily workouts probably only account for about 20%  of our total daily burn. That is 80% from other factors. We need to recognize those other factors so as to give our body adequate fuel. Underestimating what we need to maintain is only detrimental to our health. Who wants a lower metabolism when they could have a higher one? Who wouldn't want to be able to eat even more of their favorite healthy meals and provide more nutrition to their body?

LOTS o' Good Food

I used to be in the same boat. I swore up and down that my maintenance calories were around 1800. Then, I got to borrow a nifty little contraption from a friend. It's called the Go Wear Fit and it is an armband you wear that calculates your activity, calorie burn, sleep, etc.

[Source]

While I don't care for this item anymore because I prefer being intuitive and not worrying about any numbers, it was interesting information to see. Turns out I was burning close to 2300 calories....on my rest days. Workout days were closer to 2800. And then when I got to more intense training days for the competition (two-a-days) I was generally always over 3000. Now, I consume on average 2500/day. That is a guesstimate since I don't track and just figured in my head around how much I eat on any given day. I easily maintain my weight of around 135 lbs. And I am happy to provide my body with more fuel because I know it can handle it and needs it.

I want to be clear that I understand some have more sedentary jobs and their workouts are a big part of their activity for the day. I am not saying formal workouts are unnecessary. I also am not saying that what I found for my body applies to everyone. What I am saying is to be aware of all that your body does for you and fuel it properly. Your body is an amazing machine. It needs ample food supply to work efficiently. Give it what it needs. Recognize ALL the ways it works for you, not just when sitting on a spin bike. Honor your body, your health, and your hunger and eat up as much as you possibly can. 🙂