I am embarrassed to say this, but I once had an issue with Fitbits. When they first appeared on the wrists of friends, and everyone seemed to be wearing one, I eyed them suspiciously.
‘What on earth?’ you may be thinking.
Bear with me.
Body awareness, I agree, is important. It's something we all need.
Increased movement is paramount for improving our current and future state of wellness.
For these reasons, and just because they are fun, lots of people bought Fitbits. For themselves and for their loved ones.
Fitbit wearers were dazzled by the newfound knowledge, amazed even about how active or inactive they were in a day, how they slept the last night, and so on. A few could barely contain their enthusiasm, and many of their friends bought Fitbits as a result.
I watched and listened.
I guess when the Fitbit really got on my last nerve was at a girlfriends’ lunch. During dessert, one Fitbit wearer said, “Ooh, I’ll have to ride a few more miles on my bike this afternoon after eating this.”
The carrot cake with cream cheese icing stalled momentarily halfway to my stomach. Somehow, the remaining bites didn’t seem quite so tasty.
I stared at the black band on her wrist.
Was I being mocked by a Fitbit?
“You are a couch potato,” the Fitbit silently implied.
“Feel that waistband pinching?”
“Once across the lips, forever on your hips.”
And the most painful of all, “You have no self-control. How’s that for fruits of the Spirit?”
If anyone, Fitbit or actual person, wants to inflict pain on a Christian, the way to do it is to mock their faith or their Christian walk.
It cuts deep, like a knife to the core.
But all these accusations were not coming from the Fitbit.
Or from the wearer of the wrist band.
It was a one-sided conversation that only I could hear.
They sprang from my own negative thinking. Old thoughts of feeling unworthy, lazy, indulgent, unacceptable (the list can go on).
Some may say, ‘But you are a Christian. How can you have such negative thoughts?’
The answer:
Because I am a Christian, flesh and blood, a sinner saved by Grace.
We are all vulnerable, even to our own thought processes.
The Apostle Paul knew about negative thinking. He advises we "take every thought captive to obey Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:5)
Every negative thought. Every day.
It's not just one time and it’s done, but an everyday surrender of any thoughts we have that do not line up with The Word and that do not help us live the best life that God has for us.
Thoughts are just thoughts. They are not truths.
Praise God for that.
And I am no longer irritated by Fitbits.
I am happy that Fitbit technology is available and that people care enough about their health to use them.
Most of all, I am thankful that “God so loved the world that He gave His only son that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)
Gracious God, remind us each day to not let our wrong thoughts get out of hand, but help us bring them into obedience to Christ, that You may be glorified now and forever. Amen.
