Romans 4:17 As it is written: "I have made you a father of many nations." He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed – "the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were.

Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.

All this working out has gotten me closer to my goal, but not close enough.

Last week, I put on some bike shorts and work-out tank. When I went to the bathroom and saw myself in the mirror, there was so much more of myself than I thought that I was shocked. The lower stomach is definitely a challenge and the hips are wider and fuller than they should be. Not just my imagination, there still are pants I can't wear. I went to the gym to take a spinning class and pulled my bike next to another guy who blocked my vision of myself in the mirror. At some point, I could see me. What I could see was my lower stomach reaching up and kissing my upper stomach. Gross! My six-pack abs are under there somewhere. I need to pedal faster and harder. I'm working on keeping the vision of my abs in my mind because it certainly is not in the mirror. I'm thinking I need to buy some Spanx for some tummy control to smooth out this mess. Fortunately, I can call things that are not as though they are and they eventually will be. I also have faith that what I hope for will certainly appear. Of course, I have a ton of work to do.