Well, it's not so much my thighs that I hate.  It's really my upper arms and muffin top that have me spending countless hours exercising.  It's just that Diary of a Real Woman who Loves the Lord and Hates her Upper Arms and Muffin Top doesn't flow as well.  As it is, I am sure most publishers would say the title I am currently fond of is too long.  I don't care though.  I like it.  I think it pretty much sums up who I am, or at the very least, who I try to be.  I try to be real.  Real as in not phony or pretentious.  Real as in willing to share my successes as well as my failures.  Real as in willing to call myself out when I am in the wrong, as well as confidently proclaiming what I believe to be true.  Real as in confessing that even though I believe God has good plans for me, there are still times when I feel anxious or worried.   Real as in admitting "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength", it's just that I may vomit out of nervousness while doing it.  Real as in not only accepting that I am a self proclaimed nut- but actually embracing that nuttiness and realizing that it is precisely what others find endearing about me. (I know it's strange, but it's true.  I asked those closest to me what they love about me, and the common response was the fact that I am a nut.  It's just that some of them tried to say it nicely where others simply said "I love that you are a nut job!").
I also love the Lord with all my heart.  Once you hear more of my story, you will understand why.  Let's just say the words Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me, sums it up pretty well.  I led a wretched life for years.  The grace of God saved me not only from hell and the devil, but from myself as well.  I'm not sure which one of us was doing more harm.  I think there were many days when the devil just sat backed and watched me self destruct....he didn't have to do a thing.  It's now that I've got him working double time trying to steal my joy.  I think he's finally starting to realize he is messing with the wrong Girl!
And finally, yes, I do hate my upper arms and muffin top.  But that isn't really what I am referring to in the title.  I am more referring to the overall seemingly complicated life of us Girls.  I am talking not only about physical traits that get in the way of what we want our lives to look like.  I am talking about all of the things that get in the way of the first two things....of being real, and loving the Lord.  I am talking about everything that it means to be a Girl.....which is a lot!  I am talking about the elusive sense of balance we all search for as wives, moms, daughters, friends, and all the other hats and titles we are given.  Though we are all so very different, we are so very much the same.  We all have our "thighs" to deal with.  We all desperately want to serve the Lord.  We all want to succeed at each of our given titles.
I have spent the last eleven years with the Lord trying to figure out these things.  Trying to figure out who I was, who I am, and more importantly, who the Lord wants me to be.  I have tried to put off the old Girl, and put on the new.  The trick is in discovering what things I am to "put off", and what things I am to "put on".  I spent a lot of time trying to be a "good Christian".  Problem is,  what does a good Christian look like?  What's "good" to me, is not necessarily "good" to you.  In searching for "goodness" where do I look?  Do I look to my Pastor, my friends, one of the million Christian self help books?  Do I seek out someone who seems successful at being a "good Christian", and try to act like them?
 I've tried all of the above.   The only truth I've discovered is that there is no such thing as a "good Christian".  There is no such thing as a good Christian because there is no such thing as a bad Christian.  We are all simply Christians.  Some of us do things that are considered "good".  Others do things that are considered "bad".  I spent a lot of time and energy trying to be "good".  It almost destroyed my relationship with the Lord.  I now purpose to live my life the way I believe the Lord is directing me to.....even if others think it doesn't line up with their idea of what a "good Christian" does.
I don't say that out of rebellion.  I desperately want to live a life that pleases the Lord.  A life that is worthy of the call the Lord has for me.  What I am saying is that I no longer look to man to discover what pleases the Lord.  I look to the Lord Himself.  Sure, I listen to my Pastors, and seek wisdom from others; but I always purpose to bring it before the Lord to determine that which does or does not apply to me.
I've learned a lot over the years.  I've made a lot of mistakes.  I've shared a lot of victories.  I have many testimonies of the Lord's goodness and faithfulness.  I have plenty of examples of life in the Wilderness.  I would like to share them with you.  I would like you to see that we are so very much alike, just as we are so very much unique.  My prayer is that you will learn to embrace the nut ball that you are (you are, in one way or another, whether you can admit it or not).  I believe if we can all embrace who we are, not who we are trying to be, we will all be better able to be Real Women, who Love the Lord, and even though we may hate our thighs, we can still rejoice in them.  I know it seems impossible.  Perhaps that is why the Lord reassures us that all things are possible through Christ who loves us!