The Plod

My son, Raleigh, spent about six years on the GAPS diet. He was four when he began and started the journey of coming off GAPS at age 10. It has been almost eight years since we began (June of 2017) and over the years I have had many people marvel at what we’ve done. Not only do they marvel at Raleigh’s healing – and it is truly a marvelous thing – but they marvel at how I managed to stick with the diet and “pull it off” for so long.

I know I did the thing, but the Lord carried me through it. And when I say that, I say that with true sincerity. He sustained me as I chose to show up every day and just do what needed to be done. I knew it was where I had been led and I needed to be faithful to the task. Was it easy? Never. It was never easy. Some days became easier than others but it was never easy. It was a plod.

My favorite way to define a plod is: to work slowly and perseveringly. This idea, I think, is a really important one. It’s easy in this day and age to get swept up in the immediate gratification of so many things. We want a pill, a supplement, a quick fix. We get Amazon delivered in a day or two, we can find the answer to anything in nearly an instant with our cell phones. Nothing about modern day life is a plod, but GAPS certainly is.

This idea of long-suffering patience with the difficulties in your life should not be dismissed. The journey through GAPS changed me in significant ways. It taught me to slow down, it taught me to trust, it taught me to persevere even when it looked like nothing was working. Sometimes we have to just put one foot in front of the other and keep showing up to the task set before us. We must plod.

I mentioned this idea in last week’s blog post. I think its an important one to remember in the world we live in. It isn’t easy to slow down and always be intentional. GAPS has a way of slowing you down – sickness, really, has a way of slowing you down so that you focus on healing. I’m sure you’ve heard someone say some variation of, “you’re not concerned about health until you get sick.” Well, its true.

From the moment Raleigh became sick and I started researching, to implementing the GAPS diet, I had dedicated an entire decade of my life to saving my son; to reclaiming his health. A decade of research, study, prayer, cooking, cleaning and cooking more. A decade of plodding with purpose. I’d do it all again. It was worth that decade of my life. It gave me purpose and it gave my son his life back. It gave him a future without chronic illness.

If you find yourself in the daily plod, embrace it! You’re making a difference. It’s making you a stronger person. Keep going, keep plodding!

If you find yourself needing help or guidance through GAPS please contact me through the Contact tab or email me at: gapstoheal@gmail.com