Made for more. . .: About me

Hello. My name is Tina Morris. I am a wife, mother, Sunday school teacher, Bible study nerd, Girls in Action leader, elementary school office manager, & as of just recently a blogger. I spend my days at work, my afternoons rushing to get a work out in and dinner cooked, and my evenings rushing around taking care of my kids and as well as any other kids and youth the Lord puts in my path. I do spend Tuesday nights in Bible study with some of my closes friends. This Tuesday night Bible study group that I am in is what I like to call my “therapy.” It is what helps me stay in God’s Word and helps me grow in my faith and creates a more stable foundation for me to do all the rest of the things God calls me to do as well as the requirements of my family, work and just life here in my little part of the world.

I have lived most of my life on the border of NC and VA. Part of my life I have lived on one side of the line and the other part I have lived on the other side of it. My mother is from VA and my father is from NC and I have driven across that line all my life. Either side to me is home. However, the place I live right now is NC but only about 3 miles from the VA line. I even had my wedding at my home church in VA and had my wedding reception in NC. I think it is one of the neat things about my life – to say either state is home.

Another neat thing about my life is I never grew up past 4’11”. Yep – never got to 5 foot tall. It did use to bother me and it truly affected my self-esteem as a child. I was always the littlest and last to be chosen for any kind of games. I have been picked on all of my life about it. However, I can say now that I have grown right into my size. I love that I am what I am and that God has made me special this way. Considering my job and all my ties to children’s ministry I see God knew what He was doing because He knew that I would be surrounding by children and young people through my life’s work and He has made me to fit right in. The children love it when they are as tall as I am and then when they pass me it brings them even more joy. I also feel like it helps me to hang out with them and become part of their world. I don’t seem so grown up to them. Truthfully, I am not really all that grown up anyway. I have a heart for children and often though I have had a heart like a child too. That isn’t a bad thing thought because that is what Christ said we should be like anyway “But Jesus called the children to him and said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.” Luke 18:16

However, the one thing that I have not liked about my short frame is the fact that I cannot seem to keep it at a healthy weight. This is where my love for blogging has come in. I have done several diets. I have been an active member of a gym for going on 4 years now. In the last few years I have become a three time a week runner (most every week). I have even run in a 5K, 8K and 10K race before. I have done tried lots of things and have had some success at losing weight in the last 4 years; however I have once again found myself at a place that nothing is working. I had looked into doing as weight loss product after I have seen results from several people I know. However, it was very expensive and I just couldn’t see paying for anything else. Then one Saturday I happen to be at a women’s conference and saw a friend of mine at lunch time and she had her own bag lunch with her. I asked her about it because lunch came with our ticket. She shared with me about this diet she had been doing since the summer and it is called the 17 Day Diet. She had tried the weight loss product I had looked into and said she did have success with it but she really just couldn’t afford to continue on it and then she found this. So I looked into the diet and got some more information about it. Then I talked my husband into going on this diet with me. I also decided to start this blog. I had set the blog up a long time ago but had not done anything with it. So I figured this would be a great place for me to put my progress as well as my struggles. It has been an excellent companion with my diet because I really do consider how I am going to explain myself if I do not make wise choices on my diet plan. Most of the time it helps me make better choices. I also hope that it will encourage others to not only make healthy choices in their eating but healthy choices in activity as well as soul healthful choices as well. You see I know from experience that there are lots of ways to lose weight. You do not have to do it my way to get it right. However, I have learned in my life there is only one way to really make any changes in your life and that is through the power of God in your life. He created us and He is able to recreate us. His word transforms us and it also renews us. So as I travel this journey of living a healthier lifestyle I hope that it is a reflection of the things that God is changing in my life and can also help others in their life.

Romans 12:1-2

Dear friends, God is good. So I beg you to offer your bodies to him as a living sacrifice, pure and pleasing. That's the most sensible way to serve God. 2Don't be like the people of this world, but let God change the way you think. Then you will know how to do everything that is good and pleasing to him.