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Here is what I’m reading this month:
First, a testimony of healing to encourage you – Robin Sampson’s Heart.
Next, a topic near and dear to my heart – Healthcare – this author makes some very good points.
This week I rendered tallow, following this recipe. I was amazed how easy it was. We made homemade fries in it and they were great!
Next, a warning about soy and birth control pills. This is great example of following your gut instinct despite what the doctors are telling you.
And finally, another recipe I tried, whole wheat crackers. These, too, were super easy to make. This is a soaked wheat recipe, so the phytates will be neutralized in the wheat. I really probably spent about 5 minutes in the evening mixing them, then they sit overnight, and another 5 minutes rolling them out the next morning. They bake in about 10-15 minutes.
My kids loved them with cheese slices. There are a couple things I will tweak, but I will be making them again and again.
I have good news to share! I am totally and completely healed from all the symptoms I was experiencing since June of ‘08 (the dizziness had been from August of ‘05). No more dizziness, no more hives, no more itching, no more dermatitis (see pictures), no more eczema, no more blues, no more exhaustion, no more headaches! God is good!
Just looking at this photo makes me, 1)praise God for healing! and 2)cringe in memory of the pain. This isn’t even at it’s height. This dermatitis had spread to my ring finger knuckle and most days was cracked and bleeding. (Sorry to gross you out.) You have no idea how great it feels to not feel bad!
- Before
- After
I can not give you a list or formula for your healing or success. You must seek God’s will for your life. It may be that you need to change your diet. It may be that you need to cut certain things out of your life. It may be that you need to add more physical activity. It may be that you need to do a study of His Word and find out what it says about healing. It may be that you need a revelation of the authority and power that has been given to us as believers (that’s what I needed). No one will know the answer but you. And whatever it is that you need to be doing, you will know, because it will bring you great peace. Being in the center of God’s will always brings you peace.
There is a time for change in your diet and a time for taking supplements, but that must be by the leading of God. Don’t seek out a formula. Don’t be motivated out of fear of sickness and disease. Put your trust in God and seek His will above all else.
What if you are doing everything right? What if you are eating an impeccable diet?
You see, I was doing everything “right.” And I only saw little results, not full healing. It wasn’t until I recognized that the fight is not always in this physical world, it goes deeper. I emphasize physical health a great deal on this blog, but we must not forget that we are spiritual beings, these bodies are just temporary.
II Corinthians 10:3-4
For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds.
Though we walk in the flesh–this natural, physical world, we do not war against the flesh–there is a spiritual world, that we cannot see and there is an enemy out there that wants to destroy us. He wants to keep us from our purpose. He will hit you at your weak points. My weak point was thinking that I could solve any issue with my diet and not putting full trust in God to keep me healthy. But our weapons are not carnal (not fleshly, not of this world, are not our food and vitamins), but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds! I don’t know about you, but that excites me! It means my health is not determined wholly by my environment (much of which I can’t control).
We live in a fallen world. There are so many things wrong with our environment and our food supply that it is practically impossible to keep in perfect health (on your own). But it is not God’s will for me to be sick. He has a purpose for me and I cannot accomplish it if I am constantly tending to myself and obsessing about myself and feeling terrible.
This is one of the reasons He sent His Son. Most importantly so that we can have salvation, but also to give us an abundant life on the earth. (John 10:10) If you are wondering what the Bible has to say on healing, I encourage you to start a study. There are many, many cases, in the gospels, where Jesus healed the sick. He says in Mark 11:23-24 that if we say to a mountain, “Be removed and be cast into the sea,” and do not doubt in our hearts, but believe that we receive those things we ask, we will have them.
Do you have a mountain weighing you down right now? A stronghold in your life? Speak to that mountain and have faith that God will remove it. Step out of the physical realm and into the spiritual.
John 14:14
If you ask anything in My name, I will do it. God wants to heal you.
Click here for a great article on healing scriptures that will build up your faith.
I’m embarrassed to admit, but here goes–I caught myself slipping away from the very thing I preach, the very thing I deem most important, trusting in God for my health. Read my two articles on that, here and here.
Don’t misunderstand me here, I have not fallen away from the faith. I believe in healing, I believe it is God’s will that we live in health, I believe His Word. But I realized in these last few weeks that I had become like Peter, when he stepped out of the boat to walk on the water and then looked around at the storm, and started to sink. I found myself looking all around at my vitamins, at each thing I was eating, trying to figure things out on my own–and I felt myself sinking. (Read the story of Peter walking on the water here.)
I actually caught myself EXPECTING to feel bad every day! This is SO not like me. I am a very upbeat, positive person, but anyone can slip in this area. That is why I wanted to write this word of warning, so that others will be aware and watch out for this pitfall. And the more you learn about health, the more likely you are to get caught in this pitfall!
I have explained some of the physical issues I’ve dealt with these last 11 months, here and here. Lately, headaches and exhaustion were added to the mix, along with the dizzy spells trying to creep back. I am taking many, many supplements daily and keeping close tabs on what I eat. I was keeping a food diary to try to track how I felt after eating each type of food. I cut sugar out for 2 months. I did an experiment with dairy and was even starting to think I should cut out gluten (NOT a pleasant thought!). Was I eating too many carbs? Was I drinking enough water? Should I switch from raw Holstein milk, to raw Jersey milk? Questions filled my mind constantly! Each time I would open a pill bottle (I do this three times a day), I would have thoughts of anxiousness that I might run out of pills before I could order more. I found myself obsessing about MYSELF, every minute of the day! That is exactly what the devil wants!
You heard me right, there is a devil and he is your enemy! One day I woke up (literally and figuratively) and remembered the verse, II Corinthians 10:3-4, “For though I walk in the flesh, I do not war against the flesh, for the weapons of my warfare are not carnal, but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds.” Even though we have physical bodies and live in a physical world, there is a spiritual world that we cannot see and spiritual forces at work. But we, as Christians, have a weapon that is not physical (prayer and God’s Word), it is mighty in God for pulling down strongholds. Headaches and exhaustion are strongholds. Depression and anxiety are strongholds. Obsession is a stronghold. Jesus said that He came to bring us an abundant life. An abundant life is a life FREE from strongholds!
Do you want to be FREE from strongholds? Then you have got to place your trust in God and His Word. Find out what His Word has to say about your health and about healing. Stand on those promises. I posted the above verse on my bathroom mirror, so that I would have a constant reminder of it.
We can eat right and take our supplements, but we are human and no human is perfect. I believe we actually must get to a point where we admit that we could NEVER get it 100% right–admit that THE only way we will live in health is by the grace of God and the power of Jesus Christ! We must never take our eyes off of the Lord (like Peter did), He is our source of health. Don’t look at your vitamins as your source of health. Don’t look at your organics as your source of health. Don’t look at your grass-fed meat as your source of health. Learn about making healthy choices, take your babysteps, but don’t try to figure everything out. Give your burdens to God, He cares for you. I Peter 5:7 If you want to learn more about this, check out my other blog, here.
If you have slipped, like I did, recognize the slip and move on, don’t beat yourself over the head. Get your health priorities right again–spiritual first, mental second, and physical third. I am excited to tell you that at the moment I got my priorities right, at the moment the truth of II Corinthians 10:3-4 really sunk down into my heart, I was free from the headaches, exhaustion, and dizziness! I am still taking my vitamins and still taking babysteps in my eating, but I am no longer worrying about things, no longer obsessing like I was, I am feeling great again!
You may enjoy reading these past articles of mine:
At this point in my food journey and health education process I realize that I am at peace. I have perfect peace now with my eating and my food choices. Do I eat perfectly? No! But I am at peace and I think that is what this journey is all about. (Meanwhile still taking my babysteps!) It’s not about keeping ourselves in perfect health, we can never do that of our own accord.
I don’t say this to boast, but rather to encourage you.
That is why a lot of you come here to this site–you are seeking peace in your life by doing all you can to be healthy.
Some of you come here to learn a bit about health, but need peace in other areas. Perhaps it’s finances, marriage, child rearing, government, economy, or even spiritual questions about life after death, destiny, etc. Whatever it is, you are unsettled, seeking something that will give you a sense of peace.
While some others of you come here for some good recipes. You don’t really care much about changing your eating, and that’s okay, too. I would much rather see you put emphasis on your spiritual well-being and then your mental well-being before you tackle the physical, anyway. I named this site All Things Health (as I have said before) to be a constant reminder to keep your “health” priorities in order and to address all things that apply to your health, whether spiritual, mental, or physical.
Whatever the reason you come here, I want to communicate to you that you can have real peace in your life. But I can only pass on so much, you must go through the experiences yourself. I like this quote-
The words printed here are concepts. You must go through the experiences. -Carl Frederick
You CAN experience the abundant life that Jesus promised in John 10:10. I am not talking about finding religion. And this is much more than just a belief in God. I am talking about a relationship with Jesus Christ. This is not about fitting God into a little box, a little portion of your life–Sunday mornings, for example. This is about seeking wholeheartedly to find out what the gospel is about, what God’s character is all about, what His Word has to say about all areas of life, and submitting to serve Him and follow after His will. Seek first His kingdom and everything else falls into place (Matthew 6:33). This is bigger than nutrition.
Who would have thought that I could find answers to my nutrition questions in the Bible? I spent a good deal of my time reading different books about nutrition, but the pieces of the puzzle didn’t come together for me until I went to God’s Word. I didn’t have all the pieces when I started this blog a year and a half ago, but in the last couple months I feel like the last pieces of the puzzle have come together (and I will be writing about that soon, to fill you all in). I’m sure there will be more insight to gain, but this place of peace is wonderful! The peace of God is truly a peace that surpasses understanding! (Philippian 4:7)
I have no more desire to study nutrition (this isn’t to say it’s no longer a passion, it is and, of course, I am still learning in many other areas). That’s how much peace I have. I no longer have that pulling inside me to “find” the answers. I have studied for approximately the last 5 years. All that knowledge doesn’t do me a bit of good without the wisdom to know how to use it and God’s wisdom is the best wisdom of all. God wants to give us all wisdom, we just need only to ask (James 1:5). The Bible will offer you all the answers you are looking for. ONLY God and His Word can bring you true, lasting peace–in ALL areas of your life!
And so I pray today, that you will find the peace of God in your life. I encourage you to read John 10:1-10, especially focusing on verse 9. If you need specific prayer, I would love to hear from you and pray with you. If you want to know HOW to start a relationship with Jesus Christ, please let me know.
I have intended to write an article on the topic of stress for quite some time now. The purpose of this blog is to address ALL things health—
this includes spiritual health, mental health, and physical health. Stress falls into the category of mental health, but it affects our physical health.
This brings me to a key foundational point of my philosophy. I believe that in order for us to walk in physical health, we have to have our spiritual and mental health in order. And I believe this also means that we need to have our priorities in order concerning the three. If we exalt physical health above the other two, they will suffer. If we exalt our mental health above spiritual or physical health, they, too, will suffer. I believe that the proper order of importance is spiritual first, mental second, and physical last. Just because physical health comes in last place doesn’t mean we neglect it. On the contrary, there must be a balance between the three. I really want to emphasize this, because I know on this blog, most of the attention is on physical health. I think this is an area that people have neglected for too long, so I feel the need to spread truth about it. In the process I don’t want you to forget about your mental and spiritual health.
So back to the subject of stress…
Many things can create stress in our lives—relationship issues, finances, raising kids, work pressures, and the day-to-day duties we all have, like keeping on top of the bills, driving our kids around town for activities, etc. I remember reading somewhere that there are different types of stress—on type is from major things in our lives, the death of a loved one, for example, but the other type is from our busy, multi-tasking lives. In the article I read, the latter type was worse than the former, simply because it is there day in and day out and there isn’t a release. We need to be aware that children and teens can feel stress, as well. It is my hope, in the future, to address some of these issues in an effort to help you relieve some stress. We’ll see how that goes—
as much as I think about it, it seems I do get pulled in the direction of writing about physical health more often. J
With Thanksgiving right around the corner and Christmas next month, I felt it was a good time to at least touch on this topic. The holidays seem to bring so much stress for so many. If you are feeling stress over the holidays, it really is best for your overall health that you pull back and take it easy. Do some shopping online; avoid the crowds. Share the burden of preparing the holiday meals with others—
many hands make light work. I had good intentions of sending out Christmas cards this year and even thought of making goody plates for people, but I won’t be doing either of these. Right now, I am learning to say no more (read on). I’m not even making a turkey this year! I bought turkey legs instead and will make a very small version of the holiday meal. Thanksgiving is going to be a nice relaxing time with my family. To see what my menu was last year, click here. It will be pretty close to the same this year.
Stress is a sneaky, subtle thing. I think most of us feel stress and we don’t give it a second thought. We just think that’s life, we’re busy and we just trudge on. Many think that to ask for help is a sign of weakness. We don’t realize that this stress is having an effect on our physical bodies.
I have been dealing with a skin issue since June and I have just learned that it was caused by stress! I had this same issue pop up about 16 years ago when I was under a lot of stress. I just recently connected the dots and could see how that incident was stress related, as well. I always thought I was one that handled stress really well, though. I remember interviewing for a job and telling my future boss that things don’t bother me, things just roll off my back. I have always prided myself on being in control of my emotions. If I’m upset about something one day, I can just sleep it off, and I’
m fine the next day. I can wake up in the morning feeling resolved, without ever really resolving anything. I think the word for that is repression! J I have never been a very outward person; I don’t display a lot of emotion. But I am learning that it has to come out somehow. It was a big shock to find that I was manifesting a display of stress. I wasn’t even feeling stressed! But I do look back now and realize that when this skin issue started I was under a great deal of stress. The stress only lasted for a few weeks, but my skin set into a bad cycle that brought about its own stress. I am happy to say now that I am on the road to recovery, having finally got to the root.
Dr. Mercola has his EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) and Dr. Cowan has his patients practice meditation. While neither of these is for me, I can see the effectiveness behind them. Take time to find out what relieves your stress. You may be surprised to find that recreation isn’
t necessarily the answer. I’ve started paying attention to myself, relaxing my shoulders throughout the day and stopping to take a good deep breath and, more importantly, turning down activities and obligations that I know will stress me out.
So take some time this holiday season to relieve your stress. If you are feeling stress in other areas, please address these issues. Get counseling, read books, do what you have to do to get your mental health in order, because your physical health will follow suit.
Proverbs 17:22 A merry heart does good, like medicine, but a broken spirit dries the bones.
P.S. I have found a handy organizational tool. It is www.IwantSandy.com. It works through your email. (I am in my email all day long anyway, might as well make it work for me.) This tool will keep track of phone numbers, appointments, birthdays—all sorts of things. I am loving it! It emails me first thing every morning with my list of to-dos. If I think of something during the day that I need to do that evening or the next day, I just send a quick email to Sandy and the program will send me a reminder (when I designated) to do that item. If you have a calendar, but forget to check it, this program is for you. And, best of all, it’s free!
Update 11/26/08: I found out that this handy new organizer I Want Sandy is going offline on December 8th. You can read about it here. They recommend four other calendar programs, I’ll have to check them out. I am bummed about this. :(
In my last blog I laid out the choice that was being presented in this election. We have made our choice, now what? This is America, right? Our government can’t change from democracy to socialism, can it? This is still the best country in the whole world! But, anything CAN happen; we as a country are not immune. It is all up to you! I think it is time for everyone to wake up and take an ACTIVE role in our government. Let your voice be heard! Elections are not the only time to do that. Our government is, after all, of the people, by the people and for the people. But this only remains true IF you remain active—it is when we are passive that this right is taken away.
What not to do:
- Disrespect – We are to respect the office of our president, vice president, senators, congressmen/women, governors, mayors, etc. These are offices of authority. What example is it to our children when we disrespect authority? How can we expect them to obey us?
- Complain, grumble, slander or in any way bad-mouth the people in office. This does not produce good fruit; it does not bring change.
- Feed off the ranting of others—this includes conservative media (radio shows, etc.). You can keep yourself informed without filling your mind and heart with negativity. Sort through actual news and ranting and tearing down of government officials. Again, it is not fruitful; it makes you mad, but doesn’t bring about change. Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.”
What we need to do:
- Pray
- Be informed. For example, do you know what the Fairness Doctrine is? Or the energy bill that is phasing out the sale of filament light bulbs? Both of these issues affect your life. Get your news from an unbiased source; this won’t be channels 2, 6, or 8. You need to find out the issues. Check out www.khouse.org, onenewsnow.com, AFA.net, worldnetdaily.com, worldmag.com, to name a few.
- Get in contact with your legislators (local, state, and in DC) and STAY in contact with them. You can write them letters, send emails, and make phone calls. I heard somewhere once that every contact they get, they treat as the view of 1000 of their constituents. They are bound to uphold the views of those constituents. But how can they know how we feel when we just sit on our couches and stew? You can sign up for the AFA.net email newsletter–they will send you alerts on legislation and they make it very easy to send a quick email to the appropriate legislators.
- Place your trust in the Lord. Proverbs 21:1 He is in control. He is not surprised by this election, He know the end from the beginning. Isaiah 46:10
- Above ALL, we must obey the Word of God! Paul tells us in Romans 13:1-7 to respect the authority of government for they are appointed by God to restrain evil on the earth. When we are disrespecting the government, we are disrespecting God! Ouch! Peter tells us in I Peter 2:13-17 that it is the will of God that we submit to the laws of government. I believe this applies when those laws do not directly contradict the Word of God. When Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego were told to bow down and worship the idol that King Neduchadnezzar had built, they refused because it contradicted God’s law. (See Daniel 3) Paul tells us in I Timothy 2:1-4 that we should pray for our government leaders so that we will lead peaceable lives and that they may come to the knowledge of the truth.
Think about the world that Peter or Paul or Daniel lived in. I highly recommend reading through the book of Daniel to see an excellent example of how we ought to conduct ourselves in this world. Peter and Paul lived in the Roman empire—Peter in the province of Judea and later in Rome, while Paul traveled extensively throughout Asia Minor, spending time in Rome also. At that time in history the world was extremely pagan. The rulers were the Caesars who wanted to be worshipped as gods, hardly what you consider a godly leader. Yet, see above for what Peter and Paul had to say about their government. Christians were severely persecuted in that time, too. Nero killed both Paul and Peter. Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego were captured from Judah and taken to Babylon where Nebuchadnezzar was ruler. Babylon is the birthplace of all false religion. It was a normal part of the culture to worship idols, eat unclean foods, and practice all sorts of perversion in the name of their worship. These things contradicted the Jewish laws that Daniel and his friends observed. Nebuchadnezzar was an absolute ruler that could execute any one of these Jews at any time for disobedience if he wished. What did Daniel and his friends do? Did they disrespect their captors? Did they complain? We see through the book that they obeyed God’s law above the law of the king, but were at all times respectful and as a result were promoted to high government offices. In the times when they were persecuted by the government for refusing to obey the king, God protected them. Let this be a lesson to us. Our world, even though it seems to be getting worse, is not as bad as the pagan cultures of ancient times. Let our conduct be like Daniel, whose coworkers could find no fault with. (Daniel 6:4) Also note how the emphasis throughout the book is that God is the one who gives the kings their kingdoms. He’s in control and there is no cause to live in fear and worry!
I had to take a break from blogging this last month as we had the opportunity of opening our home to a relative in need. This young lady was in need of a major change in her life and the first night she came to live with us she said she would do anything to change and was excited to learn from us. We laid out some rules and she agreed that they were good.
My husband and I are teachers. We have a heart to teach those that are teachable and want to learn. So we tackled every opportunity to teach character qualities, spiritual fundamentals, and practical life skills. We knew that this would take some time, so we planned many things to teach over the coming months. One of the first lessons we wanted to teach is that our actions speak louder than our words. We can say we love God, but if we aren’t keeping His commandments we don’t truly love Him. (John 14:15,21) In fact, John tells us in I John 1:4 that, “He who says, ‘I know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.” Well, this woman’s actions spoke louder than her words and subsequently she is no longer with us.
We have no ill feelings over the situation and, in fact, I can glean many lessons from it. She has only harmed herself and not us.
I was mopping my floor this morning thinking over the whole situation. I was thinking about all the things I had planned to teach her. Plans to teach character qualities, spiritual fundamentals, knowledge of the Bible and God’s plan and character, and practical information, like how to handle finances, how to clean house and cook.
But with all my plans, it still came down to her choice. She chose not to be meek and teachable, showing us through attitude that she really didn’t want a change in her life.
It is the same way with God. Jeremiah 29:11 says, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (NIV) God has plans for every one of us, BUT it is up to us to CHOOSE to follow God. Jeremiah 10:23 says that man is NOT to direct his own steps; we are to let God direct our steps. Ps. 37:23 says that the steps of a righteous man are ordered of the Lord (I particularly like the New Living Translation of this verse).
What are your plans for your life? It is certainly okay to have goals, but I think we all need to stop more often than we do and ask what God’s plans for us are. It is our choice, we can choose to live a mediocre life or we can CHOOSE to partake of the abundant life that Jesus promised in John 10:10. It saddens me that many Christians don’t live that abundant life. It all comes down to our choices. After Moses read the law to the Israelites he told them they had a choice, in Deuteronomy 30:19, to CHOOSE life or death.
I truly believe this means in ALL areas of our life. We must NOT departmentalize God, put Him in a little corner of our life, go to church, do our duty, and then everything else about our life is up to us. We are only going to have that abundant life if we allow God into those other areas of our life.
The important thing to remember is that every one of us has influence on those around us. If we aren’t living that abundant life, the people around us aren’t going to want anything to do with Christianity.
Many times the apostle Paul compared the spiritual walk with a race. His readers were very familiar at that time with the Olympic games in Greece. We, too, are familiar with the Olympic games, so I would like to expand on that comparison. Imagine this year in Beijing the Olympics is including a special race open to anyone in the world and some wealthy benefactor has paid expenses for as many people of the world that want to come and participate in this race. All you have to do is go and pick-up your plane ticket to China. Many people will take this man’s word to be true, and go and pick-up their plane ticket and fly to China. Once they are there, it is their choice whether to follow the plan of the games or do their own thing. Some will say, “Hey this is great, I got a free ticket to China, but now I’m going to do my own thing and go sightseeing.” Others will participate in this special race, but once the gun goes off, they don’t go anywhere. They think, “This is so great, I’m at the Olympics in Beijing”, but they’re not cooperating and not actually doing any running, as if they don’t understand why they are there. Others are running half-heartedly, not really putting much effort into winning. Some come upon hurdles and then stop, not knowing how to jump them. Now if the world was watching this race on television at home, most would change the channel. People would lose their interest in the Olympic games.
What I suggest to you is that the world is watching you as a Christian, and if you aren’t following God’s plan, then you are influencing those around you and they will want to turn the channel. They won’t want anything to do with the Christianity that you’ve got. Those that were off sightseeing, those that never started the race, those that ran half-heartedly, and those that were blocked by the hurdles ALL hindered the world’s confidence in the Olympic games. Christians that are doing their own thing, or are never growing, or only put half a heart into following God (I’ll go to church, but I want to have my fun, too), or come upon obstacles and crumble, ALL hinder the gospel message. So I say to you, are you going to be one of the runners in this race, striving for the gold medal? Paul says in I Cor. 9:24 that we should all run like we mean it, to win the prize.
God has many plans for you, many things to teach you, the question is, are you going to let Him teach you and lead you? God has given us a whole book of His will. I know it sounds cliché and many years ago, I would’ve nodded my head in agreement, but not actually taken it to heart. I can now tell you from experience that your life will change when you diligently study God’s Word, seeking God’s kingdom first (Matt. 6:33).
I am thinking back now to the last eight months of blogging. Wow! I really had intended on posting my favorite passages from all the various books I have read, just a way of passing on information to my friends, but this has turned into more than that. I didn’t think I would actually be thinking of my own articles and researching information and following an outline. This process of writing has really helped me form some philosophies and gel some things together in my mind. Lately I’ve been asking myself what exactly is my purpose with this blog. Why do I take my time with this? Is it because I think everyone should eat the way I do? Do I think I am the enlightened one and must tell everyone to change his or her ways?
As I have been thinking of this, a scripture came to my mind. III John 2 says, “I pray that you will prosper in ALL things and be in HEALTH, just as your soul prospers.” This answers my questions; this is where my purpose lies. First, I want to educate you on how to have a prosperous soul/spirit, and second, I want to educate you on how to have physical prosperity and health. Your eternal destiny is far more important than your bodily health, but you also can’t fully do the work of the Lord unless you walk in physical health. Do you know where you are spending eternity? Do you know what God is calling you to do? I want to help you realize the answers to these questions. For me, this is the big picture and I’m really glad I took some time to think about it. I truly believe that I am held accountable to God for the influence I have on others, so I want to make sure I am using that influence properly.
Above all, I want this blog to bring you freedom! Freedom from being a slave to sickness, disease, disorders, aches, and pains. I want to meet you where you’re at and help you along the way to make changes in the right direction. I look around me and try to learn from other’s mistakes. I see people in the health community taking sides against one another on health issues and bringing condemnation, or telling people that they have to change X, Y, and Z in order to be healthy. I am not here to bring division and condemnation and it is certainly NOT my place to tell you what you need to change. It is your job to pray and seek God. Ask Him what He wants you to apply to your life. To obey is better than sacrifice (I Sam. 15:22). You can sacrifice everything in your life, but unless you are obeying what God specifically has for you, you won’t have peace. None of us need to get caught in the comparison trap, myself included (II Cor. 10:12). All of us are at different places in our growth, have different motives, different goals, and will reach a different place. Romans 8:1 says, “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.” If you are listening to the Spirit of God and letting Him lead you in your decisions, rather than listening to the flesh, then there is no condemnation. If God is leading me to implement something in my diet, but He is not leading you to it, I cannot condemn you. If you never switched to a complete diet of whole foods, 100% of the time, you would not disappoint me; I only want you to do what God is calling you to do!
Now don’t use this as a cop-out. “Shannon said I didn’t have to change!” That is not what I am saying here. I am saying that you should seek God and His will for you in ALL areas of your life, diet included. I can think of some examples where it would be practically impossible to eat well. The most important thing is, are you fulfilling God’s purpose for your life? He will provide the way for you to have physical health. I hope you get the point. Please don’t slip into making excuses, if you feel that God is leading you to make changes, ask Him which changes you need to make and ask Him to provide! He will! Trust in Him and do NOT lean on your own understanding. (Prov. 3:5). If I present information on here that overwhelms you, put it on the back shelf of your mind, maybe it’s not God’s timing yet or maybe it’s just not something that He wants you to change.
So thank you for continuing to read my humble blog, I pray that you will all prosper and live in HEALTH (III John 2), that you experience the peace that surpasses understanding (Phil. 4:7), and that your life will be filled with the joy of the Lord (Neh. 8:10)!
I want my children to see that the Bible is more than a collection of stories. I want them to see that it is more than great literature – poetry and prose. I want them to see that it is the Word of God and that He is faithful to keep His Word.
So I had an idea to study the prophecies in the Bible that relate to the birth of Jesus for Christmas. Then on Christmas day we’ll read the story and see how these prophecies were fulfilled. We will highlight one prophecy each day as a way to count down the days till Christmas. This is my alternative to an advent calendar, where you open the 24 little doors, from December 1st through 24th. You could do this any time of year, with other topics in the Bible, as well. I found 14 prophecies, so we will start this December 11th. Here are the verses we will cover – Isaiah 7:14, Isaiah 49:5, Isaiah 9:7, Daniel 2:44, Micah 4:7, II Samuel 7:12-16, Genesis 49:10, Micah 5:2, Genesis 12:3, Isaiah 49:6, Isaiah 8:14, Hosea 11:1, Jeremiah 31:15, and Isaiah 53:2-3. These prophecies range in date from approximately 550 BC to 2200 BC. I find this fascinating, so many people in different places and different times confirming God’s Word.
We’re going to read the story out of the Narrated Bible because it places things in chronological order. These are the references – Luke 1:26-38, Matthew 1:18-25a, Luke 2:1-20, Matthew 1:25b, Luke 2:21-38, Matthew 2:1-23, and Luke 2:40.
Now in our family we don’t really place a lot of emphasis on Christmas being a celebration of Jesus’ birth. There is not one place in the Bible that tells us to celebrate His birth. The disciples didn’t celebrate His birth, nor did the early churches. Therefore when our reading of the story is done I will ask the kids what is even more important than Jesus’ birth. With most of our Bible reading I like to bring the focus to the central theme – God’s love for man and His plan of redemption. The Bible is really a love story and it all points to Jesus. His birth is not where the story ends; the rest of the story is how He died a most horrific death for something He didn’t even do. He was innocent, but He took our place and paid our debt. If Jesus had grown up to be a great teacher we wouldn’t have anything to celebrate. It is His death and resurrection we celebrate.
So what does this have to do with health? Our spiritual health is the most important thing in our lives! Eating right and exercising mean nothing compared to where we will spend eternity. We can eat perfectly, but that won’t save our souls. We can exercise and keep our bodies in tip-top shape, but that won’t save our souls. This Christmas take some time to reflect on your spiritual health. Have you received God’s free gift? We don’t have to work for it, it is free, but we do have to receive it. I can give you a beautifully wrapped gift, but unless you open it up you won’t experience the joy associated with it.
How do we receive? We have to realize our need for a Savior, that we are sinners and that He died to cleanse us (Rom. 3:23). We must repent and ask God to forgive us of our sins (Luke 13:3). We must believe in our hearts that Jesus died for us and that God raised Him from the dead and we must confess with our mouths (Rom. 10:9-10).
I hope this Christmas that you see (along with my children) that God’s Word is true and that God is faithful to perform His Word. I John 1:9 “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” John 3:16 “For God loved the world SO much that He sent His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him will have everlasting life.”
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