NEW TICKER
{Yes, we are home - Part 2 of our vacation will be posted in the next few days - maybe. I'm feeling over-whelmed with jumping back into the routine!}
For those who noticed the new ticker....Mike has made a deal with me. When I have logged 500 miles on my bike he'll buy me the eliptical machine I've been dreaming of. I used to go to the gym 5 - 6 days a week (in San Antonio and Anchorage). Now that the girls are gone I simply can't take that much time out of the morning routine to go to the gym. I've thought a machine at home would be the answer. Mike is concerned about weight for moving....he also thinks I need to simply get outside.
SO....I took the challenge.
I can see good coming of this....1. I'll establish a work out routine before I buy the machine which would make it more likely that I'll use the machine when I have it, 2. this gives me a fitness goal I CAN make progress towards whereas the weight will be released when it will be released! In other words I want to see results somewhere! {G} and (I suppose) 3. Mike thinks I'll decide that I don't need the machine by the time I log 500 miles......we'll see. *IF* I still want it at the end of 500 miles he promises to purchase it.
I'm also trying to work up to one sit up a day! :::snort:::
Sunday, April 30, 2006
CAT FIGHT!
While out on the bike this a.m. I saw a full-fledged cat fight! Wow. I am not sure I'd really ever seen one like this before. Two big furry cats...going at it "tooth and nail". They were making an ungodly amount of noise and mess. Fur was flying. They were expending a tremendous amount of energy and were rolling and jumping all over the yard....but they weren't going anywhere "purposeful". Everyone was giving them a wide berth.
As I rode on, I chuckled to myself. Mike has often teased me about my passion for mentoring, and leading women's ministry. He says I like to "herd cats". His cryptic comment began to make more sense to me....
Then I got very sad as I realized that far to often we ladies do tend to allow our relationships to shrink to nothing more than cat fights. We make a lot of noise, we refuse to co-operate, we make a giant mess, we exert a ton of energy but we accomplish nothing meaningful for the kingdom, we begin to repel instead of attract others...all because we do not let God be GOD in our relationships.
I made a new resolve to avoid cat fights this a.m. - of all kinds. Care to join me in avoiding cat fights? {G}
While out on the bike this a.m. I saw a full-fledged cat fight! Wow. I am not sure I'd really ever seen one like this before. Two big furry cats...going at it "tooth and nail". They were making an ungodly amount of noise and mess. Fur was flying. They were expending a tremendous amount of energy and were rolling and jumping all over the yard....but they weren't going anywhere "purposeful". Everyone was giving them a wide berth.
As I rode on, I chuckled to myself. Mike has often teased me about my passion for mentoring, and leading women's ministry. He says I like to "herd cats". His cryptic comment began to make more sense to me....
Then I got very sad as I realized that far to often we ladies do tend to allow our relationships to shrink to nothing more than cat fights. We make a lot of noise, we refuse to co-operate, we make a giant mess, we exert a ton of energy but we accomplish nothing meaningful for the kingdom, we begin to repel instead of attract others...all because we do not let God be GOD in our relationships.
I made a new resolve to avoid cat fights this a.m. - of all kinds. Care to join me in avoiding cat fights? {G}
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
We are OUT of here....as soon as I click publish and run everyone through the rest room.
Quick comments I forgot....several have emailed to see if Zander's comment about his "belly buddy" was an annoucnment that we were expecting....no...it is not! A Belly Buddy is a belly button in Zander speak.
Prayers for this week: connections with old friends....weather - thunderstorms are predicted....peace...I'm anal about coming home to a clean home and it isn't up to par this time....I will relax.
Quick comments I forgot....several have emailed to see if Zander's comment about his "belly buddy" was an annoucnment that we were expecting....no...it is not! A Belly Buddy is a belly button in Zander speak.
Prayers for this week: connections with old friends....weather - thunderstorms are predicted....peace...I'm anal about coming home to a clean home and it isn't up to par this time....I will relax.
Monday, April 24, 2006
One last thought as we bring this day to a close:
I dreadfully miss BreAnne and Krista!
My friend, Julie, in Anchorage is getting ready to move back to the lower 48. I called her to let her know we're praying for her, her dear husband, their big dog Jake and their twin boys as they transition to CA. She talked to BreAnne last week. They plan to "swing by" WA and take the girls to lunch. Julie promises me a first-hand, mother's-heart evaluation of how they are doing.
I dreadfully miss BreAnne and Krista!
My friend, Julie, in Anchorage is getting ready to move back to the lower 48. I called her to let her know we're praying for her, her dear husband, their big dog Jake and their twin boys as they transition to CA. She talked to BreAnne last week. They plan to "swing by" WA and take the girls to lunch. Julie promises me a first-hand, mother's-heart evaluation of how they are doing.
*Drummer in the Dark* by T. Davis Bunn
I gave up the Christian Suspense/Mystery Genre some years ago. The plots seemed predictable and the canned preaching less than inspiring. The characters were doing fantastic things. I switched to mystery cozies (which also has fantastic characters but minus the predictability and preaching). However, this book caught my eye at the library.
I enjoyed this book. It was moral. I didn’t have to skip pages of activities that offend my faith. The suspense was “realistic” and well done. The characters intrigued me. Without giving the plot away this book centers on politics and global finances and was very interesting. The characters exhibit a real faith in Jesus but their discussions seemed to be more natural and what you would expect from Christians in suspense…instead of “preaching”. I think that maybe the genre has realized that most buying Christian fiction to relax are already Christians and the long pages detailing salvation is preaching to the choir? That sounds rude and I don’t mean it to….I’d recommend this book to any (Christian or not) who loves a good mystery suspense…but doesn’t want to wade through lots of violence.
I do plan to check this genre out more in the days to come. I’d love to hear of other books by this author that you have read and enjoyed. I’d also love to hear of other Christian authors you know of who have written suspense/mystery. Point me to the shelves. {G}
*What the Bible Says About Healthy Living* by Rex Russell, M.D.
I shared previously that I’ve heard about this book for years but was turned off of it by the “legalism” exhibited from those who read it. I am so allergic to legalism.
When I met a group here who do not seem to be overly legalistic and they recommended the book I was willing to read it. {What a turkey I can be – can you believe I’d be so swayed by impressions of personalities instead of message???}
My new friends were right. The principles in this book are the very ones that God has led our family to step by step over the past few months. They are: Eat What God Created for Food, As Much As Possible Don’t Alter God’s Design, Make No Food an Idol. He also details a way of fasting that mirrors where God has led me over the past 9 months. This book was a huge confirmation of where we are heading.
I want to be clear that this author clearly states that eating in this way is not a moral issue and not a salvation issue. You are justified by FAITH and GRACE….but his premise is that God designed our bodies and food, therefore, we should eat the way He instructed the Israelites to eat. Again and again the author points out where science eventually confirms that God’s design works best for our bodies. He gives examples where the Bible “seemed” to go against science and science has now caught up. This book is well-documented. I was impressed by how Dr. Russell continually points out the design in nature and how this leads to a DESIGNER. In fact this impressed me so much that it is one reason I would highly recommend this book to others. Those of you who know me well know THIS would appeal to me greatly…he constantly draws us back to the Scripture for our answers, rather than science or common “knowledge”.
A few random thoughts: Many who say they are eating the way the Bible says to, have added their own rules and laws…they are NOT in this book {g}. For instance no where in this book does it say that I MUST juice cabbage and cauliflower (though I COULD – I could also eat it raw, cooked or choose something else to eat).
God has given us way more to eat than he has asked us not to eat! After reading why – it’s fairly easy to say no to the few things that we need to avoid.
Even though God clearly says we can eat locusts – it will be a long time before my family tries that.
I will now begin looking for a rancher who will sell me grain fed, chemical free, hormone free beef – in other words an organic rancher?
I am also going to look for a place to buy certified raw milk.
I would love to eat more organic produce but am not sure where to find it or that I could afford the massive quantities that we eat of produce…so we will be sure to wash things well at this point.
*Healthy Living* and Thin Within – I know that many weight loss programs say “use this only” but Thin Within dovetails beautifully with the concepts in this book. Thin Within teaches WHY we over eat. It also teaches heavily that we are to “eat to live not live to eat” (a comment made many times in this book as well). Thin Within’s main emphasis is on Principle 3 – don’t be controlled by ANY food or make no food an idol! In TW they do say you are free to eat whatever you would like but after a bit of time you should begin to make healthy choices that will bless your body. They say you CAN loose weight and eat only chocolate cheesecake but you may be like the spoiled child if that is what you are doing. Healthy Living gives me info to make good choices for my body as I choose to listen to the God-given signals of my body.
I have noted that a person could eat according to this book and be vastly over-weight. I’ve been there – done that years ago….so the key will be NOT to over-eat even whole foods.
*Healthy Living* and the Feingold program – Early in the book Dr. Russell makes statements that Dr. Ben Feingold believed that eating certain foods affected behavior and that his theories had been disproved. Obviously, this caught my attention. As I read on, the author continually gave illustrations of food affecting behavior and “Feingold results”. He also recommends eliminating the very same things that Feingold does (synthetic colors, flavors and petro chemicals – yep – uses the same terms). The only difference is the Stage 1 elimination of natural salcyilates. I viewed Stage 1 of Feingold as a fast from those foods for 7 weeks. Dr. Russell recommends fasting in this way for various health reasons. We were not led to give up all of the Stage 1 foods only the apple juice which Zander drank a LOT of. We have now added it back in. If a person followed the information in this book they WOULD be on Stage 2 of Feingold….and beyond…..I marked many spots in this book where his comments mirror Dr. Feingold. I don’t see a contradiction between Healthy Living and the Feingold Program.
I’d recommend this book to many. No, I didn't agree with everything in the book - but I rarely do. {G} I plan to add it to our “health” curriculum. I’d recommend it to those who are interested in a solid book that answers the question “If God created the world why do we feel so terrible?”. I’d recommend it to those who think that to be a Christian means you have to give up a whole foods/organic lifestyle. I’d recommend it to a non-believer who is into either wholesome diet or science….as it is solid and always points back to a Designer behind the design. This book has caused me further awe at our Amazing Creator. It’s given me even more reason to never touch a hot dog. {vbg}
I shared previously that I’ve heard about this book for years but was turned off of it by the “legalism” exhibited from those who read it. I am so allergic to legalism.
When I met a group here who do not seem to be overly legalistic and they recommended the book I was willing to read it. {What a turkey I can be – can you believe I’d be so swayed by impressions of personalities instead of message???}
My new friends were right. The principles in this book are the very ones that God has led our family to step by step over the past few months. They are: Eat What God Created for Food, As Much As Possible Don’t Alter God’s Design, Make No Food an Idol. He also details a way of fasting that mirrors where God has led me over the past 9 months. This book was a huge confirmation of where we are heading.
I want to be clear that this author clearly states that eating in this way is not a moral issue and not a salvation issue. You are justified by FAITH and GRACE….but his premise is that God designed our bodies and food, therefore, we should eat the way He instructed the Israelites to eat. Again and again the author points out where science eventually confirms that God’s design works best for our bodies. He gives examples where the Bible “seemed” to go against science and science has now caught up. This book is well-documented. I was impressed by how Dr. Russell continually points out the design in nature and how this leads to a DESIGNER. In fact this impressed me so much that it is one reason I would highly recommend this book to others. Those of you who know me well know THIS would appeal to me greatly…he constantly draws us back to the Scripture for our answers, rather than science or common “knowledge”.
A few random thoughts: Many who say they are eating the way the Bible says to, have added their own rules and laws…they are NOT in this book {g}. For instance no where in this book does it say that I MUST juice cabbage and cauliflower (though I COULD – I could also eat it raw, cooked or choose something else to eat).
God has given us way more to eat than he has asked us not to eat! After reading why – it’s fairly easy to say no to the few things that we need to avoid.
Even though God clearly says we can eat locusts – it will be a long time before my family tries that.
I will now begin looking for a rancher who will sell me grain fed, chemical free, hormone free beef – in other words an organic rancher?
I am also going to look for a place to buy certified raw milk.
I would love to eat more organic produce but am not sure where to find it or that I could afford the massive quantities that we eat of produce…so we will be sure to wash things well at this point.
*Healthy Living* and Thin Within – I know that many weight loss programs say “use this only” but Thin Within dovetails beautifully with the concepts in this book. Thin Within teaches WHY we over eat. It also teaches heavily that we are to “eat to live not live to eat” (a comment made many times in this book as well). Thin Within’s main emphasis is on Principle 3 – don’t be controlled by ANY food or make no food an idol! In TW they do say you are free to eat whatever you would like but after a bit of time you should begin to make healthy choices that will bless your body. They say you CAN loose weight and eat only chocolate cheesecake but you may be like the spoiled child if that is what you are doing. Healthy Living gives me info to make good choices for my body as I choose to listen to the God-given signals of my body.
I have noted that a person could eat according to this book and be vastly over-weight. I’ve been there – done that years ago….so the key will be NOT to over-eat even whole foods.
*Healthy Living* and the Feingold program – Early in the book Dr. Russell makes statements that Dr. Ben Feingold believed that eating certain foods affected behavior and that his theories had been disproved. Obviously, this caught my attention. As I read on, the author continually gave illustrations of food affecting behavior and “Feingold results”. He also recommends eliminating the very same things that Feingold does (synthetic colors, flavors and petro chemicals – yep – uses the same terms). The only difference is the Stage 1 elimination of natural salcyilates. I viewed Stage 1 of Feingold as a fast from those foods for 7 weeks. Dr. Russell recommends fasting in this way for various health reasons. We were not led to give up all of the Stage 1 foods only the apple juice which Zander drank a LOT of. We have now added it back in. If a person followed the information in this book they WOULD be on Stage 2 of Feingold….and beyond…..I marked many spots in this book where his comments mirror Dr. Feingold. I don’t see a contradiction between Healthy Living and the Feingold Program.
I’d recommend this book to many. No, I didn't agree with everything in the book - but I rarely do. {G} I plan to add it to our “health” curriculum. I’d recommend it to those who are interested in a solid book that answers the question “If God created the world why do we feel so terrible?”. I’d recommend it to those who think that to be a Christian means you have to give up a whole foods/organic lifestyle. I’d recommend it to a non-believer who is into either wholesome diet or science….as it is solid and always points back to a Designer behind the design. This book has caused me further awe at our Amazing Creator. It’s given me even more reason to never touch a hot dog. {vbg}
*Captivating* by John & Stasi Eldredge
Yes, I finally finished this book!
It will come as no surprise to any that I have some thoughts on this book. I’ve been asked often over the past 8 months what I think of this book. I’m going to hold off on sharing my thoughts until I have time to really process them. I need time to write another book review and after *Healthy Living* I have no time to do this one justice. I’ll let my thoughts germinate during Part 2 of our vacation and post some thoughts when I return IF anyone cares to read them.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)