GFJ Post - getting "Fit for My King"

I have to be completely honest here in telling you my thoughts when I picked up this book in LifeWay about a week ago. I thought, "ok, this is just another one of THOSE diet books that just happens to have a Christian spin on it." The title even sounded a little cheesy to me - Fit for My King. Just being HONEST! (must've been extra critical that day and having major moments of NOT walking or thinking in the Spirit!) And if I've read one book on how to lose weight I've read at least 50. So, why should I use my gift card to buy this book instead of that Kari Jobe CD I really wanted? I kid you not, there was a battle that went on in my head for about 15 minutes as I held both of these items in my hand. I only had enough money left on the gift card to purchase one or the other. Which one would it be? Well, obviously we all know it was the book, and I have to admit that I left the store I little mad about my decision. I was mad that I didn't get that Kari Jobe CD and I was even more mad that I was one of those people who have to buy books about losing weight anyway! It was most definitely a "poor, poor me" kind of day...can ya tell?? :) Thank goodness His mercies are new everyday! Amen? Amen.

Towards the mid part of last week I started feeling much more energized and rested. I attributed this to being more consistent over the past couple of weeks with exercising and the sunshine that we've been getting hasn't hurt, either! After my workout last Thursday, I was hungry! It was lunchtime and Aaron had other plans for lunch that day, so I was on my own and could fix myself whatever I wanted. I don't know that I could say this is exactly what I wanted and had in mind when opening the fridge to see what my options were, but what I came out with were fresh fruits and veges that I made a simple smoothie out of. (see last post) And it truly was so satisfying and GOOD and gave me more energy than anything else I could have chosen to have. I know this sounds weird, but it was actually very exciting to me that I enjoyed my lunch that much!

I woke up the next day, still feeling good about the choices that I had made the day before, and I happened to remember that "book" that I had bought earlier in the week that still sat in its crumpled up bag in a chair. Still a little hesitant, I began to read the intro. And after a few pages in and reading things such as "Our God desires for His beloved to experience good health and for their souls to soar" and "Can you imagine if our purpose for being our best was to show our King how much we love Him by taking care of His temple and to have enough energy to witness to the lost?" - I have to say I was a little, ok a lot, more humbled than I was a few days earlier in my regards to what the Lord might allow me to learn through these pages. And I was even more so humbled that He began preparing my heart and my body for the challenges that laid ahead of me the day BEFORE I even knew what they were going to be. This book, Fit for My King, is a 30 day devotional that challenges you, not only with a whole foods "diet" for the 30 days - fasting completely off of white sugar, white flour and several other things, but it is also a book that makes some tough points. My goal, as His child, should not be to lose a single pound for ME and ALL that comes with that! It absolutely should be completely about Him and for His glory ALONE. This is so INCREDIBLY difficult...especially for us women. We are constantly faced with images that we think we should live up to in our society. We so long for the approval and the praise of others. But that isn't God's goal for us at all. His goal is for us to be HEALTHY - for His glory, so that we can make His name greater - and that's the ONLY reason. So, as cheesy as it may or may not sound, I want to be fit for my King. I want to wake up each morning feeling strong so that I can fulfill whatever purposes He has for me for that day. I want to eat the foods that He intended for me to eat from the beginning of time. Not foods that may taste so yummy for a time, but slowly destroy His temple.

Please pray for me over these next 30 days as I make my way through this devotional and through His Word. (and as I seek out new recipes to try!!) I have also been given the challenge to not weigh myself at all during these next 30 days which I know will be VERY hard for me. So pray that I will not be fixated with a number but with feeling energized so that I can betterB serve others and my Lord. Pray that I will not get discouraged when I mess up, because I know that I probably will. My hope is that my desires and my thinking for food and the types of food I crave will be transformed over this next month so that this will become a lifestyle change - not just a 30 day change. And lastly, pray that I will learn to do EVERYTHING for Him.

This seems to be a GREAT book for those looking to loose weight and for those who just want to eat more wholesomely. Highly recommend it. Fit for My King by Sherri Rose Shepherd

Recipe I tried out yesterday that was YUMMY!

Irish Mum's Brown Bread

1 cup unbleached white bread flour (I used whole wheat flour instead)
Pinch of salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 3/4+ cups buttermilk
2 ounces butter
1 egg

Melt the butter over gentle heat.

In a medium-sized bowl lightly beat the egg and then gradually add the buttermilk all the while stirring to incorporate the egg. Beat in the butter. In another bowl sift and mix the dry ingredients as best you can, and then stir in the buttermilk mixture. If you are using a baking tin the mixture should be on the wetter side. If your dough is too dry, mix in small splashes of buttermilk until it is the right consistency. Cook at 400F for 50 minutes on the middle rack. You want to hear a sort of hollow sound when you knock on the bottom of the tin. Resist the urge to take the bread out too soon, or the middle of the bread won't get cooked through.

Makes 1 loaf.

**NOTE** Because I used whole wheat flour, the loaf was a little more dense and took about an hour and 10 minutes in the oven instead of 50 minutes.

GFJ Post!!

I'm sorry, yet again, that it took me forever to do another "Get Fit Journey" post. Some of you are aware that I have been on this journey since January of 2007. I constantly have to remind myself that journeys in life have both roads that go up and roads that go down, and often times roads that are somewhere in between. I've definitely been on a "rocky" road over the past year in my GFJ and I think/know the biggest reason for that is simply a lack of self-discipline. I can blame this road on starting back to school, or on just getting married and moving to a new place, etc., etc. But when it comes right down to it, I've just been very lax with my eating and with my exercise. These last two weeks have been better, though! Thanks to my mother and father-in-law, Aaron and I now have a treadmill! I have wanted this for Aaron and myself for a while now, but was a little hesitant with our living in an apartment, lack of space, neighbors right underneath us situation. Aaron's parents had a spare treadmill in their basement and they were very generous to allow us to use it. I'm using the treadmill to supplement my exercise video that I truly enjoy doing - "Walk Away the Pounds" with Leslie Sansone. This video allows me to choose a 1, 2 or 3 mile workout, depending on the amount of time I have to workout and also on my energy level. I always either choose the 2 or 3 mile workout and then on top of that, I have been walking on the treadmill for a least another mile. So far, so good. And my sweet husband has been getting up early to use the treadmill before he goes to work. I love that he has chosen to head out on this "journey" with me. The thing that makes me not like him being on this journey with me, however, is the fact that his pants feel looser after ONE stinkin' time on that treadmill! :) I love him so much and am incredibly appreciative of his support in my life. Here we both are, trying out the treadmill!

I look a little TOO excited...and my thumbs look weird.

I can hear what my husband is thinking..."Seriously. You're taking a picture of me walking on a treadmill at 7 o'clock in the morning?? Who cares about that?!?" Isn't he just cute? :)

This was my lunch for today and it was SO YUMMY and packed full of vitamins and nutrients. I enjoy eating smoothies, I just don't ever really think about making them. Well, that's going to change! I just took several ingredients that I had on hand here at home - a carrot, an apple, a handful of fresh cherries and frozen strawberries. I probably would have added at least part of a banana too, but since I had one with my breakfast this morning, I skipped it in my smoothie.

I only used half of an apple. A bit of yogurt would have been ideal just to help liquify the smoothie a little, but since I didn't have any in my fridge today, I added a couple of tablespoons of apple juice - just enough to help the blending process.

I also used my coffee grinder and ground up about a tablespoon and a half of flax seeds to throw into the mix. Incase you didn't know, flax seeds are FULL of goodness for you! You can add them to anything you make - doesn't hinder the taste at all.

Isn't that just beautiful?? And it tasted even better than it looked! VERY filling too.

My advice for this GFJ post: Don't consider yourself a failure, even when you find yourself on a hard or rocky road in your journey. Keep going, because the road will level out again eventually.

"Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places smooth." Isaiah 40:4

"Catch All" Post

You know how most of us, whether we will admit it or not, have a "catch all pile" - a pile that catches anything and everything that has no specific place? Well, that's how this post feels to me today - a "catch all post". I haven't blogged in a while, for many reasons, but have so much on my heart and mind today that I just want to get it out! So, know that if you're reading, my words and thoughts might be all over the place today.

Over the last months and even the last year, the Lord has allowed so many "situations" to happen. Situations that cause myself and so many of those I care about on a personal level to be tempted to question God's plans and His goodness. To wonder how Romans 8:28 "and we know that for those who love God all things work together for good" is even a possible reality among cancer and other diseases, death that takes someone precious away from a spouse and children at a young age, a barren woman who longs to see her tummy grow and move with the life of a child, a baby born to a single mother who has no idea how to take care a child, much less herself, those who long so badly to be accepted and loved for who they are, jobs lost and feelings of defeat. I could go on and on with examples of suffering, loneliness, "getting the bad end of the deal" kind of situations that have hit so close to home recently.

In my times of reflection and seeking the Lord over the past few months regarding these things, the word that He has most often brought to mind for me is simply "contentment". I admit that I tend to argue back and forth in my thoughts - "but HOW on earth am I to be content or even pray for contentment in the lives of those suffering these things, Lord?" I'm still praying through this word "contentment" on a regular basis, and as I do, He is faithful. He is faithful in asking me to be content in His provision that "He will supply EVERY need we will ever have according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus" (Phil. 4:19) - reminding me that the process of HOW my needs and the needs of others around me are being met is not up to me - that this process, although He may choose to use me in it, is ultimately up to Him. He is faithful again, through words of Paul in Philippians, of teaching me to "be content in whatever situation I am in" and to pray this for those around me. That we would be just as content in the extremely tough times as we are in the joyful times. We are ALWAYS going to be faced with things we don't like - things that we hate, even - as long as we are alive here on this earth as a result of sin. And because of that, I know that this contentment the Lord is teaching me about is most certainly not something this world can give us, but it can only come through Him, through His Word and His promises, and through the knowledge that He is Sovereign, and that He is good. Ultimately, I am learning to HATE sin all the more in times of hardship instead of questioning God. And hopefully this hatred of sin and seeing the ways in which it plagues each of us, will cause me to proclaim His goodness and the hope that I have in Him all the more. Whew.

On to another topic. I'm excited to say that last semester at school is over and done with! I purposefully took 17 credit hours with the intention of finishing all my core in the hopes that I would be accepted to begin nursing classes this current semester. Good news - I survived and even got all "A's". Bad news - I didn't get excepted to begin nursing classes this semester. At least it was bad news at first. My ranting and raving regarding the fact that I NEEDED and DESERVED to be accepted into the Nursing Program this semester would fall under the above topic of learning to be content. :) I have to admit that while I still find myself somewhat impatient some days of wishing I could just get started with it already so I can get finished, I am finally learning to truly enjoy this time. I started back to school just 6 months after Aaron and I got married. And I totally jumped in with both feet! This didn't allow me the time I would've ideally liked to have had to be a new wife to my new husband. Now, since I'm only taking one class this semester, I am being blessed with the opportunity to simply be a wife to my husband, among other things. I struggled the first couple of weeks with this new "free time" I had - I don't do very well at times with not having a schedule to follow. I stress myself out with the thoughts that I should be getting something done that I'm not, or forgetting to do something that needs to be done. I've been asking the Lord to simply let me "chill out" and rest in the fact that this is where He has me right now and that it's okay. He is assuring me that just because I'm not taking a full load at school this semester or the fact that I don't have a full time job at the moment does not mean that I'm lazy. I can learn to enjoy my days when I let those lies leave my mind. I am so enjoying planning out our meals and having dinner ready when Aaron gets home from work, finding and trying new recipes that fit our budget, clipping coupons and learning how to serve the Lord better through our finances, not being busy with my school work every night and to being able to spend time with Aaron in the evenings with less distraction. I'm learning to take advantage of the time to catch up with those I need to, to cultivate new relationships, to spend more time in the Word, to get back on track with exercising, to make myself available to help out wherever I'm needed, etc. Anything but lazy! It's fun and I'm so appreciating these opportunities! If all goes well, I will hopefully start nursing school in August, so I'm definitely treasuring every moment of this right now!

I'll leave you with a thought that I honestly wish would leave me be, but one that I am nonetheless being forced to work through, thanks to my husband bringing it up last night and through the conviction of the Holy Spirit! Aaron and I, along with much of our faith family, are reading through a book called "Radical" by David Platt. (highly recommend it if you haven't read it) "Radical" is a book that focuses on taking a look at what God's Word truly says - not what we want it to say or what we have created it to say in our own minds throughout the years. A book that has aided in our conviction to truly live out the Gospel, not just talk about it. There is a homeless shelter here in town that our church has committed to working with each week. This is a place where homeless men, women and children come in and are given a place to sleep and eat - however, because the needs around town are so great, these people are rotated out, so to speak. They come to the shelter and if they can prove that they are trying to find a job, etc., are allowed to live there 2 weeks, and are then "rotated out" so that others who are homeless can have that same opportunity. Aaron was telling me last night that he and our Pastor were talking earlier this week regarding this. A question that our Pastor asked Aaron was this, "At what point do we just bring them home with us?" Wow. WOW. Aaron and I have talked before about this - what are we doing with that guest bedroom right down the hall from our bedroom other than letting the bed collect dust on it when there is someone, very nearby to us, sleeping outside in the cold on the ground? What does being obedient to God's Word in taking care of the poor and needy really look like? "At what point do we just bring them home with us?"