June 29, 2012

Good morning to all, Hope you're making your plans and preparing your "special" food for those 4th of July BBQ parties. We MUST plan to be successful or failure may grab us at the close of Wednesday. Stay ahead of the game. :) I am! I'm needing your help. I have started the process of turning my blogs and recipes into a book and would like to have some suggestions. I am thinking the book will have some of my best blogs, maybe the top 31 (a month's worth of reading), or maybe 52 (one for each week of the year). I have written and posted close to 250 in the past 12-13 months and maybe 52 would be better??? I am considering a combination of blog/devotional, journal pages for reflection, informational pages on nutrition, a healthy recipe section with some of my best and some of yours (if you'd like to include them for publishing) as well as some of your photos and success stories as words of hope and encouragement to those longing to be free from prison. I know that's a lot - but I am just starting to contemplate the structure and would love some suggestions. What do you think people would read/use? I don't want to work on something that is not user friendly. :) I have had many of you make the suggestion that I write a book - so this is my blog book. I am several chapters into another book, but this one seemed more urgent. I realize many are trapped in this body of flesh. I think I may entitle it A Journey To Freedom and use Galatians 5:1 as my premise. The book will be written from a Christian perspective. I would love to hear your suggestions as I begin the process. I am currently reading through my blogs, inputting them, and reformatting. I would love to have this ready for publication by late October or early November. IF......I can keep my life from being in a "drama circle" for a season. :) PTL! ****** I know this blog is a bit unusual - but we have an armadillo who has taken up residence in our back yard for 2 years. He has about destroyed portions of our yard. He needs to go to heaven. :) I just saw him this morning coming by me going to his sleeping place under our deck for the day. We have tried traps twice, followed home remedies, chased him physically and still he abides to torment our yard. AGAIN, he needs to go to Heaven. Can somebody pray???? We are at a loss as to what to do! Okay friends - gotta get to work - enjoy your weekend and we'll talk Monday. PK

June 28, 2012 - Sharing

PTL - it's Thursday. The week comes to a close. :) Love to include other's ideas and encouragement on my blog as well! 1. Wendi sent this little nugget to ponder from 2 Kings 12:6-16: btw, the money to restore the temple was NOT used for the accessories for the temple; it was used for temple repairs only - not temple accessories. very interesting. thoughts to ponder. so, when adding things to our lives we could ask ourselves is this a temple repair or a temple accessory? is this food I am about to eat to repair or accessorize??? hmmm.....gonna be chewing on this one day...because of course it is for the repairing of this temple....lol. **** to that I add - this is the whole "refueling process." Our temples break down daily as we age and must be repaired. So, the food we bring to the "temple" (our body) should always be to repair and NOT simply because we "like" it. There are a lot of foods that I have to eat (now) that I don't like - but they repair my "temple" and there are foods that I CANNOT bring to the "temple" because they add weight and inches to my middle (accessories). Of course, this is using scripture to help us see at another level, and we are not saying this is what God was communicating - but it certainly helps me see something new. Thanks, Wendi - I AM PONDERING this. :) 2. Devotional from Joyce Meyer for today - GREAT!: Discernment Is the Key to a Clear Conscience It's critical to keep your conscience clear because nothing will keep you from enjoying life as much as guilt. In Acts, Paul said that he pursued discipline and avoided worldly desires so that he could walk blameless and guilt-free before God. The same applies to us. Walking in the confidence of a clear conscience will keep us free and happy. That sounds easy when it comes to clear-cut, right and wrong issues, but what about the 'gray' areas of life? How do we keep our conscience clear when we're unsure what the right or wrong choice is? What if we accidentally sin without realizing it? I've found that God's discernment solves this problem. Discernment is spiritual understanding, and it's the key to living with a clear conscience. It takes practice, but it simply involves paying attention to your heart. God will let you know when you shouldn't do something that will bring guilt later on. I encourage you to live in a way that will keep your conscience clear. Don't do things you know you shouldn't, and rely on God's discernment when you're facing an issue you're not sure about. He will never lead you wrong. *******Okay - that's it for today. Are you coming Sunday evening - let me hear from you. :) PK

June 27, 2012 - The End of the Storm

Good morning, The cool air here is so refreshing as it bathes the morning in anticipation of close to 100 degree temps. It has been hot since February and I sooo long for the fall. Have you ever been faced with a tough situation for a long time? The battle sometimes seems to never stop. We look around and it "appears" that the storms of life NEVER end. Let me remind each of us - satan will use a wrong perception as a tool to keep us from remembering how BIG God. Satan's a master at causing us to always see the storm and never the rainbow. The Bible instructs that things happen FIRST in the realm of nature and then in the spiritual realm. Why? Because the world SEES the realm of nature, but only those wearing "Holy Spirit glasses" see in the realm of the Spirit. wink In nature - NOT ONE STORM HAS EVER LASTED indefinitely without ending. NEVER. All storms come to an end. AND.......there are periods of sunshine in between storms and rainy seasons. ALWAYS! Now...we don't always see a rainbow, but we always come to the end of the storm; and for that we MUST show gratitude and change our perspective. Only seeing a storm can bring depression and added fear, which CAN trigger a "comfort response," which for many is sugar and carbs. I wish that weren't true - but it is true for many! In order to break this pattern, we must see the truth, walk in the truth, fight for the truth, sleep with the truth.......whatever with the truth. Read Proverbs 8 today - there is a high price for a lack of wisdom and understanding. YIKES! Truth: YES, there are storms YES, the storms can be devastating YES, the storms can last for more than one day YES, the storms ALWAYS end! Thank God today that the storms around you will end and ask to see God's rainbow so you can experience his promise of life and hope once again. And, while the storm is raging, choose fruit and water. (wink wink) PK

June 26, 2012 - Change One Thing

Good morning to all, Yesterday was a very long day, but a good one. I was up at 4 am and dressing to meet Laura, Chip, and Parker for his surgery. He did great! The surgery to repair the ASD went absolutely perfectly. About 1:00 yesterday we got to see him and he was just waking up, really pink and doing well. Praise God. Thanks for so many who prayed for him. This Sunday is the share-a-dish at my house. If you are coming, could you let me know? We are planning to meet monthly to share and pray. I am believing God for new recipes and monthly breakthroughs as we pray for one another and for God's divine plan for our lives. If you're coming, bring a dish to share, 10 copies of the recipe, and you could get a 2 inch notebook to start a cookbook. That's what I plan to do. IF you have no dish to share, come anyway for accountability and prayer. Come on! The watermelon and spaghetti squash plants are growing like crazy now! It's amazing how just ONE variable can "break" free those chains that were stopping growth. The new soil worked like a charm! If you're stuck today in your health plan and you keep saying, "but, I am doing everything like I always have," ask yourself......what ONE thing could you change to see if that is the issue??? Maybe that's smaller portions, maybe more OR less water, maybe decreasing the amount of nuts due to the salt intake, ask........ The Bible says it's the little foxes that spoil the vine. Try changing ONE thing at a time to see where the issue lies. I realized eating nuts daily made my feet swell from the increased sodium. Not only have I limited the amount I consume in a week, I now purchase them raw. This ONE thing did indeed cause the swelling in my feet to decrease. If you feel you're not being as successful as you'd like, I encourage you to look for ONE thing right now - address it - watch to see a change and then if something else is the issue - change it. :) This is a life-long journey for us and life brings change. So, like Joyce Meyer says, if the situation isn't going to change - you must change." I got the results from my lab work before camp and it was really good! While my bad cholesterol was up a little (maybe all the half/half in my coffee - I am looking for an alternative to this) my good cholesterol was SO perfect it counteracted the other. FOUR great blood reports now. YEA! I am so happy to be healthy. Are you keeping up with your health checks? PK PS - let me know if you're coming Sunday night. We are meeting from 6-7:30. If you're coming, try to bring dishes/recipes that we could use for the 4th of July.

June 22, 2012 - Discipline and Peace Walking Hand in Hand

Hebrews 12:11 No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way. (NLT) Don't you wish things like this were not true??? I do! How many of you have ever said after you've had a really successful health day (eaten on plan, drank your water, moved your body), "Wow, I feel really bad. I wish I had cheated all day long and eaten everything I wanted to and laid on the sofa stuffing my face." Really? I doubt that. Usually at the completion of a great day we feel a sense of peace, a sense of joy, a sense of victory. During the day - while disciplining our bodies and training our stomachs to live with smaller portions and without certain foods - maybe then we snarl and say "not so pleasant phrases" (wink), but when we've had a victory day - peace comes. Yes??? And let's be honest - don't we prefer that? I certainly do. I would MUCH rather awaken for coffee and morning quiet time not feeling a sense of loathing and failure. And, I prefer to awaken EVERY morning with that same peaceful, joyful sense of accomplishment. How does that happen? 1) We HAVE a plan - do you know what the boundaries are for your health? We must establish them in concrete and know that we know this is what our body requires. I know what I need daily and when my flesh tries to convince me otherwise - I call my flesh a liar! I remind myself at the restaurant - not everything on this menu is available for you. :) 2) We WORK the plan - do you have the courage to take your own food to a function or call ahead and ask if there are foods on your plan? Let's make the plan work WHEREVER. 3) We DISCIPLINE ourselves - have you trained your body to comply with "you're not the boss of me?" Two year olds scream and want their way; but as adults we don't cave because we KNOW what's best. We must use this principle of discipline in our daily walk. (in many areas I just heard the Holy Spirit say) Re-read the above scripture. Discipline equals a peaceful harvest of right living. That's worth fighting for in my life! How about yours? Discipline during the day, each day, equals LONG-TERM health and YOU, my friends, are SO worth it. Love to all, PK PS - for those planning to come to my house next Sunday night, July 1st - please bring a notebook to start keeping the recipes shared monthly. And, please bring 10 copies of the recipe for the dish you brought to share. This will help us all to make a cook book, share a healthy meal, and PRAY for the health of our bodies.

June 21, 2012 - Wisdom vs. Folly

WOW - it's Thursday already and we have crossed over into a time of the year where we start to loose one minute of daylight each day until December 20th. Time waits for no one - does it? Sometimes I think back and really shake my head - was I REALLY 20? Where in the world did that all go? Someone said last week, "at my age I don't digest food as I used to and I can't seem to keep my weight off." Well.......some of that statement is a simple process of aging. Sometimes as we progress certain meats are not as easily digestible as others - but that REALLY has more to do with movement. Steak, for example, can be harder to digest than some other meats and tends to stay longer in the lower intestines. That doesn't mean we don't eat it - but it means that we drink more water and take a walk after dinner to bless our neighbors with a warm hello. :) As we age, certain things "want to settle" but again we cannot allow age to be our excuse to give in. We cannot! Aging is part of our future, using it as an excuse is not. Someone responded to my blog from earlier in the week and commented that a "sweet attack" had entered the room and they were wrestling with it. Good news......they chose to subdue the craving for sweets with additional foods on plan and ate more fruit. The next morning - no guilt, no shame, no feeling horrible about failing. SOOO....while time waits for no one and we are all getting older - hopefully, as the Bible teaches, we are gaining wisdom in our aging. And wisdom says, "another fruit." Wisdom says, "Additional water and an extra lap equals a smile as you eat that steak." Wisdom is priceless - folly is extremely costly. Sometimes folly is fun and I love a good deviation from the norm too, but let's make certain that we limit those folly-filled meals and social events where we trump the Scarlett O'Hara card - "tomorrow is another day." Yes indeed, tomorrow is another day but your body doesn't understand that concept and it grabs salt, sugar, and fat and places it in areas of display. Aging is not something we can avoid; so let's choose to LIVE well during the process. FOLLY, on the other hand, is often a matter of choice. OR......sometimes folly can be as simple as "I really didn't know the truth." I had a friend come to my office yesterday who was telling me her mother has battled yet another round of cancer. My friend said, "the doctors want my mom of all sugar. It has a strong link to her cancer." I stopped and said, "what did you say?" She repeated the statement. I told her that I had been reading those reports but had not heard from anyone to the support of them. My friend smiled and reported that her mom had always enjoyed lots of "sugar stuff." The doctors said she could have had these cells for 15 years before they were discovered. YIKES! My friend is determined to correct her eating habits as she sees clearly now the link to illness. We've been talking about that haven't we? Come on fam, let's age well, let's side step folly and excuses as they only make way for illnesses that sometimes don't show up until we're older and then, SOMETIMES, we are not as strong to fight. Let's fight now. Choose live and eat to live, PK

June 20, 2012 - Self Confidence

Good morning to everyone, I woke up this morning thinking about how confidence is critical to a good journey. I was able to minister to one of our youth last week about that statement, but it really applies in so many areas. There is a big difference in confidence in our own ability and God's ability. And, I understand that confidence CAN cross over into pride, but the flip side CAN BE disastrous as well! For example, we must have confidence that following a healthy plan for our lives will produce long-term benefits. If we are not secure in that, then every other day brings a day filled with bad choices. And, we must be confident that our resolve to fight for our health cannot be overturned by passing the yogurt shop daily. There is something for being SURE of what we believe and never being dissuaded from that. Our belief in God is built on that type of confidence. I want to encourage you this morning - be confident that you CAN BE healthy, you CAN SAY NO, you CAN make the correct choices. WE CAN DO THIS! I am leading the pack in that daily confession as I lived so many years making a confession of death and destruction over my life. Remember - we are confident in the TRUTH and we fight for freedom without making compromises. Have faith in you - I do! New recipe: Crab Salad - lump imitation crab (large pkg), 2 large stalks of celery chopped tiny, 2 tablespoons of mayo, 2 tablespoons of sour cream, sea salt, dill. All of these can be adjusted per your taste - (I like a lot of dill. My husband said, "I could eat that like icecream") let rest overnight - SOOOO yummy. It's time to start looking at our 4th of July journey - we gotta plan now. Yes??? :) Remember - the first Sunday in July I will be having my health life group and most of the recipes that night will center around the 4th. You can come if you like - love to have you here! We meet the first Sunday of EACH month to share a healthy dish and pray for our bodies and health. Love to have you! PK