October 31, 2012 - Turn It Around!

GM to you all, Genesis 50 (the story of Joseph) reminds us this morning that God is able to take our mess and create a message. God is able to take our desperation and give someone else hope. Joseph commented to his brothers that what they had intended for evil, God intended for GOOD. As we journey though this day, we need to remind ourselves that Satan wants to discourage and trap each of us. He can use the BIG things in our lives or the simple things like candy, Halloween cupcakes, and issues that may serve to "seemingly" place us in a pocket of hopelessness. I can't even imagine what being betrayed by your family and left to die really feels like. But Joseph not only escaped the entrapment, he went on to help others escape entrapment. Let's make that pledge. I remember the YEARS of eating so much sugar on Halloween that I would be literally sick by the end of the night and wanting to hit myself in the stomach in order to throw up. UGH! (true confession this morning) So many today will be on a "sugar high" only to crash tomorrow and look in the mirror in the morning and confess failure AGAIN. My heart hurts when I think of the prison I endured for years - and others as well. Maybe you are thinking - "really - not that serious," but sugar is so addictive and so hard to overcome. I even looked at some sugar free peanut butter cups yesterday so I didn't "feel" deprived. Then I stopped and almost shook myself - I will not be trapped by that again. Sorry, wrong girl! So today I packed two apples and some natural peanut butter and I will create something to replace the peanut butter cups SOON. Yes, I will. God is taking the mess of my past and giving me creative energy in the kitchen as HIS tool to help rescue me. And guess what, He'll do that for you as well. I promise. Joseph endured and then conquered. That is going to be our testimony. Can I encourage you today? NO candy or sweets. It may be hard, but tomorrow you'll thank me. Make a pledge with me - NO sweets today - not one bite. We can do it. :) PK REMEMBER - Life Group at 5:00 this Sunday due to time change and Falcon's game. :) Hope that's okay. It's our Christmas Life Group, so if you're bringing something healthy to share, make a note.

October 30, 2012 - Let's Pray!

Good morning to you all, No blog today as I cannot stop watching the television concerning Sandy. My heart is heavy and I feel we need to come along side these families in prayer. The storm, the winds, the fires, the snow - they are claiming this is the largest storm in recorded history. God protect these precious people. The weather man is saying the storm will continue another 36 hours. I pray for wisdom and help from on high. Several have asked for the pumpkin pound cake recipe - it is close, but I am still adjusting the cooking time. It tastes amazing, but when it cools it condenses like a pumpkin pie. I am going to look at this again this week. I will send it out when finished. I think the combination of pumpkin and almond flour may need to be adjusted. :) Give me a few more days. I did serve jicama at a shower last night with hummus and it was a HIT! Don't forget we have Healthy 4 You life Group this Sunday. Can we meet at 5 as the Falcons play at 7:30??? I know some won't come due to the game - I'm a big fan too - so can we move the time up and hour. That may be better too as the time changes on Sunday and it will feel later to us. :) Those who have responded yes, let me hear from you. Have an amazing day, PK

October 29, 2012 - Say NO Ahead of Time!

Hello and good Monday, The arctic blast has certainly shouted loudly that it is tired of being bottled up. It hasn't been this cool in almost a year. All that cold air, which is so dense and heavy, must be clapping with joy as it got to move and spread out. OOPS - science teacher stuff. :) Anyway, what a busy week this is for me with our Fall Family Festival AND one of my best friend's son's wedding. Lots of opportunities for eating wrong foods this week. SOOOOO - I am up and making plans. I really feel that victory resides in the planning. Most feel victory resides in the ability to be disciplined - but being disciplined to BRING the correct foods to an event and not be dependent on your host to provide them IS DISCIPLINE. Halloween was my "open the gate" starting point to the holiday season. I started eating candy as soon as I started buying it for parties, as well as making the excuses that January was only 8 weeks away. Even as I type that I a shaking my head........STUPID! No wonder I was so sick. As I look forward to this week, which kicks off with a bridal party at my house tonight, I have planned a menu that works for me including a sugar free/starch free pumpkin pound cake with pumpkin spiced whipped cream and "sugared" pecan pieces. YUM! I bought extra apples and natural peanut butter and will be packing my lunch Wednesday for the festival including some brownies that are legal. I REFUSE to watch all those folks "yumming" on the candy (MY DELIGHT) and feel bitterness in my heart. I CHOSE this journey, I am healthy because of this journey and I am HAPPY because of this journey! However, I have planned ahead of time to say, "No thank you." There will be many people who offer me unhealthy choices this week, but none of them control my destiny. I am strong enough to smile and say, "no thank you" without justifying, defending or explaining. I want to encourage you that these next eight weeks don't have to be times of denial OR failure. Say "NO" ahead of time - practice if you will - with NO explanation - and bring your own foods that bring a smile to your body. Let's start January healthy and running and with NO regrets. :) I know this is a tough week for those addicted to chocolates - say "NO" early and don't deal with the frustration of feeling you failed on Thursday. We can eat sweets - we just have to make them. wink PK

October 26, 2012 - My Drink of Choice

GM, Those who know me absolutely know that I like unusual and abnormal things. And......I feel that way about my water. I get bored with things easily. How about you? Today I thought I would focus on some new water/drink recipes that are fabulous. Do remember that you need to allow TIME for the flavor to be infused into the water. So plan ahead. :) There are a million combinations, but the following are some of my personal favorites. (and, some suppress appetite while others calm my spirit). Hope this makes your weekend smile. However, as it's going to chill down by late Sunday, how about some all natural apple juice, truvia, orange slices, cinnamon sticks, and cloves? Heat until almost a boil and then simmer. Makes your house smell amazing and this really warms you. :) Drink up. Let's talk again Monday, PK. Tarragon Spa Waterby Leslie Bilderback INGREDIENTS 1 small lemon, sliced in wheels 1 cup fresh spearmint leaves ½ cup fresh rosemary needles ½ cup fresh tarragon 2 quarts water The spa is where you go to get refreshed and rejuvenated. You can replicate the experience in your own kitchen with this herb-infused water. Make it in the morning, and let it steep all day soit’s ready when you get home from work. Combine lemon and gently crushed herbs in a large pitcher. Add water, stir, and steep for 1–8 hours. Strain over ice to serve. Photo by: James Carrier Herb-infused Spa Water Relax and rehydrate with a tall glass of spring water touched with the tastes of fresh herbs and produce. Sunset MAY 2002 Yield: Makes about 1 1/2 quarts; about 4 servings Ingredients 6 cups chilled still spring or mineral water 12 thin slices cucumber 4 thin slices lemon 4 sprigs (each 2 in. long) fresh mint, slightly crushed 2 sprigs (each 2 in. long) fresh rosemary, slightly crushed Preparation In a 2- to 2 1/2-quart pitcher, combine water, cucumber, lemon, mint, and rosemary. Serve, or cover and chill at least 2 hours or up to 8 hours. Add ice cubes just before serving. Spa Water Recipe courtesy Chef Scott Leibfried Ingredients 1 orange, sliced 1 lemon, sliced 1 lime, sliced 1/2 grapefruit, pink or white, sliced 1 cup fresh mint leaves Directions Add all of the ingredients to a clear pitcher and fill with ice water. Best served slightly chilled or at room temperature.

October 25, 2012 - The One

Good morning to you all, As you remember from the past weeks, our church hosted a women's conference recently. For those not connected to NCC, we really saw the RAIN of God poured out on our ladies - healing, deliverance, restoration, chains broken. And if that weren't enough, we had 22 sisters water baptized. Amen! I want to share a very tender moment I had with the Lord concerning the conference and then bring this into our world. Our women's ministry team had worked for 7 months on this conference. I knew it was going to be amazing. But for whatever reasons, the attendance didn't build as I thought it would. I was a bit discouraged because I knew that we had planned BIG and I wanted to share it with everyone. I knew God was going to do amazing things, and HE DID, and I wanted to share it with as many ladies as possible. :) So Thursday morning, the start of the conference, I was praying and asking God to move on the last few who had not registered and bring all those who were supposed to attend. I felt the Lord speak to me in that place in my belly and ask me a very profound question. He asked, "would you do all this elaborate planning and creation of a conference for JUST ONE?" That question shook me! God would have done it ALL "for the one." He's so amazing to bring balance to everything, isn't He? Why am I bringing this up today? Sometimes when God doesn't quickly answer our prayers and we are still battling with that last few pounds, we can become discouraged and even reason that God has "more important things" to accomplish than helping us be healthy. STOP! God cared about THE ONE at the conference. He is intimately concerned with our lives and according to the scripture knows how many hairs are on our head and every thought in our head. He cares about THE ONE - that's us. Stop today and thank him for giving you great health according to HIS plan to use you. Ask Him to remind you to hydrate and to give you will power throughout the day when stress may cause your natural eyes to fix on a solution other than something healthy. I promise - God loves and cares about each of us at that level. We're THE ONE. Great news - after God asking me that profound question, I probably had FIVE women come to me, on their own and say, "You'll never know how this touched me - I feel like I was THE ONE this conference was created for." How cool is that???? wink Have an amazing day! Healthy 4 You Life Group NEXT Sunday. Last one for the year - please let me know if you'll be attending so I can prepare. :) PK

October 24, 2012 - Priceless

GM, I was thinking yesterday about the word priceless. The word basically defines itself - that to which NO PRICE can be ascribed. Right? I was thinking about the things in my house and life that are priceless........my Bible, pictures of my family, my mother's engagement ring, letters from my daughter and granddaughters, a cassette tape of my oldest granddaughter singing at the age of 2 (I'm not certain I can still find a machine to even listen to it), my relationship with God, my husband, my family, my close friends. There are just some things that if threatened by destruction, a murderous "spirit" will arise from within me. (just sayin') How about you? Can you make your list? But the question to each of us is.........do we see ourselves and our health as priceless? Do we really place great value on who we are? I venture to say in my many years of pastoring, that countless people really do not love anything about themselves. Shame, guilt, un-mended wounds, hurts, failures all seem to remind us that we are certainly NOT priceless. And yet someone saw us of such value they were willing to give their life for us. THAT IS priceless. We are of high value because of our relationship with God, Jesus' sacrificial gift, and the residence of the Holy Spirit within us. Again, PRICELESS! Now, I want to suggest that to the list of priceless we each add our health. If we could establish the VALUE of our health, I feel it could move to the priceless list. YES? Is our health worth guarding? YES! Is it worth placing in a SAFE PLACE? YES! Ask yourself honestly - right now - is your health as valuable as your most priceless possession? It should be close. :) Why? The foremost reason is our body houses the Holy Spirit and was created in God before the earth began. PRICELESS! (re-reading John 17 again this morning) But also, none of us REALLY wants to break down and run our life as a "old clunker" and be tossed aside as having no value simply because we chose to eat wrong and abuse the vehicle by which we experience life. That's not God's best for any of us. No, no......we want to live our life in fullness and health and we ALL know what that requires. Sometimes we have to remind ourselves of our value and that we ARE WORTH the extra time, energy, and sometimes money it takes to be healthy. Yes we are! So today, remind yourself that you belong on the priceless list and do whatever it takes to maintain your best health. Praying for you today - PK PS - Healthy 4 You Life Group on November 4th at 6 at my house. Theme - Christmas (as we won't meet in December)

October 23, 2012 - Cotton Candy

Don't you love going to all the county fairs that are being held now? I love the people, the pomp, the circumstance, the color, all the fun things that remind me of my childhood. But one of the things that was always such a disappointment to me was the cotton candy. Can I hear a yes from somebody else? I loved the color, the "melt in your mouth" texture, the taste, but there was NO SUBSTANCE! It was sticky, but NO substance. Within seconds this huge PILE of prettiness was gone. Let's make a connection......... On our journey to health, sometimes we choose the fluffiness of "in January I'm gonna get serious about my weight." COTTON CANDY "Well, I know I should make some changes to my diet, but there are just certain things I cannot live without." COTTON CANDY The Bible, in Proverbs 18:21 states, "21The tongue can bring death or life;those who love to talk will reap the consequences." Given the choice of cotton candy or an apple, I wonder what most would choose? The apple doesn't appear to be the favorite choice, but it is the best choice as it contains the fiber. The fiber sticks with us and helps to draw excessive fluid from the body. I spent most of my life TALKING about being healthy and TALKING about learning to eat veggies without frying them and TALKING about "in January of this year I'm gonna really get this." COTTON CANDY My talk was never really intended to stick - it was just a comforting word to me in my obesity. Somehow it gave me false hope. However, two years ago, in a desperate state, I finally starting talking about my health and confessing my health and allowing negative thoughts and words to be murdered. I quit making excuses and giving myself false hope. I QUIT eating the COTTON CANDY and grabbed the apple with an intense passion to never grab the COTTON CANDY again. It may look good for a moment, but it wanes to nothing. In our journey, there are a lot of choices DAILY. Let's remember to be real with OURSELVES first. Speaking life to our bodies can just be a ritual or false hope (Cotton Candy) if your heart and the Holy Spirit isn't helping you to walk in reality. We may all have a bad day. I had one Sunday - exhaustion took over and all I thought about was food. BUT.........NO COTTON CANDY. I did over eat, but it was foods on plan. I ate all day, in fact, and then realized how strong our emotions are and that I am still vulnerable - but praise God I never crossed the line. Portions went out the window, but health was still in my heart. I also had gone 2 days WAY under my water intake. It was like my mind went CRAZY. But Monday, 13 cups of water, and back on plan. AND.......I never said, "Well, in January I'll really start working on getting healthy." I let my tongue bring LIFE to me as I did't default to a negative confession. I knew Sunday I was on the roller coaster, but I never ate the COTTON CANDY! Yea! Moral - sometimes we're gonna hit a pocket - don't revert to giving yourself false moments of hope. EAT - eat healthy (even if WAY too much) and deal with your emotions. :) Let the words from our mouths that originate in our hearts say LIFE! Being real with my family this morning........maybe it encourages you. :) REAL TALK again tomorrow. PK PS - if you want to share this you can have folks go to my blog site - kathyshcgfamily.blogspot.com