TW Day 2

He desires you to know Him--to be in relationship with Him, and to be absolutely authentic before Him.

Ok...in order to know Him, we have come before Him and listen (be still and know that I am God). In order to be in relationship with Him, we need to come to Him frequently and again 'listen'...like any other relationship it requires give and take. Ofcourse 'listening' is not merely 'hearing' but soaking it all in and acting on what we are hearing. Then there is the authenticity stuff...ooo...that's a little harder for me. I'm thinking that it may be a bit harder for many of us...remember how Adam and Even 'hid' once they discovered they were 'naked'. There are many ways of hiding and 'nakedness' is not simply an absence of clothes. We need to come fully before the Lord without any pretence and without any thing else that may block our way.

Oh Lord, may I be fully authentic before You today...wipe away anything that is not from You.

Abbey-Roads: Deus caritas est.

Abbey-Roads: Deus caritas est.: "Who can separate us from the Love of God that comes to us in Christ Jesus! And so it is that between them there is but a single life, a single love ... The Love between the Father and the Son... The Holy Spirit."

Holy Experience: Soul ADD

Holy Experience: Soul ADD: "Lord, when I pay attention to everyday graces...
I'm spending my life in God-worship. Could there be a better investment?

Cause me today to pay attention to Your gifts.... a cure for Soul ADD."

Yes...spending our life in God-worship is exactly what we were created for. Oh Lord, let it be.

Waiting on the Lord part 2

God Is Doing a New Thing: "Waiting for the Lord will never leave us wanting. He WILL meet us. He WILL satisfy. This is where the wording of things is a bit awkward...If we wait for hunger, our focus is on our body, ourselves. But waiting on the Lord, our focus is on HIM. He will then say, 'Guess what, dear one? Your body needs fuel now. Come and dine with Me!' Isn't that a glorious thought? :-) No guilt, no condemnation, no self-focus. Then our meal time can be a time of praise and worship... 'Lord, thank you for the amazing flavor and texture in this food. You are so creative! Thank you for the abundance. Thank you for supplying my needs. You are an awesome Provider! Thank you for my body that YOU have created--fearfully and wonderfully!'"

This is AWESOME! I admit...this is a new perspective for me. The other times down this road, I waited was on hunger...yikes. You get exactly what you seek. I want it to be different this time.

special situations...

Blogger: God Is Doing a New Thing - Post a Comment:
"For those who have diabetes, it is always best to talk with a doctor, but the Hallidays know many people with diabetes who have done really well with this approach. Typically, you don't want to wait long after the first signal of hunger. Don't wait for a growl. That is NOT a sign of hunger for most people and can cause you to really crash if you wait for that...or to eat too soon! Either way, a growl isn't reliable. Then, what you eat is vital. If you know that there are foods that make you feel good physically, then ask God to help you to have those on hand for when you are hungry. It doesn't take much to fend off a true blood sugar crash...it is just the right something that the Lord will lead you for your body."

Heidi posted this on her comments section and I thought it was so brilliant that I needed to post it in a place that I can re-read as often as needed. I don't have 'diabetes'...but I do have other 'issues' with blood sugar that will be helped by the above suggestion.

Waiting on the Lord

God Is Doing a New Thing: "I challenge you to begin to wait for physical hunger before you eat. (Yes, I know some may take issue with this phraseology, but I think it fits for people just starting out or others of us who 'pre-empt' hunger by eating for a variety of *other* reasons!). Note when you are drawn to eat and *aren't* hungry and ask God to show you if you are not hungry, what it is that is making you think about food--why are you drawn? Food only satisfies physical hunger. All other 'needs' or wants require something else to be satisfied.

What do you learn about yourself and about God as you wait for physical hunger before eating?"

It is 7:30 PM right now and I've done my fair share of eating outside of hunger already today...so it is time to stop and give it a rest. One little step...

The only answer

God Is Doing a New Thing: "I felt God impress upon my heart that maybe someone here can use the encouragement found in some of the words that were a part of the prayer at the end of the chapter...


Lord, You are the only answer to the emptiness I feel when I am not with You. The fullness of Your being is what I crave. The intimacy of Your embrace is what I long for...Help me to make You the first place I run to when I have longings in my heart. I don't want to waste time turning to other things that will never satisfy the need I have for intimacy with You. My soul waits for you, Lord. (Psalm 33:20) Amen."

Thanks Heidi...that's exactly what I needed.

"You see, when I am vulnerable, I am prone to being "needy"--to feeling empty. This is when I can start reaching for anything to fill the emptiness...




As you and I continue the early part of this sojourn we want to ask God to make each of us--I want to ask Him to make ME--to be aware when I am doing this before it happens. This is the crux of much of our disordered behavior and disordered eating. It really isn't about the food, the computer, the books, the busy-ness. It is about my heart, about your heart...and, mostly, about GOD."

Here Heidi touches on the exact thing that I was referring to in my previous post...that when I stray from the awareness of His constant care and nurture is when I start feeling the need for 'self care'. Funny...the name of this blog is 'Nurturing Self' and yet that is the exact thing that I need to get away from. It is not about being a martyr, or rejecting the good things that God brings into our lives...but just making sure that they come from His own hand and in His own timing. All good things come from Him...but He sets proper boundaries for our own good.

God Is Doing a New Thing

I'm redoing the Thin Within study along with Heidi from God Is Doing a New Thing. I'll use my blog here to post my own reflections on it and to really digest all the wonderful stuff that she is putting out there without taking up too much space on her comments box (even though I plan to make use of that too).

"God wants our hearts to belong to him (not to some 'skinny' ideal or even to some vision of 'health and wholeness!'). As we relinquish our hearts to him, we WILL change from the inside out."

I need to relinquish my own desires in order to embrace His fully...and that means letting go of what I SHOULD weigh, or what size I think I should wear...and even how I need to feel. I know that God loves me more then I love myself and I need to trust that He won't lead me in the wrong path. 'ALL' I need to do is act in obedience to Him and He will take care of the outcome...whatever that may be.

2.) Are you willing to foster an awareness of Jesus' presence in every moment of your life? You can do this in your heart even in the midst of a hustle bustle work schedule or being with your kids or running errands or whatever you do. Truthfully, there is no way to experience the kind of lasting, deep, penetrating transformation that we really need apart from developing an awareness of his constant care and presence with you. Truly, this can be quite simple, but it is NOT easy!

I really hunger for this 'awareness' of His constant care. I think it is when I stray from it that I get myself in trouble and try to grab for it in my own way (and that's never good). It is like the kid from the rich family but yet feels the need to go begging for food at the neighbor's house...how pittiful really.

Salicylate Sensitivity

Salicylate Sensitivity - All about salicylates and salicylate sensitivity

symptoms

Zenni Optical

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Food Diary Print-Out

Food Diary Print-Out

Food Diary Print-Out

Food Diary Print-Out

13 Things That Improved My Health...

High Desert Home: 13 Things That Improved My Health...

I thought this was great.

MinuteClinic

MinuteClinic — Pioneer and Leader in Retail Health Care

Thought this was an interesting development.

SPD Coping

SPD Coping - What To Do In a Meltdown

I like the one that says to 'rearrange furniture'...now that explains my unexplainable urge to move furniture around everyonce in a while.

Actually, as I search for ways to help my children...I'm learning a whole lot about myself.

Thin Within

Thin Within, Christian Weight Loss

I think God has used Sue (again) to reach me and get me back on track with TW...and I think Advent is the perfect time for it.

You Are Valentine's Day

You Are Valentine's Day

You are a true romantic who places the ultimate importance on love. You are warm hearted, and you find it easy to care for people. Love is what drives you - and you have a love to give. You enjoy making someone's day. You're full of surprises. What makes you celebrate: Being with the person you love on a special day At holiday get togethers, you do best as: The sentimental one On a holiday, you're the one most likely to: See it as romantic and special

What Holiday Are You?

Typealyzer

Typealyzer

I thought this was right on...for this part of me anyway.

Starting the next phase

Well...I'm done with phase one and I'm amazed. I lost another two pounds this week, even though it was hormonal time and I usually end up gaining. So...a total of 6.5 lbs in two weeks is incredible for me. Best yet, I'm feeling really good. I now start adding most fruits and whole grains. I had a bowl of oatmeal this morning and it was so yummy! I'm pretty sure that the weight loss will slow down at this point and I'm ok with that...since I'm feeling better, I'll probably start back up on my exercise routine.

End of week one

I'm down 4.5 lbs...whoohoo...it is unbelievable for me. Anyone who has been with me a while knows how much I struggle for every little half pound. This was amazing and so darn easy. I wasn't hungry and had no cravings...even with tons of candy from Halloween in the house. I feel thinner...lol...especially in my tummy area...my pants fit much better. I feel healthier overall too...even though we've had a bug in the house and both kids sick...I only felt like I was getting sick one day and bounced back up quickly. Normally it would have taken me down and had me laid out for a few days.

I only exercised one day so far, but I'm really hoping that as I feel stronger and more energized I can actually start exercising on a regular basis.

So here we go...week two...please say a prayer for me that I can continue this journey to better health.