Whole30 Day 17

I am on day 17 of the Whole30.  I am so excited because a few other ladies at my church have decided to join the party.  All those that have been doing it are reporting great results.  And me?  Well eating healthy is not the issue.  HOWEVER I find that I do a lot of emotional eating.  I follow the prescribed meal plan at each meal (protein, veggies, and good fat) and for the most part I am satisfied until the next meal.  But I find that if my tenacious toddler pushes the right buttons, or I have a lot to do, I am reaching for something to snack on (a mini escape if you will), EVEN WHEN I AM NOT HUNGRY!  Sigh. Always something to commit to prayer, so glad God never gets tired of me.  Some of you have asked for recipes, below are a few suggestions.  Enjoy! 

• This website has a list of 31 family recipes for Whole 30.  If that doesn't work for you, try this website.  I am a big fan of her recipes.
• Baked sweet potatoes are simple and delicious. Poke holes in unpeeled sweet potatoes and bake in the oven at 400 degrees for a hour or more.  I sometimes bake them for a hour and a half. I find that the longer I bake them, the sweeter they are.  Once cooked, top with coconut oil or ghee.  ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS!  The longer I go without added sugars, the more I can appreciate the sweetness of the SWEET potato.
• oven baked sweet plantains These are delicious.  You can also fry them.  I prefer to bake them with either olive or coconut oil because I can pop them in the oven and forget about them.
• Roasted vegetables are delicious.

• Green plantain chips are delicious.  Use an oil that is Whole30 approved.  I personally love these with coconut oil.
• cauliflower rice can be used for stir fry or experiment with different seasonings. 
• Roasted portobella mushroom  you can use this as a "bun" for your hamburgers (may be bending the rules here a little bit).
• Visit this website for some great condiments recipe.  Or again, you can do a google search on Whole30 condiments.  Pinterest also has some great ideas.

Few Tips

•  Get a roasting pan and/or crock pot.  Believe me when I say you will not regret these purchases.  I find that when I braise the meat and put it  in crock pot or roasting pan and let it cook for a few hours, the meat is ALWAYS super tender.
•  When possible try to season meats night before.  This technique combined with cooking the meats at low temperatures (I normally do 300 in the oven) always gives great results.
•  Go easy on the salt.  Experiment with different herbs.  Go crazy with garlic and onions.
• I learned from the this cookbook that adding foods like tomato paste and mushrooms to a dish adds another element of flavor, its so true, try it!
• Challenge yourself to buy a new vegetable each time you visit the grocery store.  Don’t know how to cook it, no problem, Google to the rescue.  I LOVE GOOGLE!  You can find a ton of WHOLE30 approved recipes on the internet.  Don't assume that  because you didn't like a certain vegetable as a child you wont like it as an adult if it is prepared a different way. 
• Try to get at least 8 hours of sleep each night, it really makes a big difference in your eating habits.  If you want more of the scientific explanation, Google it.
• Don’t be too uptight, have fun in the kitchen.  EXPERIMENT!  And if it doesn’t turn out right, there is always tomorrow to try again!

If you are doing the Whole30, I would love it if you left a comment to let me know how its going.

Gods Truth Isn't Accommodating

"I'm glad it's going to warm up in the next few days," said the librarian.  Are you kidding me? Did she just say warm up? It's amazing how after dealing with temperatures below zero, the mid 20s can be referred to as warming up.  Her experience with the bitter cold caused her definition of warm to be redefined.   As I was sweeping my kitchen floor later on that day I began to reflect on the comment made by the librarian. That's exactly what has happened to a lot of  "Christians" today.  We live in a culture where sin is rampant and we have become desensitized to truth.  We give in to the temptation to redefine Gods standards, something we have no business or authority to do.  Contrary to popular belief, truth is not relative.  God has not called us to be versatile Christians, willing to redefine his truth to be more "accomodating."  He has called us to be holy , standing for truth even if it's not embraced (1 Peter 1:16 ).  His truth doesn't change like the weather.  It's constant.

Greed, lying, homosexuality, fornicating,  stealing, cheating is NEVER ok (1 Corinthians 6:9-11). As my pastor previously mentioned, God created marriage so try as we might, we can't redefine it. it's so easy for us to give a nod of approval to the very nice gay couple or the well educated boyfriend and girlfriend who are living together and fornicating. Or say it's ok for the poor person to tell a "white lie," because they are struggling and the system has robbed them anyway.  I mean after all we are seeing worse sins happen around us so that ain't too bad.  WRONG! It is that bad, not because that's my opinion but because God said it.   Believe me, I am not trying to act as if I have never sinned or that I am perfect.  I have displeased God many times and have not always lived out or loved HIS truth.  But hear me when I say, I thank  God for mercy and grace and Him giving me a chance to repent and get it right.  Cause Lord knows I haven't always done right and was a very nice sinner.  The good news is, that opportunity for repentance was not only extended to me, but to all (John 3:16).  How awesome!

Truth is God will never change his mind about his truth(Hebrews 13:8) no matter how extreme sin gets, and it will continue to get worse.  The manual for holiness will not be rewritten, sorry no updated copies of the bible where that extreme holiness is edited out.  He wants us hot or cold (Revelation 3:16), not lukewarm, not straddling the fence, not somewhere in the middle, not a versatile Christian.  By his grace I want to remain hot and live out and speak His truth...and you?

Whole30 Day 1

Today is my first day of the Whole30 program and I am super excited!   A few ladies and friends at my church have decided to join me and I am looking forward to all the great testimonials that we will have.  If you are still on the fence about joining the challenge, come on, why not?  I don't think you will regret it.  If you are feeling a little challenged in the kitchen and need some ideas, visit Here for some great suggestions.  Don't forget to take a before picture  and don't obsess over the scale.  As a matter of fact, they recommend that you  not step on the scale until the end of the 30 days. It really is not worth obsessing about the number on the scale, focus on how your clothes fit and how you are feeling.  I am big on journaling, so if you are up to it, record changes in moods, energy level, emotional connection to foods that you didn't realize you had over the next 30 days (what triggers eating when you are not really hungry, etc.).  I made this yummy super easy crockpot chicken with baked sweet potatoes and roasted veggies today to start the Whole30. I sure hope you jump on the bandwagon!

Whole 30

Do you desire to loose weight without starving yourself, feel better, gain more energy, develop healthier eating habits for you and your family, help with specific body ailments, stop taking specific medications? If you answered yes to any of those questions I invite you to join me for a 30 day health challenge starting March 1st.  The name of the program that I will be following is called Whole30.  In a nutshell, on this 30 day program you eat animal protein, vegetables, good fats, and fruits.  You omit sugar, grains, dairy and legumes from your diet.  The point of the program is to heal your gut and help you to kick cravings for foods that are everything but healthy for your body.  You can read this book or get the  kindle edition written by the creators of the program. It is a very informative read.  This cookbook also has wonderful recipes for the program, I have tried a few and they were delicious.  You can also visit the Whole30 official website  to get more detail.     

 I feel it necessary to say that I am a Christian, not a fact I try to hide.  So while the authors of this program may have different views and choice of words than me, I cannot deny that the program itself is very effective.  I am fully convinced that God is concerned about the whole person, so it is our Christian duty to  make good choices for better health.  As the scriptures says in 3 John 1:2, "Dear friend, I hope all is well with you and that you are as healthy in body as you are strong in spirit." With that said, I am so excited about starting the Whole30 and it sure would be awesome if you joined me. Please leave a comment if you plan to join me on this challenge.

I WANT TO MAKE THAT MAN LOVE ME!

I want to do marriage the good old fashioned outdated bible way. I want to be my husbands biggest cheerleader.  I want him to be happy to come home because he knows a warm home cooked meal is waiting for him(well most days at least).  I want him to know that I respect and love him.  I choose to magnify his strengths and pray like crazy concerning his weaknesses.   I want him to share his heart with me without hesitation or fear that I may judge him.  I want my actions to make him fall in love with me over and over again.  I want him to still be happy that he chose me to be his bride even after 13 years of marriage. Now while the feminist may scoff at this and render me as a weak and needy woman, the bible says the opposite!  And oh, for the record I am so weak and needy, and admitting this has been so liberating and brought a greater level of intimacy between me and God and my husband (2 Corinthians 12:9).  Nevertheless I digress, back to the topic at hand.  Have you ever read the bible and the words just leap off the page and you can hardly contain yourself because you finally get it?  I recently read Proverbs 31. Yeah that same passage that challenges us women in so many ways.  It's amazing because often times when this passage is discussed, the focus is on all this woman DOES as opposed to who SHE IS!  I find it interesting that the passage doesn't open up with all her deeds, instead, it first highlights how her husband feels about her.  "Who can find a virtuous and capable wife?  She is more precious than rubies.  HER HUSBAND CAN TRUST HER, AND SHE WILL GREATLY ENRICH HIS LIFE. "Proverbs 31:10-12.

I must admit that I have not always proven myself to be  trustworthy to my  husband.  No I have
never ran off with another man but I I have done a lot of running with my mouth.  I have never had issues with telling him what I thought he was doing wrong, what was wrong with him and what he needed to do better.  When I was done I would expect him to trust me with his thoughts.  In short I was a being a nag!  I felt very justified in my nagging.  I must praise God for his grace because He has brought me from a very loooooooooooong way.  Let all the "expressive" ladies say amen!  I have already confessed in a previous post that I love to talk but I am learning the delicate art  of knowing when to speak and when to be silent.  I don't have to stop talking, I just take my chatting party to God in prayer.    I must confess that sometimes as he is speaking, everything in me is screaming, "I CANT BELIEVE YOU SEE IT THIS WAY or HOW CAN YOU THINK LIKE THAT!"  However, as I am learning to hold my peace and not always play therapist in our discussions,  my husband is sharing more of his unedited thoughts with me.  And you know what,  I find that when I listen, REALLY LISTEN he is more willing to solicit my advice and comments and a greater level of trust is developed.  And it sure is easy to love somebody you trust, dont you think?

Redeemed: Pay Attention...God is Answering!

Redeemed: Pay Attention...God is Answering!

Pay Attention...God is Answering!

My church (faithcfm.org) is doing a 40 day prayer challenge and I have been keeping a prayer journal.  In it, I record prayer requests, answers to prayers, and any insights the Lord gives me during my prayer and bible study time. When writing in my journal, I don't focus on proper grammar and format. As I put ink to paper my unedited thoughts flow. I am writing for an audience of two, me and God.  This approach allows me to write without any inhibitions...very liberating experience.  Its amazing because as I write, thoughts and feelings come to the surface that I didn't realize was there.  There is something about being deliberate with recording prayer request and the answers  that come.  It makes me more aware of how God is responding.  So often I pray, God answers, and for various reasons,  I miss it. Sometimes it's because I was not praying in faith and  I didn't expect God to move. Or I pray and God answers but not in the way I wanted and expected him to.    My prayer journal helps me to be more sensitive, more alert to the ways God is moving.  Everyday I have something praiseworthy to record. EVERYDAY! It's amazing.  And as I go back and read the answers to prayers, it builds my faith and encourages me to keep on praying.  He is listening.  To me.  I have an audience with the creator of heaven and earth.  Now, how awesome is that?!