21 Days To A New and Improved You - Day 3

DON'T GO ON A DIET

CHANGE YOUR LIFESTYLE

Their end is destruction;

their god is their stomach;

their glory is their shame.

They are focused on earthly things.

-------

Philippians 3:19 

FOCUS FOR TODAY

It takes wisdom to be moderate;

moderation is wisdom in action.

If you want to lose weight, don't you dare go on a diet! It's a sad fact, but true: in the vast majority of cases, diets simply don't work. In fact, one study that examined the results of popular diets conducted that nearly 100% of dieters suffered almost "complete relapse after 3 to 5 years." In other words, dieters almost always return to their pre-diet weights (or, in many cases, to even higher weight levels).

If diets don't work, what should you do if you weigh more then you should? The answer is straight forward: If you need to lose weight, don't start dieting; change your lifestyle.

Your current weight is the result of the number of calories that you have taken into your body verses the number of calories that you have burned. If you seek to lower your weight, you must burn more calories (by engaging in more vigorous physical activities), or take in fewer calories (by eating more sensibly), or both. It's as simple as that.

Many of us are remarkable ill informed and amazingly apathetic about the foods we eat. We feast on high-fat fast foods. We swoon over sweets. We order up - and promptly pack away - prodigious portions. The result is a society in which too many of us become the human equivalents of the portions we purchase: over sized. 

A healthier strategy, or course is to pay more attention to the nutritional properties of our foods and less attention to their taste. But for those of us who have become accustomed to large quantities of full-flavored, high-calorie foods, old memories indeed die hard.

Should we count every calorie we ingest from now until the day the Good Lord calls us home? Probably not. When we focus to intently on weight reduction, we may make weight loss even harder to achieve.  Instead, we should eliminate from our diets the foods that are obviously bad for us. And of course, we should eat sensible amounts, not huge portions.

How hard is it for us to know the nutritional properties of the food we eat? Not very hard. In the grocery store, almost every food item is clearly marked. In the fast-food restaurants, the fat and calorie contents are posted on the wall (although the print is incredibly small, and with good reason: the health properties of these tasty tidbits are, in most cases, so poor that we should rename them "fat foods").

As informed adults, we have access to all the information that we need to make healthy dietary choices, or not. The choices are ours, and so are their consequences. 

MORE FROM GOD'S WORD

Proverbs 23:20-21 (King James Version)

 ²⁰Be not among winebibbers; among riotous eaters of flesh:
 ²¹For the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty: and drowsiness shall clothe a man with rags.

Proverbs 25:16 (King James Version)

 ¹⁶Hast thou found honey? eat so much as is sufficient for thee, lest thou be filled therewith, and vomit it.

1 Peter 5:8 (King James Version)

 ⁸Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, 

walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

DON'T SKIP MEALS

 Are you skipping meals? Don't do it! Skipping meals isn't 

healthy, and isn't a sensible way to lose weight, either.

MORE THOUGHTS ABOUT MODERATION

It's not that some people have willpower and some don't. It's that some people are ready to change and others are not. - James Gordon M.D.

You can look at your calorie count in the same way you look at a bank account. Every mouthful of food is a deposit and every activity that requires energy is a withdrawal. If we deposit more then we withdraw, our surplus grows larger and larger. - John Maxwell

We are all created differently. We share a common need to balance the different parts of our lives.  

Dr. Walt Larimore

To many, total abstinence is easier then perfect moderation.- St. Augustine

 Failure is the path of least persistence. Anonymous

MODERATION LEADS TO ABUNDANCE

If you are a person who sincerely seeks the abundant life that Christ has promised, you must learn to control your appetites before they control you. Good-habits, like bad ones, are habit-forming. The sooner you acquire the habit of moderation, the better your chances for a long, happy, abundant life.

Are you running short on willpower? Id so, perhaps you haven't yet asked God to give you the strength. The Bible promises that God offers His power to those righteous men and women who earnestly seek it. If your willpower has failed you a numerous over to God. If you've been having trouble  standing on your own two feet, perhaps it's time to drop to your knees in prayer.

WORKING IT OUT

ALL HANDS ON DECK

If you're trying to reshape your physique or your life, don't try to do it alone. Ask for support and encouragement of your family members and friends. You'll improve your odds of success if you enlist your own cheering section.

MODERATION IS WISDOM IN ACTION

Moderation and wisdom are traveling companions. If we are wise, we must learn to temper our appetites, our desires, and our impulses.  When we do, we are blessed, in part because God has created a world in which temperance is rewarded and intemperance in inevitably punished.

God's instructions are clear; if we seek to live wisely, we must be moderate in our appetites and disciplined in our behavior. To do otherwise is an affront to Him...and to ourselves.

STRENGTHENING YOUR FAITH

NEVER STOP STUDYING GOD'S WORD

Even if you've been studying the Bible for many years, you've still got a lot to learn, Bible study should be a  life long endeavor; make it your life long endeavor.

MORE FROM GOD'S WORD ABOUT WISDOM

Matthew 7:24-25 (New International Version)

 ²⁴ “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. ²⁵ The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.

1 Corinthians 1:30 (New International Version)

³⁰ It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption.

James 1:5 (New International Version)

⁵ If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.

James 3:17 (New International Version)

 ¹⁷ But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.

NOTES TO YOURSELF

Make notes about aspects of your life that will be improved when you eat more moderately and exercise more regularly.

21 Days To A New and Improved You - DAY 2

YOUR PARTNERSHIP WITH GOD

So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God - 

all because of what our Lord Jesus Christ has done for us in making us friends of God.

Romans 5:11

FOCUS FOR TODAY

Your Journey toward improved health can be, and should be,

a journey that you make with God.

Physical fitness, like every other aspect f your life, begins and ends with God. If you would like to adopt a healthier life style, God is will in to help. In fact, if you sincerely wish to create a healthier you - either physically, emotionally, or spiritually - God is anxious to be your silent partner in that endeavor, but it's up to you to ask for His help.

The journey toward improved health is not only a common-sense exercise in personal; discipline, it is also a spiritual journey ordained by our Creator. God does not intend that we abuse out bodies by giving in to excessive appetites or to slothful behavior. To the contrary, God has instructed us to protect our physical bodies to the greatest extent we can. To do otherwise is to disobey Him.

God has a plan for every facet of your life, and His plan includes provisions for your spiritual, physical, and emotional health. But, He expects you to do your fair share of the work!  In a world hat is chock-full of tasty temptations, you may find it all too easy to make unhealthy choices. Your challenge, or course, is to resist those unhealthy choices by every means you can, including prayer. And you can be sure that whenever you ask for God's help, He will give it to you.

Out world is teeming with temptations and distractions.

Distractions and temptations can rob you of the physical, emotional, and spiritual fitness that might other wise be yours. And if you are not careful, the struggles and stresses of everyday living can rob you of the pace that should rightfully be yours because of your personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
So take the time each day to have a personal training session with your Savior.  Don't be that person who is satisfied with occasional visits to church or even every Sunday. Build a relationship with Jesus that deepens day by day. When you do, you will most certainly encounter the subtle hand of the Father. Then, if you are wise, you will take His hand and follow God as He leads you on to the path to a healthier, happier life.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

START SLOWLY AND USE COMMON SENSE

Adopt healthier habits you can stick with. In other words, don't starve your self. And if you are beginning an exercise program, start slowly. Be moderate, even in your moderation.

MORE FROM GOD'S WORD

1 Corinthians 3:16 (New International Version)

 ¹⁶ Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst?

 1 Peter 5:10 (New International Version)

 ¹⁰ And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.

1 Chronicles 12:18 (New International Version)

 ¹⁸ Then the Spirit came on Amasai, chief of the Thirty, and he said:
   “We are yours, David!
   We are with you, son of Jesse!
Success, success to you,
   and success to those who help you,
      for your God will help you.”
   So David received them and made them leaders of his raiding bands.

Exodus 15:2 (New International Version)

 ² “The LORD is my strength and my defense;
   he has become my salvation.
He is my God, and I will praise him,
   my father’s God, and I will exalt him.

Romans 8:38-39 (New International Version)

³⁸ For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, ³⁹ neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord

MORE THOUGHT ABOUT GOD'S SUPPORT

Measure the size of obstacles against the size of God. - Beth Moore

God uses our most stumbling, faltering faith-steps as the door to do His doing for us "more that we ask or think." - Catherine Marshall

God wants to reveal Himself as your heavenly Father. When you wonder which way to turn, you can grasp His strong hand, and he'll guide you along life's path. - Lisa Whelchel

Once we recognize our need for Jesus, then the building of your faith begins. It is a daily, moment-by-moment life of absolute dependence upon Him for everything. - Catherine Marshall

God will never lead you where His strength cannot keep you. - Barbara Johnson

SAY NO TO UNHEALTHY FOODS

Eating unhealthy food is habit-forming. And if you have acquired the unfortunate habit of unhealthy foods, then God wants you to start making changes today!

Take a few minutes to think about your eating habits. Do you gobble down snack foods while watching TV? If so - STOP! Do you drink high-calorie soft drinks or feast on unhealthy snacks like potato chips or candy? If so, you're doing your self a disservice. Do you delight in high-fat, high-calorie foods that taste good for a few seconds but accumulate on your waistline for years? Do you load up your plate until food falls off the edge? And then do you feel obligated to eat every last bite? If so, it's time to think long and hard about the serious consequences of indulging in such unhealthy habits.

Poor eating habits are easy to make and hard to break, bur break them you must. Otherwise, you'll be disobeying God's commandments while causing yourself great harm. 

IF YOU DESIRE TO IMPROVE YOUR PHYSICAL WELL-BEING

AND EMOTIONAL OUTLOOK, INCREASING YOUR FAITH CAN HELP YOU.

John Maxwell 

GOD'S PROTECTION

In a world filled with dangers and temptations, God is the ultimate armor. In a world filled with misleading messages, God's Word is the ultimate truth. In a world filled with more frustrations than we can count, God's Son offers ultimate peace. Will you accept God's peace and wear God's armor against the dangers of this world?

Sometimes, in the crush of everyday life, God may seem far away, be He is not. God is everywhere you have ever been and everywhere you will ever go. He is with you night and day; He knows your thoughts and your prayers. He is your ultimate Protector. And, when you earnestly seek His protection, you will find it because He is here- always- waiting patiently for you to reach out to Him.

WORKING IT OUT

IT'S UP TO YOU

The benefits of exercise are both physical and emotional. But no one can exercise for you; it's up to you to exercise or not.

MORE FROM GOD'S WORD 

ABOUT GOD'S LOVE

John 3:16 (New International Version)

 ¹⁶ For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 

Psalm 100:5 (New International Version)

⁵ For the LORD is good and his love endures forever;
   his faithfulness continues through all generations. 

James 4:8 (New International Version)

⁸ Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

STRENGTHENING YOUR FAITH

IT'S THE BEST-SELLING BOOK

OF ALL TIME FOR A REASON

Ruth Bell Graham, wife of the late evangelist Billy Graham, observed: "The Reference Point for the Christian is the Bible. All values, judgements, and attitudes must be gauged in relationship to this Reference Point."  Make certain that you're an avid reader of God's best-seller, and make sure that you keep reading it as long as you live!

We love Him because He first loved us.

1 John 4:19 NKJV


NOTES TO YOURSELF

Make notes about the times in your life when God has protected you and led you out of danger. Then, prayerfully ask God to help you make a spiritual and physical journey to improved health.

21 Days To A New and Improved You - DAY 1

A 21 Day Journey To A New You

Food, Fitness, and Faith

Freeman-Smith, LLC

 "A prudent person foresees the danger ahead and takes precautions. The simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences."  Proverbs 27:12

Focus For Today: When you form a deeper relationship with God, you can start to establish healthier habits, starting now!

Maybe you have heard the old saying that it takes 21 days to change a habit. It's a common-sense idea that makes a valid point. If you can do anything for 21 days straight, then there's a good chance you can keep doing it on the 22nd day and the 23rd and the 24th and beyond. If you thought that you could establish a number of healthy habits, would you be willing to carve out a few minutes each day for the next three weeks in order to find out? If you answered yes, congratulations. You are about to embark on a grand adventure.

I am committed to dedicate 21 days to help get you there!  Each day on this blog will be a devotional about your food, your fitness, and your faith. If you read each devotional carefully and if you implement the ideas that you find there - you can have a profound impact on your life and on the lives of your loved ones.

If you are like most people, you have already tried, perhaps on may occasions to form healthier habits. You employed your own will power in a noble effort to create a new and improved healthier you.

You've probably tried to improve various aspects of spiritual, physical or emotional health. Perhaps you have gone on diets, or made New Year's resolutions, or tried the latest self-help fad in an attempt to finally make important changes in your life. And if you are like most people, you have been successful...for a while. But eventually those old familiar habits come creeping back into your life, and the improvements that you have made proved to be temporary. This blog is intended to help you build a series of healthy habits for your Christian walk...and make those habits stick.
During the next 21 days you will asked to depend less on your own will power and more upon God's power. For three short weeks, you will be asked to focus on three major areas of your life: Diet, Fitness and Faith. And of this you can be sure; When you form a working relationship with the Creator, there is no limit to the things that the two of you, working together can do in just 21 days!

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

VERY BIG PORTIONS

MAKE VERY LITTLE SENSE

 Do you dine out often? If so, be careful. Most restaurants stay in business by serving very large portions of tasty food. Unfortunately, most restaurant food is high in calories, sugar, and fat. You will probably eat healthier meals if you prepare those meals at home instead of eating out, plus you will save money too!

MORE FROM GOD'S WORD:

3 John 1:2 (New International Version) 

"2 Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well."

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (New International Version) 

" 19 Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; ²⁰ you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies."

Proverbs 4:23 (New International Version) 

²³ Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.

Proverbs 16:16 (New International Version)

 ¹⁶ How much better to get wisdom than gold,
   to get insight rather than silver! 

Matthew 7:24 (New International Version)

    ²⁴ “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock

MORE THOUGHT ABOUT YOUR HABITS

You can build up a set of good habits so that you habitually take the Christian way without thought. 
E. Stanly Jones


You will never change you r life until you change something you do daily.  John Maxwell


He who does not over come small faults, shall fall little by little into great ones. Thomas a Kempis

Begin to be now what you will be hear after. St. Jerome

If you want to form a new habit, get to work. If you want to break a bad habit, get on your knees. Marie T. Freeman


Habit is a cable; we weave a thread of it each day, and at last we can not break it. Thomas Mann


FORMING HEALTHY HABITS

It's an old saying and a true one: First, you make your habits, and then your habits make you. Some habits will inevitably bring you closer to God; other habits will lead you away from the path He has chosen for you. If you sincerely desire to improve you spiritual health, you must honesty examine the habits that make up the fabric of your day. And you mus abandon those habits that are displeasing to God.
If you trust God, and if you keep asking for His help, He can transform your life. If you sincerely as Him to help you, the same God who created the universe will help you defeat the harmful habits that have defeated you, I have no doubt. So, if at first you don't succeed, keep praying. God is listening, and He is ready to help you become a better person if you ask Him...so ask today.

WORKING IT OUT

TALK TO YOUR DOCTOR ABOUT EXERCISE

Before you begin a major new exercise program, see your doctor: as the old saying goes, it's better to be safe than sorry. I often wonder if most doctors are listening to their own advise.

MOVING MOUNTAINS

Every life - including yours - is a series of successes and failures, celebrations and disappointments, joys and sorrows. Every step of the way, through every triumph and tragedy, God will stand by your side and strengthen you....if you have faith in Him. Jesus taught His disciples that if you they had faith, they could move mountains. You can too.

When  a suffering woman sought healing by mearly toughing the hem of His cloak, Jesus replied, "Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole" (Matthew 9:22 KJV). The message to believers of every generation is clear: we must live y faith every day.

When you place your faith, your trust, and you r life in the hands of Christ Jesus, you will be amazed at the marvelous things He can do with you and through you. So strengthen your faith through praise, through worship, through bible study, and through prayer. And trust God's plans. With Him all things are possible, and He stand ready to open a world of possibilities to you...if you have faith.

MORE FROM GOD'S WORD ABOUT FAITH

 Isaiah 7:9 (New International Version)

⁹ The head of Ephraim is Samaria,
   and the head of Samaria is only Remaliah’s son.
If you do not stand firm in your faith,
   you will not stand at all.’” 

1 Corinthians 16:13 (New International Version)

 ¹³ Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong. 

2 Corinthians 5:7 (New International Version)

⁷ For we live by faith, not by sight.

 Hebrews 11:1

 ¹ Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. 

 

STRENGTHENING YOUR FAITH 

INTEGRATING GOD'S WORD INTO YOUR LIFE

 

 Perhaps you have tended to divide the concerns of your life into two categories: "spiritual;" and "other". If so, it's time to reconsider. God intends you to integrate His commands into every aspect of your life, and that includes your physical and emotional health too.

YOU CAN BUILD UP A SET OF GOOD HABITS SO THAT 

YOU HABITUALLY TAKE THE CHRISTIAN WAY

WITHOUT THOUGHT.

E. STANLEY JONES

 

 NOTES TO YOURSELF

Keep a journal and make notes for the next 21 days. Make notes about the healthy habits that you would like to establish - and the unhealthy habits you would like to change.

 

21 Days To A New and Improved You

God has a plan for every aspect of your life, including your food, your fitness and your faith. But God will not force His plans upon you;
on the contrary, He has given you the ability to make choices. The consequences of those choices help determine the quality  and the tone of your life.
Health is a gift from God. What we do with that gift is determined, to a surprising extent, by the person we see every time we gaze into the mirror. If we squander our health - or if we take it for granted - we do a profound disservice to ourselves and to our loved ones. But God has other plans. He commands us to treat our bodies, our minds, and our souls with the utmost care. And that is exactly what we should do. If you see to protect and enhance your spiritual, emotional and physical health, I hope that you follow me on this 21 day journey to better and improved you! There are no shortcuts. Healthy living is a journey, not a destination, and that journey requires discipline. If you are willing to make the step-by-step journey toward improved health, rest assured that God is taking careful note of your progress....and He is quickly urging you to take the next step. I came across this wonderful devotion book that I have been using for this journey!

A 21 Day Journey To A New You

Food, Fitness, and Faith
Freeman-Smith, LLC