Get Your Hopes Up!

Do you like this picture? It is what I found when I did a google image search of the word "hope"! I kinda liked it, so I added it to this post....just wish it were bigger!

I have many stresses in my life right now. My health, my husband being out of a job, and my workload being a little bit high right now. That are the "added" stresses, that would be on top of the already "regular" ones like just being a mom of a teen and pre-teen, running a household, working full-time, and working on my clinical license. All I know is I've FELT the weight on my shoulders. I keep trying to give it all to God but I would somehow hold some back or take some back. Foolish, I know! I learned on Sunday that worry is the illusion of being in control....whoa that hit me hard. Jamie! Why do you feel like you need to be in control?

At any rate, let me tell you about an encounter I had with God. This past Friday, I went to pick up my daughter from school. I got there a little early, so I started reading a little book. It is a condensed version of Priscilla Shirer's Discerning the Voice of God. She talked about how God is trying to communicate with us...we just need to "lean in and listen." So, I said, "Okay, God, I'm listening!" I looked up and my eyes fell on a the car in front of me. It had words stenciled in its back window. The words: GET YOUR HOPES UP! Suddenly, I felt like God was saying those words directly to me. Wow! I like that message from Him! I put my hand over my heart and let them sink in. Then, I had a little fun with it....

I looked at the car really closely and started wondering....is that you God or one of your angels driving the car? or is it just someone here on earth that you are using? does anyone else see the car? does anyone else see the message? if that is you God, what are you reading? (The man in the car, was reading very intently....so much so at one point, he didn't move forward when everyone else did....what would Almighty be so engrossed in reading?)

Then I looked even more at the car. Interesting that God would be driving a Nissan Altima with a cracked windshield, and with a bumper sticker that says, "I'd rather be driving a Titleist." Is God a golfer? And I never saw the man's face, but the back of his bald head with sunglasses perched on top. Who would God be picking up from school? Hmmmm...the thoughts were racing.

I picked up my daughter, and as she got in the car....I had to ask her some questions. I asked if she'd ever seen that car before. She said no. I asked if she could read the words in the window. She could. And the curiosity got the better of her, so she asked me why. So, I said, "I think that might be God." She accepted that fine. Then thinking out loud, I said, "I wonder who God would be picking up from school...." She did not miss a beat! She said, "Probably a Mexican kid named Jesus!"

Yes, my 12 year old is pretty witty, huh? Incidentally, I had to pass the car and drive off. I never saw who the car was there to pick up, if anyone....

I've Been Tricked

I've been really quiet for a month or so, other than dropping in to share my Bible verses. I've been quite the busy gal and life has thrown a few loopholes my way. However, I shared with you before about some medical stuff that has been going on with me. And my issues with my weight have been abundantly clear. And more than anything I believe and trust in Almighty God! Well, I feel as though He has led me to do some rather drastic changes in my diet. For almost a week, I have not eaten sugar (other than natural forms of it, and that has been minimal), wheat, yeast, caffeine, and BY ALL MEANS no more aspartame (more about that later)!

I've done some praying, soul searching, and researching. And I am just too young (currently 36) to be dealing with all of this. Although my doctor has assured me it was not caffeine causing it...she really didn't recommend much in the way of diet (she did want me to take more calcium and vitamin D). At the risk of becoming a fanatic, and as I look around me, I am seeing more and more that the stuff I've been taking into my body is not good. While I am not a doctor, nutritionist, or any kind of food/health expert....logical sense tells me that filling my body with gunk must be playing a role in my medical health, not to mention fatigue, mood swings, depression, and acne.

As for the weight, well...I know that I keep eating and keep eating....sometimes "good" stuff and sometimes not....so the weight has gone up and down. And quite frankly, I am tired of dieting! I decided that my weight was no longer my NUMBER ONE priority when it came to what I was eating. I gave up sugar before but that was so hard...and I didn't make it the full 6 weeks I had planned (which I hoped it would get easier). This time has been different!

First off, I believe it may be different because of God. He may have intervened because I have gone 5 full days without sugar, wheat, yeast, or caffeine, and I have experienced very little hunger. The hunger I have is "normal" hunger (as in, hmm....it's lunchtime...belly wants a bit of food). The cravings are non-existent. Another possibility is that when I gave up just sugar, I still ate lots of wheat (bread, batter friend foods, etcetera). I am wondering if I have Candida issues. The first meal I had using this new way of eating, I was satisfied when I was done (it was grilled chicken and brown rice--and not even a huge amount of either). Prior to that, after eating my portion at mealtime, I would almost always want more and find myself looking for seconds (especially if there was bread involved) or something sweet. Well, perhaps before I was feeding the fungus (the Candida) and this time, I was feeding me!

I am really trying to eat good, healthy food....nourishing my body so that it can heal. And since I am usually so mean to my body...I've been talking to it nicely. This body is a gift from God and it has incredible power from Him built in...the healing has begun. I've been so disconnected from my body and not listening to it. I'm trying to listen more. Rest when I need to. Eat when I need to. Take care of this body as I need to.

Again, losing weight right now is not the top priority. However, I weigh myself once a week (on Wednesdays) and have lost 3.3 pounds since last Wednesday. I'm really looking for other results, too. I expect more energy, more happiness, clarity, and healing. The real test will come in July when I have another mammogram and MRI...I will see if results in that area will show up that quickly. I kinda think they might.

And about being tricked...
In my quest for healthier eating, I was given the opportunity to watch "Sweet Misery" which is a documentary about aspartame. In this, I learned that aspartame is made up of 3 things: aspartic acid, phenylalanine, and methanol. Methanol is essentially poison. Some of us have protection in our brains, through a "blood brain barrier", that blocks the poisons from getting into the brain. However, if you continually poison your body....eventually the poison will build up. Plus, some folks have a more pourous blood brain barrier, making them more susceptible to the effects of poisons. You can read more about the aspartame controversy but just be aware that it is controversial and disputed. Facts can be manipulated to say what you want and if you put power and money behind the manipulation....people's health and well-being may not be the winner in the "legal outcome." Another place where you can read more about aspartame is here. Just make up your own mind. Do your own research. There are lots of places online that tell you how aspartame is just fine. For me, I will not be using any more aspartame. I had been highly addicted to Diet Coke for awhile. I gave it up....it slipped back in. Well, it can slip back out. And the Crystal Lite that was in my cabinet has been thrown out.

Now for the biggest trick so far! Fiber One! I loved this stuff! I ate a bowl of it almost every morning. I was getting my fiber....thought I was getting healthy. Turns out, here in the United States, the stuff has aspartame! I was so angry about that! As much Diet Coke and Fiber One I've had....who's to say THAT isn't what is causing the atypical cells in my breast? Of course, no one knows for sure WHAT causes it. Goodness knows, I've been putting poison willingly in my body for so long....I digress....

Deep heavy sigh! I've rambled on a bit, now haven't I? And I have touched on some things that may seem I'm a bit fanatical or even a conspiracy theorist. The change in my diet did not come easy for me. By that, I mean before I "jumped in"....I did NOT want to give up such yummy stuff. But with God's help and by adding careful nutrition to what I am eating, I've done really well. And I am choosing to avoid aspartame because it is JUST not worth it! The other foods I'm giving up are helping me to learn about my body. This kind of eating may not be a choice for everyone, may not be necessary for everyone, and may not be necessary for me FOREVER! But I was ready for a change and this is where God led me!

Two More Weeks....

I haven't posted for two weeks....and it was two weeks before the last time.  I would actually like to blog more.  I just can't seem to catch my breath.  I missed some work and have been trying to catch up for almost two weeks now, leaving very little time to blog.  However, the last blog was a Scripture (because the 1st and the 15th of the month STILL comes around....nothing STOPS for me, for soooooome reason).  So, again, here's another Scripture I'm memorizing:

From the New International Version, out of John 16:33:

"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace.  In this world you will have trouble.  But take heart!  I have overcome the world."

Whew!  Good stuff.  Jesus is talking and he speaks as it has been done already, not will be done.  He has overcome the world.  We don't have to settle for a life entangled in craziness and our sin.  Jesus can set us free!  I NEED that--sounds so good!