Good Rainy Day

I loved being in God's Word today while waiting at the doctor's office two different times today! This made it a great day in spite of not being able to plan my day like I wanted to. There were some sweet spirited people at the doctor's office (and this is also true of the guy who put air in my tires this morning).

It's been a rainy day today. It was dark and overcast and I got a little wet walking to my car after my doctor's appointment. It's been raining pretty often lately but sometimes I wish we got more rain when it does rain. I can't believe winter is going by so fast. We usually have plenty of cold weather in February but see some spring weather late in February often with blossoming azaleas, which are one of the first sweet harbingers of spring, and so beautiful. I love the seasons. I'm thrilled with different things about each season and praise God's majestic handiwork.

I just started on a 1,500 calorie diet and I'm excited about it. This is phenomenal because in the past I've always wanted a heartier diet than 1,500 calories. Now I welcome petite portions and the awareness of a low level of hunger because I'm anxious for the demise of my excess fat. I planned a diet based on things I really like. I can manage to get some variety but basically eat a lot ot the same things each day --which eliminates meal planning which can be stressful when you're on a diet. I heard that if you have a starting and ending point for doing something it makes it easier to be disciplined. So every two weeks I'm going to take a couple of days off and maybe go out to eat or cook a great meal that I don't usually eat because of the diet. Preparing a light dessert is also going to be a part of my break from my diet every two weeks. I'll just eat one portion and give the rest away. I want to do a Youtube video about starting my diet and to keep up with my progress but I need to get someone to film me because I don't have a video camera.

I was reading Job 39 today where God is asking Job if by Job's wisdom certain animals get their characteristics, some of which are stunning. Job had asked God a lot of questions about why his circumstances turned out the way they did and about God's dealings with him. Job 39 puts light on why God lets things happen that we don't understand, because we don't know significant things about God's creation, illustrating how much more God knows than we know. We can be secure in the fact that God lets things happen because of the divine plan of our loving creator.

I Want A Disciplined Life

These are some disciplines I want to maintain each day in no particular order. However I need order in my life or I'll get to feeling bedraggled.

(1) Do elastic band arm exercises, which keeps my shoulders from feeling tight in addition to helping to condition my upper body.

(2) Keep my apartment as neat as a pin. When I don't it just gets to looking worse. I'm so much happier when my apartment looks nice.

(3) Read the Bible online following Prof. Horner's Bible Reading System, reading at least half of the ten chapters each day. I love the staying in the Word and I miss too many blessings if I don't stay in the Word.

(4) Blog about what was most meaningful to me in my day's Scripture reading.

(5) Earnestly work on memorizing a Scripture acrostic. Knowing God's word well enough to recite it any time floods my mind with transforming spiritual truths.

(6) Eat 1,500 to 1,800 calories of healthy food each day. I can't feel my best if I don't eat healthily and I want to lose weight. Knowing I'm genuinely working on losing weight makes me more cheerful and optimistic.

(7) Walk or swim everyday if at all possible, unless I'm really tired and need to rest. Exercise makes me feel great and I want to stay at the top of my game. Aerobic exercise burns fat too.

(8) Avoid procrastinating on anything I really need to get done-- make it a priority. I think procrastinating can keep you from flourishing.

I may be adding more things to this list.

Spring Weather!

We've been having some absolutely wonderful spring weather. I've been enjoying it so much, especially being that it's right on the heels of some very cold winter weather. I've really been enjoying taking walks and am walking about 33% farther each time-- four laps around the park instead of three, which is about a mile. I really want to keep walking farther and work up to two miles or more. With this weather I think I'll try walking twice a day. Today was real overcast and damp so I didn't walk. I find that my energy level is so vulnerable to rainy or overcast weather. I had plans to clean and grocery shop today but about all I could aspire to was a long nap and running an errand. Tomorrow it's supposed to be sunny with continued spring weather. I'm so glad that the warmer weather because now I won't be afraid that the indoor pool will be too cold to swim in. I can't wait to go swimming!

In the midst of trying to diet, I feel like I've gained a little weight. I do weigh but the scales usually really fluctuate a lot. It's been difficult to stay within 1,800 calories lately and I've been eating my mom's sugar free cake pretty often, which adds atleast 250 calories I can't afford. I think I'm not going to let myself have any of my mom's cake unless it's on the weekend. I'm going to make a renewed effort at counting calories.

I was so glad to write another post for my Scripture blog. After being hospitalized recently and being on medicine that elevated my blood sugar, I really didn't feel like myself at all for a week or so. It was frustrating to think that I might just be stalled in writing the Scripture blog, so I'm real happy to get it going again. I wrote a new post yesterday and am going to try to post every day if I can.

I really want to memorize some more Scripture acrostics. I'm going to try to work on this more and try to get on the internet less. I've been wanting to write a book which would contain my Scripture acrostics. I've decided to write an e-book! It will have my Scripture acrostics plus two or three more chapters related to God's Word, memorizing, and how to write Scripture acrostics. I plan to begin working on this soon and I can't wait for people to have access to it. I think it could really be helpful to people because the Scripture acrostics have helped me so much. Hopefully I will do a second edition of this e-book which will have exhortations for each Scripture acrostic.

Spring has Sprung

A two mile walk and shopping has taken all the steam from me today. I had to get a skinny vanilla latte while I was at Abertson's, getting a prescription filled and picking up some asparagus and a cantaloupe, so I'd have the strength to go to Walmart. We're having really nice spring weather and I've been wearing shorts and t-shirts. I'm loving this warm weather.

My diet is still going well. Most days I hit the target of 1,500 calories and on other days I don't go over 1,800 calories. The scales are being very stubborn but I've noticed when I'm getting the phone book off the top of the refrigerator my stomach is a lot less in the way now. I just can't wait until it's obvious that I have a smaller body. I want to keep doing as well as I can on my diet to do my best at slimming. It's full steam ahead for me, for maximum accomplishment.

There was a beautiful sunset this evening. There is always a great view of the sunset when I shop at Walmart in the evening. This evening there were so many colors in the sky. I saw powder blue, cornflower blue, robin's egg blue, pale pink, pale golden yellow and the clouds were outlined in a bright golden pink.

Quiet Rainy Monday

Sunday my mom invited me to lunch and served garlic shrimp over angel hair pasta and T-bone steak. I brought some asparagus and steamed it. I'd love to learn to cook shrimp and steak as well as my mom does. My mom is such a good cook.

Sunday evening I had a really nice walk. It seems like I'm getting back to the fitness level I had previously. I'm so glad! This is so important to me and I'm excited about it. I'm hoping to swim a lot this spring and also want to start doing yoga again.

Insomnia has been threatening my diet because normally I'd be sleeping instead of getting hungry late at night. Something like this is exasperating because I really want to do well on my diet in order to lose weight. I just realized that one of my medication's has the side effect of insomnia, so I'm going to take it in the morning instead of at bedtime. Hopefully this will make a difference.

It's been raining all day today. Mostly today I just took a long nap and did my Bible reading. I finished the book of Revelation today. I read four chapters of Proverbs today (29-31 and 1). Usually I just read whichever chapter the day of the month is but I didn't want to skip four chapters. I use Professor Horner's Bible Reading System and I'm on my sixty-fifth day. It was a struggle to do my reading consistently at first but I'm doing better at it now. I completed twenty days out of twenty-eight this month and hope not to miss any days in the month of March. I love reading God's Word and had an awesome time in the Word today.

Great Progress!

I'm so glad I was able to walk two miles today, with few pauses and without even getting very tired. All that exercise is making me feel good. I know sometimes my positive improvements in exercising can be fickle but I think I'm on a good health regime now and am hoping that I'll keep doing well and can regain my previous level of fitness. There's a lot of great things about being fit enough to walk two or more miles several times a week. It's really enjoyable for one thing. If I can keep up my two mile walks it'll be a real accomplishment, something that I've been striving for for about a year. All the exercise will help me to lose weight more easily. My diet is going well and I'd love to do some major slimming. That would really be great!

God is continuing to help me with dieting. I like being able to accomplish decreasing my calories enough to lose weight while being able to enjoy healthy tasty food that I love. Losing weight is definitely a science, but it's an art too and something you can become skillful at. I like meeting the challenge to maintain an attitude that helps me win at the dieting game instead of being overwhelmed at the challenge.

Most of the last night I was awake meditating on my latest Scripture acrostic. I think I might write a Bible study on it. Meditating on God's Word is so awesome. I want it written on my heart so well that I walk according to it all the time filled with the Spirit. I want to be deeply affected by God's Word much in the same way the wind fills a sail and causes a boat to sail in the direction determined by how the sail is set.

Great Warm Weather

I've enjoyed my day inspite of problems I'm having. Taking a walk in the bright warm sunshine was nice. The warmth lifted my spirits and has me happily anticipating spring. I would have liked it even better if I didn't have to pause fairly often due to getting winded. I still enjoyed being outside and the sunshine was beautiful. I'm not out of the woods with my back yet. I enjoyed spending about an hour neatening up my home. It looks so much better. I can tell my attitude towards housework is majorly improving. I'm quite happy about this. The time I spend doing housework adds up and I see the beginnings of the progress I want so much. My latest Scripture acrostic is really changing my outlook for the better. I love the effect God's word has on me.

This evening I went out to eat catfish with my mom, stepfather, aunt, uncle and his sister and brother-in-law. The catfish was really good. The golden glow of the sun setting through the woodsey country side was so pretty. They were talking about eating cake after returning to my mom's home. I thought about it but came home and had a no sugar added popsicle. I've found that if I want my diet to continue, I can't resume my dieting fast enough. Most of the time when I eat something out of the ordinary I'm careful to make sure I count calories to make it fit into my daily calorie allowance.

I Got Motivated

Lately I've been getting sleepy at about 6pm every evening. I'm glad I'm not even sleepy yet at almost 8pm so maybe I'll sleep through the night. In the middle of the night last night I was wide awake and wrote the Scripture acrostic in the previous post. God brought to my mind several of these Scriptures right before I wrote the acrostic. I got more Scriptures from previous acrostics that I had written. I made this acrostic to inspire me to be better at taking care of my home. Years ago I used to be pretty good at this. I want to do my best and be consistent in it. I memorized the Scriptures that make up the first word in the acrostic tonight. I got so motivated after reciting these scriptures that I did some cleaning I'd been procrastinating over a long time. This builds my hope.

I'm really glad my diet is going well. I'm doing great at getting this diet tailored perfectly to fit my needs. This is really nice because I get to eat things I really like, even dark chocolate. On another post I might describe my diet to you. I really want to burn calories exercising, plus exercise makes you feel great. I didn't get to walk this afternoon due to wheezing. This is from a drug side effect. It seems like anything that really helps my joints causes wheezing.

I'm looking forward to my Aunt and Uncle's visit. They'll get here tomorrow afternoon. My youngest sister and I didn't get together yet this week like we'd planned, but we might tomorrow.

A Busy Day Planned

I'm up at a good hour this morning. Today I'm looking forward to having lunch with my youngest sister. She wants to try my chalupa soup and we're also doing a Bible study together. The Bible study is Beth Moore's "Stepping Up" on the Psalms of Ascent, a great Bible study. This afternoon I have an appointment. It's 31 degrees and very windy today so I'm going to try to walk on the indoor track at the gym. I missed taking a walk yesterday afternoon because I was so sleepy I had to take a nap. I'm hoping to thoroughly clean my kitchen this morning, including mopping the floor.

I really had an appetite yesterday and overshot my calorie allowance. My goal is to eat about 1,600 calories most days, but yesterday I had about 2,200. Atleast it was no junk food. Often it is so easy to stay within 1,600 calories that, on days when I want to eat more, I don't manage as well as I could. I think I need to eat more vegetables and drink more water. These are good for controlling hunger, as well as staying busy. I want to try to stay at eating at about 1,600 calories for a year and then I should see some good and welcome changes in my health and appearance.

I want to start painting again. I used to love painting T-shirts and sweatshirts. I like the Tulip fabric paints because they don't have fumes. I think if I stretch my own canvas, prewashing it first, I'll be able to use fabric paints to paint pictures. I hope I can find all I need in this paint line. I've got to check at another store because the store I went to this weekend didn't have a full line of Tulip paints. I love art and working with colors. I keep thinking about all the cute coloring pictures the elementary school teachers provide for their students. I was a substitute teacher in elementary schools a few years ago. I remember how much fun these were to me when I was a child. Often the coloring pictures have a holiday celebration theme. I think every day, even in the rather mundane things, offers something worth celebrating.

Psalms 118:24 This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. (KJV)

Slimming

It's nice to make new habits that in turn change you so much in a positive way. I was hospitalized at the beginning of October. The doctor put me on a diet in the hospital, which helped me get used to eating lighter meals more spaced apart. When I got out of the hospital and stayed with my mom, she really helped me to diet like I should. I've lost a lot of weight before but I usually really struggle with the concept of limiting myself to what's allowed on a restricted calorie diet, and just try to do the best I can. I've been eating about 1,600 calories per day since getting out of the hospital. My mom say's I am looking so much different that I don't even look like the same person. Yes, there is a lot of weight to lose but this is a wonderful start, my body is changing for the better and I'm getting well established in a diet that can help me lose all my extra pounds. I'm so happy about this!

I'm trying to exercise every day. I love taking walks, swimming, yoga and weight training. Aerobic exercise has always been really good at getting me trimmer-- so I want to walk and swim as much as I reasonably can..

It's very helpful to my diet that I like to cook interesting healthy meals. Although I usually eat the same thing every day for breakfast and supper, I have good healthy meals with lots of variety for lunch each day. For breakfast I eat a boiled egg, steel cut oats with prunes and 100% stone ground whole wheat toast with diet margarine and sugar free jam. For supper I eat a peanut butter and banana sandwich sprinkled with cinnamon with milk to drink. For lunch today I ate at my mom's house. We had some chicken & rice soup that I made along with steamed spinach and broccoli. I had a persimmon for dessert. I consider this really good eating.

I'm so thankful that God has helped me so much like this so that I'm beginning to lose weight and hopefully can lose a good bit of weight. To me is seems like grace-- unmerited favor, and I'm so thankful for how much he loves me.

God loves you just as much! Oh that more people would come to know Jesus as their Savior and Lord. God sent Jesus to earth because He loved us so much that He didn't want sin to separate us eternally from his wonderful goodness, loving kindness and His glorious presence. Jesus came to earth as a baby and at age thirty-three he died on the cross for our sins. He however, never sinned--but by believing in Jesus's death on the cross for our sins and His being raised to life on the third day, we are forgiven for our sins and receive His righteousness. Through God's Word (the Bible) and the Holy Spirit we can walk in newness of life. Then love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (the fruit of the spirit) begin to be seen in our lives!

John 3:16-18
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.17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son.(NIV)

I've Been Bitten By the Dieting Bug

Mom invited me over for lunch today. We had baked chicken and she also made the best fried eggplant, green tomatos and portobello mushrooms I think I've ever put in my mouth. I'll try to make oven fried eggplant. This afternoon I went to the bake shop to get a cupcake and when they didn't have what I wanted I ended up getting what must be the most fattening thing there-- a brownie tower. But the good news is that now I think the dieting bug has finally bit me. This is the only way I know how to describe it. I've been wanting to diet again. However there's nothing like being enthusiastic about it, which helps me to be zealous and successful. I weighed myself yesterday and I've gained about ten pounds. I hope I can stay on this diet for a long time and avoid regaining any weight. It's so needed and would be wonderful for both my health and appearance. I hope I break my pattern of mistakenly thinking that I can get off of my diet for a meal and get right back on it. What happens is that being off my diet for a meal, turns into being off my diet for days and weeks or longer-- in other words good bye diet. This is so sad because the dieting bug doesn't bite often and when my good dieting mode is lost I just can't seem to recover it. So I end up not losing the pounds I so need to shed and even putting on more weight. I think it would wise for me to just not get off my diet.

I took a short walk late this evening. It seemed like I had more pep in my step. I'm glad for this and think it's due to walking more regularly, at least a few times each week. It's so nice that it really cools down in the evening before the sun goes down. This is such a nice time to take a walk. It's amazing to me how significantly the the length of the days changes throughout the year. A few months from now I'll be taking evening walks about three hours earlier, an hour of which is due to daylight savings time.

Two things that really stand out to me at this time of year are hummingbirds and the last of the good watermelons. My mom and stepfather have hummingbird feeders in their yard but I haven't seen any hummingbirds myself yet, but my mom says she has seen them. I'm looking forward to seeing them too. We had some really good watermelon this week--the best of this summer. Half of it is still in the fridge.

Science of calories

I'm enthused about my new diet. I used to get frustrated trying to count calories or points, because I'm on medication that increases my appetite. However I decided to give the science of losing weight by counting calories a chance to work for me again. I think last months memory scripture from Proverbs chapter 8 (and studying the whole chapter) is the clincher. Now my viewpoint is that God gave us the wisdom necessary for helping to achieve a healthier weight. My goal, 1,800 calories per day (most days anyway), which is plenty of calories, so I'm really determined to make it achievable.

Being willing to jump in there and prepare the different kinds of food I know I can enjoy on my diet, I think is really a key to success. I've got cooked veggies, and deviled eggs (made with lite mayo), and a delicious new dessert (recipe included) in the fridge. This dessert has the texture of whipped cream and the taste brings back memories of when my mom would let me have a taste of condensed milk when making lemon ice box pies.

I've been eating a lot of wild salmon sandwiches. Buying frozen wild salmon (which I've noticed has really improved in quality) at Walmart for $7.87 / 28 oz. (1.75 lb.) is enough for seven sandwiches, which works out to $1.12 per serving of wild salmon-- which is something you might want to keep in mind if you like fast food, since these wild salmon sandwiches are much healthier and much more economical than fast food. Here is a link to a previous blog post with my recipe for salmon sandwiches:

http://discipledpilgrimage.blogspot.com/2009/04/great-perspective-makes-healthy-eating.html

This is recipe is mild to medium hot (pepper wise) but to me it's very tastey if I add about 12 dashes of the Habanero Tabasco sauce, because on a sandwich you don't taste the hot sauce nearly as much.

Dieter's "Condensed Milk" Dessert

32 oz. carton nonfat yogurt (see note)
12 oz. can refrigerated evaporated skim milk
1/4-1/2 tsp. True Lemon (crystalized lemon)
10-12 packets of Splenda (or to taste)

Line a colander with 4 layers of cheesecloth. Pour yogurt on top of cheesecloth. Strain for about 1 hr. Discard the whey or reserve for another use. Blenderize all ingredients. Beat with an electric mixer at high speed for 2-3 minutes. May be served immediately but texture is better if refrigerated a few hours before serving.

Makes 4-6 servings 160-240 calories per serving

NOTE: This recipe is made with yogurt which contains pectin and tapioca starch, which affects recipe results.