Step to Fitness and Overall Wellbeing

There are ways to measure your food intake & activity level.  You can journal it, what you do, how long you do it & how much you eat.  You can do it the old fashioned way by writing it on a piece of paper.  For the more tech savvy among you, you can log it all in on My Fitness Pal or a variety of other apps.  This is the one that I use and I have found it to be easy and great for accountability with friends.  It also interacts with other apps.


When tracking your activity, you can log your workouts but also I am motivated to talk today about keeping track of your steps.  You can do this with an inexpensive Pedometer or treat yourself to something a little more high tech like Fitbit.
Marc and I celebrated our 19th anniversary with one of the Fitbits each.  These are simply wrist bands that you wear and it keeps up with your steps, your activity level, even your quality of sleep.  The great thing about it is it relates my calories burned into Myfitnesspal app.
Regardless how you track the information, the rule of thumb is this, calories in versus calories out.  You consume calories as potential energy to use. It would be great if the ole saying applied here "if you don't use it, you lose it".  However, that is not the case.  Regarding calories, if you don't use it -- you store it for later!
My suggestion is the following:
Whether you want to just stay healthy or if your goal is to lose some of that "Stored for later" calories, try to get in 10,000 steps per day.
If you want to use up those "stored for later" calories, set your goal weight.  If you are within 10-20 pounds of that goal, take the goal number and add a zero to the end.  Let that be your estimated number of calories for the day.  
Based on calories burned vs. calories consumed, try to create a 500 calorie deficit each day which will equate to you losing 1 pound per week. Double that and you double the loss, but no more than 2 pounds per week. OK, this means, burn more calories than you take in.  (ex. if I weigh 150 and my goal is 130 then I would either consume 1300 calories per day if I just want to lose weight by controlling my calories.  If I want to effect it by activity, I would want to increase my activity to use more calories than I consume.  Meaning I can eat more than mentioned above, but I would still need to create that same deficit.)  for more information Calories Burned at Rest: How many Calories do I Burn doing Nothing








And for those Christians that read my blog, remember that you are the temple of the Holy Spirit.  Just as the priest took care of the temple, we too are to take care of the dwelling place of the Spirit of God.

Delayed Blooms

Along the lines of abiding and producing fruit, I was walking my dog and noticed that a dogwood tree in my yard had blooms on it.  You may say, "No big deal, that's what they do" but for those aware of my tree will already know where I am going with that.

You see, I live in Huntsville, AL which is in Madison county.  Several years ago during a road widening project, there was a beautiful OLD dogwood that was blocking progress for the project.  After lots of public opinion, the tree was carefully uprooted and moved to the botanical gardens.  A few years later, I purchased a baby from that tree.  At the same time, I purchased a Japanese Maple.

Years have gone by since then, and the dogwood has never bloomed.  Recently, my family went to the botanical gardens where we discovered the old tree had died, but there were babies of the tree circling where the tree used to be.  They were in bloom.  This restarted the ongoing conversation between me and my husband, Marc, regarding our poor little dogwood.  You see to date, that darn tree has NEVER bloomed.  We began to think that either it was a poser and not really a dogwood, a dud or needed something to help it bloom.

The funny thing about all this is Marc just said if the tree doesn't bloom, he was going to yank it up and get something else in its place.   Well as I said, today as I was out walking the dog, I looked up and saw this on that tree.

I cannot tell you the weird emotions that I began to experience.  I even had a few tears come to my eyes.  It was as if I could hear the Lord speaking to me through those blooms.

The lesson I took away from it was not to give up hoping.  Even when it looks like all the time, effort, tending, pruning has not produced anything; some things take more time to bloom than others.  If there is someone in your life that you have been pouring into, and you are wondering whether it is an investment or a waste of time, be encouraged by this late blooming dogwood.  Our investment into other's lives may not produce fruit in our timing.  Be patient and hopeful.  Never give up!  Maybe they are just late bloomers.

Another lesson to be learned regards authenticity.  We wondered if the tree was even a dogwood because there was no evidence other than the leaves and someone telling us it was a dogwood.  As is true with those who proclaim to be Christians yet we see no evidence or fruit.  Yes, the fruit is the proof or evidence of who we are.  Yet, instead of judging one another, let's pray for one another to bear much fruit.  We bear much fruit by abiding in Christ. (click on the link to see my blog on abiding)   Pray that we stay connected to the vine.  Be patient, maybe those blooms are coming!!!!

Abiding in Christ or Boot Strap Obedience?

Oh how we hear these churchy expressions and yet do we know what they mean or better yet, how to execute them or put feet to them.

I have been praying and pondering about some pretty heavy stuff.  Things like bad behavior in the Children of God, morality, bad choices, sin in the lives of the believer and the damage it does to our testimony, how many non believers are turned off to Christ (the one true hope) because of those of us unwilling to walk the path of righteousness; and then how we don't seem to be heartbroken and moved to change because we cause others to stumble.  We make excuses, justifiy and rationalize  our actions (Then we "yeah but" it to death).

So I kept asking the Lord about all of this.  I believe I am beginning to get a glimpse of His response.  One message after another keeps adding to His answer until it all seemed to come together in the last week or so.

I was listening to a message from James McDonald and then again the following day, "The Secret to a Joyful Life".  The message was playing in the car and I ended up downloading it and listening to it fully.

I will be referencing some of his message mixed with our Sunday School lesson, and my prayer time while listening through this message.

I began with the question "Lord why do we see so much world in the lives of believers?"  The believers of Christ should be going out into the world to affect it positively with the light and love of Jesus.  Instead we are going out and being infected by the world.  I asked God to open my eyes and my ears so I could see and hear His answer.  I believe He poured forth a fountain, and I will attempt to share what I believe He has shown me.

In John 15:1-17, we are told that Jesus is the vine and we are the branches.  If we REMAIN in Him we will bear much fruit.  But that apart from Him we can do NO thing.  We are to REMAIN in Him and He will REMAIN in us.  WE cannot bear fruit by ourselves. So we must REMAIN in Him.  (Remain - abide, lean into, dwell.)  We are to FELLOWSHIP with Him.  Remain is to abide; to abide is to remain  

• to remain, abide
  • in reference to place
    • to sojourn, tarry
    • not to depart 1a
  • to continue to be present 1a
  • to be held, kept, continually
  • in reference to time
    • to continue to be, not to perish, to last, endure 1b
  • of persons, to survive, live
  • in reference to state or condition
    • to remain as one, not to become another or different
• to wait for, await one

So I asked Him what does it look like to ABIDE or REMAIN in Him, and he quickly began to show me that it is abiding in His word and in His love.  We must rest with Him, live with Him.  The last words from Jesus before leaving this earth were this "go, and make disciples of every nation, and baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.  Teach them to observe all I have commanded and I will be with you always, until the end of the age."  So if we are to go make disciples by immersing them not just in a one time water bath but immersing them in who the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are.  This is how we come to KNOW Him.  As we do this for ourselves first, and then to the nations, we are motivated by the love that will emerge within us to obey His commands.  The obedience will be an expression of fullness, gratitude and devotion.  It will spur us on!

As I was listening to the message, James McDonald said the secret to bearing fruit is to abide in Christ  (walking and living with Christ)
As he said that, I wrote down "Lord teach me to abide"  and the next thing in the message was this:
The secret to living is Joy.
The secret to joy is abiding in Christ
The secret to abiding (fruit bearing) is obeying
We are told in John 15:9 to remain in His love, but vs 10 says that if we obey His commands we will remain in His love.

I asked God why is it so hard to obey?  We cannot be good enough by shear determination, concentrating or focusing because it is just too much.  According to Romans 7 because of grace should we sin all the more so grace can be displayed even more so.  Paul said "heaven forbid".  I say of course not.  We are incapable of keeping the law, yes.  For apart from Christ we cannot do it.  But in Christ it is possible.  He said he came not to abolish the law but to fulfill it.  If I am REMAINING in Him all day, I can obey.  His love will compel me to obey.  I will want to love my neighbor as myself and my heart will break if I have caused him to stumble.

So here's the thing.  Moses said if you will not go with me into the Promised land then I will not go.  He also said how will they know you sent me if you will not go with me.   This needs to be our cry as well.  (Lord I do not need to go into the world to represent YOU unless you go with me.)  We need to sit at the feet of Jesus long enough to be filled with His love, which will motivate us to love others, and obey His commands.  We will be a true walking testimony not misrepresenting Christ and causing others to turn away from Him.

The world doesn't need me to be obedient for the sake of rules, regulations and legalism.  According to McDonald, our passion and desire for obedience will come from love.  Obedience is not a to do list.  (or a to don't list)

In Jude 24 it says, "to HIM who is able to keep us from falling".    It is HE who keeps us from sinning.  It is HE who enables us to obey.

McDonald said that if we try to obey without abiding, we will fall short.  In order to keep blameless and not stumble, we must learn to lean into Jesus, listen to Him, fellowship with Him, ABIDE in Jesus.  Jesus in us is the power to obey and also the will to obey.    Jesus is the energy to obey.  Obedience without abiding is conformity. Abiding that leads to and motivates obedience will produce transformation.

The secret to obeying is LOVE

McDonald said that there are 3 false reasons we obey:
1. Ball and Chain -  I have to obey as if I am in a prison (this is considered the adolescent Christian)
2. Electric Shock- if I don't obey i will suffer (when we choose to sin we choose to suffer)  (this is the High School Christian)
3. Boomerang- if I obey I will get blessed

He said the one true reason to obey is in 2Cor 5:14 "the love of Christ compels me" (that is Christ's love for me)  McDonald said that all Christian failure is a failure to love, being motivated by self love above love for Christ and others.  He said that the secret to loving Christ is knowing Him.  The more we know Him the more we love Him.  As we get to know Him more, we must guard against allowing this knowledge to puff us up.  Instead as we grow in the knowledge of Him, we can grow in our love for Him and for others.  As we grow in our love for Him, we will grow in obedience.  

Galatians 5:19-21 is a list which is not exhaustive, of what we look like in sin, disobedience and apart from Christ; or at the least we see what flesh is capable of doing.  In contrast, we see in the next verses, a list of the FRUIT of the Spirit.  Verse 14 "the entire law is summed up in this, Love your neighbor as yourself."

If I see evidence of Galatians vs 19-21 in my life or in the lives of others, I need to not condemn myself or them, but use it as an indicator of the need to abide, lean into, live in Christ.  Just go spend time with Him.  Concentrate on His greatness.  Think on the price He paid for you and for me to have freedom FROM sin, a hope, a future and eternal life with God.

Lets stop trying to do bootstrap obedience where we just try to be good by our own strength.  We need obedience motivated by the Love of Christ.

If we see that a brother or sister in Christ is dwelling in the sin list of Galatians 5:19-21, according to Galatians 6:1 we are to restore them gently and warned to watch ourselves so we are not temtped or fall ourselves.  Ephesians 4:15 speak the truth in love Luke 17:3  So watch yourselves! "If another believer sins, rebuke that person; then if there is repentance, forgive.
2 tim 4:2  Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage--with great patience and careful instruction.

To wrap this all up, I read my devotion this morning which was authored by Billy Graham.  I have included it below.  I was blown away by a NEW word for my vocabulary.  You will see ANTINOMIANISM is defined and then a link for you to read further on the matter.

Christianity is Serious

Jesus indicated that there will be a permissive society just before He comes back. “As in the days of Noah, so shall it be also in the days of the coming of the Son of man.” The world today is on an immoral binge such as has not been known since the days of Rome. We are in a hedonistic society, and what we are seeing is human nature expressing itself without God.

Many have fallen into an antinomianism in which they believe intellectually, and then go out and live like the devil, imagining that God will forgive them and take them to heaven. I believe there is an obedience to the Gospel, there is a self-denial and a bearing of the cross, if you are to be a follower of Christ. Being a Christian is a serious business.

Daily Prayer

Teach me to deny my selfish desires and obey Your commandments, Lord Jesus. Cleanse me so that I might be used to penetrate society deeply for You.

The word antinomianism comes from two Greek words,anti, meaning "against"; andnomos, meaning "law."Antinomianismmeans “against the law.” Theologically, antinomianism is the belief that there are no moral laws God expects Christians to obey. Antinomianism takes a biblical teaching to an unbiblical conclusion.
Antinomianism - Click on this link for more indepth study of this word

Read 1Jn 2:3-6  This is how we know we are in Him: Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did.”

LORD and Savior or Just Your Savior?

I have been agonizing over a matter that I just cannot get my mind fully around.   I believe every single believer seems to have a slightly different take on this matter, and I have found numerous resources that conflict with each other on the matter.  Even though each is using the scripture in their argument. 

Carnal Christianity vs. Surrendered Christianity.  Is Jesus just your savior or is He becoming your LORD?  I believe we are saved in an instant, but we are transformed in His likeness over the rest of our lives as we make the choice to surrender to Him.

Colossians 3:5-17

God has been talking to me about it everywhere I turn partly because I have been asking Him about it.  I have been struggling with the body of Christ looking like the world to such a degree that the world doesn't want to be part of Christ.  I struggle with the misrepresentation of Christ to the world.  It breaks my heart that the version of Christ that is being represented is so distorted that it is giving the world every excuse to reject Him.  I do not think it is done intentionally to keep others from Christ.  I believe it is done for lack of knowledge of the truth.  But my heart breaks at the idea of my life being the reason another would turn from Christ.  My heart aches to think that my misrepresentation of Christ could cause someone to say "if that is what it is all about, I want nothing to do with Jesus."  This weighs heavy on me.  Does it you too?

If we are the body, we need to love each other.  (That includes the carnal Christian)

If we are part of Christ, we need to be concerned for the eternal destination of the lost.  

We each are in ourselves, capable of doing all manner of sin.  We have each been plagued with a disease at birth that is keeping us all captive, it is called sin.  If you can imagine the WORST sin man has ever committed according to man, it is only by the grace of God we do not each find ourselves in the middle of that very sin.  We need to see that apart from God, we are all capable of all manner of sin.  We can stay in that condition, but Jesus died on the cross to break the power of that disease in our lives.  He is the cure for our sinful state.  We can enter into that cure by receiving Him as our Savior first and then by surrendering to His will for our lives on a daily basis.  That is what we call making Him our LORD!!  He is the Master and we are His servants.  

So here is where the full agony lies for me.  As a world full of lost and hopeless people look upon the body of Christ to see "where is the Hope",  are we demonstrating our freedom from sin by our surrender to obey Him, or are we squashing the hope for others by our Profession to be His yet living like the world?  (which puts us right back in bondage to sin)  

You see according to scripture, we purify ourselves by obeying the truth.  The truth is the word of God.  

Ephesians 4:14-16 14 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming.15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. 16 From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

1 Peter 1:22-23 & 2:2  Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart.[a] 23 For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.

2:2 so that by it you may grow up in your salvation

What I believe the world is observing is a large number of baby Christians. Let's not beat each other up. Yes, the Pharisee in me wants to scream at these babies in Christ, but there is NO CONDEMNATION for those who are in Christ Jesus.  So if you are with me as a recovering Pharisee, would you join me in praying for the babies to grow up into their salvation.  Pray that they will develop a burden in their hearts for their part in discrediting the gospel message, but not so they will feel beat up or condemned, but instead they will be moved to repentance.  Pray with me that they will begin to obey the word in order to purify themselves.  Pray with me today that each one of us would live a life that honors God and draws many to Christ by our witness.  (The way we live)

In addition, to all recovering Pharisees, let’s love fervently and passionately with a PURE heart.  The biggest problem with the Pharisee is there is typically pride, lack of humility and compassion.  According to scripture, God draws near to the humble and resist the proud.  Also pride goes before a fall.  So remember your sin, thank God for your deliverance and fall to your knees on behalf of the babes in Christ.  Cover them in prayer and love.  Walk beside them and lead them in the way they should go!!!!

Babies need to grow up and Pharisees need to repent of pride.  

Be blessed today!  

Is Weight Loss a Spiritual Act of Worship?

I am a personal trainer and fitness instructor by trade.  I know if you have been walking with God for long, you ponder your purpose in your career.  You may as I do, wonder how to do what you do unto the Lord.  I believe we are called to take care of our bodies.  We are to "tend to" the temple of the Holy Spirit.  If our body is the place where the God of the universe has chosen to place His Spirit by the death of His Son, I believe we are to take care of the temple just as the priest of the Old Testament were charged with the care and keeping of the ACTUAL building.

We do not need to worship our bodies, nor be spending countless hours measuring, weighing and counting calories.  Instead we need to have a change in perspective.  We need to change the way we look at food.  We have to make a LIFESTYLE change NOT go on another diet.  Diets work temporarily!  The reason they do not work long term is that when you loose the weight, we return to the way we ate before.  But that is the thing that got us into the shape we were in before.  So not only do we gain our pounds back, but they typically bring friends and we gain even more.

We also need to put exercise into our lives.  This is not for the purpose of weight loss but for overall wellness.  We need to be a BODY IN MOTION!!!  If we can get at least 15 minutes per day of cardio where we get our heart rates up, that is a great starting place.  Increase the 15 minutes to more over time. We need to exercise for our heart, for our joints, for our muscles and for overall wellness.  We need to do it so we can be stronger and able to accomplish more with the time we have been given, and so the Lord's instrument is working at its optimum level for His sake.  Work OUT Guideline for Cardio from my blog  This is not saying that if you have a disability or health issues that God cannot use you.  I am just saying we need to take care of what we have.  God can use anyone who is available and surrendered to Him.

We also need to spend time to nourish our spirit.  We need a quiet time where we meet with Jesus.  We need to read The Word, pray and sit quietly in fellowship with Him by His Spirit.  I believe that in our emptiness we long to be satisfied by Him, and when we are not spending the intentional time with Him, we get famished.  Out of our starvation for God, we begin to fill it with anything else we can find.  Some may fill it with food, another with alcohol and even another may exercise to excess or work too much.  There are many ways to try to fill up our emptiness.  But it never really satisfies us, and we are left with the consequences of the excess (like over weight, alcoholism, repetitive use injuries, or estranged relationships.)

So as you read this today and you say yep that struck a nerve, then maybe today you can take one step to make a change today.  I do not recommend doing all three at one time, but I do suggest you take one today.

Have a blessed day and serve the Lord today by taking care of His precious dwelling place which is YOU!

Where is the Hope?

The weight of the current state of the world  is so heavy upon me.  I cannot fully get into words what heaviness I am feeling lately and why.  The words I share here may make little to no sense, but I am going to try to deliver this as clearly as I can.

There seems to be a hopelessness not just in the world but in the body of Christ as well.  I have had discussions about the seemingly ineffectiveness of the body.  Discussion of how children raised in the church are leaving it for the things of the world, and how what the world is selling is drawing many away.  Hypocrisy in the body is stated as the number one reason for the departure or the refusal to accept Christ, and how the  world is having such a decaying effect on the Christians.

So do we say " We should do nothing?"  Of course not.

So we say "How is it my fault that others are turned off by the gospel message?"

Maybe we need to ask "Are we just doing a religious activity, and are we just going thru the motions in hopes that the motions will be enough?"

What we need is to be growing in the knowledge of who God is and growing in our love for Him and others.  Lets do this thing called Christianity with the hope that it will grow us in relationship with God so we may know Him more and become His reflection to the world through the way we live our lives.

I believe we are responsible if we are causing others to stumble.  I think it ought to grieve our spirit if our actions cause another to look away from Jesus because of us saying we are Christian yet live however we want or even contrary to His Word.  The life we live is not our own.  We are to "go" and make disciples not turn people off from the message of the gospel.  I am not talking about perfection.  I am talking about living in a manner in which honors God so that when others observe our lives, they will grow in a desire for Him.  What if we lived in such a way that others became hungry and thirsty for Christ.

Shame on us if we do not care if we turn off others to the gospel message.  Will you join me today and say in as much as it is possible with me, I am going to live my life to honor God.  Not that it will be perfect, but that when you err, you go back and make it right.

Maybe if we will each do our part, the world will see the hope that is in the "Good News" by the way we live our lives.  The good news which is the gospel, and by this perhaps the depressing state of the world can change for the better.  Will you be part of that change?

Be blessed!

A way to help you accomplish your resolution (Old post revised)

How is your New Year's resolution working for you?  For those who made exercise and weight loss part of your New Year's Resolution, I have a guideline that may help you get a jump start.  It is merely a suggestion and by no means an absolute.  However, if you will take all or part of the guideline and apply it, you will find accomplishing your resolution more attainable.   Now I suggest at the minimum 3 - 4 days per week.  If you cannot do the 7 days, combine the belly blast as a follow up on the walking days.  This is the minimum standards and as you conquer these, feel free to add on time and speed as needed.  All you will need is a stop watch and a place to walk.  I find the treadmill is the easiest for me.


Day 1 – Steady Speed Walk – 20 min

Day 2 – Belly Blast – 15 min

Day 3 – Interval Walk – 15 min

Day 4 – Rest   (this ideally could be Sunday)

Day 5 – Steady Speed Walk - 20 min

Day 6 – Belly Blast – 15 min

Day 7 – Interval Walk – 15 min



Steady Speed Walk

Warm up - 3 – 3.5 mph – 3 min

Cardio Walk – 3.5-4 mph – 15 min

Cool down – 3 mph – 2 min

Interval Walk

Warm up – 3-3.5 mph – 3 min

Cardio Walk – 3.5 -4 mph – 1 min

Speed Walk – 4+mph – 30 sec

Repeat Cardio and Speed walk 5 more times

Cardio Walk 3.5-4mph – 1 min

Cool down – 3-3.5 mph – 2 min

Belly Blast

Combine ab with arms and leg exercises

If you want to add another dimension to your experience, motivate yourself from a spiritual perspective.  If you look at the Old Testament and study the commands to take care of the temple and then in the New Testament we are told our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, I believe a study on the care and keeping of the temple is in order.

Here's a Churchy Word - Justification

You know it is weird how we have these words that we use in the church circles. I wonder if a newcomer hears them and thinks "what in the world are they talking about", or is this a different language they are speaking?  Or perhaps you have thought it yourself...  I know I have!  Words like grace, faith, redemption, exhortation, propitiation, belief, believe, mercy, fetter, fount, and justification; just to name a few. To see my other blogs on this, go to this topic link Churchy Words

If we are honest, sometimes these words are even hard for us to grasp, and we have been hearing them for years. I mean, you can sit there and sing about amazing grace, how sweet the sound and not really grasp just how sweet that is. I believe we need to ponder these words. We need to investigate them to really grasp what each is saying to us when we use them.

So if scripture tells us we are justified, what exactly is that saying?

I have included below various definitions. You can scroll to the end to see them in their fullness or go to the website where I have attached links for them. 

When the word justified comes up in scripture, I begin to think what exactly does that mean.  I think of how in typing class, (am I really dating myself by saying that?) we would justify the margins.  That means the margins on both sides would be lined up.  So I take that and see how Jesus makes me straight and lines me up.  (this paragraph is justified to demonstrate)

It is also a declaration that one is free of blame, or free one of the guilt and penalty attached with a sin. Another definition is to judge, regard, or treat as righteous and worthy of salvation.  Another definition is to show or to prove to be just, right or reasonable.  

I also wanted to look at the meaning according to scripture or a biblical definition.  I found that to be biblically justified is being DECLARED righteous in God's sight, and to be made right with God.

So me going into my pondering mode:  To be justified means to be set right, to be declared right, to be made straight, and regardless of action, to be declared free of charges and worthy to be saved.  HMMM

So if I am justified, I have heard it this way:  It is "JUST AS IF I'D NEVER SINNED"  "JUST - IF - IED" never sinned!!!  Now there's something to get excited about.

So the next time you hear a preacher say you are justified, you read that you are justified in scripture, or you sing a song in a worship service about you being justified; let that sink into your very being exactly what you are saying.

You want one to enjoy right now, take a listen to this one  Glorious Day

With much love today, be blessed.

TheFreeDictionary.com says:
1. To demonstrate or prove to be just, right, or valid: justified each budgetary expense as necessary; anger that is justified by the circumstances.
2. To declare free of blame; absolve.
3. To free (a human) of the guilt and penalty attached to grievous sin. Used of God.
4. Law
a. To demonstrate sufficient legal reason for (an action taken).
b. To prove to be qualified as a bondsman.
5. Printing To adjust the spacing within (lines in a document, for example), so that the lines end evenly at a straight margin.

Merriam-Webster's definitions is:
1a : to prove or show to be just, right, or reasonable
b (1) :  to show to have had a sufficient legal reason (2) :  to qualify (oneself) as a surety by taking oath to the ownership of sufficient property
2a archaic :  to administer justice to

b archaic :  absolve

c :  to judge, regard, or treat as righteous and worthy of salvation
3a :  to space (as lines of text) so that the lines come out even at the margin

b :  to make even by justifying <justified margins>
intransitive verb
1a :  to show a sufficient lawful reason for an act done

b :  to qualify as bail or surety
2:  to justify lines of text

Google definition is:

1. having, done for, or marked by a good or legitimate reason.
"the doctors were justified in treating her"
2. THEOLOGY declared or made righteous in the sight of God.


Easy English Bible Dictionary

justified ~ to be made right with God through the death and return to life of Jesus Christ; to say someone is right with God.

From Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry
Justify, Justification
Easy English definition for 'justified':

To be justified is to declared legally righteous. It is a divine act where God declares the sinner to be innocent of his sins. It is not that the sinner is now sinless, but that he is "declared" sinless. The sinner is not made righteous in that his soul is changed or that his soul is infused with God's grace. Instead, justification is a legal act of imputing the righteousness of Christ to the believer (Rom. 4:11; Phil. 3:9). This justification is based on the shed blood of Jesus, "...having now been justified by His blood..." (Rom. 5:9). When God sees the Christian, He sees him through the sacrifice of Jesus and "sees" him without sin. This declaration of innocence is not without cost for it required the satisfaction of God's Law, "...without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness," (Heb. 9:22). By the sacrifice of Jesus, in the "one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men," (Rom. 5:18, NASB). In justification, the justice of God fell upon Himself--Jesus. We receive mercy--we are not judged according to our sins. And grace is shed upon us--we receive eternal life. This justification is a gift of grace (Rom. 3:24), by faith (Rom. 3:28) because Jesus bore our guilt (Isaiah 53:12).

Praying for My Sister In Christ - And My Prayer For You!

Yesterday, I prayed for a dear sister in Christ. She was in pain and in need of relief.  Her ailments are being treated by a doctor and there is mention of cancer.  

In my time of prayer for her I was moved to pray for her to be comforted by her heavenly Father through this time.  I was acutely aware that in times of difficulty, there must be much glory to be seen.  (glory simply meaning bringing attention to)  I couldn't help but ask God if that is why we suffer as we do as His children.   Not always do we reflect the most glory for God through healing.  Signs and wonders are great, and yes, God is a God that can heal.  However, the times where we are in pain, in despair or at the end of our rope, WELL that is where we find ourselves seeking Him.  Then, He equips us if we will fully surrender to Him.   In our difficulty and our desperation, we become fully aware of our need of Him. We tend to draw so much more beautiful attention to our Lord during this time (ie. much glory to God).  I have learned far more about Him in my times of hardship and difficulty.  That is where I learn to love Him more.  During our trials is where we can  fall more deeply in Love with Him.  I prayed she would fellowship with Him, enjoying time with Him, and growing in wisdom and understanding of His ways as she travels through this valley of darkness.

However, my most obvious prayer was for complete healing.  I  know God can do that.  However, I have lived long enough to know that God is not at my beck and call to do my bidding, and my desire.  So as I prayed, I asked and I desired to pray according to the Father's will.  I asked Him to increase my faith as well as her's, and the ability to see even beyond physical healing to the greater purpose of growing in trust, faith and belief.  In addition to being aware of the greater purpose of glorifying Him through whatever will transpire.  (bringing Him the most attention in order to exalt Him).

I desire today that if you find yourself in that dark place of pain, trial, suffering, loneliness, scary diagnosis, loss of a loved one, that you would get a glimpse of the Father's love for you.  He loves you dearly and deeply.  He has not left you nor has He abandoned you.  He walks with you in the valley of the shadow of darkness.  Rest today, invite Him in and just fellowship with Him.  Let Him love on you today.  Remember He paid for you by the shed blood of His own son, so that He could not only spend time communing with you in this life but for eternity.  The price He paid was priceless.  

Be blessed today.

WAKE UP!!! For the Sake of the Children

 Today I share this with a heaviness in my heart.  I feel this intense scream within me that I cannot contain.  As you read it, read it as if you hear me screaming this to the top of my lungs.  Wake up, wake up, WAKE UP.  All who are weary, we need you in this battle.  We desperately need you not to sleep through this period of time.  Let the dead in Christ rise up.  I do not mean those who have passed on in death, but I mean the sleeping Christians.  WAKE UP!!!!!

I had a vision or thought throughout the day yesterday as I earnestly and devotedly prayed for a dear sister in Christ. I will share about that in another blog, but it intertwined with my aching heart for the unnecessary suffering of many adults that started by their choices in their teen years.  So much suffering occurs by no action on our part, as was the case for my friend I mentioned, but then there is the pain that is brought on by our sin, bad choices, bad decisions and sometimes our naivete.  This pondering brought me to scream in warnings to parents and teens.  Perhaps at least we can remove naivete.

There is a war being waged on behalf of the children in this very city.  It is coming from Satan himself, and I personally want to expose it.  I want the body to WAKE UP and begin to pray for eyes to be open to the snare before entrapment occurs.   I pray that this message gets into the hands of many teens and parents.    The culture we live in, in the United States, is fostering this need for fun, entertainment and escaping reality.  What no one seems to be noticing is that it is a trap or a snare of the enemy of our soul.  I hear parents say, "kids will be kids"  or "they are just having fun"  perhaps they may even say they are "sewing their wild oats" even "don't be such a party pooper" or "its harmless".  I even heard one parent say "they all do it."  Perhaps in a desire for your child to be accepted, you are looking the other way.

I for one can speak at the other end of this having walked with many who are trying to escape from their captor.  You need to get your heads out of the clouds, open your eyes to the reality around you and WAKE UP.

• For the parent who is clueless, investigate your child's friends.  Ask your child questions.  They are worth it.  Honestly, they are your child, you had them so they are your responsibility to protect them even from themselves.  Follow these links to educate yourself: Molly , Acid/LSD, The truth about website, Alcohol, Take a quiz
• For the parent who thinks it is harmless, I can tell you if you will go to any rehab and talk with an addict, you may find that they thought so too at one point.
• For the parent who doesn't know what to do, get involved with your child.  Talk to them and let them know the dangers.  They need to understand the consequences.  Do research on the long term effects and then share it with your child.  Check this link out:  common risk & protective factors
• For the parent who doesn't care, please remember they are your responsibility to raise and protect.
• For the parent who is aiding or actively participating, please get help so you can be the adult and help protect your child.

Again I say, WAKE UP!  The war that is waged can come in many different fashions.  I have seen addictions come in many different forms.  Anything that helps you escape the reality of life.

The issue that got me spun up to write this, is drugs and alcohol.  Youths are convinced that parents are not cool, take the fun out of life or just trying to control their lives.  While parents do not want to be known that way and may be moved to inactivity.  Many just want to be friends with their child.  Perhaps you did it when you were their age, and you feel you cannot say no to them now.  If you didn't get in a snare of addiction you are very lucky.  But you can still speak up, and exercise your parental rights to give consequences for their bad behavior.  It is your job to set the limits for them.   They do not have that abiltiy yet.

In the clarity of a teens mind, they believe and are being told by their peers that partying with drugs and alcohol is a way to enjoy themselves, to experience freedom of choice and exercise independence.  But guess what, here is where I scream to the top of my lungs.  IT IS A TRAP!!!!!  I swear to you it is.  While the pleasure is momentary, the destruction it brings into the life of the user and those who love them, is devastating.  The front end looks harmless to an unsuspecting teen.  It is romanticized by all forms of media.  Even the tragic end to an actor's life is celebrated as a tragic end of a tormented soul.  Almost as if it is exalted.  But if you have ever walked closely with someone desperate to escape the clutches of addiction, you begin to see the pit they fall in, and how difficult it is to ever escape. Unfortunately most never do.  It is clearly portrayed on the front side as fun, but once you enter in, the dust begins to stir, you begin to lose your way, and before long, years have gone by, and you are immersed in destructive patterns that can destroy your life and your potential.  You are in full fledged captivity, you my friend are a prisoner to the one thing that promised you freedom.  It is a lie from the pit of hell.

The best defense is to not go there in the first place.  To begin with, the earlier you start on these substances, the more damage they do.  The front of the brain is still in development until age 25.

• this is from one of the above links:  "The frontal lobes are responsible for self-regulation, judgment, reasoning, problem-solving, and impulse control. Differences in maturation among parts of the brain can result in impulsive decisions or actions and a disregard for consequences."

Because of this fact, parents still need to guide their children during this time to set the limits teens cannot set for themselves.  Many studies show that earlier use increases the chances of addiction developing.

I am writing this in hopes that I shine some light on this area of darkness.  It starts with boredom, rebellion, curiosity, forbidden fruit, or peer pressure, etc.  They usually see it as harmless, or if they are aware of the dangers, they figure it will not happen to them.

This reminds me of a carrot dangling in front of a rabbit.  Then the rabbit gets the carrot to find out too late that it is caught in a trap.  This is the snare the enemy is setting up for the youths of our society.  He cloaks it in  fun, fellowship, and a way to escape.  But in the end it leaves you paranoid, alone, in despair, completely tormented and the way of escape has become the very thing that holds you captive.

Parents, on behalf of your children, get educated.  Be educated about who your children are in close connection with as well as educating yourself on what they are participating in.  We are not here to help them have the best time, to have fun, to enjoy themselves.  We are here in there lives to help them become all they can be.  To set limits on them when they will not set them from themselves.  It is an epidemic, and it is all around you.  Be aware, be informed and care enough to be disliked by your child.  Do the hard things for them.  And above all else, be praying for your children.  I pray frequently that if my children get off track that they will be caught quickly before bad habits set in.  Praise the Lord, so far, that has been the case.

Please take a look at the excerpt from one of the links listed above to see just how much influence we as parents have on our children's decisions.

Youth perception that parents approve of their alcohol or drug use

One of the most consistent risk factors for adolescent drinking is perceived parental approval (Donovan, 2004). Reported maternal care perception has been shown to be significantly lower among alcohol and those who use multiple drugs (Gerra et al, 2004).

Parental monitoring (or perception of monitoring)

Adolescents who report low parental monitoring are significantly more likely to use a variety of substances (Shillington et al, 2005). Positive parental style and close monitoring by parents are proven protective factors for adolescent’s use of alcohol and other drugs (Stewart, 2002).

Peers engaging in problem behavior

Associating with drug- or alcohol-using peers, or being rejected by peers, can create problem behaviors and influence attitudes and norms related to substance use (O'Connell et al, 2009). Exposure to peer problem behavior is correlated with increased alcohol and other substance use in the same month (Dishion et al, 2000). Those who drink in a social setting, or who have peers who do so, are more likely to abuse alcohol later in life (Beck et al, 1996).

Organized and Ready to Go

As mentioned in previous blogs, I have been spending time organizing my house and my life.  As I do this, I have established a lot more margin in my life.  I didn't realize just how much I was in need of that.  It has made me a much more pleasant person.

It was quite a process and in the midst of it, I wondered how one family could have accumulated so much stuff.  I began to make piles in areas of the house.  I had a pile to go straight to the garbage, a pile to donate immediately, and a pile for ebay.  I categorized all items in the last two piles, but with the last pile I also took pictures and started the bidding at what seemed to be the average for the items. 

I started this before Christmas and with my girls approval, sold a good bit of toys as Christmas gifts.  I would love to say it went smoothly but it didn't.  Most went off without a hitch, but some snafus occurred.  Over-all, the experience has been really profitable and smooth.  My home has less clutter, but I am still hanging onto a great deal of memorabilia.  Some times you just want to know what will be meaningful to keep, and what is just taking up space.

I am a sentimental old fool.  Memories can get tapped in me by the oddest of items.  I kept some of my granny's dresses she gave me and a few my mom always wore.  Just seeing them takes me back to  wonderful memories.

So needless to say I have items around the house that mean nothing to anyone but me and I think that is ok. 

There comes a point where I have figure out how to manage all these random memories, and usually it comes in the form of storage. 

After all the remodeling efforts of our home thru about 5 phases, my storage area had gotten so out of control.  So during the Christmas holidays while most of the Christmas decorations and containers were out of the area, I decided I would not put the decorations back up until the area was organized and decluttered.

I am proud to say that I was able to put the decorations from Christmas away after the New Year. Oh what a great feeling.

Once that was complete it was on to the freezers. I organized my pantry, refrigerator/freezers.  I also found a website emeals.com that has been helping me plan meals for dinner.  It is amazing to discover what you have when you take time to organize it.  The organization of the freezer helped me plan my trips to the grocery store better as well.

All it took was time and determination.  I can tell you it gave me a great deal of peace.