Day Nine....

So, I realized something yesterday I said I failed... but in truth I did not because I never set stipulations about what my food consumption had to be... I am trying to make a habit of eating healthier and not trying to set myself up for failure by only allowing myself some foods.

What did I eat

Breakfast Protein Shake

Snack: peanut butter M&Ms ( I swear she made me eat them... well she told me she didn't want to eat them alone... So I consumed some)

Lunch: Salad and orange

Snack: turkey, and cucumbers

dinner: thin crust healthy choice pizza

snack: frozen mango

Genesis 9...

In this chapter God blesses Noah and and his sons... He instates capital punishment in v.6 "Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed for in the image of God has God made man." God tells them to increase and multiply in all the earth and he makes a covenant with Noah, his sons and life of the earth. He makes a rainbow as his covenant that he will never flood the earth again. After all this great and amazing blessings and joy and peace... Then you get Ham, the youngest son of Noah who sees his Dad getting drunk and laying naked. Ham tells his brothers and they go and cover him up and then Canaan, Ham's son gets cursed. Thee end. Kind of a great story with an obliterating end. Why would God list all that great stuff and then tell of how Noah got drunk and naked... really what have we to learn from this? Perhaps it is not Noah's actions we should be focusing on. In truth Noah may have been celebrating or perhaps something else was going on... I guess I cannot say much because I too have been drunk before in my life. I think the Lord wants us to focus upon why Canaan was cursed and not Noah's sins. For we all fall short, and we all sin, and we all do things we are not proud of. However, it is how you react to another's sins that I think the Lord wants us to focus upon. Perhaps, if Ham (some say it was Canaan, I guess we'll never really know till we get to Heaven.) had not acknowledged his fathers sin in such a way they it may have ended differently for Canaan. We should act like the older sons and not cover up or ignore the sin, but take care of the person, in their time of need. Love the sinner not the sin. You cannot clean someone from the outside in, Jesus must wash them clean from the inside out. If they aren't changed on the inside, why would they want to change their outside. In my own transformation it came from within, my desire to be closer to God, to stop complaining and change my physical appearance. If you are joyful on the inside, happiness will bubble out. Who knew that when I first read this chapter I would end up talking about salvation and happiness. However, I guess that's the cool thing about the Bible you can see the salvation message in basically every chapter, maybe not literally, but at least figuratively because the Love of God is in every word.

Good Night and God Bless

Day Eight...

So today I cheated on my diet.... :( It was surprise drawer tuesday and they had chocolate there. Instead of denying myself it totally I indulged in 2 pieces and it tasted amazing. I also indulged in a couple spoonfuls of peanut butter when I got home from work... It was just one of those days.

So what did I eat...

Breakfast: poached eggs with frozen fruit

Snack: a piece of chocolate

Lunch: Salad with orange

Snack: Cucumbers and turkey

Later snack: spoonful of peanut butter

Dinner: Tuna melt without the bread aka tuna and melted pepperjack cheese= delicious way better than another salad.

After run snack: protein shake.

I did run today. Although, I internally fought myself... I ended up going for a 3 mile run in 100 degree weather = a very exhausted Chelle.

Today I read Genesis 8...

This whole chapter is amazing and shows of Gods faithfulness and provision and love of man and his sorrow over the people that were lost. When I was young, I used to think that when the rain came down it was God crying. If the rain was from God crying I am sure he would have cried much more than 40 days and nights. I love the beginning of this chapter... v.1 "But God remembered Noah"- God remembers us. Truth is he never forgot us. He has a plan for our lives and we need to trust in him that though our thoughts and ideas of what is a good life may be different than what the Lord intends for us. I cannot help but think some days what am I doing out here.... So, far away from home, family, friends, everything I've known everything I had grown to love and treasure in my life is nothing with the Lord. He goes with me where ever I go. At church this past week the pastor said something that really struck me and has stayed with me. He said, "are you blooming where you've been planted." He talked of Jeremiah 29:11, and how people love to take that verse out of context. They don't mention that God promised the people they would be in that land for many years before he would deliver them. In fact most of the people he made the promise to would not even see it fulfilled but generations to come would see the promise fulfilled. Yes, God remembers us. However, we can't forget God. He needs to be the center of our lives and some days he is the only reason you get out of the bed, because you need to be blooming where he planted you, before you can grow somewhere else.

Lord help me to bloom, when I feel like I can't get out of my bud.... I mean bed.

Good Night and God Bless!

Day Seven...

It has now been one week. I feel exhausted today. I have had a headache all day and I have felt crappy all day. I think this is the prelude week to another more eventful week. If you too are female you probably know what I am saying. I have been craving simple sugars all day long! This has to be the hardest day of being on my diet yet.

I worked in the trailer's today as I will be doing all week. I found that I don't mind the trailers. However, I am unable to take short breaks and get a wee snack when my snack times are due and thus was starving and famished all day. I don't think I realized just how much those little snacks help.

So... what did I eat today

Breakfast: 2 poached egg whites and 1/2 cup of mixed fruit.

Lunch: Salad with 2 cuties

Snack after work: cucumbers and turkey

Dinner: scrambled eggs with dill and feta cheese (the thought of eating salad again just increased the pressure of my headache.

Snack: protein shake

Today I read Genesis 7...

A really good book to read when you are feeling self pitying and not desiring to do anything but just be lazy. In Genesis 7, Noah and his 3 sons build the ark.... it takes them 1 whole year and in that time they were not lazy, they did not feel sorry for themselves and they continued to work as other's made fun of them for it. All the stinky smelly animals come and walk into the ark... I don't know about Noah, but having not heard the story yet of Daniel in the Lion's den, I would have been super nervous and scared. Not only for 40days and 40 nights did it flood, but the water didn't recede for many days after that. Being trapped on the ark with the same people and animals for all that time... might be where they got the term cabin fever. I love my family dearly, but sometimes I wonder if we could last that long with out wanting to throw someone into the Lion's den. It sure would keep me in check.... "If you keep arguing with your sister or will put in the Lion's den." A verse that truly touched me was v.22 Everything on dry land that had the breath of life in it's nostril died. I am so glad that the Lord later promises to never do it again.... Because in the days we are living in now, I wouldn't blame him if he did. Please Lord take care of those in places where they do not feel safe to walk the streets. I pray of the chosen people of God that they might come to know his son Jesus and all that he has done for them.

On a happier note and with a skip to my step I am off to bed after taking a little Tylenol to help with my headache.

-Good Nigh!