Detoxifying the Body, Mind and Spirit, Part 2

Warm lemon water has a detoxifying effect on the body, so what then is the detoxifing agent for our mind? The integrate development of our mind has intrigued scientist for years. Each cell, each vessel, each delicate structure holds so much power. The mind is an amazing creation of God-wonderfully created by God s Psalm 139:14 implies. The mind takes in so much and like every other part of the body needs to go through detoxification to rid the waist we live around and live in. No matter how we try to protect our mind, it seems to be a constant battle these days. Detoxifying the mind involves renewing the mind. Again we turn to scripture to find our ingredients for this process:

• Romans 12:9 instructs us to renew our minds by not being conformed to those things that are not of God: "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will".


• Hoping in God brings strength and renewal to our mind and our lives: "but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint" Isaiah 40:31.


• Put on the knowledge of God, memorizing scripture, renews the mind and creates us into the image of Christ: "and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator" Col. 3:10.


• Deuteronomy 11:18 instructs us to live in the truth of God's word "Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads".


• God desires of us to have willing mind: "And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you forever" 1 Chronicles 28:9.


• We are to use our minds to seek out those things that are of God: "So I turned my mind to understand, to investigate and to search out wisdom and the scheme of things and to understand the stupidity of wickedness and the madness of folly" Ecclesiastes 7:25.


• Our mind is to keep steadfast on Christ and His will for our life: "You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you" Isaiah 26:3.


• Like Daniel we should "set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God..."Daniel10:12.


• And what did Jesus say to Peter when his mind was not in line with Christ? "Jesus turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men" Matthew 16:23


• Matthew 22:37 commands us to "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind."


• Paul warns in Romans 7:23 that our minds are in war with sin: "but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members."


• We are to make our minds slave to God's will: "Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin. Romans 7:25.


• Romans 8:5 instructs us in ho we are to live: "Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires."


• Romans 8:6 "The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace". what do we fill our minds with? what do we read, watch and take in on a daily basis?


• If Paul tells us in Romans 14: 13 "Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother's way" should we not put stumbling blocks in our own path?


• We have the mind of God when we know Him "For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct him?" But we have the mind of Christ" I Corinthians 2:16.


• We revive the mind with prayer and singing praises to our Lord: "So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my mind" I Corinthians 14:15.

And I feel these scriptures speak for themselves in what we must do to renew our mind...

• Ephesians 4:23 "to be made new in the attitude of your minds"


• Col. 3:2 "Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things".


• 1Peter 1:13 "Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed".


• Philippians 4:7 "And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus".

Ralph Waldo Emerson said "A man is what he thinks about all day long". What ways on your mind? What do you put into you minds path? Do you only allow healthy thoughts? Norman Vinct Peale states "Change your thoughts and you change your world". I find filling my mind with scripture and spiritual readings keeps me mentally healthy. With practice, I have been able to only allow truth thoughts to linger in my mind, not the "what if's". We have to renew our minds by daily seeking God's truth, living in His truth, being comitted to His truth and apply His truths in our life.

What do you do to maintain a healthy mind?

Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God ~2 Corinthians 7:1

In His Graces~Pamela

Prayer Request

This weekend our family is going through a crisis. We need prayers for a peaceful resolution and God to be back in control. As youth leaders it seems that satan has more fun working on our girls then trying to work on us. We have been praying that God would do whatever He needed to do to get their attention and a crisis today may have been just that. So all I can do is call out for all my Christian friends and prayer warriors to send up prayers for our family this weekend as we deal with this and the outcome we will face on Monday. If I don't trust in God in this I would be an emotional mess....

Thank you.

In His Graces~Pamela

An Update (2/28): I have becomce weary in this battle, this crisis we were forced to face. I was able to appeal the outcome and felt like I was actually heard, for my childs sake. Even if my appeal is rejected, I left the meeting this morning feeling an overwhelming peace. I support consequences for a childs wrong actions. I do not want to interfere in God's plan. Funny how just being heard made all the difference. Everyday I gave my stress to God but I felt like He gave it back to me to carry, to experience, to live in. It is part of His plan. He has been here, I know that. Thank you fro praying for my situation. Whatever the outcome, I am good with it...now.
In His Graces~Pamela

Detoxifying the Body, Mind and Soul, Part 1

When you look in the mirror, what do you see? Do you even look in the mirrors when you pass by them or do you avoid them at all cost? What do you want to see? Better yet, what kind of person do you want to be? I will begin a series in looking at how we can not only promote well being in our body, but also in our mind and soul. We will start with the body but before we do, take a mental overall picture of yourself. Examining the body, mind and spirit, how would you rate yourself in these areas? Are you what you consider healthy or unhealthy? Are you where you want to be in these areas?

Body

1 - - 3 - - 5 - - 7 - - 10

(Unhealthy - - - - - - - Healthy)

Mind

1 - - 3 - - 5 - - 7 - - 10

(Unhealthy - - - - - - - - - Healthy)

Spirit

1 - - 3 - - 5 - - 7 - - 10

(Unhealthy - - - - - - - - - - Healthy)

If one perceives a need for improvement in any of these areas, you first need to identify the "unwanted" that is preventig you from being healthy. After identify those things that keep this area from being healthy, one can look to detoxify the "unwanted" in order to return to a desired healthy state. Detoxifying the body, mind and spirit can be a difficult, even painful process but it yields renewal, cleansing and strength. Detoxification is a "process of removing or transforming poison: the process of removing a toxic substance from something or counteracting its toxic effects".

Since we have these promises, dear friends,

let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit,

perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.

~2 Corinthians 7:1

God has commanded it...we must act upon this! This week I will start with a few simple steps to detoxify the body.

Detoxifying the Body

There are many ways in which one can detoxify the body of the "unwanted" in an attempt to become healthier. According to author Jethro Kloss in his book 'Back to Eden', one of the most natural and simpliest forms of detoxification involves warm lemon water! Different publications recommend 6-8 onces of warm lemon water 1-2 times per day. It is recommended in most publication to start each morning with a glass of warm lemon water, even before that first cup of coffee. The lemon water should be just tart enough to ALMOST make you pucker (Hint: requires fresh/natural lemons-cut the lemon in half and then cut each half into 6 slices). It's a cleansing tonic and the benefits cannot be ignored:

• It aids the digestive system and makes the process of eliminating the waste products from the body easier. It prevents the problem of constipation and diarrhea from taking place by promoting smooth bowel functions.
• It aids against, heart burn, belching, & bloating (not recommended in individuals with diagnosed gastrointestional ulcers).
• Is a natural germ killer. It helps promote your immune system, protecting you from infections such as the common cold, cough, influenza (flu), even malaria, cholera, typhoid, and diphtheria.
• Cleanses the mouth, controls excessive bile flow, dislodges phlegm, & rescentizes the taste buds.
• Lemon is a vitamin C rich citrus fruit that enhances your beauty by rejuvenating skin from within and thus bringing a glow on your face.
• Here's an important fact: it paves the way for weight loss acting on sodium release. This means it has a diuretic component.
• It is an antiseptic bestowed on us by Mother Nature. A slice of lemon bound over a corn overnight will greatly relieve the pain or bound over a splinter or blister [pus formation on a finger joint] will bring the pus to the surface where it can be easily removed.
• Is an agent that prevents sepsis [the presence of pathogenic bacteria] or putrefaction [decomposition of tissue]. It is also anti-scorbutic, a term meaning a remedy which will prevent disease (studies have shown improvment in asthma, hardening of the arteries, pancreatitis, degerative bone disease (rheumatoid arthritis, etc.).
• Its calcium builds up the bony structure and makes healthy teeth. In pregnancy, it will help to buold bone in the child.
• Owing to its potassium content, it will nourish the brain and nerve cells.

WOW! Just a simple step each morning can promote a healthier you!! You can also detox the body through a weekly cleansing bath. What women doesn't like a good soak, right? According to Donna Partow in her book "Becoming the Women I want to Be", she states soaking in a hot bath that contains 1 cup of dead sea salts, 1 cup of epsom salt, 1 cup of regular sea salt, 1 cup of baking soda and a few drops of lavender oil will help your body release those unwanted toxins (you can substitiue these ingredients with 2 pounds of regular sea salt and 2 pounds of baking soda). You need to stay in the hot water until it cools, no longer than 30 minutes. Be sure light a few candles and play your favorite inspirational music to stimulate your heart and soul! Be careful when getting out as you may feel a bit light headed which signifies the detoxifying work has been done!

Of course, detoxifiying the body also involves healthy eating and reqular exercise. You know how to do this. While you look to remove the unwanted, be careful not to allow them back into your world by what you put into your body. This is the hard part. It will take determination and will power. If you feel weak in this-give it to God, pray about it. He can give you the stength you need. I have always taught in my community classes for CPR that moderation is the key to a healthier you. Giving up completely on sodium, caffiene and choloclate is not always realistic but cutting back and applying the moderation rule proves more beneficial and less painful.

As with all things, start out simple and build on it. Start each morning with a cup of hot lemon water. The cleansing effects will start almost immediatly! Cut back on the caffiene and sodium in your diets. Eliminate soft drinks. Drink more natural juices. Eat more steamed veggies. Limits the not-so-good sweets. Each in moderation, not until you feel "stuffed". Read those labels!! Here is to a week of simple changes.

Please be sure to share ways in which you detox your body!!

In His Graces~Pamela

Next week we will look at detoxifying the soul!! Here's a hint of whats to some...

Detoxifying the Soul

So what serves as the lemon for our soul? The answer is easy. God's Word. Proverbs 4: 20-22 instructs us to listen closely to God's words, to be near to His instructions, to keep His word in our heart because His words are health to our body, mind and soul.....

May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it. ~1 Thessalonians 5: 23-24

Second chances

Februaury is the month of love. I use to hate it when I was in a marriage that had no love. Now I find that every day, every week, and every month is a day-a week-a month full of love. It is not easy going through a divorce or a death of a spouse but God can and will find grace in a second marrage-He has in mind. I am so blessed in this second marriage. So loved. Together we serve the same God, we worship and pray together, and God holds us together and binds us.

I would love to hear from other women in second marriages-your story, your blessings.

In His Graces~Pamela

The Seasons of Our Life

The seasons of our life are much like the seasons we live in. God said each season has a purpose: "For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven." Ecclesiastes 3:1. We are to live in each season under God's perfect design for our lives. He can lead and guide us. Each season can represent something new within our walk with Christ, within our grace journey towards His wholeness.

As we sit in the middle of winter, the cold isolation we sometimes endur reminds us of the suffering, the heartache and grief that "the cold" can sometimes bring in. But even in that "cold" there can be beauty!

"Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain.
And the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all mankind together will see it."~Isaiah 40:4-5
Isaiah's words in chapter 40 are a pleasant reminder that not only are we to make way the path so God can enter our life and complete His plan but He alone can bring us up from the valley, tackle the mountain of stressors we are facing, soften our journey from the obsticles we come upon and clear the way so we can see and hear His directions. And in it all, He is to be glorified. We are to be an example of what He can do in and through our life.

If there was no winter, there would be no spring. Can you imagine not having a season of rebirth? Spring is a time of new growth, new revelations, new life. In our walk with God, we too have seasons of rebirth, revelations, renewal and transformation. Insight from God can bring us to a better place with Him. It can draw us closer and more intimate with Him:

"See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland."~Isaiah 43: 19

The transforming power of God in our life is what makes us a beautiful "daughter of the King" (Ps. 45:8)! It is a time of growth to be more like Chirst. It is a time of developing the inner beauty God has created in us.

Summer is often a reflection of what we have learn in our Christian walk. As the heat and noise of this world surrounds us, we are to show forth our faith, to live out God's truth, to model His testimony in all that we are surrounded by. Foremost, we are to protect ourself from the heat and dryness that can corrupt our inner being and pull us from God's presence. Proverbs 4:23 states "Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life". Look at The Message version of this Scripture....

"Keep vigilant watch over your heart; that's where life starts.

Don't talk out of both sides of your mouth;

avoid careless banter, white lies, and gossip.

Keep your eyes straight ahead; ignore all sideshow distractions.

Watch your step, and the road will stretch out smooth before you.

Look neither right nor left; leave evil in the dust. "

The season of summer can reflect the path we walk and the testing of our faith. Are we obedient to God and His plan? Do we withstand the heat and dry spells to magnify His work in our life? Are we able to overcome because of His presence in our life?

Fall in the Christian life can represent the shedding away of our inner and outer self to allow God to fulfill His purpose in our life. God can only work in and through us when we have stripped away what is not from Him and opened ourself to be naked and bare for His renewing and transformation-his revealing.

"So all of us who have had that veil removed can see

and reflect the glory of the Lord.

And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like Him

as we are changed into his glorious image."

~2 Corinthians 3:18

This veil we remove is the releasing of those things that interfer in our walk with Him. It is the removing of the extra baggage we carry that keeps us from trusting and relying on Him in everything. The veil can be a 'letting go' of pain, of past sins, of personal desires and wants. In this process we allow the mist of God's grace to wash us clean, to re-prioritize our life and what we are in it, maybe even what we have done with it. In the stripping away, the releasing brings forth many colors of God's love and the promise that He can be our all, that He will protect us and provide for us.

"He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own,

using the same power with which he will bring everything under his control."

~Philippians 3:21

The seasons of our life are beautiful-full of so much blessings from our Lord. Though each season can hold a negative, the positive far outweighs this. It is our job to travel through each season of our life completely focused on the holiness of God, perfecting ourselves by His grace, becoming a vessel He can use. May the following words from 2 Corinthians in The Message Bible be our encouaragement as we travel through each season of our life:

"With promises like this to pull us on, dear friends,

let's make a clean break with everything that defiles or distracts us,

both within and without.

Let's make our entire lives fit and holy temples for the worship of God. "

~2 Corinthians 7:1

Have a blessed weekend and a new week of living as a daughter of the King!

In His Graces~Pamela