Security

Today is thanksgiving in the USA, and I have a lot to be thankful for. I have a great husband and two beautiful children. We are all healthy and happy. I live in a warm sunny place that does wonders for the serotonin levels in my brain. I’m thankful for my home, friends and faith. I’m thankful for my purpose in life and the deep contentment and peace in my heart.  And…… most of all I’m thankful for my life. Today is my birthday.

I am no longer a spring chicken. The days of my youth have passed. And you know what? I’m ok with that. No problem at all. My security and contentment do not rest in what others make of me. It doesn’t rest in how I look or what I can do. It lies in something far deeper than passing things. It lies in something eternal.

Do you struggle with insecurity? Are you content with who you are? Where does your worth and security lie?

A huge Happy Thanksgiving to all of you beautiful Americans. I am thankful for you.

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Yes, the photo is of me. It was taken during a performance when I was still dancing.

 

1/2 Way Mark on Project “40 to 40”

This is not just a post about food and health.  Read on for the deeper meaning.

For those that may not know yet, I am carrying out a project right now called, ’40 to 40′.  I’m turning 40 at the end of November and I wanted to get my self into tip top shape for the big day.  I started on September 30th, so I have just passed the half way mark.  I’m already a pretty healthy individual, but I wanted to step it up a notch.  I started a fairly rigid diet and have been following ‘BodyRock TVs’ 30 day challenge (which will not end after 30 days).  I haven’t been eating any grains generally throughout the week except for oats sometimes in the morning. And on the weekends I’ve been more lenient, with Saturdays being my cheat day (however I kind of fell off the wagon this last weekend).  I have been feeling great – I mean GREAT!  I don’t feel like I’ve been depriving myself at all.  I have tons of energy, never feel heavy or too full, and I don’t have yucky morning breath anymore – YEAH!  Pluuuussss, I’ve been losing weight and toning up.  My jeans are lose, my elasticized belt is lose, things that used to fit snug or were just right are baggy now.  And so I’m happy.  (–to see some of the food I’ve been eating – recipes, check out and like my facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/godcolouredgirl.  

Or you could just click on the link to it on the side bar.) So this is all very well and good, however life isn’t all about being physically healthy and feeling good.  It’s definitely a plus, but it’s not the be all, end all of life.  Even the most fit and athletic person in the world will not be able to outlast the effects of gravity and aging.  Sooner or later, parts will start to sag, muscles will start to atrophy, strength will start to wane, physical health will deteriorate.  Nobody can overcome the final earthly destiny of all mankind and living entities.  Death is a reality for all.

The one thing that doesn’t change though is our creator.  He is always the same.  He doesn’t change.  He is always strong; His strength never falters.  He is always there.  Stable and unshaken.  He is always permeating with peace.  And He lives in me. You see, physical exercise has some value, but spiritual exercise is much more important, for it promises a reward in both this life and the next (1 Timothy 4:8). Or lets look at it another way, “Workouts in the gymnasium are useful, but a disciplined life in God is far more so, making you fit both today and forever. (the message)” So yes, I may feel awesome eating super healthy and getting regular, hardcore exercise, but what really brings health to my bones, life to my body, energy to go about my days and overall well being is the indwelling peace that I feed upon when I’m alone with the lover of my soul.  He sustains me.  He strengthens me.  He feeds me food that will never rot.  And as I drink from his water supply, my thirst is quenched.

So tell me, what do you think?  Are you striving to maintain your youth, vigor and beauty alone? Or are you investing in maintaining and strengthening that which far exceeds physical vitality – your spirit? Leave a comment and let me know.

What is your Title?

I absolutely love the movie, “Peaceful Warrior”.  It has inspired me to do a blog series called, “Who, What, Where, When and Why?” This post is the second of this five part series.

Ok, who here doesn’t ever fight for position?  Or maybe you aren’t currently, but we’ve all wanted to be recognized or noticed before because of our position, or “title”.  We’ve all wanted to place our identity in our position.  As if it defines who we are.  As if that is what makes us important.  It’s as if one person could actually be more important than another.  As if we’re not all equal.  And you know, in the eyes of the world, society and people in general, we are defined by what is visible.  Defined by outward appearance, education, job or vocation – by the things that people can see and know about us.

The world has got it all wrong.  And unfortunately, so many Christians do too.  I am not any better than anybody else and nobody is any better than me.  In the eyes of God we are all equal.  We are all beings made in His image.  We are all created beings and can not take credit for our talents, abilities, looks, etc.  Don’t get me wrong.  I’m not saying that we can’t take our God-given talents and work on them so that we reach our full potential.  We can and should.  And this is pleasing to God.  And I’m not saying that we can’t enhance or preserve our beauty or appearance by taking good care of ourselves.  By doing so, we show that we are healthy and love ourselves and those around us.

What I am saying here is that God does not look at outward appearance.  He looks at the heart.  I loooooooovvvve that about God.  When God told the prophet Samuel to go to Jesse’s house and anoint one of his sons as king, Samuel never would have thought it would be David.  Jesse had eight sons, and after arriving, Samuel saw Eliab and thought that he was definitely who God had chosen because of his appearance and height.  But check out what God said to him, “7 But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7).  All of David’s brothers passed before Samuel, but God hadn’t chosen any of them.  David was just a little shepherd boy, the youngest of all of Jesse’s sons.  He wasn’t a movie star.  He wasn’t a pop artist.  He wasn’t at the top of the corporate ladder.  He was a loner, out in the fields, taking care of sheep.  An extremely simple title.  An absurdly ridiculous, ‘nothing’ position in the eyes of the world.  Now come on, no one in their right mind would ever consider making a simple shepherd a king.  But God did.  He looked at David’s heart and said, “He has the heart of a king.”  AMAZING!

And we can’t really define ourselves for our accomplishments either.  The Apostle Paul knew that.  He said, “Let he who boasts, boast in the Lord” (2 Corinthians 10:17).  I also love the verse in Isaiah 26:12, “…all that we have accomplished you have done for us.”  Wow! Not just ‘some’ of what we have accomplished or even ‘most’ of what we have accomplished.  No! It says ‘ALL’.  Thank you God.  When we want to take credit – when we want approval for our accomplishments – we act in pride.  Paul also said that “…in Him we live, move and have our being” (Acts 17:28).  So what does that tell us.  It tells us that our very existence we owe to God.  My living, breathing, moving, seeing, being, etc is in Him.

Jesus Himself gives us the perfect example of how our mindset toward position should be:  “Who, being in the very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.”  WOW! The son of God.  The King of Kings.  He made himself a servant.  I love a lot of things that Albert Einstein said and I would like to close with one of his quotes: “Only a life lived for others is worth living”.

So there we have it.  The Savior of the world and one of the most recognized scientists of all time knew this simple truth.  Let’s learn from them shall we.

What do you think about this topic? Have you struggled at all with wanting to define yourself by what you do or how you look or how others perceive you?  Please feel free to leave a comment.