THOUGHTS ON DEATH

Every human has a terminal disease. The disease is death. We fear death and we will do anything and pay anything just to postpone death for a few hours. There are some that will not even talk about death. Denying death does not change the inevitable. Everyone dies. However, death is not the end for Christians. It is only the beginning of our eternal life. Apostle Paul wrote that death is a necessary part of life. “Foolish one, what you sow is not made alive unless it dies.” (1 Corinthians 15:36) NKJV A seed dies when it is planted in the ground. It actually decomposes. It must cease to exist in its original form as a seed before it can come to life in its final form as a plant.

Jesus applied the same analogy to Himself. “I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.” (John 12:24) NIV Jesus had to die before he could bear the fruit of our salvation. The same is true for us. We can’t be raised from the dead until we have died. In a sense we are not really buried or cremated; the reality is that we are “sown” just as a “seed” is sown. From that seed a new life will explode. This view is unique to Christianity all over the world

We received our natural bodies from Adam. Our “natural” bodies are perfectly suited to our earthly environment. This is the only realm in which our “natural” bodies can live. Our “natural” bodies became perishable as the consequence of the Fall of Adam. The body ages, gets sick, deteriorates and dies. No one is immune. We came from the dust and we will go back to the dust. “By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken, for dust you are and to dust you will return.” (Genesis 3:19) NIV

There is hope for every born again Christian. Our glorified bodies that we will possess in heaven will not be subject to sin, sickness, pain or death. Our human experience related to the original Fall of Adam in the Garden of Eden will be gone forever. This is good news! Who wouldn’t want to go to heaven?

SUPPOSE WE COULDN’T DIE

·        The blind would remain blind.

·        The paralyzed would never walk.

·        The mentally disabled would never have a normal mind.

·        Those terminally ill would never terminate.

·        Aching hearts would continue to ache and never be healed.

•  If humans were immortal, eventually there would be no more room or resources left on this planet to sustain immortal beings.

HABITS~NOT~ DIETS

Healthy Suggestions…Always consult with your doctor before going on any weight loss program. Plan on losing weight slowly. The first habit we must learn is to keep track of our daily calorie intake. Too much of anything gets stored as fat. Five small meals, each eaten three hours apart, can speed up our metabolism and allow the body to absorb and utilize more nutrients, stabilize blood sugar and increase our energy levels. Eat off a small plate. Eat only what you need and not what you want. Stop eating when you are full.

Exercise is very important to losing weight and keeping it off. Walk at least 30 minutes a day, three to five times a week. When first starting any exercise program, start out slowly and gradually increase the intensity. It is human nature to look for quick fixes. However, when it comes to fat loss, there are no short cuts. For permanent weight loss we must make a deliberate decision to change our eating habits for life.

Eliminate sugar. A diet with lots of sugars has too many calories and too few nutrients. Sugars include white sugar, brown sugar, corn syrup, honey and molasses. These supply calories and little else nutritionally. Added sugars are in foods like candy, bakery products, ice cream, soft drinks as well as jams, jellies and plus any sugar we add at the table. Choose fresh fruit instead of foods that are loaded in sugar.  Drink plenty of plain water.

Choose a diet moderate in salt and sodium to help reduce the risk of high blood pressure.

Choose a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol to reduce the risk of heart attack and help to maintain a healthy weight. In general, foods that come from animals are naturally higher in fat than foods that come from plants. Choose lean meat, poultry without the skin, fish, dry beans and peas often. They are the choices lowest in fat. Bake, broil or roast these meats. Avoid fried foods.

Read nutrition labels on canned and package foods you eat to find out the calories per serving and the grams of fat per serving.  Decide what changes you can make for a healthier life style and start by making small changes.  Switch to low fat salad dressings or adding an extra serving of vegetables. Choose healthy low fat foods until healthy eating becomes a habit. Avoid fast foods.

Build a rainbow on your plate. In general, the more colorful the food, the more health boosting benefits you will be eating. Load up your plate with different colored vegetables. Indulge yourself once in awhile. If you allow yourself to eat what you want once a week or every ten days, it will not affect your weight loss that much. You will also feel less deprived. The goal is to eat healthy, lose weight and keep it off permanently.

HABITS~NOT~DIETS

Helpful Hints…Always consult with your doctor before going on any weight loss or exercise program. We need to get off the roller coaster of dieting once and for all by developing habits that we will be able to maintain for the rest of our lives. It may take a little more discipline, patience, and hard work this way, but the end results will be worth it all. There is a Five Word Diet Plan…and the only one that works: Eat Less and Move More!

Yo-yo dieting is not healthy. When someone goes on a fad diet and loses a lot of weight they usually gain it back plus several extra pounds when they go off the diet. Why is this? It is because they have not learned the secret of changing their eating habits for life. Fad diets are only a “temporary fix” for a “permanent problem.”

There is not a trendy diet or magic pill that will make us lose weight and keep it off forever. The key is to strike a balance between “calories in and calories out” by eating less calories and exercising more. We can lose weight and keep it off for life if we will just take the time and effort to change our eating habits.

• Avoid processed foods, or at least foods where you can’t pronounce the ingredients. Keep foods as natural as possible.

• Eat a variety of foods to get the energy, protein, vitamins, minerals, and fiber you need for good health.

• Eliminate sugar.

• Eat less fat

• Choose whole grains.

• Eliminate junk foods.

MODERATION IS THE KEY TO A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE

Most Americans eat too much of the wrong foods. You don’t have to make drastic changes in your daily intake of food, just take a few simple steps at a time and let them become a “behavioral change” for the rest of your life.

Plan on losing weight slowly. Everyone wants fast results, but you can’t undo bad eating habits over night. Plan ahead. Teach yourself to like healthy foods and dislike unhealthy ones.

Never give up, even after you have failed a few times. When you fail, start over.