Journey with Jesus: Day 40

Tuesday was my last day for my sugar fast and posting about my Daniel Plan eating.  It is good to do fasts from time to time.  At least for me, it helps me see just how addicted I am to certain foods and such.  Sweet tea is probably my favorite worldly pleasure, so that's the thing I usually fast from.  And yes, I'm addicted.  "Hello, my name is Mical, and I'm a sweet tea-aholic."  Honestly, at this point, I have no plan to ever get rid of sweet tea completely, but I would like to keep working at drinking less of it.  Sugar IS bad for you, so I need to really limit how much I put in my body. ... I HAVE tried all-natural sweeteners like stevia, but ... yuck.  I've decided I'm going to have some sweet tea ... I just need to drink less of it.
On the positive side of things, I've discovered that I can not only stomach salads now, but I'm beginning to really enjoy them.  I'm so thankful for that because I get some good veggies like spinach and cucumbers ... but as I grow to put more veggies on my salads, I'll get even more veggies in me!  Now, if only salad dressings were healthy for you.  Sheesh!  I'm pretty picky about my dressings.  And I'm not gonna eat my grass without dressing ... just saying! ;)  Vidalia Onion from Sam's Club is my current favorite ... but sadly, it's not organic, and it has a few preservatives in it.  Boo!  But I've decided something with that too ... sometimes you gotta take the good with the bad, ya know?  I'm making progress; that's all that really matters to me.

So I'm a sweet tea-aholic, salad-eating, gonna-keep-trying-at-this-healthy-eating-thing mama.  Here's to practice!  Forever practice ... I love it!

Journey with Jesus: Day 40
Breakfast - bacon and oatmeal
Lunch - potato soup and salad
Dinner - smoked sausage, rice, and beans

Journey with Jesus: Day 39

Every other Monday, I clean house for a pretty cool lady at my church.  Most of the time, my mom has been so gracious to keep Haddie for me while I clean, but she needed to get some grocery shopping and cooking done for The Porch yesterday.  So Haddie came with me to clean.  I am so grateful for my baby's sweet, independent, happy personality.  She did so great playing in her saucer and pack 'n play, watching Baby Einstein.  She only lost patience in the last 15 minutes.  It was amazing!  I was so grateful for her "help."  'Cause it really helps me when she's good! :)  So grateful I can bring in some extra money for our family.

Only one day left!
Journey with Jesus: Day 39
Breakfast - bacon and oatmeal
Lunch - tater tot casserole and salad
Snack - almond crackers and cheese
Dinner - chicken and noodles and broccoli and cauliflower
Snack - apple with peanut butter and mixed nuts
64 ounces of water

Journey with Jesus: Day 38

Sunday was a busy but wonderful day!  Church is our favorite place to be, and we have lunch with my parents after church every Sunday.  Always good times.  But we had our third counseling session, and that is something I am truly thankful for.  I started going to counseling back in the summer time for my struggles with self-condemnation, and those sessions helped me see that that a lot of what I condemn myself about has to do with my relationship with Darrell.  A lot of it was beating myself up for things that we BOTH need to work on together ... mainly communicating the right way.  So we've started going together, and it has been great for our marriage.  I'm so grateful for the strides we are making in our communication and how our love is growing even more through it all.

Journey with Jesus: Day 38
Breakfast - bacon and eggs and orange juice
Lunch - beef chimichanga, rice, and beans
Dinner - grilled chicken salad and french fries
64 ounces of water

Journey with Jesus: Day 37

I worked as a waitress at The Porch today.  Usually, I'm upstairs working on online posts, packaging tea, and any other office work mom might have.  I found out that when you haven't waited on tables in a while, it can be CRAZY!  I think I only had five or six tables, and I was totally overwhelmed.  There's so much to remember as a waitress, and I want to give people great service ... and I'm a recovering perfectionist and self-condemner ... so it can be pretty rough.  I did well, I think ... but I was pretty flustered.  Man, that is one thing I don't like about myself - I get flustered so easily, and once I'm flustered, I have a hard time coming back from it.  I guess it was another opportunity to lean on Jesus, huh?  My dependence lesson. ;)

Stop in The Porch sometime soon ... 2411 E. Main St. Danville, IN 46122.  It's a pretty cool place with yummy food, delicious teas, and all kinds of neat merchandise.  We're open Tuesday through Saturday from 11am to 2pm!

Journey with Jesus: Day 37
Breakfast - Reese's Puffs and milk
Lunch #1 - tater tot casserole and orange juice
Lunch #2 - salad, apple, mixed nuts
Snack - popcorn
Dinner - chicken tacos, tortilla chips and salsa, and refried beans
64 ounces of water

Yeah, as you can see, today's meals for the first half of the day were more for convenience than anything.  It happens.  I'll do better tomorrow. ;)

Journey with Jesus: Day 36

Journey with Jesus: Day 36

Breakfast - bacon and eggs and kiwi and milk
Lunch - Salad and cottage cheese
Dinner - chicken, baked potato, and salad
48+ ounces of water

Yeah ... kind of a boring post ... but encouraging!  Fruits and veggies for me! :)

Journey with Jesus: Day 35

In Wednesday's post, I mentioned that I'm learning about dependence on God.  Yesterday, I had a meltdown because I didn't have that lesson "down" yet.  Ha!  I love the perspective my husband always seems to give me. :)  I was super stressed out and starting to cry because I had been a bit prideful with my mom at work that day.  She was being rather particular about how she wanted her menu redone, and I kinda have a bad habit of having a less-than-great attitude about doing things that I don't understand.  I've kind of always been that way ... it's a pride issue, and yes, it needs to be dealt with.  I'm working on it.  Well, I was in a tizzy about my pride ... beating myself up for being ungrateful for my job and questioning what mom wanted.  And on top of it, I was mad at myself for not letting it all go and remembering that my sins and struggles drive me to depend on God.  Thankfully, my mom was super gracious and honestly didn't even see me as being prideful or having a bad attitude (even though I was and did).  And Darrell was there to put things in perspective for me.  He asked me, "When did you start learning that lesson? ... Yesterday?  Oh, well, then you don't need to 'have it down' yet because it's going to take time, right?"  Of course I sheepishly said, "yes."  Thank God for a husband who is way better at perspective than I am!  So yeah ... I'm a RECOVERING self-condemning - it's still something I'm working through, but I've made progress.  Holla-lujah! ;)

Journey with Jesus: Day 35
Breakfast - bacon and oatmeal and milk
Snack - almond crackers and cheese
Lunch - chicken pot pie and salad
Dinner - tater tot casserole and broccoli
64 ounces of water

Journey with Jesus: Day 34

Another busy day today ... much like yesterday, I got my workout in and packaged some teas at The Porch ... but today, Haddie and I stopped at the bank and the grocery store.  Once at home, I put the groceries away, and Haddie and I played for a bit and had dinner together ... then it was off to the babysitter for Haddie and off to Bible study for me, where I met my hubby.  Darrell is getting the sweet girl down tonight ... what better time to blog than now?  Ahh ... a few minutes to myself.  Breathing is nice.  Slowing down is nice.

It's also nice to reflect.  Tonight's Bible study was great, as usual.  We love our group and, especially, our Bible study leaders.  I was reminded of something in our parenting study tonight that smacked me right between the eyes at my Bible study yesterday morning as well: dependence on God.  I was reminded ... or perhaps I'm learning it for the first time in many ways ... that, as a parent, I must lay down my will everyday.  And really, I have to lay it down several times a day ... as soon as I get up, after breakfast, again when I get impatient with Haddie, again when I don't want to feed her for the millionth time (so it feels some days) ... you get the idea.  But I was so grateful to make the connection from Tuesday morning because, yesterday, we talked about how God isn't worried about our "control-freak nature" as women because it makes us dependent on Him.  Our struggles with sin and perspective drive us to need His help.  I must lay down my own desires and attitudes and time and energy and so on for my baby girl.  Am I gonna get it right every time?  Heck, no!  But I don't have to beat myself up anymore.  I can just remember that my struggles force me to depend on the Lord for strength and/or a renewed mindset ... at least, if I want to honor God, which I do.  I really, really do!  Don't you? :)

Journey with Jesus: Day 34

Wednesday:
Breakfast - bacon and eggs and orange juice
Lunch - chicken pot pie, potato soup, and a salad
Dinner - Taco salad
Snack - almond crackers and cheese
I'm drinking my fourth water bottle now.
And I got a 20-minute Zumba workout in today!
Yay!

What struggles are you going through today, no matter how big or how small?  And how do those struggles make you depend on the Lord?  Depending on God and living for Him ... it's what we were made to do.  Don't hate it; embrace it!  That's what I'm beginning to learn.  Good night, peeps! :)

Journey with Jesus: Day 33

And today ... busy!  Very busy!  I love going to the ladies' Bible study on Tuesday mornings, and I'm so thankful that my mom keeps Haddie for me.  And then I worked at The Porch for a few hours ... packaging teas.  Haddie did great while we were there.  Such a good girlie!  I guess the rest of the afternoon was just spent hanging out at home, but man, it felt busy.  Haddie's usually close to 2-hour nap was like maybe 30 minutes ... so my reading time was cut short.  And then she was fussy the rest of the day because she was tired from not getting her nap.  Gosh, that kid just does not want to sleep during the day ... the only time I can get lucky with a 2-hour nap is when she falls asleep in the car seat on the way home from work.  I didn't get so lucky today. ;)  I love spending time with her, don't get me wrong.  But a mama's gotta have some time to herself, ya know?  For blogging and house-cleaning and prayer and Bible study and just reading a good book ... and to BREATHE!  Haha!  Anyways ... after an afternoon full of fussy cries and toys spread all over the floor, and I did manage to get the rest of my chapter read, I got dinner done ... and Haddie and I ate our dinner, played some more; I got the bills paid, and then I got Haddie a bath, a bottle, and into bed.

*Deep breath*

Busy day.  What did you do today? .... Seriously, I want to know. :)

Journey with Jesus: Day 33
I'm still doing well ... I'm on my fourth day with no sugary drinks and no desserts.  Whew!  I could really use a sweet tea about now! ;)
Breakfast - uhh ... I kinda overslept and skipped it ... man, I was starving by lunch time!
Lunch - bowl of potato soup and chef salad
Snack - blueberry yogurt
Dinner - soup beans and corn bread
Most likely gonna have some cheese for a snack in a bit ...
I'm drinking my fourth water bottle to get me to 64 ounces now.
And I got my workout video in for today too!  Woot, woot!

Well, the hubby just walked in the door after his extra long day at work.  So peace out, and good night, y'all!

Journey with Jesus: Day 32

I just started back to this blogging regularly thing ... and I'm finding out that it is REALLY hard to blog everyday when you have an 8-month-old crawling around, getting into everything all day everyday. ;)  So here is yesterday's Journey with Jesus.

Monday:
Breakfast - bacon and oatmeal and milk
Lunch - Chef salad and cottage cheese
Snack - kiwi and mixed nuts and rice crackers with cheese
Dinner - Pork chops, broccoli & cauliflower, corn, and asparagas
Snack - mixed nuts
64 ounces of water
40-minute Zumba workout

Journey with Jesus: Day 31

Sunday:
Breakfast - bacon and oatmeal and milk
Lunch - Salad and cottage cheese
Dinner - pizza and breadsticks ... yeah, I know ;)
Snack - blueberry yogurt ... yum!
48+ounces of water

Journey with Jesus: Day 30

I'm continuing with my goal to finish unfinished blog projects.  I started back with my "Journey with Jesus" lifestyle a few weeks back, and now, I wanna finish my Journey with Jesus posts.

Back on January 5th, my husband started a juicing diet for his breakfasts and lunches and a healthy dinner each night.  He's been doing well with his goals.  I'm so proud of him!  I didn't go to the juicing extreme, but I've been trying to make some changes for myself as well ... since about December 28th.  Well, Friday night, we had a major cheat night ... pizza, cookies, ice cream, soda, sweet tea ... yeah.  We both felt awful afterwards.  That night helped me see (again!) just how addicted to sugar I am.  So since Saturday morning, I've committed to fasting from sugary drinks and desserts for a time ... I think I've decided until I finish these Journey with Jesus posts ... and then I'll do my best to really limit my sugar intake from then on.  I totally believe people when they say that sugar is more addictive than actual drugs!  Granted, I've never tried a real drug, but I can imagine!  Because I am super addicted to sugar, especially in the form of sweet tea.

So as I did before, I will write some kind of blurb (above), and then I'll post what I ate that day.

Saturday:

Breakfast ... uhh, I kinda slept in and skipped it.

Lunch - Bowl of broccoli/potato soup

Dinner - Steak, baked potato, and a salad

Snack - rice crackers and cheese, apple with peanut butter, and mixed nuts (we had a super early dinner)

48 ounces of water

Journey with Jesus Day 18

I've had kind of a rough day.  Just been emotional today.  Before I even left for work, I was irritable and emotional and just feeling burned out.  And I'm not sure why.  A couple different times today I was on the verge of tears over things that wouldn't usually bother me that much.  It's probably just hormones ... ladies, you hear me, right?  But man ... hormones or not, it is no fun to be down.  And then I was down on myself all evening at the church softball game ... just feeling ... to be blunt ... fat and ugly.  Again, ladies, I think you know what I'm talking about.  Overall, I feel fine about myself, but some days are fat and ugly days ... especially when I was hanging around two of the sweetest, most gorgeous women I know ... Darian Kirkpatrick and her sister, Chelsey Roberts.  I hate it, but I can't help but compare myself to them.  They are so thin and beautiful and sweet-spirited and calm and put together ... all the things I'm not ... okay, at least I don't think I can fit those descriptions ... maybe someone else will disagree with me ... let's not be a total downer.  Anyways ... I probably shouldn't post such a downer post ... but this was my day today. ... But I am reminded that tomorrow is another day in which God's mercies are new for me - yay!  And the only person I should compare myself with is Christ ... or at least Christ's perspective of me ... and He thinks I am fearfully and wonderfully made - yay!  I am me.  I'm my own person.  I'm beautiful in my own way.  I'm striving to love Jesus with all my heart and be all His.  So again, tomorrow is a new day to start all over.  Let's end on a positive note. :)

Breakfast - sausage and eggs and a granola bar
Lunch - brown rice with hamburger meat and broccoli and cauliflower
Snack - apple with peanut butter, cheese stick, and flax seed crackers
Dinner - chicken, potatoes, broccoli and cauliflower, and sweet tea :)
Snack - trail mix
64 ounces of water
No workout ... gotta get back to that more consistently

Heading off here to renew my perspective with God's Word.  Good night, all! :)

Journey with Jesus Day 17

The Day is approaching!  Jesus is coming back soon!  The world is getting crazier, and deception is everywhere. .... I've been thinking about faithfulness again lately.  That's a theme in my life I think God will never stop teaching me, and I'm glad 'cause more than anything I wanna be faithful to Jesus.  When I fall into attitudes of ungratefulness and discontentment, or I'm just a downright grumpy face (ha!), God reminds me of faithfulness.  He just wants me to be faithful ... no matter where I'm at or what I'm doing ... God's ultimate calling for my life is to live for Him, grow in Him, and be more like Christ.  I think one of the biggest problems with this world today is that Christians are getting too wrapped up in tolerance and what they "think" Jesus desires for our lives here on earth, and they are forgetting about obedience.  And obedience and faithfulness go hand in hand.  I was just reading in 1 Samuel tonight where God commanded Saul to take out the Amalekites ... completely.  No survivors.  No spoil.  Kill 'em all, and take nothing.  I don't know why exactly ... I'm sure the Amalekites were evil.  And sure, to our feeble, human minds, to just wipe 'em out sounds pretty harsh.  How could a loving God do that?  But the reality is ... God is not just a God of love; He is also a JUST God.  He can't be in the presence of sin.  And God is a GOOD God (the ONLY true and good God, by the way), and He has His reasons.  I'm gonna trust in who He IS (and WAS and WILL BE ... which is all the same, by the way again). ... Anyway ... Saul killed everyone but took all the animals and plunder.  Not good.  He was DISOBEDIENT.  Oh, Saul said he wanted to sacrifice that plunder to the Lord ... but no, God didn't want that.  God is more concerned about our OBEDIENCE (our faithfulness) than He is about our "sacrifices," our fleshly desires, our tolerance for what WE "think" is right or what WE "think" HE thinks is right.  What God calls right is literally in Scripture ... in black and white.  We may not always understand it, but that doesn't mean we can change it to say what we want it to say or ignore parts of it or do our own thing with it.  No, we must OBEY.  We must be FAITHFUL to God's Word.  Deception is all around us.  We must stay on the alert.  We must choose to OBEY GOD rather than sacrifice our morels and doctrine on the alter of tolerance and, ultimately, disobedience.

"And Samuel said, 'Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord?  Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams'" (1 Samuel 15:22).

Breakfast - cheese stick, cashews & almonds, and a granola bar
Lunch - flax seed crackers & cheese & ham, broccoli & cauliflower, pickles, and trail mix
Snack - tortilla chips and sour cream
Dinner - curry chicken over brown rice and green beans with sweet tea to drink
Dessert - brownie with milk
Only got 4 glasses of water in today and no workout ... but I'm continuing to eat more veggies.  And slowly but surely, I'm learning to make better choices overall ... and that's exciting!  Gonna keep working at being obedient in the area of food and fitness.

Journey with Jesus Day 16

"Though you have not seen Him, you love Him.  Thought you do not now see Him, you believe in Him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory" (1 Peter 1:8).

Wow!  For some reason, this verse is really hitting me tonight.  I think it's because I wanna have this kind of faith ... to love Jesus even though I can't see Him ... that is such a beautiful picture of faith, isn't it?  Mmm ... yeah. :)  It reminds me of a verse that has popped up in my life lately ... Sunday during Pastor's sermon and in a Ken Davis video I was watching recently ... "... that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection" (Philippians 3:10).  These two verses just go together in my mind.  To know Jesus takes faith, growing faith.  To love Jesus requires faith.  To believe in Jesus and His resurrection is just exciting!  And to love Him even though I can't see Him is exciting to me too!  We can know the POWER of Jesus in our lives NOW, not just when we get to Heaven.  Jesus is ALIVE because of His resurrection, so WE are ALIVE in Him because of His resurrection!  We can KNOW Him and LOVE Him and BELIEVE in Him and EXPERIENCE His POWER ... E V E R Y D A Y ! ! !  All we have to do is tap into His power.  All we have to do is BE IN RELATIONSHIP with Him.  All we have to do is LIVE IN HIM.  Gosh!  I just wanna keep practicing this kind of faith every single day.  The Day is getting nearer and nearer.  Jesus is coming back, folks!  Let's be ready!  Let's be IN Him!  Let's KNOW Him every single day, ok??? :)

Breakfast - bacon and eggs
Lunch - turkey and noodles and green beans
"Snack" (right ... this is my first dinner!  Haha!) - half of a turkey club, popcorn, sweet tea, and a spoonful of peanut butter
(Second) Dinner - chicken, corn, and broccoli with cauliflower
64+ ounces of water :)
And I did yard work at The Porch for 6 HOURS today!  So yes, that is my workout for today ... and tomorrow ... and the next day ... ha!  Just kidding.  Just for today ... but man, I am worn out, yo!

To the tune of Dory's "Just keep swimming" song in Finding Nemo ...
Let's keep practicing.  Let's keep practicing.  Let's keep practicing, practicing, practicing (our faith in Jesus!)! :)

Journey with Jesus Day 15

Tonight, at Vacation Bible School, the theme was based on Hebrews 12:1 ... the short version that the kids were asked to memorize says, "Let us throw off everything that hinders and run the race."  I had so much fun talking to each group of kids about what hinder means and how we need to get rid of anything that gets in the way of us following after Jesus.  I need that reminder every single day!  And tonight, in my Jesus Calling reading, the focus was on the verse that says, "No one can serve two masters."  I thought, how fitting!  That goes right along with throwing off things that hinder us from knowing Christ because, most of the time, we try to serve two masters ... we try to serve God, and we try to serve that thing or person or experience that is really just hindering us from serving God.  I just love it when lessons line up.  When what God is teaching me (staying focused on Him, not my circumstances) lines up with VBS and my Jesus Calling and thoughts that the Holy Spirit brings to my mind and whatever else.  Just wanted to share. :)

Breakfast - sausage and eggs and a granola bar
Lunch - brown rice and smoked sausage, broccoli, and green beans
Dessert - Frost Bite ... yummy! :)
Dinner - turkey avocado BLT and a pickle
Snack - cheese stick and a spoonful of peanut butter
More than 64 ounces of water :)

No real physical activity, but I do want to share a couple of decisions I'm proud of ... I wanted a sweet green tea at Panera so bad, but I didn't get one because I had ice cream with Mags and Emily earlier in the day.  I also really wanted some lasagna and garlic bread when I got home from VBS ... I had the lasagna and bread on a plate in the microwave, but I said "NO!" and put them back.  For me, these are big accomplishments!  Every little bit helps, right?

Journey with Jesus Day 14

Vacation Bible School has been so great this week!  I have to be honest and say I wasn't looking forward to it at all.  We have just been so busy, and I am overcommitted.  But I have always loved VBS.  It is so awesome to teach young kids how to grow in their faith and help them draw closer to Jesus.  That's why we're here on this planet, right?  To point people to Christ.  So VBS is just the coolest!  And it has been such a blessing to be apart of it this week.  This year, we started a youth group aspect to it ... the teenagers not only help with VBS, but we have a Bible study with them each night of the week during VBS as well.  Wow, it has been great ... even if the new 7th grade boys told me straight up that my lessons are boring.  Haha!  Ironically, they were more engaged tonight than any other night this week. ;)  Pouring into children ... and everyone, for that matter ... is a wonderfully rewarding thing! :)

Breakfast - sausage and eggs
Lunch - brown rice, smoked sausage, and broccoli and cauliflower
Dinner - chicken parmesan, spaghetti squash alfredo, corn on the cob, green beans, and sweet tea :)
Oh, and I did have a handful of chocolate chips - yum!
Snack - tortilla chips with guacamole and sour cream and salsa
I drank tons of water today ... but I also sweated a bunch of it out too.  I mulched at The Porch for about 45 minutes at the end of my work day ... and it was hardcore work!  Counting that as my workout again today 'cause it totally counts! :D

Just a quick praise report!
I have been working for my mom for almost 3 weeks.  The first couple of weeks were pretty rough ... but this week has been great!  I'm not taking things off the shelves any longer, so I'm sure that helps quite a bit.  But I'm beginning to see the vision for the place ... and it's gonna be awesome!  It already is!  And I am just getting a lot done.  My attitude has been so much better, and I just feel God's presence with me each day.  I have so much to be thankful for ... and I just want to praise God for the opportunity to be apart of The Porch ... it is an awesome little bookstore and cafe', but it is also a wonderful ministry!  My Jesus Calling for tonight put it well when it said, "Tasks that you used to dread are becoming rich opportunities to enjoy My closeness."  It's so true.  When we choose to focus on Jesus in every situation, we begin to know and feel His presence and see those not so fun circumstances as chances to talk to Him and draw close to Him instead of complaining or getting discouraged.  It's a tough mindset to maintain, but I am learning a lot about it these days.  Thank you, Holy Spirit, for always being at work in my life!  What kind of circumstances do you need to turn over to Jesus today? :)

Journey with Jesus Day 13

Well, so much for posting for 40 days in a row.  I'm not sure I could follow through with a blog project if my life depended on it!  Ha!  I have started so many projects ... sheesh.  Oh well, I am determined to finish this one, even if I don't post every single day for 40 days.  That was a lofty goal ... we are just too busy!  And man, we are!  I can't keep up!  I get overwhelmed all the time and so easily.  Just gotta keep my focus on Jesus. :)
I've had some good days and some bad days with my Daniel Plan lately.  This weekend, we ate terribly.  But this week, has been much better.  I'm gonna keep working at it.  It may be the slowest process ever, but I'm gonna keep working at it!

Breakfast - sausage and eggs and a few bites of a banana
Lunch - pb&j, broccoli and cauliflower, a pickle, and some cheese
Dinner - brown rice and smoked sausage and broccoli with sweet tea to drink
Snack - crackers and cheese
More than 64 ounces of water
And I did over 2 hours of push mowing and mulching today ... it was hard work!  That is my workout for the day.

Tonight, at VBS, I talked with the teenagers and the kidos about trusting in the Lord.  I love the picture in Jeremiah 17:7-8 about the tree planted by streams of water.  When we trust in the Lord, we are like that tree ... full of life, standing strong during trials, and bearing good fruit for others to see.  God is so faithful!  Why wouldn't we trust Him?

Journey with Jesus Day 12

Wow, I've been lax with my Daniel Plan lately.  I think I've decided that when I'm overwhelmed I tend to let the important things go.  So I need to be careful!  I will say though ... I have read my Jesus Calling devotional and written in my prayer journal EVERY night of my Daniel Plan ... even the couple of days I got behind with my posts, I still did my devotions.  So I guess the MOST important thing was not let go, and that is saying something.  I don't wanna sell myself short this time!  I have done my devotions every night for the past 13 days!  I have been fighting a battle against the flesh everyday.  And I already know who wins --- JESUS!  So I just need to keep fighting and keep trying and keep finding my refuge in the Lord!  My Jesus Calling for tonight ... Psalm 34:8 ... talks about what a blessing it is to take refuge in the Lord.
I've been thinking tonight about how I wanna start over tomorrow ... how I can ... how tomorrow is Thursday, my "first" day of the week.  I've been pretty lax with my 3 teas and 2 desserts.  I'm gonna try again tomorrow.  More from my Jesus Calling tonight --- God's mercies are new every morning (Lamentations 3:22-23)!!!  And so I shall ... start over again. :)

Breakfast - Greek yogurt with granola and kiwi
Lunch - bean burrito and tortilla chips with salsa and guacamole and sweet tea
Snack - cheese stick
Dinner - BBQ pork, cheesy potatoes, green beans, garlic bread, and sweet tea
Dessert - slice and a half of cake
Only 6 glasses of water.
Did yard work and hauled heavy boxes for over 2 hours, so I'm counting that as my workout for today! :)

I've been leaving out one of my favorite parts of the Daniel Plan journal ... it has me write down one thing I am thankful for each day.  Today, I am thankful for our 20somethings Bible study group.  We have amazing leaders, Rick and Patti Ehrhardt, and we always have such great food and discussion.  I'm also thankful that my husband is a godly man and so full of faith .... he prayed for me today when I was struggling at work.  And his prayers worked!  My day got better, and I was able to find some perspective in the midst of frustration and discouragement.  Praise the Lord!  Every good and perfect gift is from HIM!  What are you thankful for today?

Journey with Jesus Day 11

Today I was listening to a song by the Daniel Doss Band.  Check 'em out!  They have a great message in their lyrics.  It was called "Lord Reign."  And I was deeply convicted and challenged.  When I think of God reigning in my life, I think of Him being with me or being in control ... or both.  But today, I had a profound sense that the song "Lord Reign" was more about allowing God's presence to fill our lives and transform our perspective.  I was struck right to the heart because I've been struggling with my attitude quite a bit lately.  And even more than just a bad attitude, I've been struggling with my perspective.  I've been wanting a baby lately.  I've been not liking my summer job lately.  I've been discouraged with my end of school year review at the high school.  I've been way too busy.  I've been tired.  I've just not been keeping my eyes on Jesus.  So I've been fighting discontentment and restlessness and ungratefulness and some discouragement lately.  I always get down on myself when I fall into these (lack of) perspectives because I am SOOOO blessed, and God is SOOOO good!  But I guess I'm human, so it's gonna happen from time to time.  And it's ALWAYS gonna happen when I take my eyes off Jesus ... even for just a day. ... So this song really spoke to me today.  I need to allow the Lord to reign in my life ... to fill up my mind and heart and spirit ... so that I can live with HIS perspective, not my own. ... Tonight, in my Jesus Calling, I was given Isaiah 40:29-31 ... a passage I've heard many times, but it always encourages me.
"God gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might He increases strength.  Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint."

Hopefully I can not faint with my eating ... 'cause it's been pretty hit and miss the past few days.  I will keep trying though.  Today wasn't so good.
Breakfast - sausage and eggs
Lunch - PB&J, cheese stick, and broccoli with cheese
Snack - popcorn and sweet tea
Dinner - Chicago's pizza and breadsticks and orange juice
64 ounces of water
And for exercise, I hauled a bunch of merchandise from The Porch into the trailer for 40 minutes.

Hope everyone is having a good week!  Keep trying to focus on Jesus, not your circumstances.  God's perspective is the best perspective! :)

Journey with Jesus Day 10

I've been so tired over the past couple of weeks.  I think we're just too busy.  I need a break, and I'm not sure when I'm gonna get one.  And I think my tiredness is leaving me discouraged.  I'm trying to keep the right perspective, but man, it's hard.  Just gotta keep practicing thankfulness and keep focusing my mind on Jesus and not on my circumstances.  That's what I'm learning this week.  And it was so cool ... last night, after I posted about how discouraged I was, my Jesus Calling was all about fixing my eyes on Jesus (Hebrews 12:2) and not on my circumstances.  God really does bring what we need right when we need it.

Well, sadly, I'm only a couple days behind with my Journey with Jesus posts, but I don't remember the last few days enough to post about 'em.  So Day 10 will be today instead of earlier this weekend.

Breakfast - bacon and eggs and toast
Lunch - 1/2 turkey sandwich, blue tortilla chips and avocado, and raw veggies
Snack - trail mix
Dinner - chicken and noodles, broccoli, asparagas, and yogurt with granola
64 ounces of water
And I worked in the yard again for a few hours today ... I counted an hour and 15 minutes of using the push mower as my workout ... man, that was tough!

Hope y'all are staying encouraged.  God is faithful ... even when we're tired and discouraged.