Hey all–

Crazy, busy day today. (My Facebbok Study on my organizing book is going wonderfully, but keeping me hoppin!)

I’ve decided to redirect you to a prior post here for your encouragement today. Click here to read The Stinkin’ Stomach God.

Then, will you return and weigh in on this question, “Would you still like to see a Weight Loss Wednesday feature on this blog?”  I’m praying about making some changes here on topics and the days I post and want to gauge interest.

On Wednesdays, at times  we have lots of gals comment (50-75 and one time 970!!!) but other weeks it is almost silent.  I’m thinking maybe we’ve run our course and I should just post occasionally on this topic rather than weekly.

Your thoughts?

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Okay ladies– I had a total BLAST reading your comments over the weekend with what your “Panera Name” would be. I told you the winner would be chosen randomly, and she was. However, one of your comments was so clever I just had to call Marybeth & beg for a second book.

So, the winner of the entire prize package along with the book, chosen randomly, is: Laura Ann Adams who, if you bump into her at Panera would go by the name “Willow”

And,  the second gal, who wins just a signed copy of the book for her creativity is: Anne S. who wants to be known as “Ima Winner”

Laura & Ann, send me your mailing address at karen@proverbs31.org please.

And hey, if you all want another stab at winning Marybeth’s great new book, She Makes it Look Easy, head over to my friend LeAnn at She Cooks. She is offering a fun “She Makes it Look Cheesy” giveaway centered on—yep, CHEESE! Click here to see it.

Now, speaking of both Panera and cheese, let’s talk eating out. Let’s brainstorm some healthy eat-out option at popular food chains that won’t clog your arteries or tip the scale. Here are my top five:

1. Black bean soup with a whole grain baguette for the side at Panera Bread
2. A oven roasted chicken breast 6 inch sub at Subway on 9 grain wheat with lots of veggies, mustard, vinegar & salt & pepper
3. In a pinch, two hard shell tacos at Taco Bell ordered “fresco” style
4. A Wendy’s small chili & a side salad with light Italian dressing
5. A Burger King side salad ordered with a grilled chicken breast only for the side. They will usually cut it up for you to put on the salad & it ends up being way cheaper that the grilled salads on the menu & almost as filling.

Now, how about the rest of you. What do you order when you must eat out?

And how was your week with eating & exercise.

Mine stunk! But I’m waiting right now for my weight loss buddy Tammy to arrive soon so we can head out to a Weight Watcher meeting. Time to hit the restart button. Anyone else?

Congratulations to the winner of Ann Voskamp’s book One Thousand Gifts. She is Eve M. Send your home address to me at karen@proverbs31.org so we can get you this fabulous book!

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In a hurry?

Need to grab some food fast?

Does that often translate into fast food? You know, the heart-clogging, full of salt, sugar, saturated fat and many chemical ingredients you need a doctorate in English to pronounce?

On those days when you must grab something in a hurry, to what can you turn?

Here are my top five. Will you add yours in the comments?

~A Granny Smith apple, sliced and topped with a tablespoon of natural peanut butter.

~ Cut up red, orange or yellow sweet peppers dipped in hummus. (Keep a baggy of the veggies ready in the fridge)

~ A Larabar bar. My favs? Key Lime, Lemon or cherry pie. (They are gluten free)

~ Some nitrate-free deli ham slices wrapped around a piece of string cheese.

~ 1/2 cup plain, unsweetened Greek yogurt with a handful of raspberries, blackberries or blueberries tossed in along with a sprinkle of Stevia and a tablespoon of ground flax seed. (Sounds healthy & awful. Tastes WONDERFUL!!!) I keep berries in the freezer at all times.

Now, your turn! What is a food you like to grab fast….. that is actually food?

And, how was your week?

Wow! What an awesome response to Lynn Cowell’s book His Revolutionary Love! So many of you want to use her book to teach and reach teens girls. If you are one of those, please head over to Lynn’s site next Monday where she will have will have a free leadership guide on her site.

This leadership guide will help you by showing you exactly how to do a small group as well as offer thought provoking questions and a schedule if you want one! Starting the first week of June, every Wednesday she will be going over 2 chapters of the book so that you have a companion as you invest in the lives of girls.

She will be going over the same chapters on her site for teen girls at http://www.RadRevolution.com including a weekly video! Stop by her blog and sign up in the subscription box so that you don’t miss this opportunity!

Oh…and I almost forgot! The winner of Lynn’s package is: Amy Pitman Amy, please shoot your home address to me at karen@proverbs31.org.

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Do you ever get tired of hitting the “reset” button?

No, I don’t mean on your computer or smoke alarm. I mean on your own behavior.

You have a ‘domestic disturbance’ with your hubby where, while you might not let sharp objects fly, hurtful words were sure hurled his way.  You vow you won’t ever behave like that again. But you do.

Or you lose it with your kiddos….or coworker…..or mother-in-law and you feel remorse. You promise yourself you’ll keep you emotions in check next time. However, one of these people pushes your button and off the handle you fly.

Or you blow it when it comes to eating sensible. The Easter goodies and Sunday dinner fare tasted just too yummy and you had to indulge. Soon the small indulgence led to an all out binge. Then, feeling guilty, you declared the binge over and purposed to start anew only to be tripped up by one small word:

Leftovers.

As in leftover cheesy potatoes, honey-glazed ham, homemade rolls, treats from your child’s basket or that deadly Easter combo of chocolate & coconut!

So you pig out on those for two days, reasoning that once they are all gone, you’ll “start over”.

Anyone been there?

Anyone there right now? (Put down that Cadbury egg!!!!)

Many of you reading this are cyber friends who are part of our Weight Loss Wednesday gang. What can you do mentally to recover after a stumble or setback? Or do your mis-steps make you throw in the towel and head for the fridge?

Perhaps we need to remember that in our journey toward a healthy weight, it isn’t about perfection, but progress. And that, although we may hate ourselves for our stumbles, we can cling to this truth:

“The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. “The LORD is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.” Lamentations 3:22-24

Now, how was your week? How can we pray for you?

A few weeks ago, I got the chance to speak at a fabulous conference with two of my favorite people–her and her.

It was a blast!

While many phrases I heard from these two ladies that weekend have surfaced several times since, both challenging and encouraging me, what I can’t seem to get out of my mind is the title of that conference.

It was called Enjoy the Journey.

Do we do that?

Or do we dread the journey and pine for the goal?

Do we curse the journey (especially when it comes to matters of weight and health) and covet the goal?

I know from experience that focusing too much on a goal—be it a number on the scale or a pants size—can derail us.

We work and deny ourselves; we try and try again. But if after days, weeks or even months of the journey the goal is not reached….

Well, we throw ourselves a little hissy fit, pout and do an abrupt about-face.

At that point, we are now moving away from the goal and we know it.

Even though it is going to prolong the time it takes to get there, we actually enjoy our little hissy fits.

For a while.

Then we are back to wanting that goal oh so bad again.

So we embark on the journey….for the second, or fifth or twenty-seventh time.

What if instead the journey was our goal?

The daily denying of ourselves that draws us to and makes us more like Jesus?

What if we rejoiced that, although today I am not at my goal, I’m not where I was yesterday either?

What if we learned to intentionally embrace waiting, and patience and hard work not because they make the scale numbers drop but because they make us better at living?

Will you dare to make the journey the goal?

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Be sure to come back Friday when I’ll have an Encouragement for Today devotion running at Proverbs 31 & on Crosswalk.com along with a guest’s giveaway. Oh…you are going to LOVE her!!

Those of you who are Weight Loss Wednesday gals (or who’d like to join our journey!) leave a comment letting us know how your week went so we can pray!

Enjoying the Journey,

 

 

Last Wednesday, we talked here about faux foods; those fake, false, imitation items— full of chemicals and other words I can’t pronounce— that pose as the real thing, but rarely satisfy.

Consuming faux foods, or consuming too many sugary and unhealthy foods, often leaves our taste buds jaded.

Jaded: worn out; weary; dissipated; dulled from over-indulgence.

Have you experienced this?

When I am eating in a way that is far from healthy, there are times even the sweetest, most fattening dessert……well, it really doesn’t even taste very good.

Nor does the saltiest snack I can find. Even if it is piled high on a plate and smothered in sharp cheddar cheese –as in Doritoes in the microwave for exactly 23 seconds–not that I’ve timed out the best duration for the perfect plate of melted munching magnificence.

Ahem….

At those times simple foods, eaten the way God made them, don’t really appeal to me.

Who wants an apple or banana or some stir-fried veggies when your taste buds are so jaded you barely get a thrill out of a hot fudge sundae?

However, I know from experience that when we eat foods as close to the way God created them and continue to do so, we can un-jade our taste buds.

Soon a crisp green apple with a little natural peanut butter (or better yet—-almond butter) is a delight.

Or we crave those tender, stir-fried veggies cooked in a splash of olive oil and sprinkled with a dash of sea salt.

And that banana?

Tastes like it was rolled in sugar.

How about you? Ever find your taste buds jaded?

And we want to know too—-how was your week when it came to food & exercise?

Let’s just say that mine ended with a sore toe from kicking the scale and then asking my husband to kindly stash it somewhere I won’t find it for a week or two.

But that’s another story for another day.

Now, let’s hear your thoughts on jaded taste buds.

Naturally Sweet Blessings,

Congrats to the winner of the blog hosting package. She is:

Monica Watkins

And the second place prize of the laptop bag goes to:

Brianna (comment left 3/18 at 11:44 am)

You gals shoot me an email at karen@proverbs31.org so we can get you your prizes!

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When the low fat craze hit in the late 80′s and early 90′s the grocery industry saw the emergence of what my friend Lindsey calls ‘faux foods”.

Faux is a French work used to describe something made to resemble something else. The original French word means false, fake, imitation or artificial.

You know, as in faux fur or faux leather.

It is not the real deal.

So many pre-packaged food items out there are the same. They are simply not the real deal. However, they promise to satisfy us with an acceptable imitation of the real thing, only with less fat, less calories or less sugar.

I have a little issue with faux foods. Oh, I used to consume them regularly. A little fake cake here; a little artificial candy there; some puffed-up, air-filled crackery contraptions as a snack.

The trouble for me with faux foods is they really don’t satisfy. Most are empty carbs with little protein or fat so they have no satiating power making me feel full.

Instead, they simply spike my blood sugar. Then I crash and an hour or so later, I’m hungry again.

They also are pricey. Have you ever sat and figured out what you are paying per pound for faux foods? Some of them are nearly $5.00 a pound!!!

I have found that I have much better success with snacks the way God made them: an apple with natural peanut butter; a handful of dried cherries and raw almonds. Cut up veggies dipped in hummus or popcorn anyone?

How about you? Ever been hooked on a faux food? What real foods do you eat for snacks that are yummy and satisfying too?

Please tell.

Real women everywhere want to know.

Blessings,

You have until midnight tonight (Thursday) to enter to win a Cecil Murphy scholarship to our Proverbs 31 She Speaks conference coming up in July. So, if you are interested in speaking, writing, event planning or any aspect of women’s ministry, scroll down to my last post to enter! My panel of judges (had to recruit some more of the speaker team due to the number of submissions) and I will choose the winner over the weekend and announce her on Monday.

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Last summer I was very convicted that I memorize all kinds of things, but scripture.

Give me an 80′s tune and I know most of the words.

My friends’ phone numbers? Why, I don’t use speed dial. I want to keep my mind sharp and ward of the ole’ Alzheimer’s.

I have big chunks of Broadway musicals committed to memory. Even plays from college in which I had a role.

Why then do I not have big chunks of the Bible committed to memory as well?

Oh, I have memorized several single verses over the years.

I even memorized Psalm 1 in college for a class and can still recite it.

Last summer, I worked on getting an entire chapter tucked away in my brain. It took a while, but I was able to recite it to my friend Whitney in its entirety.

Now beyond these, I have tons of what I call “sorta scriptures” memorized. You know, where if you start the verse, I can sorta finish it. Not verbatim and I can’t usually tell you where it is located.

I’ve been a Christian for over 30 years and I don’t make hiding God’s word in my heart a top priority.

What a shame.

So convicted did I become of this chosen weakness of mine that last year, during my main stage message at our Proverbs 31 She Speaks conference, I told 608 women that my new goal was to memorize an entire book of the Bible– James–by Christmas.

Gulp.

It meant memorizing and entire chapter every 4 weeks.

Talk about a grandiose goal.

However, I meant it; with every fiber of my being I meant it.

I started out of the chutes pretty well.

Chapter one was right on target.

But then life happened and school started and I had lessons to teach and speaking engagements to prepare for and devotions and magazine articles to turn in and a book proposal that needed to be entirely re-written and on and on and on….

By the week before Christmas, I was crammin’ like a mad woman trying to get it all down.

When Christmas morning arrived, I went out under the tree before anyone else was up and I attempted to recite the book of James as my Christmas present to Jesus.

I bombed.

Oh, I got about 2/3 of it right, but I had to look at my Bible when I got stuck for the next phrase and many of the verses were not word for word—a high bar I had set for myself.

It was then that I realized, like so many things in my life, I had turned this into a performance; a performance I must do perfectly. (we’ll talk another day about why some of us women feel we need to perform perfectly in order to be accepted)

I tried not to be upset but feared I failed miserably.

Later that night Jesus & I….. well we had a little talk.

Well mostly I sulked and He whispered.

He whispered one of the verses I had memorized many years ago:

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” Galatians 6:9

Is it good to memorize Bible verses, chapters and chunks?

Yes ma’am…

Had I grown weary?

Oh yeah….

It was then that I realized it is not about performance. God is not looking for perfection but persistence and progress.

So, I got up and at ‘em again.

I’m happy to report that I recently was able to recite all of James.

Oh not in the way I’d hoped–flawlessly from start to finish. But one big chunk or chapter at a time.

Then I’d pause, look over the next big portion, hand my Bible back to my hubby or son and recite the next section.

Now, I’m working on stringing more of it together—say two to three chapters— without stopping and refreshing my memory before going on.

And without having to have one of my guys give me the next few words to jog my memory. (Do you know how many times verses in James start out with “My dear brothers…” or something similar. It throws me off so many times!!)

Someday, I’ll post about the tricks I’ve come up with for tackling this project.

In the mean time, let’s answer the most important question about this whole affair.

Why in the world would anyone memorize scripture and what could that possibly have to do with what I am supposed to be talking about on Wednesdays which is weight loss & health?

Here, let The Word speak for itself:

“All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right.  God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NLT)

and…

“I have stored up your word in my heart,
that I might not sin against you.” Psalm 119:11 (ESV)

Scripture is our ally; our voice of reason; our centering tool allowing us to come to our senses and focus; indeed it is our weapon to wield.

It can keep us from making a sinful choice with dire consequences.

Or it can keep us from running to food instead of to God.

Or it can stop us from being stupid and snap us back into reality.

But this little James memorization project has taught me something.

It really isn’t about word-for-word flawless perfection. (Although I am continuing to work on reciting the whole book without needing to stop for help)

It isn’t about just saying the right words in the correct order.

It is about internalizing the message of the meaning; about knowing the heart of God as He gave us these life-guiding words.

So sweet cyber sisters, what about you? Will you commit to Bible memory?

Not to pursue verbal perfection, but to do a little word hiding for those times in life when you need a dose of reality, a “snap-out-of-it- already” redirection or a “put down the brownie” voice of reason.

Although I haven’t quite gotten the entire book of James down from start to finish with no “cheats’ (as my boys use to call them when they were in a Bible memory program at our church) there are already so many messages of James that are resonating with me.

Like don’t show favoritism.

Or boast about the future.

Or use your tongue improperly. (ouch!)

Or how to get through trials.

Or how and why to pray in faith.

Or why we have fights and quarrels among us.

Oh sisters…..internalizing scripture is powerful.

Will you try it? Will you commit to memorizing something from now until the first of May?

We’ll check in with each other then.

No matter if you are a Weight Loss Wednesday gal or just a simple cyber friend, I promise you–you will be blessed.

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Okay WLW gals (or new ones who want to join us),  when you leave a comment, let us know how you week was. Mine was great. Although it included eating out three times and a fabulous coconut angel food cupcake I treated myself to for my birthday, I still saw the scale go down a tad.  How was your week?

Blessings,

It happens usually at night.

When, if I am to be honest, my stomach really isn’t asking for food.

It is my brain that longs for a tasty treat.

Have you ever had your brain send you the same signal as mine?

“Something sounds good” it whispers seductively to me.

Maybe it is salty.

Maybe it is sweet.

A little crunch is always good.

Oh, but so is smooth & creamy.

Yes siree bob….”something” sounds good.

So off to the pantry or fridge or freezer I mindlessly meander.

After choosing the object of my affection to satisfy my brain, I sit and savor the plate of taunting, and now victorious treats.

For a moment, it is glory to my tongue’s taste buds.

Then arrives the guilt of my soul.

“Why did I eat that?” I question myself, just as I have countless nights before.

If only I had distracted myself with something inedible. Perhaps then I could slink in bed without a feeling of regret; without vowing once more to “start over in the morning”.

Distractions.

Could we do it?

Just as when my children were toddlers and crawling for a forbidden object, I would distract them with a permissible toy or daddy’s big bunch of jingling keys, I must learn to distract myself from the forbidden.

I could call a lonely friend.

Or write an encouraging note.

Or clean out a drawer.

Or read a waiting book or Bible passage.

I could even do so while sipping something hot and calorie free like my favorite tea.

I know it works.

Because often, after focusing on the distraction for a while, I realize that my stomach wasn’t even hungry in the first place.

Perhaps today, Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent, is the perfect time to commit to the fine art of distracting yourself.

Instead of giving something up, you’d be taking something on: switching your thinking from your stomach to another person or task.

I guess in a way, you would be giving up something:  self.

I tried intentionally to practice the fine art of distraction this week.

Guess what?

It worked.

The scale was down 2.4 lbs.

Now, how about you?

In what ways can you think of to distract yourself?

And, how was your week?

Let us know so we can be praying.

Oh, and I’m still trying to figure out if we’ll add a Facebook group to our little band of sisters here.

Rest assured, from the comments last week I have decided not to totally switch to Facebook since many of you can’t get on it at work and a few of you don’t use it at all.

So, if we add it, it will be in addition to our post here. Still trying to sort it all out.

In the mean time, let’s hear from you. How are you doing?

Can you add a distraction to the list above? Will you try, for the 40 days of Lent, to switch your thinking from your hungry brain and self to another person or task?

Sweet Blessings (of the calorie-free kind!),

By now many of you know I’m again using Wednesdays to write about getting healthy and losing weight.

Some of you love that.

Others of you have told me you are growing a tad bit weary of the “gonna lose weight in the new year” push that happens each time we flip the old calendar page. So please know a few thoughts I have on this:

First, I want this Weight Loss Wednesday feature to encourage you no matter what mountain you are trying to conquer so I hope if weight and health are not issues for you, you’ll still read the Wednesday posts. Perhaps they will speak to one of your issues. (You know we all have issues, right? Why sometimes I think my issues have issues!!!)

And secondly, the Made to Crave movement started by God through my friend and our Proverbs 31 president Lysa TerKeurst that I have been a part of really isn’t about weight loss.

No ma’am.

Its about giving God the number one slot of attention in our lives and letting all the other pieces fall delightfully into their proper places.

As my friend Lindsey so beautifully put it to me one day, “Karen, what if it isn’t about the weight loss? What if it is all about seeking God with all our hearts and losing weight is just a by-product of us growing holy?”

I cannot get her statement out of my head!

So, girlfriends, let’s get holy together. And if some “gettin’ skinny” is required by any of us, we’ll see that beautiful by-product, okay?

I love the t-shirt I spotted on one of my speech students at our homeschool co-op recently . It read “Get holy. Or die trying”!

Well, for those of you trying to get both holy and healthy, how was your week?

Mine was very difficult, but you helped me so much!

Yes you!

I’d promised I’d weigh in right after I posted last week and then track my progress by stepping on the scale again today and telling you what resulted.

In the mean time, I came across this little verse, tucked away in the story in the Bible about John the Baptist.

It was a soap-opera-like set up.

King Herod’s big birthday bash. Lots of food, dancing and general rowdiness. The wishy-washy and indecisive King had already had John thrown in prison for some of his words of truth that stung the king because they messed with his sinful lifestyle.

When the daughter of Herodias (aka Mrs. Herod) danced for the king and pleased him, he promised her she could have anything she wanted.

Anything!

She wanted John the Baptist’s head on a platter.

YIKES!!!

Again, the back-and-forth King was in a quandary. He didn’t really care for John. However, he really didn’t want to kill him either for he feared the people thought he was a great prophet. Perhaps he thought a little uprising might occur.

Then, tucked away in Matthew 14 verse 9 is the little verse:

“The king was distressed, but because of his oaths and his dinner guests, he ordered that her request be granted.”

Yep. Good ole’ fashioned peer pressure- New Testament style.

He followed through because of a promise he’d made and because of his dinner guests and the results were tragic. So tragic that the story goes on to say that when Jesus (John’s cousin) heard the tragic news, he jumped in a boat and took of all alone for a while.

Now, how in the world could this verse have helped me this week?

It helped because in it, I saw a positive twist. If Herod could follow through with evil because of a promise and some dining pals, could I follow through with good because of the same?

I’d made and “oath” that I’d check in with you today.

In a way, I consider you all my “dinner guests” as we try to eat healthy together.

So, whenever I wanted to eat too much or eat a nasty calorie-laden and nutritionally deficient  morsel of food, I thought of you and didn’t.

Whenever it was nearing bedtime and, although not really physically hungry, “Something sounded good”, I thought of you and said no.

When I wanted two servings cause it tasted so good, I pictured your faces and refused.

Well, dear dinner guests of mine, when I hopped on the scale this morning, I discovered the numbers went down.

By 5.8 pounds!!!!!!!

Now, remember, I’ve been super sick and on steroids for my lungs (which make you retain weight) I also quit the steroids last week so that may have been part of the big drop.

However, I am still too lung-damaged to exercise without coughing myself into a frenzy so that drop came with no workouts at all.

Thank you for allowing me to picture your sweet faces.

And speaking of picturing your faces, let me throw out an idea. Do you think it would be beneficial to have  Weight Loss Wednesdays Facebook page where we could hop on once a week, read the post and build community by commenting and connecting throughout the day?

Let me know when you comment on this post letting us know how your week went.

You can do it, sweet sisters.

We can do it….together!

Banquet-busting Blessings,