Sunday, May 25, 2014

my THM journey so far

When I read Proverbs 31 and Titus 2, passages that specifically list the accomplishments, activities, labors, ministry, and industriousness of godly women, it makes me think that maybe we as the Church have missed something very powerful...God wants His daughters to be equipped and ready to fulfill our ordained roles, doing His work. If we are too heavy (weight and spirits!), depressed, discouraged, sick, diseased, and energy-less, how can we fulfill all of this?!?! 

I love THM and all that it has brought back to my life! Thank You, Lord!

I bought the $35 book at an Above Rubies Ladies Retreat at Camp Baldwin in Elberta, Alabama, last February. Nancy Campbell prayed over me that week, that God would send my Boaz soon and enable me to birth children for God's glory, not just have spiritual children in my line of work/ministry. I spent last summer reading, working in my garden, and catching up in the office. Then Cori (older sister) asked me if I had heard about THM, that she had already started on the THM journey. I laughed and told her that I had the paper version, but hadn't started it yet.

I started reading the 600+ page THM book pretty soon afterwards. The rhema word that the Lord used to spur me towards this was that He wanted me to clean my body-Temple out, in the same fashion as He had commanded the priests to clean the Tabernacle and Temple out daily. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 says, "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body" (NASB).  He told me that His Temple, my body, has been trashed, and that I had done it. I knew He meant business, so I spiritually saluted and dove in. 

I started on my Trim Healthy Mama journey officially on August 5, 2013. To date, I have lost 45 pounds, the first 35 pounds dropping off pretty fast as I cut out my coffee creamer, breads/muffins/rolls (all white flour products), white potatoes, corn, and tandem fueled home-cooked meals. My cravings started to disappear, especially my evening after-work cravings. Drinking coffee without my go-to creamer was the most difficult change, but after three months or so, I had made that transition smoothly with help from some good flavored K-cup flavors.

I have renewed vigor and valor, energy and strength. I feel good, good, good!!! Basically, THM is a low-glycemic index diet, not low carb or low fat. It is based on the idea that our bodies are NOT made to tandem fuel all the time (there is a place for "crossover" meals but just not constantly). So my meals are either fat-based (S meals) or carb-based (E meals). Delicious food and a new way of cooking and eating for us all the way, baby!

As a side benefit (and since I do most of the cooking and meal planning), Mom has lost about 40 pounds, and Tricia has lost over 25. No more fast-food lunches, no more shakes and donut treats, no more feeling yucky. Yes! to a variety of salads and wraps, dark chocolate and nuts, homemade smoothies and signature drinks. I am not hungry. 

In the beginning, I received a lot of recipe help from bloggers like Gwen's Nest and Stacy Makes Cents. Then Pinterest recipe boards started popping up, and other food bloggers took up the gauntlet. The FB support group for THM is tremendous (although HUGE now!), and Cori and I have hosted several local support meetings for the ladies in the Florida Panhandle area to meet and encourage one another. The next one is coming up in June. I am fueled by a desire to help point women towards what the Lord has helped me to do, get their house--their Temple--in order for the Lord, to empower them to do what He has called them to do, and fan into flame His gifts that have been latent within their hearts. To God be the glory, great thing He has done...and is doing!

My weight loss is not just a few pounds, nor is it baby-weight or other short-term weight. My weight is lifelong weight. I have been almost 6 feet tall and over 200 pounds for almost twenty years now. What has taken a long time to accumulate should take awhile to come off if it is to stay off. 

I've come a long way, and I am not done yet!

Sunday, May 18, 2014

sunday before next

Today, I intentionally did no house chores. Yes, indeed. No cleaning or laundry or spending the day in the kitchen. Purposely.

Instead, I woke early and read for an hour. I am tackling the Wahl Protocol book (to find answers for Tricia's autoimmune issues) and Brennan Manning's book, again. :-) 

On a side note...I happened to see that the movie about Rich Mullins was at Walmart. I knew that it was being made, but I didnt realize that it was coming out so soon. It was exactly how I thought it would be. Manning played in several scenes; he made a big impact on Mullins' life and healing from life wounds. The music and story were splendid.

Back to this morning: I brewed some ginger and cinnamon tea and made toast for breakfast. I gave Meg a soothing doggie bath first off. She has been having an allergy attack of some sort, scratching and gnawing at herself. We've got a new soap bar that I tried on her. Then I gardened and planted and weeded off and on all day. I planted my tomato plants (three kinds), green bell pepper plants, daisies, begonias, impatiens, and henna coleus. Blew leaves off the back patio and set it up for grilling. Also cleaned up the front porch and planted the pots there.

Came in long enough to whip up a new-to-me recipe for shrimp and crab étouffée over oven-baked tilapia and steamed cauliflower. For my first try, it was delicious!!! I was so pleased...have been planning that meal for weeks now!

So plans for revamping the front street-scape are starting to take shape. Mom got the first cherry red Knock Out rose bush yesterday which I planted today. I think it will look good, once I get the whole line put in. We are going to alternate the roses with a red-leaf bush of Japanese origin (I forget the name).

My efforts to tackle my looooong list of various projects are taking shape. :-)


trouble in the kingdom

On Friday, I had stepped out of the school to momentarily speak to one of my dads (he is paraplegic). While I was out, two of our girls had a cat fight...one started it thoughtlessly, and the other came unglued. It was awful. I was immediately irritated and disturbed that they had even scrapped at all. I spoke to them about pursuing peace and  not getting easily provoked. I appealed to their claiming to be Christians, following Jesus' command to turn the other cheek, and having the Holy Spirit inside to guide them. Nothing. Nada. Nothing got through to them. It was so immature, so "I'm-gonna-tell-my-mama-when-I-get-home" adolescent behavior on both girls' part. They kept going at it until it was disturbing several different teachers' tutoring lessons, and I had to raise my voice to quiet them down. It was awful (have I said that before?!).

As the day wore on, I became angry at the two girls, especially when I found out that in response to my quoting of Jesus' instruction to turn the other cheek and not "getting people back," she had retorted some diatribe about how her mama had taught her to hit back if she was hit. I felt defeated, increasingly ticked off as the day went on. Then that night, I read this verse (Matt. 5:7) on Facebook, and the  Lord said to me, "Simmer down! This is not about you. It's about My work in these girls' lives. It's about Me."

So now I am armed. Since it is an official "school incident" and has to be written up, they will be copying Scriptures that apply to their offenses and writing apology letters. We're headed into the last two weeks of the school year, for crying out loud. My mercy levels are tapped out, so hold me, Jesus!


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