Peters Chains

When Scott and I had the pleasure of visiting Rome six years ago, we went to Basilica di San Pietro in Vincoli. In this church, you will see these chains. They are said to be Peter’s from his imprisonment. As I stood and looked at these chains, the word “freedom” came to mind. While Peter was bound physically, he was no longer a slave to sin.

Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness? But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed, and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. Rom. 6:16-18

Today, I am praising God that the chains of sin have been broken and I am no longer a slave to sin, but rather I have freedom and life in Christ Jesus my Lord!

It was a gorgeous morning today for a race, and I ran my personal best time of 22:51! I was third in my age group and #128 out of 1738 runners!

The Finish Line

It is time for a much needed break for Scott and me. We are sailing off this afternoon, and heading towards Mexico! Therefore, I am taking a blogging break so I can enjoy my uninterrupted time with my husband. But don’t worry! I am bringing lots of good reading material and plan on sharing any and all new healthy insights I glean. But just to rub it in a bit, here are the things I plan to do…

• Read and sleep by the pool
• Workout while overlooking the ocean
• Catch a show or two
• Play golf (onboard!)
• Snorkel
• Go down a zip line
• Eat authentic Mexican food!!!!!!
• Sleep in
• Enjoy my time with my husband (who plans to workout 2 times a day so he can eat more)

I am thankful that God has provided the funds for us to go and the grandparents to watch our kids. Your prayers for us, our kids, and our parents are coveted! Bon Voyage!!!

I had the pleasure yesterday of working with my in-laws at one of their estate sales (not their personal estate, it’s their business). This five bedroom, three car garage home sat on 1/3 of an acre overlooking the river. The owners probably used their AC a lot less than the average Floridian because the breeze coming off the water cooled the first floor, and I’m sure the sunsets each evening were breath-taking. The greatest part of working at one of these sales is the reminder that you can’t take it with you! From the hundreds of books in the garage to the house itself, it all stayed behind. I think of the American church today, and we are guilty, individually and as a whole, of greed and selfishness. Jesus reminds us that we are to store up for ourselves treasures in heaven. Having “things” isn’t wrong, but the drive to attain more and the pride of having more is indeed sin. Here is a segment of an interview with Francis Chan that helps keep our wealthy status in perspective…

If one hundred people represented the world’s population, fifty-three of those would live on less than $2 a day. Do you realize that if you make $4000 amonth, you automatically make one hundred times the average person on this planet?
Which is more messed up—that we have so much compared to everyone else, or that we don’t think we are rich? That on any given day we might flippantly call ourselves“broke” or “poor”? We are neither of those things. We are rich. Filthy rich.
God’s definition of what matters is pretty straightforward. He measures our lives by how we love. In our culture, even if a pastor doesn’t actually love people, he can still be considered successful as long as he is a gifted speaker, makes his congregation laugh, or prays for “all those poor, suffering people in the world” every Sunday.
But Paul writes that even if “I have all faith, so as to move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing” (1 Corinthians 13:2–3). Wow. Those are strong and unmistakable words. According to God, we are here to love. Not much else really matters.

I must admit that I am comfortable as I am surrounded by all my “things”. Letting go of all that we have is the biggest obstacle in the American Christian’s life. We have little or no need to rely on God when we are so content in our cushy livestyles. May my eyes be opened to how God is calling me to store up treasures in heaven.

Six years ago today I became a mom. Aleyah Danyal entered this world and changed our lives forever. I love the young lady that she is becoming. The qualities that I love about her are…

• Her confidence – She has this amazing assurance of who she is and what she wants.
• Her energy – She can run circles around me!
• Her independence – From day one, she has always loved to do things on her own. In fact, this is what gets her into the most trouble!
• Her empathy – She is tender-hearted and is quick to reach out to others, especially when they are hurting.
• Her servant attitude – She loves to help me in the home whether it is cooking, folding clothes, making beds, or watching her little brother.
• Her initiative – Just like her daddy, she is a go-getter and I know she will succeed in whatever she sets out to do.
• Her love for God – Her questions and observations amaze me, and I know she is not far from totally grasping the sacrifice that God made for her.

Happy Birthday to the one who gave me the blessing of being called “mom”!

Scott, the kids, and I have enjoyed a long weekend away with his family. It was a chance to just escape, relax, and enjoy the company. Relaxing for me, however, is not sitting around doing nothing (not that I could with three kids anyway!).

Anna on the paddle boat

I like to be out and about and do more of the things that I don’t always have the extra time for. I had the opportunity to get a good couple of country road runs in with my husband, fly kites with the kids, play (a.k.a. chase Joel) on the playground, eat a make-your-own-pancakes breakfast at the Old Spanish Sugar Mill,

Chocolate Chip Pancakes 🙂

Scott and Aleyah sharing some catfish

Joel and Me chowing on swamp cabbage

and even walk around the local catfish festival (Forget the catfish- I feasted on the swamp cabbage!). While we had a great time, it is always nice to return home to your own bed!

Restaurant.com is now offering 80% off with coupon code LOVE throufh 2/14. Zushi Asia- here we come (again)!

In 2000, my friend Kim told me about a book titled Body for Life. It is a 12-week nutrition and exercise program, and after reading it, I knew it was a plan I could follow. I lost 10 pounds in that 12 week period. To this day, I still follow some key points from the book.
*I eat small meals every 2-3 hours.
Each mini-meal includes protein and complex carbs, and I add vegetables to at least three of these meals.  This keeps my metabolism going, and it keeps me from being famished and then overeating.
*I incorporate speed work into my running. I maintain a steady pace, and then sprint at different points in my run. Speed intervals increase your endurance and speed.
*I weight train. While I no longer follow the exact weight training plan, I make it a regular part of my workout routine. Muscle burns calories, so the more muscle mass you have, the more calories you burn, even at rest.

You can get this book on Amazon for as low as $4.00. There is also a Body for Life for Women.

Today was my P90X morning. P90X is a program designed by Tony Horton. You can order the whole set which includes 12 DVDs, a nutrition plan, a fitness guide, and more. It is a bit pricey, but worth it if you need a jumpstart and motivation to reach your goal. I actually bought three of the DVDs on eBay (I spent about $25) because I didn’t need the package.  I purchased the Kenpo DVD (boxing), the Plyometrics (lots of jumping- very intense!), and the Cardio (this is a combo of yoga, kenpo, and plyometrics). If you are interested in seeing what this is about, try out the Cardio DVD- it is a good sample of the program. These have been a great alternative to running on cold mornings and also to vary my workouts.