Eating Cold Cereal Isn't Sinful!

I just felt led to share this with those of you who read my blog, in case you might think otherwise - I don't believe eating cold cereal is sinful! Or any food for that matter.

1 Timothy 4:1-5

But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons, by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron, men who forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from foods which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with gratitude; for it is sanctified by means of the word of God and prayer.

So, if all I had was cold cereal in the house, then that is what we would eat and we would do it with thanksgiving! The same goes for the white flour filled pre-made frozen biscuits that are about to be sitting in my oven! Those will be gratefully received after we have our green smoothies this morning.

As most of you know, I've struggled with my weight for a long time. Up and down went the scales - like a yo-yo! Unfortunately, unlike a yo-yo, the weight never dropped and stayed forever.

(Just put those biscuits in the oven and realized I really need to clean my oven! Something has dropped in there and is burning up! Yuck!)

Back to the weight thing... So many times I have looked for a program, a method, a diet to fix the problem I've had with my weight.

My resent search for information on health wasn't at all related to my desire to lose weight... at first! The true and primary reason that I went searching for a more health-FULL way of eating was because of the very extreme bouts of tiredness I was feeling. I was having a nap everyday, feeling lethargic every morning (before I drank my coffee), having a lull after my coffee until lunch, feeling irritated and just over-all "blah". I knew this could not be how God intended me to feel, considering all the littles I have to keep up with. Hence my search for foods that He truly created for me to eat and have the energy that I need to keep up with all these little blessings.

Yet after I started the challenge, temptation crept in and I thought "hmmm, I could lose a ton of weight if I just followed these steps...". I'm sure that it was spared on by me reading something about someone losing 167 pounds on a raw diet or some such idea. While I don't have anywhere near that much to lose, I'm sure I thought "well, if she could lose that much, I could easily take off what I have."

But as we know from James...

James 1:13-15

Let no one say when he is tempted, "^AC)">I am being tempted by God"; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then ^AD)">when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when ^AE)">sin is accomplished, it brings forth death.

So, while I'm sure I could lose a ton of weight eating only green smoothies and plunging into an all raw diet, eventually, I will indulge my flesh if I'm trying to follow a set of rules; according to Paul.

Colossians 2:20-23

^BA)">If you have died with Christ to the ^BB)">elementary principles of the world, ^BC)">why, as if you were living in the world, do you submit yourself to ^BD)">decrees, such as,"Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!" (which all refer ^BE)">to things destined to perish with use)--in accordance with the ^BF)">commandments and teachings of men? These are matters which have, to be sure, the appearance of wisdom in ^BG)">self-made religion and self-abasement and ^BH)">severe treatment of the body, but are of no value against ^BI)">fleshly indulgence.

That scripture became very real to me this morning when I was reminded of it after feeling led back to The Lord's Table Bible Study from Setting Captives Free (which is a ministry that offers free Bible study course in several areas that keep us in bondage). See, after all the green smoothies that I have drank, I haven't lost any weight. It's because in the afternoon and evening, I indulge my flesh.

I don't need another yoke of slavery...

Galatians 5:1

^A)">It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore ^B)">keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.

...and yet I do believe that God created foods that are BEST for us. So, how do you balance that?

I have to come back to why I was seeking out a more healthful way of eating in the first place - because I was tired, listless, and worn-down (sound like a Vitameatavegamin commercial?). So, based on food alone, I have to know that what I was eating wasn't working and I need to go back to the basics of what God originally created for me to eat.

You might think at this point that I'm talking pre-flood and that we aren't going to eat meat or animal products. Ha! We now have 2 cows grazing pasture on our farm, and I will thankfully partake of the meat our soon-to-be steer, Steak, will produce for us! Our next venture is going to be chickens and I will gladly have my children gathering eggs for us to eat!

But, I also have to remember that we need a balance and moderation and I haven't indulged my flesh just once to end up overweight, but many many times. Green smoothies won't make you lose weight if you are indulging the flesh all afternoon and evening, as I have been. However, green smoothies will give you a ton of energy, while helping you to get in a lot of greens and fruits and helping you to balance out your meals for the rest of the day.

Keep up the green smoothies, but don't be deceived that eating cold cereal will somehow make Jesus love you any less or will give you a magic pill for losing weight. I've honestly never thought that my eating right would somehow win me favor with God. I know that God loves me abundantly and couldn't love me any more or less than He does right now - overweight with a green smoothie in my hand!

p.s. Occasionally Big P will ask me to get some cold cereal as he loves it for a snack and I love to treat my honey to something special like that. :) However, as much as my children love cold cereal and would eat it every morning if I allowed that, they know they are hungry within 20 minutes of eating it and I'm still trying to teach them to have good, healthful eating habits.

Green Smoothie Challenge - Update & Recipes

So how is the challenge going for those of you who have taken it? Please post in the comments and let me know what you think so far.

Today was Day 10 for me, Day 9 for Big P, and Day 7 for the rest of our crew. We are all seeing amazing results!!

Just to list a couple of them:

• Big P and I have had dramatically reduced cravings. I am going to add in an afternoon green smoothie because the cravings tend to creep up on me around 2 in the afternoon.
• Not hungry until lunch. With a quart of green smoothie, I don't feel the need to eat anything else for breakfast and I'm not really hungry until lunch time.
• The kids aren't needing snacks. They just don't seem to want to snack as much. We have very little processed food in the house right now, and they are running to the fridge for things like grapes or oranges when they do want a snack. These are by my prompting, it's like the greens have gotten in them and the craving that they are having are for things actually good for them. These are essentially the same things that Big P and I are seeing in ourselves.
• Reduced trash! You are probably like "what?", but because they aren't snacking as much and I'm not filling up the pantry with processed snacks and foods, there isn't a whole lot of trash going out of our house! Funny, huh?

A few days ago I purchased several young coconuts and have been using those in my smoothies in the morning along with the "Festival Blend" of fruits from Costco. This includes: strawberries, papaya, mango, and pineapple. I'm realizing that this combination of fruits isn't the best for me and is bothering my tongue. The Triple Berry mix from Costco is working out great for Big P and the kids, because it turns your smoothie purple, whereas mine has been VERY GREEN the last couple of days.

I also picked up a little bottle of stevia glycerites. This is supposed to be better than the extract by itself and isn't as concentrated as the extract, in terms of sweetness. I've been adding that to each pitcher of the purple smoothie to sort of round out any sourness from the berries. If you don't have stevia, you could just add a tablespoon of honey.

Here's how much green smoothie my family drank this morning:

Big P: 1 quart
Me: 1 quart
C13: 20 oz. (he's been drinking smoothie then eating a ton of breakfast and getting hungry before lunch, so we up'd his smoothie, which he was in total agreement with)
P10: 1 pint
B5: 1/2 cup (even after 7 days, we are having to "convince" him that he needs his smoothie, but about halfway through his this morning, he seemed to "get it" and started gulping. I had to make him slow down and chew.)
L3: 1 cup (this boy can eat and loves his green smoothie)
A1: 1/4 cup (another one that is taking some convincing, but after spooning it to him for a few mornings, he's slowly getting it.)

A couple of friends have been asking for recipes, so here are a couple:

The Purple Smoothie:

1 frozen banana
1 cup triple berry mix (from costco: blackberries, blueberries, raspberries)
4 frozen strawberries (also from costco)
4 handfuls of spinach (heaping handfuls)
2 cups water
1 dropperful of stevia glycerites

Tropical Island Green Smoothie:

water from 1 young coconut (add water if needed to make it to 2 cups)
meat from same coconut
1/2 frozen banana
1 cup of "festival blend" fruit combo from costco
4 handfuls of spinach

One from a friend:

1 banana
1 orange
1 handful of blueberries
3 handfuls of spinach
2 cups water

Oh, and this morning I found in the fridge 1/2 an orange and a peach that was going to go soon, so I threw those in the blender with some of the smoothies.

Where's the cheapest Blend-Tec?

The cheapest place I have found it is on Life Begins Raw.

So, how many greens are too many?

Well, this may be a bit too much for those of you who don't want to know all the nitty gritty. But, for people like me, this kind of stuff just makes me do a little dance!