My health so far...

Beloved, I pray that in all respects you may prosper and be in good health,
just as your soul prospers.
-3 John 1:2

If you listen carefully to the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in His eyes, if you pay attention to His commands and keep all His decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, who heals you.
-Exodus 15:26

Since November 2005, I have been radically bringing my physical life into Divine order. I have changed my diet dramatically, eliminating and replacing poor food choices with healthy choices. I have been running for an hour 5 days a week and now 6 days a week since November. I have lost 22 pounds so far.  I have aimed at cutting 3,500 calories from my weekly diet through diet and exercise. To lose one pound a week you have to burn/cut 3,500 calories.
Simple math, simple plan, hard work but it does work.

I was raised in a very health conscious home and my mother has been a natural foods store owner and promoter for ever. We were raised eating, learning and experimenting with all kinds of natural remedies and products. We also attended Seventh Day Adventist churches and schools as kids, which had a strong health aspect to their faith expression. I have had years of knowledge from both study and experience but for too many years I have sat on the knowledge and made poor choices concerning my health. It's sin really and I have repented and began to engage my knowledge and turn it into wisdom through practice. The results have been amazing.

Yet again I find the bible to be the greatest source of wisdom how to live life...even concerning health. I have been studying health related issues, organic vs. modern food production and consumption and what the bible has to say about these subjects.
It's been enlightening and frightening.

This is a whole field that is inundated with kooky eastern mumbo jumbo and new age blah blah. It is ripe for the truth of God's word to shed light into a very spiritually confused and deceptive arena. You can't read to far on the subject without running into massive amounts of new age gobbly gook.   I enjoy the challenge of sifting wheat from tares though. Plus I resonate with new agers because of my mothers influence and being a charismatic I can appreciate their mysticism and airy fairy spirituality. I don't share it but I can identify with it. I blend closer with the granola bunch than the suits and ties. I flow in dreams, visions, prophecy, healing, tongues and other Spirit energized phenomena so though I don't wear crystals or read palms, stare at the stars or eat only tofu, I can speak to some of the issues with a close proximity since truth and error often live right next door to each other. Plus they are generally more healthy than us Christians, to our shame.

So you might see some posts related to all of this in the days ahead. I will be posting my before and after pictures at the end of February. I set that date for a little Biggest Looser contest with my lovely wife. Stay tuned.

Typical American Diet & Lifestyle VS.
Biblical Jewish Diet & Lifestyle

A: Excessive amounts of refined flour.
J: Organic wholemeal flour (often freshly milled); whole grains; legumes, & lentils.

A: Excessive amounts of refined sugar as sweeteners.
B: Raw honey, dried fruits & juices in moderation as sweeteners.

A: Refined polyunsaturated vegetable oils.
J: Cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil and other cold-pressed seed oils.

A: Refined table salt.
J: Unrefined sea salt.

A: Filtered & heated vinegar.
J: Raw, organic, unfiltered vinegar

A: High frequency of deep-fried foods.
J: Foods are usually boiled, steamed, baked, broiled or roasted.

A: Margarine, vegetable shortening.
J: Butter, curds, yogurt, raw cream

A: Pasteurized, homogenized milk.
J: Mainly raw milk but occasionally boiled goat’s milk.

A: Pork, shrimp, shellfish, etc.
J: Only clean animal flesh and fish with scales & fins, cover fat removed and blood drained out.

A: Over-consumption of meat from commercially raised cows, sheep & poultry.
J: Meat from grass-fed cows, sheep, goats, clean game animals and grain-fed poultry.  All raised without hormones, antibiotics and chemical contaminants.

A: Commercially-grown fruits & vegetables laden with pesticides, fungicides & herbicides
J: Organically-grown fruits & vegetables free from chemical contaminants.

A: Refined salt &sugar, commercial salad dressings, chilli & tomato sauce for flavoring.
J: Raw honey, sea salt, raw vinegar, wine, fresh & dried herbs & spices for flavoring.

A: Excessive consumption of caffeinated sodas & beverages.
J: Mostly water, occasionally flavored with fruit juices, vinegar and wine.

A: No fasting regime
J: Fasts regularly

A: Keeps late nights watching TV, surfing Internet, etc.
J: Sleeps early and rises early.

A: Sedentary home-bound lifestyle.
J: Physically active, outdoor lifestyle.

Lifted from good read on nutrition and the bible at:
http://chetday.com/biblicalnutritionarticles.htm