Health and learning.

I have been trying to homeschool my kids and lately we've been taking a bit of a break because Victors grandmother is moving, so we have been helping her sort and get rid of items. Also, we have been trying to sort some of our things so that we are less cluttered. 

One of the challenges for me as a homeschooling mom is my own addiction to the internet. Especially Facebook and all the unnecessary reading that is put before me. I often have trouble breaking away from my iPad to do what needs to be done, and spend time with my kids. I hate that I am selfish and lazy and would rather go the easy route in most things.

On top of that, I am taking a Bible health class via phone, which is very interesting and fun. The downside to that is I am learning so much that I need to change in my life and want to be able to share it all with my family right now. Overwhelming, sometimes, since I have a tendency to want to do it all at once and then get discouraged, because I can't. I have to remember to take it one step at a time, one moment at a time. 

So today, we are going to get started back into a schooling mindset. We had our worship and then walked to the park and back. That's P.E. Then we did some history and science, followed by art and music, and English. Now it's time for home ec and lunch. 

Sarah isn't feeling well so she is napping off and on in my lap which makes doing anything difficult, but we'll get it done.

Odds and ends

So, yesterday I played the violin for a wedding of a friend. It was beautiful, outdoors, by a pond with an island and a bridge. The flowers were pretty and the breeze cool. I played a bit of music while everyone was getting ready and then played Pachelbels Canon in D, accompanied by a YouTube video arrangement by a guitar player. http://youtu.be/jXC9tuumjiA

Very nice. The ceremony included a traditional Mexican Lasso ceremony which was a new experience. And then after all was done, I played Trumpet Fanfare, I think, a couple times. Afterwards we put on some music using the iPad and then the iPhone using the Bose system, which was having its debut outdoors. 

Today, Victor took the Bose system to another park, for the church's Easter outreach for the community. He had to string extension cords clear across the park to power it because the power wasn't on in the outlets where they were using it. But it went ok.

Grandma is packing bit by bit, getting rid of stuff in preparation for moving in May. And we are slowly cleaning house and getting rid of stuff as well, thinking of possibly moving as well, if God says so. We are trying to get out of debt and so selling a few items will help with that as well. Sold the big freezer and the tv, speakers and now just a few others waiting to sell.

We got the garden started and things are popping up all over the place today. Beans and squash, some greens, and a few melons and even some asparagus finally came up. It's spring!!

We are looking at getting rid of the van and buying something cheap, so that we don't have a car payment, also to help pay down the debt that we do have. I would like a smaller car, but can't have that until after grandma moves and it would have to fit a least five. It would be something for the kids and I to run around in. Otherwise, we might get something with four wheel drive, maybe another pickup, which Victor could use sometimes for work when he needs to. I would prefer something with manual transmission, but we'll have to see what The Lord has in mind. It's His plan anyway.

I've been learning today about air and rest, in my medical missionary training. We need to have fresh air at all times in our homes, to keep from breathing poisons that are put out by our bodies and the environment around us. Even in cold weather we should have the windows and/or doors open a crack to let in fresh air. 

As for rest, the hours before midnight are the best, as that is when our bodies and brains detox. If we go to bed at nine o'clock and rise at 3 or 4, we would be much better rested than if we went to bed at midnight and got up at 9. Those 6 or 7 hours with some before 12 would be healthier than the 9 after 12. We are going to try to incorporate this starting tonight.

Anyway, that all for now.

Lessons in following God

Ok, so we are having to learn some more lessons in following God.

I made the mistake of trusting someone who turned out to be a fraud. Fortunately, he didn't get away with any of our money, and if he took any of our information, that is yet to be seen. We are making sure to monitor our accounts closely and are going to the fraud department to file a claim as this guy seems to be involved in a huge scam, so much so that the FBI May also be involved.

Lesson #1: if someone wants to help you pay off your debts, do not ever give him any information such as login information or account information. Have them give a donation to your checking account using an email or phone number which they already have if they contacted you.

Lesson #2: if in doubt, don't accept help. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Lesson #3: do not follow your feelings. Listen closely to Gods voice and your gut reactions to any red flags that pop up.

And Lesson # 4: always, and I mean always, check with your banker before making any moves with someone who may be a fraud. Do not ever rely on what he says as truth, even if he seems like a nice person. They can be very convincing. They will say things to make you feel guilty for not trusting them, will seem nice and talk about being cautious, not wanting to give you their information and then turning around and trusting you with it. The information he gives you may end up being false or ill gotten.

Like I said, fortunately, we learned from this, and also he was discovered to be a fraud before he got away with anything.

The last couple of days have been very stressful and we have a few more of those ahead as we make sure that this guy gets his due.

Yesterday, Victor and I decided we would give everything back to God, which we have been a bit lax at doing, especially since it was His to begin with. We are going to try to remember to consult Him in everything. What to do with stuff we intend to get rid of, if we should get rid of it, should we buy that, should we sell that, etc.

He is now officially our Manager, which He should have been all along.

Recipe for today's lunch

Made this recipe today with a few modifications.

http://www.vegetarianventures.com/2013/09/22/chickpea-dumplings-in-curry-tomato-sauce/#.UziWjZK9KK3

CHICKPEA DUMPLINGS IN CURRY TOMATO SAUCE

adapted from Saveur Issue 156

• 1 cup chickpea flour (also called Garbanzo bean flour)
• 1/2 cup finely chopped cilantro (plus more for garnish)
• 1/4 cup + 1 Tablespoon peanut oil
• 1/3 cup greek yogurt (use soy yogurt to make vegan)
• 2 serrano chilis, seeds removed and minced
• 1 onion, minced
• 2 teaspoons coriander seeds
• 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1 1/2 tablespoons curry powder
• 1 28 ounce can of whole tomatoes, crushed
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger (or 1 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled & grated)

• Cooked rice

Heat 1 Tablespoon of oil in a large skillet or saucepan over medium. Add coriander, mustard, and cumin seeds; cook for about a minute or until they begin to pop. Add curry powder, one serrano pepper, and 1/2 the onion. Sauté for about 5 minutes or until softened. Add tomatoes (with juice from the can), turmeric, ginger, and a cup of water. Bring to a boil and then let simmer for ten minutes or until it has thickened up.

While simmering, combine the rest of the serranos, onions, chickpea flour, cilantro, oil, yogurt, and salt in a bowl. Stir until a thick dough has formed.

Drop a heaping tablespoon of dough into the stew; repeat with the rest of the dough. Cover mixture and let steam / simmer for another 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat.

Enjoy right away with cilantro and yogurt as garnish.

My adaptations were as follows:

All purpose gf baking flour since I didn't have any chickpea flour and the mix has chickpeas flour as it's first ingredient. 

No oil, used some water instead.

A little silky tofu in place of yogurt.

Left out the chilis since the one small can of tomatoes I used had chilis in it.

Used ground seasonings and left out the mustard. Couldn't find the curry powder so used a bit of garam masala instead.

It turned out good. The kids weren't fond of the dumplings, but Victor and I liked them. The curry was too hot for my taste so I'll add less curry powder and use tomatoes with no chilis next time. And maybe next time I'll use coconut milk in the dumplings, to help with the flavor. 

Curry and dumplings on left and quinoa with tomatoes and cucumbers and olives on right.

Health and stuff

I've been taking a health class, from a Biblical standpoint, and it's amazing the stuff I've learned over the years that I need to unlearn and the things I need to change to be in line with Gods Word and counsel. I'll post more later on some of it. 

Let's start at the beginning.

God created us perfect and good in the beginning. The Bible says in Psalm 139:14, "I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. . . ."

God created our bodies to be able to heal themselves, and He also created us for His honor and glory and we are to go take care of them.

Th Bible says, "Whether therefor Ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, DO ALL TO THE GLORY OF GOD." 1 Corinthians 10:31

As Christians, we are called to take the gospel message of Salvation to the world. How can we do this if we are sick all the time? Or our brains are fogged up with allergies? Also, many people are not even willing to listen to Bible, or talk about Jesus. We must do as Jesus did and help them with their physical sickness! and then their hearts may be softened to be open to the Word of God. 

In 3 John 2 it is written, "Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even  as thy soul prospereth." 

So also in Exodus God promised health to the Israelites if they followed the laws set out for them. 

Exo 15:26    "And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that healeth thee."

What were the diseases of the Egyptians? 

If we read in Deuteronomy 28 and Leviticus 26 we find a list of diseases, most of which we also find today in our modern societies. Things like tuberculosis, and fever, heart attack, arthritis and poxes of various kinds. Inflammation which is a symptom of many other diseases. And actually, diseases themselves are all symptoms of something wrong with the body.

Proverbs 26:2 says  "As the bird by wandering, as the swallow by flying, so the curse causeless shall not come."

Disease always has a cause. We are told that disease is the body's attempt at getting rid of problems that came about because of failure to follow the laws of health. 

God gave us a manual for living, called the Bible. This includes care for ourselves  as well as others, and the world we live in. When we don't follow the manual, things break down and we end up suffering the consequences,

Deu 30:19    I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:

Gal 6:7    Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.

God's desire is that we choose life and be healthy and teach others the same, to bring them to Him as their Creator and Physician that they may also see their need of a Saviour. 

I pray we can make the right choices and educate ourselves as to how God wants us to live. He tells us how in His Word, and we must search it out. 

I will post more about what I have been learning in regards to health in the Bible.

Exercise and other things

This week I have tried to at least get in a 15 minute walk with the kids after breakfast, but that didn't every day. Today, I walked with the kids to the park and back. While there, I did some pull-ups and chin-ups and a few push-ups and then took Sarah down the slides a bunch of times. I did this last week as well. A couple days ago, I tried to take the kids and walk to the mailbox and back, but Josh crashed his bike and scraped up his side and knee pretty bad, so we turned around.

We are going to try to do more exercise everyday, for healing and to build up so that I, at least, can hike the mountain next year. See, I have to keep this goal in mind.

Tomorrow, I am going to do a fruit fast, and then add in some grains, and veges and then back to more normal. I haven't been very good the last few weeks and my gallbladder needs some extra healing.

The kids are doing great with their schoolwork. We just got through reading a book about the Puritans and the Mayflower which was really interesting. It was by Rush Limbaugh and was a fun way to view history. We have been doing a bunch of different things for the different subjects and I have been enjoying homeschooling these days. They are also picking up their reading and writing quite well. I got them each a binder with paper and pens and they have been really loving being able to draw and write.

Last year, we were given 9 months to move. That was up today. Well, along in there, the landlord/manager said he worked some sort of deal and nobody had to move after all. Today, we found out that the paperwork and the money for his deal hadn't gotten past the judges desk. So, we had a paper to sign for a 90 day extension of the 9 months. Now, the his hope is that the judge will sign off on the deal and no one will have to move at the end of the 90 day extension, but really, this is getting old, the uncertainty.

Oh, well. God has a plan, and is always in control. Lord, give us patience, and show us the way!

I guess that's all for now. I'm going to post more tomorrow on health and stuff.

Fun health stuff!

The last month or so I've been taking a class on Medical Missionary work. So it's all about God's Plan for health and helping other other people heal themselves as a door to leading them to Christ.

Having gone to Weimar, which is a health based school, I knew a lot of what we are learning already. However, there are things I have learned since school, that I am having to unlearn and many things to relearn, and a lot of stuff I didn't know at all. 

We are reading some awesome books on health, especially the Bible. And I have had some experiences with my own health that are confirming for me, God's way of health. And it is meant for everyone! It is a one size fits all, basically.

First of all, God wants is to be healthy. And physical health affects the mental and spiritual health as well. So, if our body is sick, our brain would be too, and if our brain is fogged up with sickness, we can't think or reason as well, and decision making becomes impaired, affecting the spiritual life. God has given us clear instructions in His word on how we can be healthy and most diseases are brought on by our own violation of the laws of health and nature.

The first step to healing is figuring out the cause. Then we remove the cause and change or correct whatever it is we need to change, such as lack of exercise or wrong foods in the diet, or lack of water. Finally, we aid healing by applying healing herbs, water treatments, charcoal, and whatever other natural remedies may be helpful.

For example, the last few gallbladder attacks I have had I was able to shorten them and leesen the pain using natural remedies instead of drugs. The first one, I used hot and cold water only. The second one, I applied some essential oils (wonderful aids, by the way. Check out my website! Www.Youngliving.org/sasekvj ) and also did a charcoal poultice which worked the best. I was able to completely relax and sleep through it. The most recent attack, I was at church and by had brought my box of oils along, not realizing til later that it was a divine inspiration to do so. I used Panaway for pain, lemon for inflammation and blood pressure, and peppermint for digestion. We were having an afternoon meeting, so I went for a walk in the warm sunshine, then just before we went home, I did a hot compress alternating with cold. A few minutes after we left, the pain was completely gone. 

The causes of the attacks were all diet related. So, I am going to work on changing it and doing better at eating right. Plus, I have a tendency to overeat. I am a glutton (pun intended) for punishment. 

Oh, another plug for essential oils and healthy eating. We had some unhealthy foods last week, and that brought on another round of constipation/vomiting/ diarrhea stomach bug thing with Sarah and then John. Only Sarah threw up. I used peppermint and Peace and Calming which has patchouli in it and that helped calm the dry heaves and nausea right down. I also put a charcoal poultice on her stomach and gave her some charcoal water to drink. That was Thursday night and she was well enough to go to church on Sabbath morning. 

Anyway, I think that's a start. I will write more later about what kinds of things I want to incorporate into our lifestyle.

Oh, yeah this last week we also walked 3 miles round trip to the park and then 2 miles round trip almost to the mailbox. Working on doing that more often. 

And got part of the garden planted, after we put down 2 tons of mulch. Fun times! Exciting times, as well. More on that later!!

www.youngliving.org/sasekvj