Sunday, May 31, 2009

More on the Diet

I've been doing some more thinking on the matter of food in my life. Here are a few of my own confessions and new insights that might spur some further personal reflection for some of you:
  1. I should not be enslaved by food. I'm not my own, I've been bought with a price. Jesus is my master, not my stomach.
  2. As part of the body of Christ, whereby we experience the indwelling of the Holy Spirit on both a corporate and individual level, I should not defile it with excess body fat.
  3. Taking care of my body, through my diet, is a matter of stewardship. The body matters to God. The resurrection declares that truth.
  4. I'm surprised that we are many times quicker to criticize the way somebody uses their money than we are to take stock of the way we are treating our own bodies with the food we eat.
  5. Gluttony is a sin. I can't avoid that.
  6. I shouldn't be surprised by the fact that my body functions better when I fill it with the kinds of foods, in proper proportions, for which it was designed.
  7. When I'm functioning in good health because of proper diet and exercise I'm in a better position to help my neighbor when needs arise. This truth makes my overeating selfish.

Still lots to learn.

I've got my weekly weigh-in tomorrow morning. It should be encouraging, but I'm more thankful for what the scale shows about the transformation going on in my own heart.

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Where have I been?

Wow, I can't believe that my last post was ten days ago. I'm fine. I haven't died. In fact, I've been getting healthier. I started a journey to health with Weight Watchers. Yes, that's what I said.

I like the program because it's all about math. No special meals, just simple math. I can do math, so I understand how to have reasonable expectations.

3500 calories burned equals one pound of weight loss.
Eating 1000 calories less than you burn each day equals two pounds weight loss per week.
Losing two lbs/week from now until mid August equals a healthier me.

It's not been easy. I'm now 9 days in, and have to admit that part of the reason I haven't posted is because I'm keeping myself busy with other activities besides sitting in front of this computer. I'm in rhythm now, though, and will be able to keep you all up to date.

Here's what the numbers look like so far.

Beginning weight on May 18: 222 (Yikes! That's a lot for my knees to handle!)
Weekly weigh-in last Monday: 219 (It's all down hill from here!)
Took a sneak peak this evening: 217 (Wow!)

I'll keep posting every Monday as part of my own accountability. I hope to write more tomorrow about how this experience has opened my up to a whole new area in my life desperately in need of Jesus to overhaul in His grace.

I'm thinking about my hunger pangs now so that's my cue to go to sleep.

Sunday, May 17, 2009

Santa Barbara

I know some of you are wondering if I'm ever home in Vegas anymore. I'm starting to wonder the same thing! This weekend was spent in Santa Barbara, CA. It was only 73 degrees yesterday! The shock of hitting 112 degree weather in Barstow on our way home was not an easy one to absorb.

The official reason for the trip: preach and worship with a congregation in SB. The time with those people this morning was great. God showed up among his people with great encouragement.

I missed being here with our dear friends at CWR.

This trip was one in which I could bring the kids and Angie. So glad I did! Yesterday we bought tickets onto a 64' boat that gave about 40 people a 3 1/2 hour ride around the Channel Islands. We saw flying fish, sea lions, two humpback whales, and 1000 common dolphins. You could see the dolphins roaring through the water under the boat as they coordinated their efforts for lunch. Absolutely breathtaking!

It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience that I hope to repeat at least once more.

Lot's to do this week. Better get the rest of this needed Sabbath rest!

Monday, May 11, 2009

Fatherly Apostleship (1 Cor 4)

I can't believe the way Paul lays things out for his beloved children in the faith. His humility is established in the opening verses of the chapter: "This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God."

Good stewards are good example setters, to the extent that Paul says, "Be imitators of me." What would we imitate? We would imitate a man who has been faithful in his stewardship of the gospel and love for those who need to hear it. Paul was not a man looking for the easy life. The Kingdom is too important for that. Rather, he was, "like a man sentenced to death, because we have become a spectacle to the world, to angels, and to men. We are fools for Christ's sake...To the present hour we hunger and thirst, we are poorly dressed and buffeted and homeless, and we labor, working with our own hands."

That's the kind of gospel worker I long to be. Would that the gospel becomes so important to everyone of us in the City-Wide Redeemer community that all else is loss compared to the glorious riches we have to enjoy and share in the gospel!

Last Week's Boca Trip

Many of you prayed for me during my time in Boca Raton. Thank you. The week at Spanish River Church was an incredible encouragement to my soul as I continue to try and play my unique part in God's huge world mission. I was able to chat with a few guys planting churches in the Manhattan area. Very cool stuff. I also spent time with a church planter in Haiti who has now seen God multiply his efforts over the past 11 years into 42 church plants, 2 seminaries, and orphan care for 2300 children. He's one of my heroes of the faith for sure!

The time Sunday afternoon at the beach was much needed. There is something incredibly therapeutic about being in the surf as one wave after another grooved by and smashed into the retreating water from the beach. So glad I remembered my sun screen too. That could have been bad.

On the way over to the beach I encountered a first, at least as far as I can remember. It was a ramp in the road that lifted up in order to allow drivers to skip over the downtown area just before arriving on Deerfield Beach. You can see the picture below. I think I made it about 3,400 ft before landing squarely into my parking spot on the top level of the parking garage. Invigorating! Time for new shocks.


OK, so that's not what happened. It's just a draw bridge that allows the rich and famous access to and from their inland docks. Cool nonetheless.

Friday, May 1, 2009

Sad News in Vegas

Death is always horrible, but sometimes its ugly and sinister nature is tempered a bit when life is lived out to years beyond 70. This morning as I drove into downtown you could sense, even from the expressway, that the entire town was stunned. Acclaimed entertainer, Danny Gans, dead at age 52. News reports came across the radio waves as local dj's struggled to keep their composure in the midst of reporting the death of their friend. Out of 13 years in Vegas he was voted Las Vegas Entertainer of the Year 11 times. He was a friend to the city. He loved to help the helpless. Graciousness defined his interactions with others. He was known as a follower of Jesus. He was loved by many. Death is always horrible.

Thank God for the Lord Jesus Christ!

Me and Angie

Me and Angie
December 2010