Less Stress

As I have watched the Dr. Oz show off and on, I have found some useful tips I'd like to pass on a more importantly, remember myself.


His 4 big ideas to have less stress in your life were:

1. Discontinue Caffeine


2. Cut back or discontinue sugar intake


3. Add Vitamin C to your diet


4. Increase Endorphins by: Exercising, Meditation & Deep Breathing

How interesting. Eating right has always been a challenge for us in America. God created food from the ground for us to eat, but why do we always seem to go for the highly sugar added, fried in grease, chemically processed or enhanced with preservatives food? Oh how good it would be to eat only the good things for me. I look forward to eating more from the land we live on each year. Next year we plan to plant fruit trees to eat from and sell at our Farmer's Market in Springfield.

Then there is adding that Vitamin C. I believe that a person needs to get out in great outdoors and get the serotonin from the sun every day. I find it so rewarding and encouraging to my mental health to get outside with God's living creation daily. Thanks Lord, for the great property you allow us to care for. I pray you will give us the means to pay for the extra $800 each month we are going to have to pay in taxes this next year. YEP, our property tax in Sarpy County, NE went up 333%. Talk about taxation with out representation. Pathetic.

Okay, back to the list of stress relievers that I desperately need this year. Hmmm, endorphins increase. Did you know making love to your spouse increases endorphins that produce a healthy body? Yep. And about the meditation, what about daily prayer, memorizing the word, studying the word and just "Being still and knowing that HE is God." I think meditating on his word is a very useful practice to understanding God's will, and lining up with it. When I first learned how to meditate on his word several years ago, I was amazed how God gave me direction, comfort and peace in knowing and completing his plan. He also gave me the "next right thing to do," each day!

And to think people are all in a flurry about how wonderful Yoga is these days, like it's a new practice for great health. I think God designed a perfect idea for great health. Meditating on his word makes so much more great sense compared to the Eastern Religion idea of emptying your mind and finding peace from within. God tells us always to renew our minds. Romans 12:2 "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect."

I must take time to reduce stress by renewing my mind right now! Add deep breath here - in through the nose and out through the mouth.

Are Women in America Unhappy?

Today, still doing laundry, Rachel Ray told viewers on her show that statistics show women in America are unhappier today than in previous decades. She went on to state that we have more power, more business success and more women in the work force, yet we are not as happy. She said, "Why is that?"

Well I'd love to answer that Rachel. I think we have made a shift away from what God intended for Marriage and Family. While women have lots of opportunities, many women take advantage of that and in the long run end up doing jobs that require a lot of their time and energy, pulling them away from the their families and definitely not encouraging oneness in their marriage relationships. Am I saying it's wrong to work outside the home? NO, but make sure it doesn't interfere with your number one priority as a Mom and Wife, to be the intended helper/homemaker of your family. If it does, it may not be a good choice for your family.

My husband will say that many times women excel at work because they do not get the encouragement from husbands at home. People even compliment what a woman wears in the workplace. I've always said, I think women dress up for other women. We get many of our compliments from each other and look forward to impressing our girl friends. However, if you put together a day with; an argument with your husband left over from the night before and a boss or other male co-worker complimenting the way you dress then you may have a recipe for success for Satan to get in and cause problems in a marriage.

Satan's goal is to break up a marriage. In doing that, he will break up a family, which in turn breaks up a church and as many societies before us have disintegrated, so will America, our country. Satan hates any thing of God touches. God created the institution of marriage, the church, and the family. We must fight for our families and not let being busy cause us to drift from a happy and fulfilling marriage, family, church and country.

So back to why they are unhappy. Could it be that women have taken on too much or too many tasks we were not created to handle. Are we working to buy stuff we don't need to end up working a job we don't like and hauling things to the curb for the Disabled Veteran van to pick-up things we no longer need, want or have time to use?

Sometimes you have to get off the wagon of bad habits. Take time to be the Mom you want to be. Which usually lines up more to the Mom God wants you to be. I've worked with SO many women that end up working just to pay the bills and they hate it. Many times women are making more than their husbands, who in the long run tend to lose self esteem by having a higher paid wife.

Remember this little quote..."If Satan can't make you bad, he will work to make you busy." Too busy to take care of a family and marriage relationship. Then breakdown happens. Make time for God, Your Husband, Your Children and You, each day in this order and you will find more recipe for happiness. Keep your priorities in the right order for success. Learn to serve God your spouse and your family to find joy and blessing each and every day!

Marriage & Sex & My Laundry

This week is laundry week. As I fold, hang-up and iron I get to hear much of the morning talk shows. Yesterday, Dr. Oz said that "Americans prioritize everything above their romantic partners – and as a result, the country is in the midst of a sexual famine." He put out a challenge for an experiment to help couples across America. While I don't line up totally with Dr. Oz's Eastern Religion influence, I do believe he has very good points to be made. AND many of the tip in this challenge would do all marriage some good. Such as the first challenge of just holding and cuddling (non-sexual touching) for 10 minutes each weeks. We suggest this all the time to heal marriages and help them find oneness.

http://www.doctoroz.com/challenge/national-sex-experiment

Check it out for your marriage!