The Fit Christian | The Fit Christian Magazine May/June … | HP MagCloud.
The Fit Christian: The Fit Christian Magazine May/June 2012
In this issue:Features:Take Steps Toward a Healthier Lifestyle; Living the Good Life, Naturally; For The Boys: Mentoring Boys Changes Lives; Raising Gluten Free Teens; Spotlight: Tarrah Smithson; The Daniel Fast; Hope and Healing for Her: Help for Women Alcoholics and Their Families.…
Yes, the new issue of The FC has been published, but there is a catch–it is only here on Issuu until I can update the website with the new issue–I am in the process of moving and have another day or so until I am free to update the site. Ima prayin’ for endurance, cuz I’ve got my hands full!
It is available as a PDF download on Here on Scribd for a buck 
Then you can take it with you and read it anytime, offline.
Every time you purchase a PDF of The FC Mag, 50% goes to charity to help those in need.
Thank you for your support!
I am very grateful that God led me to this fast. During the 21-day fast I received wonderful answers to prayers for my children, I learned some new ways to add healthy eating to my diet–vegan no less–along with some delicious new recipes, I lost some weight (a bonus!), and I experienced some very close one-on-one time with my Lord.
I hope all who joined me in the fast received great spiritual rewards for abstaining from certain foods in order to draw closer to God. And I hope you didn’t overdo it with Easter dinner like I did–the ham and filled eggs kept calling my name!
This morning, I tried to stay close to my new eating habits that I learned on the fast, with two exceptions. I enjoyed a breakfast of Chai tea, carrot juice, filled eggs, and a banana. Normally, before the fast, I would have boiled eggs, but since we still had a couple filled eggs left from Easter dinner, I indulged.
Onward and forward to continuing to choose a healthy eating habit, and in spending dedicated time daily in prayer and Bible study.
Thank you Kristen Feola for opening your online Daniel fast up to the readers of The Fit Christian Magazine and for writing such a terrific resource on fasting. Be blessed on your upcoming missions trip as you continue to bless those whom the Lord places in your path.
Congratulations goes to Lola of South Carolina for winning our drawing for the book “The Ultimate Guide to the Daniel Fast” by Kristen Feola!
We have another drawing starting and it will be announced here and on Facebook soon! Be sure to enter!
I am extending our Easter Giveaway to Monday, April 9 so I can have the Easter weekend off 
If you haven’t entered for your chance to win a copy of Kristen Feola’s book “The Ultimate Guide to the Daniel Fast” what are you waiting for??
Today was a different day, just as every day is; but what made this day really different was my decision to fast strictly on fruit & vegetable juices and water for the entire day until sundown. And during that time I dedicated myself to Bible study and prayer. I got several lessons done in my Old Testament Survey for my Bible school, and really dug deeper into the scriptures in Exodus through Deuteronomy than ever before. I prayed for hours, which is not like me, over my children, finances, pastor, ministry, and other things that I brought before the Lord. What a blessed and refreshing day it has been!
I will be honest, by the time it was dark, I was ready for a break–and for dinner! I fixed vegetarian spaghetti sauce with black beans, carrots and onions and served it over brown rice. On the side we had corn on the cob and fresh papaya. It was delicious! Not only that, but a very small plate filled me up. Why don’t I eat like that more often–juice through the day and a small meal at night. I am going to repeat this tomorrow, including the study and prayer time. And my decision to do that, especially after today, has made me anxious (in a good way) for tomorrow to come!
Wouldn’t it be nice to live every day in deep communion with God and the study of His Holy Word! I am blessed with what I do. Publishing Christian books and this magazine allows me to further the Kingdom in ways I never dreamed, and the freedom to stop and pray or study whenever I need to throughout my days. I thank God for the opportunity to serve His leaders; and for meeting my needs as I continue to serve Him.
Today, I am no longer feeling like I am ready to fail, and I am not looking forward to this fast to end.
Just two more days to go, and my knees are already shaky, figuratively of course. Health wise, I have been doing great on the fast. I am losing some weight and behaving myself on the food restrictions. And I have not been watching my shows on Hulu and Netflix. Until…
Last night I decided to end my two week fast Hulu/Netflix fast so I could get caught up with Desperate Housewives, House and Bones. I had peace in knowing I had walked away for two weeks in order to draw closer to God, and show Him that He is more important to me than anything, like my time at night watching Hulu or Netflix before sleep. Adding that into my Daniel Fast did increase my Bible Reading and study time, and I was able to find a quite place to pray and just be alone with God when I needed to focus just on Him. I need to keep that a habit; being alone with Him with no distractions is hard with our current living situation, but when there is a will, there is a way!
Today, I did “cheat” a smidge on the fast. Let’s start with yesterday, though. I made this amazing potato salad with red potatoes, red onions, olives, celery & carrots (sauteed first), and water chestnuts, then added dill, garlic, and Lawry’s. Then I made vegan mayonnaise to coat everything (recipe below). It was “okay” and I ate. Chris didn’t like the vegan mayo so he didn’t eat it. That left a lot of leftovers for me.
Tonight, when I decided to have that for my dinner, I couldn’t bear to eat it either 
it was dry and I didn’t have any more “vegannaise” so I added regular mayo so I could eat it. A little dab won’t hurt me. And quite frankly, why can’t we have eggs? They aren’t meat or dairy, so they should be okay. I know, I know I’m making excuses. Maybe they are okay and I have been sacrificing more than I have had to.
I am looking for this fast to be finished, but I am so glad that I did it. I finally found a fast I can live with! I am going to implement it twice a year, and I am going to keep a lot of the healthy eating habits I have learned from eating as Daniel did.
God is amazing. I am always in awe of how much He loves His children, and how much He does for us, when we put Him first in our lives. I am still blown away by the answers to my prayers, and I know more are on their way! Thank you, Jesus, for leading me to this fast.
“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Matthew 6:33
Tofu Mayonnaise
Ingredients
1 (12 ounce) package tofu, drained and cut into cubes
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar (I used white vinegar)
1 teaspoon dry mustard (I used spicy brown mustard)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup peanut oil (I used olive oil)
Directions
Place the tofu, sesame oil, cider vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper into the container of a blender. Blend until smooth. Drizzle the peanut oil in a thin stream while blending until thick and pale. Use promptly.
My blender did not mix the tofu until smooth, but probably because it was extra firm and not a silky tofu. I will try a softer type next time. Also, use it right away. Mine separated after being combined with potato salad and being refrigerated overnight.
I got this recipe from Allrecipes.com
I can hardly believe two weeks have already gone by since starting the Easter Daniel Fast, that means not only do I have one week to go, but it also means that Easter is in one week and I am totally unprepared!
Easter will be the first day after the end of the 21-day fast, and you may be thinking of how you are going to gorge yourself on all those yummy foods that you chose to abstain from in order to draw closer to God. Think again! After a fast you want to slowly and gradually add foods a little every day to allow your body time to adjust. If your body doesn’t react well to certain foods, like dairy or breads, you may have an allergy that has been undetected until now. An elimination diet is one way of finding a culprit–so if you are concerned about an allergy, add dairy for a couple days to see how your body reacts before adding breads, or anything with gluten (wheat, rye and barley). Doing an elimination diet is how I found out that I have an allergy to wheat–without going through a lot of expensive testing. Of course, getting tested with your doctor is one sure way of nailing an allergy, so do get tested if you can.
Another suggestion is to try to continue to avoid eating empty calories–foods full of calories but no nutrition. Your body needs healthy foods to keep it going in good working condition, so it can last you a lifetime. Instead of a cookie, grab fruit; rather than white flour pasta, eat brown rice flour pasta; and rather than white rice, eat brown rice–you have probably grown accustomed to it by now if you weren’t already.
There are a lot of ways to continue to incorporate the healthy eating habits you have learned on this fast without fasting, simply by choosing to continue to eat healthy. You’ve already kicked the habit of eating junk food, why start again? Keep building up your body with healthy fruits and vegetables and whole grains, and keep building up your spirit with prayer, reading and studying the Holy Bible, and setting apart time alone with God.
So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” 1 Corinthians 10:31 ESV.
I made it to Day Eight! I have been doing well on the fast, including my “extra” fast of not watching Hulu. I am more productive–a lot more. I am getting my ministry studies done. Getting housework done. And am able to focus on work projects and complete them much quicker. I am more focused.
I have actually enjoyed cooking and coming up with a few variations of recipes on my own. My son Chris has indulged in all the fasting foods, and has helped me prepare some, even though he is not on the fast. I don’t see much difference in my health yet. I still get tired, I still have aches and pains, but I also fight a daily battle with Fibromyalgia, so fatigue and pain are normal for me. It is mind over matter, in other words, yes I hurt every waking minute, but I do my best to ignore it. As far as weight loss on this fast is concerned, I haven’t even bothered to step on the scale since I started the fast. Weight loss is a goal of mine, but not on this fast (it would be a nice benefit though). The main objective of this fast is getting closer to God and praying for my children And in those areas I am definitely seeing results!
My daughter, who is the biggest reason I decided to join the fast, was spiraling downward. She was making choices that were hurting her physically, emotionally and spiritually. Those choices were also ensuring she would have a bleak future, if she had one at all. At one point (before the fast began) I was freaking out due to reports that I was hearing and I was ready to fly to Alaska and “save” her. But God told me to wait and let Him do the saving. Doing nothing but praying and trusting Him was difficult. When he told me that, I slumped onto my bathroom floor and cried. But I knew He was right. She would have laughed in my face and I would have left Alaska without her, for sure. I wanted to get her into rehab fast. But God had other plans.
Since the fast, she has walked away from meth and the guy that got her into it! She has made a decision to better her life. She is taking GED classes and making plans for her future. She is even calling me more–and I can understand what she is saying, so I know she is clean. She has found a safe place with a single mom who is helping her get back on her feet and encouraging her to be a better person. And I am blown away!
I could NOT have done that! That was ALL GOD! And in one week! I have been in utter awe at what God is capable of doing–so much more than I could ever do or even hope for. And while I stand in awe of Him, the blessings and answers to prayers just keep on coming…
While I stood in worship this morning at church, I couldn’t help but glance over at my son Joshua and smile, thanking the Lord for drawing him through the doors. He hasn’t “attended” in months–either he slept in, or he would go to just help in the sound room, he didn’t make an effort to go and hear the Word. In the past month, he was unable to go because of work. He works late nights and sleeps days–Wed thru Sun–so I understood why he didn’t go–he was either working or sleeping. But yet I have been praying for him to draw closer to God and receive the direction for his ministry that I know he has been seeking.
Last week, something kinda strange happened–his boss made an unusual request of him–to come in at noon (during his sleep time) and work a couple hours. So Saturday, that is what he did. He got home about 4AM, slept a few hours, got up and went to work at noon for a couple hours, came home and slept till he had to be back to work at 6PM. That was a rough day. So I was sure that he was happy about not having to repeat that again today. But surprisingly he did, but not for work, for church! He got home about 4AM, went to sleep, then got up, took a shower and went to church, then after church, back to sleep– he is sleeping now even–then he has to go back to work tonight at 6PM. This morning, before church, I asked him why he decided to wake up to go to church today (I was intrigued because I knew he needed his sleep, and the day before was so rough on him). He said he figured if he could get up and do that for work, then he could certainly do it for God and go to church. An answered prayer.
Now that is commitment! I should be that committed. We all should be that committed. It made me reflect on how I can be more committed during this fast, and sought God for the answer. “Pray more,” was the answer, and one that I already knew. I need to pray more–not just pray as I have been praying–but get on my needs and pray, put my forehead to the ground and pray, and pray in the spirit when I run out of words to say. I need to pray more. After hearing about my daughter’s decision to better her life and seeing my son walk through the church doors this morning, how can I disagree? God answers prayers when we are obedient to him. And I have three other children that I am praying for!
I thank you Father that Your Word prevails over my children, that they desire to hear and study the Word so they may grow in the grace and knowledge of you, Lord. I thank you for saving them and calling them with a holy calling. You deliver them from every evil work and preserve them for your glory. Give Your angels special charge to accompany, defend, preserve and provide safety for my children day and night. Because they keep Your Word, Your love is being perfected in them. I thank you that my children follow after righteousness, faith, love, and peace and desire to live honorably for you, Lord. In Jesus Name, Amen.
First Day Of The Rest Of Your Life
Make today more than just another day. Make it the first day of the rest of your life!
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