Why Fast?

My last two Bible studies Physical Health/Spiritual Health have included foods to to eat. Now I am preparing a study on fasting because of a request of one of the people I am studying with. I have fasted many times in my life for various reasons. What ever the reason was at the time it always included getting closer to God. Some I chose to do by my own choice, and others because I felt prompted by God to do so. There are many examples of fasting in the Bible. You can read the book of Daniel and Esther for a few examples. Jesus fasted for forty days after He was baptized by John the Baptist. Each fast had a purpose.

Questions:

1. Why have you fasted?
2. What did you do to prepare for your fast?
3. What did you learn from your fast?
4. What are experiences you had while fasting?
5. What advice would you offer to someone who has never fasted before?

I am looking forward to reading your answers, and sharing them with those I am having Bible studies with. I will also be sharing my own testimonies of when I have fasted.

I want to thank you in advance for taking time to participate in this study and sharing of knowledge in this area. I hope together we can help others as they are seeking knowledge on this topic.

Regarding ‘Letters from God Volume II’

This is just a little note for those who have been enjoying my series titled Letters from God. I am not done writing for this second volume and I have not forgotten about them. I am currently focused on my Bible studies on Spiritual Health/Physical Health and this is taking my full attention. I will return to continue writing for the Letters from God soon. I had a couple of wonderful requests which have challenged me and I appreciate that. If there are any Biblical characters you are interested in reading a letter to please leave a request in the comments. I will be also writing letters to people who are more current to today’s times. Here is a sample title, ‘ Dear Addicted’. If you have any suggestion for this series please drop me a line. I would like to know what touches your heart and peaks your interest.Have a wonderful and blessed day!

I am here for you

     I do not know or truly understand what you have lived through. Even if you share your story with me, I would not know how you truly felt. You could describe the events and how they made you feel. But it is like watching a movie. One can only wonder how much of the story ended up on the floor of the editing room. We tell our story in short bits and pieces. Even how we express how we may have felt changes each time we share an event, depending on our current mood. If we are not feeling well, either physically or emotionally, we may express sadness or anger. Another time we may show indifference.  No matter how many times we may share the same story it may seem different. Some of us may record our thoughts and our daily events in journals and diaries. We take them out of the drawer or take them off the shelf to either add a new entry or read from our past. We reflect upon our own words and see how much we have grown. We are the same but different.

    I write this because that even though I may not completely understand how you feel or what you are going through, I do care about you. My pain and my experiences are different than yours but do not make them more difficult or tragic. They do make me more emphatic to your pain. I do understand your [pain hurts! You matter, and I am here to give you my ear to listen, my heart that cares, and my arms to hug and hold you when and if you need to cry. No judgment or criticism, no telling you what you may have done wrong, and no offering up advice on what you need to do. I am just here for you. You can talk and share what is going on or we can just sit in silence. It is up to you. I just want you to know that even if you feel all alone, I am here and you are loved.

Things That Grow

I love plants. I love to watch them grow. They bring life into the room. They clean the air. They are beautiful.

I grew these Avocado plants from seeds. It takes up to 3 months before the seed sprouts, but each time I see the first root, it gives me joy. I love to share these as gifts.

This is my little grapefruit. I grew it from a seed from a grapefruit given to me by a friend who get the fruit from their trees in Florida. I did not know if it would grow when I planted it, and the day I saw the sprout coming up out of the soil I was so excited.

I have grown plants from cuttings.

I have enjoyed using different kind of containers, from coffee cups to tea pots, and I even used an old cookie jar. I liked the character the container gave each plant.

Now there is a lesson that comes from growing all these wonderful plants. Each seed or cutting that grew reminded me of the seeds we plant with our words. Speaking life makes things grow, and it does not matter what the vessel looks like, God can use anyone. It does not matter what mistakes you have made, or what has been done to you. You can be that vessel that grows beautiful and has life to be shared. All of these plants are different and are planted in various containers, and I have given away many as gifts. The thing they all have in common is that they are alive and they are growing. Just like you and me, we are different and have lived different lives, but we are alive. We are growing in Christ everyday. Sharing His gift with anyone who will receive what we have to share. The life we share is one of forgiveness and love. When we look at a person we see a person who Jesus loves and died for. We see a vessel that if willing can be used to carry His life to another. At least this is how I choose to see people. Soil ready to be planted, and watch grow in His beauty and love.

What Kind Of Witness Was I today?

What kind of a witness was I today?

The thought just popped into my head as I was dusting off a shelf. During the time I spent outside of my home today, ‘Was I a witness for Christ?’ I am not talking about only about any conversations I may have had. Did my actions speak louder than my words, and what did they say? This is a self check. Did I smile at the person as they walked past me, or was I too busy in my own little world? Did I get angry and honk my horn when a car pulled out in front of me? Did I hold the door open when someone was coming out of where I was entering? Did I ask the cashier at the grocery store how was their day? Did I compliment anyone? Have I given any words of encouragement? Did I smile when a patient came into the office and great them by name? Have I shown any kindness at all to anyone I came in contact with today?

I hope that throughout the day I have shared love and kindness and ask for forgiveness for any time that I did not.

I pray that each day of my life on this planet, I live my life to please the One who truly loves us and has given us everything, and to give Him my best every day. Thank You Jesus, without You I would never have known what it truly means to be loved. Now I live to share the love you so freely gave to me.

Breathing Basics for Singing – For Dummies

Source: Breathing Basics for Singing – For Dummies

Power in The Blood/Spiritual Health/Physical Health / Bible Study

Spiritual Health / Physical Health

Study on Blood

(note; this is a condensed version of this study, There is so much on the blood of Jesus and human blood, you could write volumes on the subject. I only hope that in this study, you find something that you can use and apply to your life in a way that brings His healing and glory to you.)

     Blood is constantly moving. It is pumped from the heart, throughout the body through arteries. It then returns to the heart through the veins. It carries oxygen and nutrients to all of your body. Without blood you would not be alive. Yet the blood that truly gives you life is the blood of Jesus.

Leviticus 17:11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.

Life is in the blood. John 6:53-58 (KJV)⁵³ Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.⁵⁴ Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.⁵⁵ For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.⁵⁶ He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.⁵⁷ As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me.⁵⁸ This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live forever.

Blood plays an important role in both our physical health and spiritual health. Without it, our bodies would die. Without the blood of Jesus Christ we would not be cleansed from our sins. Matthew 26:28 – For this is my blood of the New Testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

Nothing but the Blood

There is Power in the Blood

Are you washed in the Blood?

These are just three hymns that have blood in their title. The blood sung about in each of these songs is the blood of Jesus. Sing praises to our Lord and Savior. Singing songs of praise and worship is one way we enter His presence. There is something that singing does for our body as well. Singing is an aerobic exercise as well.

Professor Graham Welch, Chair of Music Education at the Institute of Education, University of London, has studied developmental and medical aspects of singing for 30 years and he says the health benefits of singing are both physical and psychological. “Singing has physical benefits because it is an aerobic activity that increases oxygenation in the blood stream and exercises major muscle groups in the upper body, even when sitting. Singing has psychological benefits because of its normally positive effect in reducing stress levels through the action of the endocrine system which is linked to our sense of emotional well-being. Psychological benefits are also evident when people sing together as well as alone because of the increased sense of community, belonging and shared endeavor.”

http://heartresearch.org.uk/fundraising/singing-good-you

 

Scriptures

1 John 1:7 – But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

Hebrews 9:22 – And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.

Hebrews 9:12 – Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption [for us].

Revelation 12:11 – And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.

Exodus 12:13 – And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye [are]: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy [you], when I smite the land of Egypt.

Hebrews 13:20 – Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant,

Revelation 1:5 – And from Jesus Christ, [who is] the faithful witness, [and] the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood,

Hebrews 9:22 And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.

 

Foods good for your blood

Have some blackstrap molasses

Here’s what we definitely know: It’s rich in iron and minerals that help your body produce red blood cells and support your immune system, which is why it’s often recommended for women who suffer from bad menstrual cramps and have fibroids or endometriosis. Some people credit blackstrap molasses — the unsulfured kind! — with helping keep swelling down, which is not surprising given its anti-inflammatory properties. Two to three teaspoonfuls a day should do it. And don’t worry. Add it to oatmeal or sweeten your tea with it. Word on the street has it that it complements almond milk quite nicely as well.

Don’t pass on the spicy food

Well, if you can stand it and don’t suffer from any hiatal hernias or other gastroenterological issues, then go for it. Spicy food is a source of low-density lipoprotein (LDL), which is essentially a taxi service that shuttles fats and cholesterol in the water-based solution of your blood stream and helps your body dissolve any blood clots that may postentially form. The capsaicin in hot peppers helps tackle inflammation, too, and because spicy foods are rich in vitamins A and C, they raise your body’s temperature, which increases blood flow and gets your blood swooshing around in there as it should.

Ginger and turmeric root

Ginger, similar to those spicy peppers, can help jumpstart that blood flow, as can turmeric root, which has anti-inflammatory properties. Think of it as the best traffic cop or crossing guard you’ll ever meet. Turmeric prevents clogs and bottlenecks and other annoying obstacles that will render your circulatory system sluggish and your blood from getting where it needs to go efficiently.

Foods to Increase Red Blood Cell Count
Vitamin B diet:To take care of folate deficiency, eat a diet rich in green leafy vegetables like spinach, fenugreek, beans, lentils like masoor dal, moong dal, toor dal, urad dal. It’s also important to avoid overcooking vegetables and avoid leaving them out at room temperature for an extended period of time as this can significantly decrease their folic acid content.

Foods to Increase Red Blood Cell Count
Iron:Asparagus, sesame seeds, almonds, figs and black raisins are rich sources of iron. Eating a few almonds, black raisins and one fig, can ensure a good supply of iron in the day. A sumptuous mid meal made of sautéed asparagus, with sesame seeds speckled and some almonds, black raisins and a dried fig can boost one’s iron and folic acid levels.

Foods to Increase Red Blood Cell Count
Vitamin C:Increase your intake of vitamin C with foods like strawberries, sweet limes, guavas, broccoli, capsicums as vitamin C helps with the absorption of iron. Sour lemon squeezed on food is an inexpensive and palatable form of taking vitamin C to aid iron absorption.

Read more at http://livinggreenmag.com/2013/07/10/food-health/eight-ways-to-improve-your-blood-circulation/#kllrcgUythxiom5W.99

 

This week’s breathing exercise

Nadi Shodhana or “Alternate Nostril Breathing”

How it’s done: A yogi’s best friend, this breath is said to bring calm and balance, and unite the right and left sides of the brain. Starting in a comfortable meditative pose, hold the right thumb over the right nostril and inhale deeply through the left nostril. At the peak of inhalation, close off the left nostril with the ring finger, then exhale through the right nostril. Continue the pattern, inhaling through the right nostril, closing it off with the right thumb and exhaling through the left nostril.

When it works best: Crunch time, or whenever it’s time to focus or energize. Just don’t try this one before bed: Nadi shodhana is said to “clear the channels” and make people feel more awake. “It’s almost like a cup of coffee,” Pacheco says.

You can find this and other breathing exercises at this website:

http://healthland.time.com/2012/10/08/6-breathing-exercises-to-relax-in-10-minutes-or-less/

 

 

How Does the Body Make Blood?

http://kidshealth.org/kid/talk/qa/blood.html#

It’s not made in a kitchen, but blood has ingredients, just like a recipe. To make blood, your body needs to mix:

• red blood cells, which carry oxygen throughout the body
• white blood cells, which fight infections
• platelets, which are cells that help you stop bleeding if you get a cut
• plasma, a yellowish liquid that carries nutrients, hormones, and proteins throughout the body

Your body doesn’t go to the store to buy those ingredients. It makes them. Bone marrow — that goopy stuff inside your bones — makes the red blood cells, the white blood cells, and the platelets. Plasma is mostly water, which is absorbed from the intestines from what you drink and eat, with the liver supplying important proteins. Put all these ingredients together and you have blood — an essential part of the circulatory system. Thanks to your heart (which pumps blood) and your blood vessels (which carry it), blood travels throughout your body from your head to your toes.

Let’s find out more about each ingredient.

Red Blood Cells Red blood cells (also called erythrocytes, say: ih-RITH-ruh-sytes) look like flattened basketballs. Most of the cells in the blood are red blood cells. They carry around an important chemical called emoglobin (say: HEE-muh-glow-bin) that gives blood its red color. Blood and breathing go hand in hand. How? The hemoglobin in blood delivers oxygen, which you get from the air you breathe, to all parts of your body. Without oxygen, your body couldn’t keep working and stay alive.

White Blood Cells White blood cells (also called leukocytes, say: LOO-kuh-sytes) are bigger than red blood cells. There are usually not a whole lot of white blood cells floating around in your blood when you’re healthy. Once you get sick, though, your body makes some more to protect you. There are a couple types of white blood cells that do different things to keep you well:

Granulocytes You know how your skin gets a little red and swollen around a cut or scrape? That means the granulocytes (say: GRAN-yuh-low-sytes) are doing their jobs. They have a lot to do with how your body cleans things up and helps wounds heal after an injury. Granulocytes also help prevent infection by surrounding and destroying things that aren’t supposed to be in your body and by killing germs.

Lymphocytes There are two types of lymphocytes (say: LIM-fuh-sytes): B cells and T cells. B cells help make special proteins called antibodies that recognize stuff that shouldn’t be in your body, like bacteria or a virus you get from a sick friend. Antibodies are very specific, and can recognize only a certain type of germ. Once the antibody finds it, it gets rid of the germ so it can’t hurt you. The really cool part is that even after you are better, B cells can become memory cells that remember how to make the special antibody so that if the same germ infects you again, it can kill the germ even faster! T cells also battle germs that invade the body, but instead of making antibodies, they work by making special chemicals that help fight the infection.

Monocytes  Monocytes (say: MON-uh-sytes) are white blood cells that fight infection by surrounding and destroying bacteria and viruses.

Platelets Platelets, also called thrombocytes (say: THROM-buh-sytes), are tiny round cells that help to make sure you don’t bleed too much once you get a cut or scrape. Cuts and scrapes break blood vessels. If a platelet reaches a blood vessel that’s been broken open, it sends out a chemical signal that makes other nearby platelets start to stick together inside the vessel. In the marrow, there are hematopoietic, stem cells. These cells are the mother of all cells. If the body needs more red blood cells, it tells the stem cells to make red blood cells. If your body needs more white cells or platelets the stem cells make what they are told to make. After the platelets form this plug, they send out more chemical signals that attract clotting factors. These clotting factors work together to make a web of tiny protein threads. The platelets and this web of protein come together to make a blood clot. The clot keeps your blood inside the vessel while the break in the blood vessel heals up. Without platelets, you’d need more than a bandage to catch the blood when you scrape your knee!

Plasma Plasma (say: PLAZ-muh) is a yellowish liquid that is mostly water. But it also carries important nutrients, hormones, and proteins throughout the body. Nutrients are chemicals from the food you eat that give your body energy and other things your body’s cells need to do their work and keep you healthy. Hormones carry messages throughout your body, telling it what to do and when. An example of a hormone is growth hormone. It gets your bones and muscles to grow. Many proteins in plasma are really important to your body, like the clotting factors that help you stop bleeding if you get a cut or a scrape. Plasma also carries away cell waste — chemicals that the cell doesn’t want anymore. Nutrients, hormones, proteins, and waste are dissolved in the plasma — kind of like the cocoa mix that dissolves in a cup of hot water. What are the marshmallows? The blood cells — they float in the plasma.

Hey, What’s Your Type?

Everybody’s blood is red, but it’s not all the same. There are eight blood types, described using the letters A, B, and O. Those letters stand for certain proteins found on the red blood cells. Not everyone has the same proteins. In addition to getting a letter or two, a person’s blood is either “positive” or “negative.” That doesn’t mean one person’s blood is good and another person’s blood is bad. It’s a way of keeping track of whether someone’s blood has a certain protein called Rh protein. This protein is called “Rh” because scientists found it while studying Rhesus monkeys. If your blood is positive, you have this protein. If it’s negative, you don’t. Either way is totally fine.

People have one of these eight different blood types:

1. A negative
2. A positive
3. B negative
4. B positive
5. O negative
6. O positive
7. AB negative
8. AB positive

Blood types are important if a person ever wants to donate blood or needs a blood transfusion. Getting blood of the wrong type can make a person sick. That’s why hospitals and blood banks are very careful with donated blood and make sure the person gets the right type.

People might need blood transfusions when they’re sick or if they lose blood. Without enough healthy blood, the body won’t get the oxygen and energy it needs. Healthy blood also protects you from germs and other invaders.

List of Blood Diseases

http://atozhealthtopics.blogspot.com/2011/01/list-of-blood-diseases.html

In our body blood is the life-maintaining fluid that circulates through the body’s heart, arteries, veins, and capillaries.
Blood disease, any disease of the blood, involving the red blood cells, white blood cells (leukocytes), or platelets (thrombocytes) or the tissues in which these elements are formed—the bone marrow, lymph nodes, and spleen—or of bleeding and blood clotting.
Blood diseases affect the production of blood and its components, such as blood cells, hemoglobin, blood proteins, the mechanism of coagulation, etc

List of Blood Diseases and Disorders 

• Anemia
  • Aplastic Anemia
  • Antiphospholipid Antibody Syndrome
  • Blood and Marrow Stem Cell Transplant
  • Blood Tests
  • Blood Transfusion
  • Bone Marrow Tests
  • Clinical Trial
  • Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT, Thrombophlebitis)
  • Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation (DIC)
  • Excessive Blood Clotting
  • Fanconi Anemia
  • Hemochromatosis
  • Hemophilia
  • Hemolytic Anemia
  • Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP)
  • Iron-Deficiency Anemia (en español)
  • Lymphocytopenia
  • Polycythemia Vera
  • Pulmonary Embolism
  • Pernicious Anemia
  • Rh Incompatibility
  • Sickle Cell Anemia
  • Thalassemias
  • Thrombocytopenia
  • Thrombophlebitis (Deep Vein Thrombosis, DVT)
  • Thrombocythemia and Thrombocytosis
  • Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (TTP)
  • Von Willebrand Disease
  • Bacteremia
  • Sepsis
  • Anemia
  • Staph infection
  • Hepatitis

Proverbs 1:29-31

Proverbs 1:29-31 (KJV)

²⁹ For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the Lord:

³⁰ They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof.

³¹ Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices.

Too often we may think we may know what is best, but we are terribly wrong. All true wisdom comes from God alone. We can blame no one else when we choose to reject His instruction, and things go wrong in our life. We may temporarily seem to be having everything going well, then before you know it, everything falls apart. We blame God and others. Yet we do not take accountability for our own actions. In the end we reap the fruits of our actions, whether they be good or rotten.