Fruits of the Sun

It is coming up to summer time here in the Southern Hemisphere and a time when storms, fires come along with droughts and flooding rains (to quote a very well known poem about Australia) which all influence the farmer yield of produce on the land.  I would like to dedicate this prayer to them this year.

God bless a man who plants a tree

To feed his fellow man;

God bless those who bring to fruit

By toil and laboured plan,

The red and gold globes of the sun,

That others may be fed;

Bless all who make of this green earth

A fruiting fountainhead.

God bless the man who trust the earth

To give him back reward -

Who makes a garden grow, row on row -

Replenish him, O Lord!

And may he bring at market time

Heaped baskets to the town - 

His offerings for tables spread

Where tired folks sit down.

God bless the man who plows a field

And sows the yellow wheat -

Who plants the barley and the corn

Our hungry children eat

'God bless all those who bend beneath 

The weight of daily toil,

Whose fate is linked for good or ill

With sun and wind and soil.

We thank Thee, Lord, that men who strive

In lowly earthly ways

Receive from Thee rich measurings

And laden harvest days.

 Grant them the faith to plant again,

When harvest time is done -

The gold fruits of the open air,

The red fruits of the sun.

(Crowell., G.N., (1934). White fire.  Harper & Row Publishers Inc.)

Sweeten the Health Message

For my devotions this year I decided to read one on Health Topics and every so often I actually read one I want to share.  I've shared one before and now here is another.

Kay Kuzma talks about a person who came home from a Health Seminar and decided there and then that all the processed foods had to go.  She put the family on an exercise program and lectured to them about health reform.  The family revolted and did not take to the new lifestyle.  What went wrong?

At the time It was a great idea and most leaders and leadership teams know, unless everyone has the vision nothing will change.  To many times I've seen people get enthusiastic about health and cooking new ways with food (especially going totally vegetarian too fast).  Then a few months later they are back to their lifestyle again because the family rebelled.

Kay had some very good advice to remember.

1. Live what you believe. You can't expect others to live healthily if you don't.  Your actions will speak louder than words.  Do your children see you putting on your jogging shoes and heading out into the brisk morning air?  Do they see you choosing an apple instead of a piece of pie, or water instead of a soda? Pray that God will give you the will power to act on your belief.
2. Know why you're doing what you're doing. Living healthily should make sense.  Keep it simple.  If something depresses your immune system, clouds your thinking, or puts you at risk for heart disease, stroke or diabetes - it's bad.
3. Be flexible and balanced. Don't be so health - conscious that you make your family miserable.  Don't be so concerned about what you put in to your mouth that you forget to watch what comes out in terms of criticism and faultfinding.  (And if yo feel a sermon coming on, bite your tongue!)
4. Make changes slowly. Your body and especially the intestines can not take 24/7 vegetarian meals and sudden exercise after periods of neglect.  Build it up day by day and week by week.  It takes 21 days to make a new habit and longer to break old ones.  A good idea is to always replace old ones with a new one.
5. Be happy and praise God. A healthy grouch appeals to no one.

Food patterns for our body.

It's been awhile since I've been here and lots and lots of things, readings and experiences have passed into history for me or should I say herstory.

I  have been sent this link before and have enjoyed it.
I hope it brings to mind some reasons why we eat vegetables and fruit more than any other type of food.
It's amazing how our bodies are so wonderfully made.

Food patterns for our body.

I hope you enjoy the clip.