The Halfway Point

Here we are at the halfway point of our First Place 4 Health Bible study where we are seeking to be transformed from the inside out. It has been a great study as teachers, leaders and students alike are all learning that making personal changes in our lifestyle choices is beneficial to an all around healthy life. Of greater importance are the things we are learning about the God who created these bodies of ours and desires balance in all areas, spiritually, physically, emotionally and mentally, all for His glory.

Here's just quick review of where our journey has taken us thus far:

Week One - We learned from Psalm 139 that we are fearfully and wonderfully made and that He is intimately acquainted with all our ways. In spite of knowing everything about us He loves us deeply and has provided a way through His Son, Jesus to have a personal relationship with us.

Week Two - Colossians 1:15-20 gave us a clearer understanding of this God who has supremacy over all mankind. We began a journey here of soul searching about whether we each have personally made Him supreme in our hearts and in every area of our lives. Being the Great High Priest of Hebrews 4:14-16, hopefully we have come to understand that He understands our weaknesses and if we have put our trust in Him we can draw near to Him in prayer and receive grace and mercy in our time of need.

Week Three - Our lesson this week being on prayer, Jill started our study off with a great lesson on what a "Quiet Time" with Jesus looks like. Hopefully, we are all making an effort to put those things into practice, not so we can mark them off our 'to do' list but that we might know God better. We also learned how, through prayer, we can cast all our cares upon Him because He cares for us [1 Peter 5:6-9] and that believing in God, according to his Word, means "being fully persuaded to the point of action" - the action, being to trust Him to the point of opening the doors of our hearts to Him, allowing Him to take up residence there.

Week Four -This was my personal favorite as we delved into Hebrews 12:1-3. Knowing God has marked out a race for each us we can run with perseverance, keeping our eyes on Jesus the One who is the Author and Perfecter of our faith. May we, like Jesus find our greatest delight in bringing joy to our Heavenly Father by being obedient to His call on our lives. May we long to hear someday the words of our Master, "Well done, good and faithful servant.....enter into the joy of your Master." [Matthew 25:23]

Week Five - Here we got a better understanding of Eve's decision in Genesis 3 to "believe" Satan over God and how we as women find ourselves doing the same thing on a daily basis - believing the enemy's words over God's word. We find the lusts and cravings of life always at our beckon call. Hopefully, five weeks into the study we are becoming alert to those cravings and how we can choose God's ways over the ways of our flesh and the enemy of our souls.

Week Six - Last week we learned about the progression of sin from James 1:14-16: Temptation can lead to lust which can lead to sin which will lead to death. Like Eve we have pivot points in the temptation and lust phases where we can choose to say no and walk away from our sin. Due to Eve (and Adam’s) decision to let the enemy’s temptation lead them down a path of lust and then to sin it resulted in spiritual/eternal death (separation from God and His kingdom forever) [Genesis 2:17], not just for them but for all mankind [Romans 5:19, 3:23 & 6:26a]. However, God in His mercy allowed His Son to pay the penalty for our sin [Romans 6:26b] thereby opening the door for spiritual, eternal life. Now that is good news!

Ladies, we leaders and teachers commend you all for persevering. You are halfway there, keep pressing on. We look forward to these next six lessons and all God has for each of you. This journey with you has been very rewarding to us, not just for the things we are learning along with you but also for the relationships we are building with you. You are all such precious women and we love you so much.

**Remember March 15-20 is Spring break. There will be no class.

[posted by edna]

Heart Healthy Recipes

With the Vine Press theme being Heart Check this month and our continued goal of balanced living at First Place 4 Health we decided to share a couple yummy recipes for the up and coming celebrations. Enjoy!

Super Bowl:

Southwestern Layered Bean Dip (eatingwell.com)
12 servings, about 1/2 cup each

1 16-ounce can nonfat refried beans, preferably “spicy”
1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed
4 scallions, sliced
1/2 cup prepared salsa
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 cup pickled jalapeño slices, chopped
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack, or Cheddar cheese
1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream
1 1/2 cups chopped romaine lettuce
1 medium tomato, chopped
1 medium avocado, chopped
1/4 cup canned sliced black olives, (optional)

1.Combine refried beans, black beans, scallions, salsa, cumin, chili powder and jalapeños in a medium bowl. Transfer to a shallow 2-quart microwave-safe dish; sprinkle with cheese.
2.Microwave on High until the cheese is melted and the beans are hot, 3 to 5 minutes.
3.Spread sour cream evenly over the hot bean mixture, then scatter with lettuce, tomato, avocado and olives (if using).
Nutrition:
Per serving: 146 calories; 7 g fat (3 g sat, 3 g mono); 12 mg cholesterol; 15 g carbohydrates; 7 g protein; 5 g fiber; 288 mg sodium; 164 mg potassium.

Valentine's Day:

Tiramisu Parfaits (tasteofhome.com)
6 ServingsPrep: 40 min. + chillingIngredients

4-1/2 teaspoons instant coffee granules
1/3 cup boiling water
2 cups cold fat-free milk
2 packages (1 ounce each) sugar-free instant vanilla pudding mix
4 ounces fat-free cream cheese
1 package (3 ounces) ladyfingers, split and cubed
2 cups fat-free whipped topping
2 tablespoons miniature chocolate chips
1 teaspoon baking cocoa

Dissolve coffee in boiling water; cool to room temperature. In a large bowl, whisk milk and pudding mixes for 2 minutes. Let stand for 2 minutes or until soft-set. In another large bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Gradually fold in pudding.
Place ladyfinger cubes in a bowl; add coffee; toss to coat. Let stand for 5 minutes.
Divide half of the ladyfinger cubes among six parfait glasses or serving dishes. Top with half of the pudding mixture, 1 cup whipped topping and 1 tablespoon chocolate chips. Repeat layers.
Cover and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight. Just before serving, dust with cocoa. Yield: 6 servings.

Nutritional Analysis: 1 parfait equals 189 calories, 3 g fat (1 g saturated fat), 55 mg cholesterol, 573 mg sodium, 32 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, 7 g protein. Diabetic Exchange: 2 starch.

Don't forget to check out all the other blogs on the Vine Press page. You'll find a lot of good stuff for the "heart" there.