Over the past few weeks, I’ve been writing about some of the most common excuses I hear people give to explain why they don’t exercise regularly. These people are well-educated regarding the myriad benefits a consistent workout schedule provides, such as a trim physique and stronger bones, a healthier heart and happier mind, and generally speaking, a body capable of handling the tasks with which its presented.

In the first installment of this series, I discussed two excuses that I categorized under the heading “Personality Blame” because they come from individuals who feel they are—perhaps on a biological level—inherently averse to exercise and are convinced that working out is something they will never feel motivated to stick with; therefore, it is a lost cause. Last week, I switched gears and focused on people who cite people and activities outside of themselves as the reason they can’t work out despite their desire to. These individuals fall under a term I’ve labeled “External Blame.”

External Blamers, as we saw last week, blame the busyness of life for their workout-less lifestyles. Marriage, children, a new job, and countless other responsibilities have pushed “Exercise” to the bottom of their priority list.

Below is the second most prevalent excuse External Blamers give as well as what I hope will be helpful suggestions for how you can overcome it for good:

“Working Out is Too Expensive …”                                                                

No one can argue that gym memberships can be pricey, with the average costing between $40 and $50 per month. CrossFit memberships can cost five to eight times more than your standard gym … for one person. In addition to the gym fee, one must also take into consideration the added cost of childcare, gas money, and, for the style-savvy among us, fashion-forward workout attire.

If this is your go-to excuse, then take heart—there truly is hope. I’m here to tell you that working out doesn’t have to cause your wallet to lose weight. You really can get into the best shape of your life while keeping your finances in tip-top condition, too. Here are a few ways how:

Invest in a Home Gym

If you’re able to discipline yourself to work out alone, then your house can be the perfect gym. Start small by purchasing just a few dumbbells—a light, medium, and heavier pair is my recommendation—and a Yoga mat to put on your floor.

Next, all you have to do is go to your computer or smartphone to find an exercise routine that is suited for your sweat space! Here’s one of my favorites for building muscle while simultaneously elevating your heart rate up and revving your metabolism:

Time yourself as you perform 3-5 rounds (3 rounds if you’re a beginner, 4 or 5 if you’re ready for more of a challenge!) of the workout below as fast as you can. Then, about one week later, do the same workout again and see how your time improves. As the workout becomes faster and easier, use a heavier set of dumbbells for the lunges and include a pair to hold at your sides as you do the squats.

• 10 Stationary Dumbbell Lunges
• 15 Push-Ups (Perform these on your knees if necessary.)
• 20 Bodyweight Squats (Try to squat low enough so that your hip crease goes below your knees with every repetition.)
• 25 Jumping Jacks

As time goes by, you can add to your Home Gym’s inventory. A few of my favorite pieces of equipment are:

• AbMat for sit-ups
• Kettlebells in various sizes
• Medicine Ball
• Indoor Rowing Machine (This item is definitely on the expensive side, but I believe it’s well worth the investment)

Enlist a Buddy

The toughest part about working out outside of a gym atmosphere is often the lack of accountability. Personal trainers, class instructors—not to mention a costly membership—help hold us to our commitment to exercise. When we work out at home, we are responsible for motivating ourselves to work out each day, which can seem a Herculean task at times, especially in the face of chores and countless other distractions.

Talk to a friend you know who may also be interested in saving some money and working out at home or outdoors with you. Together, make a schedule that you both can stick to. Start with maybe just two or three 30-minute sessions each week. Then, as you both prove to each other that you can adhere to that frequency, add another day and/or more time to your workouts.

Educate Yourself

Personal trainers, class instructors, and CrossFit coaches are fitness professionals with the knowledge and passion to help you reach your goals safely and effectively. Working out at home poses another disadvantage in that you don’t have such experts nearby to instruct you on new movements, give you pointers, ensure you are using good form, prescribe workouts tailored just for you, and encourage you through challenging sessions that “hurt so good!”

Take it upon yourself to become your own personal trainer, of sorts. During a coffee or lunch break, research the type of movements you and your training partner want to incorporate into your next workout. Watch YouTube videos on each exercise you have planned for the day so that you can learn the proper form and execute it efficiently. Read up on the best way to warm up and prepare your body for intense exercise as well as how to stretch and foam roll afterwards to aid recovery and alleviate muscle soreness.

I pray that this series has been a blessing to you and helped show you how to have victory over the excuses that have prevented you from keeping your temple tidy and fit for the Lord. I cannot overstate the importance of reminding yourself of who and what you are in Christ: a child of the living God, a dwelling place of His Spirit. Each day, may it be our privilege and honor to glorify Him in how we strengthen and nourish our bodies.  

“Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body” (1 Cor. 6:19-20, NLT).

Diana Anderson-Tyler is the author of Creation House’s Fit for Faith: A Christian Woman’s Guide to Total Fitness and her latest book, Perfect Fit: Weekly Wisdom and Workouts for Women of Faith and Fitness. Her popular website can be found at , and she is the owner and a coach at CrossFit 925. Diana can be reached on Twitter.

For the original article, visit .

After 2,000 years of Replacement Theology, the existence of devout Christians who support the Jewish State of Israel is a mind-blowing reality. Both Jews and Christians involved in this world should not take this support for granted.

Careful examination uncovers a number of unexpected things about this phenomenon that most call Christian Zionism. Why are these people remarkable? Who are they? How many are there, really? And in a growing environment of global animosity toward Israel, how should Jewish and Christian Zionists proceed in their common passion, in their common call?

So why are Christian Zionists remarkable?

The fact that a number of Christians support today’s Jewish State is remarkable. After a 2,000-year infusion of Replacement Theology into the heart of religious Christianity, it would seem that none should be aligned with Israel, defending and promoting its existence, its life, as a fully sovereign Jewish State among the world’s nations. After all, the vast majority of Christian traditions regard the church and Israel as one-and-the-same, a transcendental entity without borders or boundaries in this world.

Accordingly, the real Jerusalem is a not regarded as a city here on earth. Instead it is a metaphysical place that exists in a spiritual, heavenly dimension. What’s more, it is a place to which the only gate is inside human hearts that, for their part, unlock the entryway with the singular key of believing in Jesus as Divine Messiah and Savior.

Although in differing degrees, these are the interpretive filters through which the Bible is read and understood by all branches of Christianity. Accordingly, unless they convert, Christianity concludes that the human family of Jews has no biblical claim to the identity of Israel or to the place of Jerusalem.

Even the founder of Protestantism and hero of Evangelicalism, Martin Luther, concluded that these things were obvious. The entire Jewish race, he railed with righteous indignation, is guilty of deicide and cursed by God.

“Either God must be unjust,” he wrote in a publication called Table Talks, “or you, Jews, wicked and ungodly. For you have been in misery and fearful exile 1,500 years, a race rejected of God, without government, without laws, without prophets, without temple.” Thus, “for us Christians,” he stated in On Jews and Their Lies, Jews “stand as a terrifying example of God’s wrath.” Five hundred years later, Adolph Hitler concurred, easily justifying Jewish genocide to his fellow countrymen by the doctrinal teachings and social prescriptions of their own spiritual father in the name of Jesus.

For its part, the Synagogue is keenly aware of Christian conduct as a direct consequence of Replacement Theology. It has inspired inquisitions, provoked pogroms, excused expulsion, and authorized theft. Ultimately, it sanctioned the Holocaust, facilitating Jewish genocide.

The Nazis quoted Luther in almost everything they wrote about Jews. At his Nuremberg trial, Julian Streicher, founder and publisher of Der Stürmer, declared, “Dr. Martin Luther would very probably sit in my place in the defendants’ dock today, if this book [The Jews and Their Lies] had been taken into consideration by the Prosecution.”

Streicher, found guilty and executed, was right. Luther brought reformation to the practice of Christianity but brought to fruition the anti-Semitism embedded in its DNA. His arguments still resound throughout the church’s various expressions. Christianity’s anti-Semitism—and all that it portends—remains.

Who are These People?

There is, however, a unique exception in the Christian world. It appeared about 100 years ago. Depending upon the denominations from which they come, some Christians have turned 90-to- 180 degrees in how they regard Jews and the State of Israel. With origins in Great Britain, these Christian Zionists played a vital role in rebirth of the Jewish State. Their continued support remains vital today. Who are these people?

My own involvement in Jewish-Christian relations began 13 years ago. Knowing almost nothing about the Christian world, I have since followed a specific call to facilitate dialogue between Jews and Christians; most of the time this is between Modern Orthodox Judaism and Charismatic Christianity. The more I learn, the more I am amazed by the exceptional segment of everyday Christians who stand with the Jewish people and their Homeland State.

I am amazed because the more I learn, the more I see for myself how entrenched Luther’s articulation of anti-Semitic thought remains in all branches of Christianity, including Evangelical varieties. How is it that some Christians overcome such thoroughly engrained thinking? And yet they do. What’s more, the process of stepping away from community consensus means their path is frequently costly, often lonely.

Count and Motivation

How many are there? Popular estimates range from 70 to 100 million in the United States alone. These numbers are mesmerizing. But are they true? There may be that many Evangelicals in America. Perhaps most of these would tell pollsters that they support Israel’s right to exist. But it simply is not accurate to say that all of them love Israel.

I believe there are 5 to 7 million, less than 10 percent, have a discernable passion for Israel. This does not mean the majority of Evangelicals are anti-Israel. It does mean, however, that they are mostly indifferent. Israel, Jews and Judaism simply do not appear on their religious radar.

Among the fraction of those who are proactive for Israel, most tend to describe their passion as a “call” or “download from heaven.” Many tell the same story. They were walking in one direction with God—vis-à-vis their Christian faith—when they received a divine interruption, telling them to stand with today’s Jewish State.

What do they do with this call? Most respond with regular prayers. Some give money to Israel-related charities. Others take part in celebratory events or political advocacy. Very few, however, visit Israel, perhaps 80 to 100 thousand each year. Most of these come on what might be called a “Jesus template” tour, visiting various sites but almost never interacting with Jews who call the country home.

Yes, some will visit Yad Vashem (Israel’s Holocaust Museum) and walk through Jerusalem’s Old City. But in the end, the vast majority will completely miss the Divine miracle of our lifetime: God’s restoration of Zion and His elect.

There are a small number of Christian Zionists who come to the land to learn from political leaders, security experts, and business entrepreneurs. A segment of them also come to learn about the Hebraic roots of their faith and are willing to pursue such education from observant Jewish educators with expertise in Jewish-Christian relations.

My point is that, instead of 100 million U.S. Evangelicals who are passionate about Israel, committed to firsthand knowledge of its culture, prosperity and religion, there are, perhaps, more like several hundred thousand. With such a modest number from the United States, it is not unreasonable to estimate that the population of like-minded Christians elsewhere in the world is smaller still.

Look for part two of this two-part article Friday.

David Nekrutman is the executive director for the Center for Jewish-Christian Understanding and Cooperation (CJCUC) in Efrat, Israel.

A friend recently asked me if I had done anything lately to upset my wife. Not only had I not upset her, but I also had just arranged for flowers to be delivered to her.

No special occasion—just telling her I loved her. I was ahead of the game. Maybe I was cocky. That’s normally when I fall on my face. I should have seen it coming. 

The phone rang and she asked a simple question. There was a vital piece of information that I did not tell her that made a stressful day 10 times worse. She was upset. My mind raced, “But I’ve been great. Why is she getting so upset?”

I shot back, “Okay, I’m sorry!” The words were right, but my tone communicated something else entirely. What I really was saying was, “Back off!” and “Get over it!” Shockingly, that didn’t go well. Later, I gave her a meaningful apology. It was the apology she needed. Too bad it was the second one and not the first.   

Telling your wife you are sorry in the right way has immense power. It can make the worst of fights evaporate into thin air. I would like to . the components of how to apologize to your wife. 

Sincerity

She can pick up whether or not you mean it. If you’re not feeling it, you need to do some more soul searching. Don’t just apologize to get past it or because it’s the right thing.  There needs to be conviction. Think and, perhaps, pray until it arrives.

Humility

Place her in a position of importance. Do this not only with your words, but your body language and tone. Raise her dignity and worth above your pride.  When you proposed marriage, you may have gotten down on one knee. Metaphorically do this with every apology.    

Ask for Forgiveness

Actually ask the question, “Will you forgive me?” You are putting yourself in a vulnerable state. It is the question that invites her back into a right relationship. It brings back the connection and alignment with one another.           

Regret

There are two ways to respond when we wrong her: Be remorseful or justify ourselves.  One produces inner growth, the other is doomed to repeat mistakes. One raises the conscience; the other burns it away.   

Empathy

Work on understanding her point of view. Try to discern what she is feeling and why.  Go there with her. More than anything, she probably feels alone.  For the most part, women don’t like to be alone. Let her know she’s not.

For the original article, visit .

Eggs and red meat have both been on the nutritional hit list—but after a major study last week dismissed a link between fats and heart disease, is it time for a complete rethink? Could eating too much margarine be bad for your critical faculties?

The “experts” who so confidently advised us to replace saturated fats, such as butter, with polyunsaturated spreads, people who presumably practice what they preach, have suddenly become uncertain and seem to be struggling through a mental fog to reformulate their script.

Recently it fell to a floundering professor, Jeremy Pearson, from the British Heart Foundation to explain why it still adheres to the nutrition establishment’s anti-saturated fat doctrine when evidence is stacking up to refute it. After examining 72 academic studies involving more than 600,000 participants, the study, funded by the foundation, found that saturated fat consumption was not associated with coronary disease risk. This assessment echoed a review in 2010 that concluded, “there is no convincing evidence that saturated fat causes heart disease.”

Neither could the foundation’s research team find any evidence for the familiar assertion that drips off the tongue of margarine manufacturers and apostles of government health advice: that eating polyunsaturated fat offers heart protection. In fact, lead researcher Dr. Rajiv Chowdhury spoke of the need for an urgent health check on the standard healthy eating script.

“These are interesting results that potentially stimulate new lines of scientific inquiry and encourage careful reappraisal of our current nutritional guidelines,” he said.

Chowdhury went on to warn that replacing saturated fats with excess carbohydrates—such as white bread, white rice and potatoes—or with refined sugar and salts in processed foods, should be discouraged. Current healthy eating advice is to “base your meals on starchy foods”, so if you have been diligently following that dietetic gospel, then the professor’s advice is troubling.

Confused? Even borderline frustrated and beginning to run out of patience? So was the BBC presenter tasked with getting clarity from the British Heart Foundation. Yes, Pearson conceded, “there is not enough evidence to be firm about [healthy eating] guidelines”, but no, the findings “did not change the advice that eating too much fat is harmful for the heart.”

Saturated fat reduction, he said, was just one factor we should consider as part of a balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle. Can you hear a drip, drip in the background as officially endorsed diet advice goes into meltdown?

Of course, we already have had a bitter taste of how hopelessly misleading nutritional orthodoxy can be. It wasn’t so long ago that we were spoon-fed the unimpeachable “fact” that we should eat no more than two eggs a week because they contained heart-stopping cholesterol, but that gem of nutritional wisdom had to be quietly erased from history when research showing that cholesterol in eggs had almost no effect on blood cholesterol became too glaringly obvious to ignore.

The consequences of this egg restriction nostrum were wholly negative: egg producers went out of business and the population missed out on an affordable, natural, nutrient-packed food as it mounded up its breakfast bowl with industrially processed cereals sold in cardboard boxes. But this damage was certainly less grave than that caused by the guidance to abandon saturated fats such as butter, drippings and lard, and choose instead spreads and highly refined liquid oils.

Despite repeated challenges from health advocacy groups, it wasn’t until 2010, when U.S. dietary guidelines were amended, that public health advisers on both sides of the Atlantic acknowledged that the chemical process for hardening polyunsaturated oils in margarines and spreads created artery-clogging trans-fats.

Manufacturers have now reformulated their spreads, hardening them by chemical methods, which they assure us are more benign. But throughout the 20th century, as we were breezily encouraged to embrace supposedly heart-healthy spreads, the prescription was killing us.

Those who dutifully swallowed the bitter pill, reluctantly replacing delicious butter with dreary margarine, have yet to hear the nutrition establishment recanting. Government evangelists of duff diet advice aren’t keen on eating humble pie.

But what lesson can we draw from the cautionary tales of eggs and trans fats? We would surely be slow learners if we didn’t approach other well-established, oft-repeated, endlessly recycled nuggets of nutritional correctness with a rather jaundiced eye.

Let’s start with calories. After all, we’ve been told that counting them is the foundation for dietetic rectitude, but it’s beginning to look like a monumental waste of time. Slowly but surely, nutrition researchers are shifting their focus to the concept of “satiety,” that is, how well certain foods satisfy our appetites. In this regard, protein and fat are emerging as the two most useful macronutrients. The penny has dropped that starving yourself on a calorie-restricted diet of crackers and crudités isn’t any answer to the obesity epidemic.

As protein and fat bask in the glow of their recovering nutritional reputation, carbohydrates—the soft, distended belly of government eating advice—are looking decidedly peaky. Carbs are the largest bulk ingredient featured on the NHS’ visual depiction of its recommended diet, the Eat Well Plate. Zoë Harcombe, an independent nutrition expert, has pithily renamed it the Eat Badly Plate—and you can see why.

After all, we feed starchy crops to animals to fatten them, so why won’t they have the same effect on us? This less favorable perception of carbohydrates is being fed by trials that show that low-carb diets are more effective than low fat and low protein diets in maintaining a healthy body weight.

When fat was the nutrition establishment’s Wicker Man, the health-wrecking effects of sugar on the nation’s health sneaked in under the radar. Stick “low fat” on the label and you can sell people any old rubbish. Low-fat religion spawned legions of processed foods, products with ramped-up levels of sugar, and equally dubious sweet substitutes, to compensate for the inevitable loss of taste when fat is removed. The anti-saturated fat dogma gave manufacturers the perfect excuse to wean us off real foods that had sustained us for centuries, now portrayed as natural born killers, on to more lucrative, nutrient-light processed products, stiff with additives and cheap fillers.

In line with the contention that foods containing animal fats are harmful, we have also been instructed to restrict our intake of red meat. But crucial facts have been lost in this simplistic red-hazed debate. The weak epidemiological evidence that appears to implicate red meat does not separate well-reared, unprocessed meat from the factory farmed, heavily processed equivalent that contains a cocktail of chemical additives, preservatives and so on.

Meanwhile, no government authority has bothered to tell us that lamb, beef and game from free-range, grass-fed animals is a top source of conjugated linoleic acid, the micronutrient that reduces our risk of cancer, obesity and diabetes.

Government diet gurus and health charities have long been engaged on a salt-reduction crusade, but what has been missing from this noble effort is the awareness that excessive salt is a problem of processed food. High salt is essential to that larger-than-life processed food taste. Without salt, and a subset of assorted chemical flavor enhancers, processed foods would be exposed for what they are: products that have lost their natural savor and nutritional integrity.

Salt-free cornflakes, for instance, would be well nigh inedible. No one would want to buy them because they would see that they are a heap of nutritional uselessness. But where is the evidence that salt added as normal seasoning to home-cooked food constitutes a health risk?

With salt, as with sugar, the public health establishment is too cowardly to take on the powerful processed food companies and their lobbyists by drawing a distinction between home-prepared, food cooked from scratch and industrial convenience food. The crucial phrase “avoid processed food” appears nowhere in government nutritional guidelines, yet this is the most concise way to sum up in practical terms what is wholesome and healthy to eat.

Until this awareness shapes dietetic advice, all government dietary guidance should come with a tobacco-style caution: Following this advice could seriously damage your health.

Cherie Calbom, M.S., C.N., is the author of 24 books, including The Juice Lady’s Remedies for Allergies and Asthma, The Juice Lady’s Remedies for Stress and Adrenal Fatigue, The Juice Lady’s Big Book of Juices and Green Smoothies and Juicing, Fasting and Detoxing for Life. She has devoted her life to teaching people how to care for their bodies so they might complete their destiny. For more information, visit her at .

For the original article, visit .

Marriage is tough. It’s a given. This list covers most of the common troubles, but your situation is unique and the key point here is to face the hardship—whatever kind of struggle it is—together with your wife.

OK, if you haven’t watched the “Ian and Larissa” video, then stop reading right now, watch the video, then come back to this list. Seriously, you have to watch it.

Do you remember your marriage vows?

“For better, for worse…”

“In sickness and in health…”

“For richer, for poorer?

These promises presuppose tough times. My wife and I went into our marriage with our eyes open, so there’s really no excuse for not bringing everything we have to the table when things—once in a while—get dicey.

Here are 10 ways to overcoming hardships in marriage. Remember first and foremost, however, that prayer is the biggest key. You and your spouse should be praying together every day and trusting that you can overcome anything if you trust in the Lord.

1. Financial Struggle. The stress associated with money problems can be overwhelming. But, in the end, it’s only money and money has no power over your commitment to your relationship.

• Commit to a plan (see Dave Ramsey for tools and resources) 
• Live simply
• Never keep financial secrets from your wife

2. Challenging Children. Even the “best behaved children in the world” present challenges, and the number one casualty is always the relationship between mom and dad. So remember this, “The marriage comes first.” Not the kids, but the marriage. Nurture your relationship with your wife and you will be better equipped to deal with whatever it is the kids dish out.

3. Immaturity. Great relationships are supposed to mature over time. If you still relate to one-another the same way you did when you first married, then it’s past time for the marriage to grow up. Get involved in a couples group at your faith community. Love one-another “out loud.” Invest in the marriage as if your life depends on it—because it does.

4. Unfaithfulness. Marriages run into this hardship often. We may not sleep with other women, but we’re all guilty of being unfaithful when it comes to time, attention, priorities, the way we use our resources, and so much more. One way to deal with this is to recommit yourself to your wife. Woo her all over again. Make it clear where your priorities steer your time and attention.

5. Moving. It’s a fact. Most Americans change careers several times. That often means moving across the state or across the world. Moving is a huge stress. Regardless, if it’s because of your job or if it’s hers, make the decision to be 100 percent supportive and flat-out refuse to whine. Do what it takes to get invested in the new community quickly. Find a church. Get involved. Live forward.

6. Sickness. We forget how much we rely on one-another until someone breaks down physically. If you’re the one still standing, do everything in your power to be a servant to your spouse. Sure it’s tough to do everything, but your attempt with an obvious willing spirit is going to make all the difference.

7. Depression. Everyone goes through “the blues” at times in their lives.  Here, again, it’s about having the heart of a servant, about going the extra mile, about putting the needs of your wife ahead of your own.  Look to God for your source of happiness, be a conduit of that joy to your spouse, and seek medical attention.

8. Disinterest. Sometimes it happens the first year. Sometimes it takes a decade or so. Regardless of where we are on the time spectrum, disinterest or boredom can easily set in. Not feeling special about the relationship is a hardship for everyone. But it doesn’t have to be. Our job is to be intentional about the relationship. She didn’t fall for you in the first place without any effort on your part—so why stop now?

• When was the last time you took her out on a date?
• Have you told her lately how stunning she looks?
• What about a day off (the entire thing) devoted to her?

9. Career. We’ve already talked about moving, but career issues can cause hardship without a change of location. Keep her in the loop. Ask her opinion about what you’re up to. Do everything in your power to protect family time and to promote a work-culture that respects family values.

10. Empty nest. We invest a lot in the kids. If we’re not careful, our relationship with our spouse gets neglected. First, guard against that day by investing in your wife now. Then, rather than mourn the children after they leave, try celebrating the freedom you now have to invest more time and interest in your marriage. Again, it’s all about being intentional.

Huddle up with your wife tonight and say: “I want you to know that I still am committed to my marriage vow and I will love you for the rest of my life.”

For the original article, visit .

Many of us have lived long enough to see trends in nutrition come and go … and come back again. Snacking is one of them.

Back in the day, we were told not to snack in between meals. Then we were told that “grazing,” several small meals throughout the day, was better.

Now the pendulum is swinging back the other way, to not snacking so much.

The reason is simple: Snacking tends to cause weight gain. Snacking is often mindless eating, which means we really aren’t paying much attention to what we are eating, and more importantly, how much we’re eating, because we are often preoccupied with something else, such as television or work.

So while a good goal is to avoid snacking all together, it’s perhaps unrealistic. A more practical guide might be how to snack wisely.

Dave Zinczenko, author of the new book Eat It To Beat It, shares his tips:

1. Don’t in the morning. If you find yourself hungry in the morning that means your breakfast isn’t doing its job. Eat something that will stick with you, such as heathy fat and protein.

2. When you snack, choose something colorful. No, not rainbow Skittles or peanut M&Ms. Usually, colorful foods tend to be vegetables or bright fruit …. such as red bell peppers, carrots, blueberries, and so on. Also, colorful foods add variety to your diet and you tend to be more aware of every bite you take, thus cutting-down on mindless eating.

3. Make sure your snacks contain protein. Protein tends to cause us to feel fuller longer because it requires more energy to burn than carbs or fat. Check the grams of protein on your snacks and at the same time look for sugar content. Sometimes items with protein also contain too much sugar, in which case, you should choose something else.

4. Here’s an interesting trick: eat your snacks with your less dominant hand. In other words, if you are right-handed, eat with your left hand. This gets back to our attempts to avoid mindless eating. When you are fully engaging your brain in eating, you will eat less. Eating with the opposite hand certainly engages your mind. If you don’t believe me, try it!

5. When you snack, choose smaller plates and bowls. Instead of pouring the whole bag of chips in a giant serving bowl, just put a little bit in a small cereal bowl. That way your portion will be smaller, and you’ll be amazed how full you feel after having only eating a fraction of what you normally eat. You won’t even miss it!

6. Don’t fall for the advertising hype on the labels of foods. Food manufacturers know that if they make something appear healthy you’ll choose it, and research shows you’ll eat more of it than something you think is unhealthy. Therefore, many foods that are actually unhealthy only SEEM healthy because of words like, “antioxidant” “low fat” “no trans fats” “low sugar” and so on.

Oftentimes these are gimmicks that are either not true, or if they are true, are low in whatever bad ingredient they’re advertising, but very high in something else. For instance, many food items advertise the fact that they’re low fat, but don’t tell you about the fact that they make up for the fat with extra sugar.

In short, remember that in today’s world we must be discriminating about what we eat, how much and when.

For the original article, visit .

Summertime means fun time. For kids, school’s out, free time is in. For families, special memories, trips and other adventures will be made.

For men, the juggling act continues keeping the balls at work in the air, while mixing in some time away from the office for some time with the family.

For Satan, summer breaks provide ample opportunity to ramp up temptation, distraction, flirtation, and ultimately destruction.

For many churches, regular meetings press the pause button and men’s groups take a summer break … Wait …

They WHAT?

While the enemy deploys a destructive arsenal with all the pleasures the world and our minds can conceive, support from group meetings goes on holiday during the summer months. Obviously, this is a huge mistake.

“And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching”(Heb. 10:24-25).

Our society often turns summer breaks into a vacation from God. There’s no vacation from temptation. It’s piled on during the summer where beach-body diets lead to short skirts, swimsuits, exotic locations and drinking. These all add up to plenty of opportunities to let the eye go wandering. Our guards are down, defenses are low. And, the enemy is waiting for the perfect time to fire a missile at your life, because he never gives up.

“When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time” (Luke 4:13.)

Temptation alone is not to be feared, but it’s what you do with it that matters.

“… but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death” (James 1:14-15)

Even Jesus took vacations, withdrawing from the others. But his purpose was to reconnect with God, resist temptation and restore himself for the adventure of his ministry. But he never gave up meeting with his disciples.

Perhaps the most important time to continue meeting is during the summer!

When men give up meeting, they take a hiatus from spiritual growth, separate from their accountability partners, interrupt their daily quiet habits, and remove themselves from the support system put in place by God.

The Bible compares the church—groups of those who follow Jesus—to the “body.” If one of you takes a break from meeting, the rest of the body suffers as well. Each plays a role in the health of the whole body.

“The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” … But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it”(I Cor. 12:21-26).

So take a page from Jesus and use your vacation to strengthen the “body,” your body and everybody in your life. Here’s how:

• Reconnect with God and with men.
• Resist temptation and nurture your spiritual growth.
• Restore yourself for the next adventure.

What you can do now—give yourself a new spin for the summer. If you haven’t already, take our FREE trial and pick out a video from the Media Vault. Call a friend or two to watch it with you, and set a time to talk weekly, text and pray daily about it together.

Then, you will come back from summer better and stronger than ever. Enjoy your summer, but don’t let it be a vacation from God.

Kenny Luck, founder of Every Man Ministries, men’s pastor at Saddleback Church, and ChristianMingle advisory board member, provides biblically oriented teaching and leadership for men and pastors seeking relevant, timely material that battle cultural, worldly concepts threatening men and God’s men. Follow Kenny and Every Man Ministries now on Facebook, Twitter (@everyMM) and YouTube.

For the original article, visit .

Did you know 43 percent of adults suffer from adverse health effects caused by stress? WebMD estimates that 75 percent to 95 percent of all doctors’ visits are stress related.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has even declared stress a hazard of the workplace, costing American industry more than $300 billion annually. Stress can play a role in problems such as headaches, high blood pressure, heart problems, diabetes, skin conditions, asthma, arthritis, depression and anxiety.

To be healthy, you need to be happy—not stressed. Here are my tips for preventing and managing stress, as well as the anxiety, depression and disease it causes.

1. Trust. Much of your stress stems from worry and fear. During times of stress, as well as other times, remind yourself that all is well. Jesus had much to say about trusting God to take care of you. Again and again, He tells us not to be afraid. Let go of your need to understand and control everything. Yes, bad things happen, but learn to trust that God is in control and only allows them for ultimate good. Say to yourself several times per day, “All is well, and all will be well.” Your body’s cells will listen to what your ears hear.

2. Look at the big picture. Ask yourself, “Will I be worrying about this from my deathbed?” In other words, most the things we worry about today are not important in the big picture. During times of stress, little things seem much bigger than they really are. Mentally walk away from them as you remind yourself of what really matters over the long term—for example, happy moments with friends and family.

3. Practice the 3-3-3 plan. Breathing is perhaps the simplest and most natural thing you can do to relax. During periods of stress, practice my 3-3-3 plan. Stop what you’re doing every 3 hours (9am, 12pm, 3pm, 6pm and 9pm). For 3 minutes close your eyes and take 3 deep, slow breaths. Focus on your breathing and nothing else. Your mind, body and spirit will immediately respond.

4. Get physical. Take a 20-minute walk; finish a project around the house; stretch for 10 minutes—just get physical. Only 20 percent of US adults meet recommended aerobic and muscle strengthening guidelines, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Among numerous other health benefits, physical exercise releases various hormones that lessen stress and create feelings of well-being.

5. Talk. Talk to others. More often than not, just talking about something out loud to another person changes the way it feels and gives rise to easy solutions. In one survey, Consumer Reports found that talk therapy was reportedly more effective than drug therapy for depression and anxiety.

Talk to God. Jesus said, “Come to me all who are weary and heavy laden.” Actually, you don’t have to say much at all, just rest in God’s and waiting … thanking Him for all the good memories and future promises.

6. Laugh. Laughing lowers blood pressure, relaxes muscles, boosts immune function and reduces stress. It raises the levels of disease fighting T-cells, Gamma, Interferon and B-cells. Laughter also triggers the release of endorphins, the body’s natural painkillers, producing a general sense of wellbeing. Numerous hospitals incorporate formal and informal laughter into their therapeutic regimens.

7. Listen to music. Finally, listen to your favorite music, especially songs that tend to slow you down and help you unwind. In a recent study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, ICU patients listening to music required 36 percent less sedation and experienced 36.5 percent less anxiety than those receiving normal care. Many people prevent stress by keeping music playing softly in the background throughout the day.

Don Colbert, M.D., has been board certified in family practice for over 25 years and practices Anti aging and Integrative medicine. He is a New York Times Best-selling author of books such as The Bible Cure Series, What Would Jesus Eat, Deadly Emotions, What You Don’t Know May be Killing You, and many more with over 10 million books sold. He is the medical director of the Divine Health Wellness Center in Orlando, Fla., where he has treated over 50,000 patients.

For the original article, visit .

People with chronically high blood sugar can avoid becoming diabetic by periodically fasting to bring down glucose levels, according to new research presented at a meeting of the American Diabetes Association Scientific Sessions in San Francisco this week.

Researchers at the Intermountain Heart Institute at Intermountain Medical Center in Murray, Utah, found that individuals classified as pre-diabetic—because the amount of sugar in their blood is higher than normal but is not high enough for them to be considered diabetic—can stave off the metabolic disorder by occasionally going on a one-day water-only fast.

Lead researcher Benjamin Horne, director of cardiovascular and genetic epidemiology at institute, told Medical News Today that past studies have suggested fasting can produce significant health benefits for individuals at risk of developing diabetes and heart disease. The latest study confirms those findings, he said.  

“Together with our prior studies that showed decades of routine fasting was associated with a lower risk of diabetes and coronary artery disease, this led us to think that fasting is most impactful for reducing the risk of diabetes and related metabolic problems,” he said.

The study participants were between the ages of 30 and 69, and had at least three metabolic risk factors, such as a large waistline, high triglyceride levels, low HDL “good”cholesterol, high blood pressure, and high fasting blood sugar.

After 10-12 hours of fasting, the body begins to scavenge other sources of energy throughout the body in order to sustain itself, the researchers explained. They suspect that in pre-diabetics the body feeds on LDL “bad” cholesterol in fat cells and negates the effect of insulin resistance—a key factor in diabetes.

The researchers also found that while fasting days, the cholesterol levels of the pre-diabetic participants actually decreased by about 12 percent.

“The fat cells themselves are a major contributor to insulin resistance, which can lead to diabetes,” Horne explained. “Because fasting may help to eliminate and break down fat cells, insulin resistance may be frustrated by fasting.”

For the original article, visit .

With ongoing prayer vigils taking place this week around the globe for the safe return of three kidnapped Israeli teens, Rabbi Hillel Skolnik takes solace in the resolve of the Jewish people.

Skolnik, who serves as rabbi for the Southwest Orlando Jewish Congregation, said Thursday night at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Orlando that despite the tragic abduction of Gilad Shaar, Naftali Frenkel and Eyal Yifrach on their way home from their yeshiva (Jewish studies) a week ago in Gush Etzion in the West Bank, Jews throughout the world continue to remain strong and united. Approximately 100 to 125 attended the prayer vigil for the young men at the JCC in Maitland.

“In many ways, you could easily get the picture that our world is falling apart, that it is fractured in terrible ways,” Rabbi Skolnik said. “These are difficulties and tragedies that we take very seriously in both Israel and here in the U.S. There are many who suffer around the world.

“Unfortunately, more often than not, it takes these difficult moments to bring communities together. What you try to do in these moments is harness that energy and these opportunities to come together and use it for solidarity, but also use it for good in happier times.”

Thursday night’s prayer vigil included readings from Tehillim (Psalms 121 and 130), and the Hebrew songs “Kol Ha’Olam Kulo” (“Jewish Courage”), and “Acheinu Kol Beit Yisrael” (“As for Our Brothers, the Whole House of Israel”).

Israel Hayom, an Israeli newspaper, reported Friday morning that Frenkel’s uncle, Yishai Frenkel, told an Israeli radio station that from “all indications we have been receiving, based on information not on faith, these boys are alive.” 

The New York Daily News reports that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the militant group Hamas is behind the kidnappings of Shaar, 16, Frenkel, 16, and Yifrach, 19.

Israel Hayom also reported that overnight Thursday, Israeli Defense Forces “searched 200 locations in Judea and Samaria and arrested 25 suspects. During “Operation Brother’s Keeper,” more than 200 Hamas members have been detained as suspects.

Charisma columnist Jonathan Feldstein, who lives in the same neighborhood as one of the youth’s relatives, said this week that, “from across the valley in Bethlehem, we heard sounds of celebratory fireworks and gunfire,” in reference to the teens’ abductions.

“What’s strange to me is that people consider it’s acceptable to kidnap three students. What’s strange to me is that people use it as an occasion to celebrate,” Skolnik said.

Reports say that Israeli Defense Forces are tirelessly scouring the country in an attempt to find the Jewish youth.

“From what I understand, they are doing everything they can be doing and what they should be doing,” Skolnik said. “We are living in a blessed time knowing that in the state of Israel, there is an Israeli army that comes to the defense of Jews. It’s comforting to have that reassurance.”