Friday Feature: The Benefits of Juicing

Because of problems with my website, this post didn’t come through on Friday. Here it is for your good health:

When I was little, school didn’t always come easy to me like with my sister. Sharon could see something and immediately get it. Some concepts just didn’t make sense to me, like long division. I had to work hard to master those difficult areas, but once I got it I got it. I think that’s what has finally happened to me with juicing.

Juicing has been beneficial to me in so many ways. About four years ago I planned to make juicing a daily part of my diet. Examining my progress, I probably have juiced for a total of about a half a year over the last four years. Yup, pretty pitiful when I know that I always look and feel better when I juice. But this week, I have juiced a total of six out of seven days, something I have not ever done, and I feel great. I think this is my master week and I hope I am committed for life.

To help you get committed for life (a lifetime) and life (prosperous health), let me share with you a few benefits of juicing:

Get in your daily requirement of fruits and vegetables. With the change in government recommendations, we should be eating about 2 ½ cups of vegetables and 1 ½ cups of vegetables for a total of at least a total of five. Most of us don’t have the time or desire to eat that amount. When I juice I get in at least eight fruits and veggies a drink.

Get nutrients quickly into your body. It doesn’t take long for your body to digest juice so the nutrients get in your bloodstream faster.

Have more energy. When you get juice in your system quickly you get energy faster and you have it longer because your body is not working overtime to digest heavy foods. This is energy you can use to get your work done.

Consume less calories without receiving less nutrients. When you juice you are not consuming the bulk you would when eating fruits and vegetables. Also, juicing fills you up so you won’t have room to eat as much solid food. You also get the nutrients that are killed with cooked food.

Detoxify while getting nutrients. Sometimes people like to do water only fasts. This definitely helps to detoxify your system, but a juice fast is gentler on your system, detoxifying a little slower while still feeding your cells God’s goodness.

Have an internal and external skin tonic. Juicing cleanses your organs, operating as an internal tonic. When your inside is clean, your outside beams. So, essentially, the internal tonic provides an external tonic effect.

Give your digestive system a rest. As stated earlier, when you juice your digestive system doesn’t have to work as hard. Juicing helps your parts recover from their normal hard work.

Preserve your body’s enzymes. When you juice you get a number of enzymes to help your body digest foods. Without adding enzymes, your body will tap into its reserve, depleting your natural levels. Enzymes also seem to help slow the aging process (Gabriel Cousens, M.D. in Power Juices Super Drinks, by Steve Meyerowitz).

As always, there is much more I could say, but I hope this inspires you to do further research so your body will be at its optimum so you can complete the optimum amount of work for the Kingdom of God.

Copyright 2011 by Rhonda J. Smith

High Tech Eternal Life

What Do You Think? Wednesday

In the garden he lurked, slithering through seeds of doubt to plant some right in Eve’s heart. She watered the seed and ate the no-no fruit, looking forward to being just like God. And she gave it to Adam and he ate it too, and they realized just how human they were.

This story continues, in our lives as we seek to replace God with demonic notions and human emotions that lead us out of our creature place. We tend to forget, or have yet to believe, that there is only one who died, conquered death and the grave and gave us eternal life through belief in Him—Jesus Christ. Some get it twisted and insist they have a better way:

“Literature has been the salvation of the damned, literature has inspired and guided lovers, routed despair and can perhaps in this case save the world.” – John Cheever

“The salvation of mankind lies only in making everything the concern of all.” – Alexander Solzhenitsyn

“The salvation of this human world lies nowhere else than in the human heart, in the human power to reflect, in human meekness and human responsibility.” – Vaclav Havel

“The Singularity is an era in which our intelligence will become increasingly nonbiological and trillions of times more powerful than it is today—the dawning of a new civilization that will enable us to transcend our biological limitations and amplify our creativity.”—Ray Kurzweil

Now Kurzweil and others believe in a high-tech eternal life that only a few will achieve: “The Promise of the Rapture for the High-Tech Elite.” I wonder what they will say when they too realize just how human they are. What do you think about this? In what ways have you insisted that you have a better way than God?

Copyright 2011 by Rhonda J. Smith

Resurrecting Dead Places

My morning miracle was that I was able to garden for one uninterrupted hour. No rain or boys came to disrupt my raking, pulling and moving weeds and other debris from the flower beds. The morning was crisp, even with a looming overcast sky; I cleared five beds and junk from my head, like I can’t immediately tell this woman who has been trying to be my friend for two years that I don’t reciprocate because I hate her haughtiness. I have to wait, I heard God say, to build a rapport with her and then tell her. I have to endure her gloating about her role in people’s lives, suck up my own pride to just listen. I can’t be bold or she might just turn cold toward me and ignore any suggestion of humility. I shook my head, continued to clear flower beds to see this year’s growth in full view: pure green beauty. This is God.

Garden bed of daylilies and a hosta

He comes into our untended places, dead spaces overgrown with life weeds of doubt, debt, divorce, despair. He repairs our brokenness in His time. God sees our issues, yet still chooses to use us, but wants us fully seen to show off the full scene of His glory. He may wait for the weather in our life to be right, to help us when we can handle it and not retreat from Him. Yes, God knows how to bring out beauty from brokenness, to resurrect our lives if we let him rake, pull and move the dead stuff. Jesus Christ is risen and I thank and honor Him for His resurrection power today as much as the designated date. He is always worthy of my praise.

Trash full of the dead stuff

How has God resurrected you from the dead places in your life?

My One Thousand Gifts List

#21-30
Getting loads of laundry folded and put away
Nate not whining when he woke up
Nate staying dry throughout the night
Sending an email to someone I feared would reject my request
Eating three pieces of fruit before noon
Completed puzzle with Nate without yelling at him a lot
Money to go to the chiropractor
A snow day
A spontaneous family night
Finishing quiet time before Justus woke up

Copyright 2011 by Rhonda J. Smith

Friday Feature: Jesus & Roundup Two


Photo Credit: 123Gold.com 

Who has believed our message? To whom has the LORD revealed his powerful arm?

My servant grew up in the LORD’s presence like a tender green shoot, like a root in dry ground. There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance, nothing to attract us to him.

He was despised and rejected– a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way. He was despised, and we did not care.

Yet it was our weaknesses he carried; it was our sorrows that weighed him down. And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God, a punishment for his own sins!

But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed.

All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the LORD laid on him the sins of us all.

He was oppressed and treated harshly, yet he never said a word. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter. And as a sheep is silent before the shearers, he did not open his mouth.

Unjustly condemned, he was led away. No one cared that he died without descendants, that his life was cut short in midstream. But he was struck down for the rebellion of my people.

He had done no wrong and had never deceived anyone. But he was buried like a criminal; he was put in a rich man’s grave.

But it was the LORD’s good plan to crush him and cause him grief. Yet when his life is made an offering for sin, he will have many descendants. He will enjoy a long life, and the LORD’s good plan will prosper in his hands.

When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish, he will be satisfied. And because of his experience, my righteous servant will make it possible for many to be counted righteous, for he will bear all their sins.

I will give him the honors of a victorious soldier, because he exposed himself to death. He was counted among the rebels. He bore the sins of many and interceded for rebels.—Isaiah 53

This is the story of Good Friday, good because our Lord Jesus Christ took the bad that we deserved. Yes, this is a good day to remember Jesus and His sacrifice for the sins of all mankind. This is a good day to make Him Savior of your life, if you haven’t already. It’s also a good day to make Him Lord of your life by honoring your body, in honor of His body that was bruised for us. Here are a few links to help you honor God through your body.

Dr. Don Colbert on Understanding Free Radicals and Antioxidants

Dr. Don Colbert on the Vigor of Vegetables

Dr. Reginald Cherry on The Allergy Gut Connection

Copyright 2011 by Rhonda J. Smith

Prayers and Praise

Ever been overwhelmed by God’s love that you forgot what you were supposed to be doing? Today I sweated out a clean pair of pajamas then burned a pancake, basking in the abundance of God’s love toward me. In one week, five ministry opportunities came to me, fruit from prayers that have gone forth for years. I’ll share more on them when I can, but let me say I gave God some serious praise today; I forsook my cleanliness and cooking to bless God for His goodness and give Him His due. As always, God hooked me up better than what my strong black woman mind could ever conceive and I am grateful.

Yes, it’s okay to have a sweat party, to burn a pancake, but I was jolted back to other people’s reality with Texas wildfires and tornados in several other states. I am celebrating my news, and I well should, but people are hurting elsewhere. While I can’t (and shouldn’t as a recovering strong black woman) help everybody I can pray as God leads me. I will send up my praise and prayers for those who have lost homes and loved ones and I urge you to do the same.


How has God overwhelmed you with His love? How have you prayed for others today?
Copyright 2011 by Rhonda J. Smith