Examining the state of our minds!

Daily Devotion: What is the state of our minds - Hebrews 7:25 "Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them" We are not what we feel, we are not what we feel, we are not what we feel, we are what we believe and what God created us to be. Sometimes we have to keep telling ourselves that over and over a

nd over and over in order to get past. Sometimes we get trapped in what others think about us and that becomes what we think about ourselves; we get trapped in our mistakes and folly's and the devil whispers to us that we are those mistakes and so continue thinking and feeling that we are that guilt, we are and have to live with that crushing burden of doubt and shame.

But we can change that, when we commit ourselves to finding out what the Word of God says about who we are and we BELIEVE in it, when we commit ourselves to changing instead of expecting everything and everyone else around us to change, slowly we can start defining ourselves through God's eyes not the devils eyes. We are resilient, but we have to make decisions as to how we are going to live our lives, we need to decide to stop living by the feelings of being mad at God, stop living with the feelings that we are weak, stop living with the feelings that we can never rise above our current circumstances, stop living with the feelings of constantly being mad at the people and circumstance around us, stop living with the feelings of not being able to control of finances, stop living with the feelings that we will never get our weight issues under control.

Decide today that we BELIEVE that God is our SAVIOR and REDEEMER and through him ALL THINGS ARE AND WILL BE POSSIBLE, believe that we can and will rise above the circumstances that have been holding our feelings hostage for so long, believe that our past does not define us, it helps to shape us to be stronger people, believe that you will get your weight and food issues under control through the strength of God. Believe and actively do it by spending time with God daily in prayer and reading his word for direction in our lives. Let the light of God shine into any dark area of our minds and hearts today so that he can and will be let in and any doubt, fear, shame, guilt, insecurity, and feelings that are keeping us from experiencing the fullness of his presence be cast out. AMEN

 Curry salsa- mushroom Salmon with Pico de galo. Season salmon with parsley, garlic, black pepper, onion powder. Cut 1-2 medium mushrooms into small pieces. Pour 1-2 tsp of curry- salsa sauce on foil. Place salmon into foil, prick salmon wi

th fork several places, pour 2-3 tbs of the curry salsa over the salmon. Evenly spread the pico de gallo, mushroom, green onions and onions on and around the salmon. Wrap into a tight pocket and allow to marinate 1-2 hrs. Bake at 360-375 for 25-30 min. 

Thai Chili garlic tilapia: ,
 2 tbs roasted garlic Thai chili ( all natural ingredients), 1 fillet tilapia, green onions, onion, roasted garlic and bell pepper seasoning. Season tilapia. Place 1 tsp of the sauce on bottom of foil, place tilapia directly on it. Season the top of tilapia with the remaining chili sauce and seasonings, wrap fish into a foil pocket and marinate. Bake at 350-360 for 20 min.

 Roasted salsa and Raspberry honey mustard salmon.
 The honey mustard is gluten free, 1/2 fillet wild caught salmon, 1/3 cup roasted salsa, 2 tbs honey mustard, green onions, onion, parsley, and ginger. Season the bottom if the foil with ging

er, salsa, onion ANC parsley, prick salmon with fork and place directly ontop of the seasonings. Season the top of the salmon with the remaining ingredients. Fold foil into a pocket and allow to marinate for a couple hours. Bake at 375 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

 This black bean and quinoa stuffed bell pepper uses, precooked quinoa and organic black beans from central market.  I mixed the two together on a cutting board with onions, carrots, and seasoned it with some black pepper and ginger and a clean fig sauce then stuffed the bell pepper and and wrapped it in foil and baked it for 30 minutes at 375 degrees.  I can't wait to eat it.  

 The second stuffed bell pepper recipe also uses quinoa but this time I added, 
Pea and corn, 
black beans 
Salmon
ginger
onions, 
parsley
and pre-cooked quinoa.  
Again mixed all the ingredients all together on a cutting board before stuffing the prepared bell pepper and then baking at 360-375 degrees for 30 minutes. I did wrap in foil and bake it in the foil for that extra steaming action :)

Food Prep for the week:
Slowcooked Steelcut oats ( I used 2 cups coconut milk, 1tsp coconut oil instead of butter, apricots, dates, 2.5 cups water and sucanat and cooked in the slow cooker for 5 hours) 
-2 ripe plantains
-Bruschetta Salmon 

Burger
-Corn, peas salmon, and quinoa baked stuffed bell pepper
- Black beans and Quinoa baked stuffed bell pepper
- 2 turkey burkers cooked in the convection oven
- Baked Curry Salsa, Mushroom and green onion Salmon,
- Baked Thai chili Garlic Tilapia
-Baked Roasted Salsa and Raspberry Honey Mustard Salmon 

Let the week roll on!!!

Lunch and snacks for tomorrow all prepped, in my lunch bag and ready to go in the morning :)

1/2 plantain
1 Bruschetta Salmon Burger
Carrots, Broccoli,peas and corn (2 cups)
2.5 cups watermelon
1 babybel cheese
1/2 avocado
2 oz smoked salmon

Breakfast: 
1/2 cucumber,
 3 scoops of watermelon:), 
2 slices turkey bacon,
 1 cup warm lemon water 















Lunch 

Time for lunch in the midst of food prep: 1 cup turkey chili, 1/2 avocado, 1 slice Ezekiel bread, 2 tsp almond butter.

I love looking for deals when I go grocery shopping and this week I went to the seafood counter to find my salmon burgers on sale, so I snapped up a couple of them :)

 What my shopping cart looks like :), veggies,
 fruit, 
salmon,
granola, 
watermelon, 
plums, 
coconut oil( found a new brand today) coconut water, 
almonds and freshly ground almond butter.
 Not too bad.

This is the new brand of coconut oil I found on my trek to the grocery store today. Since my mom isn't making a trip back to the Caribbean till later this year, I can't get the "real deal" in other words coconut oil we make ourselves. So I 

look for the cleanest coconut oils to tide me over. Basically, it must have one ingredient, coconut oil. Some brands add other 'vitamins and nutrients' to theirs, well the coconut is fine on its own thank you very much :):)... This new brand I found today only contains coconut oil, so I will be trying it out

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8/13/12: Come Clean with God

1.     Complete 50 pushups, 25 body squats, 10 burpees (repeat 2-3 times)

2.     Make sure you are eating small meals every 2-3 hours to keep your metabolism running.  Carry a water bottle with you and drink water regularly throughout the day, be sure to refill it several times and stay hydrated.

3.     Read and pour over “Who may ascend the hill of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false.” Psalm 24:3-4.  We focus a lot on external cleanliness and physical fitness and exercise.  However, more importantly internal cleanliness, and spiritual health is of more necessary and vital to the core of our wellbeing.  Too often we point out the dirtiness of others while ignoring our own dirty hearts and hands.  Every day that we are blessed to be alive we must take the opportunity to ask God to examine our lives and our hearts and come clean with all that is not right in the eyes of God. 

a.     In your journal – What things MUST you confess to God today?

b.     What must you admit to yourself and to God that you are in need of cleansing in your life? (Many times we can say it but don’t mean it, these are times when we MUST not only say it but we must admit it to God AND to ourselves that these areas of our lives need confessing and forgiveness from God).

Once you admit and confess these areas of your life to God and yourself, what assurance do you have that God truly forgives you? (1 John 1:9 “But if we confess our sins, he is FAITHFUL AND RIGHTEOUS, forgiving us our sins and cleansing us from all unrighteousness.”)