Fresh Starts

So, I am attempting a fresh start in terms of my health and well-being. I have always tried to be fairly concious of what I eat, and that will definitely continue. That's not to say that I don't indulge in junk food... I most certainly do and enjoy every second of it. But I also make it a point to watch my family's sodium, fat, and cholesterol intake. I also am a firm believer in whole grains and fiber. I am trying to get back in shape at this point. Just as a side note- I find it irritating when this comes up in conversation and people's response is, "Please, you're so skinny". As I work in a field that revolves around health, this is even more annoying because people I work with are educated enough to know that fitness does not equal skinny. They don't get that I'd like to be able to play with my dog for a full minute without feeling like a fat kid in a game of dodgeball. Thus comes the fresh start. My husband got a GREAT deal on a treadmill from a coworker who bought it from his wife but turns out she never used it because it scares her. Anyway, her loss our gain. My goal is to do 30 minutes three times a week as a way to get some cardio in and work my way up from there. I have also been making an effort to get out there and go for walks with my husband and pup on my mornings off. I figure that takes care of the exercise portion of things. I also bought some DVDs that have several little yoga sessions. The series is called "Praise Moves" if anyone wants to check it out. It's a Christian alternative to yoga. My doctor recommended I try to do some yoga because I carry a lot of tension and stress in my body. I happen to agree, so I am looking forward to getting out my pink yoga mat and hittin' the floor a few times a week. So, those are my goals. Hopefully I can be strong and get a good routine going. Physical fitness... here I come!

P.S. I posted this from my new PINK laptop. I don't know if I stressed this in the past but, I truly love pink. If something comes in pink you can bet I want it.

Friends quote of the day: Chandler: The meaning of the box is threefold. One, it gives me time to think about what I did. Two, it proves how much I care about my friendship with Joey. And three... It hurts!

You Be the Judge?

Today the hubby and I sat through another amazing sermon by our incredibly down-to-earth pastor. We are currently doing a series about misunderstanding certain verses in the bible and today the scripture was Matthew 7:1-5. At one point or another in life everyone has heard or used the phrase "Judge not lest ye be judged..." or some form of it. The question put forth today was has the body of Christ been using this verse as a way to excuse sin? Our wise pastor claims that if we are to take this in the way it is so commonly used we would be contradicting the entire idea of accountability, evangelism, and the whole New Testament. Our belief in the context is that Christ calls for an end to condemnation without self-reflection and judgement that is passed in a hypocritical manner. As the passage goes on to read, we are are to remove the plank from our own eye so that we may see clearly to remove the speck from someone else's. The application? If we were to completely resign from any judgement we would not be answering the call for accountability within the body of Christ. We should never turn our head and allow a brother or sister to sin and not try to bring them back to the right path. As Pastor says... if you saw a toddler wander out in the street you go and grab it and bring it back to the sidewalk right? That's something to think about. Additionally, we need to be sure that we are living our lives in a way that is above reproach and reflects Christ so that when we point out error in others we are holding ourselves to those very standards. The thought here is to be sure that you are not preaching hypocritically. Always avoid being a Pharisee.