Let doubt go

Dear Believer,
Remember: You can receive what you need anytime anywhere. You were Divinely created. Your passage through time and space is not random. You were made for such a time as this. You are always in the right place at the right time, otherwise you would not be here. You are forgiven. You are Spiritually healed. You have access to unlimited resources, unlimited health, unlimited love. Such is the power of God.

Lord help us today, especially the person reading this. When worry and doubt try to overtake our Spirit give us confirmation You are with us, and all things are possible through our Belief in You. We understand that from the moment Eve & Adam solidified doubt during their experience in the garden, when they listened to the whisper to doubt Your authority and were lead into self-destruction, doubt has been one of our main Spiritual weaknesses. We acknowledge and accept Your authority over doubt and over all things in our life. We surrender all of our weakness to You. We are grateful for the Divine Spiritual armor You provide us as described in Ephesians 6:10-18. Today Lord, we ask to be clothed wholly in it that we be made strong in You, and in the power of Your might. And for me, Lord I ask that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel. That others may be drawn to have a personal relationship with You. Bless the person reading this. Wrap Your arms around them. Open their ears, eyes, mind, heart. Show them how very much You love them. Amen

Holiday temptations

Tempting treats surround us this time of year. Food is a common way to express love and offer comfort all throughout the year but during the holidays we bring out even more favorite family recipes, and sweet treats seasoned with love. They are featured at varying size feasts as we gather to reminisce, create new traditions, celebrate, and make each other feel special.

Those are all lovely things, but there is also an ugly side to holiday eating. Stress eating is a real challenge for many and stress is magnified during this time of year. Holidays can send us on an emotional roller coaster that multiplies stress while offering lots of opportunities to eat. We sub-consciously stuff down our feelings and numb emotional pain as we stuff ourselves with food.

Giving into temptation and overeating during the holidays is easy, even for the most diligent. Often our food choices are unhealthy, laden with calories, and heavy on sugar. We tell ourselves we deserve it or, “I’ll just have one bite”. Then suddenly we realize we have consumed way more than “one bite” as we unbutton our jeans to let our expanding belly breathe.

We know that over indulgence causes damage physically, emotionally and spiritually, but we may feel like we are unable to control ourselves. Attending multiple holiday feasts with a smorgasbord of our favorite foods and sweet treats takes extra self-awareness and effort to stay on track.

We can change our reaction by viewing holiday eating as a spiritual experience, an opportunity to draw closer to God. With continual prayer, increased awareness, and intentional planning we can find ourselves putting God first, instead of our desire to indulge. By doing this we minimize emotional pain and avoid gaining holiday pounds.

I Corinthians 10:13 reminds us that: “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.”

E.A. Fussell

11.26.2023

Lord, help us this holiday season. As our emotions soar, wrap us in Your love and surround us with Divine comfort that no earthly sensation can match. Help us plan in advance and be prepared. Then when temptation and emotional triggers threaten to send us out of control help us stand firm, holding onto You. Let us remember that Your promise is faithful and Your Spirit will guide us in how to escape each earthly trap. Thank You that we can always turn to You for help. Help us do just that, turn away from our emotions and run to You. Strengthen us in this season and draw us ever closer to You. Amen.

Holiday temptations

E.A. Fussell

11.26.2023

Stand firm on your path

Have you ever felt like giving up? Have you made some progress and then watched it disappear as old habits slowly crept back in? Maybe you lost some weight and kept it off for a while then, it seemed like over night, the weight was back plus a few pounds. Maybe you were going strong with walking or exercise and experienced a health issue that set you back and now you can’t seem to get motivated again. Maybe you went a year without drinking soda and then one day the desire overtook you and you found yourself back in front of the fountain machine filling a styrofoam cup.

Our enemy knows our every weakness and looks for the opportune moment to place temptation in front of us. When temptation appears try shifting your thoughts to the power of God residing in you. Turn to the Spirit for help.

Resisting temptation isn’t easy but it is possible. And when you persist in resisting the enemy will flee. Remember, as a Believer and follower of Christ, you have been given authority over all the power of the enemy. Not over some of the power, but over ALL of the power of the enemy.

Stand firm on your path. Use your authority.

E.A. Fussell
11.19.2023

Lord, You are our strength, our comfort, our authority. I thank you for the person reading this, I pray Your Word over them. Be with us in the temptations we face. Show us the power of Your strength in us. Show us the reach of Your authority through us. Help us overcome the flesh and be victorious in Your name. The enemy wants us to feel defeated, ashamed, unworthy. But You say there is no condemnation in Christ. We believe Your promise to help us. Today, right now, we ask for Your help, we seek Your guidance, we open the door to You, we accept the authority you have placed in is. Thank You Lord for Your help and Your love. Amen.

James 4:7
Luke 10:19
Romans 8:1

Overcome fitness challenges

Have you ever felt the battle between your flesh and spirit when it comes to healthy choices and taking care of your body? Does it feel like you are in a struggle to eat healthy, exercise, end your addiction to sugar?

Are you stuck in the “whenever” or “tomorrow” trap? Whenever I have more time, whenever I have more money, whenever I feel better. Tomorrow I will eat healthier. Tomorrow I will go for a walk. Tomorrow I will stop drinking soda.

Our flesh tends to choose instant pleasure over delayed gratification. We truly want to eat healthy but can’t seem to resist the pleasure of eating a sweet treat. Our tempter, that old devil, encourages us whispering in our ear, “It’s okay, go ahead take a bite, you can start eating healthier tomorrow.”

Then, after we’ve eaten that sweet treat and put off our health until tomorrow that old devil switches gears and becomes our accuser showering us with judgement and guilt. Causing us to compare ourselves to others, pick ourselves to pieces, feel like we’re weak and not enough. He’s got us right where he wants us, in a tug-of-war with ourselves. Thinking we always have tomorrow. Putting our flesh first.

Mark 3:25 tells us when we are internally divided against ourselves we fail and the enemy wins. How do we break out of this trap of self-criticism and self-sabotage? How do we find the strength to resist temptation, overcome excuses, move ourselves toward a healthier body?

By actively putting God first in our life and including Him in our health and fitness plan. Matthew 6:33 promises God will take care of us when we put Him first. Galatians 5:16 tells us if we walk in the spirit we can overcome the flesh.

How do we put God first? Prayer, scripture, worship, meditation, there are numerous ways. It is a personal decision. Figure out what it means to you, and do it. Just remember it’s not a one-and-done thing. It’s an ongoing interaction. A personal relationship with God.

John 16:33 gives us the reminder that yes, we will face difficult times but we belong to the one who has overcome the world and Isaiah 41:10 reminds us God will strengthen and help us. If we let Him.

So….let Him.

E.A. Fussell
11.09.23

Lord thank You for loving us like You do. Thank You for the help and guidance that are always available to us through the Spirit. We ask for that help and guidance now. Thank You that You never stop listening to us even when we have stopped listening to You. Bless the person reading this, open their heart to receive You. Provide for them what they need most today. Comfort, strength, healing, finances. Pour out blessings upon them as only You can in accordance with Your Divine will, under grace, and in a perfect manner. Thank You Father that you have heard me. Amen

He will help, if you let Him

It’s that time of year when I feel compelled to double down on my health focus. Maybe it’s because the end of the year is only eight weekends from now. Maybe it’s because traveling requires extra commitment to a fitness routine. Maybe it’s just an attempt to stay focused and not overly indulge in holiday eating.

Spoken scripture, prayer and meditation can impact success. I will be sharing scripture, experiences, and thoughts along the way. Maybe it will help you too.

Psalm 18 is an example of how God hears our call for help and will come to help us because he delights in us. When we hold on to Him, He strengthens us to triumph over our enemies in whatever battle we face.

If you are struggling with something, call on God, reach out and take His hand. He will help you if you let Him.

Lord, thank you for the soul reading this. Touch them and bless them in a real and wonderful way. Please show them what You can do when they let You. Amen

E.A. Fussell
11.05.2023

Metabolic switching

Metabolic switching shifts the body from using glucose for energy to using fatty acid-derived ketones for energy. The act of switching between these two fuel sources elicits a healing response in the body. The easiest way to induce this metabolic switch is through fasting. You can also use certain breathing techniques and ice baths or ice plunges. For now, let’s try fasting and maybe later we will plunge into breath work in an ice bath.

Trillions of cells acting as a unified team make up our body. Each cell produces energy by metabolizing glucose, burning fat, and manufacturing antioxidants. When food is not available the cells switch to an alternate fuel source to continue functioning. It takes about eight hours for this switch to occur. This metabolic switch at the cellular level increases the bodies ability to heal itself and burn fat.

We all fast while we sleep and by extending that fasting window we can help our cells stay in the healing phase a little longer each day. For example, stop eating a few hours before bed and delay breakfast until a few hours after waking. Try to have a total of at least thirteen hours of no food. That might look like no food between 7pm-8am; if that doesn’t work for you just adjust the window to fit into your lifestyle. If you can extend your fasting window to sixteen hours that’s even more beneficial.

E.A. Fussell
08.19.2023

I have limitless energy

Last week was outstanding
This week will be too
I hope what is true for me
Goes doubly true for you

Last week our challenge was to use “Outstanding!” instead of our regular response to the question “How are you?”

The power of the spoken word creates. It creates worlds. It creates your world.

The spoken word begins with a thought. By changing our thoughts we can change our world. By using the spoken word we can speed up the change.

Set your mind on something you desire for yourself, pray for it, then speak as if you believe you have received it.

Recently I heard an evidence based story about a man (Jesse Itzler) training with a Navy Seal (Chadd Wright) for a difficult race (Last Man Standing) and how he was able to to get past his mental and physical blocks at mile 38. It made me think about how to apply some of the techniques to everyday life in order to live a more vibrant life. There were several phrases that I am turning into a weekly challenge for myself and I invite you to join me. Here is week two:

Spoken Word Challenge #2

Sometimes we get tired when we are trying to do something. The initial thought that we are tired can either make us end up on the couch or can be transmuted into energy to draw from.

Speaking our thoughts is like throwing an accelerant on them. It promulgates them, puts them into effect by decree. If we vocalize that we feel tired the feeling increases. If we instead say something like, “I can do it (define what it is). I have enough energy.“ We find that we are able to continue and we do in fact have more energy stores to draw from.

Our Provider has unlimited resources, that means we have unlimited resources.

For the next week I challenge myself and you to transmute thoughts of tiredness into energy. Choose a phrase that resonates and when thoughts of tiredness enter in say the phrase out loud:

I have limitless energy.
I can do it (define what it is).
I have enough energy.
I have unlimited energy.
I never get tired.
I am feeling more energized every minute.

Do it. What have you got to gain? Gain it now. The power is in your words.

E.A. Fussell
08.20.2023

Isaiah 55:11
Proverbs 16:23
James 1:26
Matthew 7:7-12
Mark 11:22-24

Coulda

“Coulda”

In my teenage years I played flute in the LaBelle High School band and learned how to read music from the band teacher Mrs. Morgan. My dad purchased an electric organ for our home so I learned a little more about reading music on it. After high school playing musical instruments got left behind, shelved you might say.

In my late twenties I decided to take piano lessons. My teacher was an elderly lady from Jamaica. She was aware of my limited training. During our first lesson while I was playing the song she had placed on the music shelf of the piano, a song I had never seen before, she exclaimed in her heavy Jamaican accent, “OOOOH Child! You must have a Dubby attached to you!” I stopped playing and looked at her with surprise, “What is a Dubby?” She clasped her hands together with a big smile on her face. “In English you would call it a ghost.” She squeezed by shoulders, “Don’t worry child, it is a good one, no one could play like that without a good Dubby.”

Back then I was young and inexperienced in spiritual matters so it kind of freaked me out. I didn’t understand the magnitude of what she was telling me. I just thought of playing the piano as a fun hobby. Suddenly it felt scary and seemed like a lot of pressure. While I didn’t recognize the significance of my talent, I did recognize the amount of commitment that it would require to fully realize it’s potential and I wasn’t willing to sacrifice the time. It was easy to use work and family obligations as excuses to put playing music on a shelf again.

Walking away from the piano is a decision I still regret. I wish I had kept playing as a fun hobby, who knows, I might “coulda” been a great player.

We all have those moments in life. Those “coulda” moments. As we age they sometimes circle back to haunt us. But instead of getting lost in coulda, woulda, shoulda thoughts, whenever those thoughts blow into our mind we can choose to let them pass gently through. We can use them as encouragement, understanding that we still have many forms of untapped potential resting in our being. Each day we get to choose what we will pursue, what we will invest our time in, how we will think, what we will read, listen to, watch, what we will learn, what we will try.

We can choose not to worry about being great at something, just have fun doing it. It’s okay to try something, many things, and not be good at them. Heck, it’s okay to be bad at them. The point is to try whatever we feel our spirit is leading us toward. Just the experience of doing something new, or something old we have wanted to do, will give us fresh insight into ourselves and how we experience life.

We’ll never know what we “coulda” been if we don’t try.

Lord give me the inspiration and courage to try the things you send as my soul desires and help me to eliminate “coulda” from my remaining years.

E.A.Fussell
08.16.2023

Give yourself a new topic adventure

24 hours in a day
16-18 hours invested in work, sleep, meals, hobbies
6-8 hours of discretionary time

That’s a snapshot of the average working American. You may look a little different but you have some discretionary time everyday. How are you investing that time? What if you took one hour of that time each day to explore new topics, ones outside your normal point of interest? Stretching our thinking often refreshes the mind and brings new ways of approaching challenges. Our brain doesn’t necessarily like to be stretched, so there might be some resistance to new thinking.

The brain’s job is to maintain homeostasis in our physiological processes. It is always looking for ways to conserve energy in case there is an illness or problem that requires energy stores. Our normal thought process creates grooves, pathways, automatic lines of communication. These automatic pathways require less energy(habits). When we try to change that groove (habit) by thinking differently more energy is required and our brain resists. Even if we are trying to do something that will ultimately make us healthier or better in some way, the extra energy required to change the existing pathway in our brain is seen as a threat to energy stores by the brain. Our mind has to fight to overcome the brain’s resistance. That’s why it can be so hard to change an old habit.

So, anytime you decide to study a new topic, change an old habit, try something new, the mind gets excited, but be prepared for the brain to resist. Find ways to breakthrough the barriers of thought and do it anyway. One technique is establishing a time each day to do a certain thing. The brain likes routine (less energy) much more than spontaneity (more energy). Determine what time of day works best for you to have your “new topic adventure” and then, everyday at that time do something related to the topic. Read, watch a video about it on youtube, attend a class, sit quietly and think about it, write out your ideas, anything you choose.

E.A. Fussell
08.15.2023