Month: February 2020

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Family Food Home

About This Vegan Thing…

Welp, I did it.  I went vegan for February. Errr…for 24 days at least.  I’m officially calling it a vegan journey, but as much as I wanted to stay entirely plant-based, it did not happen.  I bought a bunch of premade “meat” items and some cereal (did you know Captain Crunch and Cinnamon Toast Crunch are vegan?).  I made a quick post on social media about how the first ten days went, so I won’t recap those items (but now that I think about it, I should have made that a blog post).  You can go here to see it. I am going to use this post to talk about my overall thoughts now that it is over and what we are going to do going forward.

I won’t say that I had my hopes super high for this plant-based journey, but I was very much interested in the benefits that I’ve seen with others.  I was, however, disappointed when not only did I not experience many of the benefits, but a couple of my medical conditions became worst (specifically my fructose malabsorption/IBS and my fibromyalgia).  And shockingly, my doctor wasn’t too happy with my decision to go plant-based.  Now, I really should have gone to her before I started and let her know what I was doing.  I didn’t until more than halfway through when I started having some pretty unbearable symptoms. She actually sent me back to a GI.  Who advised me that most likely, my body couldn’t handle the increase in fiber.  So needless to say, I am not going to continue to be vegan or plant-based.

I did lose a total of 7 lbs.  And that was all in the first week, so I do believe it was water weight.  When I added processed vegan foods into our diet, I started to gain 1-2 lbs back.  I would then lose those same 1-2 lbs over and over again.  So while I think most of it was water weight, I could tell looking at my body, I lost weight.  I tend to carry my weight in places that have me in disbelief when I step on the scale or can’t fit certain clothes anymore.  I mean, I’ve gained 20 lbs since I’ve been married and didn’t realize it because it is pretty well hidden in my stomach and thighs lol—areas that are already pretty chunky (or as I like to say healthy).  But I’m starting to see my little shape again!

Here is why I’m okay with my decision to add meat and dairy back to my diet.  I eat pretty healthily regularly.  I’ve eliminated most of the added sugar from my diet.  I very rarely eat processed food.  I dissect food labels before I buy anything (to avoid fructose/sugar and unnecessary ingredients).  And I’m eating more than my fair share of fruits and veggies daily.  But one thing that going plant-based helped me with is seeing that I could be doing better with the range of fruits and vegetables I’m eating.  It doesn’t have to be a side or secondary to meat or pasta in a dish.  It can be the star!  Now I will be making some permanent switches.  Instead of using regular butter, we will switch to plant butter.  I always buy plant milk, but I discovered and love oat milk now.  I’m not afraid of tofu anymore.  I plan on using cashews to make some sauces because it’s been amazing.

Now there are a few symptoms that I am going to try and target with food.  For example, I finally tried celery juice, and it wasn’t bad (today is actually day 2 of me drinking it with my warm lemon water).   And while I’m a little skeptical about the delivery (the guy who founded the movement), I can’t say that the tons of benefits I’ve heard from hundreds of people (seriously search YouTube or Instagram) aren’t tempting.  So I want to try and do celery juice for at least seven days to eliminated some inflammation and see improvements with my depression and anxiety.  Depending on how that goes, I’ll then try 21 days or 30 days.  But I wanted to start this after I made the vegan journey to clearly see the benefits of being vegan vs. benefits of the celery juice.  I mentioned above I have been doing my warm lemon water again.  When I drink it, I immediately notice a change to my digestive system, which is why I want to keep doing it.  But sometimes I skip a day, and that turns into a week.  But since the benefits are immediate, when I get back on track, it helps me on day 1.

I didn’t go plant-based for ethical reasons.  I do care about the animal,s and I wish we as a planet would find a better way to treat them since we are using them as food, but I do believe that it is okay to use them as food.  Maybe when we are in the second Eden, we will be plant-based.  Who knows? 🤷🏽‍♀️ For now, the hubby and I have decided to split our weeks.  3-4 days will be no meat meals, and 3-4 days our meals will have some meat, and it will most likely be seafood or chicken.  I am not a fan of meal planning because my cravings very much lead me.  But I am wanting to plan to buy certain things each week to make sure we have and do better with having prepped quick items I can snack on throughout the day.

But what is the biggest thing I enjoyed most about this journey?  How much Chris enjoyed the food.  If you know us personally, you know that food is a big issue for us.  I love to cook and eat.  Chris, not so much.  I like eating and cooking whole food and meals.  Chris could live on junk and fast food.  It’s led to plenty of arguments and hurt (on my part).  Another thing…Chris hates veggies.  He could go days/weeks without eating vegetables if I didn’t physically put them on his plate.  But Chris frequently went back for seconds and thirds for these meals that were plant-based.  He wasn’t adding things like hot sauce or siracha to cover the food.  I was so happy to see this!  Seriously this made it all worth it!

Have you tried to go plant-based?  What were your results?  Let me know in the comments.

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All 66 Books

All 66 Books: Philemon

Need some background info on this series? See here and here.

Philemon is 1 chapter long.  When I wanted to read the Letters to the Church in the Bible, this was one of the ones that I read.  According to Crossway, it takes 3 minutes to read Philemon.

Just a reminder, it’s best to let scripture interpret scripture. I like these resources because they help me better understand scripture, but I may not agree with everything they say. As in all things, pray and invite God to help you in your time of reading and studying. Allow the Holy Spirit to guide you and use discernment when using resources outside of the Bible itself. “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15 NIV)

Here are some additional resources I recommend looking into after you read Philemon through on your own:

The Bible Project

BibleTalk.TV

Leave me a comment below if you have taken the 3 minutes to read Philemon.  Do you know any other great resources for this book?  Leave them below!

Categories
Faith

Rhenáe’s Randoms 2/25/20

Should I Participate In Lent?

First, I want to share how this topic popped into my head. For the past couple of days, I’ve been feeling a bit off. It’s a mixture of things really.  From me not taking my vitamins (St. Johns Wart has been a lifesaver for my depression) to me having to go to multiple doctors, including one where I had to have a procedure done that is still causing me some pain.  Also, being away from my detailed Bible reading for a while didn’t help. I’ve been in the gospels (reading Chronologically), and I always lose interest in the gospels. It’s what used to prevent me from reading the whole Bible. And that’s horrible to say because they are literally the life of Jesus, the gospel lived out day to day, Jesus’ Words! But it’s my truth. So I decided to slow down and stick to reading a passage or two from the gospels but jump to Acts for the meat of my studying. (I did pray to God about this feeling and asked for help with this btw) While reading Acts 1-4, I received the refreshing my soul needed. For me, I like having a plan, so I checked out this Crossway infographic that mentioned it would take about 40 days for me to read the New Testament (my current focus) if I read 30 minutes a day. And that triggered in my mind that Lent was probably coming up soon.

Since I’ve been serious about my Christian walk, I’ve heard about the Lenten season and questioned what it was. I gained an understanding that it was a season leading up to Easter, which is when we usually celebrate the resurrection of Christ. But that’s as far as my knowledge went. Focusing on the NT for 40 days, is that something I could do for Lent? Should I even be celebrating Lent? If you have followed along with my #All66Books journey on IG, you know I recently finished reading the whole Bible. Yet there was no mention of the word “lent.” So I did what I do best and went researching on the internet. I found this fantastic site (amongst others) that was able to break it down for me. Long story short, lent itself isn’t in the Bible, but the practices can be found (fasting and praying). It honestly reminds me of the corporate fast a lot of churches do in January for 21 days (which isn’t a command in the Bible either). Obviously, some denominations of Christians do more for Lent (like Catholics mentioned in the article above). There has been a lot of rituals and structure put into place by man that you can choose to follow.

So, where did I land on this issue? I’m following the Holy Spirit. So while officially I won’t be observing Lent and fasting on the exact days some denominations do, I am going to be using this time up until Easter/Pentecost season to focus on precisely what God wanted from His Church and me as His follower. I do have a feeling that I will be doing lots of fasting and praying during this time, and I look forward to it. I’ll share what I’m led to share when led to share. 💖

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All 66 Books

All 66 Books: Titus

Need some background info on this series? See here and here.

One of my favorite Bible verses comes from Titus (2:3-5 CSB In the same way, older women are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not slaves to excessive drinking.  They are to teach what is good, so that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands and to love their children, to be self-controlled, pure, workers at home, kind, and in submission to their husbands, so that God’s word will not be slandered.).  But I never actually read the short book of 3 chapters. According to Crossway, it takes 6 minutes to read Titus.

Just a reminder, it’s best to let scripture interpret scripture. I like these resources because they help me better understand scripture, but I may not agree with everything they say. As in all things, pray and invite God to help you in your time of reading and studying. Allow the Holy Spirit to guide you and use discernment when using resources outside of the Bible itself. “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15 NIV)

Here are some additional resources I recommend looking into after you read Titus through on your own:

The Bible Project

BibleTalk.TV

Leave me a comment below if you have taken the 6 minutes to read Titus.  Do you know any other great resources for this book?  Leave them below!

Categories
Book Review Finance Book Review

Book Review: The Legacy Journey by Dave Ramsey

Title: The Legacy Journey

Author: Dave Ramsey

Genre: Finance/Christian

Publisher: Ramsey Press

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Dave Ramsey is a legend in the Christian finance world.  With critical terms like baby steps, emergency funds, and sinking funds, almost everyone has heard something about what he teaches, even if not directly from him.  But if you are like me and have taken years to save that emergency fund, pay your debt off a time or two, and even make it through saving up 3-6 months worth of expenses, you are probably wondering, What is next?  So as someone who has not only followed Dave Ramsey’s baby steps but has co-lead multiple Financial Peace University classes, I wanted to know what the other side looked like.  That is what The Legacy Journey is about.  What does building wealth and giving really look like?  Dave Ramsey not only goes through those details but also provides the biblical background on why and how God has called us to build wealth and give.

My Thoughts:

One of the first things that jumped out at me about this book was how often Ramsey backed up his principles with Scripture.  And not only pulling one verse to push his ideas, but he really took the full context of multiple passages and then created his principles.  It was evident the amount of time that Ramsey took studying and actually living out what he preached.  I was thankful that he didn’t take too much time to rehash the lessons from his previous books (which covers all the baby steps in detail but more so focuses on baby steps 1 through 3). You get brief backgrounds on his history of becoming a millionaire and then having to file bankruptcy and build his wealth again God’s way.  You get plenty of examples of the millionaires and billionaires that he has spoken with and how they can focus on giving once they reached those statuses.  And I know sometimes it can seem like we are way far off from being a millionaire and for sure a billionaire, but Ramsey gives what I like to call real people examples as well that lets us know these goals are possible.

Ramsey starts with the reminder that we don’t truly own anything, including our wealth.  God is the owner, and He entrusts us to steward and manage money properly.  Ramsey then introduces the NOW-THEN-US-THEM concept.  NOW is all about budgeting and taking care of your family.  THEN is when you move on to focusing on your future by saving, investing, and paying off more substantial assets like your house.  US is about preparing your family for legacy building and turning that future planning into creating generational wealth.  THEM is community and giving focused.  He also tackles the debate on whether Christians should be wealthy or not.  He talks about biblical rumors that are generally thrown into the discussion (like money is the root of all evil…no, the love of money is the root of all evil – see 1st Timothy 6:10). He gives statistics showing how even though Jews are a small part of the US population, they make up a good part of the Forbes 400 list (2% compared to 25-30%).  What are they doing?  Following the biblical principles to gaining wealth and being generous once they have it.  Ramsey reminds us of all the wealthy men and women in the Bible and shows how God was the reason for their blessings and wealth.

Our mindset on wealth and how we teach our children about wealth are also focused on in this book.  Everything from pride, humility, and gratitude is touched on.  Not only do we have to plan what to do with our money so we can build wealth, but we also need to be intentional with what we say and show to our children.  If we plan to pass down our wealth to them as the Bible says, we need to ensure that they manage it well also so they can pass it down.  Ramsey outlines how to balance the biblical command of being a hard worker with also being content with what we have and where we are in life.  Does that mean we shouldn’t strive for more?  No, but it does mean that we should enjoy what we have and be thankful to God for giving it to us.  Setting goals and our work are essential as well.  Ramsey is a firm believer that anyone can become a millionaire with hard work and planning.  He also believes in positive thinking and speaking life, which was a huge confirmation for me when I was questioning affirmations and manifesting as a Christian.  (head to this post to see more on that)  You will learn why nonprofits shouldn’t get all your money, why wills are important, why it’s okay only to pay what you owe in taxes and how to create a family constitution that will be your guide throughout this legacy journey.

Another principle that was new for me was the idea of ratios.  Instead of setting specific dollar amounts for your overflow, which is where you will find your additional giving, investing, and living, you set ratios for those areas.  So basically, once you start getting towards the end of the baby steps (most likely baby step 7 – Build wealth and give), its time to decide what amount you can reasonably live on.  I’ll use one of his examples that seem more realistic.  You make $80,000 a year as a family but decide you can live on $50,00 a year.  Now you would apply the ratios to the remaining $30,000.  As a believer, you are giving 10% as a tithe.  You would then decide what percentage you are comfortable with for additional giving (whether that is to the church or charity).  He also recommends planning for taxes.  A part of your overflow should also go to investing.  And finally what he calls extra lifestyle which is where you get to enjoy your money.  For a family that has an income of $10,000,000 a year, they decided they could live on $400,000 a year.  That leaves them with $9,600,000 in overflow.  Here is their ratio breakdown:

10% Tithe = $960,000

40% Taxes = $3,840,000

10% Extra Giving = $960,000

35% Investing = $3,360,000

5% Extra Lifestyle = $480,000

100% = $9,600,000

You can see that with the ratios, no matter what your overflow amount is, as long as you are comfortable with your percentages, you are covered.

Ramsey also walks us through four areas using three lenses that, when we help strengthen these foundations, can help prepare us for wealth.  The four areas are your personal life, your marriage, your children, and other relationships. The three lenses all four areas will go through are ownership, magnification, and community.  The first and foremost thing when it comes to building your wealth, as Ramsey has already shared, is managing yourself.  Reminding yourself that you don’t have any ownership and that it all belongs to God. Getting more money will only magnify who and what you already are.  And the community you build at this stage should include a teacher, a student, and a friend.  (A bit of a tangent – here is where Ramsey talks about him and a group of his 12 closest friends that meet every week for an hour and a half to chat, check-in with each other, study the Bible or read books.  And they have done this for over a dozen years.  Can I just say, I added this to my prayer list?)  Secondly, if you are married, you are a team and as one flesh need to do this wealth-building thing together.  To avoid the focus being on “me” and “mine” in these discussions, you again are reminding each other that it all belongs to God.  Everyone knows that finances are a significant cause of marriages going astray.  Having more money will not change that aspect.  Building a solid foundation in your marriage first helps alleviate many problems in advance.  It’s essential to build a community that consists of other couples at your financial level and maintain those life long friendships that you have created.  Thirdly, teach, and show your kids how to manage the wealth that hopefully, you will be passing on to them.  Teach them early on that all things belong to God.  Your children’s personalities will just be magnified when they receive and build wealth.  And it’s just as vital for them to have positive influences in their community as it is for you.  Lastly, your other relationships will be impacted by your increase in wealth, and its best to plan for that.  You do not owe anyone anything just because they are your family.  And people’s real personalities come out, the more money there is to be spread around. Setting boundaries will impact your community, but don’t worry, those friends you built at your wealth level will be able to support you through this.

I challenge you to turn this book into a Bible study on generosity and biblical wealth.  Take time to really soak in the principles and the Scriptures behind them.  Invite God into your finances and allow the Holy Spirit to lead you.  This book has led to many prayers and conversations with my loved ones and friends. While it may be difficult to imagine in the early baby steps, I do still recommend everyone reads this book as it will help with motivation and seeing the end goal.  Biblical and generation wealth are gifts that I want to plan to give my future children and their children.  This book did its job to help me better understand what that looks like and how to accomplish it.  And for that reason, it gets 5-stars from me.

Categories
Family Food

Rhenáe’s Randoms – 2/17/20

While I was ready to post a book review, I had some thoughts floating around about this vegan/plant-based journey that I wanted to get out.  Last Tuesday, I did a social media post about a few things I’ve realized and wanted to share after being plant-based for ten days.  I still felt pretty good about my journey and was optimistic about finishing strong.  Then we had Valentine’s day, and this weekend, I feel like I crumbled.  I didn’t get off the journey, but I strongly wanted to and was fighting some pretty bad cravings. It honestly had nothing to do with the holiday itself.  I planned to make pizza from scratch and was pretty excited about the meal I was going to prepare.  But those cravings had me seeking out other meals.  Like steak, chicken wings, crabs, shrimp and mac and cheese.  Oh, and cake.  All the cake.  I went to social media and just went scrolling to see all the goodness of the things I couldn’t eat for the month.  Let me just say that didn’t help at all.

Then our pizza was a major fail for me.  Something didn’t come together with the cheese, and all I could taste was salt.  Chris said he enjoyed it, but I couldn’t eat it.  But I was starving and frustrated, and at this point, I didn’t want anything I had cooked.  I, the day before, made some delicious queso dip and some pasta with “chicken” strips and broccoli. But that pasta dish had its issues with following the recipe, and that could have been the start of my frustrations.   So I decided to order from the only place that I knew that catered to vegans around here, Chiptole.

Now, I did do some research.  I wanted to see exactly what I could order.  I’ve been hearing a lot about their lifestyle bowls and wanted to know if it was something I wanted to try.  But their vegan bowl was nowhere on their site or app.  But from what I saw on posts about it, it was what I wanted.  The vegetarian bowl, however, was still on their site but was different from what others said was on it.  So I ordered the vegetarian bowl with hopes it wouldn’t have any dairy on it as the new description said.  Then because I am a foodie, I also ordered some tacos with sofrito because it was no longer an option on the lifestyle bowls.  But when my husband went to pick up the order, they forgot the bowl altogether.  And when making it, my husband told them it needed to be vegan.  When I got it, it was the same vegetarian bowl that was advertised on their site, so it made me wonder if they removed the vegan bowl altogether.

Another thing I found while researching was people’s complaints about Chipotle being just another fast food place and how the food wasn’t satisfying.  I have no clue how people feel that way.  Obviously, with both meals, I couldn’t eat it all but I was stuffed for the rest of the night.  But one of the first things I noticed and agreed with was how easy this would have been to make myself.  The Vegetarian Bowl was brown rice, black beans, fajita veggies, fresh tomato salsa, and guacamole.  The Sofritas Taco was black beans, brown rice, soft flour tortilla, fresh tomato salsa, and roasted chili-corn salsa.  So if this was made at home the exact same way, all of a sudden it is satisfying?  But not grabbing it from Chipotle?  I didn’t agree, and I think it is a great option to have on the go.  And honestly, it gave me the boost that I needed to keep going on this journey.  The food was so good.  And instead of trying all brand new meals next week, I plan on batch cooking what was in my bowl and taco and eating that until we get tired of it.

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All 66 Books

All 66 Books: 2nd Timothy

Need some background info on this series? See here and here.

2nd Timothy was apart of the letters to the Church that I was reading during my sabbatical. According to Crossway, it takes 11 minutes to read this book.

Just a reminder, it’s best to let scripture interpret scripture. I like these resources because they help me better understand scripture, but I may not agree with everything they say. As in all things, pray and invite God to help you in your time of reading and studying. Allow the Holy Spirit to guide you and use discernment when using resources outside of the Bible itself. “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15 NIV)

Here are some additional resources I recommend looking into after you read 2nd Timothy through on your own:

The Bible Project

BibleTalk.TV

Leave me a comment below if you have taken the 11 minutes to read 2nd Timothy.  Do you know any other great resources for this book?  Leave them below!

 

 

Categories
All 66 Books

All 66 Books: 1st Timothy

Need some background info on this series? See here and here.

1st Timothy is another one of Paul’s letters to the Church that I read during my Sabbatical.  According to Crossway, 1st Timothy takes 15 minutes to read.

Just a reminder, it’s best to let scripture interpret scripture. I like these resources because they help me better understand scripture, but I may not agree with everything they say. As in all things, pray and invite God to help you in your time of reading and studying. Allow the Holy Spirit to guide you and use discernment when using resources outside of the Bible itself. “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15 NIV)

Here are some additional resources I recommend looking into after you read 1st Timothy through on your own:

The Bible Project

BibleTalk.TV

Leave me a comment below if you have taken the 15 minutes to read 1st Timothy.  Do you know any other great resources for this book?  Leave them below!

Categories
Faith

Rhenáe’s Randoms – 2/4/20

I feel like manifesting, and affirmations have been a hot thing for the past few years.  I’ve spent that time ignoring them and not really paying attention.  But lately, with me on a continued journey of growth and taking in resources to help with that, these two things are consistently recommended.  But I’ve had some questions.  As a Christian, should I partake in this?  It appears that manifesting and affirmations may be connected to the Law of Attraction, and you speak to the universe about what you want.  But why am I talking to a created thing that can’t talk back? Then I’ve seen that the universe is another name for God.  No, the Bible is very clear.  God MADE the universe (Hebrews 1:2-3). He is not the universe.  So again, is this something I should participate in? I know the Bible has plenty to say about the tongue and how it can lead us to destruction, but is the opposite true as well?

I went to the internet and found both yes and no answers.  Bible verses were given for both points of view.  People that said we shouldn’t use manifesting and affirmations pointed to the many verses that talk about who God is and the authority that He has but nothing about what we can or cannot do.  Those that said yes showed verses about the gifts and strengths that God has given us.  I decided to write down a prayer to God and just asked Him.  I spoke about the verses that I knew were fact.  I confessed that I didn’t want to do anything that goes against His Word and asked for guidance.  Then I felt this impression to watch a sermon I’ve meant to catch up on from my church.  To be honest, I’ve felt this impression a few times since I’ve missed the service, but I’ve ignored it.  Not always intentionally, but my other to-do list items would come up (and some were even really good things to do).

The sermon was about right before the birth of Jesus.  The story of Joseph in Matthew 1.  How Joseph’s plan to marry Mary, didn’t go the way it was supposed to because Mary ended up pregnant.  How his secondary plan, to divorce Mary, apparently wasn’t right either.  Our Pastor gave us three things God challenges Joseph to do:

  1. How he thinks about all this
  2. How he talks about all this
  3. How he moves beyond all this

 

To me, I connected thinks with manifesting and talks with affirming.  I couldn’t believe how quickly God answered my prayer.  What makes it even better are the verses given to support it.  I include the sermon in today’s post, but below are my notes as well.

This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. 

But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” 

All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).  

When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.

Matthew 1:18-25 NIV (emphasis mine based on sermon)

3 Things God Challenges Joseph To Do

1. How I Think About All This

Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails. – Proverbs 19:21  NIV

Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. – Matthew 1:19 NIV

Joseph’s Plan A: follow tradition and marry Mary; Plan B: Divorce her quietly (our instinct is to distance ourselves when things go wrong).

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. – Romans 8:28 NIV

If all of this is useable, I need to change what I think about it.

2. How I Talk About All This

Don’t speak about the negative things; talk about the purpose they provide.

She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins. – Matthew 1:21 NIV

But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus. – Matthew 1:25 NIV

Although we may not have planned it, we have to participate in it.  God has called us to put words to His work.

Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. – Genesis 2:19 NIV

You didn’t choose what you see, but you are responsible for what you say.

Then the Lord said, “Call him Lo-Ammi (which means “not my people”), for you are not my people, and I am not your God. – Hosea 1:9 NIV

3. How I Move Beyond All This

When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. –  Matthew 1:24 NIV

Be faithful and walk through it.

How to walk after you wake?

She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins. – Matthew 1:21 NIV

Joseph hears the gospel, and that is what transforms his life.

Categories
Family Food

Year of Healthy: February

I’m Going Planet-Based 

If you know me, I can hear you laughing now.  Tanisha…the foodie…giving up meat?  I am.  For the month of February, I decided to go vegan.  I knew on this Year of Healthy journey that I wanted to dedicate at least one month to food (to understand why read this post).  I had a good friend go vegan late last year, and her testimony has been so inspirational that I figured I would give it a go.  I’ll be honest, I expect this to be hard, so I picked the shortest month. 😂 Jokes on me because 2020 is a leap year, so it’s not as short as I expected.

What Is Vegan?

I’m including a quick definition because when I share with people that I am doing this, they make it seem like I can’t eat anything.  According to Webster, a vegan is “a strict vegetarian who consumes no food (such as meat, eggs, or dairy products) that comes from animals.”  That’s it.  What’s a vegetarian? Back to Webster.  “A person who does not eat meat: someone whose diet consists wholly of vegetables, fruits, grains, nuts, and sometimes eggs or dairy products.”  That leaves A LOT of options for me to eat.

Now, I have spent some time watching YoutTube videos and reading blog posts and man, the community really gets up in arms about vegan vs. plant-based.  Honestly, the difference seems to be that vegan means a lifestyle.  So you don’t wear anything from an animal, buy anything that came from an animal, etc.  But I also see that vegan means you still can eat processed foods.  Oreos are considered vegan.  While plant-based means you are eliminating animal products AND processed foods.  As of right now, I have no plans on changing my whole life around behind this.  I mean, I think the only animal things I own “may” be leather purses, but I’m not even sure if that is the case.  But for right now, my only change will be with food.  I may continue to learn more that may change this.  The purpose of me picking a topic for a month is to learn what I can and create healthy habits.

Why Plant-Based?

I’ve been working on my relationship with food for a couple of years now.  I’ve done Whole30 plenty of times, which is when you eliminate dairy, grains, legumes, sugar, alcohol, and soy for 30 days.  We live a Whole30 lifestyle 95% of the time because I can’t consume sugar and dairy without having some major stomach issues.  I’ve also gone without meat a couple of times during different fasts that I have done.  My goal is to get the inside of my body healthy.  While I understand medicines are beneficial, I would love to control my different health concerns with food.  I would prefer that I get my vitamins and nutrients from what I eat and drink.  And since the holidays, I have done a horrible job at cooking and eating my vegetables.  It also doesn’t hurt that my husband hates vegetables, and it gets pretty annoying to prepare them and him not eat them.  So going plant-based and trying out different recipes allows me to increase my vegetable intake.  I’m also hoping that a side benefit is that I can show my husband healthy food made only from plants isn’t a bad thing.

How I’m Getting Started

Planning and Preparation.  Those are seriously my two most significant tools for this journey.  I created a vegan section under my food board on Pinterest.  I eat very little processed food day-to-day, and I cook most of my meals at home.  So I will continue doing that.  Because I am cooking with even more fresh produce, I was advised to continue to go to the grocery store multiple times a week to prevent food waste.  I started on Friday by planning enough meals to get me through the weekend.  I hit the store Saturday since I had enough food to get through breakfast and lunch (oatmeal, grits, smoothies…I have options).  I made a grocery list for 2-3 days worth of meals and then picked up what I needed from the store and got to cooking.  I’ve had a fantastic time and experience so far, and a certain someone has even enjoyed the food.  Keep an eye on my Instagram and Facebook stories to see how this goes!  I’ve already created a story highlight just for this journey.  Are you plant-based or have tried vegan before?  Please leave me your tips below in the comments.