December Newsletter
December is here! Cold weather, for those
in the northern parts and mountains,
maybe
a white Christmas! My family
and I wish you
all a Merry Christmas as we celebrate
the
birth of our Lord and Savior!
As we move
through the hustle and bustle
of Christmas
shopping, I pray that we remember
that the
occasion is the birth of a King.
With Thanksgiving
just past and the meals of Christmas
and
New Years approaching, this month’s
topic
is on food. Go figure!
To build muscle, one needs to meet certain
nutritional needs. Waking up
in the morning
and eating a Butterfinger candy
bar and drinking
a can of cola may be a great
way to jolt
the body awake, but it will never
help in
creating muscle. Spending hours
in the gym
is not the answer either. After
a certain
length of time training, usually
around 60
minutes, cortisol levels begin
to rise. This
is harmful as catabolic activity
causes the
body to use its own tissue in
order to provide
the necessary energy to continue.
First,
you need good sleep to grow.
When you go
into deep R.E.M. sleep, your
body releases
growth hormone and repairs itself
from the
ravages of the day, so get some
good quality
sleep. Second and most important
is your
nutritional needs. If you do
not eat enough
calories or take in enough protein,
you simply
will not add mass and muscle.
To add mass,
you have to take in more calories
than you
burn, it‘s that simple. In this
equation
is your protein intake, at least
one gram
per pound of bodyweight. Add
your carbs and
fats and you’re good to go. Now,
if you think
you can add more muscle by eating
lean, think
again. Oh, some can, but not
the majority.
You need a little mass on that
body for strength
and power. Increased strength
and power puts
a demand on your muscles and
they respond
by growing. Constantly staying
lean starves
you body and growth can be difficult
at best.
Making sure your calories come
from good
food sources is of utmost importance.
Gallons
of ice cream may be yummy, but
you will meet
you caloric goals by midday and
you’ll still
be short on protein, get the
picture? A well
rounded with good quality wholesome
foods
is the answer.
To feed and build the soul, one needs to
meet nutritional needs as well.
If you have
accepted Jesus as your personal
Lord and
Savior, it is just the start.
It would be
like deciding to workout, and
then doing
nothing else. The Word of God,
in the form
of the Bible is the soul’s food.
Each day
we need to read our daily devotions;
it feeds
the soul. Our soul feeds off
of the Word
of God, think about it. After
you have read
some Scripture, don’t you feel
uplifted in
Spirit? That’s the soul getting
part of it’s
nutritional needs for the day.
To not read
the Word would be like starving
yourself
to death. We also need fellowship,
praise
and worship and church to keep
the soul healthy.
That’s why when someone has been
saved, they
are ushered into a church. They
need guidance
from more mature Christians who
can help
them as they take their first
baby Christian
steps. Fellowship helps us stay
accountable
to one another ("Therefore confess your sins to each
other and pray for each other
so that you
may be healed. The prayer of
a righteous
man is powerful and effective."
James
5:16). Fellowship also uplifts and edifies the
soul. There is a group at my
work that never
ceases to uplift me no matter
what we are
doing. Just being together seems
to bring
me up a step. ("Consequently, faith comes from hearing
the message, and the message
is heard through
the word of Christ." Romans
10:17). Praise and worship are not only uplifting
to our souls, but pleasing to
God. As bodybuilders
we try to never miss a meal.
As Christians,
we should never miss the opportunity
for
nutrition of the soul!
We also need to remember that like the candy
bar and soda, some things are
not all that
great for our spiritual health.
We have to
make conscious efforts to not
over indulge
in sweets and we also have to
consciously
avoid those things that are not
godly. (" Finally, brothers, whatever is true,
whatever is noble, whatever is
right, whatever
is pure, whatever is lovely,
whatever is
admirable–if anything is excellent
or praiseworthy–think
about such things." Philippians
4:8).
And now our prayer. God, thank You for the
wonderful gift You gave to us
in Your Son
Jesus. Thank You for Your mercy
and grace
and forgiveness even though we
are not worthy.
We pray for those who have not
yet accepted
Jesus as their Lord and Savior.
Where opportunity
presents itself, please give
us the strength,
courage and words to speak of
your greatness.
In Jesus name we pray, Amen!
Until next time all! Go with God and Lift
that iron!
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