Step Back, Balance

Lying in bed this morning I looked back over my life. I do that sometimes to remind myself of the good things and the good times I have experienced. In the midst of those thoughts something unexpected happened. The thought came “Why just the good things. What about the bad things?”Now why would I want to do that? To learn. So I did.

It is said your behavior follows your thinking. I now see oftentimes your thinking follows your feelings and ignores facts. I discovered most of my bad decisions were made during a time of or were motivated by emotional pain. I really never looked at it like that but after some analysis it proved to be true. This was and is not wise. When you are hurting, it is likely you will only see the negative circumstances and the negative options. The flip side is also true. If you are on an emotonal high it is likely you will only see the good options. The lesson I learned for me this morning is

Remember to calm down, step back, get an emotional balance along with the facts and then

make your decision.

Basil Vitality to the Rescue!

Awww Man! I’m out of basil, dried or fresh.

In the middle of preparing vegan gumbo, I discovered I had no basil. Now before you get your pants in a twist I know you gumbo loyalists say there is no such thing. Yes we have to make substitutions but we can make our version. Please let us have that.

Now back to my story. First I was frustrated and then I remembered…. I have Basil Vitality. I have been planning to meal prep with my Young Living oils so here was my opportunity to kick start it.

I used two drops in a 2 quart pot where my vegan sausage aand vegetables lived. The aroma, awesome. The taste was good but 2 drops might be too strong for some people. Next time I’ll use 1 drop and add another if needed.

In those 2 drops were flavor and all the benefits of Young Living Essential oil Basil Vitality.

This is the solution to those cold winter months where fresh may not be so available. Or those times you just don’t have the time or desire to go to the store. Click on the basil links or the picture to order yours.

Next goal is making my homemade spaghetti sauce using the vitality oils. I might even let you share the experience.😉

It’s that Young Living Black Soil Living!

Prescription: Rest

If you read my blog posts, please “like” them or “follow”. I have been told by some real friends that they read them but I never knew until this week. It is encouraging to know they are read. Now I don’t feel like a voice crying in the wilderness and unheard.

This week I have been trying to follow the doctor’s prescription, Rest. It wasn’t and isn’t easy.

I did get some things done toward organization. I feel good about that. Continuing in mental if not physical rest. Living and loving my black soil life.

Resurrecting Franklin

I went to bed last night thinking about causes for my stress and how to relieve it. I realized all the different directions I felt pulled into; all the different ideas floating around in my brain; all the different responsibilities I now have. I felt my stress level go up just thinking about it all. Anyone who knows me well knows I hate unorganized chaos. (I believe I can have some organization within my chaotic life) Example:looking for the tops to storage containers or pots and pans. When they are cleaned, I store them with their tops on. Having to look for them creates stress.

Then an organization system we used in the ’80s popped into my thoughts: Franklin Planner. I haven’t used it in years but it seems quite appropriate for the chaos in my life. Can’t hurt. After this thought I went into a restful sleep.

For those who haven’t used the system, it is quite simple and very effective. First list all the things you have to do. Then prioritize them. All urgent, time sensitive recieve an A level; the next in importance recieve a B level and so on. Making the lists should prove very enlightening. Prioritizing is going to be interesting because right now I think everything is urgent. Recently I unpacked my husband’s office and found his planner. Now I can organize my chaos. 😄

So today I will resurrect Franklin.

My Friend, Stress

August was a very stressful month. I didn’t know how stressful until a few days ago. But I’m getting a head of myself . Here’s the story.

Four and a half years ago my husband had a massive heart attack and our shared responsibilities became all mine and I became his primary caregiver. The stress created by all that has become so familiar that I didn’t realize I was stressed. Then August 2019 came.

Event 1 – husband began having difficulty breathing. Fluid had accumulated around his heart and lungs. His right foot was so swollen it looked like his ankles had tumors on each side. Water pills were prescribed but in the meantime there was the breathing issue. I rubbed Raven a Young Living Essential oil on his chest and put some in the diffuser. That helped but I still received interrupted sleep.

Event 2 – Trip to Alabama. I went to visit my uncle who has become debilitated. He insists on living alone to retain some independence. It was a 3 day turn around that was stress-filled. I functioned on adrenaline and caffeine. I did what I could in that short time to help him and to relieve some cconcerns my mother, his sister, had.

Event 3 – I began having chest pains. My left arm and hand began to tingle. Fear stepped up and said you are having a heart attack. I began to pray and declare that I was not. I didon’t have time to be sick. I absolutely refused and the pain worsened. Finally, I listened to my husband and ddaughter and went to urgent care who redirected me to emergency. After several test I was admitted for observation and more tests. All test were negative. My heart and lungs are healthy.The doctor told me whatever I was doing to keep doing it. I am healthy. Yes, Lord. STRESS was blamed for all my pain. The intensity crept up so I didn’t notice until it took control. I began massaging my feet at night with Peace and Calming oil and that helped me sleep.

This is how August ended. So how did September begin? With pain. I decided to exercise to begin relieving the stress. The next morning, September 2, I could not walk. Literally could not walk. So now I am fighting that pain. I need to exercise because I will not take a boat load of pills for the stress. I will continue with exercise, Stress Away essential oil and Peace & Calming Essential oil.

This is my time for ME!

YLEO Listened!

🎉Budget-Friendly Starter Kit 🎉

PayPal now makes Young Living’s Starter Kit even more affordable! You can grab your Premium Starter Kit and choose PayPal credit as your payment option to get a payment plan for monthly installments of approximately $27 (depending on what country you’re located in) over 6 months! What? Yes!! That means you can grab this user-friendly kit for $27 per month!

👉 How does this work?

* You have to establish a PayPal account for this.

* Go to YoungLiving.com

* Choose your Premium Starter Kit & Diffuser.

* Enter the member number of your friend/family that introduced you to Young Living.

* Checkout and choose PayPal credit to get the payment plan option.

* You receive your starter kit from Young Living while making your payments to PayPal.

This is an amazing option – just goes to show how Young Living has essential oils for every budget!

Watch “The Sandbox was Before That” on YouTube

Still feeling the results if the conference. My soil has been greatly enriched by this experience. In addition I developed new relationships and made others stronger.

TODAY, the Best Day❣

Today is workday. I am finally organizing my office/sewing center/guess room. I am setting up to continue my self-care. I’ll explain in my next post. My soil is blacker now. So many nutrients were added to it these last two weeks.

TODAY is the BEST day of my life🙌🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾

God is leaning in my direction❣

My own recipe – Catsup and Hot Sauce

Catsup and hot sauce back in the light. This will be the last post about this, at least until my tomatoes and peppers mature. ♥

Hot Sauce

Simply roasted serrano peppers, one roasted cherry hot pepper (good flavor not hot), a pinch of cayenne and white vinegar. I pureed everything, seeds and skins included. Very good but not as hot as I wanted. It has a delayed spicy kick so taste a little at a time.

Catsup

Roasted tomatoes, one roasted cherry hot pepper, apple cider vinegar, one garlic clove, 1 tsp tomato paste and a drizzle of oil for smoothness. Puree (skins and seeds) and enjoy. Hmm.

I know I didn’t give many directions. That’s because I went back to my roots and did a “that’s about right” measuring method. Have fun. I did.

Faith or Sight? Choose!

Several years ago I posted this during a personal medical crisis. I felt led to repost as a reminder to me and other believers as we walk through this most recent national health crisis.

7 For we walk by faith, not by sight. 2 Corinthians 5:7 NKJV

I have heard that scripture cited so very much over my life. I even thought I knew what it meant. I thought….

On Friday, April 10, 2015 I realized I didn’t get it before. God said to me “Your behavior does not match your words. Are you really walking by faith or are you really walking by sight wrapped in limited faith.”

Let me give you some context.

At Eagles Wings Christian Church, we have been focusing a lot lately on “Walking by Faith, Not by Sight.” There are new activities that we want to accomplish and it will require faith to do it.

On Sunday, March 1, 2015, God spoke through our praise leader that everything would be alright. She uncontrollably kept repeating “everything will be alright.” We said Amen. What we didn’t understand that a few short minutes later, the pastor, my husband, would pass out just before taking the pulpit. Apparently, his blood pressure dropped and so did he. The emergency response team was called and he was revived and taken to the hospital. That morning the believers swarmed him with prayer. I felt no fear just prayerful power. After all we had been told “everything would be alright.”

The teachings continued and we as a church expected every week for a miracle. Little did we know God had an object lesson planned. On March 26th, God’s lesson began. “In That Moment” and “After the First Moment” tell the story so I invite you to read those posts.

This is where the Friday conversation becomes relevant. We talked about walking by faith and not by sight at church and among believers. That basically means we live, make decisions based on the faith that we have in some thing or someone not by what we observe in the circumstance. The scripture that was laid on my mind when my husband had his heart attack was Psalm 91 especially verses 14-16. I told everyone that I was standing in faith on this scripture for my husband’s recovery.

Here was my contradiction.

Sight said

He had a loss of oxygen. Brain damage

His heart has a 10-20% refraction – doesn’t pump blood strongly enough

Needs a defibrillator or other surgery

Prognosis is not so good.

The practical and realistic thinking person says let’s do what is medically necessary to save and improve his life. I mean it is reasonable right?

Faith says Psalm 91

Psalm 91:14-16 (NKJV)
14 “Because he has set his love upon Me,

therefore I will deliver him;

I will set him on high, because he has known My name.
15 He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him;

I will be with him in trouble;

I will deliver him

and honor him.
16 With long life I will satisfy him,

And show him My salvation.”

God said “You said Psalm 91 was your faith anchor while you make preparations to satisfy sight.” His question was clear. “Will you totally and completely trust me and my word? Choose.”

Do I listen to faith or sight? I chose faith. In that choice, I signed up to behave or live according to faith not what I see. Yes, I gather all the information from the doctors. I ask questions to understand what the doctors are doing. I then turn all that over to God and remind Him what He said.

Until God says something different, I am expecting everything that He said in Psalm 91. My husband fulfills the conditions and I choose to trust God’s Word. It is my choice to live, walk, behave according to faith not just mentally believe.