Proverbs 31 - Week 4

The past week's study was titled: "Strengthening Your Body." The focus items this week were adding a Prayer Walk to your daily routine, using enhanced water, giving your body time to digest, defying gravity with the use of a rebounder, and a cleansing diet and bath. You can tell from this that it was a full week.

While the emphasis is on a Prayer Walk, not just a walk, many benefits of walking are listed. The book states: "Studies have shown that brisk walking is associated with substantial declines in the incidence of coronary problems in women, can reduce or eliminate high blood pressure, strengthen bones, and increases levels of HDL (good cholesterol), reducing the risk of coronary artery disease. A Harvard study found that women who take a brisk walk each day can cut their risk of developing type 2 diabetes in half. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regular physical exercise performed most days of the week will reduce your risk of dying prematurely, reduce high blood pressure, and reduce your risk of developing colon cancer." WOW...I don't think anything else has this kind of impact. Then imagine adding the spiritual growth you could experience by adding prayer to this walk time...amazing!

Please note that we are talking about a brisk walk for these health benefits. Approximately 17-20 minutes per mile. That's a fairly good pace, and will get you just under 2 miles in about 30 minutes.

What Donna calls "enhanced water" is next. She offers two options for this. The first is hot lemon water. You basically start with 1/8 of a lemon and squeeze the juice into a cup of hot water (no sweeteners). You do this at the start and end of your day and build up to using 1/2 of a lemon per glass. The second option is using unsweetened cranberry juice. You take 1 part unsweetened cranberry juice and add 3 parts water. For example: 8 ounces of cranberry is combined with 24 ounces of water for 32 ounces to drink before lunch. You make another batch to finish before bed. Although it does say that there are side effects if you have toxins in your body, I did not experience any.

Next is giving your body time to digest. Earlier in the study, we set an evening routine complete with a curfew of sorts. You start with your bed time and back-up three hours and don't eat anything after that time. This allows your body time to digest your food before going to bed, so that your body can actually rest during sleep time and not continue working on things. Great idea, hard to follow...I like to snack, especially during the evening. Once all the kids are in bed, it's the only time I have that I can eat without sharing!

The next day's text focused on the use of a rebounder, which is a better quality version of a mini trampoline and comes with a hefty price tag. I've never used a rebounder, but Donna states that it helps you use more muscles at one time, therefore getting a better workout and using muscles that you normally wouldn't use. Since I bike about 5 miles a day, 5 days a week, I didn't try this, but it sounds fun.

Lastly, Donna provides a recipe for a cleansing bath with baking soda, epsom salts and lavendar or arnica oil and recommends using this daily or at least weekly. She again warns that you may feel the effects if you have toxins built up in your body. I'll let you know how this goes, I haven't purchased all of the supplies yet.

All in all, this week went well and I am still enjoying the study very much. I will leave you with the memory verses for Week 4 and encourage you to keep the faith.

Proverbs 31:16-17 She considers a field and buys it; out of her earnings she plants a vineyard. She sets about her work vigorously, her arms are strong for her tasks.

In His service,
Christina