Ultimate neighbor

Our Daily Bread
I am fortunate to live on a great street in Columbus that has a diverse population.  There are only about ten houses on my short street, but there are probably six different demographics in them!  Some of us watch out for each other, which is nice.  We also have  "Mrs Kravitz" on our street as well (reference to Bewitched for you young folks...).  It is nice to be a good neighbor.

The devotional today talks about being a good neighbor to every one.  I like this summary of what that means.  It is not complicated! To be good neighbors, we can:

• show others mercy (Luke 10:29-37), 
• treat others fairly (Lev. 19:13-18; James 2:1-8), 
• speak to others truthfully (Eph. 4:25), and 
• forgive others completely (Eph. 4:32; Col. 3:13).

Wow!  I loved the thought for the day at the end of the devotional:
Our love for Christ is only as real as our love for our neighbor.

Lord, please help us be like you, the ultimate neighbor!

Workout Wednesday
Don't do too much...
Have you done this before?  Started a new diet and workout plan only to fizzle away because you can't keep up the routine?  Yikes!  Been there!  Done that!  Here are some tips to get started and to stay going!

1. Always check with your doctor before starting a new diet or exercise program (I call it a new lifestyle!).  You may have to alter medication dosages as you lose all that weight!
2. EAT BETTER!  You can't exercise away a bad diet.  Read about healthier eating online or at the library.  Schedule some sessions with a dietitian if needed.  I started what I call the "better choices lifestyle" a few years ago.  It was easy because I had horrible eating habits before that.  I made better choices each day than I did the day or week or month before.  If you fall off the wagon one day, then make better choices the next.  You can do this!
3. Portion control: I used to eat HUGE portions.  I had Chinese carryout last week.  It was soooooo tasty!  The interesting thing is that I split up the dinner that I used to eat in one sitting into three meals! Yes, three meals!  You get used to eating less.  You don't gnaw your arm off!  
4. Eat healthy snacks.  I keep snack size bags of walnuts and almonds at my desk.  I also keep healthy snack bars.  The discipline here is to know the difference between a snack and a treat!  I hadn't thought about this until recently.  A snack is usually something healthy.  A treat is usually something that isn't!  ha!  Snack healthy.  Minimize treats to avoid empty calories.
5. Do things to keep your metabolism moving.  Starting off with some light weights or exercise bands to build a little muscle is a good thing! Muscle burns more calories than fat.  You can even do light calisthenics each morning before breakfast to rev your engine.  Other things like lemon juice, apple cider vinegar and hot spices also rev up your metabolism as well.  
6. Always remember that you need to have a maintenance strategy after losing the weight to keep it off.  Eating better is the most important maintenance strategy!
7. Hang in there!  You didn't get out of shape overnight.  You will not get back into shape overnight.  Be patient with yourself.

I hope this helps! Frankly, if I can do it, then anyone can!  ha!

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Let go, my friends!  God will be there to catch you and hold you in his loving arms!