Daniel Fast, Day 21: Wrap-Up!

Hey, y'all!  It has been a long day, and Mama is tired!  And a whole lot lighter in the pocket than when the day started.  Am I complaining?  Not at the moment; I'm feeling pretty happy with my purchases at the moment.  But some of that stuff I know full well I could have have done without buying today, although if I hadn't bought it today, I would have bought it some other day, so today was as good a day as any other to get it.

Things I bought today that I could have put on the "buy later" list include a jar of bentonite clay that I plan to try on my hair as a shampoo, a 32-ounce bottle of African black soap by Alaffia that I tried as a hand soap almost as soon as I walked in the door—verdict:  YE-E-E-E-ESSSSSSS!!!—some natural toothpaste for which I misread the price and so will not buy again, a tube of Burt's Bees lip balm that has mango butter in it but which I didn't need right now because I just bought two others last month, two bags of snacks that I could have probably bought elsewhere at equal or lesser cost, and a tube of double-concentrated tomato paste.  Although, to be fair, the things that really drove up my budget are the nuts and the maple syrup.  The nuts I will eat anyway, because they've become a staple in the way of eating that I will be practicing from now on. The maple syrup is one of three, maybe four sweeteners which will all replace sugar as staple sweeteners in my food list, and it's one of those things where it becomes more cost effective the more of it you buy, which means to make it worth the price, you pretty much have to break the bank on it.

This is the last day of the Daniel Fast, y'all.  I'm very happy about that.  I have two pieces of swordfish thawing out in my fridge right now, that I plan to cook tomorrow for lunch to inaugurate my new intended pescetarianism.  With it I will have a tabouleh salad, sliced tomatoes, and fruit.  Maybe I will also brew some green tea.  I have missed my tea!  And it will be nice to have something else to eat with rice besides pinto beans, although I ate that for breakfast and supper (I missed lunch) today and liked it both times, so obviously I'm not hurting that much, just want to shake up the monotony a bit, and now I can. 

So, was this anything like what I expected?  Yes and no.  Yes, I knew that it would be both easier and harder than the typical, more complete, more arduous fast wherein I give up all foods and all liquids except water (at my current size, as much sweat as I produce, and with my bladder's tendency to spasm painfully when I'm critically dehydrated, I stopped trying to fast without water years ago); easier because I still ate, but harder because I still gave up eating things I desired.  And just because the fast is now in its last hours, it doesn't mean that I will go back to business as usual.  Instead, I start a different way of eating, for which this fast was a set-up as much as it was a sacrifice. 

Do I feel that I wasted my time?  Absolutely NOT!!!  This was good for me in a number of ways.  I lost weight; how much I don't know, but lose weight I definitely know I did.  During this week alone, I have now been in two situations wherein I was required to sit in chairs that typically were too small to hold me comfortably, if at all, and in both instances the chairs held me with a greater degree of comfort than they would have a mere three weeks ago.  I've now made a 20-minute walk part of my daily routine for at least two days out of the week, and will certainly do it more than that.  I feel better than I have in YEARS!!!  And that's just the beginning. 

I've become more proactive about avoiding as many unnecessary and artificial preservatives and additives as possible.  I'm eating more plant matter than ever before.  I can now eat plain fruit or vegetables and nothing else and still be satisfied, and I'm more readily satisfied on far less.  I now know that I don't need to eat meat to be satisfied.  As a result of not eating it, my cholesterol is going to go down overall, and my bad cholesterol specifically.  I'm going to continue to see a drop in weight, because I have replaced the volume of meat I ate with a greater volume of legumes, nuts, and seeds as a result of which I will take in fewer calories in exchange for way more fiber, which will help to sweep out the fat I do take in and relieve my liver of having to work as hard.  That energy from there can now go to other things, and I will be healthier overall.  I'm emptying my gut regularly, with less effort in a lot of instances, and more than one time in most days.   

There is no more reason for me to mentally prepare myself for the possibility of being in a wheelchair; rather, I can focus on regaining my legs and strengthening my left hip and knee, so I can stand straighter and walk with better form so as not to throw myself out of gait and off balance.  As I get stronger, I will walk farther and become healthier.  I have so missed walking :-(!  Because my body will be healthier, I will feel better, because I will expend less emotional and mental energy on dealing with pain and  tiredness.  Rather than needing strength for bearing pain constantly and having it as a way of life, I will now have strength to put toward other things.  I can explore options that I thought had slipped beyond me forever. 

And the whole thing started because God's Holy Spirit prompted me to begin to search out ways to protect my liver, prompted me to begin the Daniel Fast, and touched my back and set this healing in motion.  He is so very good!

Since I promised to tell the story of how I was healed, it wouldn't be a complete wrap-up of this fast if I didn't tell that story.  So here it is.

I mentioned my new church, Miracle Life Ministries International, which is in walking distance from my residence.  They had a prophetic conference during the last weekend in April, and when it was announced some weeks well in advance, I made it my business that I would be present.  And so I was.

Of the conference generally, I must say that it was a phenomenal experience, and if you missed it, I'm sorry for you.  I benefited greatly from it in more ways than just the healing itself.  I have known that prophecy was one of my spiritual gifts, and I have used that gift over the years, but I needed more boldness and more assurance in my ability to exercise the gift.  I received this boldness and assurance as a result of my participation in the conference.  The whole conference was divided up into sessions: the Friday evening session, the Saturday morning session, and the final session that evening.  Everything God had for me manifested during that afternoon session. 

First there was the moment during which we were all—at least I was—in the Spirit.  The Spirit moved in a wave of anointing across the room.  I was sitting in my chair, I know I was; but then, in an instant, I became aware of being in a reclining position, being lifted up in that position, and being held.  I could fee myself being rocked very slowly and gently, as if I were a small child being held.  The sensation was amazing!  I felt that I weight next to nothing as I was held and being rocked.  I have no words to write that will do justice to that moment; it was brief but indelible.  I do not think I will ever forget it, how it felt to be held like that.  I knew it was God, my Abba, who and come by His Spirit to love me like that.  It was so sweet!  Gentle, warm, tender,  I've never felt anything quite like it, although there have been other moments that I had forgotten that were also very beautiful and special, when the Holy Spirit had visited me in the past.

Then later, during a time when the chairs were moved back to make room for all the people to stand and receive the laying on of hands, I was in a moment of intensely focused worship, hands up, eyes closed, when someone came, took my hands, pulled me forward until I was bending, then the guiding hands took my shoulders and drew me further forward and down until I was doubled over from the waist.  The hands then touched my back.  Those hands belonged to a person, a woman.  This I know.

I don't know how long I stayed bent over, head, shoulders, torso, and arms hanging down to the floor, but I stayed there until I felt the release to rise.  I straightened, arms upraised, head back, back arched, and as I continued worshiping—all this time I had not stopped—there was suddenly a sensation of flickering heat, in the area of my back from whence had originated so much pain and trouble!  It intensified and moved along my back from that area and around in it, and I began claiming by faith and in the Spirit what I wanted:  Total healing of my back, that I would stand and walk and dance, that there would be no more pain, and only the healthy end-of-the-day weariness of a strong, healthy body that had worked hard and well.  Power and strength and ability to walk, so that I could begin to take care of myself and do those things that would help me become healthy in my body.  I claimed it in the Name of Jesus!  And the pain left, and, what else can I say, it has not been back from that moment to now.  And yes, I have been standing, and walking, and dancing in the Spirit.

That all happened before the Daniel Fast, but as I said earlier, the fast itself was part of something greater that God set into motion for my health, so this was a step in a series of steps.  The actual journey is underway, has been well underway for awhile now.  I'm excited to see where He takes me, and I'm so grateful for His mercy, His love, and His grace in not passing me by but helping me, and loving me, and just showing up so big, as He has done. To God be the glory!  I'm so happy right now!  Thank You, Abba! 

So now I think I'll grab a handful of nuts and maybe some fruit, and then I'm going to get ready for bed.  Thank y'all for coming with me on this journey.  I hope you've enjoyed what I've shared and that some of it was helpful to you.  It's a journey that may not make sense to some who are more legalistic or less sacrificial-minded, but for those who undertake it by faith, with true intent and a sincere heart, I think you will find it well worth the doing.  I wish you well, and all God's best to you in Jesus' Name!  Amen!

Hallelujah!

Daniel Fast, Day 7: Whole Foods Un-Funny Money Shopping Trip

Today's menu:  Breakfast was eaten on the run, or to be more accurate, on the walk, as I attended my first Frontline service at Miracle Life Ministries today., and all I had was a handful of raw almonds.  Lunch was eaten seated at a table at Whole foods, and it was a repeat of breakfast.  The service was wonderful.  The shopping trip, not so much :-/.

You see, yesterday afternoon a little past 3 p.m. I stopped in at the bank to check my bank balance and saw that it contained a decent amount.  I wanted to set my budget for today's trip at a specific amount, but prices being what they are at Whole Foods, I knew that there was a strong possibility, no, a probability, that I would blow right by that amount.  But that would be okay to me.  

So I went through the aisles gathering various things I thought I wanted.  Shopping backwards, I picked up cold foods early in the search, right after I picked up some produce.  Unfortunately for me, it took me longer to shop than I planned, and it was a good four hours later by the time I finished.  What can I say, decisions take time, and I made a lot of them.

So I went through the line with my purchases, not blinking when I saw that my total was double my original budget.  The money was in the bank, right?  WRONG!  The card was rejected!  I had the cashier to void the whole transaction and continue with other patrons while I sat aside to figure out what had happened.  

I used my bank's telephonic banking system to check my balance again.  I guess that a bunch of the people to whom I'd made payments via banking card or check all chose that period between 3 p.m. yesterday and 4 p.m. today to collect their money, because I was down by a massive amount.  I don't embarrass easily, but I was wincing inside as I returned to the cashier and asked him to do the re-ring.

I started with the frozen vegetables and cold prepared food that I'd selected.  Four hours riding around in my cart had done it no favors in terms of preservation, and I didn't think it was fair to make others suffer the effects of my slow time-taking and miscalculation.  In addition to a package of chopsticks, the frozen and cold prepared stuff was all I ended up buying.  Needless to say, I bought no nuts.  I apologized my way through the whole thing.  For their part, the cashier and his co-worker who came over to help were relieved that I was right-minded enough to pay for the stuff I did get.  

Which made me wonder, off on the periphery of my mind:  "Just how often do they get stuck with spoiled cold groceries because people ride them around in the cart for the longest time but then decide that they can't or won't purchase them?"  It would not have been fair to put them back after thawing them out in my cart, and I fully intended to buy them anyway, which is why they were in my cart in the first place, so it was no skin off my nose to have them rung up first.  When I shop for things like that, I make good and sure I'm absolutely going to get them before I walk out the section where I got them.  On the flip side, I would not want to be the one being stuck with possibly spoiled groceries because someone else rode them around in a cart long enough to thaw them out, only to change their mind and put them back.  And if the people in the store have a good conscience about the matter, there some things they wouldn't restock anyway, because keeping them away from the cold for so long would allow for the possible multiplication of harmful pathogens to begin, and others would then be made sick.  Which would make the alternative be for the store folks to throw out those items.  And where would they make up the loss?  Yup!  Right out of all our pockets!

So you see, folks, when you spoil food in your cart that you then don't buy, don't think you've saved yourself anything.  You join the rest of us in paying for it later, in higher food prices.  And while that's only one small way that food prices may be affected, it is a way that can so easily be prevented!

(1) My frenemy—I HATE that word; I rebuke myself in the Name of Jesus for calling him that, and I will not anymore use it about him!—my once-and-will-be-again friend T, when I told him over the phone about this, answered, "That's why, when I go to the store, I check while I'm there how much money is in the bank, before I start shopping."  I'll be doing that myself from now on, you better know!  And I suggest you do it, too.  If you don't know the number to your bank's telephonic banking system, then you can get it from a teller the next time you go there.  Program it into your phone so you always have it.

(2) I shopped backward, in that I got cold things first.  Now that would have been okay if I'd had the money to buy those things.  Having discovered myself to have less than I'd originally been told, however, if I'd shopped so that I got the cold things last, I would have been able to get at least one bag of nuts, and I might have been able to swap out some of the other cold things for other things I'd picked up and wanted.  I could have, for instance, turned in all but a few of the frozen vegetables for a few fresh produce items, or a bag of brown rice or a bag of whole grain flour.  I could have ended up with a variety with which I would have been more pleased, and the cold things would have been able to go back to their places because they would not have had so much time to thaw out and warm up.  I will avoid doing that from now on, and it will be easier to avoid in that particular store now, because having walked most of it in my shopping trip today, I now have a better idea of the layout.

(3)  Which brings up the wisdom of taking time to become familiar with a new store's layout by simply visiting it and walking through it a time or two before you try to do a massive grocery shopping trip there.  Knowing what's in the store and where to find it before you need to know will make it easier to get through your trip in a shorter amount of time, even if you don't have a list but do have a general idea of the things you want to pick up while you're there.  

(4)  Deciding which things are must-haves and which things you can get another day if you find yourself unable to get them today makes it easier on both you and the cashier if the bank balance takes an unexpected hit and you're forced to leave something behind.  Deciding to be polite and gracious with the cashiers about you doing the right thing can also go a long way to soothe their feelings about having to restock your intended purchases.  From remarks they made between them, I knew he'd already had to repeat a similar scenario with re-rings and restocking at least once, and possibly a few times before I got in his line, and it was not his fault that my bottom line went belly up, so it did no good to take it out on him.  I apologized so much that the lady actually started saying things like, "No, no, don't worry about it, things happen."  And as I walked away with my one less-than-half-full bag, she actually said, "Bye-bye, thanks for shopping, and thanks for buying the frozen vegetables!  See you soon!"  Since she may indeed see me soon, as I plan to return when I have enough money to get some of the other things I couldn't get today, it makes me feel good that I still managed to leave behind me a good enough impression that they don't mind if I come back.

Oh, before I forget:  As soon as I got home and got sorted out, I fixed myself a small plate with a generous scoop of all of the four kinds of hummus in the sampler pack I got (one of the cold prepared food items) and dipped a lot of baby carrots into it.  There was traditional, garlic, black bean, and roasted red pepper hummus.  All of them were good.  And while I've been typing I ate some pinto beans that I cooked last night and paired them with a generous serving of guacamole (the other cold prepared food, and the one in place of which, had I not shopped backward, I could have gotten my much-desired cashew nuts).