Renewal

Renew Your Mind:
This morning as I was reading a quick devotional for the day, it really meant a lot to me.  It spoke about making sure that we keep our thoughts in check.  It's easy to allow our stress or worries to consume us and then before you know it you are thinking more about what might go wrong than about what God has promised in the Bible for those who love Him.  So the next time you're thoughts are running away with you, remind yourself of things that God has done for you in the past and remind yourself of all of the promises that He has given you for the future. (Jeremiah 29:11)

Renewed Wellness: Here are a couple of key things to make sure you keep yourself and your family well all winter long.  Keep in mind germs from coughing with uncovered mouths travel 6 to 8 feet!

• Eat Bright Colors: Eat the brightest and most colorful fruits and veggies.  They are packed with the most vitamins and nutrients that boost your immune system.  Add as much color and variety to your meals as you can.
• Sleep Deep: Research suggests that only about a third of Americans get the seven to nine hours of shut-eye required to help keep their immune systems operating at full throttle.  Those who averaged fewer than seven hours a night were three times more likely to catch a cold than those who clocked eight or more regularly. We produce the hormone melatonin during nighttime sleep, which prompts a key type of immune cells to destroy infected ones. Over time, less sleep leads to  a subpar immune system.
• Eliminate Stress: Our immune systems are highly sensitive to stress. A study in Health Psychology suggests that chronic stress, or intense pressure lasting a month or longer, can make you more than two times as likely to get sick when you’re exposed to a cold virus compared with someone who isn’t overstressed.
• Scrub and Sanitize: Common knowledge, but the CDC says that in order to kill germs, you’ve got to be thorough. Lather up and scrub every crevice, including between your fingers and under your nails. Take your time, at least 20 seconds before you rinse and dry.  Wash your hands, door knobs, phones, counters, and anything else that could be contaminated by cold germs. 
• Travel Wisely: Confined space, lots of people, and dry air.  Cold viruses thrive in this environment.  According to a study from the University of Nottingham in England, those who took public transportation were six times more likely to suffer from respiratory infections than those who didn't.
• Turn off the Heat: Finishing a warm shower with a blast of chilly water may create a reflex action that supports immunity by stimulating lymphatic circulation.     Article Referenced

 New Hope:  With just a couple of days left of 2011, it's a good time for reflection, but it's also a good time to build up a great expectation for what God has for you in this New Year.  If this has been a great year, give God praise.  If it's been a difficult year for your family.  Hang in there. God has a good plan for your life, and always completes in us what He has started.  Phillippians 1:6 says, “being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”  Lets look forward to good things together!