Retired to Bling

Sunday, February 8, 2015

Richway Amethyst BioMat

It's been over a year that I've been using the BioMat for at-home treatments...and I love it just as much {maybe more} as I did when I first tried it! It has helped with so many things - reducing stress, swelling, relaxation, sleep pattern, lymphatic drainage, and my Bell's Palsy.

There have been so many times that in the middle of doing something, I feel the urge to lay down and rest and rather than laying down on my bed or on the sofa, I gather my 3 pups and we all lay down on my BioMat...
for a treatment. Sometimes we're on the BioMat for only 20 minutes and other times as much as an hour. The pups are content to just lay there and enjoy the benefits, just as I do. I am fortunate in that I have a massage table, with the BioMat set up in the middle of my office...so it's really convenient. I have a quilt covering the table that matches my valances on the 2 windows in the office...so it really is a pretty setting. Sometimes, one of the Pups needs a treatment and then they just jump up on the BioMat to alert me and I turn it on for them. It has heat AND the far infrared waves and negative ions. {Angel is the most frequent individual user of the Pups.}

***I haven't received anything from BioMat or my Massage Therapist, Heidi for doing this post - I truly have felt the benefits of using the BioMat and highly recommend it to everyone. You can read my original BioMat post here.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The Richway Amethyst BioMat combines the triple synergy of Far Infrared rays and negative ion therapy and the super conducting properties of amethyst crystals into a powerful tool to facilitate healing. So, what does all that mean??

Let's break it down . . .

Far Infrared waves, discovered by NASA, are known to be the safest, most beneficial natural light wave. Infrared rays are healthy rays at the far end of the spectrum that provide warmth and relaxation. Far Infrared Rays penetrate 6 inches into the body. Therefore, these rays not only benefit the muscles on the surface of the body, but all cells including blood vessels, lymph glands, and nerves in the deepest parts of our body.

Using the BioMat Can...
~ Reduce swelling and inflammation by improving lymph flow
~ Increase blood flow of the micro-circulatory system
~ Destroy cancer and viral cells without harming surrounding healthy cells **
~Stimulate healthy molecular vibration with long-lasting, life-sustaining enzyme activity Negative Ions

Think about how you feel while standing beside a waterfall - bathed in a refreshing sense of clean energy! Scientifically, negative ions are a state of having more electrons than protons in molecules or particles in the air. In 1991 Dr. Erwin Neher and Dr. Bert Sakmann in Germany received the Nobel Prize for Medicine as they found that negative ions play a very important role in metabolism.

In the human body there are more than 60 trillion cells connected - sending and receiving information, nutrients, and excreting wastes. Such distribution is possible because there are cell channels connecting the cells. However, if there are no negative ions in cells, then the cell channels do not open. Thus, nutrients are not passed, cell activity is reduced, creating a feeling of pain. Wastes that are not excreted accumulate in the body causing adverse health.

When you feel pain, it is your brain detecting electrical signals of positive ions. Negative ions generated by the BioMat help facilitate cellular metabolism, enhance your vitality, reduce pain; distribute various nutrients and energy throughout your body. Negative ions also cleanse blood, have a tranquilizing effect and are also good for recovering from fatigue.

Benefits of the BioMat

Increases Blood Circulation and Strengthens the Cardiovascular System
Improves Skin
Burns Calories & Controls Weight
Improves the Immune System
Reduces Stress & Fatigue
Removes Toxins
Relieves Pain & Joint Stiffness
Reduces Inflammation
Improves Sleep
**Harvard Medical School found out that cancer cells are vulnerable to heat, and will be destroyed at temperatures over 42*C. The rise in body temperature will weaken activities of cancer cells.

Amethyst

Amethyst crystals are most famous for their power to detoxify the body from alcohol and other harmful elements. Beautiful Amethyst crystals are seen in a row of the BioMat!
~Amethyst also produces Far Infrared rays.
~The crystals have scientifically been found to offer the most consistent and powerful delivery of healthy far infrared light waves.
~They are a powerful detoxifier for lungs, respiratory, skin, digestive diseases and cellular disorders.
~They strengthen the immune and endocrine systems, boost production of hormones.
~Help regulate the Autonomic Nervous System to achieve balance between the Sympathetic and Parasympathetic systems.
~Amethyst synthesizes the transmission of neural signals through the brain.
~Far Infrared Rays provide relaxation, antibacterial effects and purification of the air.

Friday, February 6, 2015

Make Adjustments...by Joyce Meyer

Adding your diligence [to the divine promises], employ every effort in exercising your faith to develop virtue (excellence, resolution, Christian energy), and in [exercising] virtue [develop] knowledge (intelligence).

- 2 Peter 1:5

Sometimes we have to make a few adjustments in our lifestyle to follow wisdom. We may have to say no to too much activity. Hebrews 11:1 teaches that faith is the assurance of things we do not see now. But...
like God, we can call "those things that be not, as though they are" (see Romans 4:17). This spiritual principle applies in the negative realm as well as in the positive realm. So we may need to make some adjustments to the things we say.

If you feel that it is hard to get up in the morning, don’t say, “I am too tired.” Get all of that weak, tired, wimpy, quitter, give-up talk out of your vocabulary. Instead, say, “Because the Lord is my strength, I can do whatever I need to do today.”

Thursday, February 5, 2015

Snowstorm 2015 and More

This past Saturday and Sunday was our big 2015 SNOWSTORM! We broke a record with 16.5"! We have drifts that look like Waves, and some that stand nearly 4 feet high! No power loss, so we stayed warm. Naturally with that kind of snowfall, Tom's Oncologist's office called Sunday night at 9pm to let us know that the office would be closed on Monday and that we should call in for another appointment. This was the appointment when we were...

to find out the results of all the tests hubby has had in the past 2 weeks....something like 4 Cat Scans, a Bone scan and 3 MRI's...all of different areas and with and without contrast.

Now, our appointment is next Tuesday, February 10th.

That's why I haven't updated my Blog with a post about the findings. Also, I've been extremely busy the past 2 weeks, making lists of things needing to be tended to...getting hubby to do his share and me doing mine. Things are progressing. Sorry I haven't been visiting and commenting much recently. I do look, but can't think of anything to say...I'm just at a loss for words.

Tom's daughter has come over several times (sometimes with a couple of other people) to shovel our 650 square foot courtyard (for our Pups), our sidewalk and the drive-way, since hubby can't do it all himself...and I can't shovel at all.

This is our Sweetie Girl, Angel. She is a Coton de Tulear and will be 2 in July. She had just come in from outdoors...running around our courtyard with Jasper and Rosie...and continued running around in the house. She jumped up in the bed in the office and I quickly snapped a picture! How cute!!

I hope you're enjoying the Devotions I've been posting lately. It seems nearly every one of them that I get in an email, speaks to me and my situation...and I know I must share them! And besides, there isn't much to post about.

Monday, February 2, 2015

He Will Tell You What's Ahead

He will announce and declare to you the things that

are to come [that will happen in the future] - John 16:13

One of the many benefits of hearing from God is that listening to His voice helps us prepare for the future. The Holy Spirit gives to us the messages the Father gives to Him, and He often tells us things that will happen in the future. We find many instances in the Bible in which God spoke to people...
and gave them information about the future. He told Noah to prepare for a flood that would come to destroy the people of the earth (see Genesis 6:13–17). He told Moses to go to Pharaoh and ask for the release of the Israelites and that Pharaoh would not grant this request (see Exodus 7). Obviously, God does not tell us everything that will happen in the future, but His Word promises He will tell us some things.

There are times when I sense that something good, or perhaps something challenging, is going to happen. When a challenge awaits me and I have some prior knowledge of it, that knowledge helps to cushion the blow when the difficult situation comes. If an automobile with good shock absorbers hits a pothole, those absorbers protect passengers in the car from the jarring impact that would result and no one gets hurt. God’s giving us information ahead of time works the same way.

Part of the Holy Spirit’s ministry is to tell us things to come. He knows the mind of God and He knows God’s individual plans for our lives. He will reveal what we need to know when we need to know it in order to fulfill the good plans God has for us.

God’s word for you today: Trust the Holy Spirit to tell you what you need to know about the future.

Saturday, January 31, 2015

Life Beyond Abuse, by Joyce Meyer

I was sexually, mentally, emotionally and verbally abused by my father as far back as I can remember until I left home at the age of eighteen. He did many terrible things…some which are too distasteful for me to talk about publicly. But I want to share my testimony because so many people have been hurt, and they need to realize that someone has made it through their...
struggles so they can have hope.

More than anything, I want you to know and really understand that anyone who has been abused can fully recover if they will give their life completely to Jesus.

What Does “Abuse” Mean?

Abuse is defined as “to be misused, used improperly or to be wasted; to use in such a way as to cause harm or damage; to be treated cruelly.” Any time we are misused or used for a purpose other than what God intended, it’s damaging. And I realize many people can relate to this. For some of you reading this article, I’m just telling your story. You know what it’s like to live with a terrible secret that is eating you alive.

My father was a mean, controlling and manipulative person for most of his life. He was unpredictable and unstable. As a result, the atmosphere of our home was super-charged with fear because you never knew if what you did would make him mad or not.

We always did what he wanted to do, when he wanted to do it. We watched what he wanted to watch on TV, went to bed when he went to bed, got up when he got up, and ate the meals he wanted us to eat…everything in our home was determined by his moods and what he wanted.

The sexual abuse started when I was very young, and when he decided I was mature enough, he took things even further. From this point until I was eighteen, he raped me at least once a week. My father, whom I was supposed to be able to trust and who was supposed to keep me safe, was the person I came to fear the most.

Feelings of Shame and Loneliness

I was so profoundly ashamed because of this. I was ashamed of me, and I was ashamed of my father and what he did. I was also constantly afraid. There was no place I ever felt safe growing up. I don’t think we can even begin to imagine what kind of damage this does to a child.

At school I pretended I had a normal life, but I felt lonely all the time and different from everyone else. I never felt like I fit in, and I wasn’t allowed to participate in after-school activities, go to sports events or parties or date boys. Many times I had to make up stories about why I couldn’t do anything with my classmates. For so long I lived with pretense and lies.

What I learned about love was actually perversion. My father told me what he did to me was special and because he loved me. He said everything he did was good, but it had to be our secret because no one else would understand and it would cause problems in the family. It became my burden not to let my pain cause problems in our family. And as long as I kept this secret, I couldn’t get free from the pain of it.

You may be wondering, Joyce, where was God in all of this? He was there. He didn’t get me out of the situation when I was a child, but He did give me the strength to get through it. It’s true my father abused me and didn’t love and protect me the way he should have, and at times it seemed no one would ever help me and it would never end.

But God always had a plan for my life, and He has redeemed me. He has taken what Satan meant for harm and turned it into something good (see Romans 8:28). He has taken away my shame and given me a double reward and recompense (see Isaiah 61:7).

God Can Heal and Restore You

It may seem impossible, but God’s truth has set me free from a life of pretense and lies and has restored my soul. I am living proof that nothing is too hard for God. And no matter what you’ve been through or how bad you hurt, there is hope!

That’s why I’m telling my story. You need to know how good God is and that your struggle is worth it. If you will give your life to Christ and really trust God, you can be completely healed and restored so you can live the life Jesus died for you to have. Don’t give up!

This article is taken from Joyce’s testimony on DVD, One Life, and was originally published in the May 2012 issue of Enjoying Everyday Life® magazine.

Friday, January 30, 2015

Sandwich Buns

1/3 cup milk, warm

1/4 cup butter, melted

1/4 cup oil

2/3 cup crushed pineapple, not drained

1/2 cup brown sugar, lightly packed

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper...

1 tablespoon honey dijon mustard

2 eggs, well beaten

1 tablespoon yeast

4 1/4 cups flour

Stir together milk, butter, oil, pineapple, and sugar in a bowl. Whisk in salt, pepper, dijon mustard, and well beaten eggs. Add 3 cups of flour and yeast, Knead dough until smooth, adding more flour as needed. Dough should be slightly sticky. Place dough in a greased bowl and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk. Punch down, form buns, and place in a well greased 9" by 13" pan. Let rise again until almost doubled in bulk. Brush buns with an egg wash. (whisk an egg and 2 tablespoons water). Bake in 350º oven for 25 minutes, until tops are golden brown. Brush tops with melted butter if desired. Yield: 12 buns

I've been enjoying Recipes from the Blog Mennonite Girls Can Cook for a while now...and since I was making one of their recipes for dinner tonite, I thought I'd share the Recipe with you. If you haven't seen their blog you can visit them here.

Thursday, January 29, 2015

Hold Your Tongue

Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit. Depart from evil and do good; seek, inquire for, and crave peace and pursue (go after) it!

—Psalm 34:13-14

"You really have the gift of gab," one man told me many years ago, when I first started in the ministry. He had pointed out something that I already knew: God had given me "a ready tongue," that is, I speak easily. Words are...
my tools. The Lord first gave me that gift, and then He called me into the ministry to use that ability to work for Him.

I have no trouble talking. That's my gift; that’s also been my greatest problem. Because I seem to always have something to say, I have struggled many, many years over the right use of my tongue.

It has not been an easy battle.

Over the years, I heard various people saying things like, "Hold your tongue." "Do you have to speak every word that comes to your mind?" "Do you always speak first and think later?" "Must you sound so harsh?" Had I truly listened to what people were saying, I might have realized that God was trying to tell me something. But I ignored their comments and continued in my own stubborn ways.

I know I have wounded people with my words in the past, and I am sorry for that. I'm also grateful that God has forgiven me.

Several years ago, I realized that if God was going to use my life, I had to gain control of my tongue not to just stop talking, but to keep my tongue from evil, and my lips from speaking deceit, as the psalmist David says.

I had a choice. I could hurt people with my words and I could do that well or I could bring my lips into subjection to God. Obviously, I wanted to be subject to the Lord, but it was still a battle.

Our words are expressions of our hearts of what's going on inside us. If we want to know who a person really is, all we need to do is listen to their words. If we listen long enough, we learn a lot about them.

As I learned to listen to my own words, I also began to learn a lot about myself. Some of the things I learned did not please me, but they did help me realize that I had a character flaw that needed to be addressed. My words were not pleasing God, and I wanted them to. Once I confessed my failure to God, the victory came, not all at once and not perfectly, but God is patient with me. I'm growing, and part of my growth is keeping my lips from evil.

No matter how negative you are or have been, or how long you've been that way, God wants to change you. In the early days after my confession to God, I still failed more often than I succeeded, but every time I did succeed, I knew I was closer to God's plan for my life. God can do the same for you.

It won't be easy, but you can win. And the effort will be worth it.

Lord, help me use my mouth for right things. Put a watch over my mouth lest I sin against You with my tongue. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to You. I ask it in Jesus' wonderful name. Amen.

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Find the Love, Peace & Joy You're Looking For

Do You Love Yourself?
Take a minute to think about it. It's an important question because your answer will determine how much love you are able to give to others. You see, if you don't love yourself in a healthy, balanced way, then you won't be able to spread the love of God to those around you because you...
can't give away something you don't have to begin with.

Now, I’m not talking about a selfish, self-centered kind of love for yourself that is arrogant and puffed up. That is not what I’m saying. There is a balanced way to develop a godly appreciation for who you are and the abilities God has given you.

I talk about this a lot because I think one of the biggest problems we have today is how we feel about ourselves. It seems many people have a broken record playing in their head that keeps repeating, “What’s wrong with me? What’s wrong with me? What’s wrong with me?”

One reason for this is we compare ourselves to other people and wonder why we can’t look or act like they do. Or we believe that God is mad at us for some reason…and then fall into the trap of thinking we need to try harder to measure up.

Don’t Be Misled

The devil wants us to feel bad about ourselves. He tries to mess with our thinking so we are always wondering why something is wrong with us. And many times we make the mistake of getting mad at ourselves because of it.

But God’s Word says that those who are in Christ have been made righteous. Second Corinthians 5:21 (AMP) says, “For our sake He made Christ [virtually] to be sin Who knew no sin, so that in and through Him we might become…the righteousness of God [what we ought to be, approved and acceptable and in right relationship with Him, by His goodness].”

I like the Amplified version of this verse because it helps us understand the meaning of righteousness. As the verse says, it means that in Christ, we are as we ought to be. God created us. He approves and accepts us by His love and goodness.

Get Completely in God’s Will

As soon as you accept Christ, His love is poured into your heart. In fact, He loved you before you ever accepted Him as your Savior.

I really want you to get this because the fact that God loves you is one of the most important truths you need to know. Loving God and then yourself in a healthy, balanced way is the first step toward fulfilling your destiny and becoming a vessel of God’s love so you can spread His love to others. It’s also the key to having everything Jesus died for you to have, like His righteousness, peace and joy.

I love what Romans 14:17 (AMP) says, “[After all] the kingdom of God is not a matter of [getting the] food and drink [one likes], but instead it is righteousness (that state which makes a person acceptable to God) and [heart] peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.”

That verse says the kingdom of God is not food or drink. I like to say that God is not about stuff. And He wants to give us something much more important—righteousness, peace and joy.

Are You Living in God’s Kingdom?

How much joy do you have? It’s pretty much impossible to have joy if you don’t know God loves you as you are and have peace with yourself. If you lack joy, maybe it’s because of the way you see yourself. Do you enjoy spending time with yourself? Some people get overly involved in activities because they can’t stand to be alone. And some folks are angry with themselves, so they avoid their own presence.

A good place to start growing in the area of balanced, godly self-love that includes a healthy attitude about yourself is by meditating on Ephesians 1:4-5 (NLT): “Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.”

Remember that God loves you unconditionally. He created your temperament, your talents, and all your other traits. But we all have specific areas we can grow in and things to work on. That’s okay. The Holy Spirit is willing and able to help you grow in areas of weakness. Like I often say, “I may not be where I want to be, but thank God I’m not where I used to be!”

Wherever you are in your relationship with God, know that He has singled you out and chosen you to be His child. He is pleased with how He made you and His love surrounds you. You are the apple of His eye.

This article is taken from Joyce's four-CD series, Calm, Cool & Collected.

Sunday, January 25, 2015

Be Still, by Joyce Meyer

Fear not; stand still (firm, confident, undismayed) and see the salvation of the Lord which He will work for you today . . . The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace and remain at rest. —Exodus 14:13-14
When troubled times come our way, one of our biggest challenges is to stay calm. Our natural tendencies are to fear, to worry, and to try to do something to fix the situation or solve the problem. But we must learn to get our emotions under control so we can think clearly, act wisely, and pray in faith. Moses often had to help the Israelites calm down. When Pharaoh's army was gaining ground on...
them, they kept running, but knew they were headed straight into the Red Sea. Death seemed certain! Exodus tells us the people were frightened and angry with Moses, and they decided they would have been better off as slaves to the Egyptians than trying to outrun Pharaoh's forces. Moses was saying in today's scripture, "Stop it! I know the situation looks hopeless, but don't be afraid. Just be still for a minute and watch what God is going to do for you." Before Pharaoh's army reached the Israelites, God rolled back the waters of the Red Sea so His people could cross over on dry land. When they were all on the other side, the sea closed again and Pharaoh's fight¬ers drowned. This same miracle-working God is on your side today. He still fights for His people. Your job, if you belong to Him, is simply to "hold your peace and remain at rest."

Love God Today: "Lord, I will not fear. I will stand still, stay calm, and watch what You will do on my behalf."

Saturday, January 24, 2015

Change

Come on in and sit down with me, I have a Blog Story to share with you - while it involves Change, it has a beautiful Fairy Blog Mother involved, too!

Have you noticed the changes I've been making throughout the month of January, here on my Blog? I created my Banner and everything you see...all the little "pretties" and all! And now, I'm finally finished. I'm not one...
for "settling" until everything feels right and comfy to me. Do you do that too? It's kind of like fluffling the pillows on the sofa!!

Besides the big name change that came on New Years Eve...from The Comfort of a Safe Place to Jan's Place...I've done alot of editing and rearranging. So, I thought I would share some things with you today.

I hope you all know Linda from Life and Linda - if you don't, stop by and visit her. She is full of great Blog information, beautiful Tablescapes and Decorating Ideas too...plus alot more.

The home of the Bestest Fairy Blog Mother of them all - LINDA!

I haven't had Linda re-do my Blog...or even make me a Banner...but I love her work and think very highly of all that she does...I just LOVE doing my own. But Linda helped me with a huge problem. I got my blog all set up - new Banner and everything in place, but I couldn't get the Date or Comments or labels onto my individual posts and I really worked at correcting it...then finally shouted out to Linda. The Fairy Blog Mother came to my rescue. Thanks Linda! In no time she had it all working again.

She does wonderful work. She also designs blogs! Some of the most popular Blogs that I visit, have Blog "outfits", designed by her. Stop by and check it out.

While she worked on my Blog problem, she left me with an extra little something - {originally called "Sitemap"}, which I have renamed ARCHIVES.

My Navigation Bar, that you will see under my Banner at the top of my Blog isn't fancy, but it's a wealth of information!

From left to right...is the...

Home Button - will take you back to the main page of my Blog

About Me - which you can read and learn a bit more about me
Archives Button - shows you a list of all Posts, by Category of the label I use on them. It makes it so easy to find something you're looking for on my blog

Contact Me - there is a form for you to fill in, with all the information needed to send a private message to me
Open House Tours - all of my posts of Homes For Sale and their Tours
Recipes Button - takes you to My ReciPage - which is full of my (and a few friends' recipes), complete with a photo and directions and the capability of printing each recipe for yourself.

Tutorials Button - there are some beautiful tutorials listed there, with the link to the blogger who made them

Go ahead and click on them and find out for yourself how much information is there!

And then of course, a Link/Photo to my Fairy Blog Mothers' Blog.

Stop by and visit Linda!

I hope this little tour around my Blog will help you find things easier and make your visit even more enjoyable.

Friday, January 23, 2015

Help Is Here, by Joyce Meyer

And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Comforter (Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener, Standby), that He may remain with you forever. —John 14:16

Many people have received Jesus as Savior and Lord. They will go to heaven, but never draw on the full capacity of the Holy Spirit that is available to them or experience the true success God wants them to enjoy on Earth. Simply put, many will be on their way to heaven, but they won't enjoy the trip. We often look at those who have wealth, position, power, fame, and other resources in...
abundance and we consider them "successful." But many people who are considered successful still lack good relationships, good health, peace, joy, contentment, and other true blessings through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Such people are still independent; they have never learned to depend completely on the power of the Holy Spirit.

People who are self-sufficient often think depending on God is a sign of weakness. But the truth is that by drawing on the ability of the Holy Spirit, they can accomplish more in their lives than they ever could by working in their own strength. God created us in such a way that although we do have strengths, we also have weaknesses and we need His help. We know He wants to help us because He sent a Divine Helper, the Holy Spirit, to live inside us (see 1 Corinthians 6:19). We often struggle needlessly because we do not receive the help available to us. I encourage you to depend on Him, not on your own strength. Whatever you are facing, you don't have to go through it alone.