Subscribe to a magazine

At the beginning of the year, it seems like an appropriate time to start things.  Start a reading plan, start an exercise plan, start a personal growth plan.  We like new things and we like having done something for ourselves.

Here is a simple way to start something that will benefit you for the coming year.  Subscribe to a magazine.  Set yourself up to receive copies from home.  Magazines are usually focused on one area of interest.  Pick a hobby or something you would like to belong to and spend the thirty dollars.  Magazines can supplement your reading and make you more aware and more rounded.

In my house, my wife and I have subscribed to a magazine each in January.  Often times we mix it up and choose something entirely different the next near.  Magazines are an easy way to keep informed and to let others know what interests you.

Give yourself permission to do something for yourself today.  Pick an interest and subscribe to a magazine today.  That simple act can go a long way in building the life that you want.

Eat to weigh less

When you and I look around this country it is hard to over-look the serious weight issue we have here.  People are carrying excessive weight that in no way is healthy.  Their skeleton structure was never designed to haul so much.

It has been said before but I will say it again.  If you want to be thin, do what thin people do.  Ask someone who is trim what they do to stay that way.

Here are a few simple ideas on how to be more trim.

- Eat more fruit, vegetables, nuts, and beans.  All of these foods have fiber and will help you to feel full. Eating them will help keep that annoying hunger pang from always being there.
- Drink more water.  Stop drinking the soda pop, fruit juices, and beer.
- Do not eat after eight o'clock at night.  Eat three meals a day with two snacks (mid-morning and mid-afternoon).

I really feel bad for folks who are over weight.  It cannot be comfortable or helpful.  But to lose weight you have to eat better.  Simple as that.

We are all on one team

My heart grieves over the division that is so evident in our country.  We have allowed ourselves to be divided.  Yet I long for unity.  I want us to play well together.  We are neighbors.  We have a common history.  We want mostly the same things.

My message to my fellow man out there is:  We are all on one team.  I am not out here to take from you or to put you down or to hurt you.  I want to cooperate, I want us both to win, and I want to live in peace.

Let's hang together.  Let's pull together.  Let's build together.  We are walking the earth at a common  time in history.  May it be said that we had a love for each other.

Claiming greatness

It is very difficult to say much when someone claims the USA is the greatest country in the world.  If anyone says something to the contrary it is like they are being unpatriotic or like they don't agree.

Those who have experienced life elsewhere know our country is a special place.  We do live some place that is like no other place on the planet.  I see that.

Yet, there are improvements that need to be made, there are pains that need to be soothed, there are sins that need to be repented of, and there are people who need to be lifted up.

The problem with stating "we are the greatest" is that it shuts down any thought of improvement.  We need to discuss how we can make this a better land.  We need to discuss our energy usage, our national debt, school loans, infrastructure, social insecurity, the environment, and our need for more cleanliness.  There are things that need to be done here and often times issues are not addressed because we all assume this is the best it can ever get.  Clearly, there is a lot of work that can be done here.

Just because we are a great land doesn't mean we can't improve.  Please don't say "The United States is the greatest country in the world".  Instead say, "We live in a very special place and a land of great opportunity".

Read a devotional

Starting your day with a something inspiring and uplifting can really put you on the right track.  We all need to start our day in the right frame of mind.  To do this, I like to sit down and read a devotional each morning shortly after I get out of bed.  It has turned into a good habit and one that I think you would benefit from as well.

As you look into a new year, you may ask yourself what could I improve on and what have I been missing?  Perhaps your spiritual side has been going undernourished.  A devotional can speak to your soul and not take a lot of time.

Devotionals that I have used and would recommend are:

My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers
Great Is They Faithfulness by Larry Burkett
Our Daily Bread by RBC Ministries
Morning and Evening by Charles Spurgeon

These devotionals are inexpensive, easy to get, and can be used year in and year out.