Article written for Living Well Magazine:Holiday Cheer or Challenge

The holiday seasons can be stressful and anxious. Keeping our holiday "cheer" during the season can be difficult. We have enough challenges and the holidays should be a time of happiness, joy and thankfulness. I hope you find this article helpful with a few suggestions on how to keep the "cheer" in your holiday! Enjoy and I hope you have a blessed holiday season.

Pruning Season of Life by Georgia Smith

Are You In A “Pruning” Season of Life

Imagine you are a tree, but not just any tree. Imagine you are a beautiful, majestic apple tree of Washington, or a lovely orange tree which grows in California orange country. Or would you rather be a juicy peach tree from Georgia? No matter which tree you favor, the process of growth year by year is similar for all fruit bearing trees. Pruning fruit trees is necessary for new vibrant growth to occur. The definition of pruning is “trim by cutting away dead or overgrown branches or stem, especially to increase fruitfulness and growth; cut away; reduce the extent of something.

Nutrients Affect on Emotional Wellbeing and the Brain

 

In 2012 I attended a continuing education course on the affects of specific nutrients in relation to mental health and brain functions. I was pleasantly surprised to see those who attended were varied in professions from doctors, nurses, trainers, massage therapist, chiropractors and mental health counselors like me. My first impression was there must be factual and scientific evidence to support this topic or there would not be such a wide array of professions (those professions who help people with their physical and emotional problems daily).

“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.”  Ephesians 2:4-7 Christ pours out His mercy over and over again, strengthening us for the race set before us. The strength to overcome is His unstoppable grace. Because of His mercy, we have been given His grace. They are intertwined and woven together working always for our benefit, even when we do not realize they are at work. Think of mercy and grace’s interaction together in comparison to a sailboat. A sailboat cannot sail without the wind. The sailboat is at the mercy of the wind. But without the actual sail being hoisted in the right position and turned at the perfect angle, the sailboat has little strength which is the grace. Mercy and grace always work together. In fact, mercy propels us to seek the grace (strength) to continue. Mercy brings encouragement where there has been devastation. Mercy brings restoration and life. Why would we want to give up on life and God’s love when we continuously see His mercy poured over us. His mercy gives jump start to His incredible grace (strength).