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Birthdays,
holidays
and
special
occasions
give
cause to
indulge
in all
that
yummy
stuff
and what
a
delight--if
it were
not for
the
fallout
of extra
pounds.
It seems
that
every
season
clothes
you put
in
storage
manage
to
shrink
while in
rest
mode.
Just try
on one
or two
outfits
and you
get the
feeling
that
clothes-shrinking
gremlins
has been
wearing
them
while in
storage.
That
must be
it. They
were in
a dry
place,
not
exposed
to the
sun
and hung
or
folded
neatly
awaiting
the next
season's
excavation.
You are
not
quite
brave
enough
to step
on the
bathroom
scales,
but
surely
that
couldn't
be the
problem--could
it?
Well,
maybe,
maybe?
Sometimes
we find
that our
clothes
fit a
little
too
snugly,
and we
don't
like
what we
see in
the
mirror
and we
loathe
what the
scales
tell us.
We make
a
resolution
to push
the
plate
away a
little
sooner,
skip
dessert,
exercise
and try
to fit
back
into
last
year's
outfits.
Not an
easy
assignment
that we
give
ourselves,
but we
know if
we don't
take
control
things
will
only get
worse --
and
bigger.
Our
physical
health
is
important
and we
should
pay
attention
to
maintaining
a
healthily
lifestyle.
Even in
our
"out-of-shape"
condition,
we
probably
pay more
attention
to our
physical
appearance
and
health
than we
do our
spiritual
health.
It is
important
that we
watch
our
weight,
adhere
to
healthily
habits,
but it
is of
far more
value to
maintain
our
spiritual
life in
accordance
with
God's
Plan
Book.
Ideally,
we will
do both.
With
these
thoughts
in mind,
let us
consider
which
diet
plan we should follow.
God's
Ideal
Diet
Plan
It was a
place of
perfection,
a
paradise.
Everything
the
heart could desire was provided. Friendship with Love Himself
graced each evening after the minimal tasks were done. The perfection of
the
place
required
that
the
caretakers
only
"dress"
the garden and just enjoy its benefits.
The
potential
was
limitless.
Why
would
anyone
want to
change
such an
environment?
Wasn't
it the
ultimate
in what
everyone
seeks in
life?
The
scenario
was
tranquility,
security,
surrounded
by
indescribable
beauty
and even
peaceful
relations
with
all
other
creatures.
Apparently,
the
package
even
included
pain-free
childbirth,
judging
from
Genesis
3:16 "
...In
pain you
shall
bring
forth
children..."
This was
spoken
to Eve
after
she
chose
the
wrong
diet
plan and
indicated
a change
from the
way God
originally
planned
it. It
is not
wise to
try
to improve God's plan.
As part
of their
integral
makeup,
the
caretakers
of the
paradise
known as
"The
Garden
of Eden"
were
given
freewill.
Adam and
Eve
could
choose
to
continue
their
intimate
relationship
with
their
Father
and
enjoy
the
splendor
He had
provided
for
them, or
they
could
choose
to
listen
to the
nearly
believable
lies of
God's
enemy,
Satan.
Unfortunately,
they
made the
wrong
dietary
choice.
God had
warned
them
what
would
happen
if they
didn't
follow
His diet
plan;
they
would
die.
(Genesis
3:3).
Satan
told
them
God had
lied to
them,
and they
would
not die.
He led
them
to
believe
that God
was
holding
out on
them and
he
prescribed
a
different
diet
plan
which,
if
followed,
would
make
them as
God
Himself.
Incredibly,
they
believed
the lie.
The
result
of Adam
and
Eve's
choice
was
"arteriosclerosis"
and
stopped
the flow
of
eternal
life for
them.
They
could
have
stuck
with
God's
diet
plan and
lived
forever
in their
state
of
innocence
dieting
on the
Tree of
Life,
instead
they
went
on
Satan's
"artery-clogging
high
cholesterol"
diet
resulting
in heart
attacks--they
died
just as
God said
they
would.
Their
innocence
dissolved
the
moment
they
left
God's
menu
and the
intimate
relationship
with Him
ended.
They
even
tried to
hide
when God
came for
their
daily
date in
the
cool of
the day.
Spiritual
death
resulted.
God
could
have
just
buried
them and
let them
face the
penalty
of
disobedience,
living
in a
state of
death
with
their
deceiver
forever,
and
started
over
with new
creations;
but He
loved
them too
much to
do that.
He
already
had a
plan to
rescue
them
from
their
own
failure
and He
set it
in
motion.
Though
they
were
expelled
from
their
beautiful
paradise,
God made
provisions
that
would
bring
full
restoration.
Their
enemy
would be
destroyed;
they
would be
redeemed
and Eden
Eternal
awaited
them.
Though
they
died
from the
sin,
they
were
resurrected
to new
life.
Jesus
said, "I
am the
resurrection
and the
life. He
who
believes
in me,
though
he
may die,
he shall
live.
And
whoever
lives
and
believes
in me
shall
never
die...:
(John
11:25
NKJV).
HOPE!!
RESURRECTION!!
FORGIVENESS!!
LOVE!!
RESTORATION!!
God
didn't
just
scrub
out the
"plugged
arteries"
or put
in a
"stint."
He
didn't
even do
heart
surgery;
He
completely
replaced
the
arterial system so that new life could flow and bring sinless
eternal
life
into the
system.
He
didn't
just
patch up
the
flawed
man and woman; He created them anew with the ability to have
His life
transfused
into
them,
preparing
them to
live
with Him
in Eden
Eternal.
What
Satan
meant
for
destruction,
God used
for
construction
of a
"new
man."
"Therefore,
if
anyone
is in
Christ,
he is a
new
creation;
old
things
have passed away; behold, all things have become new."
(2
Corinthians
5:17
NKJV).
ALL
THINGS
NEW!
How was
that
possible?
How
could
God just
overlook
blatant
disobedience
of
listening
to and
following
the
suggestion
of
His
avowed
enemy?
The
truth is
He
didn't
overlook
their
sin. He
could
never do
that.
He is
just and
had to
issue
the
penalty
for
breaking
His law.
The
thing
that was
in Adam
and
Eve's
favor
(and all
of their
posterity,
including
us) was
the
incomprehensible,
unconditional
Love God
had for
His
creation.
The
divine
plan was
executed
at
Calvary.
God's
pronouncement
to
them
recorded
in
Genesis
3:15 let
them
look
ahead in
preview
how
God
planned
to
redeem
the
original
sinners
and
every
other
one that
would
live in
the
future.
"And I
will put
enmity
between
you and
the
woman,
and
between
your
seed and
her
Seed, He
shall
bruise
your
head,
and you
shall
bruise
His
heel."
Man's
"wound"
from
Satan
wasn't
the
fatal
blow
that
Satan
expected
and
intended;
it just
caused
God to
pull up
Plan A
(He has
no Plan
B!) and
redemption
resulted.
The blow
the
Satan's
head at
Calvary
was
eternally
fatal to
him.
It was
just a
"heel"
wound
for
Jesus.
The
penalty
God had
pronounced
on Adam
and Eve
extended
to
all who
would
subsequently
be
disobedient.
"...through
one man
sin
entered
the
world,
and
death
through
sin, and
thus
death
spread
to all
men,
because
all
sinned."
(Romans
5:12
NKJV).
So the
plan of
redemption
was
all-inclusive
as well.
"For if
by one
man's
offense
death
reigned
through
the one,
much
more
those
who
receive
abundance
of grace
and of
the gift
of
righteousness
will
reign in
life
through
the One,
Jesus
Christ...even
so
through
one
Man's
righteous
act the
free
gift
came to
all
men..."
(Romans
5:17, 18
NKJV).
Trying
to work
our way
into
salvation
is like
riding a
stationary
bike.
It burns
a lot of
energy
and
tires
you out,
but you
can't go
anywhere.
You're
no
farther
away
from the
starting
point
nor
closer
to your
intended
destination
than
when you
began
pedaling.
The
"righteous
act" of
Jesus
cured
man's
condition
caused
by his
wrong
diet
plan and
forever
defeated
Satan
and
thwarted
his
plan to destroy God's creation. God accepted the expiatory act
of Jesus
at
Calvary
where He
paid the
penalty
for
every
man's
sin from Adam to eternity.
God
doesn't
overlook
our sin;
it's
just
that
Jesus
carried
our
sin with
Him to
Calvary,
admitting
to and
taking
our
guilt,
leaving
us
innocent.
That is
what God
sees
when He
looks at
us--pure
innocence
of Jesus
who has
paid for
all sin
for all
time.
We have
to shop
around
to find
the
right
plan for
our
physical
shape
up. One
plan
doesn't
fit all.
When we
decide
to get
rid
of our
flab,
tone up
our
muscles
and hone
our
nutritional
skills,
we have
to take
many
factors
into
consideration
that
will
benefit
our
individual
needs.
That is
not the
case in
our
spiritual
lives.
One diet
plan
will
answer
the
needs of
every
person.
The
children
of
Israel
in the
wilderness
had
manna
when
they had
no other
source
and it
was
sufficient.
It was a
"type"
pointing
to the
real
manna
which
would
be
fulfilled
in Jesus
Christ.
"As the
living
Father
sent Me,
and I
live
because
of the
Father,
so he
who
feeds on
Me will
live
because
of Me.
This is
the
bread
which
came
down
from
heaven--not
as your
fathers
ate the
manna,
and are
dead. He
who eats
this
bread
will
live
forever."
(John
6:57-58
NKJV).
"Oh,
taste
and see
that the
Lord is
good..."
(Psalm
34:8
NKJV)
Jesus is
totally
sufficient
-- H A L
L E L U
J A H !
! !
Delores
Adams
Copyrighted.
All
rights
reserved.
Please
visit us
at:
http://heart2heartbeat.com
We
have a
new web
home and
will
not
be
updating
this
one. :-)
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you so
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