Summer Camping Trip Wins!

 Our annual doctoring trip turned into an actual vacation this year!

It was the first year we could really start to explore the state park where we camp.

From meadows to clifftop paths...

We climbed the bluffs on both sides of our valley on different days.

That meant more than 200 hundred steps each way, each day!

And it hasn't been that long since our 14 steps up to bed at home required several stops to rest.

We also biked 5 miles a couple of times - part of it on a narrow foot path through the hilly woods. I couldn't believe my returning balance, coordination and strength!

Back in camp we enjoyed plenty of rest in the high heat and humidity, plus some cosy campfires.

I also enjoyed my first Mac & Cheese in a decade! Still gluten-free so far, but dairy is returning.

Praise God from Whom all blessings flow!

Elsa's WholyFit Exercise Classes - Starting Soon!

Photos are coming soon of our July camping trip full of exciting wins! 

But first, let me share how my sister Elsa has completed a huge goal that would have been impossible for her a couple of years ago...

Elsa has become a Certified WholyFit* Instructor, and she is now offering online exercise classes for women!

For those women who know they need some exercise in a safe, Christian, and core-strengthening way, but don't know how to fit in trips to the gym... Elsa is offering weekly WholyFit classes online (with a video replay you can use all week) starting soon.

Click HERE for more information or to get on her email list to hear of upcoming classes.

I had the privilege of being in Elsa's test group this year [along with some mothers looking to rehab after several pregnancies], and it was so encouraging!

Want to join us next month?! I'd love to exercise and grow in strength and grace along with you!

~ Hannah

* WholyFit's mission is to provide a Christ-centered stretching based system that equips instructors and participants in biblical holistic practices for wholeness and healing. To learn more, visit wholyfit.org.

Stream Sight & Sound's DAVID for Free this Weekend!

I'm back! The past month has been filled to overflowing with camping twice and catching up whenever we are at home. It has also been sweetened with many joys and wins. 

More about that later...

Today I'm just popping on to let you know that you can watch what is probably my favorite Sight & Sound musical for FREE through August 11th. 

Stream DAVID here: https://www.sight-sound.tv/

What makes this show so special to me is all the ways the Psalms are included.  I even got the DVD for my birthday to watch anytime. If you get to watch, I'd love to hear in the comments below!

Note: This show is likely too intense for young children. 

"As They Went" - on Thoughts & Obedience

As I read Luke 17, I was once again struck by the three little words:

"As they went..."

"They" = 10 lepers, desperately sick and cut off from everyone and everything they loved.

"Went" = Following Jesus' directions to step out in faith that they would be healed, even though He hadn't come up and touched them or spoken words of assurance as in other cases. He simply sent them off to show themselves to those who could declare them all-clear to live a normal life again.

As a result, they were healed on the way and commended for acting in faith and obedience by stepping out and doing what God had said... even when it didn't make sense. 

Jesus can still do that today! Even when He doesn't heal all at once [though He does that too], He still calls us to have faith and follow His directions. Our Good Shepherd will lead us in the best paths for us when we follow His voice. 

In the words of a hymn I love... Trust and Obey.

So what are we, You and I in the year 2024, told to do? For one thing, "Take every thought captive." (2 Corinthians 10:5)

Amazingly, science is finally starting to prove what God has directed all along in His word... that our thoughts matter. We were created with neuroplasticity [brains that can change] for good reason. 

Our thoughts directly affect our body chemistry, immune systems, and so much more. No wonder God's word clearly emphasizes things like:

• Trust - Psalm 62:8

• Hope - Romans 15:13

• Be still - Psalm 46:10

• Praise - Hebrews 13:15

• Eternal Mindset - Colossians 3:1-2

• Do not fear - Isaiah 41:10 [and over 100 more verses on this topic!]

If we care about our health, we need to care about our thoughts as God has directed! When He says...

Whatever is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent & praiseworthy... think about these things. (Philippians 4:8)

...He means it! 

Besides the gift of Neuroplasticity, we were given the gift of Selective Attention. When a thought is hurting us and triggering our stress response, we can choose a different thought.

Not only does God promise to take care of all that worries us when we "Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness" (Matthew 6:33), but He has so designed our bodies that the very act of walking out this life of faith and obedience (starting in our minds) will set in motion physical processes of healing... 

As We Go!

Want to learn more about biblical and scientific Brain Rewiring? You can sign up for my occasional newsletter HERE.

~ Hannah

Celebration, Heritage & Gratitude

Just under 80 relatives gathered for our annual Independence Day celebration at the lake cottage. A small, but cosy group!

For the first time in a decade, I ate everything from the potluck tables! All I still avoided was anything overtly made with gluten. It's hard to believe I could get back to this point!

Praise God from Whom all blessings flow! I know it's not Thanksgiving Day, but gratitude is always in season,and right now I am thanking God for...

Family and Relatives with a shared godly heritage 

Good memories brought back as rain drove us into the old living room... and the ability to once again enjoy the building I had to avoid most of the past decade due to sensitivities

A widening range of flavors to enjoy

...And a nation which was founded by brave and often God-fearing men.

"The world seems to me an immense battle-place, where wrong and right have been struggling; always struggling. And sometimes the wrong seems to cover the whole earth, like a flood, and there is nothing but confusion and horror; and then sometimes the floods part and one sees a little bit of firm ground, where grass and flowers might grow, if they had a chance. And in those spots there is generally some great, grand man, who has fought back the flood of wrong and made a clearing."

▪︎ from "Nobody" by Susan Warner 

Another Birthday at the State Park

Another year = another birthday at the state park!

First time in a lake for this 6-month old! The sand was a hit... especially in the mouth.

Big brother is getting brave in the water and creative in the sand!

Big sister is always looking for fun!

 "The earth is full of the steadfast love of the Lord." ▪︎ Psalm 33:5

Getting Back to Concerts!

One of those opportunities to "get back to life" mentioned in my previous post was attending my first concert in nearly a decade!

Thanks to a trumpet-playing, music-major Dad, I enjoyed growing up with the music of the Canadian Brass. So when one of their former members came to our local concert association, it was not to be missed!

Dad actually attended the concert twice as it came to two area towns. Mom went with the first time, and I got to join him for the second. And due to stories told in concert and some talk Dad had with the performer after the first one, Dad brought his own trumpet along for Jens Lindemann to sign the case. [You had to be there to understand. 😊]

Dad's trumpet is a Yamaha bought through the Canadian Brass and tested by one of their members. The special story behind it was that Dad's college trumpet broke around 20 years ago, and he was ready to give up playing for Easter and Christmas anymore. But his mom wouldn't let him stop and bought this trumpet to keep him playing. 

Now Dad practices an hour most days and is getting better than I have heard him in my lifetime!

At the second concert, Dad also had the surprise of finding someone he had played with in college who had since had a professional trumpet career. Dad had him sign the case too... just for fun!

So my first concert was a treat and a successful chance to exposure-train with several of my long-time triggers.