Anna

Luke 2:36-38:

Now there was one, Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, and had lived with a husband seven years from her virginity;  and this woman was a widow of about eighty-four years, who did not depart from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day.  And coming in that instant she gave thanks to the Lord, and spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem.

Lessons from Anna:

1. Anna, a woman of 84 years, fasting daily. So you see, daily fasting is not necessarily unhealthy. (I used to think she had been a widow for 84 years, but I don't think that now. If you do, you may be right about it. Either way, Anna was an old woman.)
2. Her daily prayers and fasting was not for the service of others, though it did serve others to pray for them. No, it was for the service of God.
3. She was blessed to know that Jesus was the one to bring redemption because she knew God. Daily prayer, being in the temple around the public reading of the scriptures, with holy people who shared her faith and, of course, fasting - these things brought her close to the God of all creation.
4. No doubt, she was a woman held in high honor, being a prophetess; this simple woman who fasted and prayed daily.

Not so bad, really

I looked back at the November 4, 2014 post (next to last one) and I realized how far I have actually come. I HAVE been doing my daily fasting.

Somewhat.

I have lost 17 pounds and have gotten a little better control of my blood sugar. When I went to the doctor in February, it was a normal 103. I was shocked when I saw that. The doctor was very pleased. I had lost 24 pounds since August, when I had last seen him. My blood sugar number for the six month test was down to normal range, too. He was pleased.

So, really, I've not been doing nothing as I had thought. At least some improvements have been made.

The thing now is to keep going and to make more improvements. It's one of the most difficult things to do: changing bad habits. But, it can be done.

One day at a time.

Fasting and Dresses

Daily. Fasting.

The problem with daily fasting is that it's so, DAILY.

I begin again.

Also, I saw this picture, which will remain anonymous and if anyone knows this person, I will remove it. It's just a picture I saw online and snipped it. It made me more determined to wear dresses. Is it a man or a woman? It's a woman, but, you would have had to convince me if I hadn't seen the whole page. I admit, if it were a picture of me, you might wonder the same thing. I'm more determined than before to wear dresses!

What's more, I have noticed with myself and observing others that with the habit of wearing pants, it's easy to forget how to sit and stand like a lady - feet together, knees together. It's a bad habit and I don't want it anymore. Today, I begin my month of sewing for the Spring and Summer, and get back to Fast Five. Or Fast Eight.