Since 2009
THE PRAYFIT DEVOTION
They Knew What To Do
"Teacher, don't you care if we drown?" --Mark 4:38
The disciples knew what to do. Isn't it true? They knew what to do, and they were the first to do it. Do what exactly? Well, they did literally what you and I do metaphorically. They praised Him in the storm. We know the story. First came the wind, then the waves. And with teeth chattering and knees knocking, the terrified bunch woke the only one who could put the sea to sleep.
This week is such a good reminder for me that Jesus may have been asleep in the boat, but He wasn't asleep at the wheel. And it's not that the storm wasn't threatening, or that the disciples were silly for being scared. No, the storm that night was real. But Jesus took their fears seriously.
Of all the things we can learn from this story, it's that Jesus didn't hush the storm to prove its insignificance. He hushed it to show their significance to Him.
Your storms are real. Our fears are real. But when your teeth chatter and my knees buckle, we can follow their lead, amen? They knew what to do. We can too. In many ways, we're in the same boat. Brings a lump to my throat to think He's patiently waiting for me to wake Him up.
--Jimmy Peña
THE DAY IS HERE!: What a gift of grace. Our book, The PrayFit Diet, has finally arrived. I know we've been talking about it for a couple weeks now but please help us celebrate by thanking the Lord with us and for praying for us -- that this book will find its way into the hearts and hands of churches, small groups and individuals all across the country. Whether someone is looking for a Gospel perspective when it comes to food or whether someone is seeking a prescriptive, abundant, life-long meal plan and teaching tool, this book is for them. I personally appreciate everyone who has helped us spread the word about this beautiful book and I thank you in advance for sharing this news with your friends, family or even your Pastor and leadership. I'm at your feet.
"Practically everyone I know wants to lose weight and get more fit -- myself included. This battle is as much spiritual as it is physical, and most exercise and diet specialists miss this, but not Jimmy Peña and his Prayfit Diet plan. Getting fit God's way ensures you have the proper perspective on how and who God made you to be. When you have this foundation firmly in place, you will not be motivated to get fit to prove you are a somebody, but to express the somebody you are in Christ." --Randy Frazee, author of Making Room for Life and The Heart of the Story, and senior pastor at Oak Hills Church
The Three Rs
"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord." --Colossians 3:23-24
Read: Colossians 3
A few years back, I read a great story from Max Lucado about 'giving God our boat'. He talked about how Peter and the others caught nothing until they surrendered the boat to Jesus. They turned over their jobs to the Lord and great things happened.
But we need to see all aspects of life as a boat to surrender, our health being one of them. For that to happen, we need to agree that being healthy is a matter of obedience and an opportunity to praise God. To accomplish this, we need to renew, recalibrate, respond.
Renew: See health and fitness differently each day. See it as a way to show thankfulness and praise. Recalibrate: Measure the day's events, working to make room for your responsibility of greater fitness. Respond: Commit. Get up and move, utilizing your God-given abilities and gifts to better serve him.
Do you see your health as merely a state of being? Or is your view out of balance -- more self-centered than God-centered? Maybe you're not training right now at all, and you easily excuse lack of activity against your busy schedule and responsibilities. And finally, perhaps you're simply ready to say, "Jesus, takeover my health. Renew my mind and help me respond each day with a commitment worthy of the gift of life you've given me."
Wherever you are in your health walk, remember, God formed us, gave us our bodies--how we take of them is our response.
--Jimmy Peña
FOOD TIP: Great Starts
People always talk about how breakfast is the most important meal of the day. It puts a halt to muscle-wasting, sets your blood sugar right, crushes food cravings and provides you energy for whatever the day holds in store for you. But what does a perfect breakfast look like?
Souls Aboard
"The strong spirit of a man sustains him in bodily pain or trouble, but a weak and broken spirit who can raise up or bear?" --Proverbs 18:14
Read: Proverbs 18
"How many souls on board?" the voices over the radio would ask. For business this weekend, I boarded a few different vessels to get where I was going. I'm likely on one as you read this sentence. And as each craft approached its destination, that question would come up. Being privy to the communication between the captain and ground crew, I found myself anticipating both the question and the answer. (Too easy, right? I know, but I couldn't resist.)
Because while I know what it meant, they could have simply asked for a head count or even the number of seats that were filled. Call me sentimental, but their words made it clear that we were on a vessel full of vessels; souls aboard. Your body has one. Mine too. Say it out loud. It makes a difference when you say it from a literal sense: There's a soul on board.
As we begin a new week, tackling school lunches, deadlines, meetings and conference calls, let's whisper it often and with conviction. We're more soul than body, so whether yours is battling an infirmity you didn't see coming or you're trying to make up for years of neglect, let it be known. We protect our eyes from things we don't need to see, cover our ears, close our mouths, and humbly do our best to care for the body as we get where we need to go. Why?
--Jimmy Peña
Question: Knowing you're more soul than body, how does that change your thinking in terms of your health? Does it motivate you to care for it as long as it lasts? Does it help you walk into rooms with clarity of purpose? How does concentrating on your soul affect your body?
10-MINUTE WORKOUT: Triceps The triceps. This muscle group, critical for every upper body pushing movement, represents some two-thrids of the mass in your upper arm. Men who want bigger arms sometimes mistakenly overtrain their biceps but it's the out-of-sight, out-of-mind triceps that need the attention. For women, the back of the arm can be a "trouble" area -- a place where more bodyfat is stored and muscle tone can be tougher to hold on to. This short workout will help both genders provide this area with a mini-makeover worth its weight in tanktops.
HE FOUND YOU
September 29, 2011Read: Luke 5
"Simon answered, 'Master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets."--Luke 5:5
Smelly, dirty, grimy -- these are just a few of the ways to describe Peter and his buddies. After all, they spent their days baiting hooks and cleaning fish. I'm smiling as I picture Jesus 'the Recruiter' walking up to this motley crew. Did He pause and grin, crouching down to watch and listen to them work? Maybe after a few minutes, He looked skyward with a smile as if to say, "I found them."
I'm not sure, but I like to wonder what happened in that moment just before the call. What we do know is that of all the fishermen that came off the water, this bunch caught God's attention. And not long after Christ borrowed Peter's boat, the two were catching fish in water too deep for the nets to reach; Peter's preview to the depths of His love.
Friends, remember. You have God's attention. So as we start our cars, open our offices, enter our cubicles or prepare for housework, let's do what Peter did and abandon control. Let's just imagine Him saying with a grin, "I found them," and this is that moment just before the call.
--J.P.
RECIPE: BBQ CHICKEN PIZZA Use this recipe to enjoy a healthier, homemade pizza
If you are easily tempted by the lure of buttery crust, bubbling cheese and a "supreme" piling of toppings, well you're not alone. But as tasty as pizza is, it is generally not the healthiest food on the planet. Sure, a slice or two isn't going to have you flooding over your belt line but indulging more than that (or more often) is a -- dare we say? -- recipe for disaster. This alternative from Dana White, MS, RD, ATC, a writer for the Food Network and contributing nutritionist for PrayFit, helps save calories with healthier ingredients, taking the guilt out of your next pizza night.
>> BBQ CHICKEN PIZZA - CLICK HERE FOR RECIPE
NEW!!! Read up on PrayFit 33-Day Total Body Challenge, the newest home exercise DVD from Lionsgate Entertainment, due out December 6. (Available for pre-order now on Amazon)
DON'T MISS THIS BOAT
September 22, 2011Read: Luke 5
“We worked hard all night and caught nothing.” --Luke 5:5
Tired, worn, done. In that order. All that work and nothing to show for it. Peter's hands were as raw as they were empty, and the last thing he wanted to do was try again. But Jesus wouldn't let him quit -- not on his watch. In fact, Jesus said, "Now go out to where it's deeper and let down your nets to catch some fish." (v.4)
You know how Peter feels. You're struggling with your health. You've been fishing all night for the right plan or diet but you can't catch a break; not even a nibble of hope. But Peter didn't catch boat loads because of fancy nets and the newest bait. He caught his catch because he trusted, tried again and went deeper. I say we draw a line in the sand. As a matter of fact, Peter's pushing away from the shore. They're calling for you. If you hurry, you can make it.
--J.P.
Question: Peter's catch isn't point of the story; neither is your physique. So what is? And since Peter's successful catch wasn't required for heaven, why was it important to Jesus?
GET IN ON THE DISCUSSION Use our online forums to interact with like-minded folks on all things faith and fitness
>> ACCOUNTABILITY: One PrayFit member is seeking digital workout partners!
IN THE SAME BOAT
October 19, 2010Read: Luke 8
"The disciples went and woke him saying, 'Master, Master, we're going to drown.' He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided and all was calm." --Luke 8:24
I wonder if the disciples were the ones who coined the phrase, "We're in the same boat." I'm curious because theirs wasn't the only ship on the raging sea that night. All the other vessels battled the same wind and the same waves, but the difference was the boat's manifest.
So maybe it was an epiphany? "Hey, wait a minute, we're in the same boat as God!" Or maybe it was disbelief at the storms audacity. "Surely the storm should spare us since we're in the same boat with the Lord."
Either way, without Him the disciples stood no chance. So they woke the only one who could put the sea to sleep, which makes me think: maybe it was Jesus who first said it. When the sun peaked through the clouds and began warming faces on a glassy sea, maybe Jesus said, "Don't be afraid. We're in the same boat."
--J.P.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
Is drinking diet drinks a smart idea? First of all, we're of the mindset that diet drinks are so full of all things artificial that they'll do as much harm as good ol' sugar, if not more. Secondly, diet drinks tend to give a false sense of hope. Recent studies have shown that people who drink diet sodas have a higher occurrence of being overweight compared to those who don't drink them. One of the causes determined by the research suggests that when people drink diet soda, they feel it gives them license to eat poorly in other areas and times during the day. Drink them if you must but next time you're thirsty, you might want to reach for some H2O instead!
>> WORKOUT OF THE WEEK: Whatever your inclination for zero calorie drinks, you need to be working out to lose weight. Use our "get lean" Workout of the Week to start losing inches and pounds in minutes a day!
THE RECRUIT
August 5, 2010Read: Luke 5 "Simon answered, 'Master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.'" --Luke 5:5
Smelly, dirty, grimy -- these are just a few of the ways to describe Peter and his buddies. After all, they spent their days baiting hooks and cleaning fish. I'm smiling as I picture Jesus the recruiter walking up to this crew. Did He pause and grin, crouching down to watch and listen to them work? Maybe after a few minutes, He looked skyward with a smile as if to say, "I found them."
I'm not sure, but I like to wonder what happened in that moment just before the call. What we do know is that of all the fishermen that came off the water, this bunch caught God's attention. And not long after Christ borrowed Peter's boat, the two were catching fish in water too deep for the nets to reach; Peter's preview to the depths of His love.
So as we start our cars, open our offices, enter our cubicles or prepare for housework, let's do what Peter did and abandon control. Let's just imagine Him saying with a grin, "I found them", and this is that moment just before the call.
--J.P.
PRAYFIT TIP OF THE DAY: TAKE A BREAK
Of all the things that we recommend at PrayFit, we probably don't mention proper rest often enough. But the idea that you can take fitness too far is serious business. Overtraining Syndrome is real and it's serious. Here are just a few of the actual symptoms that some people experience when diagnosed with overtraining problems. Are you overtrained?
1 Sleep disturbances: Getting too much sleep or too little sleep; waking up fatigued despite a normal amount of sleep. 2 Psychological Reactions: Burnout, boredom, depression, irritability, anger. 3 Impaired performance: Decreased strength and endurance, delayed recovery, general intolerance to training. 4 Decreased immune function: Increased susceptibility to colds, flu and infections, or a slow rate of healing.
If you are suffering from any (or all) of these conditions, you may want to take a step back and look at your training program. You are likely doing too much of something. It's a good idea to reduce your workout frequency (how often you train), volume (how much you do), intensity (how heavy you're going) or just to get more rest between sessions. Also, you will want to make sure that your nutrition is adequate enough to support your training -- some people who are striving to lose weight will mistakenly slash calories in an effort to speed weight loss.
>> RECRUIT TO THE CAUSE: Expansion of our growing PrayFit army is up to you! Go to our new official Facebook page and click on "Suggest to Friends" to help loved ones get closer to their faith and fitness goals in 2010.
>> GEAR UP: Don't have your PrayFit distressed ballcap yet? Click here to enter the PrayFit store.