Let the King be King

"So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." --2 Corinthians 4:18

Read: 2 Corinthians 4

Venturing into my 4-year-old son’s room to make up his bed, I had to giggle at what I saw. He had, in his bed: his favorite giant shark stuffed animal, his Christmas elf (two months early), a NERF football, a stuffed penguin and his beloved Nintendo DSI game. As I began moving things around, I realized that he was buried in there as well, sleeping with all of his favorite things. When he went to bed at night, he did not want to let any of them out of his sight for a second. If this meant rolling over in the middle of the night on top of a football or shifting positions to avoid the hard case of his video game, well that was okay. Uncomfortable sleep or not, he was holding onto those precious possessions at all costs.

Sometimes in our own lives we refuse to let go of things that we love. We live in a world where "stuff" is king. We want the best homes, cars and toys and many times those things can interrupt our focus on God and on others. We don't need such a tight grip on those material things around us. Instead, shouldn't we tighten the grip on the One who has provided every ounce of what we have?

I love the concept that we don’t really "own" anything in this life, rather we are simply managers. We cannot take our stuffed sharks and our NERF footballs to heaven and we won't need video games in eternity. We have the greatest gift of all pursuing us every day so that we can live a life of fullness. So, let’s agree to not let our "stuff" be king, but let the King be king.

--Allison Earnst

PrayFit's contributing writer, Allison Earnst, is a fitness expert, motivator, competitor and mother of three. She's been featured in numerous magazines including FitParent, Natural Muscle and Oxygen magazine. She has shared her fitness story on Good Morning America, Extra TV and Lifetime's "The Balancing Act." You can visit her blog by clicking here.

PRAYFIT RECIPE OF THE WEEK: Oatmeal Peanut Butter Energy Bars

You don't need to pour your life savings into mass-produced energy bars. This tasty recipe from PrayFit contributing nutritionist Dana Angelo White (www.danawhitenutrition.com) gives you plenty of body-friendly fuel for your day -- and without the fancy wrapper.

Ingredients: Cooking Spray 1/2 cup honey 1/2 cup natural creamy peanut butter 2 tablespoons maple syrup 1 tablespoon canola oil 1/4 cup light brown sugar 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 cups rolled oats 2 cups crisp brown rice cereal 1/4 cup toasted wheat germ 1/2 cup chopped roasted peanuts 1/2 cup chopped dried apricots 1/2 cup chopped dried figs 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions: Spray a 9 by 13-inch baking dish with cooking spray and set aside. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine honey, peanut butter, maple syrup, canola oil, brown sugar, cinnamon. Stir and cook until mixture just begins to bubble, about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract. In a large bowl, combine oats, rice cereal, wheat germ, peanuts, apricots, figs and salt. Pour peanut butter mixture over oatmeal mixture and stir gently with a spatula until well combined. Transfer to baking dish, cover with parchment paper and press firmly into dish. Allow to cool completely (mix will cool faster in the refrigerator). Cut into squares or bars and serve.

Calories: 240 | Total fat: 10g | Saturated fat: 1.5g | Carbohydrate: 30g | Protein: 6g | Sodium: 70mg

Dana Angelo White, MS, RD, ATC is the nutrition expert for Food Network.com and the Healthy Eats blog. She is a registered dietitian, certified athletic trainer and owner of Dana White Nutrition, Inc., which specializes in culinary and sports nutrition.

WILSON!

August 6, 2010Read: Luke 18 "Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." --Luke 18:25

In the movie "Cast Away," Tom Hanks' character, Chuck Noland was a time-obsessed FedEx analyst with a simple job: deliver the mail on time. After his plane crashed, he got washed up on a deserted island where he spent four lonely years. Well, he wasn't totally alone.

Wilson, a volleyball Chuck found in the wreckage, became more like a friend than a piece of sporting goods equipment. Clearly out of his mind, Chuck would talk and even argue with the ball. But when he finally escaped from the island, his raft was hit by a storm. And when he woke up, he realized Wilson had been thrown overboard (cue the sad music). After attempts to retrieve Wilson failed, a heartbroken Chuck realized he couldn't take it with him. He knew he had to decide: Be saved or go in after his prized possession.

Silly, right? I mean, who in their right mind would act that way? When I saw that scene, I was shaking my head thinking, "It's a VOLLEYBALL, you NUT!" But then I thought of the rich young ruler, and the answer Jesus gave him. Haven't we all been in that boat? Ever gone overboard on stuff? Funny, like watching Chuck, I wonder if the Lord ever shakes His head at how crazy we get about our toys.

--J.P.

WHICH BURNS MORE FAT? Learn the benefits of high- and low-intensity exercise I've often been asked which burns more fat, training at a low intensity or high intensity. The answer is both. Let us explain.

Let's take an hour worth of exercise as an example. At a low intensity, the body will burn more fat relative to the total number of calories burned, so percentage-wise, low-intensity activity burns a higher percentage of fat calories. But take that same person and have him/her train at a high intensity, and they'll burn more total fat calories, even though as a percentage of the total, it's less.

But let's apply some numbers to make things a little more clear:

>> Person A walks for an hour and burns 2oo calories. And of those 200 calories, 80% of that comes from fat. So he burns 160 calories just from fat.

>> Person B does high-intensity intervals for an hour and burns 500 calories. And of those 500 calories, only 50% comes from fat. So he burns 250 calories from fat.

So even though Person B burns less fat as a percentage of the total (50 compared to 80), he/she still burns more absolute fat calories as well as total calories than person A. The summary? Both are good but it's always good to challenge your body to do more and to change your workouts from time to time to get the greatest results.

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