Jesus Take the Wheel!

The reading today is Matthew Chapter 5:3-12  a.k.a. The Beatitudes
 

“Blessed are the poor in spirit,

for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are they who mourn,

for they will be comforted.

Blessed are the meek,

for they will inherit the land.

Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness,

for they will be satisfied.

Blessed are the merciful,

for they will be shown mercy.

Blessed are the clean of heart,

for they will see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers,

for they will be called children of God.

Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,

for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you

and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me.

Rejoice and be glad,

for your reward will be great in heaven.

Thus they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

 

Did you read the above? Or did you skip over it all?  Just wondering...

 
When I hear this verse I often picture a poor little old lady who is meek. She wears torn and dirty clothes (poor), and she is a widow in morning.  She is nice to all people (merciful) and led a good life (clean of heart). 

Do you picture this type of person when you hear the beatitudes or is it just me?
 
Today as I heard this reading in the car ride into work I thought to myself "Why do I think this little old lady is the only person getting into heaven?" I want to get into heaven....why can't I picture myself with these virtues?  
Then I had my Jesus Take the Wheel! moment:  "Holy Spirit, enter my mind and soul, guide my thoughts and open my eyes to the scripture.  I am not a poor widow, but show me how I can be meek, poor in spirit, mournful and merciful."
 
Sounds kinda miserable right?  Why would we want those 'negative' thoughts and feelings.  Well, I think it is in those experiences that we search for God, when we call on God, when we come closer to God. 
 
Where am I poor in spirit?  Do I have poor spirit when I look at society, child education, natural resources, governments, unmotivated parishes? What can I do about it?
Who or what do I mourn? The lonely, the dying, the imprisoned, the lost, the confused?  What can I do about it?
How can I be meek? In my role as a daughter? A sister? A wife? An employee? A parishioner? A volunteer?  What can I do about it?
Who's righteousness do I hunger and thirst for? My own? or others?  What can I do about it?
Am I merciful? Or am I quick to judge and point the finger?  What can I do about it?
Do I have a clean heart? Have I been to confession lately?  Am I making amends with my past mistakes and changing my ways? Or am I confessing the same thing over and over again?  What can I do about it?
Am I a peacemaker? Or am I a shaker? Do I walk into a situation hoping to bring peace, but instead do I disrupt the natural order of things?  What can I do about it?
Have I been persecuted? Or am I in a 'bubble', unexposed to the trials and tribulations of a true martyr?   What can I do about it?
 
With the question ending each of those What can I do about it? the first response is PRAY. As much as I want to change this and fix that...if it's not in God's plan it's not going to happen. 
 

• "Until you are convinced that Prayer is the best use of your time, you will not find time for Prayer" - Father Hilary Ottesmayer O.S.B.
• "Faith without works is dead"  - James 2:20
• YOU are the answer to someone else's prayer.  Do not be afraid to do God's will.  If your prayers are to be answered, someone else must find the courage to do God's will. 

 
 
Read Pope Francis' Homily today (and everyday!):
Eight Sessions from Ascension Press about the Beatitudes the series was in April...but you can still watch Thomas Smith talk you through a spiritual journey with the beatitudes.  SPOILER: He explains that the 8 beatitudes ARE the life of Jesus.  Jesus was meek, merciful and persecuted.  He says FOLLOW ME not in a single-file line...but in his way of life.  BE the Beatitudes like Jesus is.....
 
 
 

Things to know at age 25(ish)

Click photo to enlarge

Read the entire article here

Photo: My trip to Port Aransas last year

You can't be fearful

This week has been weird!  Mainly Tuesday and Wednesday, I've been in a funk.

I think it's because I had a job interview on Monday and it wasn't as great as I thought it would be.  It went well, but he needs to fill another position before he can even think about hiring for the position I interviewed for.  So that kinda shot me down and I've been down ever since.

I'm also SO ready to start wedding planning but I can't do anything until I pick a wedding date.  I can't do that until we meet with the priest which can't happen until after Easter, so we're at a stand still.

I've also started packing up my apartment. It's really sad to come home to bare walls and boxes.   But I know it's better to get started sooner rather than later.

Today I took my vitamins (haven't done that in 5 days) and saw this quote:

source

So True.

I can't be scared I didn't get the job and grateful I was even considered for an interview.

I can't be fearful our wedding date will be unavailable and grateful I have an amazing man to marry!

I can't be scared to leave my apartment and thankful I have a safe home waiting for me on the other side. 

It's one or the other.  If I'm scared, I'm not thankful.  How can you be thankful for something you are scared of?  I know you can- I'm doing it right now, but I shouldn't.  That's the point.

It's all about perspective. 

Another night of solid sleep and I should be good to go!  Just in time for the weekend.

Living Life the the fullest with gratitude not fear.

Sharing is Caring

Have you heard about Kony 2012? 

My 15 year old sister sent me a Facebook request about Kony today.  And then my friends at Dateless Until I Do wrote a blog post about it as well.  They included a 29 minute video that I started to watch, but the tears were flowing so be warned!

The author of this video begins by pointing out that due to the internet, social media and facebook we can share everything today.  And when you look at Pinterest, Twitter, Google+ you realize people are very willing to share.  It's almost addicting.  But then, when it comes to war, murder, injustice and the loss of human rights - who is willing to share their view on that?  Especially when it isn't our war and our personal human rights....

I've realized if I want my blog to be a platform of my life and what I find important than I must be true to myself and share this with you.   I'd share it with my family, the Man and my friends so I'm sharing it with you.  Watch this video

I also want to share with you an amazing book I recently read. 

It was given to me by the Man's sister.  His sister is an incredibly loving stay at home mom who volunteers her time with the Church.  I was shocked this small town mom would find a book about a person and event halfway around the world!  This book ,"Left to Tell", is about the 1994 Rwanda genocide.  Not exactly the bedtime reading that I am familiar with.  But don't worry this book will not give you nightmares.  Instead the author, Immaculee, passes along her courage, faith and passion for Living Life to the Fullest!  If you need a copy of this book feel free to borrow mine!  But purchasing this book online ensures the funds go towards the recovery of the people of Rwanda. 

In the mean time, learn about Kony 2012!  Hopefully someone has already shared this with you and you can share it with someone!

My Favorite Bloggers

Time to share with you a few of my favorite blogs!!

Melissa from 320 Sycamore shares her AMAZING home renovations
Seriously, check out her Kitchen redo! 

Michelle at The Vintage Apple is a elementary school teacher
in a low income school district and while her day is worse
than I could ever imagine (think of re-living those years in elementary school where everyone hates you) she seems to find the silver lining in her day!
She also just got married and has an amazing husband and a doggy!
My kind of lady!

I love Jamie's blog title because I'm pretty sure it has to do with a beautiful song I hear at tons of weddings.  Jamie puts tons of Pinteresting images up every Wednesday. I love the dresses she shares!  Also, because I love her blog design I revised my blog (once again) thanks to her designer!  It's really simple!

<><> <><>

Another blogger named Michelle...Has a beautiful family, a loving husband and is having some issues fitting in with her neighborhood stay at home mothers. 
She does alot of pinning also!

I might need to make this into a page on my blog....I have a TON of other favorites including some personal friends of mine!  Stay tuned!

Live Life to the Fullest....one inspiring blog at a time!

-Rachel

Live the PROactive life

Something you may not know about me: my mother is a breast cancer survivor.  Yay!  She was diagnosed when I was a pre-teen, and she's over 10 years in remission.  If you knew my mother, you'd know she's a fighter and her remission wouldn't surprise you at all.


I'm not yet 40, the age recommended for most women to have their first mammogram.  I hope to have mine earlier since it's in my family.  While the clock ticks towards my 30's I have decided to live the PROactive lifestyle instead of the REactive life. 

I don't smoke

 I don't drink coffee everyday

 I do drink green tea every day

 I cut back on drinking alcohol

 I've changed my diet to largely vegetables

 and very little meat

 I'm convinced it's the hormones in meat causing cancer, but who knows

  I've taken up yoga

 I walk every day with my dogs

I have plants indoors

and 

I PRAY EVERYDAY
I don't pray to not get cancer, but the silence in prayer and giving my stress and anxiety to God strongly helps my Type A personality

All of the above are very relaxing and provide a calming effect on my daily lifestyle. 

Something else I've done is begun taking vitamins as I've mentioned in previous posts


I was so happy to stumble across this article about a study in San Antonio linking Vitamin D levels to tumor size in breast cancer. 

This article shares that if you are Vitamin D deficient your tumor will be larger than those with higher levels of Vitamin D.  Remember, Vitamin D is our sunshine vitamin! It gives us energy and it's found in foods such as milk, mushrooms, and fish.  It's main role is to help us absorb calcium.
Now, there is such thing as too many vitamins, so don't go popping pills.  In most cases your body will filter out the excess, but you can still hurt your body if you over indulge.

My personal experience with Vitamin D:  Last year I had my blood tested at my General Practitioner's office and my vitamin D levels were very low.  We should each have over 30 ng/mL of Vitamin D...I had 10 ng/mL  10!!!!  My doctor prescribed these super power pills of 4,000mg of Vitamin D to be taken weekly.  It worked wonders!! 

My 60 year old father recently had a blood test and his Vitamin D levels were low as well!  He's always been overweight and if he gets a chance to sit down and watch a TV show, you'll never get him off the couch.  He's had kidney failure, hyperthyroidism (which led to having his thyroid removed) and basic lethargy.  We thought it was weight (which I'm sure it is) but it also probably has to do with vitamin deficiency. 

Moral of the story: Don't risk your future, don't suffer through illnesses that may be preventable and don't waste your money on coffee when all you need is the natural remedy of your daily vitamins.   My 84 pills cost $23.  That's $0.25 a pill!  Where can you get coffee for that price and with zero calories?!

Yes, I'm an independent associate for Usana.  But you can see my doctor turned me on to vitamins long before Usana did.  I found the need and the resources in my life to continue this journey of PROactive health and I hope to do too!  Step one:  Get a blood test from your doctor and be sure to request Vitamin D testing!

Other Sources:
Vitamin D and Rickets
Government Institute of Health - http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminD-QuickFacts/

Vitamin D: The forgotten hormone - http://www.publichealthreviews.eu/show/f/35

Living Life to the Fullest by living a PROactive Lifestyle!

-Rachel

Pinterest!!

For the creative person in us all....who is overloaded by work and a million other things in life....I give you the BEST creative outlet I've found so far

Clicking that logo goes to my Pinterest Boards
Check it out!



Have you heard of Pinterest??????

If not, get on board!

Some define Pinterest as the following......

Source

Source

  But I have completely fallen in love with this virtural scrapbook.  Instead of tearing pages out of magazines and storing them away in my "future house" file or "outfits for fall" book (both of which I only run across when I'm cleaning out my desk); this online pin-board is a continuous reminder of EVERYTHING that's going on in this crazy head of mine!

  Something to keep in mind when pinning.  TRY your hardest to FIND THE ORIGINAL SOURCE of what you find.  I honestly have no clue how to go about finding the original sources for the above images.  But things like photography, interior design, menu ideas, etc. need to be credited to their original creator.  People make a living taking pictures, designing homes, creating menus, and it's only fair to acknowledge that and help them drive their business.  Having said that - if you are a business owner, you MUST have a Pinterest page for your product (or your services) so that you can easily be shared!  It's free marketing!

Best of luck and Happy Pinning!!!

Try to be better than your best

"Unless you try to do something beyond what you have already mastered,

you will never grow."  Ralph Waldo Emerson

Think of a millionaire, think of a person of power like a politician.  Think of someone you like.  Think of someone you don't like.  Do you have their shining faces in your mind?

Of the millionaire and politician that came to your mind, which one do you respect? Which do you look up to?  Are you jealous of either of them?  Do you know someone who does disrespect these people?  Are there people who don't look up to them?  Don't deny that there is someone in the world who is jealous of these successful people....

What about the people you selected as people you like and dislike.  Why do you feel that way about them?  Do you like them because you respect and look up to them?  Or do you dislike them because you are jealous of them or don't understand their life choices?  Would you ever consider learning more about the person you dislike in order to understand where they are coming from?

This is a small exercise about the misconceptions thrown the direct sales industry.  Those women driving around in pink Cadillacs, those Usana reps traveling the world... Do we really dislike them or do we just wish we were them?  Do we doubt ourselves so much that we write off the possibility of being them?  What about the possibility of being BETTER than them?  Are we so scared we can't even take the first step? 

It seems people are very vocal when it comes to sharing negative feedback.  Don't believe me?  Look all over the Internet!!  But do you know what's harder than speaking up?  Keeping your mouth shut and proving someone wrong through actions.
Instead of knocking the millionaire, the politician, the person you dislike....learn from them, be open to where they are coming from and come to a conclusion out of educated respect not pre-judgement.  Being open to direct sales means creating your own business and getting to work!  Putting the ACT in Action.  Actions speak louder than words - so stop making excuses, stop complaining, shut your mouth and either get to work or get researching.  But either way, TRY SOMETHING NEW.  If you're salary you'll never make more money, and if you're hourly making more money costs you extra time and energy....research direct sales and see what residual income costs and see how much you can gain from it too!

"The men who try to do something and fail are infinitely better

than those who try to do nothing and succeed." 

~Lloyd Jones

Living life to the fullest and trying every day !!

http://www.livinglifetothefullest.usana.com/

Consumer Report follow up

So I did a little more digging into the Consumer Lab Report....they tested 60 vitamins and 12 didn't pass.

Some of the brands that they tested include: One A Day, GNC, Melaluca, Natures Way and other familiar names.  The only Usana vitamin tested PASSED.  So take what you'd like out of the links and reports above and make an education decision about your body and your future.

I didn't want to come across as one-sided....I'm an open book so if you have questions or concerns feel free to ask!

Remember, not all of the 48 vitamins that passed provide the opportunity for you to start your own business while getting healthy!!  http://www.livinglifetothefullest.usana.com/

-Rachel

The Honest Truth

I really do my best to not pre-judge but it happens.  And I am the first to admit to being a skeptic.  It happens in business and even my love life.  It's sad when you doubt someone's true intentions and when you finally do it's too late and the opportunity is gone.  So when USANA said they are the best of the best, I admit a part of me (0.001%) couldn't believe it.  I didn't want to be a part of some cult that preaches and it's members blindly follow...with a biochemistry background, I needed scientific proof these products were legit.  My prayers were answered this week and I was born a 100% believer!!!

ConsumerLabs, as in the Consumer Reports, the most legitimate product review company in America, tested USANA products and found the following:

ConsumerLab.com has announced that they’ve tested and approved the flagship USANA product, the USANA® Essentials™. This independent testing verifies the supplements that make up the Essentials meet ConsumerLab.com’s strict requirements for ingredient quality and quantity.

In other words, the Essentials was just tested by one of the most stringent third-party groups out there, and passed with flying colors!

Why aren't you getting any healthier and making money with a team that is moving mountains with the creditials to prove it!!!
(oh ya, stocks are up too)

Call or e-mail me TODAY: http://www.livinglifethefullest.usana.com/ and join the momentum!!


Living Life to the Fullest with a Consumer Reports ConsumerLab.com validation!

-Rachel Kellar




I also wanted to share this article that goes into more specifics about the how and why USANA earned this recognition

Happy Memorial Day!

What types of memories did you make today?  Did you remember who this day is for?  In case you didn't know this day is for the military men and women who have lost their lives in combat.  Could you imagine being in the military?  Is your body in the kind of shape that "when duty calls" you would be able to answer?  Not many of us can say "My body is ready for duty!"  Wouldn't it be great if we could?!?  There is no longer a military draft in the USA, so we wouldn't be called to duty - but that doesn't mean we can't call ourselves to our own private mission.  Our mission to get in shape - our mission to become healthy in mind body and spirit. 

So as we remember those who've given the ultimate sacrifice today, let's think of what we can sacrifice in our own lives.  A trip to McDonald's?  An extra cup of coffee?  Could you sacrifice 30 minutes a day to take a walk?  Try!  And if you're willing to start that journey, consider the USANA journey as well.  By joining USANA you help your friends and family get healthy.  So that days like today hanging by the pool, at the lake, in the backyard...these days are full of memories of healthy friends and family for many years to come!

Rachel
http://www.livinglifetothefullest.usana.com/


Living Life to the Fullest....while creating healthy memories this Memorial day!

On the first day....

This was the beginning of a recent blog draft:
"So I am going to write. Maybe here, maybe there, maybe everywhere. For now, all I know is that my brain needs space, and this is the only way I know how to give it what it needs..."

That was 2010 me, overwhelmed and stressed; looking for an outlet in friends, family, the blogesphere....thinking writing was the only way I could vent.

And then came January 1, 2011.  The first day of the new year.  The first day of my new outlook on life.  The first day of the new decisions I will make everyday.  My decisions to not eat processed food.  My decisions to take part in stretching and cardio everyday.  Whether it be hot yoga and a dog walk or yoga in my bedroom and a 3 mile run.  My decision to calculate my finances daily.  The decision to live a healthy lifestyle and prevent reasons to vent.

1/1/11 was my day one.  It was my decision starter.  When's yours?

Living life to the fullest by living a full life

Chatty Cathy

• Sometimes you hate being the single friend.  
• Sometimes you wish you hadn't stood by your friend on her wedding day and had actually objected and didn't "forever hold your peace".
• Sometimes you wish you didn't encourage your girl friend to get back with her boyfriend when they are having that big fight.
• Sometimes you want every night to be Girls Night

<-- Cathy the classic 'single girl'

  

But sometimes you love being the single friend.

• You love knowing people are thinking of you when they get an extra concert, movie or sporting ticket.
• You love that you're the one your friend can call on Valentines when their husband is out of town on business (hey- sometimes Valentines Day is a week day).
• and,        I personally love that I'm the friend my girls can text late at night when their guy is laying by their side fast asleep or in the room watching a ball game and not paying attention to them.  Cringe all you want you know it's true.

See?  Girl friends will talk about feelings when your guy doesn't... Photo Courtesy

This is a reminder to my future self ....don't forget your single friends! 

They were there for you when you needed them, they wanted to be in your life then and they probably want to continue to be a part of your life. 

Life Life to the Fullest with your True Friends!

Memory Lane

I'm at that age....
you know- that age where you realize you thought you knew everything and it turns out you know nothing.
you look at your friends and you question how you're so different yet still the same
you look at your past and you realize you can't get it back
you look at your future and you step softly and slowly in the hopes of not screwing up the next 25 years