I really wanted to do a post called Juicing for Jesus. It just flows off the tongue. I know it’s a bit hokey to say the least, and I can see some of you shaking your head.. oh no she didn’t…but there it is— Juicing for Jesus. As you can see there is even a song to go with it, sung by the squirrel herself.

Over this amazingly short summer the kids and I have been indulging in ice cream and popcorn and birthday cake and chips and dip and yes maybe I should have just let the kids eat it all but…oh no I didn’t! Unfortunately those sneaky calories went from my lips to my hips and stowed away in various other places.  Not only do I need to shed a few but for God’s sake, I need to take better care of my body. Being a mom I’m the last person I think about. I skip meals, forget my vitamins, don’t get enough sleep or excercise, “forget” my fruits and vegetables and opt for the easy take out meal. I’ve been told by Dr. Oz, Oprah, The Today Show, my doctor, and even the U.S. government to take better care of myself. But, I still consciously make the decision to go for the fries instead of the apple. Why do I do this? Oh I’m sure I could blame my mother if I wanted (thanks Freud),  but my mother isn’t holding that spoon of  rocky road to my mouth. Simply, I choose to say yes. My husband is the opposite — the man can “just say no” better than Nancy Reagan. By doing so he is able to make a habit of being healthy.  That is what it comes down to in the end and it is such an easy answer — I must choose to make a habit out of being healthy! ehhhhhh, great pep talk but, no…  I’m still not motivated.

Let’s take another path. I’m working, like most of us, on loving myself. You really have to love yourself in order to make a habit of being healthy. But as this will probably take the rest of my natural-born life I need another reason. This is why I’m… JUICING FOR JESUS! I’m juicing for Jee- ee-sus ’cause Jesus loves my bum! Yes Jesus loves me (you can sing that too if you’d like) and has actually told me to take care of myself. No, he didn’t come to me in a vision holding a juicer but it was somewhere in the Bible… something about bodies and temples, oh yes:

Psalm 139:13-18

For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them. How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! … via What Does the Bible Say About Your Body?.

I know, that is not the one about my body being a temple but I like it better.  The point is the Bible tells us so —tells us to take care of this holy temple we are living in for it is, “fearfully and wonderfully made”.  I have decided to incorporate a daily “healthy habit” to take care of my wonderfully bodacious body by drinking fresh vegetable juice. I challenge you Foraging Squirrel’s to find a healthy habit as well or just join me in Juicing For Jesus! I will be posting my progress and feel free to post yours in the comments.

Green Ginger Juice
6 kale leaves
2 cups spinach
1/2 cucumber
4 celery stalks
2 apples
1 (1-inch) piece of ginger
Juice of 1/2 lemon (stirred in at end)

*Adapted from Reboot Your Life.™

(p.s.) This is a great informative link : nutrition benefits/juicing recipes