Child taken because he is 555lbs.

Yesterday afternoon I sat down and was flipping through the channels and stopped on The Drs.
They were telling about young 14 year old boy who weighs 555lbs. whose mother is a single parent and he was taken away by Child Protective Services because of his weight. It was interesting to hear them debate this matter and what is right for this child.

Was this mother killing her son with food? Yes. She could at any point find her son dead because of the effects on his body from severe obesity. Would we be out outraged if this mother was giving her son alcohol, so much that he passed out drunk every night. Or if she at age 14 supplied her son with drugs and helped him load the needle to shoot up. Yes! And although food is not an illegal thing to take at age 14 as in everything we need to have self-control and moderation.

Now could this mom be working 10-12 hrs a day and not have a whole lot of control over her son buying junk from the vending machines or stopping by the grocery store after school and eating a bag of chips before she got home. Yes. But somewhere in her head when she saw him at 200lbs. or so an alarm should have gone off "Huston we have a problem".

After listening to this discussion I started thinking of this last season on the Biggest Loser. There was a contestant Sean who was a church youth pastor and obese. I thought we all sin and have problems but being overweight to that degree is an obvious sin. Would I allow my child to be under the guidance of a youth pastor who is battling an addiction....probably no. Unfortunately, it is a sin that everyone can see. It is also a sin that is not talked about in the church. Would I be under the leadership of a Pastor who was an alcoholic, drug addict, pornography addict, adulterous, smoker, etc. My answer is no. Why, because those are sins that people let control them. Food can be the same thing. It can control you, instead of you controlling it.

The Bible talks about our bodies being Holy Temples of God. We are to treat them like that by not putting in them things that can harm you. The Bible does talk about gluttony although these are verses we don't "talk" about much in the church. In Proverbs 23: 20-21 it warns us not to join those who drink too much wine or gorge themselves on meat, for drunkards and gluttons become poor, and drowsiness clothes them in rags. Proverbs 28:7 declares, “He who keeps the law is a discerning son, but a companion of gluttons disgraces his father.” Proverbs 23:2 proclaims, “Put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony.”

Physical appetites are an analogy of our ability to control ourselves. If we are unable to control our eating habits, we are probably also unable to control other habits, such as those of the mind (lust, covetousness, anger) and unable to keep our mouths from gossip or strife. We are not to let our appetites control us, but we are to have control over our appetites. (See Deuteronomy 21:20, Proverbs 23:2, 2 Peter 1:5-7, 2 Timothy 3:1-9, and 2 Corinthians 10:5.) The ability to say “no” to anything in excess—self-control—is one of the fruits of the Spirit common to all believers (Galatians 5:22).

God also commands us to be good stewards of ALL he has given us. Everyday He gives me life and a body to be on earth with and I am command to take care of that body that He has given me. Just as I am commanded to take care of my husband, children, house and everything in it, cars, animals, all our possessions that He has allowed me to have. I am told to be a good steward of all these things.

So with that in mind thinking of the young man who was taken away from his mother, without all the info. I initially support that decision that the authorities made. I hope he is not put in foster care but taken to a weight loss in-treatment center where he can be observed by doctors and can start on a path to learning how to eat better and deal with whatever problems brought him too this severe point of being close to death. And that he can if he doesn't know, come into a relationship with God, and know that God loves him.

And I hope for Sean the youth pastor that he does step down and can too get some help on learning how to deal with problems better then over eating to fill whatever void he is filling and then he can come back a be a huge testimony to youth and adults in that church a like and God's power, grace, and forgiveness will shine through him.

Interesting Information about Christmas

Yesterday I needed to take the older lady I help to the bank. Now I could tell you a story about that but I will stick to the point of this blog. While waiting for her to cash checks, I was looking at a free magazine called City Revealed. Flipping through I came to as section by Carol L. Ballard about Christmas and why we use red and green colors and what the meaning behind "The Twelve Days of Christmas" song. I found it interesting and so I thought I would share it with you.

Why the colors red and green? Green stands for eternal life. Red represents the blood Jesus would shed for us on the cross. This was also the first color chosen for Santa's costume when Coca Cola used it for advertising on their pop bottles during the last part of the century. Red and green are also one of the reasons for using holly to represent life and blood.

The Twelve Days of Christmas song: when Oliver Cromwell came to power in England Catholics were not allowed to practice their faith openly. So in order to teach their children to understand their Christian beliefs, The Twelve Days of Christmas was created. Here is what they symbolize:

Partridge in a pear tree: Jesus. A partridge will sacrifice its life to save its young, and Christ sacrificed His life for mankind.

Two Turtle Doves: the Old and New testaments of the Bible as well as Mary and Joseph at the birth of Jesus.


Three French Hens: faith, hope and charity. Or three gifts the wise men brought to the new King.

Four Calling Birds: the 4 evangelist Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

Five Golden Rings: the first 5 books of the Old Testament.

Six Geese a-laying: the six days of creation, or six days of human labor.

Seven Swans a- swimming: the seven gifts or sacraments of the Holy Spirit. Wisdom, understanding, counsel, strength, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord.

Eight Maids a- milking: the eight Beatitudes from the Sermon on the Mount.

Nine Ladies Dancing: nine choirs of angels, Seraphim, Cherubim, Thrones, Dominions, Virtues, Powers, Principalities, Archangels and regular angels. Or the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit, love, joy, peace, kindness, goodness, patience, gentleness, faithfulness, self-control.

Ten lords a-leaping: The Ten Commandments.

Eleven Pipers Piping: the eleven faithful Apostles.

Twelve Drummers Drumming: the twelve articles of belief in the Apostles' Creed.

And there you have some interesting facts about this holiday that we celebrate.

Constructive Criticism

Before you start to read this let me just say if you like Sarah Palin....don't read it! I'm a Democrat and a Christian and DON'T vote on 1 issue(abortion) in any election. I found this column in the Sun newspaper written by a guest columnist and really enjoyed it and have the same feelings as the writer. So in order to keep up my blog I decided I would share what he wrote with all who wanted to read it. So as I said if you like Palin stop reading now. If you don't care for her then continue on.......

In an interview with a Christian Broadcasting Network, during the publicity blitz for her new book, "Going Rouge", former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin called her critics "lonely", "shallow" and in need of prayer.
Gee, Thanks, Mrs.Palin. It humbles me that you would single out someone like me-who, while far from being your biggest fan wouldn't exactly call myself your most bitter detractor-while speaking to the friendly folks over at the CBN.
You're right; clearly I'm so vain that I think you're talking about me, so I could certainly use your prayers to get over those character flaws. But even after the loneliness is gone and I wake up to find my vanity cured, I still won't find you presidential material. Sorry.
I mean no offense. You wear that folksy northern charm like a Snuggie everywhere you go, be it in front of the cheering throngs, talking to Katie Couric or chatting it up with Oprah. You carry a grudge as well as the best of us, as evidenced by the ongoing feud between you and your grandson's father, Levi Johnston.
You're human; I respect that. But just as I would never think I should be president, I don't think you should, either. As Vonnegut would say, so it goes.
Sarah, (You don't mind if I call you Sarah, do you? We're just ordinary Joe Sixpacks, after all.), you'll have to forgive me, but I won't be picking up your book. Not because I'm not interested in hearing your side and being better informed, but simply because I fear the book is your way of forming an exploratory committee, that the sales will be parsed to gauge your national popularity. And I can't bring myself to give you the false sense that I want you to be our commander-in-chief.
As you can see, Sarah, I am being critical (still). And while it may make me lonely and shallow, I would be remiss in my responsibilities as an American citizen if I didn't critique those I encounter on the ballot at the polls. Because if we all cast our votes for those we'd like to have a beer with, or who we think we'd have the most fun hunting wolves with in our private helicopters, then who knows who'd be leading our country?
That's not to say I wouldn't accept an invite to grill moose burgers with your family while drinking cold American beer (not Budweiser, though, they're Belgian now) and playing Scrabble. It's only that it all wouldn't be quite the same if the cookout were at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

-Brandon Wellman The Sun newspaper Dec. 10, 2009

Thank you Brandon although I would have thrown in a little more sarcasm and hits on her you did a great job and I agree with you which is why I posted it on my blog.