Revival of the Temple

A Christians Guide to Weight Loss & Nutrition

Aleta Howell
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Revival of the Temple

A Christians Guide to Weight Loss & Nutrition

Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy

Spirit who is in you, whom you have received from God? You

are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore

honor God with your body.

1 Cor 6:19-20

Copyright 2005, Aleta W. Howell

All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system,
or transmitted by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording or otherwise, without permission of the author.
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Unless otherwise noted Scriptures are taken from the HOLY

BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, Copyright 1973, 1978,
1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of
Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked KJV are from the Kings James

Version of the Bible.

Coke and Caffeine Free Coke are trademarks of The Coca-

Cola Company.

DR. ATKINS, ATKINS DIET are the exclusive property and

trademarks of Atkins Nutritionals, Inc. Atkins
Nutritionals, Inc.

McDonald's is a registered trademark of the McDonald's

Corporation.

BURGER KING is owned by Burger King Corporation and/or its

wholly owned subsidiary, Burger King Brands, Inc.

All other trademarks are the property of the respective

trademark owners.
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Acknowledgements

I would like to extend a special thanks to my many friends

who have encouraged me to make the dream of publishing a

reality.

May Gods richest blessings continue to shine upon you.

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I dedicate this book to Kevin, my husband and best friend.

Thank you for your love, inspiration and support, and for

being my biggest cheerleader; to my lovely daughters Lauren

and Meredith; and to my mother and father who always taught

me that all things are possible with God. I miss you both,

but trust that we will again one day meet in Gods holy

kingdom.
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Table of Contents

Introduction 8 - 12

Objectives of this Program 13 - 14

Chapter 1 - The Miracle of the Temple 15 - 19

Chapter 2 Destruction of the Temple 20 - 26

Chapter 3 - Revival on a Mustard Seed 27 30

Chapter 4 - Basis for Revival 31 39

Chapter 5 - Nutrition for Revival 40 57

Chapter 6 Exercise for Revival 58 - 67

Final Thoughts 68

Temple Revival Exercise Programs 69

Before you Begin 70 - 71

Notes
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Dont you know that you yourselves are Gods temple, and

that God lives in you? If anyone destroys Gods temple,

God will destroy him, for Gods temple is sacred, and you

are that temple.

1 Cor 3:16-17
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Introduction

After losing my father to colon cancer, I was forced to

come to grips with my own health and nutrition.

Prayerfully, I embarked upon a life-changing journey to

improve my eating habits and committed myself to a regular

exercise program, pledging that I would never again revert

to my old habits. I praise God that he has given me the

strength and perseverance to keep that commitment, while

enlightening me to share my experiences with other

believers.

Revival of the Temple is a spiritual guide to weight loss

and nutrition. The word revival means to return to

consciousness of life; to become active or flourishing

again.1 This book was written in an effort to help

believers return to that new consciousness of life by

adopting healthier lifestyles. It serves as a reminder of

the vast power that we, as Christians, possess through

Jesus Christ. This power gives us the ability to defeat

Satans attempts to destroy our bodies and minds with

disease, illness and the feelings of defeat brought on by

poor nutrition and the lack of exercise.

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Even if you have been unsuccessful with other programs,

through your faith, success is now yours if you simply

claim it, in the name of Christ. The Bible tells us that;

Everything is possible for him who believes. Mark 9:232

Perhaps the enemy has convinced you that you lack the will

power to control your eating, to shy away from healthy

foods or get on a regular exercise plan, so that you can

look and feel your best. But you must remember that his

job is to manipulate your mind into believing that you are

defeated in all things. When you buy into this belief it

prevents you from walking with confidence and reflecting

Christs excellence to those around you. This is not to

suggest that a few extra pounds will prevent you from

sharing with others about the goodness of God. Revival of

the Temple reminds us of the power that we as Christians

have within each of us, through Christ and how we can

exercise this power to develop healthier living which

allows us to walk in the full confidence of God as clear

reflections of his excellence. It reminds us that through

our faith, we can achieve any goal that we set for

ourselves, including losing weight and living healthier.

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So be holy in all you do; for it is written. Be holy,

because I am holy.

1Peter 1:15&16
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Is your physical temple in need of a revival?

1. Could healthier living allow you to more fully reflect

Gods excellence?

2. Could your current eating and exercise habits lead to

future health problems if you dont make changes soon?

3. Do you believe that your struggle against obesity and

being overweight is a spiritual battle?

4. Do you believe that through Christ you can win this

battle?

5. Have your repeated attempts to lose weight proven

unsuccessful?

If you said yes to any of these questions, then I encourage

you to incorporate the Temple Plan as a part your daily

life, as you embark upon the journey to revive your

physical temple, through the power of Jesus Christ.

No eye has seen

No ear has heard
No mind conceived
What God has prepared for those who love him
1 Corinthains 2:9
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Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this

world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

Then you will be able to test and approve what Gods will

is his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Romans 12:2
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Objectives of the Plan

Provides a biblical foundation for why God wants you to

strive for excellence in mind, body and spirit.

Establishes scriptural support to motivate and encourage

you to achieve your weight loss, nutrition and exercise

goals for healthier living.

Introduces the Temple Plan: which includes prayer, good

nutrition, meal planning, controlled portions and three

exercise programs, for everyone from beginners to

individuals seeking more intensive training

Includes nutrition, exercise and prayer journals, and goal

setting tools to help you monitor and track your progress

as you embark upon your journey toward better fitness and

nutrition.
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Everything is possible for him who believes

Mark 9:23
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Chapter 1

The Miracle of your Temple

The LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and
breathed into his nostrils breath of life. The man became a
living being.

Genesis 2:7
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The Miracle of the Temple

The mere existence of the human race is one of the clearest

reflections of Gods magnificence. Just think, you began

as a microscopic organism inside your mothers womb, and

within the course of a few months, you developed into a

living and breathing human being. In some ways you are

your own sort of universe, with organs that must work

together in sequence to ensure that you breath, think and

function as you should to maintain life. Whats even more

amazing is, of all the people God has created, since the

beginning of time, and all those that He has yet to create;

there has never been, and never will be, anyone exactly

like you. God created you in His own image, but created

only one you. Then God said, Let us make man in our image,

in our likeness.1 Its such a blessing to think of how

wonderful life really is, and that with each day that

passes, new life is created. For me, this serves as a

timeless example of Gods wonder and magnificence.

Having been twice blessed with the experience of giving

birth, I have come to realize how truly miraculous and

amazing life really is. At that instant when each of my

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daughters were born, I realized that they were new

creatures who had been uniquely and carefully constructed,

with absolute precision and care; true temples of God,

without spot or blemish, the epitome of Gods perfection.

The blessing of life is truly a wonderful thing, especially

since it was Gods choice, and His alone, to grant us such

a wonderful and precious gift; but God doesnt stop there

with this miraculous gift of life. He continues to bless

us throughout our lives. Those of us who truly believe in

Him understand that, Every good and perfect gift is from

above.2 The gift of life is one such gift. As we continue

to read Gods word and come to understand more about Him

and His teachings, there comes a time when we decide to

surrender our entire lives, in mind, body and spirit, back

to Him which is when true living really begins. As temples

of God many of us have come to understand the need to feed

our spirits through the study and hearing of Gods word.

This allows us to equip ourselves spiritually to battle

against the evil forces, which constantly seek to destroy

us, as Paul tells us in the book of Ephesians.

Finally, be strong in the Lord, and in his mighty power. Put on the
full armour of God, so that you can take your stand against the devils
schemes. For our struggle is not against the authorities of this world
2
but against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
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But herein lies the difficulty, because our battle against

evil is a spiritual one. Satan is so cunning that he uses

his weapons to launch silent attacks against our minds,

creating doubt in what we believe about ourselves, and our

capabilities. Remember back when you were in school? Did

you ever spend days studying for a multiple choice exam,

only to find yourself a few days later, staring into the

face of a pop quiz for which there was only one essay

question? After you got over the initial surprise and

panic, you would soon realize that you had two options; you

could simply refuse to take an exam for which you were not

fully prepared, or you could take a few minutes to rethink

how to apply all your existing knowledge to answer this one

question. Although most of us many have been out of school

for many years, we face similar circumstances each day. We

are continuously confronted with new situations, which test

our faith, will and courage. The key to overcoming these

situations is to first know Gods word, and then apply that

knowledge to defeat Satans attacks on us because the word

of God equips us with the tools we need to defeat the

enemys attacks on us.

In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the
flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit,
which is the word of God.4
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This scripture reminds us that we must always be aware of

Satans constant desire to attack us in those areas where

we are weak and vulnerable. For it is in these areas that

he is likely to have the greatest success in his attempts

to destroy us. Satans most obvious targets might include

our marriages, families and friends, or our finances, jobs,

or even the church body. But what is not so obvious is how

he spends years executing these attacks against our overall

health by convincing us to overindulge in food, especially

those that clog our arteries and encourage the body to

store excessive amounts of fat, which may lead to heart

disease, cancer and other terminal illnesses. In many

cases, the enemy carries out these strategies with such

calculation that we have no idea what is happening to us,

until its too late. Its true that human beings cannot

survive without food; it provides us with the energy we

need to maintain life. We use this energy to perform such

simple tasks as waking in the morning, getting out of bed,

driving to work, preparing dinner and even when we sleep.

The fact that food is so critical to our mere existence has

made it a convenient weapon that the enemy increasingly

uses to destroy us, both physically and emotionally. The

physical effects come in the form of excessive weight.

However the emotional effects are less obvious. Living as

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an obese or overweight person can be extremely painful and

oftentimes lonely. This condition can affect our self-

confidence, and self-esteem and in many cases leads to

depression and feelings of hopelessness. This is why so

many Americans have chosen the very dangerous options of

gastric bypass surgery, or diet pills containing the drugs

phen-phen and ephedra. The health statistics provided in

the next chapter simply illustrate just how successful

Satan has been over the past decades in his attempts to

destroy our physical bodies.

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Chapter 2

The Destruction of the Temple

Consider it pure joy my brothers whenever you face

trials of many kinds because you know that the testing of

your faith develops perseverance.

James 1:2-3
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Destruction of the Temple

According to the U.S. Surgeon General, over 60% of all

adults in the U.S. today, are overweight or obese. Medical

research has found that this condition makes us more

susceptible to high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke,

Type 2 Diabetes, high cholesterol, certain types of Cancer,

and other diseases, and is attributed to more than 300,000

deaths each year.1 Most would agree that todays more

hectic, but less physically active lifestyles continue to

compound this menacing problem. In fact, a recent poll

revealed that 40% of adults in the U.S., admit to not

participating in any physical activity.2 But does this

fully explain why the obesity epidemic continues to run

rampant in our society?

The fact is that, for too many of us, food has become our

friend and confidant; its what we go to when times get

tough. We use food to ease our pains and lift us when we

are down. When we have worries and problems that we just

cant solve, we often turn to potato chips, cookies and

other unhealthy snacks to help us forget about those heavy

burdens. We also increasingly focus many of our social

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events and even many church activities around food, because

sadly enough, in many cases serving food tends to generate

higher participation. As a result food, in too many cases,

has become the main focus of our fellowship. Im not trying

to suggest that there is anything wrong with serving food

at church or social functions, however the point is that

food, too often becomes our focus and motivation for giving

time to God. But those of us who believe that we serve a

God who has all power, also believe that He, and He alone

is our true counselor, and friend; the only one who can

lift us when we are down, the only one who will never leave

us. God, and He alone is the only one who can fill the

emptiness and loneliness we feel from losing a loved one;

the helplessness we feel from losing a job; or the

hopelessness we feel from fighting a losing battle against

habits of overeating, addictions to food; and the havoc it

wreaks on our health.

As much as I hate to admit it, there were times in my life

when I joked about how I lived to eat, versus eating to

live. Having grown up in the South, I became closely

acquainted with fried chicken and sugar-filled deserts at a

very early age. We Southerners take pride in the fact that

we can deep-fry nearly anything; from green tomatoes to

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dill pickles, so I spent my early teens becoming an

epicurean of Southern dishes. It was also during that time

that I developed a very strong appetite for sweets, never

discriminating against any desert. I welcomed all cakes

pies, and custards. Adding a pound or two with each

passing year went unnoticed until after my two daughters

were born. During the years following their births, I

began to notice that childbirth, age and my overindulgence

in food, were all beginning to wreak noticeable havoc on my

body. As the weight began to show, I had to admit to myself

that I was overweight and that the problem would only get

worse if I did not make some significant changes. I was

well aware of the statistics and growing problem of obesity

facing our country, and had even seen many loved ones

succumb to heart disease, heart attack and stroke. I had

also seen numerous friends and family members debilitated

from diabetes, but still was unable to commit myself to

improving my own health. During this same time my father

was diagnosed with terminal colon cancer. He died 14

months after being diagnosed. Upon learning of my fathers

illness I spent several months researching colon cancer to

learn more about its causes. What I learned was that diet

can, and often does, play a key role in preventing many

types of cancers. I needed to make some changes in my life

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to try and protect my body from this and other potential

diseases by exercising, eating less fatty foods, more

fruits and vegetables. After my Fathers death, God began

to speak to me and I began to hear him in a way that I

never had before. He revealed to me how I was allowing

Satan to use food as a weapon to destroy my physical body.

I also realized that if he was successful in his attempts,

that not only might I not be around to see my children grow

up and pass these same poor habits on to them, but I might

also be unable to live to complete the purpose that God had

set for my life.

During this period of time, I was juggling being a wife,

mother of two small children and working a full-time job

that can certainly be enough to zap the energy from anyone.

But I found myself falling into a perpetual state of

exhaustion. Although I had been relatively athletic during

my high school years and even college, I had begun to feel

sluggish and unhealthy. I also noticed that my disposition

had changed tremendously. My temper would flair easily. My

vigor for life was slowly seeping away. Initially, I

attributed all that was happening to me to the fact that I

was still grieving the death of my father. As a result, I

invested money in diet aids and herbal mood enhancers. The

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turning point came for me one evening after going down to

the kitchen for an evening snack. As I started back up the

stairs I noticed that I was using the stair railing to

literally pull myself back up the stairs. As I approached

the top I also noticed that my heart was beating fairly

rapidly, and I could hardly catch my breath. My first

thought was to ask myself whether this was what it felt

like to have a heart attack. But I quickly convinced

myself that I was simply out of breath, which was the case.

It was at that instant that I asked God to give me the

strength and courage to help adopt a healthier lifestyle so

that I could continue to stand strong as His child, both

spiritually and physically. I also began to pray for God

to show me a program that would help me to become healthier

and more physically fit. Shortly after, I began my journey

to revive my temple through prayer, exercise and proper

nutrition. Since starting that program I have lost a

significant amount of weight, weight but I gained so much

more. I gained confidence in knowing that if I could

achieve my weight goals, which I had always believed to be

unattainable, that I could do anything. God used me to

inspire others who had dealt with the same struggle, and

more importantly I came to truly believe that I can do all

3
things through Christ which strengthens me.
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This means that Christ has not given us the ability to do a

few things, or even most things. He promises that through,

him we can do all things. Nothing is impossible to those

of us who believe in Him and his Word, and strive to live

according to His teachings.

Perhaps your doctor recently told you that you need to lose

weight for health reasons, or you just have a few pounds

that youve wanted to lose. Whatever your situation you

have the power, through Christ, to change your

circumstance. Regardless of what your friends, family

members or others may have said, you are not defeated in

your attempts to lose weight. Through prayer and faith you

can have success throughout this journey to revive your

temple for better life-long health.

Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have

believed.

John 20:29
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Chapter 3

Revival on a Mustard Seed

If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can

say to this mountain, Move from here to there, and it will

move. Nothing will be impossible to you.

Matthew 17: 20-21

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Revival on a Mustard Seed

Imagine that you are standing in front of Mount Everest,

the tallest mountain in the world. It is at this point

that you might quickly come to understand why its frigid

temperatures and treacherous conditions have prevented so

many expeditioners from reaching its dreaded peak. Despite

its breathtaking beauty, its mere size, altitude and the

severe weather conditions common to its terrain have made

it virtually impossible for most who set out to conquer it.

If youre like me, you probably have absolutely no interest

in ever physically reaching the top of Mount Everest. But

because you are reading this book however, you probably are

interested in beginning to understand how you can use the

power within to overcome those Mt. Everest situations in

your life that seem so dense you cant cut through them; so

low theres no way to move under them; so wide that you

cant go around them; and so high that you cant simply

leap over them. Because it is in these situations that you

must seek your faith to tell those mountains to move from

your path, then believe that they actually will.

God is truly amazing, in that He has given us so much but

requires so little in return. He asks that we simply have

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faith the size of a mustard seed, and in exchange for that

faith, we can elicit the power to move mountains. Do you

realize that a mustard seed, comparable in size to a few

small grains of sand, is by most accounts, too small to

measure? But with only the smallest amount of faith, we

can move those mountains in our lives that seem nearly

insurmountable. Through Him, we can emerge victorious,

from those situations in which we see no way out. You must

remember that God has given you the power to do wondrous

things. Given that He has all power in his hands, he could

have even given us the power to move a small pebble, or

even a large boulder on such a small amount of faith, but

he did neither. God has made available to us the power to

move mountains. Just think about how tremendous it is to

know that each of us has the ability to overcome those

situations that life repeatedly throws at us. But only we

can exercise this power. To do that we must realize that

the enemy wants us to live in a constant mental state of

fear and defeat. We must realize that the enemy wants us

to believe that we are incapable of moving those mountains

in our lives that keep us from going into certain careers

or other goals that we set for ourselves. When we accept

this belief, we not only doubt ourselves but we also doubt

God, and his promises to us. This demonstrated lack of

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faith, gives the enemy an invitation to inhabit our

thinking. If we give him dominion over our thoughts, we

give him victory over us.

Imagine that youre back in front of Mount Everest,

actually holding a mustard seed in your hand. At this

point you might begin to truly understand the magnitude of

this scripture. You might even ask yourself the following

question. What if in that same scripture, God had reversed

the mustard seed with the mountain, instructing us to have

faith the size of a mountain in order to move the mustard

seed? This subtle change would substantially alter the

meaning of this powerful scripture by lessening the

magnitude of Gods power, but our God, the creator of the

universe, holds all power in His hands. Once we accept His

Son as our personal Savior, He empowers us to do miraculous

things.

As you begin the journey to revive your temple, you must

remember that God has given you the power to overcome

unhealthy living so that the rest of your days might be

spent living, and I mean fully living, in the fullness of

life, for Him.

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Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of

what we do not see.

Hebrews 11:1
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Chapter 4

A Basis for Revival

If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who

gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will

be given to him

James 1:5
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A Basis for Revival

To most of us, the dangers of products such as tobacco and

alcohol products, are quite obvious. For the past several

decades the Surgeon General of the United States has warned

us on the dangers of smoking and courts across the country

have awarded millions of dollars to the victims and the

families of individuals stricken with smoking related

diseases. But the dangers of many of the foods we eat are

less obvious to most of us. Although we are inundated with

food pyramids, diet plans, nutrition programs and other

guidelines that tell us to eat more fruits, vegetables and

whole grains, and less fats, sugars and products made with

white flour (which has been stripped of many of its natural

nutrients), 6 out of every 10 Americans remain obese or

overweight. The fact is that many of the foods we enjoy the

most are the ones usually filled with large amounts of

sugar and fat. Food manufacturers worsen the problem by

manipulating ingredients to follow the newest fad diet.

For example, we now have an infinite number of products

claiming to be fat free, low fat and reduced fat, but often

contain more calories than even fattier versions. This

confusion is worsened by research findings and diet

programs which each provide a different solution to weight

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loss and control. These programs recommend a host of

different solutions to weight loss; lower fat consumption,

increase fat consumption, lower carbohydrate intake,

increase carbohydrate intake, lower sugar intake. Such

claims inadvertently lead us to believe that we can eat

certain foods without any guilt or concern about gaining

weight. Each year food companies spend millions of dollars

on advertising in an effort to convince us that we deserve

to indulge in certain sugar-laden delectables, which in

turn are supposed to make us feel like a kid again, or in

some way allow us to reward ourselves. In doing this, we

consume more calories than we should, which in the long

run, leads to weight gain. But food manufacturers are not

the only culprits, the restaurant industry also seems to

perpetuate this problem, offering larger portion sizes and

fat laden menus.

Based on the latest statistics from the National Restaurant

Association, the average U.S. household spends over $2,000

every year dining out.1 Last years annual industry sales

were in excess of $420 billion, compared to only $110

billion in 1984.2 During that same time, sales at the

leading fast food chains such as McDonalds and Burger

King have increased in excess of 150%.3 The industry as a

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whole has obviously benefited from the increasingly hectic

lifestyles of todays working families. But whats ironic

is that as we spend more and more of our incomes each year

dining out we also invest more in diet aides and weight

loss programs. For example, just last year Americans spent

more than $40 billion on weight control programs4 and

another $14 billion on health club memberships.5 Many of

these programs have been developed by celebrities and

physicians, while other program have simply elevated their

creators into celebrity status, the Atkins Plan, created by

the late Dr. Robert Atkins, is just one example. But no

celebrity, famous doctor, or anyone else can equip you with

the courage and strength it takes to overcome life-long

habits of poor nutrition and limited exercise. Once I

finally admitted to myself that I needed to take charge of

my weight and develop a life-long nutrition plan and

healthier lifestyle, I realized that I alone didnt have

the ability to make it happen or see it through. I knew

that if it were up to me, no matter what program I started,

I would stay on it for a few weeks only to quickly fall

back into my old habits. But praise God that, through

prayer, I found the strength and courage to not only

complete a weight loss and nutrition program to reach my

short-term weight loss goal, but to also incorporate

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lifelong healthier eating habits. Without God I would have

continued down the path of destroying my physical temple,

one of the greatest blessings God has given me.

Whether your obesity or overweight condition has caused the

onset of some other illness, you need to lose several

pounds, or you would simply like to take better care of

yourself, starting today you are reminded of the power you

have to make it happen.

For we are the temple of the living God. As God said:

I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be
5
their God and they will be my people.

For years I convinced myself that gaining weight was an

unavoidable consequence of getting older. This was

evidenced by the fact that most of the overweight people I

knew were in their 40s or 50s. Its common knowledge that

as you grow older your body undergoes significant changes,

which affect everything from your heart rate, to the amount

of moisture in your skin, to the number of hair follicles

you have on our head. Our metabolism, that is the rate at

which our bodies burn energy, also begins to slow down as

we get older. Like me, you probably reminisce back to those

days when you could eat anything you wanted and never gain
 39

an ounce of weight. But as you may have noticed, this also

begins to change, as you grow older. As the years pass,

you begin to see just how clearly each and every one of

those french fries that you love so much, seem to end up in

some part of your mid-section, or lower body. The days of

effortlessly maintaining your weight begin to slowly slip

away and the pounds just seem to creep up on you from

nowhere. Although most of the emphasis on looking good

is driven by societal pressure, doctors have proven time

and time again, and few would disagree, that obesity leads

to health problems that can be life threatening.

Older and Wiser

But one of the blessings of growing older is that we also

grow in wisdom. It is during this evolution of age that we

have the opportunity to learn more about Christ, his life

and teachings, and how we should live according to his word

and purpose for our lives. Christ wants you to serve him

in mind, body and spirit, and to live according to His

purpose for your life. All things work together for good,

for those who love the Lord, and are called according to

His purpose.2 But many of our unhealthy habits may not

allow us to even have the good health to actually fulfill

His purpose for our lives. Illness brought on by years of

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poor nutrition, might limit your ability to actively

witness to others about Gods goodness, or may even prompt

nonbelievers to ask the following question of you. If God

can really do all things and you have chosen to follow him,

then why cant he help you live healthier? The lack of

exercise may prevent you from being involved in certain

activities with your children, prevent you from having the

energy to participate in a certain ministry to which God is

leading you, or even make you so irritable that you do not

reflect Christs love in the way you treat others.

Satans Plan

Open their eyes so they may turn from darkness to light,

8
and from the power of Satan to God.

When we spend years carrying excess weight, we force our

organs to overwork and readjust themselves to accommodate

bodies for which we are truly not created to support. This

extra weight depletes both our energy and bank accounts, as

we spend more time and money buying new clothing to

accommodate our expanding waistlines. We then become

emotionally frustrated at the person we see staring back at

us each time we look into the mirror. We tell ourselves

repeatedly that we have to do something to regain control

of our bodies, but as weight seems to cling to us, we begin

 41

to doubt our ability to overcome the problem. The enemy

then manipulates us into believing that if we lack the

control to lose weight we must also lack the ability to

achieve other goals that we have set for ourselves. Over

time we begin to lose confidence in ourselves and the power

that we have within us to win the battle against obesity.

So we criticize ourselves, saying things like; Ill never

lose weight; or I just dont have the will power to lose

weight; or even Ive tried everything I know to lose

weight and nothing ever seems to work and it is with these

very words that we speak defeat unto ourselves. Life and

death is in the power of the tongue. Proverbs 18:21

Gods Power

When we claim victory over our circumstances and speak

those things which we desire into existence, it is then

that we can begin walking into Gods blessings. If your

attempts to lose weight have never proven successful, then

try asking the Lord to empower you to overcome this

mountain in your life, then begin speaking your weight loss

into existence. Start to thank him for allowing you to

defeat the enemys attempts to kill you and rob you of the

long life that God has promised you. I pray that you may
9
enjoy good health.
 42

Believe in the Power of God

As children of the living God, we must always remember that

the enemy has no power over us, unless we surrender it to

him. I have given you authority to trample on snakes and

scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy;

10
nothing will harm you. Therefore we must commit ourselves

to not allowing him to usurp that power from us by entering

and controlling our thoughts. A few years ago, while dining

in a local pizzeria, I witnessed an exchange between the

restaurant owner and a very irate and unreasonable

customer. The man was dissatisfied with his food and asked

to speak with the owner, who finally diffused the situation

after several minutes. Once the customer had left the

establishment, the employee began to commend his boss on

how well he had handled himself. The owner responded by

saying, I decided a long time ago, not to allow certain

people the chance to rent space inside my head. This

statement stuck with me because it is so reflective of how

we should handle the enemy. We should never allow him to

occupy space inside our minds. Because the more time we

spend allowing him to negatively cloud our thoughts, the

less we are able to focus on Gods goodness and his divine

will for our lives.

 43

The thief comes only in order to steal and destroy, I

come in order that you might have life. Life in all its

fullness. John 10:10

 44

Chapter 5

Nutrition for Revival

Listen to advice and accept instruction that you may

gain wisdom for the future.

Proverbs 19:20
 45

Nutrition for Revival

It is not good to eat too much honey. Proverbs 25:27

Lately, there seems to be an overwhelming number of books

on the market on dieting and weight loss. Over the past

few years, programs such as the Atkins Plan, SugarBusters,

South Beach and LA Diet have become household names. While

Ive never tried any of these programs personally, mainly

because I dont believe in dieting in the traditional

sense, I do have a number of friends and acquaintances who

have tried them, and with varying degrees of success. But

the fact is, that not one of these programs provides even a

hint as to where you should seek the real motivation to

change what are in some cases, lifelong poor nutrition

habits. Instead, these, and other weight loss and diet

programs encourage you to look inside yourself for the

motivation, perseverance and will power to lose weight, and

in doing so suggest that you, and you alone possess the

power to achieve long-term success. But if we alone, did

possess such tremendous strength, why are more than 60% of

all Americans overweight or obese? Why is the incidence of

heart disease and adult onset diabetes growing at epidemic

proportions? While I dont question the fact that thousands

 46

of people achieve success with diet programs each year,

many who try them fall short of achieving and maintaining

long-term results. The fact is that only God can grant us

the power to make such significant lifestyle changes. Take

the late Dr. Robert Atkins for example. While I cant

refute the fact that his diet program, Atkins for Life

might be in vogue for quite some time, he cannot naturally

or supernaturally motivate you to achieve long-term success

in your quest for better health. The blessing that you and

I have, however, is that we have direct access to the only

power source that can provide us with the motivation,

perseverance, commitment and strength to meet and sustain

our weight loss goals. Although you alone dont have the

power to meet this challenge, God does.

Before setting out on your journey it will be important

that you develop a basic understanding of nutrition and

exercise. This chapter provides some quick facts regarding

nutrition, the components of the foods we eat and how the

body processes them. It begins by highlighting the three

key food components: carbohydrates, proteins and fats

followed by a recommended TR Nutrition Plan to help guide

you throughout your journey to better health.

 47

Carbohydrates (Carbs)

Stroll down the aisle of any grocery store nowadays and

youll quickly notice the recent tidal wave of low carb

products; which include everything from ice cream, to salad

dressing, to bread and cookies, and the list goes on. The

increasing popularity of the Atkins diet has been one of

the main drivers of this low carb craze. Heres a brief

overview of the rationale behind it. Carbohydrates are

processed as the bodys main source of energy. In the

absence of sufficient carbs, the body will obtain energy by

burning fat. This gets to the premise of the low carb

diet, which is that if you completely cut out carbs, the

body will have no other choice than to burn fat for energy.

But its not quite that simple, which Ill talk more about

a bit later. For now lets stay focused on those carbs.

During the digestion process carbohydrates (with the

exception of fiber) are broken down into glucose (blood

sugar). The glucose is then taken to your cells and

converted to energy. The chemical makeup of some

carbohydrates (simple carbohydrates), especially those

containing white flour, high amounts of refined (white)

sugar and high fructose corn syrup (found in sodas and many
 48

fruit juices), are digested more rapidly by the body

because many of their natural nutrients have been removed

during the processing, or as in the case of high fructose

corn syrup, theyre just empty calories. As an example,

white bread, which is made from refined (white) flour, can

easily derail any weight loss plan, because so many of its

natural vitamins, minerals and fibers, have been stripped

away, causing the body to process it just as it would white

table sugar. Thats why simple carbohydrates tend to cause

the greatest problems when it comes to weight gain, heres

a quick example to further illustrate my point.

After a long day, you come home tired and hungry. You sit

down to a super-sized portion of pasta (typically made from

white flour) with meat sauce, garlic bread (also made from

white flour) with butter and a side salad of course, with

lots of dressing, and you eat every bite; after all, your

mother taught you to always clean your plate. And since

nothing goes better with pasta, than cheesecake (made with

white flour and lots of sugar), you treat yourself to, what

we Southerners might call, a big ole piece. So lets just

say, for the sake of illustration, that there were

approximately 1,500 calories in this one meal. With this in

mind, lets take a quick look at whats likely taking place

 49

inside your body soon after you finish this delightful

meal. The pasta, bread and cheesecake all made with both

white flour and lots of sugar, will rush through your

system quickly converting to glucose. This rapid

conversion will quickly spike your blood sugar, giving you

a huge burst of energy. Soon after, your pancreas kicks in

to produce insulin, in an effort to expedite delivery of

this glucose to your muscle cells where it is converted to

energy. Your muscle cells will welcome and use the energy

that it needs, and once it does, your body will do a

remarkable thing. It will actually store the excess energy

within your muscle cells and liver as fat, for later use.

This process takes place so quickly, that youre hungry a

few hours later and likely craving more sugar and carbs,

even though your body was actually able to store some of

the extra calories that it didnt immediately use for

energy. Now you can imagine what would happen if you

consumed similar meals several times each week. Your body

would continue to store the excess fat, and as you continue

to crave sugar and carbs you eat more and over time put on

more and more weight. Another scenario would be for you to

starve yourself all day in anticipation of this fabulous

pasta meal. Contrary to what you might believe, if you were

to adopt this strategy, you would be successful in limiting

 50

your caloric intake to around 1,500 calories, which would

seem great if youre trying to lose weight; but in doing

this you would also signal your body that it needs to

preserve available calories for its mere survival. In

survival mode, your metabolism (the rate at which your body

utilizes energy) will actually slow down causing you to

conserve those calories by converting less to immediate

energy. The body would then save the rest as fat, just in

case it needs it later to survive. So as you can see

eating too infrequently can hamper you weight loss efforts

just as eating too much, but in different ways. This

example does however serve as another illustration of just

how miraculous the body is. God created each of us with

inborn survival instincts. These instincts likely worked

better for our ancestors who killed what they ate each day,

and on occasion may have gone for days without food.

Because technology had not yet given them the luxury of

refrigerators, for them food storage was not an option. On

those days when they went without food, their bodies would

simply burn stored fat for energy. This is probably how

they maintained leaner physiques than our current

generations. Fortunately, in the 21st century we can easily

see how God has blessed us with luxuries too numerous to

count. In this country we have an abundance of everything

 51

we could imagine, including food, and our bodies are

beginning to show the degree to which we have fully

indulged in this abundance. The point of each of these

examples is to simply illustrate just how easy it is to add

on a few extra pounds over time. You consume a certain

number of calories each day. You also burn a certain

number of calories through normal daily activities such as

taking a shower, getting dressed, driving to work, doing

the laundry, eating, sleeping, I think you get the picture;

and if you happen to get some exercise in a few times each

week, youll burn even more. But when you consume more

energy (calories) than you burn, your body will store the

extra, unneeded calories as fat. This is one of the less

obvious dangers of consuming too many low fat, or low carb

foods; especially cakes, pies, breads, ice cream, and

numerous others; because the fact that the foods are low

carb or low fat leads many to believe that they can eat

double or triple servings, which translates into two-to-

three times as many calories. In many ways, food companies

literally bank on the fact that since those cookies are

actually low fat or low carb, youll decide to go ahead and

pick up that extra bag, with no guilt.

 52

This is also one of the main reasons food manufacturers

have so quickly jumped on the low carb bandwagon. It is

not because they are necessarily trying to help people lose

weight, but quite to the contrary. In recent years many

food product categories have seen slow, or in some cases,

no growth in total sales. It is for this reason that food

manufacturers typically look to grow sales by creating new

product versions under the same brand name or what they

typically call brand extensions. For example, Coke, Diet

Coke and Caffeine Free Coke are all extensions of the

Coke brand. Back when I worked in the snack foods industry

for one of the largest food manufacturers in the country, I

launched a number of line extensions for the sole purpose

of generating additional sales that couldnt be achieved

through the product lines already being sold. This is

truly what has been behind the wave of new low carb

products recently landing on grocery store shelves. Its

not really about meeting the needs of the consumer, but

increasing sales for the food manufacturer thats leading

to all the new products we are beginning to see. Although,

food companies will do all they can to convince you

otherwise, you must remember its the total caloric intake

that makes the difference, not the fact that the cookie

manufacturer has told us that their cookies are low fat, or

 53

low carb. Luckily the U.S. Department of Agriculture

(USDA) requires nutritional labeling on all food products.

This important information can provide you with a quick way

to sort the foods that might slow your weigh loss progress.

By the time you reach the end of this chapter, you should

be equipped to better understand the role nutrition will

play in your weight loss success.

Protein

Protein is a key substance found in muscle tissue and is

critical to muscle growth and development. Unlike many

carbohydrates that are digested quickly and can tend to

cause a surge in your insulin level, protein is processed

much more slowly by the body and even helps to regulate

insulin levels. Many weight loss programs suggest that

consuming combinations of protein and complex carbohydrates

at each meal is one of the most effective ways to control

your appetite, regulate huge fluctuations in your insulin

levels, and ultimately loose weight.

Natural protein can be found in a number of foods,

including: meat, fish, poultry, eggs, beans, dairy products

and nuts. If your goal is to build lean muscle you may

 54

even need to increase your protein intake, which Ill also

talk more about later in this chapter.

Fats

Most fats are classified as saturated, monosaturated or

1
polyunsaturated. Contrary to what you might think, the

body does need a certain amount of fat to maintain good

health. As a guide, the American Heart Association

recommends that no more than 30% of our total daily

calories come from fat, but for the average American fat
2
accounts for more than 34%. And why do we consume so much

fat? Well the truth is that fat makes food taste good.

But if youre trying to lose weight, you should try to

limit fat consumption to no more than 20% of your daily

calories. This 20% should come primarily from unsaturated

fats, which are found in foods like avacados, peanut

butter, nuts, or oils such as olive, canola, corn or peanut

oils. Unsaturated fats have been shown to lower blood

cholesterol levels and reduce the risk of heart disease.

Heres a quick primer on the differences between

unsaturated and saturated fats:

Saturated Fats
Turn solid at room temperature
These foods tend to raise cholesterol, and include
high-fat dairy products (like cheese, whole milk,
 55

cream, butter, and regular ice cream), fatty fresh and

processed meats, the skin of fat and poultry, lard,
palm oil, and coconut oil

Unsaturated Fats
Liquid at room temperature
These are found mostly in the vegetable oils- soybean
oil, corn oil, olive oil and sunflower oil; nuts-
peanuts, sunflower seeds
When consumed in moderation, these fat are believed to
lower blood cholesterol and reduce the risk of heart
disease4

Once again, the key here is to limit your fat intake to no

more than 20% of your daily calories. This means that if

you plan to consume 2000 calories each day, you would limit

your fat intake to 400 calories. Reading food packaging

labels can help you determine the amount fat calories in

certain types of foods but heres a basic guide:

1 gram of protein = 9 calories (multiply grams of protein

per serving times 9 to get total protein calories)

1 gram of fat = 9 calories (multiply grams of fat per

serving times 9 to get total protein calories)

1 gram of carbohydrates = 4 calories5 (multiply grams of

carbohydrates per serving times 9 to get total calories)

I can tell you, just based on my own personal experience,

that working to limit your fat intake may not be easy, but

again, through faith you can do it, by simply praying,

setting your mind and sticking to it.

 56

Perseverance must finish its works so that you may be

5
mature and complete and lacking anything.

If youre like most people, you have probably made numerous

new years resolutions to lose weight. You may have even

joined a health club and began working out. I see it every

January when my gym gets unusually crowded with people who

have made New Years resolutions to lose weight. By

February or March many of these people have given up their

quest to lose weight. The reality is that it takes

perseverance to achieve your weight loss goals. While its

true that your success will be dependent upon your ability

to commit to, and follow a regimented exercise and

nutrition plan. It is also extremely important to remember

that success does not require perfection. What is

important is that you are consistent in following your

plan, forgiving yourself for those little slip-ups and

minor setbacks, then moving on and staying the course. Your

commitment is to God and to yourself, even if you stumble a

few times, God will be right beside you every step of the

way, to pick you up if you fall, and more importantly, give

you the strength to keep on going. The Temple plan is not

about dieting. Instead it encourages prayer and seeking

your faith to inspire lifestyle changes that will help you

 57

in your desire to lose weight. In fact, you should find

the foods included in the Temple Nutrition Plan, found on

page 56, to be very fulfilling and satisfying. As you

probably expected the emphasis is on eating less, so no big

surprise here. But, what you might find surprising is that

this plan recommends that you eat more frequently, focusing

on smaller portions with each meal. Doing this will help

control your appetite throughout the day. By never

becoming overly hungry, youll actually be less likely to

overeat, which has become one of the main reasons for the

increasing incidence of obesity in our country today.

Since managing portion sizes will be critical to meeting

your weight loss goals, lets develop a clear understanding

of how we should define portion sizes.

The USDA defines standard servings as 2-3 ounces of meat;

1/2 cup of rice or pasta; or 1/2 cup of most cooked fruits

and vegetables.6 For those of you who always travel with

your trusty old measuring cup and scale in tow, simply

knowing this information will probably work just fine. But

for everyone else, Id like to recommend a tool thats

become a simple, yet convenient rule-of-thumb for a number

of years now. You may use your hand, in the form of your

flat palm and clenched fist as pretty good gauges to

 58

estimate many portion sizes. A 3 ounce serving of meat,

fish or poultry should be equivalent to the size of your

palm, and a serving of most carbs (pasta, cereal and

7
breads) the size of your closed fist; its that easy. Now

that you have an understanding of portion sizes, lets move

on to the best part, what you can eat while on this

program.

The Temple Program recommends that you consume 5 meals each

day; this includes breakfast, lunch, dinner, two snacks,

and at least 8-10, 8 oz. glasses of water or other sugar

free beverage (such as sugarless iced tea or Crystal

Light. This absolutely excludes regular soft drinks, which

are artificially sweetened with high fructose corn syrup.

Scientists believe the body processes this substance much

like it does fat8 It can also be found in many sweet snacks

and other foods, which is why reading food labels will be

so important from now on. The Temple plan also recommends

that you have dinner no later than 7:00 pm. This may seem

like a lot right now, but trust me, the plan will keep you

feeling satisfied throughout the day so you can better

control how much you each with each meal and prevent

overeating. More importantly, eating five small meals helps

to boost your metabolism, so that your body becomes much

 59

more efficient at burning calories. Remember, eating too

infrequently will send signals to your body that it needs

to conserve calories and not burn them, which ultimately

slows your metabolism. Eating small, frequent meals is key

to boosting your metabolism and making the body utilize

energy more quickly which ultimately leads to weight loss.

For each of your three main meals; breakfast, lunch and

dinner, you should try to include one food from each of

three categories included in the Temple Nutrition Plan;

this means you should select a vegetable/fruit, protein and

carbohydrate. Trust me, it wont be as difficult as it

might seem, in fact it is actually quite simple. Just to

prove my point, on page 69, I have included two sample meal

plans developed from the Temple Nutrtion Plan. For snacks

you should also select a low calorie food such as those

listed below.

Piece of fruit (apple, orange, banana, etc.)

Handful of nuts (sunflower seeds, almonds, peanuts,
etc.)
Cup of yogurt
Energy or Protein bar
Protein shake

Since protein is critical to building lean muscle, you

should consider adding some to at least one or even both of

your daily snacks. For example, since peanut butter is an

 60

excellent source of protein and monosaturated (good) fat,

you might choose an apple with peanut butter; or blend skim

milk, a few scoops of protein powder and a banana or

handful of strawberries to make a protein smoothie. Dont

fret if you cant make combine the two with each snack.

The most important thing here is to not skip meals. You

might also notice that traditional snack foods such as

potato chips and cookies are not included in the food Plan,

or recommended snack list and neither are sugary deserts.

If you find yourself hungry between meals, go ahead and

have an approved snack. The natural sugar in fruit will

also help to curb any cravings you might have the first

week or two on the program. Since vending machines and

fast food restaurants are unlikely to offer the authorized

foods included in the nutrition plan, you should always

consider keeping healthy snacks on hand. Plan to stock your

office desk with healthy snacks or simply carry a small

cooler to work with you each day. Do whatever you have to

do to remove the temptation of purchasing less healthy

snacks from vending machines or fast food restaurants, and

one last but very important point. Thou shalt not skip

breakfast! Remember, your last meal will be eaten no later

than 7:00pm each night; therefore you are in essence

fasting for anywhere from 10-12 hours each night. The

 61

breakfast meal is for the purpose of breaking that fast

(break-fast) and therefore it is important to replenish

your body with water and nutritious foods to get your day

started. Its also been proven that eating breakfast helps

control hunger throughout the day.

 62

God is faithful. He will keep the temptation from becoming

so strong that you cant stand up against it. When you are

tempted, He will show you a way out so that you will not

give into it.

I Cor 10:13b
 63

The Temple Nutrition Plan should provide you with numerous

nutritional meal options. For each of your three main

meals (breakfast, lunch & dinner), simply select a food

from both columns one and two. Since vegetables are low in

fat and calories and high in water content, you may also

add a serving or two of vegetables to each meal. So feel

free to have that extra serving of steamed broccoli, but

hold the melted cheese.

Temple Nutrition Plan

Complex Carbohydrates
Vegetables/Fruits Proteins

Vegetables Whole wheat bread Chicken (skinless)

Greens Whole wheat pasta Turkey (skinless)
Spinach Oatmeal Lean Ground Beef
Lettuce Oat Bran Top Sirloin
Cabbage Brown rice Filet Mignon
Broccoli Wild rice Shrimp
Asparagus Sweet potatoes Lobster
Green Peppers White potatoes Crab
Red Peppers Kidney Beans Trout
Carrots Black Beans Salmon
Okra Lentils Tuna
Onion Navy Beans Flounder
Green Beans Pinto Beans Halibut
Peas Yellow Squash Swordfish
Zucchini Corn Perch
Fat free yogurt Tilapia
Haddock
Fruits Pork Tenderloin
Apple* Lean Ham
Orange* Low Fat Canadian Bacon
Srtawberries* Fat Free Cheese
Banana* Cottage Cheese
Grapes Egg Whites (such as
Raisins Eggbeaters TM)
Cherries Protein shake
Grapefruit Protein bar
Peach Peanut butter
Pear
Plum
Watermelon

* These fruits are actually complex carbohydrates so be sure not to over do it.
 64

Sample Menus

Breakfast (8:00 am):

Two EggbeatersTM scrambled with a sprinkle of fat free
cheese on wheat toast, and handful of raisins.

Morning Snack (10:00 am):

Smoothie made with vanilla protein powder and a banana

Lunch (12:00 am)

Burger with lettuce and tomatoes on wheat bun, or you can
omit the bun and have just the burger with brown rice and a
side salad

Afternoon Snack (3:00 pm):

Energy bar (EASTM makes some great ones!)

Dinner (6:30 pm)

Baked Salmon with green beans and a sweet potato

Heres what my nutrition plan might look like on a given

day:

5:00am Wake up!

5:40am Arrive at my health club. Workout for 1 hour

Breakfast (8:30 am):

Protein shake made with GNC Mega Whey and one banana

Morning Snack (10:30 am):

EASTM Myoplex Lite protein bar

Lunch (12:30 am)

Grilled chicken sandwich with lettuce and tomatoes on bun,
with side salad

Afternoon Snack (3:00 pm):

Apple with peanut butter

Dinner (6:30 pm)

Baked Salmon with green beans and a sweet potato
 65

Exercise for Revival

Listen to advice and accept instruction that you may gain

wisdom for the future

Proverbs 19:20

Before getting too far into this chapter, I need to make a

very important acknowledgement. I fully realize that you

juggle so many things in your daily life that you have

absolutely no time to exercise. If youre like me, your

days are probably spent going to work; caring for your

family; taking care of your home, spending time with

friends, taking kids to various extracurricular events and,

not to mention, participating in numerous church

activities. We all believe that children are true

blessings from God, and with those blessings come the

responsibility to provide them with love, guidance and the

basic necessities of life; food, clothing, shelter, etc. If

God has blessed you with a job, then you are obligated to

show up each day, on time, and perform that job to the best

of your abilities. You must do this each day in order to

keep that job, which provides you with the financial means

to support yourself and your family. God may have also led
 66

you to a church at which you are a member or attend

regularly, to worship each Sunday. There you probably

participate in numerous activities because God commands

that we give of our time and talents to evangelize His word

and edify His kingdom. Although your list of activities

and commitments might not be exactly the same as those

mentioned here, the point is that your life is probably

just too busy to make time to exercise. Your life is just

too busy to exercise. Your life is just too busy. Your

life. Your life? When you accepted Christ as your personal

savior, did you not give your life to Him? If you truly

believe that Christ lives in you, then you know that if He

has all power, then so do you, because He lives in you.

The Christ within you will show you how you can make time

to exercise. It may not be obvious now, but through

prayer, He will reveal it to you. I mentioned earlier that

in earlier years, I too had been unable to commit to better

health and fitness, so I prayed for God to show me how and

when I could fit it in. As I saw it, I simply didnt have

time, but God answered my prayers by leading me to simply

write down my daily schedule, and in doing this, I realized

how I could make it work.

 67

My Old Daily Schedule

Sleeping (10:00pm - 6:00am) 8 hrs

Getting myself and kids up, 2 hrs

and out to work/school

Working (including drive time 9 hrs

kids drop off & pick-up)

Dinner/Family Time/Kids Events 5 hrs

Reading/Meditation/Watching TV 1 hr
24 hrs

After completing this simple exercise, I found that if I

got up an hour earlier, I could easily fit in my workouts

before work. This meant that I would have to get up at

5:00am instead of 6:00am. Since my health club opens at

5:30am, I decided to begin working out from 5:30 to 6:30

each morning. I must admit that this took some getting use

to, but after a few weeks, my 5:30 workout became just as

much a part of my day as everything else I did. I began

with a very regimented program from which I got great

results. After spending so much more time in the health

club, I also started to more closely watch people as they

exercised. The majority of these people seemed to sort of

aimlessly wander through the health club with no specific

plan in mind. Some would go from machine to machine in

what seemed to be an attempt to work each body part, while

 68

others did the same cardio routine day in and day out; but

with little or no obvious results. While I would generally

agree that some exercise is better than none, I, like most

people, need to see results from my efforts in order to

stay the course. With this in mind I was led to develop the

three Temple exercise programs which I have outline on

page 74. I currently follow Advanced Level II Program,

which means that I typically workout weekday mornings and

sleep in Saturdays to rest my body, while abiding by the

authorized nutrition Plan. Sunday is my day of rest, when

I eat absolutely whatever I want and dont head to the gym.

This program works well for me because I have been at it

for some time now, but if it has been some time since you

last exercised and you would prefer to gradually ease your

way back into a fitness program, you might prefer to go

with the Basic Program. Again, the level at which you

begin is not at all important; what is important is that

you simply make the effort to get started. For optimal

results you should try to incorporate both cardiovascular

exercise and weight training, which is the main purpose

behind the Advanced programs outlined on page 74, and let

me briefly explain why. During prolonged cardiovascular

exercise your body will quickly convert the foods you

recently consumed into energy, after which it will begin to

 69

burn stored fat. Although there are many more technical

definitions than the one I just presented, the point is

that cardiovascular exercise is the best way for you to

burn fat and lose weight. The purpose of adding in muscle

training (lifting weights) is to help you tighten and tone

your body. The TR programs focus on key muscles in the

upper body, lower body and abdominals. Here are some

suggested exercises for each muscle group.

Key Benefits of Cardiovascular Exercise

Helps burn body fat
Increases heart and lung capacity
Increases overall energy

Typical types of cardiovascular exercises

Walking/Jogging (outside, track, treadmill, etc.)
Running (outside, track, treadmill, etc.)
Aerobics
Kickboxing
Elliptical trainer
Star climber
Bicycle riding (regular or stationery bike)

Key Benefits of Weight training

Builds lean muscle which helps burn body fat
Strengthens Muscle
Helps tighten and tone your body

Typical Body parts to train

Upper Body: Chest, Shoulders, Biceps (part of your
upper arm that sticks our when you make a muscle),
triceps (underside of your upper arm), Back
Lower Body: Quadriceps (front of thigh), Hamstrings
(back of thigh), calves
Abdominals (stomach muscles)
 70

Suggested muscle training exercises

Upper Body
Chest
Flat Bench Press (barbell or dumbbell)
Incline Bench Press (barbell or dumbbell)
Dumbbell flyes

Shoulders
Side arm raises
Front arm raises
Lateral raises

Biceps
Seated dumbbell curls
Hammer curls
Preacher curls

Triceps
Reverse cable pushdowns
Dumbbell lying triceps curl
Bench dips

Back
One arm dumbbell rowes
Lateral Pull downs

Shoulders
Lateral side raises
Deltoid flyes

Lower Body
Quadriceps
Leg extensions (exercise machine)
Barbell squats
Leg presses (exercise machine)

Hamstrings
Hamstring curls
Lunges
Dead Lifts
 71

Calves
Calf raises
Calf presses (exercise machine)

Abdominals
Sit ups
Crunches

At this point you might be looking a this page with a

confused look, wondering why I have neglected to include

more specific instruction on exercise technique. This was

purposely done for those of you who are less familiar with

muscle training. Rather than use this book for weight

training instruction, I would recommend that you begin

working with a staff member or trainer at your local health

club, who can assist and instruct you on the proper use of

the necessary fitness equipment (they will usually do this

free of charge) and technique for each exercise, both of

which are critical to achieving good results and preventing

injury.

A trainer or staff person will likely recommend that you

begin with light dumbbells (2-5 lbs for women, 15-20 lbs

for men.), and 10-12 repetitions (which is the number of

times you raise and lower the weight.) The following page
 72

will provide you with further instruction on how you should

approach your workouts. However, if you are a beginner, I

would still encourage you seek the assistance of a staff

member at your health club to discuss your specific plans,

individual needs and to ensure that you are getting the

most from your workouts.

Facts to remember about Cardiovascular exercise

All three TR programs begin each week with cardio workouts.

For those of you most interested in burning fat, this will

give you three days every week to work toward that goal.

After three or four weeks, feel free to move your cardio

workouts to different days. For example, you might decide

to do weight training on Monday and Wednesday and Cardio on

Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Remember, the TR program

was meant to serve only as a guide, not as a regimented

mandate. You should feel free to adapt it to best suit

your needs, so that you are more likely to stick with it.

and continue working toward meeting your goal. If over time

your exercise routine begins to get monotonous, shake

things up a bit, by trying a new cardio routine on a

different day. This will also improve your results, by

preventing your body from getting too accustomed to doing

 73

the same workouts on the same day, at the same time each

week.

Facts to remember about Weight Training

Many people find the thought of weight training a bit

intimidating. Successful weight training should provide

your muscles with the resistance they need to grow stronger

and look more toned. The goal of TR programs is to offer

you a few basic routines for each muscle group. Many

people, especially us women, shy away from weight training

for fear that we will bulk up and begin looking

masculine. But trust me, youd have to spend a lot more

time in the health club for that to happen. Plus, the male

hormone testosterone plays a key role in the bulking

process. Therefore, women generally lack sufficient

levels to respond to weight training in the same manner as

men; so let the lifting begin! One other reason many

people choose not to weight train is because the whole idea

can be a bit intimidating. Although I learned the

techniques of weight lifting in high school, until a few

years ago I was never quite sure of which exercises to do,

and for which body parts, or how often to do them. So in

essence my fear kept me from even trying. But praise God

that we dont have to live with a spirit of fear. For God

 74

did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of

9
power, love and self-discipline. Once I decided to walk

out of that fear and was no longer intimidated, I was able

to make my workouts more effective. Now on to what youll

need to know about weight training.

At some point you may have come across the terms,

repetitions (reps), and sets. These terms simply refer to

the number of times you raise and lower the weight. For

example, raising and then lowering the weight back would be

considered one repetition (rep). The number of reps you

complete with a certain weight is considered a set. As a

reminder, its always good to rest 60 seconds between each

set in order to give your muscles time to slightly recover.

When lifting remember to focus on your form. Solicit the

help of a health club staff member to be sure that you are

performing the exercises properly. And at the risk of

sounding like a drill sergeant, one last thing. Dont

forget to breath, exhaling as you lift and inhaling as you

lower the weight. You will also notice that the two

Advanced Temple Plans outlined on page 74 include optional

Saturday weight training workouts. For these workouts you

may begin with either your upper or lower body, but be sure

to switch it up the following week. This means that one

 75

week youll have two upper body workouts, then the next

week youll balance that out with two lower body workouts.

The exercise journals found on page 71 also included a

place for you to record your daily exercise and monitor

your progress and examples of how you might complete your

journal entries.
 76

Some final thoughts

1.) As you embark upon this journey remember that God has

all power. Through Him, you can accomplish goals and

overcome obstacles you never dreamed possible.

2.) The TR program is not a diet or quick fix. You have

made a tremendous commitment to make lifestyle changes that

will forever affect you. Know that you will be tempted at

times, and may fall short of your own goals and

expectations. But be steadfast in your prayers that God

will help you to keep your commitment to Him and to

yourself. You will succeed!

3.) You are beautiful. You are magnificent. There is only

one you, and there will never be another. Thats the way

God intended it. Strive to exemplify that in all that you

do from this day forward.

Grace and peace.

And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life. He that

cometh to me shall never hunger and he that believeth on me

shall never thirst.

John 6:27
 77

Temple Daily Exercise Plans

Beginner
Level Mon Tues Wed Thurs Fri Sat Sun

30 min 30 min 30 min

Exercise Cardio Optional Cardio Optional Cardio Optional Free Day

Nutrition EFR EFR EFR EFR EFR EFR Free Day

Advanced
Level I Mon Tues Wed Thurs Fri Sat Sun

30-45 min 30-45 mi

Upper Body Lower Body Optional
30-45 min Weight 30-45 min Weight 30-45 min Weight
Exercise Cardio Training Cardio Training Cardio Training Free Day

Nutrition EFR EFR EFR EFR EFR EFR Free Day

Advanced
Level II Mon Tues Wed Thurs Fri Sat Sun

45-60 min 45-60 min

Upper Body Lower Body Optional
45-60 min Weight 45-60 min Weight 45-60 min Weight
Exercise Cardio Training Cardio Training Cardio Training Free Day

Nutrition EFR EFR EFR EFR EFR EFR Free Day

Upper Body: Chest, Shoulders, Biceps (part of your upper arm that sticks
our when you make a muscle), triceps (underside of your upper arm), Back

Lower Body: Quadriceps (front of thigh), Hamstrings (back of thigh),

calves

Abdominals (stomach muscles)

 78

Before you Begin - Seven steps to Temple Revival

1. Write your Vision

In order to achieve your goal, you must first set one.

Write down your overall, and weekly goals, then
monitor your progress on a weekly basis. (Its
realistic and safe to lose about 2 pounds per week.)
Focus on losing inches, not necessarily weight loss.
Since muscle weights more than fat, as you gain muscle
and lose fat, the scales may not be the most accurate
measure of your progress. Instead of solely relying
on the scales, you should also use a tape measure to
monitor your progress.

2. Check with your doctor

Check with your doctor before beginning any diet or

fitness program. This is especially true if you are
on any medication(s) or are currently under a doctors
treatment for a certain condition or illness.

3. Establish a regular workout schedule

Until now, time has been a major barrier impeding your

weight loss, so you must take time, to make time
Realistically evaluate your daily schedule to
determine when you can exercise on a regular basis and
stick to it, and remember your schedule can, and
should vary each
Understand that its perfectly o.k. to start with only
3 days each week, gradually building to 5, or even 6
days. The most important thing is to get started.
Step out on faith and know that God will be there to
guide you every step of the way.

4. Become a prayer warrior

Ask God to strengthen, lead and guide you throughout

your journey toward better health
 79

Ask someone close to you, who you know will support

you to become your prayer partner
Your prayer partner should be someone who you are
confident will pray for, and support you throughout
your journey.
You may even consider asking someone who also wants to
adopt a healthier lifestyle to join the Temple Plan
with you.
Use the Prayers for Revival on page 75 to ask God for
strength, will power, perseverance and discipline to
achieve your goals and maintain the good habits you
are about to adopt.

5. Get geared up

If youre not already a member of a health club, join

one. Be sure the environment is one in which you will
be comfortable.
If you have a pair of athletic shoes, make sure they
are still in good condition.
If you do not own a good pair of workout shoes, take a
trip to your local athletic store and invest in a good
pair of walking or running shoes.
Worn shoes can contribute to injury, which could
completely derail your efforts

6. Remove the temptation

Before beginning your program you should strongly

consider clearing your pantry, kitchen cabinets and
refrigerator of all tempting high fat snacks and
deserts.
If you hate the thought of throwing food in the trash,
simply store these items in a place where they are out
of your view. Remember out of sight, out of mind.

7. Shop with a grocery list

Use the authorized food list to pre-plan meals and

prepare your grocery list prior to going shopping
Dont go grocery shopping when youre hungry, or
without a planned list
 80

Dont make impulse food purchases unless they are for

authorized foods
Read food labels to ensure that you understand their
ingredients. Be sure that whole wheat breads, cereals
and pastas are made with unrefined, whole grain wheat
flour. You should also stay away from foods with
added sugar; these might include (corn syrup, high
fructose corn syrup, etc)
 81

Prayers for Revival

Strength

Lord, Give me the strength and self-control to consume

those foods, which provide nutrients to my body and my
mind. By doing this, I can better prepare my mind to
understand your word and how I can apply it to my life. I
can also preserve my health so that I can stand tall with
confidence, and continue to live out the purpose that you
have set for my life.

Will Power

Lord, I realize that many of the foods I eat on a regular

basis are unhealthy for me, and only allow the enemy to
move closer toward achieving his goal of destroying my
physical body. Give me the will power to resist the urge to
destroy my body with harmful foods. Help me to rebuke the
enemys attempts to defeat me in my efforts to revive my
temple.

Perseverance

Lord, Please help me to persevere and finish what I have

committed to you and myself that I will complete.

Discipline

Lord, Help me to be disciplined in my food selections.

Help me to remember that my body is you temple.
 82

Your Temple Revival Journals

The next section will provide you with four different

journals you should use to record and monitor your daily

progress.

Journal I Goal Setting for Revival

Evaluate exactly why you would like to improve your health
and what you would like to accomplish by doing so both
long-term and short-term. Plan your workouts and meal
plans the day or night before, so that you can go into each
day with a clear plan of what you would like to accomplish.
Record your measurements and weight each week (around the
same time of day, if possible.)

Journal II Exercise for Revival

Plan and record your daily workouts and monitor your
progress each week.

Journal III Nutrition for Revival

Plan and record each meal and monitor your progress. Be
sure to indicate whether the foods you consume are in the
plan or not. This will help you more easily identify
problem areas that might contribute to slowing your
progress

Journal IV Prayers Revival

Use the prayer journal to list specific things and people
that you would like to include in your prayers. Pray for
continued strength, will power and perseverance
 83

Journal I Goal Setting for Revival

Write the Vision, Make it Plain

Habakkuk 2:1 (KJV)

Now that you have decided to embark on this quest to lose

weight and improve your overall health, give some thought
to what it is that you would truly like to accomplish.
Answering the following questions will allow you to clearly
lay out a plan that you can refer to on a daily basis to
remind yourself of your ultimate goals.

Why do I feel the need to improve my health?

1.

2.

3.

What do I plan to accomplish by improving my nutrition and

exercise?

1.

2.

3.

My specific goals for this program are (ex. To lose 30 lbs,

lower my blood pressure and cholesrtol)

1.

2.

3.
84
 85

Goal Setting for Revival

Write the Vision, Make it Plain

Habakkuk 2:1 (KJV)

At the end of each week, spend some time to reflect on your

key accomplishments. These should include how much weight
or inches that youve lost, others whom you have influenced
to follow a similar path, prayers that God has answered

Then, at the end of week four, complete the following

questions

Week Key Accomplishments Waist Chest/B Lower Thighs Hips Weight

(in.) ust Abs (in.) (in.) (in.)

(in.) (in.)

Beginning
Measurements 32 40 40 20 44 165

1
Lost 1 inches and 32 39 1/2 40 20 431/2 163
2 lbs
Didnt have any fries

What are your key accomplishments thus far ( ex. Weight

loss, lost inches, health benefits, energy levels, etc.)?
 86

How do you plan to make the next four weeks of your program
even more effective?
 87

Goal Setting for Revival

Write the Vision, Make it Plain

Habakkuk 2:1 (KJV)

At the end of each week, spend some time to reflect on your

key accomplishments. These should include how much weight
or inches that youve lost, others whom you have influenced
to follow a similar path, prayers that God has answered

Then, at the end of week 8, complete the following

questions

Week Key Accomplishments

Waist Chest/Bust Lower Thighs Hips

Abs

What are your key accomplishments thus far ( ex. Weight

loss, lost inches, health benefits, energy levels, etc.)?

How do you plan to make the next four weeks of your program
even more effective?
 88

Goal Setting for Revival

Write the Vision, Make it Plain

Habakkuk 2:1 (KJV)

At the end of each week, spend some time to reflect on your

key accomplishments. These should include how much weight
or inches that youve lost, others whom you have influenced
to follow a similar path, prayers that God has answered

Then, at the end of week 12, complete the following

questions

Week Key Accomplishments

Waist Chest/Bust Lower Thighs Hips

Abs

10

11

12

What are your key accomplishment? (Ex. Total weight loss,

lost inches, health benefits, energy levels, etc.)?

What changes, if any, will you need to make to adapt this

plan to your life?
 89

Temple Revival - Daily Nutrition Journal

Meal In Plan Not in

Plan

Breakfast
Wheat Bagels

Egg Beaters

Water

Morning Snack
Banana

Almonds (handful)

Lunch
Chicken salad w/ mayo

Wheat Bread

Tea

Afternoon Snack
Yogurt (6 oz.)

Dinner
Grilled chicken

Brown rice

Green Beans

Water

Did you take your daily vitamin supplement? Yes___ No___

Total (8 oz.) glasses of water consumed. ____10__

 90

Temple Revival - Cardiovascular Training

Cardiovascular Duration

Week 1 Day/Date Exercise

Prayer Journal:

Scripture: I can do all things through Chrsit which strengthens me.

My Goals for today are to: Drink 10 glasses of water

Today I will pray for: Will power to get up early tomorrow and work out
before work
 91

Temple Revival - Weight Training

Muscle Groups: Lower Body

Muscle Group Exercise Set Total Reps Weight

Quadriceps Leg Extensions 1 15 20

2 10 25

3 8 30

4 2 35

Hamstrings Lying leg Extension 1 15 15

2 10 20

3 8 25

4 4 30

Calves Calf Raises 1 15 20

2 10 25

3 8 30

Abdominals Crunches 1 20

2 15

3 10

Prayer Journal:

Scripture:

Scripture: Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.. - Colossians 4:2

My Goals for today are to: Stay away from white bread , deserts and French fries.
Drink at least 10 glasses of water

Today I will pray for: Endurance to push harder during my workouts

Children, church family, Smith family who recently lost a loved one, my strength to
 92

Temple Revival - Weight Training

Muscle Groups: Upper Body

Muscle Group Exercise Set Total Reps Weight

Chest Bench Press 1 15 5

2 10 10
3 8 15
4 2 20

Shoulders Flyes 1 15 5
2 10 10
3 8 15
4 4 30

Triceps Bench Dips 1 15 5

2 10 10
3 8 15
5 20

Biceps Bicep curls 1 15 5

2 10 10
3 8 15
4 5 20

Back One-armed rows 1 15 5

2 10 10
3 8 15
4 5 20

Prayer Journal:

Scripture: Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.. - Colossians 4:2

My Goals for today are to: Stay away from white bread , deserts and French fries.
Drink at least 10 glasses of water

Today I will pray for: Endurance to push harder during my workouts

Children, church family, Smith family who recently lost a loved one, my strength to
stick to my weight loss goals
 93

Prayer Journal

Guiding Scripture:

My Goals for today are to:

Today I will pray for:

 94

Temple Revival - Daily Nutrition Journal

Meal In Plan Not in

Plan

Breakfast

Morning Snack

Lunch

Afternoon Snack

Dinner

Did you take your daily vitamin supplement? Yes___ No___

Total (8 oz.) glasses of water consumed. ______

 95

Temple Revival - Cardiovascular Training

Cardiovascular Duration

Week 1 Day/Date Exercise

Prayer Journal:

Scripture:

My Goals for today are to:

Today I will pray for:

 96

Temple Revival - Weight Training

Muscle Groups:

Muscle Group Exercise Set Total Reps Weight

Chest

Shoulders

Triceps

Biceps

Back

Prayer Journal:

Scripture:

My Goals for today are to:

Today I will pray for:

 97

Prayer Journal

Guiding Scripture:

My Goals for today are to:

Today I will pray for:

 98

To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present

you before His glorious presence without fault and with

great joy to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty,

power and authority through Jesus Christ our Lord, before

all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.

 99

Notes

Introduction
1. Websters New World Dictionary, Second College Edition.
World Publishing Co., 1972

2. Mark 9:23

Chapter 1
1. Genesis 1:26a

2. James 1:17

3. Ephesians 6:10-12

4. Ephesians 6:16-17

Chapter 2
1. Overweight and Obesity: What You Can Do. Available online
at
http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/topics/obesity/calltoaction/f
act_whatyoucando.htm. Accessed August 25, 2003.
2. Ibid
3. Philippians 4:13

Chapter 3
1. National Restaurant Association, Industry at a Glance.
www.restaurant.org/research/ind_glance.cfm. Accessed
August 26, 2003.
2. Dennis P. Milton. Standard & Poors Restaurant Industry
Surveys, McGraw Hill Co., September 30, 2004.
3. Burger King and McDonalds 2003 Corporate Annual Reports.
4. Commercial Weight Loss Programs U.S. Mintel International
Group, Ltd.
http://Marketresearch.com/map/prod/924636.html. Accessed
January 10, 2005.
5. The Scope of the U.S. Health Club Industry. International
Health, Raquetball & SportsClub Association.
http://ihrsa.org/IHRSA/viewpage.cfm?pageID=804. Accessed
January 12. 2005.
6. 2Corinthians 6:16
7. Romans 8:28
8. Acts 26:8
9. IIIJohn 2
10. Luke 10:19
 100

Chapter 4
1. Not all fats are the same. University of Pennsylvania
Wellness and General Nutrition.
http://www.pennhealth.com/health-
info/nutrition/not_same.html. Accessed September 25,
2003.
2. Fat in your diet. University of Pennsylvania Wellness
and General Nutrition.
http://www.pennhealth.com/health-
info/nutrition/fat.html. Accessed September 25, 2003.
3. Not all fats are the same. University of Pennsylvania
Wellness and General Nutrition.
http://www.pennhealth.com/health-
info/nutrition/not_same.html. Accessed September 25,
2003.
4. Ibid
5. James 1:4
6. Carol Ann Rinzler. Nutrition for Dummies, The Food
Pyramid, Whats the serving. The Food Pyramid, (???
Publisher) page 201.
7. Paula J. Wart, Size Matters when you put food portions
on your plate. Vanderbilt Faculty & Staff Wellness
Program Health Plus.
http://vanderbiltowc.wellsource.com/dh/content.asp?id=
865. Accessed June 29, 2004.
8. Sally Squires. The Washington Post. High Fructose
Corn Syrup Feeds Obesity, march 18, 2003
9. 2Timothy 1:7