Ginger Garrett

I’ll be appearing live on the television program, The Harvest Show, on Wednesday, Febraury 20, to begin a three-part series on Beauty Secrets of the Bible.

If you’ve never watched The Harvest Show, it’s one of my favorites, and I bet you’ll love it too. It’s a great mix of inspirational guests, wonderful hosts, and world news. Check your listings to see when you can catch it, and be sure to tune in for the next three weeks!

How many times a day do you compare yourselves with other women?

That’s a sore subject with me today because I received the sales catalog from Victoria’s Secret! That’s a bit humbling, because just this week I bragged to a friend of mine as we danced at a Valentine’s party for the local elementary school: “Hey, this is fun getting on the floor and shaking it! And now, thanks to Spanx, it all comes back!” Sigh. Even with training for a triathlon, my body keeps its generous allotment of curves and padding.

My lowest point , however, came after the birth of my third child. Sitting in bed one night I realized I could probably count my age by the rings around my middle. I’m pretty sure my oldest son was eyeing me for his school’s nature project.

And once we’re on this journey of finally making peace with our design, one thing continually trips us up: comparison. We compare ourselves to other women all day, every day. It can become second nature. I began to break free of this habit by understanding that every time I compare myself with another woman, I’m really asking, “God, which of us did you love more?”

Because the lie of the beauty industry is that beautiful women are loved more, and better. They have better lives, with more security and acceptance. And so I question God relentlessly. “Why did you give her the legs I wanted? And hey! There go my abs, too!” 

The truth is, we pursue beauty because we want feelings and relationships. We want to feel loved, to be loved, to feel accepted, and to be accepted. Instead of trusting God for those, we seek them the only way women have ever been taught how: we try to become beautiful.

So today, when you see another woman who has what you want, ask yourself what it is you’re really longing for. What is it in your heart that feels empty? You can take those wounds to the only God who has ever specialized in loving lost women. And you can have what you search for, as God lavishes His blessings on you, perfectly imperfect body and all.

Another study has been done showing a link between consumption of artificial sweeteners and weight gain. (A link to the news article follows this post.)

This is not a new suggestion. Several studies have shown a connection between diet foods and weight gain. What caught my eye about this study was the way it was constructed: rats were fed either artificially sweetened yogurt, or yogurt sweetened with that good ol’ high calorie sugar, glucose. The rats who ate the diet yogurt gained more weight than the rats who ate the high-calorie yogurt.

Here’s why this is an important study: scientists have long suspected that we eat too much because we think we’re saving calories when eating diet foods. And this may be true sometimes. But this study shows us that the body is responding differently to diet foods than normal foods. After all, no one explained to the rats that they were eating diet food. They simply did what all rats do: eat until their brain receives the signal they are full, and the brain signals the eating behavior to stop. With diet foods, this elegant, simple method of control is broken down, and the result is weight gain.

“‘The data clearly indicate that consuming a food sweetened with no-calorie saccharine can lead to greater body-weight gain and adiposity than would consuming the same food sweetened with a higher-calorie sugar,’ they conclude in their report, which is published in the journal Behavioral Neuroscience.”

We don’t understand the way these chemicals are processed in our bodies, any more than we understand how the chemicals in our body care might be impacting our health. As for me, I feel good about sticking to natural, minimally processed sugars. I don’t do diet foods or diet sodas. And now you have a good reason to give them up, too!

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,330287,00.html

I had a great time this morning with Lorri and Larry from FamilyNet Sirius Channel 161 and FamilyNet television. What a great show they produce! The new studio is gorgeous, too.

If you listened or watched today and are looking for some free downloads, check my downloads page. The recipe for the skin cream that helps ezcema and other skin conditions is called Honey, Olive Oil & Beeswax Skin Cream.  It’s a thick paste, and a word to the wise: although it’s worth its weight in gold to a lot of people, it can leave a wax residue on your pans when you mix it. To avoid this, try melting the beeswax in a clean aluminum can set inside a small pan of water on the stove. You can always recycle the can later or save it for future batches.

Have a beautiful day, and remember that you are loved!

In Beauty Secrets of the Bible, I called your attention to the use of phthalates in body care items. These are components of fragrance, and do not have to be listed on the ingredient label. (The manufacturer can just say “fragrance,” and doesn’t have to specify what is in that fragrance.) Phthalates are used in almost every fragrance on the market, and fragrances are used in almost every product.

Even fragrance-free products contain fragrance. Fragrance-free simply means that there’s no detectable odor. The odor is masked by other fragrances. And yet, “fragrance free” is still considered a legally acceptable term, even if it is misleading.

So your products probably contain phtahlates, unless they are labeled “phthalate free.” Several years ago, a study showed elevated levels of this chemical in the urine of women of child bearing age. This was concerning, since phthalates are believed to have a connection to birth defects and reproductive problems.

Now, a new study has found elevated levels of phthalates in the urine of babies who are exposed to these chemicals through their shampoos, lotions, and baby care items. (Read the full article here: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,328007,00.html

My advice? Open your Resource Guide in the back of Beauty Secrets, and you’ll find companies who provide phthalate-free products that really work, and are much better alternatives.

Vickie from Tennessee wins our monthly drawing! Vickie will receive a signed copy of Beauty Secrets of the Bible and a full size bar of Pangea Organics soap, scented with Pyrenees Lavender and Cardamom. (heavenly!)

To be eligible for our monthly drawing, just sign up for our newsletter. There’s always fun stuff, sneak peeks and more. Once you’ve signed up, you’re eligible for the drawing every month. There’s nothing else you need to do.