Upward spiral of repentance, refreshing, restoration

Aug 8, 2024

Hi All,

Welcome to The Smart Edit newsletter!

This week … cycles of repentance ➡️ refreshing ➡️ restoration, keep stirred up, 10 super foods to super boost your brain, and more.

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KINGDOM DYNAMIC
Repentance ➡️ refreshing ➡️ restoration

Thankfully, there's grace for renewal and regeneration. The Lord's presence refreshes us as we repent and change … positioning us for restoration.

Peter said this after the Holy Spirit came upon those in the Upper Room …

"Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that He may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before, whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began" (Acts 3:19-21 NKJV).

This is an upward spiral of development available in the Kingdom:

➡️ REPENTANCE is changing our mind and lifestyle, turning from the world and returning to the Lordship of Christ. It’s a gift. It can be a continuous practice as we grow in Christ.

➡️ Cycles of repentance bring REFRESHING from the Lord and position us for restoration.

➡️ The Ultimate Restoration will be when Jesus regenerates all things (Jesus called it “the regeneration” in Matthew 19.28). And yes, we are meant to foretaste that RESTORATION NOW.

Let’s embrace this upward spiral of repentance, refreshing, and restoration as we grow in our “apprenticeship” with Jesus!

STELLAR QUOTE
If he were you

Higher thoughts

Rightsizing. We’re in a season where there’s grace for rightsizing and uprising in the Kingdom of Christ. You have Kingdom agency. Rightsizing: restructuring for profit and objectives.

Outpacing. The Egyptian occultists and demonists kept pace with Moses and Aaron for a little bit. As always, the Kingdom of God outpaced the darkness. Aaron’s staff-to-snake ate their staff-to-snakes ➡️ Exodus 7.1-12. You will outpace things if you stay in the race and run to win.

True joy = strength. The joy of the Lord in your life is opposed. Receive joy. Be intentional about it. True joy overcomes. It’s vital because it’s your life strength ➡️ Nehemiah 8.10.

HEALTH
10 super foods to super boost your brain

A key aspect of God’s nature is that he’s a healer. He’s holistic.

From Eden onward, it’s always been about a partnership between heaven and earth — between God and us. Even in the most practical matters.

We have a part to play with the Creator. Questing for wellness is a conscious, proactive process on our part as we reach for our full potential … spirit, soul and body.

Including these 10 super foods in your diet regularly will help to super boost your brain:

1. Avocados

• The perfect food to protect and enhance your brain.

• A great source of monounsaturated fats. These fats form the myelin sheath, a protective coating that insulates your neurons and permits fast neurotransmission.

• Good source of the carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin which can boost your brain’s processing speed.

• Twice the potassium of a banana which lowers blood pressure. And that promotes brain health. Not enough potassium may lead to cognitive decline.

• Try to eat at least a half avocado every day.

2. Salmon

• Consumers of wild fish exhibit better memory, better cognitive aging, and even have bigger brains! The king of these fish is wild salmon.

• Rich in Omega-3 essential fatty acids which are essential for good brain function.

• Rich source of a powerful carotenoid, astaxanthin. Boosts cognitive function and advances neurogenesis (birth of new neurons).

• Contains anti-inflammatory substances.

• It’s recommended to eat a 4-ounce serving, two to three times a week.

This health segment will be a 4-part series.

Go further:

• Eat smart for a healthier brain (WebMD)

• Kwik Brain with Jim Kwik podcast (Podbean or everywhere)

• Download this guide from Harvard doctors: Understanding Inflammation. Includes key signs of inflammation and a list of foods and beverages known to reduce inflammation.

Trendlines

✝️ Olympic testimonies. Top Christian highlights of the Paris Olympics. Athletes are sharing their faith and highlighting God. (Christianity Today)

🔴 Red October? Will Chris Reed’s Prophetic warning of a ‘Red October’ come to pass? Involving China and Russia. (Charisma News)

👩‍🍼 Abortions exceed pre-Roe numbers as telehealth access grows. The real battle lines include winning hearts and minds, CPCs, and generally spiritual and cultural awakening.

WORD WEALTH
Keep stirred up in your spirit!

We have to remain intentional about allowing the Lord to stir us …

“So the Lord stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel … the governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua … the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnant of the people; and they came and worked on the house of the Lord of hosts, their God” (Haggai 1.14 NKJV).

“Stirred” is “ur” in the Hebrew. It means to awaken, excite, incite, rouse to action, open one’s eyes.

Used of an eagle stirring up its nest in Deuteronomy 32.11. The “arm of the Lord” is “awakened” to action in Isaiah 51.9.

In Haggai 1, the leadership and remnant of the people are stirred to action again in the rebuilding of the house of the Lord.

Lord, continuously stir me. Keep my heart moving in sync with your heart. Let me not become stagnant. Rather, keep me dynamic, energetic, and applied to the work that you have for me in my life. Amen.

On the pulse

📰 Markets tanked. Global stock markets took a big blow Monday after a weak US jobs report. Hiring slowed, and unemployment hit a three-year high, triggering the "Sahm Rule," a reliable recession signal. The US makes up a quarter of the global economy — its slowdown affects markets worldwide.

📰 Tensions erupt in U.K. Rioting across England over influx of immigrants. Prayer resource.

📰 Google tamed? Google lost a big antitrust case with a federal judge ruling that Google acted illegally to maintain its monopoly. It’s the first anti-monopoly decision against a tech company in decades. The ruling found Google liable for paying companies like Apple and Samsung to be the default search option. The judge still needs to decide on a remedy. Could be good news for search competition and customers.