Prayers and diet

For a while this winter I decided to focus on my family's diet. I looked into gluten-free and Paleo. I felt that now that I am not working, I can truly focus on my family and the ways of "the capable wife" the Bible describes for us in Proverbs. When I read Proverbs 31 verses 27 an 30, I felt that they were where I was lacking the most. I have so many family members close by that help me just about every day with my children, and yet I was constantly feeling like my house was a mess, and nothing was getting done. Many people assured me that it is not expected of me to keep a clean, organized home with 4 children under the age of 4 years old. It may be impossible for me to keep an entirely organized home while preparing each meal, entertaining/teaching my children and finishing laundry on a daily basis. However, it seems to me that God is tugging at me, saying what I am currently doing is not my best work. Verse 27 says "She looks well to the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness" (NASB). For whatever reason, I have felt like I'm taking advantage of the help available to me, rather than being proactive and figuring out how to manage things mostly on my own.
Also, in verse 30, God tells us moms that "Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised". This verse made me think about all the time I was spending being idle and how much of that time could be used to learn more about God. How am I to know Him better without spending time with Him?
Anyway, back to the beginning of this post about our diet. Since I've given up Candy Crush and PapaPear, I have had more time to learn about gluten. I learned that there are multiple ways that gluten can be labeled on boxes (wheat flour, food starch, seasoning, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, natural flavors or ingredients). In talking to our doctor, even if you aren't sensitive to gluten, it still isn't good for you. He said if you take a bread, add water and feel it in your hand, it will feel slimy. That is what it does to your digestive tract. I talked to a friend about how and why her family eats primarily gluten free foods (I say primarily because they have a "cheat" day once a week). She said she noticed a huge change in her son's behavior when they took gluten out of their diet, even for just a weekend. This piqued my interest so I looked into diet and behavior. I came across information about diet and night terrors. Well, my oldest daughter has been having night terrors her whole life, it seems. She's only 3 years old, and I can remember going into her room before she could even talk to comfort her in the middle of a screaming fit when it seemed as though she were still sleeping. I never made a connection to what was causing these extreme nightmares that seemed to come once in a while and then go as quickly as they came. The last few weeks I decided to try harder to keep my children on a gluten free diet. I didn't make a big deal of it if they ate at someone's house or if someone brought over something not gluten free to share, but I didn't purchase things that contained gluten. Just fruits, veggies, and gluten free cereals for the most part. However, my husband is not on board with eating gluten free, so there continues to be things in our home that he wants that aren't gluten free. Last week, our oldest had a night terror. I hadn't noticed, but she hadn't had one in a while. I asked my husband what he had given the girls to eat that morning. He said "cereal". He had looked at his Honey Bunches of Oats box, didn't see the word gluten in the ingredients and figured it was OK to give them. Then, he had a can of soup that he had purchased, and shared it with them. One of the first ingredients was wheat flour. He was so freaked out by her night terror that night, that he has been "The Gluten Free Nazi" for his girls. Unfortunately he's still not onboard for himself, but that's a whole different post.
So, in a nutshell, I feel I am spending my time more wisely, focusing on more on being the mom/wife in Proverbs. I am continuing to educate myself about how our bodies work, what our bodies need to function properly, and how to use God's gifts in nature to feed and care for my family. In my previous book study I learned ways to pray for your children. I believe that by changing our diet and praying for good dreams, and for God to watch over my children, the night terrors have stopped. And, either I have just been in a better mood, or my child's behavior has improved during the day as well. God is good!

If you're interested in some gluten free recipes, natural remedies or options, as well as information on essential oils, you can follow my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/1stepatatimemomma  It is where I post information as I learn it, to help me become more of a natural momma one step at a time (because all at once is too overwhelming for me!) :-)