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Living a healthy and balanced life involves taking care of both your physical and spiritual wellbeing. Unfortunately, this is something that many of us struggle with on a daily basis. Whether it is due to stress, lack of self-care, or a combination of the two, it is easy to become overwhelmed and feel out of balance.

Fortunately, it is possible to achieve better physical and spiritual wellbeing simply by taking a few small steps each day. These steps can help to create an environment for optimal health and wellbeing, allowing you to enjoy a greater sense of connectedness with yourself, others, and the universe around you.

Here are 7 steps you can take today to improve your physical and spiritual wellbeing:

1. Exercise Regularly: Exercise has many physical and mental health benefits and is one of the best ways to improve overall wellbeing. Aim for at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity most days of the week. This can include walking, jogging, swimming, bicycle riding, aerobics, or any other type of movement you enjoy.

2. Eat a Balanced Diet: A healthy diet is an essential component of achieving better physical and spiritual wellbeing. Eating a variety of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and lean protein will provide you with the essential nutrients your body needs to stay healthy. Avoid processed foods, junk food, and sugary drinks as much as possible and opt for nutrient-rich foods instead.

3. Get Enough Sleep: Sleep is important for maintaining energy levels, concentration, and general mood. Adults should aim for around 7-9 hours of sleep each night as this is the amount needed to allow your body to fully rest and repair itself. With this in mind, make sure to limit screen time before bed and create an environment that is conducive to a restful night’s sleep.

4. Practice Relaxation: Finding time to relax is essential for achieving better physical and spiritual wellbeing. Whether it’s through yoga, meditation, listening to music, or deep breathing, taking even just a few minutes each day to unwind and focus on yourself can have a positive impact on your mental and physical health.

5. Spend Time in Nature: Spending time in nature is a great way to ground yourself and connect with the universe around you. Make an effort to spend time outdoors each day, even if it’s a brief walk in the park or a few moments in the garden. Being surrounded by the beauty of nature can help to uplift your spirits and boost your overall wellbeing.

6. Connect with Others: Connecting with others is an essential part of achieving better physical and spiritual wellbeing. Whether it’s with friends, family, or co-workers, spending time with people you care about is a great way to creatively express yourself and form meaningful relationships.

7. Practice Self Care: Self-care is an important part of maintaining physical and spiritual wellbeing. Make sure to carve out time each day just for yourself and do something that brings you joy. This could be taking a long hot bath, reading a book, playing a game, or even just sitting in silence with your thoughts.

By implementing these 7 steps into your daily life, you can take positive steps towards achieving better physical and spiritual wellbeing. Doing so will help you to manage stress, practice self-care, and feel more connected to yourself, others, and the universe around you.

Church attendance is an important aspect of life for many Edmonton residents. For a town that is built upon the strong foundation of religion, a person’s church attendance can serve as a way to become more connected with the city and with their local religious community, as well as to receive spiritual guidance and comfort. Furthermore, with the diverse range of churches and religious communities in the city, it is possible to find something that fits into each individual’s spiritual beliefs and needs.

There are a number of ways that church attendance can help Edmonton residents succeed. From connecting with a spiritual advisor to helping keep a sense of balance in life, church attendance can be a major factor in the success of an individual. Here are some of the ways that church attendance can help Edmontonian in their day-to-day lives:

1. Connecting With a Spiritual Advisor: This is one of the main benefits of attending church on a regular basis. It gives Edmontonian the opportunity to connect with a spiritual advisor who can provide advice and guidance, and can offer a compassionate ear to talk to about life’s struggles and victories.

2. Sense of Balance: Edmonton is a fast-paced and bustling city, and it can be easy to get overwhelmed with all that is going on. Attending church can be an excellent way to check in with one’s spiritual self and to find some much-needed balance in life.

3. Meaningful Relationships: Attending church can often be an opportunity for Edmontonian to meet new people or form meaningful relationships with those they may not have had the chance to connect with otherwise.

4. Sense of Community: Churches within the city are actively engaged with their community in various ways. Church attendance can help Edmontonian not only stay connected to their faith but also to their city.

5. A Healthy Mindset: Regular church attendance can help Edmontonian stay out of unhealthy habits or situations, and promote a healthy mindset.

Church attendance is beneficial to many Edmonton residents. It can provide not only spiritual guidance and comfort but also can provide a sense of peace, balance, and community. There are many churches and religious groups to choose from within the city, so it is possible to find one that will fit the individual’s needs. For those looking to find a spiritual home, attending church can be the perfect way to do just that.

In Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, there is no official church attendance requirement for its residents. Although some debated religious beliefs may shape local laws and ordinances, no mandatory church attendance laws exist. However, for many individuals, Edmonton does offer a diverse range of church attendance options, making it possible to stay spiritually connected, without breaking any laws.

The city of Edmonton is a place of diverse faith traditions that are both shared and separated in various ways. While the majority of residents may adhere to the dominant religions of Christianity, Buddhism, Sikhism, and Hinduism, there are a multitude of other faiths and religious organizations to choose from. This depth and diversity of religions provides Edmonton a richness and variety of cultural and spiritual experiences.

To embrace and promote this diversity, Edmonton has no single governmental edict against engaging in religious activities, such as church attendance, held at any of the local churches or worship centers. Instead, the city has made it possible for individuals to choose which faith or worship services to attend, without any direction or suggestion from local government.

In addition to providing the freedom to choose a church or worship center, Edmonton offers a variety of opportunities to embrace and express one’s faith. From weekly sermons and Bible study classes, to retreats and growth seminars, Edmonton provides an abundance of opportunities for spiritual growth and development.

Within the Edmonton area, there are numerous churches and worship centers representing many different denominations. From Baptists and Lutherans, to Roman Catholics, Presbyterians, Mormons, and Pentecostals, to nondenominational ministries, the variety of churches and worship centers can provide individuals with a spiritual home.

Furthermore, faith-based organizations and charities provide additional opportunities to connect with Edmonton’s communities. From homeless shelters and food banks, to after-school programs and job training initiatives, there are several ways to meet others through religious organizations and provide spiritual aid to those in need.

Above all, the city of Edmonton strives to be a supportive community for each and every one of its residents. Whether one is looking for spiritual community, a supportive place to belong, or an opportunity to help others, Edmonton provides many resources and support for individuals to express and share their faith, by attending church and participating in religious activities.

While there is no mandatory church attendance law in Edmonton, for many residents, worship services provide a valuable experience of connecting with God, and connecting with others. By exploring the many options available, individuals in Edmonton have the opportunity to choose and attend a church that speaks to them, in a way that is respectful of their personal beliefs and practices.

Addiction is one of the most challenging issues in today’s society. Addicted individuals often feel defeated and isolated and can lose a sense of hope in life. Despite the fact that addiction is a difficult situation to be in, it can be a blessing in disguise. The road to recovery often begins with accepting that addiction has taken over the person’s life and seeking help. For some, the path to recovery involves finding God and developing a powerful relationship with Him.

Being an addict can be overwhelming and lonely. The consequences of addiction can lead to serious mental and physical harm, financial ruin, broken relationships, and a lack of purpose in life. Seeking God provides an insight into His word and a comfort that can’t be matched. Finding God provides a sense of support and understanding that can be hard to find while dealing with addiction. Often times, access to a spiritual mentor can provide guidance throughout the recovery process and help the addict to stay committed to the journey with God. A relationship with God can be developed through scripture and prayer which can provide strength and hope.

When an addict turns to God in their time of need, He can be a source of comfort and guidance to help them through the difficult times. Praying to God can bring an addict inner peace and provide a place of refuge away from the loneliness of addiction. Developing a relationship with God and receiving His will and guidance can help an addict stay on the path of recovery.

In addition, understanding God’s Word and seeking His guidance can provide a sense of strength and power to help overcome the addiction. This understanding will allow an addict to have a clearer and fuller understanding of the power and grace that God provides to them. For those struggling with addiction, this understanding can help to ease the pain and suffering associated with the addiction.

Additionally, developing a relationship with God can open doors to new faith, hope, and direction. This new direction can provide an addict with a new perspective on life and hope for their future. Knowing that there is a higher power of unconditional love helping them through the struggles of addiction can be a very powerful tool.

Overall, seeking God is a crucial step in the recovery process for an addict. God is all-powerful and those seeking Him can find solace in His presence. By having faith and understanding all that He has to offer, the addict can be restored and feel the renewed strength that comes from the Lord. Through faith, guidance, and unconditional love from God, the addict can find hope and healing to start a new life.

Stress is something that almost everyone experiences at some point in their lives. Whether it’s due to work, personal relationships, finances, or other life events, stress can have a profound effect on our mental and physical well-being. For many people, learning how to manage their stress effectively can lead to improved mental and physical health, better relationships, and success in their careers. Counseling can be an important tool in helping individuals learn to manage and reduce their stress levels.

Counseling is an evidence-based therapy that is used to help individuals cope with emotional, physical, and mental issues. It can provide a safe place where individuals can discuss and explore their thoughts and feelings in order to gain new insights and work through challenging situations. Counselors can also help individuals identify and change negative thought patterns and behaviors that can lead to greater stress.

Counseling for stress management can take many forms, from support groups to individual psychotherapy. Support groups can provide an important space for individuals to connect with others who are experiencing similar challenges and learn from each other’s experiences. This can help individuals feel less alone and provide a space for them to express themselves in a non-judgmental environment. Individual psychotherapy can also help individuals learn more specific stress management strategies and work toward reducing their stress levels.

The benefits of counseling for stress management are numerous. Therapy can provide individuals with a safe space to explore their feelings and thoughts and identify their sources of stress. A counselor can also help individuals learn to challenge negative beliefs and attitudes that can contribute to feeling overwhelmed or stuck in difficult situations. Other benefits of counseling include improved communication skills, enhanced problem-solving abilities, improved self-confidence, and increased overall well-being.

Counseling can also provide individuals with a new perspective on their challenges, allowing them to see their problems from different angles. This can lead to greater understanding and further progress in managing their stress. In addition, a counselor can provide tools and techniques for relaxation and mindfulness, which can help individuals reduce their stress levels and become more mindful of their thoughts and behaviors.

Finally, counseling can provide a space to process loss, grief, and other difficult emotions that can lead to overwhelming stress. Process-oriented counseling can be especially helpful for individuals who are stuck in a cycle of fear, anxiety, and shame. This type of therapy can allow individuals to work through their feelings and learn to accept and heal from difficult experiences.

In sum, counseling can be a powerful tool for helping individuals manage and reduce their stress levels. Through counseling, individuals can learn to identify and challenge negative thought patterns, cope with difficult emotions, and gain new perspectives on their issues. With the help of a counselor, individuals can begin the process of understanding and resolving the underlying causes of their stress, leading to improved mental and physical health, better relationships, and success in life.

Once, when I was a child, around 8 or 9, my Mother brought me with her when visiting a sick member of our church. The sick friend, we’ll call her Patty, was dying of cancer, although at the time I didn’t know what that meant. I knew Cancer was bad, because it sounded a lot like “cancel” and whenever my plans were cancelled, I wasn’t happy. I always heard the word “Cancer” in my head with a capital “C” at the front, because I knew it was capital “B” Bad. I
remember worrying on the ride over- was it safe to visit? If I touched Patty, would I get Cancer too? If Patty ate the food my Mom prepared, would my Mom get cancer too?

I was too young to understand that Patty’s prognosis wasn’t good. Even though I knew that Cancer was serious, I figured that we were all christians, and that God wouldn’t let Patty die. Otherwise what was the point of believing?

I remember entering the room Patty was in. She sat at her desk, in trousers and a blouse, and when I was introduced she offered to shake my hand. Not wanting to be rude, I shook it, all the while wondering if this was the moment I’d remember as the start of my own Cancer. Mom put the food she had brought in the fridge before we left, telling Patty that we’d pray for her.
As you’ve probably guessed, I didn’t develop Cancer from shaking Patty’s hand. Neither did her ingestion of my mother’s food cause Mom to be sick. But while I walked away from Patty as healthy as I’d ever been, I had learned an important lesson about community, and the importance of congregation.

It’s hard to postulate what-ifs, but I often think of how different Patty’s might’ve been had she not been a part of the church. Would she still have had family to comfort her? Would her husband, a devout believer himself, have stood by her without his faith? What would her last months have been like had she been forced to cook and care for herself? The congregation of God is a beautiful thing to see in action but for all we know, Patty would’ve been just as loved and cared for had she not been a christian. But what we can know is that if she hadn’t believed, I wouldn’t have met her. I wouldn’t have shook her hand. My mother wouldn’t have spent hours cooking for a woman she barely knew. Without the church, and without god, the love that only my mother and I could bring into Patty’s last months would never have reached her. Love your church family. Cherish your congregation. Invest yourself into your church and it will be returned to you 10 fold.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” -Matthew 11:28-30

There comes a time in the life of every man, woman and child, a time when the path forward is unclear; the road behind fraught with misery and sorrow; the ground where they stand shifting and unstable. There comes a time when the pressures of the world seem so great as to break the back of the strongest person; when evil surrounds and tears at our souls, and the light of our God seems distant, so far away.

Its times like these when the House of the Lord serves its true purpose. “Come to me,” he says, “come to me and I will give you rest.” Where can we go to find this promised rest? Where can we go when the shadows are nipping at our heels and this bleak world has us by the throat? The church is an extension of the Lord, his physical footprint in a barren world.

The Sanctuary of our Lord is just as physical as it is spiritual. In a spiritual desert, the church serves as a bastion against the forces aimed against us. The walls of a church are those of a fortress; it’s tenants warriors armed to the teeth and willing to fight. The church invites all who are willing to listen, and through the church the Lord delivers the gift of faith, the gift of protection, and the gift of peace.

Remember the church, in your darkest hour. Remember the servants of the Lord, remember the words of love and kindness that light your way home. Come back to your family, come back to your faith. We are waiting to welcome you with open arms.

All who seek the comfort of the Lord will be accepted, none who seek the gift of faith will be refused. Peace is within your grasp, all that’s left is to reach out and embrace it. How foolish it would be to stay away- let not fear nor pride stand between you and the oasis of the lord. The Lord is waiting, calling, saying “Come to me; I am here; I am here; I am here.”

One of the most frequently asked questions from new believers goes something like this: “I want to share my faith with my family, but they refuse to come to church. How can I bring the light of the Lord to the people I love?” This is an excellent question, and one of the toughest to answer! Faith is a gift, and not everyone wants, or is able to accept it. Still, there are a techniques we can use when wanting to draw our loved ones into the fold. Here’s just a few:

1) Live God’s truth. As any christian will tell you, the best way to witness is to be the best witness. Examine your life. Is the light of God shining through your actions? Are there areas that could use improvement? Trick question- as fallible sinners we are always trying to improve our lives and bring them into closer alignment with God’s chosen path. Thankfully, God doesn’t demand perfection, and neither do our loved ones. If they see you working towards a goal- becoming a more charitable person, living a healthier life, interacting
exclusively in kindness and love- what a glorious opportunity to share the gospel! Don’t back up your testimony with actions, back up your actions with testimony.

2) Ask- don’t demand- for their church attendance. Show them the joy and peace that being embraced by the fold brings. If you make attendance a chore, then that’s how it will stay. Let yourself be drawn into the community of god before trying to drag someone in, and instead of hauling them through the door with ropes of guilt and shame, let them be drawn through the laughter of the people and the love they show. Find a community you love, and then share that love with the people you love.

3) Understand that faith is a gift, a gift only given by God. The greatest tragedy of our world is that not everyone is able to let the love of God into their heart. This does not mean stop trying, stop witnessing, or in anyway give up. No, instead redouble your efforts. Make every interaction a beacon in a dark world, and understand that after being surrounded by darkness, the light often burns the eyes.

Talk with your pastor about outreach programs, Let your life be the greatest ministry it can be. Never forget to express yourself with love, and redirect all praise to God.

In 2013, Rush Limbaugh famously said on his radio show “If you believe in God, then intellectually you cannot believe in manmade global warming … You must be either agnostic or atheistic to believe that man controls something that he can’t create.” This was in response to John Kerry’s belief that climate change was “a challenge to our responsibilities as the guardians–safe guarders of God’s creation.”

Edmonton is no stranger to the battle for the environment. Our city is tightly interwoven with the oil industry, and as the 2014 recession showed, their pain is our pain. As the global demand for oil goes down, how can we stay true to who we are without excising a vital part of our identity and our economy? As the demand for cleaner energy surges in response to the growing threat of global warming, do we choose to follow the words of Rush Limbaugh and let
our faith blind us to the realities of science? Is there no other option than to turn a blind eye to rising tide of evidence supporting the theory of manmade climate change?

We believe that the answer instead lies in aligning our faith with science. The word of our Lord has never demanded our blindness- would not the Lord have us revel in the natural wonder he has created for us? Did he not give us eyes to see his grandeur in the mountains? Ears to hear his voice through the music of birds and bees? Skin to feel his touch in the flow of a stream or the gentle caress of the wind? We cannot be deaf to the destruction of his creation.

Instead, we must become what God intended- guardians and care takers of his beautiful creation. Our challenge becomes reconciling our personal and social dependency on oil with the divine directive to protect. Christians across the world need to take up the cause of environmentalism, and insist upon cleaner energy. How can we be a shining light to the world if there is too much smog to see? How can people hear the word of God if they cannot breath the air around them? Oil is not the enemy. Edmonton is not the enemy. Our beloved city is at a crossroads- whether to double down on our oil dependence, or to find a better, more Godly solution. By working with the oil industry, and leading the way through the light of Christ, we can make our city a beacon for the world to follow.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kw5IK94MqSI

Can the Lord help with Addiction?

I’ve lived an extremely blessed life; I have money to eat, and a roof over my head, and a body that is fairly compliant with what I need to do. More people than you’d believe can’t say the same. But something that keeps me up at night, the terrifying thought that haunts my dreams, is that one day I’ll find myself battling a chemical addiction. I’ve been too close to too many people who have had their lives destroyed by drugs and alcohol for it to not frighten me, and Christians need to change how we talk about it.

Ever since the 80s, with Reagan’s “war on drugs”, the prevailing conversation surrounding drugs has been one of personal failing, that an addiction is a personal flaw, a sign that there is something deeply wrong with the person in question. We’ve been taught that addiction is a choice, because using drugs is a choice; we’ve been taught to see the suffering of people battling addiction as their just punishment from god, a divine retribution for past mistakes.

I ask you this: Is this the God you know? Does the God we love and worship shrug his shoulders and say “Well, they decided to take drugs, and this is what they get?” Of course not, and neither should we. It’s time we start talking about addiction as the disease it is, not a personal failing, not a character flaw. It’s time to stop turning a blind eye and instead extend a hand of friendship and kindness to those fighting a battle we can’t see or understand.

I had a friend go to rehab once. When he came out, I tried to reach out to him, but quickly realized he was avoiding me. When I finally cornered him at a cafe, I asked him why he hadn’t wanted to see me and he said something I’ll never forget- “I didn’t want to see you because I thought you’d treat me like a sinner.” I went home, and I got on my knees, and I wept for God’s forgiveness. Who was I to multiply my friend’s suffering? Who was I to pass judgement? That is
not my job. As Christians, this is not our calling. Through my actions and  speech, my friends had come to believe that my faith would cause me to shun him, and so before I could do so he tried to shun me instead. We need to find within ourselves the power to change the conversation around addiction. We have to find a way to love our struggling brothers and sisters, because that’s what God does.

If you are looking for a Christian Rehab Program look no further.