Have an orange!

Not sure why but in the last week or so, I found myself eating more oranges and I forgot how nice they tasted. I knew they were good for us in the winter but I found out that they had a wide range of benefits too. 

They are rich in Vitamins C and A, flavonoids, antioxidants, calcium, magnesium, potassium, dietary fiber etc. Oranges have more than 60 flavonoids and 170 phytonutrients that have been shown to have anti-inflammatory, anti-tumour and anti-oxidant properties.

Here are some of the health benefits for oranges.

1 Relieves Constipation

The dietary fibre in orange helps in stimulating digestive juices and relieves constipation.

2 Regulates High Blood Pressure

Hesperidin, a flavonoid in oranges helps to regulate high blood pressure. Magnesium in oranges helps to maintain the blood pressure.

3 Prevents Cancer

The high amount of vitamin C protects the cells from damages by free radicals. Liminoid, a compound in oranges helps to prevent cancers like oral, skin, lung, breast and colon.

4 Protects Against Heart Diseases

The high amount of vitamin C and flavonoids protects against heart diseases.

5 Fights Against Viral Infections

Studies show that the abundance of polyphenols protects against viral infections.

6 Purifies Blood

The iron and Vitamin B6 in oranges help in the production of haemoglobin and increase the oxygen carrying capacity. They also purify the blood.

7 Protects Against Skin Diseases

Beta-carotene, the powerful antioxidant protects the cells from being damage. It also protects the skin from free radicals and prevents the signs of aging.

8 Keeps Bones and Teeth Strong

The calcium in oranges helps to keep your bones and teeth strong.

9 Prevents Kidney Diseases

The regular intake of orange juice prevents kidney diseases. It also reduces the risk of forming calcium oxalate stones in the kidney. But take the juice in moderate amounts. Otherwise it can cause the decay of bones and teeth.

10 Helpful in Many Diseases

Oranges are effective in both preventing and treating certain diseases like asthma, bronchitis, pneumonia, tuberculosis, rheumatism etc.

Source

Just photos

Rabbits having fun

Gros plan de Mima

My friend's cat, Lucy

A strange cloud?

At school, in our staffroom.

3 incredible animals in Madagascar!

First,  attempt to find the giant leaf-tailed gecko. Unlike chameleons, which change colour to communicate and convey emotions, some geckos alter their appearance to make them hard to spot - partly as a means of defence, but also to allow them to catch prey. Chameleons want to be conspicuous; geckos want to hide.

The slow change in the body colour occurs when cells bearing differently coloured pigments beneath the lizard's transparent skin either expand or shrink. 

Not all the 2,000 species of gecko, found in warm climates around the world, can change colour. 

But they do possess the species' other qualities, such as self-cleaning toe pads that enable them to climb vertically or walk upside down. The only surface to which a gecko cannot stick is Teflon. Source

Second, the most famous of these animals is the lemur, but unfortunately they are in danger of becoming extinct due to deforestation. Less than 10% of the original forest cover actually

 exists today.

The Blue Coua is a species of cuckoo endemic to Madagascar. As the name suggests, what makes it unique – and incredibly beautiful – is the striking blue color of the feathers and the eye!

Source

Praise the Lord, for his amazing creation. Sometimes we forget that in other countries, animals are extremely different to our local species but however the similarities are striking! In my opinion, our Father has a sense of humour!

A place in France

Flamingos and crickets or in French, les flamands roses et les grillons ou sauterelles!

Have a blessed week-end in Christ!
All photos: courtesy of SAJ

A thirsty Canada goose!

It's been a beautiful Sunday, sunny and peaceful.After buying more carrots and kale for our rabbits in Rugeley, I stopped on the way back at the Wolseley wildlife center just in case I'd see the resident kingfisher. Alas, he was not around. A Canada goose caught my attention and I decided to film it. It's a very short video clip that nevertheless took ages to upload on youtube!

Good morning!

Psalm 8

1 Lord, our Lord,

how majestic is your name in all the earth!

You have set your glory in the heavens.

2 Through the praise of children and infants

you have established a stronghold against your enemies,

to silence the foe and the avenger.

3 When I consider your heavens,

the work of your fingers,

the moon and the stars,

which you have set in place,

4 what is mankind that you are mindful of them,

human beings that you care for them?

5 You have made them a little lower than the angels

and crowned them with glory and honor.

6 You made them rulers over the works of your hands;

you put everything under their feet:

7 all flocks and herds,

and the animals of the wild,

8 the birds in the sky,

and the fish in the sea,

all that swim the paths of the seas.

The hands that flung stars into space!

Courtesy of Steven Abram

This morning, Steven and I had the pleasure to watch the eclipse, the moon moving in front of the sun and it was amazing. Could you see the smilie! My friend Lillie whatsapped me reminding me of the event! Something very special. 

You probably know Graham Kendrick's song, the Servant King. Graham describes Jesus' crucifixion in an astonishing contrast: the hands that flung stars into space to cruel nails surrendered. Other verses come to mind and corroborate this truth. John tells us the following about Jesus:

In the beginning the Word already was. The Word was in God’s presence and what God was, the Word was. He was with God at the beginning and through him all things came to be, without him no created thing came into being.”(John 1.1‑3)
Paul explains who Jesus to the Colossians  "He is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of all creation. For in him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or authorities - all things were created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together." (Col.1.15‑17)
The supremacy of Jesus
Hebrews explains that Christ is supreme over more than just roles and systems. Hebrews 1:3  says, “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being, sustaining all things by His powerful word.” Similarly, Colossians 2:9 says, “For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form.” 

Have a blessed week-end.

If anyone is in Christ...

Dear friends, have a blessed day full of joy and peace!

Amazing creation!

Good morning! Here is a small 'beast' I faced in Valras plage!

Let us praise the Lord for an amazing creation!
And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air and all the creatures that move on the ground - everything that has the breath of life in it - I give every green plant for food! Genesis 1:30
Have a blessed day :)

First place in our hearts

'The bible was written to help us know God better.
God doesn't hide who He is and what He has done. We can clearly see Him if we will open our eyes with humility. We see Him in His Word, We see Him in His creation.
Since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts and their foolish hearts were darkened Romans 1: 20-21
God must always have first place in our hearts. He says ' You shall have no other gods before Me' Exodus 20:3. We must be very careful that we not allow anything or anyone to usurp his position. The better we know Him , the easier that will be.
Tonight, after a long day at work, I needed to meditate so I flicked through The Prayer that changes everything written by Stormie Omartian and stumbled on that chapter. This is powerful stuff. It reminded me of all the arguments put forward by the many atheists I have encountered in my life voyage, those who denied that God exists because they say that they cannot see Him. In those days when I was not a Christian yet, I was taken aback, and even though I believed that God was there (though for some time I did not want to), adding to this that I was not reading the Bible then, I did not know what to answer!  This is why I do like this passage that Stormie quotes in Romans...'clearly seen'...Every day when I drive to school, I see birds flying up in the sky, trees, cows, horses, beautiful nature, pure blue sky; or lately grey clouds... And God revealed himself in Jesus, our saviour, our king and redeemer. How awesome! Just thinking about that is filling my heart with joy and peace, knowing that Jesus through his death and resurrection has allowed us to be reconciled with God, his father and also our father. This is just mind-blowing! Don't you agree?
Have a blessed evening. Your sister in Christ. N.

Humour 3

May your troubles be less, your blessings more,

and may nothing but happiness, come through your door.
On the first day, God created the dog and said, "Sit all day by the door of your house and bark at anyone who comes in or walks past. For this, I will give you a life span of twenty years."
The dog said, "That's a long time to be barking. How about only ten years and I'll give you back the other ten?"

So God agreed......
On the second day, God created the monkey and said, "Entertain people, do tricks, and make them laugh. For this, I'll give you a twenty-year life span."
The monkey said, "Monkey tricks for twenty years? That's a pretty long time to perform. How about I give you back ten like the dog did?"

And God agreed......

On the third day, God created the cow and said, "You must go into the field with the farmer all day long and suffer under the sun, have calves and give milk to support the farmer's family. For this, I will give you a life span of sixty years."

The cow said, "That's kind of a tough life you want me to live for sixty years. How about twenty and I'll give back the other forty?"

And God agreed again......

On the fourth day, God created humans and said, "Eat, sleep, play, marry and enjoy your life. For this, I'll give you twenty years."

But the human said, "Only twenty years? Could you possibly give me my twenty, the forty the cow gave back, the ten the monkey gave back, and the ten the dog gave back; that makes eighty, okay?"

"Okay," said God. "You asked for it."

So that is why for our first twenty years, we eat, sleep, play and enjoy ourselves. For the next forty years, we slave in the sun to support our family. For the next ten years, we do monkey tricks to entertain the grandchildren. And for the last ten years, we sit on the front porch and bark at everyone.

Life has now been explained to you. There is no need to thank me for this valuable information. I'm doing it as a public service.