Daniel's Fast Day 24: Apple seeds and Ishmaels

Okay, so there is one thing that you must know about me.  Or maybe not, but you are gonna know it anyways because it is coming in the following sentence whether you like it or not.  I eat apples whole.  As in, from top to bottom, core and all.  I twist off the stem and go at it.  The reasons are mainly ridiculous and are as follows:
1.) If they are going to say that my red delicious apple is 127 calories, I want to eat every last one of those calories of deliciousness.  I say that the added calories of that core are somehow absorbed like freebies.
2.) My dad does it, and my dad is rad.
3.) When I actually cut the apples into 8 sections, it is adding 8 more slices of the knife until I get to chomp into all that deliciousness.

Why it is important to life at the moment: (apart from the fact that this fast has got me craving apples like they are going out of style) let's return to my first argument as to why I should eat apples whole.  Common sense obviously makes it a false statement.  If I eat more of the apple, I will consume more calories.  My caloric consumption obviously increases by bite.  Still, I love the mentality. It amazes me to think about what we can convince our mind into making sense.  Our minds can be excellent manipulators of truth and we can be excellent manipulators of life.

So a long time ago, there was this dude named Abraham.  God had promised to bless him and multiply him exceedingly.  Time passed slowly and his wife was still without child.  So, Abraham had a son through a maid servant named Hagar.  This son was called Ishmael.  He was blessed by the Lord, but this was not the Lord's plan.  With Sarah, his wife was now 90, God finally unfolded his plan and out of that body, ancient by the world's standards body, she birthed Isaac.  Through that lineage, Israel came with the multitude of blessings and descendants promised by the Lord.  (Check it in Genesis)

I tell this story because Abraham heard a clear promise from the Lord.  Impatient and waiting, he manipulated.  Whether it's caloric counts, illegitimate children through maid servants, or plans for our life, I bring this challenge: don't manipulate.  After spending this year maneuvering through what I wanted, a plan is unfolding that is far more blessed than any Ishmael plan I could have made for myself this last year.  Fact: God knows what's up. Letitgo y'all, and enjoy the ride.


"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11