Foods of the Bible seminar results in eight-week Bible study

October 18, 2006

Faye Lynn Hollenbaugh, from Anderson Island, Washington, has always said teaching wasn?t one of her spiritual gifts. But she also knew the information she?d learned at an Our Journey of Hope® (OJOH) evening seminar called ?Foods of the Bible? needed to be shared.

Our Journey of Hope® is the spiritual outreach of Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA).

?As a cancer survivor, God had been speaking to my heart about eating healthier. In fact, the day I was diagnosed with cancer in 2005, the doctor talked to me about my diet,? she shared. ?I?d heard that kind of thing before, but under the circumstances, it took on new meaning. So, here we were, several months later, with excellent information on how to really make those changes. As my husband and I traveled home after the class, I just felt we?d been given so much information and that it could be expanded upon.

?I felt like God was telling me this could help a lot of people and that I needed to teach a class,? Hollenbaugh continued. ?I knew if this were His desire, He?d give me everything I needed to teach the class, including the boldness and confidence.?

So, she talked about it with her husband, prayed about it, thought through how she?d structure the class and then went to see her pastor at Anderson Island Christian Fellowship. With his approval, she developed a class and advertised it, both in her church, and to the other 1000 residents on the island through a ?reader board? at the local store.

And there was interest. Each week, the class averaged between 15-18 people who came from five different churches. Some were cancer survivors. Others were simply interested in gaining a healthier lifestyle.

Hollenbaugh taught the first class on Rom. 12:1-2. ?I thought this was a good starting point because it?s God?s Word, telling us how to look at our bodies as a living sacrifice to Him,? she said. ?We should want only the best as a home for our Lord and Savior. If we?re filling our body with junk food or unhealthy choices, we?re not doing a very good job.?

?After that, each week, I used one of the seven tips to nourish your body that Becky Wright (CTCA nutritionist) talked about in the Foods of the Bible class and one of the seven key components to nourish your spirit and soul that Rev. Michael Langham (CTCA Tulsa director of Pastoral Care) had shared in the class,? Hollenbaugh explained. ?As we studied the various foods mentioned in the Scriptures, I made meals for participants to try using those foods, and I gave some additional information from resources such as Prevention magazine.?

Hollenbaugh said the class became the talk of the Island for a time and was well received by everyone. ?Before we started, people didn?t know what to expect,? she said, ?but I think it was a very positive experience, a great investment in the people of the Island, and a blessing. I?m going to offer it again in January, and my pastor is also going to do some teachings that parallel the Foods of the Bible in lifestyle and being healthy for the Kingdom.?

Some of the foods Hollenbaugh made for the class included a garlic soup, cucumber salad, oat burgers, a fruit salad, and some muffins. ?One man who?d been a bit cynical about what I was teaching, saying that you?d just have to eat rabbit food to be healthy, was a bit surprised by how good the muffins were that I made and conceded that there might be more to foods of the Bible than just rabbit food,? she shared. ?His wife suffers from Crohn?s disease, so diet is important for her.?

Hollenbaugh, who has survived Stage 3 ovarian cancer, admitted that the seminar she attended, and now the class she has taught, are affecting her eating habits and those of her husband and her church.

?We?re seeing more healthy food show up at the church potlucks,? she said. ?And my husband, who runs the men?s breakfasts, is cooking healthier. At home, I hardly ever bake sweets any more, and we?ve become big fans of baked sweet potatoes ... they?re delicious. We?re eating less meat and much more fruit, vegetables and fiber. I?m definitely feeling better, because I?m eating healthier.?

Hollenbaugh has attended the eight-hour lay ministry training provided at churches around the country by OJOH, as well as two of OJOH?s 90-minute seminars ? ?Foods of the Bible? and ?Enhancement of Health through Laughter.? All three were held at Our Savior Lutheran Church in Tacoma, Washington between November 2005-September 2006.

?It?s been really rewarding to go to these classes,? she said. ?The information we?ve gained has been excellent, not only for us, but to help us spread the love of God and the message of hope that CTCA offers.?