Dear Reader,

The concept of the program at the New Life Center—that a healthy body and a pure soul complement each other—is one of my basic beliefs. I’ve been a Christian since I was eleven years old, so I learned as a child that my body was the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit. Several years ago my husband and I committed to a lifestyle of exercise, a healthy diet and self-discipline to keep our bodies the kind of place where the Holy Spirit can live and work through us. Now that we’re healthy senior citizens, we recognize the wisdom of that decision. I like to cook and bake, so we don’t live on a starvation diet, but we eat most foods in moderation.

And since I mentioned a chocolate pecan pie several times in this book, you might enjoy my recipe for this calorie-filled, delicious dessert that we enjoy on rare occasions.

3 eggs, slightly beaten

1 cup dark corn syrup

4 (4-oz) squares of semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled

cup sugar

2 tbsp butter or margarine, melted

1 tsp pure vanilla

1½ cups chopped pecans

1 unbaked 9-inch pastry shell

Heat oven to 350°F. In a large bowl stir together eggs, corn syrup, chocolate, sugar, butter and vanilla until well blended. Stir in pecans and pour into pastry shell. Bake 50-60 minutes.

A few days ago I received a two-page letter from a reader who began, “I know you’re too busy to answer my letter, but…” Authors thrive on fan mail—either positive or negative—so when anyone takes the time to write, I find the time to answer. If you’d like to write and receive my semiannual newsletter, my mailing address is P.O. Box 2770, Southside, WV 25187.

May God bless you.