SistahFaith: Lavon Neil

SistahFaith: Naima Johnston

Sistahfaith: Shellette Carlisle

SistahFaith: Robin Caldwell

SistahFaith: Sharon Ewell Foster

SistahFaith: Carmita McCall

SistahFaith: Kisha Woods

Linda Evans: Victorious Living for Women

Tiffany Easley: Victorious Living for Women

Rhonda White: Victorious Living for Women

Joann Smith: Victorious Living for Women

7 Lesson for L.I.F.E.: Living in Favor and Expectancy

Lesson # 3 be a Faithful Steward over God’s Greatest Creation: “You”

Psalm 8:3-9 (New International Version) When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him? You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. You made him ruler over the works of your hands; you put everything under his feet: all flocks and herds, and the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas. O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!
It can be easy to feel unimportant in a world so full of people, places, and things. To feel small is a healthy way back to reality. But, God does not want us to dwell on our smallness. Instead, He reminds us in Psalms that He has given us dominion and crowned us with glory. Humility means proper respect for God not depreciation of our self worth.
How could God be concerned for a people who constantly disappoint Him? The answer is simple. God considers us highly valuable because we are His creation. Our true value is God’s estimate of our worth, not out peers’. Other people evaluate and categorize us according to how we perform, what we achieve, and how we look. But God cares for us because we belong to Him. So we can face life without fear.
The next time you question your worth as a person, remember, Genesis 1:27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. God has declared how valuable we are to Him. Because of His affirmation, we can be set free from feelings of worthlessness.
How do you treat God’s greatest creation, “You”? Use your resources wisely because God holds you accountable for your stewardship, even over yourself.

7 Lessons for L.I.F.E.: Living in Favor and Expectancy

Lesson 2: Be grateful.

Exodus 16:2 in the desert the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron.(New International Version)

Once again, we find the children of Israel complaining. Even after the many miraculous works of God, as soon as times got tough, they wanted to go back to the familiarity of slavery.

Truthfully, they didn’t really desire to go back to Egypt, they just wanted life to be easier.

With jobs, children, spouses and the wear and tear of everyday life, it's easy to forget all of the blessings God has given us. We can lose our perspective on God's control of our lives when the physical, mental, and emotional demands or our many roles and responsibilities take their toll. Our perspective becomes somewhat convoluted and ungratefulness creeps in if we focus too heavily on material things while taking what we have for granted. We become complacent and our tendency is to forget that all good things come from God. Our security is no longer in Him but in what we possess. We congratulate ourselves rather than glorify Him.

We must be careful not to see God as a "Sugar Daddy" or someone we call on only when we need Him; neglecting to commune with Him when life is going well. Our relationship with God during the good times shows where our sense of security really lies.

Like the Israelites in Numbers 31: 48-50, we should eagerly offer up a sacrifice and a testimony of praise when God has delivered us.

If we are to truly have a relationship with God, include Him and acknowledge His presence even in the good times.
Be grateful.

A Hungry Heart and Aching Spirit Make a Battered Body

“…it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.” ~1 Peter 1:16



10% of donation during this blog tour will go to the American Heart Association (AHA).

What does holy mean? I did some research and found that it is defined as having a moral standard of living, Christ-like in character, separate, pure, set apart. It was defined in spiritual terms, as a spiritual position or state of being. And while I agree with those definitions, I think too often we think that holiness is merely a spiritual thing. Meaning, if we attend church, read our bibles, serve in ministry, don’t cuss or drink, or commit other sins (that we’re aware of), we believe we have achieved holiness. Today I’d like to discuss another side to holy living; the reality that to be like Christ, we have to attend to not just the spiritual, but the physical.

The word says in 1 Corinthians 6:19 “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own.” It goes on to tell us in the 20th verse of the same chapter that we were bought with a price; to honor God with our bodies. If we are going to be Christ-like we must honor him not just with our spirits, but with our physical temples as well.

Many of us, try as we like, are only half-holy. We know the word. We haven’t skipped over this scripture in the bible, so what keeps us from taking care of the Lord’s temple? What is really holding us back from the place of complete holiness to God? I think it’s our hungry hearts and our aching spirits.

Despite the billions spent on diet and health products, Americans are more overweight than ever. The problem of obesity is epidemic. The solutions of diet and exercise are not the singular remedy. The root cause has to be addressed to really get a handle on the problem. It’s not just a love of food, or a lack of discipline. We like to blame it on those things because we often don’t like to talk about the real reasons we overeat. Usually they’re intensely personal.

Here are a few:

• We need comfort when we’re stressed, tired or overworked. We know this, because we call the foods we reach for comfort foods.

• We are depressed or anxious.

• We need to anesthetize pain from abuse: current or past. Self-medication.

• Boredom. Our lives are unfulfilled.

We have to break these cycles of destructive behavior or they will destroy us. Obesity, irregular insulin levels, fatty levels in the blood all beat the temple God has given us down to a battered pulp. Then what do we do with our battered bodies? The battered body is sluggish and tired. It doesn’t want to go to mid week services, or even interact with its children. The battered body doesn’t want to make love to its spouse. It’s too beat up to enjoy life fully. Additionally there are obesity related diseases like diabetes, heart diseases, certain cancers, joint deterioration and more aliments that tear at the temple and keep us from being whole in our physical person.

In my novel, Secrets and Lies, the character Jonah Morgan is not overeating, but he is using another unhealthy coping mechanism: alcohol, and lots of it. Jonah’s heart is hungry for a relationship with Christ; his spirit is aching from the burden of un-forgiveness. His childhood pain is tearing him apart, so much so that he has completely checked out emotionally and physically on his family. He can’t sleep at night. He’s tired. His hungry heart and aching spirit have created a battered body.

Jonah’s alcoholism is an unhealthy, addictive behavior. So is overeating. Anything we do in excess is gluttony. Gluttony is the sin that keeps us from achieving true holiness. If you’re overweight or you engage in some other activity that negatively affects you physically, get at the root cause of your problem. Find out what’s eating you before it literary gobbles you up.

Let’s discuss this. Have you ever compared substance abuse to overeating? Do you think this comparison is accurate? Can a person’s heart be completely surrendered to God if they have an eating problem? Share why you agree or disagree. Feel free to share your testimony in this area or a plan for change.

About the Author

Rhonda McKnight is the owner of Legacy Editing, a free-lance editing service for fiction writers and Urban Christian Fiction Today, a popular Internet site that highlights African-American Christian fiction. She’s the vice-president of Faith Based Fiction Writers of Atlanta. When she’s not editing projects, teaching workshops about writing or penning her next novel, she spends time with her family. Originally from a small, coastal town in New Jersey, she’s called Atlanta, Georgia home for twelve years. For more information, visit http://www.RhondaMcKnight.net.

About the Book

Faith Morgan is struggling with her faith. Years of neglect leave her doubting that God will ever fix her marriage. When a coworker accuses her husband, Jonah, of the unthinkable, Faith begins to wonder if she really knows him at all, and if it’s truly in God’s will for them to stay married.

Pediatric cardiologist Jonah Morgan is obsessed with one thing: his work. A childhood incident cemented his desire to heal children at any cost, even his family, but now he finds himself at a crossroads in his life. Will he continue to allow the past to haunt him, or find healing and peace in a God he shut out long ago?
Read an excerpt and check the tour schedule at http://bit.ly/HealthyHeartBlogTour

Enter to Win 3 Great Giveaways!

GRAND PRIZE (one winner possible)

A “Start” Fitness Pack she purchased from the American Heart Association’s Online store. The online store helps in the fight against heart disease by promoting heart-healthy lifestyles that include physical activities like walking. Net proceeds from the sale of these items support the Start! movement.

The Fitness Kit includes: Start BackPack, Start Water Bottle, Start Shoe Wallet, and the Power to End Stroke 46 Recipe Healthy Soul Food Cook Book.

SECOND PLACE PRIZE (one winner possible)

Autographed hardcover copy of Secrets and Lies will be given away to the 2nd person whose name is pulled in the drawing.

THIRD PLACE PRIZE (one winner possible)

In honor of Rhonda's birthday on Feb. 6th - a $10 Barnes and Nobles, Borders or Starbucks Gift Card will be given to the 3rd person whose name is pulled in the drawing. (winner chooses).

HOW TO ENTER THE DRAWING:

All entrants with 10 POINTS AND UP will be entered in a drawing to win the GRAND PRIZE - FITNESS PACK.

All entrants with 5 POINTS AND UP will be entered in a drawing to win PRIZES TWO AND THREE.

HOW TO EARN POINTS:

+15 Point ENTRIES: Purchase a copy of Secrets and Lies from the online store during the tour through www.urbanchristianbooks.com.

+1 point ENTRY: join the discussion by commenting on one of the blog tour sites each day (must comment on the day of the toursite by 9 pm). Comment must include your thoughts on the subject. (can not just say – great point or I agree).

+1 point ENTRY: COMMENT ON SOMETHING INTERESTING YOU FIND WHEN YOU GO TO Rhonda’s WEBSITE or blog. LOOK AROUND AS THERE IS LOTS TO SEE. HERE are THE LINKs www.rhondamcknight.net and www.urbanchristianfictiontoday.com

+1 point ENTRY: BLOG OR TWEET ABOUT THIS GIVEAWAY. On Twitter Retweet @rhondamcknight or use the hashtagS #Health or #hearthealth

+2 point ENTRIES: Join RHONDA’S FACEBOOK READER Page or SIGN UP FOR HER NEWSLETTER on her webpage.

THE RULES:

• U.S. RESIDENTS ONLY
• EMAIL ADDRESS MUST BE INCLUDED IN COMMENT
• ALL ENTRIES/COMMENTS MUST BE SEPARATE IN ORDER TO COUNT AS MORE THAN ONE ENTRY.
• MAXIMUM OF 3 POINTS CAN BE EARNED ON ANY ONE TOUR DAY.
• TOUR HOST BLOGGERS CAN NOT ENTER TO WIN.

DRAWING WILL BE HELD AT 9 PM EST on FEBRUARY 7th

GOOD LUCK!

Go Red For Women: Cardiovascular Disease

What Is Cardiovascular Disease?

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) includes diseases of the heart and blood vessels. Most heart and blood vessel problems develop over time and occur when your arteries develop atherosclerosis, a process that begins in childhood and involves a gradual buildup of plaque inside your arteries.

Plaque contains fat, cholesterol and other substances, and can grow large enough to significantly reduce blood flow through an artery. Most of the damage occurs when a plaque becomes fragile and ruptures.

Plaques that rupture can cause blood clots to form. These clots can block blood flow at the site of the rupture or can break off and travel through the artery to another part of the body. If either happens and blocks an artery that feeds the heart or brain, it causes a heart attack or stroke.


What Is Stroke?

Stroke, the #3 killer of women, is a type of vascular disease that affects the arteries leading to and within the brain. A stroke occurs when an artery that carries blood, oxygen and nutrients to the brain either bursts or is blocked by a clot. When that happens, part of the brain can't get the blood (and oxygen) it needs, so it starts to die.

When part of the brain dies from lack of blood flow, the part of the body it controls is affected. Strokes can cause paralysis, affect language and vision, and cause other problems. Seeking early treatment can minimize the potentially devastating effects of stroke, but to receive them, a person must recognize the warning signs and act quickly.

For more information about stroke and its effects, visit http://www.americanheart.org


Warning Signs of Heart Attack & Stroke

If you or someone you know shows signs of heart attack or stroke, call 9-1-1 right away. An Emergency Medical Services (EMS) team can begin treatment when it arrives. That means treatment can begin sooner than it would if the patient arrived at the hospital by car. What's more, the EMS team is also trained to revive someone whose heart has stopped, which saves hundreds of lives each year.


Heart Attack

Some heart attacks are sudden and intense, causing someone to gasp dramatically, clutch her heart and drop to the ground. No one has any doubts about what's happening. But most heart attacks start slowly, with mild pain or discomfort. Often the people affected aren't sure what's wrong and wait too long before getting help.


Here are some signs a heart attack may be happening:

Chest discomfort. Most heart attacks involve discomfort in the center of the chest that lasts more than a few minutes, or that goes away and comes back. It can feel like uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain.

Discomfort in other areas of the upper body. Symptoms can include pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach.

Shortness of breath. This feeling may occur with or without chest discomfort.
Other signs of discomfort. These may include breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea or lightheadedness.

As with men, women's most common heart attack symptom is chest pain or discomfort. But women are somewhat more likely than men to experience some of the other common symptoms, particularly shortness of breath, nausea/vomiting and back or jaw pain.
If you or someone you are with has chest discomfort, especially with one or more of the other signs, don't wait longer than five minutes before calling 9-1-1 for help.


Stroke Warning Signs

Stroke is a medical emergency. Learn to recognize a stroke, because any delay in treatment can lead to brain damage. Warning signs may include:

Sudden numbness or weakness of the face, arm, or leg, especially on one side of the body

Sudden confusion, trouble speaking or understanding

Sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes

Sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination

Sudden, severe headache with no known cause

Not all these warning signs occur in every stroke. If you or someone with you has one or more stroke symptoms that last more than a few minutes, don't delay!

Immediately call 9-1-1 or the EMS number so an ambulance (ideally with advanced life support) can quickly be sent to you.

Also, check the time so you'll know when the first symptoms appeared. It's very important to take immediate action. If given within three hours of the start of symptoms, a clot-busting drug can reduce long-term disability for the most common type of stroke.

Women's Heart Health Month: Go Red for Women

Go Red For Women celebrates the energy, passion and power we have as women to band together to wipe out heart disease and stroke.

This week Worth More than Rubies will publish a series of blog posts aimed at educating women on their risks of heart disease and stroke. We will also publish information on how to decrease these risks.

Join Worth More than Rubies as we Go Red For Women.

For more information click on the links below

Go Red for Women

Eleanor Pat Miller: Victorious Living for Women Co-Author

Kathleen Moon Co-Author Victorious Living for Women

Kathleen Moon is another of the wonderful Co-Authors of the book Victorious Living for Women. Worth More that Rubies had the awesome opportunity to interview Kathleen for our blog. Tune in Tuesday, January 26, 2010, at 8:00pm CST as we listen to Kathleen deliver a powerful message on Worth More than Rubies Titus Tuesdays. You don't want to miss it! Worth More than Rubies Titus 2 Tuesdays.

In the 20+ years of business and life I have collected, learned, and experienced many things. They come from church life, street ministry, business cultures, corporate settings and entrepreneurial endeavors. This allows me to entertain enlighten and inspire you. I have earned a “Street Degree” in Management (of anything), Sales, and was Ordained in Ministry (1986).

I was voted, “Mom of the Year” for the years of training up 4 kids and posses a great love for Gods kids.

All this experience has taught me to plan strategically, envisioning great achievements, teach people to ‘stand firm’, ‘move slowly’ and live life to its fullest. I get to the core of a problem quickly. “My heart is to inspire, educate, connect and unleash the powerful destiny within each person I meet. We have too much to give and find it hard to open ourselves to that reality. In connecting and discovering, we find our true happiness.”

I have served my community well with many hats; Corona Chamber of Commerce President 2004 with a backup of 4 years serving on the Board of Directors and many committee positions. I also served as a director for many non-profits; Habitat for Humanity, United Way, Association of Realtors, YMCA, National Association of Women Business Owners, and Today’s Youth Organization, to name a few.

There have been numerous awards and accolades along the way from the City of Corona, Riverside County, Congress, House of Representatives, City of Orange and the Presidents Award from the Chamber of Commerce and more.

Contact Information:
Web: www.kathleenmoon.ning.com
E-mail: Kathleen@kathleenmoon.com

Phone: (951) 858-2601

Sunday Sayings: I Made It

Today's Sunday Saying is "I Made It"

Click below to listen and be blessed!

I Made It

Interview with Author and Poet Tiffany Easley

Author and Poetess Tiffany Easley is one of the forty women featured in the new release Victorious Living for Women. Worth More than Rubies had the pleasure of interviewing Tiffany. She will also be featured on Worth More than Rubies Radio Saturday, January 9, 2010, at 3:00pm CST. Log on to Blog Talk Radio and listen to her interview or call in to 646-595-3716. Enjoy!

Where are you from?

I am originally from Lexington, TN and currently reside in Nashville, TN.

Tell us how long you’ve been writing and what made you get into the literary field?

I have been writing since the age of 9. God blessed me with the gift to write poetry and from poetry I have began to write devotionals.

What was your inspiration for participating in Victorious Living for Women?

In 2006, God spoke to me and told me to share my story! Victorious Living for Women has provided me the platform to do so.

Tell us about your book?

This book is a collaborative work of 40 women from 18 states sharing their personal testimony of Victorious Living. My Chapter is entitled Refreshing Wind In the Midst of Your Storm. The chapter is intended to :

1- How to stand in the midst of the storm, knowing that God is the author and finisher of your faith (Hebrews 12:2) and how to let He who began a good work finish it to completion (Philippians 1:6).

2- How to grow and mature from the experience of the storm, seeking from God His fresh-new revelation each day.

3- How to give forth (exhale) to others by sharing your experience as a vital part of spiritual transformation and maturation.

What other books have you authored? Tell us about them.

Psalms of my Spirit is a collection of poetry which shares the message of love for God, self, and others, written in 2004.

Are you working on new material? If so, tell us about what you are currently working on and when we can expect to see it on the market?

I am working on a few projects:

1- Victorious Living for Mothers, a Suber-Pullins collaborative work due to be released in May 2010.

2-A reflective devotional due to be released in Dec. 2010. I will not disclose the name of it at this time, because it is a special project dear to me that will be dedicated to a close friend who lost her battle with cancer in December of 2009.

How can others reach you?

Facebook-Tiffany Easley
Website:Pursuing Victory
e-mail:blessedpoetess@yahoo.com