This is the day the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it. Father thank You for this day. Today You give me the free will to do as I please. I get to make decisions as to how I will spend my time this day. For that choice I am thankful. Lord I thank You for my health and for the health of my family. I thank You for peace of mind and for a desire to live a life that is pleasing to You. You are the source of my strength. You provide calm in the middle of the storms.
Today is an awesome day. Today I breathe. Today I laugh. Today I feel the sunshine on my face. Today I am surrounded by love. Father You have numbered our days. Only You know the beginning and the end. We live based on Your timetable and Yours alone. Each day is a gift in every sense of the word.
As children of God we get to decide what we will do with each day. Will you laugh or will you cry? Will you need comfort or provide comfort to someone else? Choose to be thankful for the days, hours and the minutes you are blessed with. Enjoy life, and bring joy to the lives of others. Make a commitment to not only live a good life, but to live a God life.
Be blessed and be a blessing. To God be the Glory! -- AMEN
Compassionate
Jackson Health System is here for the community – with expert doctors sooner and get back to those who really brighten their lives. From our Jackson
Apostle Carlos L. Malone, Sr. Moving Forward In Service To God And To The Community
All good things happen in God’s time. As mortals we think that we are in control but people of faith know that there is a higher power ordering the universe. After more than thirty years leading the dynamic ministry at The Bethel Church, Apostle Carlos L. Malone, Sr. announced his retirement and fully expected to move forward with that plan. However retirement was not as God would have it at this moment in time. With that guidance and direction Apostle Malone continues
to serve, teach, support, minister and believe. He knows that God is leading as he follows.
Time has taken Malone metaphorically and literally far from his East St. Louis, Illinois, hometown where he started preaching in 1977 at 19 years old. He eventually pastored a church there for four years and left to lead a flock of believers in Daytona Beach. After a four-year stint, a 32-year-old Carlos Malone became the senior pastor of Bethel Mission-
ary Baptist Church in 1990. “It was a very exciting time for the people and for me, because the people were ready to progress,” Malone recalls.
Shortly after coming to Bethel, Malone’s leadership was tested with the destruction of the church and the community by the devastating winds of Hurricane Andrew. With the support of the church and the guidance of the Lord, Malone led the rebuilding effort resulting in the iconic church that stands boldly as
a majestic landmark in Richmond Heights today.
Under Malone’s leadership, the congregation serves under the banner of The Bethel Church. The church outgrew its location that was destroyed and built a modern 1,200 seat edifice that serves roughly 3,000 believers. He and church leaders and members worked together to create ministries and initiatives that met the needs of the congregation, like offering a youth choir, Bible Institutes, and outreach ministries. During the pandemic, the church aggressively used social media, teleconference, and online tools to minister to believers.
“I don’t look at growth solely in terms of numbers. Often, people are growing in attendance, and they are supporting, but they are not becoming independent,” Malone shares.
“I never wanted the ministry to be dependent on me. I believe that a leader is not a good leader until his people don’t need him. Some leaders like to be needed. I don’t want to be needed. I want you to grow,” he continues. “I want members to grow from here, and then go from here and start doing some of these things that I’m preaching and teaching.”
Apostle Malone and his wife, Elder Pamela Malone, who is a spiritual force in her own right, have served this community with dedication and commitment. They are highly regarded for their anointed compassionate leadership and discerning wisdom.
Apostle Malone is the Founder / CEO of RHEMA Apostolic International Network (RAIN), an apostolic training network for those who desire to walk in spiritual authority
through wholeness, training, transformation and triumphing through God’s kingdom agenda. He is a published author, motivational speaker and entrepreneur. His Local eatery, Mr. Jack’s Soul On The Go is a favorite for many seeking good quality meal solutions. Mr. Jacks is located at Bullard Plaza which is one of the capital improvement projects from Miami-Dade County’s Building Better Communities Bond Program. The hope is that Mr. Jack’s and others will spur economic development and service needs in the area.
Apostle Malone continues to lead The Bethel Church as it serves the needs of an ever growing community and those seeking a better way of life in God. The future of The Bethel Church is bright as Apostle Carlos L. Malone, Sr. moves forward with great confidence, depending on the Lord every step of the way.
Dieting Tips for Seniors
Fewer Calories/ More Protein
For Amy Campbell, a registered dietitian and diabetes educator, the DASH, TLC and Mediterranean diets stood out as smart choices for older adults, because they’re good for weight loss as well as controlling conditions such as diabetes and high blood pressure.
As with anyone, overweight and obesity can be issues for seniors, Campbell says. “People are living longer, so we’re seeing more of it in older adults.” And, she says, “As we get older, our calorie needs go down. People don’t need to eat as much as they did when they were 20 or 30.” Older women generally need anywhere from 1,600 to 2,200 calories per day, depending how active they are, Campbell says, while younger women need about 1,800 to 2,200 daily. For older men, the range is 2,000 to 2,800 calories per day, compared with 2,200 to 3,200 calories for younger men.
Frail elderly people face different issues. “One concern for older people is getting enough protein,” Campbell says. “We need more as we age.” A lack of protein puts people at risk for lower immune function and osteoporosis.
You don’t necessarily have to follow a specific diet, she says, “just a well-rounded diet with extra protein.” That means making the most of the calories you take in, she says, not just eating a bowl of cereal for dinner or making entire meals of toast and tea. “You don’t need animal protein in every meal,” says Campbell, who praises lentils, beans and chickpeas as great sources of inexpensive protein to round out meals.
Campbell says a very low-fat plan like the Ornish diet might be less appropriate and harder for seniors to follow. Similarly, she says, the Biggest Loser diet would not be
ideal, and the phases could be hard to comprehend.
“For diets in general, it’s best to try and make it easy and fit comfortably into a person’s life,” Campbell says. “Ones that promote good health but are as easy to follow as possible.”
Simplicity and Balance
Michael Davidson, director of preventive cardiology at the University of Chicago Medical Center and a Best Diets panelist, says Weight Watchers and diets with similar structures score well because of their simplicity. With Weight Watchers, for instance, foods are assigned different points, which you add up daily to stay at your personal target, which is based on your sex, weight, height and age. “You don’t have to do a lot of thinking about what type of balance of foods or menu plans,” Davidson says, which may be somewhat more challenging for seniors.
Long-term compliance was an important factor in ranking diets, Davidson says: “What can be a lifelong change instead of just a short-term fix for the patient?” Therefore, he says, “it’s really more about variety and food choices, as opposed to portion sizes, that are applicable to an elderly individual. So it’s the kind of diet I prefer for those patients.”
Davidson sometimes sees iron deficiency in frail older patients. “They don’t eat enough red meat; they don’t get enough iron in the diet,” he says. Although the paleo diet was lower-ranking among the Best Diets, he says “it could be a good diet. It’s had a little bit of a hype to it, but the principles are not far off, such as people eating more complex carbohydrates and more lean meats.” He points out that constipation can be an issue for seniors on low-carb, low-fiber diets.
A man found a cocoon of a butterfly.
One day a small opening appeared. He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole.
Until it suddenly stopped making any progress and looked like it was stuck.
So the man decided to help the butterfly. He took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged easily, although it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings.
The man didn’t think anything of it and sat there waiting for the wings to enlarge to support the butterfly. But that didn’t happen.
Despite the kind heart of the man, he didn’t understand that the restricting cocoon and the struggle needed by the butterfly to get itself through the small opening; were God’s way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings. To prepare itself for flying once it was out of the cocoon.
Moral of the story:
Our struggles in life develop our strengths. Without struggles, we never grow and never get stronger, so it’s important for us to tackle challenges on our own, and not be relying on help from others.
The butterfly spent the rest of its life unable to fly, crawling around with tiny wings and a swollen body.
Ingredients:
¼ cup butter, melted
2 tablespoon Montreal steak seasoning
2 tablespoon lemon-pepper seasoning
1 ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
1 ½ teaspoon dried thyme
1 ½ teaspoon dried sage
1 teaspoon granulated garlic
3 (1 1/4- to 1 1/2-pounds each) Cornish game hens
Directions
Step 1
Preheat oven to 375°. In a small bowl, combine butter, Montreal steak seasoning, lemonpepper seasoning, rosemary, thyme, sage and granulated garlic.
Step 2
Brush seasoned butter under the breast skin of game hens, in the cavities and all over the outsides.
Step 3
Place hens, breast sides up, on a rack in a shallow baking pan. Roast until hens reach 170° in a thigh, basting with pan juices occasionally, 1 to 1 1/4 hours.
Step 4
Tent lightly with foil and let rest 10 minutes. Cut each hen in half lengthwise to serve.
PREP TIP
To reheat, place cooked hens on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Bake in a 400° oven until heated through, 15 minutes.
We convince ourselves that life will be better after we get married, have a baby, then another. Then we are frustrated that the kids aren’t old enough and we’ll be more content when they are.
After that we’re frustrated that we have teenagers to deal with, we will certainly be happy when they are out of that stage. We tell ourselves that our life will be complete when our spouse gets his or her act together, when we get a nicer car, are able to go on a nice vacation, or when we retire.
The truth is there’s no better time to be happy than right now. If not now, when? Your life will always be filled with challenges. It’s best to admit this to yourself and decide to be happy anyway. A great quote from Alfred D Souza: He said, “For a long time it had seemed to me that life was about to begin -real life. But there was always some obstacle in the way, something to be gotten through first, some unfinished business, time still to be served, a debt to be paid. Then life would begin. At last it dawned on me that these obstacles were my life.”
There is no way to happiness. Happiness is the way, so, treasure every moment that you have. And treasure it more because you shared it with someone special, special enough to spend your time... and remember that time waits for no one. So stop waiting until you finish school, until you go back to school, until you lose ten pounds, until you get married, until you get a nice house, until, until, until.
There is no better time than right now to be happy... Happiness is a journey, not a destination. So, Work like you don’t need money. Love like you’ve never been hurt and Dance Like no one’s watching.
Dance
Dance Like
Like
No One’s Watching
No One’s Watching
“ Think on These Things…”
Philippians 4:8
“Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”
by Veronica Carey Buie
There is something I find so fascinating when it comes to rainbows. They are constant reminders of God’s promises and seem to always appear just when I could use some of those blessed assurances from on high.
Just a few weeks ago as I had just arrived in the Carolinas, my dear friend said to me (as she pointed to the sky), “Look, there’s your sign”. She had spotted the timely and picturesque rainbow in its delightful array of colors. It was beautiful and just what I needed to see at that very moment. Right then I sighed with a resounding, “Yes!” I perceived the glimpse of that rainbow as an affirmed promise (and a thumbs-up from above) of peace and protection going forward.
As promises go, I am one of those individuals who take promises rather seriously. However, it seems as if some of society views promises as nothing more than a watered-down, casual agreement with little or no commitment attached. As kids back in the day, to keep a promise we connected our pinky-fingers with someone else’s and did the ‘pinky-promise’. As we got a little older we moved from calling it a promise to ‘making a pact’ and then we moved into ‘entering a covenant’. Unfortunately, the only thing some of us know about promises is that they are often broken.
I’m reminded of a song I heard many years ago, a very poignant song entitled Cats in the Cradle by Harry Chapin. It spoke of a father who told his son, from the time his son was an infant to the time he became a man that he (the father) would make time for his son. Over the years the father gave his son his word, practically promising him, that he would make time for him but he was always too busy and never got around to it. Later on in life the tables were turned. The father began wanting to spend time with his adult son and like his father, the son gave his word, perhaps even promised that he would make time for his dad but he was too busy and never got the chance to do so. This, another classic case of “broken promises”.
I am so grateful, that unlike the father in that story who never kept his word or his promise, we have a Father who always keeps his word and his promises. We may break promises we make to one another but God never has and never will. He is the creator of promises. In fact, the Bible is filled with countless promises God has made to us and as believers we can most certainly trust that God will keep each and every one of His promises.
When I think of the promises of God I feel so empowered. They give me a sense of genuine hope and peace. God’s promises are rich and so wonderful to behold. However, many believers don’t capitalize on these promises. God’s promises are like being given
a stack of very valuable gift cards. We know we have access to them yet we tuck them away and rarely take full advantage of them. On occasion, when we just happen to remember we have them, we either still put off using them or we only use a portion of their true value. Before we know it we completely forget about them and never use them at all. Essentially they are wasted. That is not how God intended for us to claim his magnificent promises.
I truly believe God expects us to stand firmly on his promises daily. He constantly reminds us in his word that when we embrace his promises he will lovingly respond to our needs. Check out what the Bible says about how God responds when we stand on his promises and take him at his word:
• John 14:13-14 - “And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.”
• Matthew 21: 22 – “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”
• Jeremiah 33:3 - “Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.”
• Matthew 7:7 - Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.”
God promises us He will supply our every need and that His is grace is sufficient. He promises us victory over death and to never leave us or forsake us. Knowing God’s promises are faithful and true, daily I claim the promise found at Romans 8:31; “What then shall we say in response to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us.”
Whatever situations we find ourselves confronted with in life, as believers we have been granted the right and privilege to boldly claim God’s promises. Although rainbows are wonderful reminders of God’s awesome promises and we know gift cards come and go, worship songwriter Darlene Zschech got it absolutely right when she wrote the song Shout to The Lord, stating, “Nothing compares to the promise I have in you”. God is waiting and expecting us to make our requests known to him and claim the wonderful blessings found in His promises. Wouldn’t you agree that, “T’is so sweet to trust in Jesus…and to take Him at his word?”
THINK ON THESE PASSAGES –
2 Corinthians 1:20: - “For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us.”
HEALTH BENEFITS OF PRAYING REGULARLY
What signs of breast cancer are there other than a lump?
A breast lump or mass is just one of the possible signs of breast cancer in men or women. Breast cancer can cause several additional changes to the skin on and around the breast. Anyone who notices any of these changes should see a doctor.
In some cases, breast cancer may not cause any symptoms, but a doctor will identify a mass on a mammogram. Screening for breast cancer as recommended by a doctor can help detect this condition in its earliest and most treatable stage.
It is important to be aware of some of the potential signs and symptoms of breast cancer that may occur without a noticeable lump in the breast. All of these symptoms can also have a noncancerous underlying cause. However, people with these symptoms should speak to their doctor in case tests are necessary to check for both noncancerous and cancerous conditions.
Symptoms to look out for: Changes to the skin’s texture, Nipple discharge, Dimpling of the skin, Lymph node changes, Breast or nipple pain, Nipple retraction or inversion, Redness and Swelling, and of course a Lump.
People should not panic or be fearful when they notice breast changes. Aging, changes in hormone levels, and other factors can lead to breast changes throughout a person’s lifetime. However, people should be proactive about their health and visit a doctor to determine the cause of any breast symptoms.
Each of the eight changes listed above can warrant a trip to the doctor, especially if these changes do not seem to relate to one of the following: - the menstrual cycle - injury - previous illness, such as a breast infection
A doctor can evaluate the symptoms, examine the affected breast or breasts, and recommend further studies if necessary. They may suggest a mammogram, ultrasound, other imaging tests, or bloodwork to rule out infection or other potential causes.
Breast cancer can cause signs and symptoms that include changes to the skin on and around the breast. While many conditions can potentially cause breast changes, including cysts, infections, eczema, and dermatitis, a person should not automatically rule out breast cancer.
Seeing a doctor for evaluation and diagnosis can help determine whether or not any breast changes are cause for concern.
As a sickle cell patient, the typically joyous holiday season can, at times, be mired in the fear of shorter, darker, and colder days.
The frigid temperatures mixed with holiday expectations and the emotional ghosts of lost loves, loved ones and memories of holiday interrupted by illnesses.
Every sickle cell disease (SCD) patient fears the unpredictable crisis and the colder winter temperatures because the colder weather leaves us more vulnerble and increases the likelihood of suffering longer and more severe crises.
And it dramatically complicates the logistical process of accessing emergency medical care.
It’s a dramatically different process of dressing, driving, parking and walking into a local hospital’s emergency room for immediate care in 70-degree weather than it is in 20-degree weather, not to mention the difficult process of navigating the possibility of rain, ice, sleet and snow.
And, despite the difficult complexity of navigating personal transporta-
Recognizing the Depression and Anxiety Challenges of the Holiday Season
tion to a local emergency room, it still beats the idea of trusting the staff of an emergency medical tech (EMT) who may have little, if any, knowledge of sickle cell disease.
Also, the emotional ghost of lost loves and loved ones always visit during the holiday season.
I’m not sure if it’s the smells of the season, the ritual of unpacking holiday ornaments, trimming the tree or the familiar music, but the skewed and sometimes unwanted memories flood in without explanation or apology.
And, at times, the good memories left me as devastated as much as the bad memories. And both make it difficult to be present in the many moments of my life which, is in many ways, connects to the definition of depression.
Despite my wife’s love, early, and accurate diagnosis, I, for years, tried to ignore my seasonal depression and anxiety by telling myself the holidays should feel and mean less special as we get older.
And, considering my experiences, my fears of, an untimely and disruptive SCD crisis were warranted.
But with the assistance of a trained professional, I finally acknowledged the emotions I was experiencing.
And I also learned how to discuss, unpack and come to terms with my past traumatic experiences and fears. I was taught how to process and understand these emotions and experiences differently.
As a result, I began to understand the importance of each experience and accept the reality of how the weight and impact of these experiences can change over time.
And I began to appreciate the gift of each experience as a gift despite its outcome.
I’ve learned love lost is still love experienced, and the voice, lessons and influence of lost loved ones remain in our hearts and minds forever.
And most importantly, I learned how to manage my mental, spiritual and emotional health, and that has prepared and empowered me to face any unpredictable SCD crisis that I may experience.
