pray about it

April - June 2012

Stories That Inspire

Inspirational Moments

Magazine

Before You Talk About It

You Should Pray About It A Story About How Prayer and Patience Will Reveal

The Hand of God

The Network Social or Not

“The Legacy of Adversity”

The Future Lesson Of Your Current Adversity

To Order Call: 404.667.6812

Dear Reader,

It’s amazing how people will go to extremes to tell lies but only put

very little effort into telling the truth. I recently encountered someone

who told me a very obvious lie without thinking about how ridiculous

the lie really sounded.

Many times when people tell lies, they are really protecting them-

selves whether it be from rejection, disappointment, or confrontation.

There are times that I have found myself telling a lie to avoid what I

perceive as a situation that is going to be uncomfortable. I will play a

scene in my mind of how the outcome is going to be without ever at-

tempting to deal with the situation with the other party involved. I

usually think about how it may negatively affect my relationship with

the person or people I need to address; then, I decide to avoid the truth

and either ignore the situation or lie about it. It’s never a huge lie, just

a little “white lie.”

The truth is, a lie is a lie whether it is white, little or big. Sometimes,

the truth will be painful and contrary to popular belief, but it always

paints a clear and true picture of your point of view. Be it resolved

that from now on, I am going to tell the whole truth and nothing but

the truth, so help me God! That is not to say that I will rush to judg-

ment and be hasty in my delivery of the truth. Thoughtfully consider-

ing the timing of presenting the truth can be very important. I will be

sure to stay far removed from the emotions of anger, resentment, and

retaliation before making any truth known.

Some of you may not struggle with this problem, and I applaud you

for being able to tell the truth at all times. For us who have this strug-

gle, I encourage you to take a step toward remaining truthful, no mat-

ter how much it hurts you. It will serve as a building block for estab-

lishing and maintaining boundaries in your life. In the end, your life

will be better because of it.

Read on, and be inspired!

Jennifer M. Hudson Publisher

STAFF

Editor Sabrina Smith

Publisher Jennifer M. Hudson

Writers JT Hud

Kevin Jackson

Andrew Jefferson

Graphic Designer JT Hud

I’M Magazine

CONTENTS

8 The Spotlight

4 The Network

6 Timing Is Everything

8 Spotlight– Sarah Cainion

10 The Legacy of Adversity

12 Before You Talk about It,

You Should Pray about It

14 Friends

16 Back down Memory Lane

18 The Melon in Me– Poem

19 Praise Reports

12

Cover

4 Sabrina's Editorial

A network is defined as a fabric or a structure of cords or wires that cross at regular intervals and are knotted or se-cured at the crossings. It is also described as a group or a system of interconnected people or things. Lastly, the verb, to net-work, is explained as to meet people who might be useful to know, especially in your job (Webster’s Dictionary). The latter explanation is one that most people tend to verbalize when dis-cussing this overused and sometime underrated necessity in life, to network, that is. Some do not value ‘networking’ in this sense because they feel that it is ‘kissing up’ to one in order to get a job. However, with today’s economic valley, many peo-ple rely on ‘networking’ to learn about the availa-bility as well as the procurement of employment. With several companies no longer taking applica-tions online, perspective employees are forced to use the Internet in addition, to connect to people who can potentially be catalysts for securing work. Yes, many people also spend endless hours comb-ing the Internet, another ‘network’, in search of jobs. Today, seeking work that leads to a career is a job within itself, for many people spend tireless hours per day hunting online, soooo much time. Speaking of time, countless hours are spent on the Internet, which has become the breeding ground for ‘social networks.’ Ooh, now I have your attention! Many people have become addicted, yes addicted to social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, and even the old MySpace. According to the Nielsen Company, Facebook dramatically in-creased its dominance of the US online social net-working market between December 2008 and De-cember 2009. In December 2009, Facebook rec-orded about 110 million unique visitors, a 100% increase from 55 million unique visitors in Decem-ber 2008. MySpace, which remained the second-most popular US online social network, saw its

number of unique visitors drop about 17%, from roughly 60 million in De-cember 2008 to roughly 50 million in December 2009. While Twitter only recorded 18.1 million unique visitors in December 2009, this represented 579% growth from 2.7 million unique visitors a year earlier. Wow, that’s a major increase in the number of people using social me-dia network, which is designed to

study relationships between individuals, groups and even societies; a social structure determined by interaction, and more than you realize is deter-mined by these social interactions. Today, more than ever, we spend so much time on the Internet,….on social networks:

So what has happened in our lives as a soci-ety that we feel this overtaken desire to be a part of social networks, so much that it has literally be-come an addiction? We look for old classmates, distant family members, jobs and even love on the Internet. More than half of us have at least one ac-count with a social network, where many times too much personal business is consciously advertised while unbeknownst to the Facebooker, the Tweet-er or the Myspacer, businesses and corporations


The Network

(Editorial by Sabrina Smith)

I’M Magazine

target us with ads for purchases, many of which we don’t need and some of which we can’t even afford, all based upon sites we visit and social networks that we frequent. HHHmmmm! Did you really think that these networks were created just so that you could “socialize,” gossip about the celebrities, watch housewives’ reality shows where most of the women are not married, discuss the good, the bad and the ugly of award shows; shout out that your relationship is complicated and post your favorite music videos? No! Every time we engage on these sites there is an unknown suitor (business ad) that targets us for a financial marriage. If you don’t believe me, check the unnecessary spam email that you receive. How do these companies know which res-taurants, clothing and vacation spots we desire? Look back at the Nielsen Company chart; how much

time are you spending on sites, and I’m not talking about

meaningfully managing your time to job search or conduct

educational research on sites or even read the news? No!

How much time are you on the social networks? How many

tweets or blogs do you send and respond to every day?

How many times per day and how many hours are you on

the social networks per day? Stop and calculate that right

now!...Now, multiply that by 365, the total number of days

in a year, aside from leap year, of course. What was your to-

tal? Whatever your total, that’s too much for networking

online. Now, compare that sum to the number of times per

day, per week, per year that you network with God. How of-

ten do you really ‘network’ with Him? Are you reading His

Word several times a day? You blog several times a day on

Facebook and MySpace. Are you sending out your bible

study notes and spiritual words of encouragement as much

as you tweet? What about just immersing from one mean-

ingful scripture to the next, you know, like how you read

countless posts online? Remember, “a network is a fabric

or a structure of cords or wires that cross at regular inter-

vals and are knotted or secured at the crossings.” How reg-

ular are your intervals for meeting at the cross to secure

your interconnectedness with God? No matter what you are

looking for on the Internet, a job, family member or friend,

love or laughter, if you ‘network’ with the NETWORK, what-

ever you ask for in His name, shall be given. Value your time

with Him!

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Praise the lord! Hello family, I tell you the

truth; you never know how God is going to use you.

Check this testimony out; it will truly bless you. One

morning on my way to work, I needed a money or-

der, so I stopped by Amscot. I really didn't under-

stand why I left the house so early. Never do I leave

the house that early to stop and get a money order.

While I was waiting in line, my spirit kept saying

“you need to go to the gas station.” I said to myself,

“I don't need any gas.” I had a half-tank of gas, but

my spirit kept on troubling me. So now I’m starting

to think maybe my needle is broken; after all, it

seems that everything else on my car is going. You

know when you are down to your last month’s pay-

ment on your car, everything starts to break.

Back to this testimony... So I went over to

the gas station. As I pulled up to the pump, this

young man approached me. He said, “How are you

doing sir?” I said hello; but at the same time, I was

thinking, “Ok God, it was you sending me over

here.” So I asked the young man how much does he

need. He looked at me and said, “This is not about

money.” When I pulled into the station, that was my

first thought.

Now I'm looking at this woman throw her

hands up walking away from him. She didn't give

him time to get his words out of his mouth. So he

said to me, “I just need to talk to someone.” At that

point, I started to talk with him. He was a very edu-

cated young man. It was a challenge to hear him

talk about his life, and all he had lost. He was so

down talking about how he felt like he’d let his fam-

ily down. He had a wife and two kids, lost his job,

and they’d lost their home. He said two days ago

was the last he’d spoken with his wife. He also said

he just felt like a failure, and they were better off

without him. So I asked him, “How can I help?” He

said, “Sir you are already doing it; you are listen-

ing.” He told me that he had approached seven other

people, and they turned him away as soon as he said

good morning sir or ma’am. I asked him did he have

too much pride to receive a financial blessing from

someone, and he said “ no.” He told me that that’s

not what it is about. He said to me you were my last

resort. If you had walked away from me, I was

thinking about killing myself. That young man and I

talked for about 45 minutes. When we were done

talking, he said, “Sir will you pray with me?” Of

course, I prayed with him, and before I turned his

hand loose, he brought tears to my eyes. That young

man said “Sir! I want what you have got... Hallelu-

jah!!!” And right then he received Jesus Christ as

his Lord and Savior. My! My! My! Glory be to

God!!! So when we departed, I knew he was going

to be alright. He asked could he use my cell phone.

He called up his wife, and he told her what hap-

pened. He said to her that Jesus told me we are go-

ing to be alright.

We never know how God is going to use us.

You should just always be prepared to do whatever,

or whenever, go wherever, for whomever, and don't

worry about why or how God is going to use you.

Sometimes, God may not tell you when, where, or

how He is going to use you to be that ‘ram in the

bush’. That morning, I was this young man’s ram in

the bush. Amen!!!

A few days later, he gave me a call. I didn't

give him my number, but he remembered it from

when he used my phone to call his wife. "Glory to

God"! He did go back home (at his wife's parents’

house). Everyone had been worried about him. He

said after his much needed shower, as his wife and

he began to talk, he wasn't home a good 30 minutes

before the phone rang. His wife told him that the

phone was for him; there was a man on the other end

of the phone asking him was he still interested in the

job.

He told me he’d put that application in 2

years ago. All I could say was "but God." The man

told him he didn’t know why his application was

still on file, because they discard them after ninety

days. The man went on to ask him could he come in

Timing Is Everything by Minister Andrew Jefferson

I’M Magazine

and re-do his application. He did, and the man

interviewed and hired him right on the spot, and

his salary was a $12.00 increase. Glory to God!

That is not all...When he arrived back home, his

wife's parents asked to speak with them. Her par-

ents told them that they were signing the deed to

her grand-mother’s house over to them. He said

where they’d lost a two-bedroom, one-bath

house; they had inherited a three-bedroom, two-

bath house. All he could say is thank you, Jesus!

You can call me soft, and I will be that

because I shed some tears and rejoiced with that

young man. God is so great! What an awesome

God we serve! There is nothing too hard for him.

That young man said he’d never tithed before, but

he does now; before he pays any bill, buys food,

or buy clothes, he takes God's 10% off the top!

And he is going to keep his family in church.

Praying was never a priority in his house back

then; now, he says it is a must! Also, he asked

me to pray for his wife, Ruth who had an inter-

view that morning. Again, I prayed.

Remember, we all have a purpose in life.

God gives all of us the same opportunity and

choice in this life to accept Jesus Christ as our

Lord and Savior. Have a truly blessed and highly

favored day.

With prayer and thanksgiving... God's

blessings and favor 24/7, 365... 2012.

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This Issue’s Spotlight Shines on

Mrs. Sarah Cainion

of Hampton, Georgia

I’M Magazine

Born Sarah Williams in Perry, Georgia,

the beauty of her essence was hidden for many

years. It has been said, “Don’t despise humble

beginnings.” Indeed, Sarah had a very humble

beginning. Nevertheless, that did not stop her

from dreaming. She is the proud mother of

two daughters and one son. Also, she is the

grandmother to one grandson.

After her first marriage ended, she went

on to put herself through college and remarry,

becoming Mrs. Sarah Cainion. God graced her

to marry a loving and compassionate man, Jes-

se Cainion.

Mrs. Cainion has always been a very

caring person which was often hidden behind a

very tough demeanor. She matriculated

through the public school system as an educa-

tor and landed a job as an assistant principal

after only eight years of teaching. Her career

could be classified as that of a caterpillar need-

ing to become a butterfly.

As a teacher, you could say she was in

her egg stage. Just like an egg, she did not stay

there in that stage very long. It took great

struggle and perseverance to get to that point;

but like the egg of a butterfly, one day she no-

ticed that she was transforming into something

else. That is when she entered her caterpillar

stage and became an assistant principal. All

was well, and she felt very accomplished as an

assistant principal. She was able to incorporate

many of her academic and behavioral strate-

gies into the flow of her school.

As time went on, so did her desires to

seek change and elevation. It was then that she

began to enter her chrysalis stage. Again, it

was time for a change. Sarah began to seek

out opportunities to acquire a position as a

principal. In her efforts, she landed a job as

principal of Swint Elementary in Clayton

County, Georgia. There, she truly began to

evolve into the person which had been buried

down inside.

After taking over as principal of a

school that had not experienced academic suc-

cess in years, she rose to the challenge and be-

gan to make noticeable changes to enhance the

academic focus of the school. Within three

years, she moved the school from a failing

school to one of academic excellence. In 2011,

the school received recognition from the state

of Georgia as a Title I Distinguished School.

When asked how she did it, she humbly says,

“It was hard work. It took a team effort which

involved everyone pulling together.” Each

new addition to the staff of Swint Elementary

has come in with high hopes and a willingness

to continue to see the success of the school. At

Swint, there are no slackers; that is due mostly

to the fact that Sarah Cainion is not a slacker

herself.

You can catch her many days at the

school until six or seven o’clock working tire-

lessly to keep the school moving forward. If

you could see ito her mind when she leaves

school, you would see her thoughts plowing

out new ideas and finding ways to improve up-

on what is already in place. Without mi-

cromanaging, she is very up-to-date on all that

happens around her school. Her heart is for the

students as well as the staff, pushing everyone

hard to be all that they can be.

So much had been accomplished in her

life during her chrysalis stage until one would

think that she is already a butterfly. Much to

the contrary, soon this chrysalis stage of her

life will be over, and she will be spreading her

wings to fly as a butterfly. Only the future

knows what is next for her. In the meantime,

she has chosen to enjoy the journey and allow

the Lord to guide her course. As she transi-

tions into a butterfly, her life has proven that

there are no limits to what she can have!

Spread Your Wings and Fly……

by JT Hud


I used to be a huge football fan. My favorite team – hands down, the Chicago Bears. Now, when time permits, I get together with a few friends to watch the finale of games, the Super Bowl. I have to admit that I have always been more fascinated by the half-time show and the super-sized com-mercials than the actual game it-

self. My favorite commercial by far this year was the Pepsi commercial that featured music pop-star extraordinaire, Sir Elton John and rapper turned reality star-actor Flavor Flav. In the commercial, Sir Elton acting as a medieval king, grants a can of Pepsi to the young lady who has come to perform before. She sings a stirring, soulful rendition of Aretha Franklin’s classic song, “R-E-S-P-E-C-T.” The young lady wanting to share her treasure grants PEPSIs for everyone in the kingdom! Every year, mega corpora-tions spend mega-bucks to advertise during this most cov-eted game. The average cost that corporations were willing to shell out for commercial air-time during the 2012 Super Bowl - 3.5 Million dollars for 30 Seconds. Wow! Can you imagine a company wanting to spend 3.5 Million dollars to have 30 seconds of your time … 30 seconds of potential influence over millions of viewers? So in just 30 seconds, we can be influenced to do something; to purchase something; to think differently about something; to desire something. Corporations have figured out that they can significantly multiply their profits with just 30 seconds of influence! Therefore, given the right stimulus, it’s possible for us to see something from an en-tirely new perspective -- in a relatively small amount of time. In this edition, I hope to challenge traditionally held thoughts about adversity. Hopefully, after 30 seconds of stimulating reading, we might desire to “re-image” our be-liefs about adversity, seeing it as a transformative tool. Adversity is defined by Webster as: “A state of hardship or affliction; misfortune; a calamitous event.” I have always been challenged by this definition because it only focuses on the negative aspects of adversity, omitting the opportunities for growth contained within the event. Adversity is perhaps one of the greatest instru-ments that God uses to teach life’s difficult lessons. For many us of, the hardship of our misfortune weighs more heavily in our hearts (and minds) than the potential lessons that lie deeply within life’s challenges. Most of the times, we don’t understand the causes of a particular misfortune or adversity.

We must carefully guard against the particulars of our deepest misfortunes becoming the greatest obstacles in seeing the lesson(s) that God attempts to teach us. With-in each adversity, there is hidden gift. When faced with ad-versity, I encourage people to ask the question, “God …what lesson do you want me to learn through this adversi-ty?” If you're really willing to dig, there's a lesson in there.

What we see reflects our thinking, and our thinking but re-flects the choice of what we want to see. Therefore, every situation, when properly perceived, becomes an opportuni-ty to heal!

Within the Christian context, the Old Testament chronicle of Job’s “adversities” is a very familiar story. Job’s ability to deal with his adversities provides us with several “teachable moments.” One of the most challenging verses within the story of Job is found in chapter 2, verse 3. It

reads, “And the LORD said to Satan, “Have you consid-

ered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil? He still holds fast his integrity, alt-hough you incited me against him to destroy him without reason” (ESV, Job 2:3).

God allowed Satan to “test” Job. It wasn’t the other way around, as many people tend to give Satan too much power over their situations! Many chapters into the story, Job had convinced himself that his afflictions served no purpose. Job decided that God was simply not treating him fairly. Instead of seeing his adversity as an opportunity to let God mold him, Job’s resentment towards God grew. His resentment created distance between God and him. Job closed his mind to the possibility that he could learn some-thing valuable from his suffering. This is where Job’s story intersects with our stories. We simply close our minds to the possibility that our trials and tribulations offer valuable lessons that we can learn from. Ultimately, in the midst of the struggle we can choose to either distance ourselves from God, or to grow closer to God. Seemingly, God al-ways desires a more intimate relationship with us; our inti-macy with God provides a “space” where we often feel God’s love for us.

I’d like to close by sharing one of my favorite

quotes by the late Helen Keller, a person who overcame

many adversities becoming the first deaf-blind person to

earn a Bachelor of Arts degree. She stated, “The struggle

of life is one of our greatest blessings. It makes us patient,

sensitive, and God-like. It teaches us that although the

world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of

it."

“The Legacy of Adversity” by Reverend Kevin Jackson

I’M Magazine

Whitney Houston

1963-2012

The majority of the world tuned in to wit-

ness the Celebration of Life service for

Whitney. Maybe Whitney’s family is not

familiar with the term “Keeping It 100;” but

then again, maybe they are. Whitney’s

family’s choice to have her service at the

church where she grew up was a very wise

decision. When you grew up in traditional

“black” church, regardless of the denomi-

nation, you could truly appreciate Whit-

ney’s service. From the ushers in the white

hats to the passing out of handheld fans,

one can honestly say that they “kept it

100” (true to who they really are). Any-

one who had not experienced the “black”

church did so on February 18, 2012.

What wasn’t celebrated during her life

was made up for in her death. She was

truly honored as a “Pop Princess”.

Keeping It 100


Before You Talk about It,

You Should Pray about It by JT Hud

Divorce can be a very pain-

ful, spiritual and emotional jour-

ney. Having a support system in

place helps divorcees cope with the

pain of the separation and the feel-

ings of defeat. However, every

divorcee is not as fortunate to have

a system of support ready to run to

their aid. This is a story about a

young lady who found herself fac-

ing a divorce with no one in which

she could confide. Because a child

is involved, she chose to remain

anonymous.

What started out as an un-

stable relationship quickly grew

into an unhealthy mar-

riage. Loneliness and

anxiousness pushed

this young lady into a

life of settling for less

than her intended best.

Without prayer or council, the de-

cision to marry was entered into

very lightly.

The marriage came a few

weeks after the birth of her only

child. Post-partum emotions may

have played a part, but the truth is

rationalization was already far

from consideration before the birth

of her child. She had given advice

to others that now she wasn’t will-

ing to follow herself. She knew

that this man was struggling to find

himself and was not ready for the

commitment of marriage, yet she

went ahead and married him any-

way believing that he would change

and maturate through the responsi-

bility of fatherhood.

She thought that she was

such a good catch that she would be

the poster child for the saying, “Be

hind every great man is a great

woman.” Boy was she wrong! It

wasn’t that she was not a great

woman, but she did not know what

it would take to add momentum to a

motionless man.

Prior to this point, she had

only talked about what it meant to

be married. Now that she was

faced with her own crumbling mar-

riage, she began to

pray about it. She

turned her back on

everything that she

thought she knew

about successful

relationships and began to look to

the originator of relationships; her

Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!

By now, it was painfully

obvious that her husband did not

think that her approach to helping

him mature was affective. He had

left the home and committed him-

self to living full-time with his girl-

friend where he was allowed to be

as irresponsible as he chose to be.

In the meantime, she started

praying for his return. God did not

answer that prayer. Instead, he

gave her I Corinthians 7:15 that

says, “But if the unbelieving de-

Loneliness and anxiousness

pushed this young lady into

a life of settling for less

than her intended best.

I’M Magazine

part, let him depart. A brother or a sister is

not under bondage in such cases: but God

hath called us to peace.” What liberating reve-

lation she received. Peace was not what she was

trying to obtain until that point; it was more like

revenge for leaving her.

Divorce causes GRIEF, and grief has

stages.

Stage 1: Denial

Stage 2: Anger

Stage 3: Bargaining

Stage 4: Depression

Stage 5: Acceptance

There was no doubt that Stage 1 was well

under way in her life. She was in denial that he

was not a provider. One of her friends pointed

out that he was not paying or offering any child

support for the three children he already had, so

he probably wouldn’t do it for her child either.

She ignored the advice. He was often depressed

and lacked motivation; she blamed it on the lack

of breaks he had in life. He kept a girlfriend

throughout their marriage that he called a friend

and refused to discontinue contact with her even

after going to marriage counseling and was ad-

vised to sever the relationship.

Stage 2 crept in like a lion. Not only was

she angry about her failed marriage, but that an-

ger trickled over into her career. She found her-

self angry with co-workers and those that she

had authority over. She was even angry with the

church; that is why the scripture that God spoke

to her heart had such significance. The peace

that the scripture spoke of was missing from her

life. Once she let go of the anger and pursued

peace, she began bargaining.

Stage 3 made her go back and forth with

the decision of divorce. Separation was tempo-

rary, but divorce was permanent. She watched

Christian television looking for an easy way out

that did not involve divorce. No matter where

she looked or what she thought, she knew what

she had to do; DIVORCE.

Stage 4 was very depressing. That is

why she didn’t let anyone in to help her get

through this tough decision. It was preached at

her church that Christians do not get depressed

but oppressed, so she could not confide in anyone

at her church. At this point, it was about a se-

mantics game, true and real emotions that she was

experiencing, so prayer and scripture reading and

meditation became a renewed force in her life.

Through the leading of the Holy Sprit, she found

peace and fulfillment in the comfort of God’s

presence which lead her to acceptance.

This time she was wiser and stronger than

she once was when she first knew to depend on

God for strength and guidance. Stage 5, the final

stage opened up a new reality to her. It was well

within her soul, and she was at peace.

She filed for divorce and began the pro-

cess with great uncertainly; nevertheless, she be-

gan. Joyce Myer encourages believers in Jesus

Christ to not be controlled by fear but to “Do it

anyway,” fear and all. That is just what she did.

A young lady encouraged her to file the necessary

paperwork. Her husband was served with the di-

vorce papers. When she filed, the clerk of the

court advised her to ask for a court date in the un-

contested court. She was also told that her hus-

band could file papers disputing anything in the

divorce papers that he did not agree with and that

he had 30 days to do that. The court date was set

30 days after the date he accepted the divorce pa-

pers.

The day of the court date she picked out

an outfit that she thought was fitting for the last

day of her marriage. She went to court with all

confidence. She now had a prayer partner, and

they had agreed that all she needed to do was

show up in court, and everything would be

worked out. She went into the courtroom and

waited patiently for the judge to hear her case.

While she waited, she witnessed the judge send

others away due to lack of paperwork. She

checked and checked to make sure she had every-

thing; then, her name was called. Before she

could even state her case, the judge told her that

she was missing her child support paperwork and

proof of participation in a parenting course. Her

heart sank inside her chest; despair attempted to

kick in. She said a quick prayer and was lead to

contact the attorney who had typed up her divorce

papers three years prior. (cont. on page 17)


person, yet you find minor flaws in their character.

When you see them in public, you both

acknowledge each other and exchange niceties.

One-sided friends are friends who may call

you for advise but very seldom, if ever, give you

advice. They pull on you and draw from you with-

out making a deposit back into you. You keep

them around because you feel like a savior or res-

cuer when they are around.

Moreover, fair-weather friends are those

friends who conveniently find their way into your

life whenever things are going well with you, but

disappear or get too busy when something out of

the ordinary occurs in your life.

Spiritual friends are friends that you feel a

spiritual bond with that cannot be explained. The

way they entered your life was clearly divine.

Even if you want to end the friendship, it is almost

impossible because you have a spiritual connec-

tion.

Then, there are friends of a friend. This is

someone you really don’t know, but one of your

friends knows; you feel a connection to them

through association. Even if they don’t consider

you a friend, you still consider them a friend,

No matter the role of the friend, you allow

them into your life. If you want to put ex– or for-

mer in front of any kind of friend, it is totally up to

you.

How do you define friends? Throw out all

of the textbook definitions, and develop your own.

There is no such thing as a perfect friend; that is

why we have more than one. Take a moment to

examine your friends, and see what they mean to

you and your life. Each of your friends embodies

something that brings you inspiration. Open up

your heart to them, and find your inspiration.

Life has many lessons, but the definition

of friends can be a very valuable one. Growing

up, I only knew one type of friend, a best friend,

so the rest of my life was shaped by that one-

tracked example of a friend. I wandered through

life expecting all of my friends to be confidants

just like a best friend. I wanted every friend to

value my friendship and fight to keep it. Boy, was

I ever wrong! Here is what I have learned about

friends.

Friends come in all shapes, races and sizes.

Houdini had a song in the 70s called “Friends.”

One of the lyrics asked, “How many of us have

them?” The truth is, we all have friends whether

we acknowledge them or not.

In my life journey I have found that there

are several types of friends, and the longer you

live, the more types you will discover. Friends

don’t always agree with you. As a matter of fact,

truthful friends will agree to disagree while still

making their opinion known. Every friend does

not fit the same mold, for friends are unique in na-

ture and purpose.

Longtime friends are those friends whom

you have known for over 20 years. You may have

been through some life-changing events or just

some occasional laughs. Years may have even

passed in between the times that you spend togeth-

er. Nevertheless, time is what determines your

friendship.

Next, supportive friends are those friends

who will support any and everything you do, no

matter what. Usually, your supportive friends are

your non-confrontational friends.

Furthermore, casual friends are friends

whom you are not personal with, and most of your

conversations are shallow. You enjoy their com-

pany, but not too often. You consider them a nice

How Do You Define Them? by JT Hud

I’M Magazine

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How far back can you remember? My farthest

memory dates back to when I was four years old. I can

only remember bits and pieces; nevertheless, it’s a

memory. All of my siblings and I attended Volusia Ele-

mentary School for the Head Start Program. After com-

pleting the program, I went on to Lenox Elementary where

I attended kindergarten and first grade. Surprisingly, I

don’t remember much about kindergarten, and my first

grade memories are few. It wasn’t until my family moved

to a different part of the city that my memory from Head

Start surfaced and was forever embedded in my memory.

Once I got to my new school, I noticed some fa-

miliar faces. It took a while for my seven-year-old mind to

recollect how I knew these faces. Many of the students in

my new first grade class had attended Head Start with me.

That is when I learned to tap into my memory.

That new school brought other memories to me as

well. One of the most vivid memories was the memory of

touring the school. That memory was the most profound

because my tour of the school had come from my subcon-

scious. You see, I had dreamed about attending that school

before I ever stepped foot inside of it or even know that

one day I would attend there. I didn’t know what it was at

the time since I was so young, but what happened that day

has shaped how I view memories.

I was walking around the school with my other

siblings getting a tour of the school when things started to

look familiar to me. I had seen the staircase before that we

were approaching, and I knew what the row of classrooms

would look like before I climbed one stair. I had been hav-

ing a recurring dream for years about a school. It wasn’t

until that day that I knew what that dream had been about.

Until that day, I had only passed by that school when I

traveled to the store with my mother. I didn’t tell anyone

what was going on; I just continued on the tour.

Then there was another time in the fifth grade at

that same school when our teacher was unexpectedly pro-

moted to assistant principal, and we got a new teacher in

the middle of the year. One day our new teacher walked

through the class room, and I told one of my friends what

he would do next. Just like I had seen it before, he walked

over to the part of the room that I knew he would walk to

and said just what I knew he would say.

It wasn’t until I was an adult that I recognized that

God had given me a special gift to see into the future. It is

not something that happens everyday, but when it happens

it always blows my mind. I cannot wish for it or make it

happen; it happens on its own without my help.

The last time it happened I was getting ready to

buy a house. I saw the lot and the layout of the road, so

when the realtor took me to the same dead-end looking

street to show me the lot, I knew it was the house for me.

Because Satan is very crafty and a deceiver, I now

know to fast and pray when I have a dream or a vision to

make sure that Satan is not trying to deceive me through

the gift that God has given me. I have even learned to

wait for confirmation.

When I was younger, I was not a threat to Satan

because I didn’t know what I had. I thought it was just

dreams that somehow came true. Now, I know that it is a

part of the prophetic gift that lives on the inside of me that

has to be nurtured and cultivated. That is why God has

sent me to a prophetic ministry that helps to strengthen

and develop my gift.

It all started simply from remembering and blos-

somed into the prophetic, not to be confused with a psy-

chic or reader. My gift is not an on-demand gift that I can

call on when someone asks. It is only stirred in my spirit

as the Holy Spirit leads. I am not a prophet; I have a gift.

Think back over your life and what it is that you

remember? Has God been talking to you, and you didn’t

know it was Him? If you are not certain about how God

works through you, I encourage you to check your

memory.

Back Down Memory Lane By JT Hud

I’M Magazine

She made an appointment and went

to see her within days. Her concern was that

the divorce would be delayed. She expected

to pay $75 for the consultation, so when the

receptionist told her that this visit was free,

she knew the hand of God was at work on

her behalf. The advice that she was given by

the attorney gave her great comfort; she was

reassured that completing the child support

paperwork online and attending the parent-

ing course was all she needed to have her

divorce finalized. The attorney directed her

to the website where she could submit the

needed paperwork for child support. The

judge had already given her the information

on where to go to take the parenting course.

She filled out the necessary papers

for child support and completed the course

for parenting. With that behind her, she filed

for a new court date. When she spoke with

the attorney, she was told that it would be in

her best interest to keep her husband abreast

of the everything that was going on in the

case to avoid delays, so she went to filing for

the new court date; she knew that requesting

an uncontested judge was not a wise move.

This time she requested a contested judge

which is what she wanted to do from the be-

ginning. The reason why she listened to the

clerk initially is because the clerk said that

the divorce would not be final if she had

asked for a contested judge initially. She

wasn’t talking a chance this time. It would

be up to her husband to contact the court and

find out the new court

date. Again, she care-

fully chose her court

outfit and went to court.

This time she was not as confident as she

was the first time, for contested court was

different. The judge went through the docket

and asked if both parties were there. Her

husband was incarcerated in the same county

as court was being held, so she thought he

would definitely be there. Perhaps out of

spite, he would have his girlfriend to even

show up. Her nerves were uneasy, but her

faith was unwavering. No matter what hap-

pened, she was ready. When their name was

called, he wasn’t there nor was the girlfriend.

She explained her case to the judge and took

her seat as instructed. Once all of the names

were called, the judge asked different ones to

go to the back with a representative from the

court; she was one of the people who had to

go with the representative. When it was her

turn, she went to the back and heard what the

lady had to say. She was told that the judge

could rule on her divorce today, but there

was not much that he could do about her

child support. You see the calculation from

the online filing suggested that he pay $75 a

month in child support.

She went back and took her seat and

waited to be called again. When the judge

called her name, she went to the desk in front

of the judge and humbled herself and listened

to what the judge had to say. He told her that

he would sign off on her divorce at that time

making it final. She asked if she would need

to schedule another court date with the un-

contested judge to get the final decree. His

response was, “This doesn’t have to be pro-

longed any longer;” the divorce will be final

today. She could not believe what she was

hearing. Then he went on to say that he was

limited on what he could rule on child sup-

port. Since she told the court that he was ca-

pable of earning income even though he was

currently unemployed, the judge granted her

$225 in stead of the $75 previously stated.

Again, she could not believe

what she was hearing. It was

truly more than she could ask

or imagine. It was no doubt

that God’s hand was at work in this situation.

Prayer worked. It was not the first court date

that all she had to do was show up; it was the

second court date.

She got the victory, and God got the

glory! Patience and prayer revealed God’s

hand.

It was no doubt that God’s hand

was at work in this situation.

(conti. from page 13)


by Darius Stevenson

The Melanin in Me

Life is a quest to find one’s African origin.

Our judgment is clouded and future predetermined due to our lack of knowledge.

If we know from where we came, we can foresee where we are destined.

We must beleaguer ourselves with knowledge of our surroundings.

As black men, we cannot survive in this society without knowledge of it.

There have been many ventriloquists that will have us believe we are immigrants.

Truthfully, we are the original inhabitants of these lands.

Many Caucasian, as well unfortunately Moors, are afraid of us becoming educated about our

history and heritage.

They are afraid of us coming together and creating change.

As long as we assimilate, the cycle will continue.

The day we come together as a people, we will grow stronger, and peace will dwell amongst

these lands.

Being blind to our story is insanity.

Wisdom is present where knowledge lies.

We were kings, queens, astronomers, as well as craftsmen, long before our chains were forged.

Those that seek to oppress us will have us believe we were set free; no, we fought back.

And we gained our freedom.

There were slave rebellions taking place all over, such as in Haiti.

We are an honorable people who walk with dignity in each stride.

We have overcome so much oppression, my God.

By the principal of morality and honor, I will forever abide.

Keeping faith in my Holy Father, I will for eternity confide.

The sooner we know ourselves as a people, the closer we are to grasping the true meaning of

our individual selves.

Many Blessings

I’M Magazine

Praise Reports

A few months ago, the Lord spoke to me and said for me to give bibles away as I

tell people about Him. Two days later, my dryer gave out so my girls and I had

to go to a laundromat to dry some clothes. I said to myself, “Lord whoever is at

this Laundromat, I will tell them about You.” When I got there, it was an elderly

white lady and a man I thought was her husband; I later found out she was his

care giver. The lady preceded to tell me what dryers got the hottest, and she told

me I had to bam on one to get it started. Then she put a quarter in for me which I

was trying to tell her not to do. As I sent my two daughters to get change, I

looked in my wallet and found a quarter and tried to give it back, but she said no,

that quarter belonged to Jesus. I was thinking I was going to tell her about Him

and she already knew Him. Then this is what got my attention: She said I GIVE

BIBLES AWAY!!!!! I said the Lord has spoken to me about doing the same thing!!!!!!!!!! She looked me squarely

in the eyes and she said, “ I AM TELLING YOU WHAT THE LORD SAID: GIVE HIS WORD AWAY!!!!!!!!!!!

So I am passing on the message here: GIVE HIS WORD AWAY!!!!!!!!!” Not only His Word, the Holy Bible, but

the Gospel of Jesus!!!!!!! Hallejuiah!!!!!! Blessings to ALL!!!!!!!

Cherry Delaney

Pierre and Britney Canidate celebrated the start of their new lives together on November 28,

2009. Shortly after getting married, they started an event-planning company in the Washington,

DC area. They make it a point to celebrate life and each other whenever the chance arises.

Then one day Britney noticed a change in her body that only a woman can; she

was pregnant. Now, they are entering into a new chapter of their

lives...parenthood! Now, the two have become three. They give praises to the

Lord, Jesus Christ for the blessing that He is trusting them with. Taylor Marie

Canidate, we await your arrival.

404.667.6812

[email protected]

P.O. Box 366092

I’M MAGAZINE

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