ThePhoebe

October 2013 Issue 1

Phoebe Defined......
page1

The Mystery of Marriage

and Family
page 2

Gluttony and Grace

page 3

Putting Out the Trash

page 4

Phoebe Defined...
I commend to you our sister Phoebe, who is a deacon in
the church in Cenchrea. Welcome her in the Lord as one
who is worthy of honor among Gods people. Help her
in whatever she needs, for she has been helpful to
many, and especially to me. (Romans 16:1, 2 NLT)

So what's this Phoebe thing all about? Phoebe was a

noted female working along side the Apostle Paul. She
proved to be trustworthy and instrumental in the early
church. The early church suffered persecution at the hand
of the Jewish people and Roman rule. Under harsh
conditions Phoebe managed with others to do God's work;
helping to save souls and take the Gospel of Jesus Christ
to a lost world. Just like Phoebe of the early church, this
Phoebe dares to bring the unadulterated gospel truth to
all readers, with emphasis on women of all shades, types,
ethnicities, social-economic, secular and non-secular
backgrounds. This quarterly newsletter will prompt the
reader to think introspectively and act externally. Topics of
interest will include: world views, women's health, marriage
and relationships, spirituality and the like.
The hard truth is that daily people are dying because of
poor living conditions, being sold in the sex trade, ending
marriage prematurely and suffering from mental illness.
That list could go on, but we must breathe, and take every
moment into consideration. We must be intentional with
every step we take. We must be walking talking hope
givers to the lost and this newsletter intends to equip you
with tools to do that. We intend to keep Phoebe's legacy
alive and remain relevant in a time where authenticity and
reality rarely meet........and Purposeful Design for

Women, which is dedicated to the topic

discussed in this article, to be released in

The Mystery of Marriage

The mystery is simply
this: you did not get
married to be served,
but to serve. How could
you think that
becoming "one" would
be easy? Think about it
literally...if something
has to become "one
flesh" there has to be a
tearing down, a ripping
off and a scraping up as
well as a molding
together, a meshing of

flesh and a mending of

fibers. Of course that
hurts! Of course, in
your flesh you will get
tired; shoot that's
normal under those
circumstances! You will
be going through some
form of this process
until death does you
part! It's as simple as
this: sometimes it's easy
and sometimes it's hard.
Sometimes it feels good,

Suggested
Reading:
This book is life changing!
It's simple enough to take
in large doses. Wright is
an excellent storyteller. If
you are looking to be free
of guilt and shame and
you are tied to your past,
this book is for you. You
will learn how to walk in
the true freedom that is
waiting for you!

sometimes it hurts. But

the beauty of it is this; I
believe that God is so in
love with marriage and
the plan of marriage,
that if we don't, quit, if
we don't let up, if we
don't let go, He is
willing to perform a
miracle in our lives, just
to honor His name, to
honor His plan of
marriage. I guarantee
you it won't happen as

fast as you want it to

but.....After you have
suffered a little while, our
God, who is full of kindness
through Christ, will give
you his eternal glory. He
personally will come and
pick you up, and set you
firmly in place, and make
you stronger than ever. 1
Peter 5:10

Don't quit on God!

"I want my life to be a novel that

when the book is read, the
reader has one more thought of
Christ than they did before..."
Rhonda C. White

Gluttony and Grace

The Fight Against Obesity Amongst Christians

It is evident in America that have the nerve to feast like why we havent gotten on
we have a weight problem.
Millions of dollars are spent
each year on weight
reduction productions, but
yet we still seem to
struggle with weight loss.
Unfortunately, Christians
suffer with this issue also.
"In fact, churches may be
leading the way in obesity
with statistics indicating
that Christians in America
may be more overweight
that the general
population. Indeed, a 2006
study at Purdue found that
fundamental Christians are
significantly the heaviest of
all religious groups, led by
Baptists with a 30%
obesity rate compared with
Jews at 1%, Buddhists and
Hindus at 0.7%" quote from an
article by Theresa Tanoos,
Indianapolis Examiner.

Ask yourselves this

question? Why would the

enemy leave us alone just
because we are saved from
going to hell? Because
often we've eliminated
drugs, excessive alcohol
and the like from our lives,
we then over do grease,
pork, dairy products, white
flour and sugar, which
when left out in the sun for
just a few short hours
would turn into a stinky,
pile of pig paste! Then we
laugh and say, You got to
go somehow! We even

kings and then go to the

gym and work out for
hours to burn off a few
calories from a 3800-calorie
meal. You might even
believe that if you loose
weight and fit back into
that size 8 that everything
is okay and that you can
treat your body anyway
you choose. Do you ever
wonder though what your
kidneys, liver, heart or
colon look like? When we
choose to voluntarily
maintain an unhealthy diet
and refuse to exercise, we
are saying to God that the
temple that He blessed us
with is not worth
maintaining. We are
deciding to sin against our
creator due to selfishness
and lack of discipline.
Look, the doctor has
already told you if you
continue down this road
you will need surgery,
dialysis or medication to
survive. So is that your
choice? We have got to
admit that food is a legal
drug we have to conquer!

The fact is, Jesus came to

give us life and life more
abundantly. Doesnt
abundantly mean less pain,
sickness and disease to
you? If we know that we
can prevent or even rid
ourselves of some illnesses,
then can someone explain

board yet? We must also

consider how obesity
affects our witness. If
people look at us and say
we can't even manage food
with Jesus, how can Jesus
help them with all of their
other stuff?
Here are some simple
guidelines that you can use
to get on the right road to
living longer more
productive lives. Most of
these things are
inexpensive or free. It just
takes a little wisdom and
discipline to start your life
over again. God's grace is
sufficient.
1. Consult your health care
professional for a full
physical exam
2. Begin to drink of your
body weight in ounces of
purified water daily

preferably raw to your die

daily
7. Investigate the use of
vitamins,herbal
supplements and juicing
8. Pray daily for discipline
and strength to change
your poor habits into
healthy ones and begin to
do research to become
more health conscious.

If you truly desire to

change, I believe our God
is able to do anything but
fail, if you only let Him.
Thats the key; you have to
decide to let Him. Slowly
begin to make changes in
your lifestyle and dont ge
discouraged so fast if you
dont see the differences
immediately.

Wisdom is the principle thing,

therefore get wisdom and with
all thy getting, get understating

Proverbs 4:6
3. Begin to exercise at least
three times per week
* Note: The suggestions above
including total body weight are based on individual research
training into your program and are not necessarily applicabl
4. Reduce the amount of
the four whites in your
diet-white flour, white rice,
white sugar and milk.
5.Consider the need for a
herbal cleansing and or
colonic
6. Eat 5-7 servings of
vegetables and fruit

to every person. Please consult

your health care professional

before attempting any new form

of diet or exercise.

Putting Out
the Trash !
Are you engaged, single
and dating, single and
satisfied or is your clock
ticking out of control?
Regardless, there are some
things that you can do in
preparation for your future.
I've heard it said, "I am
waiting for Mr. Right" But
are you gonna be Mrs.
Wrong, when he shows up?
We can say we are ready or
even think we are ready, but
if you have not purged
yourself of the mess that
you know you don't even
like within yourself, then
only two paths lie ahead.
You will either draw people
to you who are broken
themselves in need of help
or you will drag
unnecessary garbage into a
potentially good
relationship.

Let's admit, there are some

things in our lives that we dont
like; some things that could be
better and should have been
dealt with long ago. If you want
to be married, why not loose that
extra baggage before dragging it
into your relationship and having
your spouse deal with it too? We
spend lifetimes in horrible
marriages blaming the other
person for our unhappiness
when in all actuality that pain is
following us around because we
won't handle our business! Put
out the trash!

"Christ bought your soul with a price

and it is not an option to give it away to
someone who does not believe in Him!"
Pastor Moma Chris McQuay

Have you ever left garbage in your house on a hot day that you knew needed
to go out, only to come home eight hours later to putrid awful smell? Whose
fault is that? I could list here several trash items that we should take out like:
obesity, addictions, or even disorganization. The list could go on, but that's not
the point. You know you! Deal with it! Do it now! Don't waste another minute
looking for him or wondering if the looser you have right now is the one or that
you can even make him into the one! You can't change anyone only God can!
So in the mean time work on you! Let me stand up and say that again! WORK
ON YOU! If you can't do it alone get some help. Seek wise counsel, lock
yourself in a closet, but do it! I believe God is faithful and He does want us to
have fulfilling marriages, but if you don't have that right now, then it might just
be because there are some things He wants you to handle first! Selah!

Rhonda C. White is the self published author of her

debut novel, Joshuas Coming; an inspirational story
of a Christian couples struggle with infertility and
wounds from the past. This story is loosely based on
the authors life. She is currently working on a book,
entitled The Daddy Void, Discovering the Creative
and Purposeful Design for Woman. She is a devoted
wife of 15 years and mother of a remarkable 6-year
old daughter. She serves at Christian Life Center in
Tinley Park, Illinois in the Childrens and Counseling
Ministries. She works as an adjunct professor at
Morton College and is a school district Physical
Therapist.