ThePhoebe

August 2016 Issue 6

Phoebe Defined......
page1

Brown Sugar Gold

page 2

A Vivid Violation
page 3

The Elevation
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 nonsecular 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,

Brown Sugar Gold

ts been a fabulous 2016

Olympics for the United States

with athletes competing and
bringing home over 84 medals.
My family has been glued to
the TV just about every night. I
have always been an Olympic
watcher, but never in my forty
plus years have I been as
proud of the showing of gold
amongst my beautiful black
sisters! Yes, of course, weve
excelled in one sport here or
there, mainly the sprints in
track and field. In no way am I
negating the Wilma Rudolphs,
the Evelyn Ashfords, the FloJos or the Dominque Dawes
that paved the way for us. But

Suggested
Reading:
Undaunted: Daring to do what
God calls you to do; Part
inspirational tale of overcoming
abuse and abandonment, part
manifesto to stir readers to lives
of adventure, Undaunted also
shows the way with spiritual
wisdom and insight. 'You are
the treasure that cost
something, ' Christine says, 'a
price you could never pay but
that has been covered.

I will say unashamedly, that I

am prouder to be a black
women in 2016, because of the
acknowledgement and
coverage that it seems we are
finally receiving because of our
efforts and achievements. As
a child there were very few
black women athletes that
were showcased that I could
aspire to be like in so many
diverse fields of sports. My
daughter does not think it rare
to see so many black women
doing their best and
representing America, because
she is seeing it in living color.
Black women rock!! That does
not discredit or discount any
other shade of women who are
doing their thing. But with so

much negativity displayed in

the media about black women,
it is just awesome to breathe in
the fresh air of brown sugar
gold, if only for two weeks!
Ladies lets take this as a time
of pride and honor for all
women of color. Don't settle
for the bronze in any walk of
your life. Lets allow the
success of Michelle, Simone,
Simone, Brianna, Tianna,
Gabby and others catapult us
into a place where we make a
conscious choice on a daily
basis, whether its on our jobs,
in our homes, with our children
or with our friends that we are
going to bring home the gold in
everything we do!

"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

A Vivid Violation
Clearly you have no regard for me, my family or my things. You shattered
my peace with a boulder of my own possession. You took what's mine and
used it to invade my space. You left your DNA and fingerprints on the
window pane of my soul and because of that my stomach tumbles daily in
disgust. The alarm in my heart went off and your intimidation showed its
face. Your attempt to disconnect me from those who serve and protect was
fruitless. Your panic had a scent that lingered long after you escaped the
way you came in. You destroyed the order I had in place in my life. You
cluttered my clutter even more. Even the change Id saved to move from the
place Ive called home for so many years was not off limits. You looked
through my valuables, my intimate items and threw them on the floor. You
stole memories I cant replace. You even had the audacity to use my own
electricity to fund your search.
The biggest violation is that you attempted to damage my seed. You took
her tranquility and turned it on its head. You went way too far with that one
and all bets are off! There is no more playing now! My momma bear mode
has been triggered and I must do what I have to do. Why did you have to
mess with my generational investment? Why did you have to rob her of her
innocence and purity?..

hile on our last vacation, our

home was invaded, our things were
thrown about and our possessions
were taken. And while the emotions
shared above could be directed at
the perpetrator, my focus is on the
enemy of my soul. You did this
Satan and I aint playing with you! I
no longer plan to sit back and allow
you to steal, kill and destroy my
peace. I have been given power over
you and I will defeat you, not by my
own hands but by the power that
lives in me!!! You can take my
things, you can disrupt the order of
my life, but I take the blame for not
fortifying my house with the power
of the Holy Ghost. I take the blame
for giving you

space in my home and in my life.

But the buck stops here! Yes, new
physical measures are being taken
around here, but spiritual ones are
too! The windows of the spirituality
of our lives has been fortified with
the ultimate glass breaking system
and the best motion detectors on
the market. You needed to be
reminded that we are children of the
Most High! Kings Kids!!! He does
not play when it comes to His
children and neither do I! Your day
of defeat is coming. Yes you should
watch your back and keep your eyes
open. My Daddy is the justice
maker and you will be defeated.
Come round here again and see
how the end is gonna turn out!

Ephesians 6: 11-13

THE ELEVATION
According to
dictionary.com, elevation
is the height to which
something is elevated or
to which it rises. When
you take an elevator up,
once you push the
button, you have no
choice, but to move up.
So what happens when a
prophetic word is spoken
over you that elevation
for you in a particular
area of ministry is about
to occur? Where do you
turn for direction, how do
you respond? The
correct response is to do
what the elevator causes
you to doMOVE UP!
Position yourself so that

you can hear for yourself

what God has for you,
seek wise counsel
regarding what is to come
next and most importantly
be ready to move onto
whatever floor God has
in store for you. Don't get
off too early. Don't stop
in between floors. Don't
allow your fear of height
paralyze you. Move
upward to the place you
know He has called you
to be. Enjoy the ride up.
God has you! Being
afraid doesn't stop the
elevator from moving. It
just requires you to
accept its movement
regardless of how you
feel.

Rhonda C. White is the independently published author

of the novel, Joshuas Coming, (amazon.com) an
inspirational story of a couples struggle with infertility
and wounds from the past. This story is loosely based
on the authors life. She is currently working on books
entitled, The Daddy Void, Discovering the Creative and
Purposeful Design for Woman and How to Change Your
Husband in 30 Days. She is a devoted wife of 18 years
and mother of a remarkable 9-year old daughter. She
serves at Christian Life Center in the Married Couples
and Counseling Ministries. She works as an adjunct
professor at Morton College and is a school district
Physical Therapist. Visit her website at:
rhondaw897.wix.com/rhondacwhite Contact the author
for engagements at:

thedaddyvoidproject@gmail.com.