May-June 2021

Classyandchic Gems Magazine

H T G N E STR VE LO HOPE CY N E I L I S E R

6TH ISSUE EDITOR: ANITA ANN FORD

May-June 2021

A note from our editor:

ANITA ANN FORD

Classyandchic Gems magazine offers an authentic look at life through believers who are perfectly imperfect and believe in the power of the Gospel. God’s gifts are all around us, but it’s up to us to recognize them.

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Content Creators for M ay-June Mental Health Gems-Anita Ford Military Gems-Carolyn Ford Faith Gems-Anita ford beauty Gems-Joann Aguauo Financial Gems-Reginal Lyerly Beauty Gems-Featuring Sylcau Beauty Self care gems-Featuring Pur Allure Skincare photographY Gems- Aerospace Engineer, Professional photographer-Alvin Ford,Jr .

MENTAL HEALTH GEMS

DESOLATE SEASONS Creator: Anita Ford

Seasons-Hebrews 13:8; Ecclesiastes 3:11

There’s so much beauty found in knowing that we never walk alone. !

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Whether you’ve been a Christian for a short amount of time or many years, you will go through the fire at some point in time. And, sometimes, immediately following a trial, you will enter a desolate season. I can’t tell you the amount of seasons I’ve walked through life changing circumstances with just my family and a couple of close friends by my side.

I believe God does His greatest work when we are fully focused and listening to Him. But the problem lies within the mentality of the world.

The world wants people to constantly fill their lives with distractions and a million reasons to never stop and slow down. There’s so much beauty found in God given rest. My prayer is that everyone walking through a lonely season realizes that God hasn’t left you. Often times, it’s difficult to decipher between seasoned, seasonal and faithful friendships. When you begin to trust in the Lord with every aspect of your life, you will realize that He is a friend who never leaves your side.

It’s quite possible that some of your toughest seasons prepare you for your next breakthrough. No matter what you’re going through, do not give up.

He will always see you through.

ICLASSYANDCHIC GEMS

Peace of Mind Written by: Reginal G Lyerly When we think of peace of mind, what does this mean to you? Many of us think of this as looking out for our loved ones and providing the best protection possible. The end state of this proves to be most disproportionate throughout society. The topic that I make reference in article is the use of life insurance. Insurance defined is a contract between a policyholder and an authorized insurance company/provider. It is designed to attempt to make whole what has been lost, minimize disruptions and provide adequate financial stability in the event of lost income due to someone’s death. Who can really ever replace a loved one once they’ve departed from us?

This is intended to be the peace of mind that those we leave behind will have some guarantees when in an irreplaceable loss occurs.

Many families consistently utilize life insurance as a means of taking care of various things. An important reason to help replace the income of the “designated breadwinner”. Another important reason is to ensure some type of income after retirement. Here are some other ways that life insurance can help a family: Provide income for spouse and possibly provide dependents with the means to go to college, help clear liabilities associated with one’s estate, can be borrowed against it provided the policy has cash value and/or pay off the remaining balance of a mortgage.

This knowledge is available but not always accessible to all families. For example, I knew of a young man who was murdered by gunfire in Cleveland, Ohio less than one month ago. It was very much a traumatic loss for the family. Sadly, the young man didn’t have a life insurance policy. The family was forced to initiate a Go Fund Me page to raise the proceeds for his funeral and burial. One of his siblings was forced to borrow against his 401K to raise the remaining balance. If the young man would have been insured at the time of his death, this would have drastically lessened the financial, psychological and emotional impact on everyone associated with the loss.

Many view monthly or annual insurance premium payments as just a bill to be paid. An insurance premium applied toward a policy is actually an investment. Life Insurance Policies are aleatory in nature meaning in exchange for premiums the company agrees to pay a death benefit in the event of loss. In most cases, when the premiums are paid and no contestable factors are present, the death benefit is usually delivered in a timely manner to the designated beneficiary upon proof of loss (i.e. death certificate).

Lastly, having a life insurance policy is never about the one who passes away. The policy is to help take care of the people who one leaves everyone behind in the event of their timely or untimely passing. Remember, the peace of mind comes from being able to provide for those who follow you. Directly and indirectly, use of life insurance can help some families acquire some generational wealth due to its immediate opportunity for estate creation.

Reginal is a Licensed Life Insurance Agent. He is currently partnered with the company Primerica. He services the entire state of North Carolina. He can be contacted by e-mail at rlyerly@primerica.com or by DM on Facebook @ Reginal G. Lyerly or by DM on Instagram @the_differencemaker.

Restoration Gems

SELF CARE

By: Anita Ford

Self Care is the BEST Care

It’s important to do the very best you can in everything you do, but it’s also important to take the time to refill your cup. My friends, you can not pour from an empty cup. Today, we are sharing one of our favorite ways to relax... Self care!

Self Care Days with @PurAllure Skincare

MENTAL HEALTH GEMS

Beauty

How do you incorporate color into your makeup routine?

Connect with Joann via social media on Facebook and Instagram at @jcindyraguayo.

BEAUTY GEMS

Classyandchic Gems Magazine

Bold Bold in in Color Color Blogger: Anita Ford

I love pieces that make a statement and this necklace definitely screams artsy, trendy and BOLD. You should always wear what makes you feel beautiful and I choose to wear bold, fun looks.

Bold, beautiful necklaces via @Sylcadesigns.

BEAUTY GEMS

ClassyandChic Gems Magazine

Faith of a Mustard Seed...

CHOOSING JOY AT ALL TIMES!

WRITTEN BY: ANITA FORD

Seize the Day! 4 very short years ago, God gave me a dream and He placed this dream inside a fashion blog. He told me that I was going He would use something people always compliment me on for His good. I have a background in pageants and modeling, but this world I was about to dive in would take a lot of hard work to even be recognized.

So, God took this small town woman who knew absolutely nothing about blogging and set her into a brand new world. Along my journey, I’ve met a lot of people. I’ve had people speak life into me and pray for me. A year ago, I opened up my own boutique. A year and a half ago, I started my own faith based blogger group. And, five months ago, my magazine launched. Every single thing I do is faith based. God gave me this platform and He entrusted me with having the ability to hear from Him and speak life into others. Now, here’s where faith over fear has to come in. When you start walking in your purpose, you’ll see a lot of people for who they are and that’s okay. God starts shaking the leaves off the trees in your yard and just like the leaves fall to the ground in the fall, God weeds people out of your life who are no good for your destiny. So, every time someone whispers a negative word about you or your dreams, these are the people who not only reveal to us who we shouldn’t be but they also reveal to us why they don’t have a place in our lives.

FAITH GEMS

Classyandchic Gems

Follow Follow Me Me Follow Me Written by Anita Ford How many times have you been on a trip somewhere familiar with a person who refuses to use the GPS or a map? Or, you may be someone who has a great sense of direction, but what if an unexpected detour changes the route of your entire trip? No matter how familiar you are with an area, unfamiliar twists and turns will require the help of someone or some other source in order to arrive at your destination.

Jesus is our guide in life. The Bible tells us that we all need a Savior. While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 8)Jesus wants us to come to Him as we are. We don’t have to clean up our own lives before we come to Him. Christ’s redemptive power is the only source that changes us from broken to whole. Savior means, “One who delivers or rescues from peril.”

In our lives, it is evident that we need a Savior. We all need rescuing. So, when we are lost in life, who do we follow? I love how Jesus teaches His disciples a very important lesson about following Him in this passage of scripture. He tells his disciples that in order to follow Him, they must take up their cross and follow Him. Cross in this scripture means, our Christian witness. There is a world of hurting people who need to experience Christ’s love and forgiveness.

Is it difficult to think about others when we are facing our own personal storms? Is difficult to walk upright and forgive when you’ve been hurt before? Yes, trials and tribulations often bring out soul stirring emotions, but Jesus wants us to set all those feelings aside and follow Him. This world desperately needs to see Christians trusting in God at all times You are here for such a time as this!

FAITH GEMS

ClassyandChic Gems Magazine

RENEWING YOUR MIND WRITTEN BY: ANITA FORD Spending time with God and reading His word allows us to not only hear from Him, but He also implants His vision in our hearts. As with any relationship, the more time you spend with someone, the more you know about them. When we choose to follow Jesus wholeheartedly, and without reservations, our lives then begin to move toward the path He laid out for us. Being a Christian is a daily process of renewing our minds and thought processes to be disciples of Jesus Christ.

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Think of Jesus as your GPS. No matter where you go or what you ve been through, Jesus will lead you back to Him. You are His precious prize and He continuously pursues you. Second, we must deny ourselves in order to follow Him completely. Is denying ourselves hard? Yes because we all have selfish desires that surface in different areas of our lives. In fact, our world encourages people to put themselves first. Our own desires can many times be the very things that draws us into a hole of despair, uncertainty and doubt. But, when we put others first, we begin to live out the call on our lives to draw others near to Him. Life is all about giving back to others. In fact,

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true love isn t real until we ve given love away. I challenge you: Love hard and always love consistently.

FAITH GEMS

ICLASSYANDCHICGEMS

Renew and Restore: The Credit Restoration and Reemergence .by Reginal G. Lyerly Spring is a time of renewal and rebirth. Many of us look forward to the blue skies, warmer weather and the breeze that feels so great to the skin. Many of us dread the pollen and the insects. Millions are still dreading and suffering from the economic aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic on their credit histories and their financial lives.

Our recent public health crisis has had countless unintended consequences on our lives and families. Some of the most unlikely people were suddenly furloughed, laid off and had to seek jobless benefits for the first time ever. Conversely, there were also millions who were deemed essential and flawlessly performed to keep our country’s infrastructure functioning at our most critical time. Many essential personnel while remaining employed faced and still face many of the same economic challenges as those deemed nonessential by this crisis.

Our world and nation is doing everything possible to turn the page and transition to a new normal. This is the spring renewal and rebirth that so many of us desperately need.

As a credit repair referral agent, it is an honor to serve the public by helping others gain the necessary tools in order to improve their financial literacy thus improving themselves and their families. This improvement has the propensity to create future generational wealth in ways that would have never existed before.

This is an area of life that should be taught in every aspect of primary and secondary education. So many people learn about this area in life when there is an eventoriented situation that suddenly requires changes in one’s financial habits and practices. I am optimistic that turbulence times will become triumph times for many in relatively short order. The American spirit has always had the resilience to come back from anything it has ever faced. We came back from the Great Depression. We came back from the Great Recession. We will emerge from this pandemic with a stronger resolve unlike anyone has ever seen in this nation’s history.

Reginal is the Senior Managing Partner for RGL Marketing, LLC based out of the Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina area. He specializes in the functional areas of digital marketing, network marketing, credit repair/restoration referral, advertising and promotions. He can be contacted by email at rlyerly@outlook.com, by DM on Facebook @ Reginal G. Lyerly or by DM on Instagram at the_differencemaker.

Financial Gems

Classyandchic Gems Magazine

A Mama’s Heart Army wife, educator, .sister, best friend, Christ follower and mother, Carolyn enjoys encouraging and speaking life into mothers.

Someone once asked me, how did my husband and I raise 3 resilient children?

My answer was and will always be, “The Lord.”

As a military wife and mother, I had many moments in my life where I was both the mother and the father. While my husband was gone, I was expected to take the reigns and step up and guide my children. There’s nothing more important than knowing that you are raising resilient children. My children adapted fairly quickly to change and I also had the opportunity to witness my 3 children grow in their faith as our Army journey continued.

Writer: Carolyn Ford

You are valuable because God planted gifts inside of you that no one else possesses.

Mama’s you’ll have many opportunities to stay defeated if you allow the devil to have a foothold in your life. But, behind every uncertain moment God is still there and He is in control. I challenge you to see your worth through God, your family and your loved ones. Even when it seems as if everything is stacked against you, there comes a point when you must acknowledge that God has entrusted you with a family for a reason. And, He knew that you were strong enough to stand be a helper to your husband. So, I encourage you to stand, Mama! When times get hard, acknowledge the times but don’t let the times define you.

Loved, Empowered, and Set Apart MILITARY FAMILY GEMS

Classyandchic Gems

by Anita Ford Photo by Alvin Ford

Photography Gems

What do you see when you look at this picture? While the world is slowly regaining a sense of normalcy, I encourage you to safely explore the great outdoors. There are so many wonderful health benefits involved with quieting your fears and stepping into God’s country.

Fear is all around us, but we serve a God who reminds us not to let fear overtake us. So, it’s during times like this that we are reminded to continue allowing God to move in only ways that He can move.

Faith often involves taking a step in order to arrive at new territory. How will you step out in faith?

Alvin Ford is an Aerospace Engineer, Travel Blogger, Aviation, Landscape Photographer who enjoys sharing his talents with the world from behind a camera lens.

PHOTOGRAPHY GEMS

LIFE IS FILLED WITH MOMENTS THAT SHAKE US TO THE CORE AND POINT US TO THE CROSS. INSPIRATIONAL SPEAKER ANITA FORD

Happiness AUTHENTICITY, HOPE AND PEACE