7 minute read
Psalmist Pandra Stokes
After visiting her Primary care physician in 2015 Psalmist Pandra Stokes received some terrible news that they had discovered a tumor in her colon and after further test was done, she was told that the tumor was there for two years and it was cancerous. The news were devastating but even in that she was able to give thanks to the Lord for holding the tumor in place and not allowing it to spread for those years. Psalmist Pandra underwent three surgeries while also receiving chemotherapy which caused her to become very frail. Psalmist Pandra had gotten so weak that she could not hardly walk and many days she did not think she was going to make it; it was until, her baby daughter began to put on worship and let it play through the house that Psalmist Pandra cried out to the Lord and begin to gather strength day by day;Psalmist Pandra, pushed herself to be in the House of the Lord and would even sing on the PraiseTeam sitting in her chair because she was too weak to stand up. It was through this horrific experience that the Lord changed Minister Pandra’s name to Psalmist Pandra Stokes aka Proven as it was through her obedience to the Lord and her lifestyle of worship that got her back on her feet and CANCER-FREE!!! As a result of her testimony; Psalmist Pandra Stokes released a CD in 2020 titled “Tested, Tried and Proven” that is available on all major digital music stores which includes the song “Lifter of my Head” and this song is her personal testimony about How God brought her through this difficult time in her life.
Psalmist Pandra had gotten so weak that she could not hardly walk and many days she did not think she was going to make it; it was until, her baby daughter began to put on worship and let it play through the house that Psalmist Pandra cried out to the Lord and begin to gather strength day by day;Psalmist Pandra, pushed herself to be in the House of the Lord and would even sing on the PraiseTeam sitting in her chair because she was too weak to stand up.
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FAITH & FITNESS TY & KAY DAVIS
Ty’s Fitness LLC is own by Ty and Kaylia Davis who are two people that have created a totally inspiring fitness program that uses motivation, spiritual awareness, nutrition education to get people up and moving. Ty is a former Army Ranger who learned very early the importance of self discipline and how to apply it in order to achieve your goals, couple this with his background in Kinesiology he has develop various fitness programs over the years that yields tremendous results. Kaylia is his wife, and her fitness journey begin when at the age of 40 she was diagnosed with hypertension and high cholesterol.
This husband and wife duo are in their 50’s, but after they meet in 2016 they soon created a program that would give rise to healthy living through both the physical aspect of fitness activities and the spiritual awareness of caring for one’s self through biblical teachings.
Their “Faith and Fitness” program uses a Zoom platform in order to get folks engage in functional fitness.
Question 1-Tell us a little bit about yourselves and what you do?
We had done many other programs in the past, but we keep seeing something missing. I (Ty) was committed to enriching people lives through the education of healthier living, but when I meet Kaylia I soon realize as I was training her that she lent clarity
to something that was missing. Each time I would train Kaylia she would play gospel music for her sessions. In the past I had allow clients to chose their own music list when training. But with Kaylia, not only did she play the music, we would have discussions about how the music would relate to scriptures in the bible. Even though I was the trainer who could encourage and motivate the client to achieve their fitness goals, I also found myself searching inward for understanding through the word, which was truly ignited by the gospel songs Kaylia would play during her sessions.
I (Kaylia) was battling to get my weight under control for health reason. I had previously been married for 20 yrs. and born 6 kids from that union, but when my oldest child was 17yrs. old I found myself going through a divorce. This being on the heel that 2 yrs. prior my kids witness a horrific plane accident in our neighborhood that left them scared from losing a close friend. I didn’t realize it at the time, but I was depressed, and I found myself clutching to my bible and asking for guidance. When I started training with Ty I was weighing in at nearly 200lbs at 5’3”, blood pressure was 160/90 on medication and my cholesterol levels was extremely to high. Looking back on everything, I would venture to now say that meeting Ty was meant to be Gods will. Even though he was encouraging me to make healthier food choices and commit to those 5am workout sessions, I also was giving him those precious jewels that only scriptures from the bible can deliver. Each time we workout we would talk about the word, and how it heals one soul. Well, after 14 months of the program I lost 54lbs of fat, and came off of my blood pressure medication. It was at this point Ty and I seen that such a program was greatly needed in the community.
Question 2-What’s the most valuable thing you’ve learned in your life?
We together have learned that each of us have free will, and with that free will we can make choices. Each choice calls for accountability which can sometimes be good or bad. Example would be that you can wake up and decide to eat a proper breakfast and say your prayers. Just as we exercise our bodies to stay in physical shape, God also gave each of use the same measure of faith, which must be exercise as well on a spiritual level. If you aren’t taking the time to exercise your faith, this too will cause you to faulter as if eating high sugar foods in the morning. In time it will hinder your growth spiritually and physically.
Question 3- What future plans do you have for your business?
We are pushing to get our Faith and Fitness program to every able body possible. At a time when so many people are suffering from the economic impact cause by Covid-19, we are seeing the rise in depression. We want to be a part of the healing that is needed from this devastation of the pandemic. We will only achieve this by being out in the forefront and promoting spiritual awareness and physical fitness through our program.
Question 4- In life, what lesson have you experienced that increased your faith and caused you to incorporate faith into your fitness workouts and routines?
We both have been tested by a loving God, and through each test we take away a lesson. Each time we are working out, we feel the burning sensation of the workout, which in turn means the muscle is going through the process of breaking down and rebuilding. The rebuilding process takes approximately 48 hours to heal, but for those few seconds while you are training, you want it to be over, but you stay on course because you know the payoff will be well worth it at the end. Faith in the word is no different…you will be challenge each and every day, but if you study your bible and practice the teachings you will be rewarded equally.
Question 5- If you could give advice to our readers what advice would you give them?
Each day you wake up don’t let it be a waste, you should strive for excellence in everything you do. Remember, the body is a temple, and its your duty to care for that temple.
