Infini te Poss ibi l i t i e s Inc .
February 2015
EMPOWERED!
www.infinitepossibilitiesvi.com Volume 4 Issue 1
Inside this Issue
Lead with Love Lead with Love Lead with Love
AGAPE Love AGAPE Love AGAPE Love
A Beautiful You A Beautiful You A Beautiful You
Love EXPOSED Love EXPOSED Love EXPOSED
Photo Gallery Photo Gallery Photo Gallery
If you knew when you would die and
had an opportunity to leave your lega-
cy for others to fulfill, what would it
look like? Some might leave a legacy
of wealth, for others it might be a lega-
cy of education or political power.
However, Jesus, the Son of God, the
King of Kings and Lord of Lords desig-
nated love as His legacy to leave on
earth. He knew His purpose was to die
for mankind's redemption and to set
the example for others to follow.
Therefore, Jesus left the example of
unconditional love. In Biblical times
the followers of Rabbis had distinctive
marks. You could identify a disciple’s
Rabbi by the disciples character. Je-
sus was establishing His distinctive
mark and the character of a Christian.
During the final moments of His life
Jesus focused solely on love and servi-
tude. Jesus took time on the same
night that He was betrayed to demon-
strate love at its purest. In chapter 13
in the book of John, Jesus laid out the
template for His followers to emulate.
First we see the importance of inti-
mate fellowship. Jesus shared His
final hours with His closest compan-
ions, His disciples. He expressed gen-
uine love towards them by not only
having His last meal [the last supper]
with them but by serving them as well
as, washing their feet. The washing of
feet was a common, lowly practice
usually done by a servant or slave. But
look at the heart of Jesus in John
13:14-18 where He states "If I then,
your Lord and Teacher, have washed
your feet, you also ought to wash one
another’s feet. For I have given you an
example, that you should do as I have
done to you. Most assuredly, I say to
you, a servant is not greater than his
master; nor is he who is sent greater
than he who sent him. If you know
these things, blessed are you if you do
them.” It’s important to remember
Lead with Love Michelle Mardenborough
that in Bible times people did not walk on
paved sidewalks, nor did they wear the types
of shoes we wear today. They wore sandals
and walked on hot, dirt roads. Obviously,
their feet were exposed and would be ex-
tremely dirty when they arrived at their desti-
nation. Most people would not want to wash
another person’s feet but Jesus was demon-
strating the position of servitude that Chris-
tians are to follow. We are to serve one an-
other, no matter what your position, salary
or status in life, as a Christian you must
serve one another. Peter, knowing Jesus
was the Messiah did not want Him to wash
his feet. But Jesus responded to Peter that
He could have no part of Him if he didn’t
allow Him to serve him in this manner. Peter
quickly replied in John 13:9 “not only my
feet but my hands and head as well.” Jesus
also left His disciples with a new command-
ment in John 13:34 “A new commandment I
give unto you, that ye love one another; as I
have loved you, that ye also love one anoth-
er.” When we truly love one another we will
have no problem with serving each other.
Love is the foundation of who we are. Jesus
further states in John 13: 35 “By this shall
all men know that ye are my disciples if ye
have love one to another.” This is a colossal
statement that I want you to think about.
Ask yourself, do I lead with love? Do I
demonstrate the core character, of a Chris-
tian? If we’re really honest we might say “I
give it my best; but sometimes people get on
my last nerve.” That ‘s human behavior, and
we understand but as Christians we are
challenged to go beyond our human behav-
ior and be led by our spirit .Jesus said His
core identifying mark is love. Let’s make it
our daily objective to love and serve one
another. Don’t lead with your appearance,
your title, talent, or your money, lead with
love. Everywhere you go, be a love bug, in-
fecting people with the love of Christ. Emu-
late Jesus! The unequivocal, characteristic
mark of Christianity is love and if you cannot
be identified as a genuine loving individual
you cannot be identified as a true Christian!
2014 Women's Beach Retreat Photo’ Gallery – pg.4
EMPOWERED!
Agape Love Nishon Geary
We sometimes wonder what agape love
is. I often wonder if we as humans who
have these faults, can truly display
agape love. Or do we subconsciously
place conditions on our love? Human
devotion isn’t always dependable. Even
the most stable relationships change
over time. According to the American
Heritage dictionary, agape love consists
of “love as revealed in Jesus and selfless
love.” That means loving a person, re-
gardless of how that person treats you,
or what they do to you, you love them no
matter what. Your love for them is uncon-
ditional and unwavering. The only love
that I know can fill those BIG shoes is the
love of our Heavenly Father. We should
be thankful that God’s love is quite dif-
ferent. God is a forgiving, merciful, loving
God who shows us compassion and
grace over and over again. He doesn’t
put any boundaries around His love for
us. The most amazing part of it all is, He
loves all of us unconditionally. He loves
all his children equally and alike. God’s
love is unconditional because unlike
earthly affection, His love doesn’t fluctu-
ate. Our Father doesn’t care for us more
when we have pleased Him or less when
we have sinned.
No one child receives more love than
the other. It doesn’t matter if you’re the
“problem” child or the “golden” child;
God loves us all the same. Now, it is
important to mention that like any par-
ent, God does have expectations of His
children and sometimes we disappoint
God. This makes Him very unhappy and
sad to see the way we sometimes live,
and some of the choices we make; how-
ever, if you ask for his forgiveness, He'll
always say, “I forgive you.” But those
who reject Christ will be estranged from
God. God shows his agape love for us
daily. God sent His only begotten Son
into the world (John 3:16) to pay for our
sins with His own blood. (1st Peter
1:19; Acts 20:28) God did this why…
because He loves us. God’s love is a
love that initiates; it is never a re-
sponse. If God’s love were conditional,
then we would have to do something to
earn or merit it. We would have to
somehow appease His wrath and
cleanse ourselves of our sin before God
would be able to love us but that is not
the case and that is what makes God’s
love for us so unconditional. And so
amazing!
A Beautiful You New Year, Love You , Ethlyn Farrell 2015 is here. It is a new year; we are
excited about the new beginning before
us. One of the things that are usually in
the forefront of our minds is our weight.
This is also on the minds of many retail
stores. Right after Christmas all of the
workout gear is on sale. They know that
we are going to want to lose the extra
pounds we may have picked up over the
holidays. However do not get caught up
in the numbers on the scale nor feel
guilty for having apple-pie a la mode to
celebrate with a friend. Accept where you
are and start your journey there. This is
the unconditional love that you must give
yourself. Your beauty is not a number
and your love or acceptance of that beau-
ty is much more than the size of your
dress. Love yourself where you are and
love you for you. Whatever you decide to
do for you is another step in your journey
to love you. “Love is a very splendid
thing,” is a phrase I heard my mom say
when I was a child. This sounded very
complicated to my naive ears but as an
adult it sounds like music to my ears.
Let me explain. The Bible states that,”
God is love. 1 John 4: 8 states “He that
loveth not knoweth not God; for God is
love.” Love is the heart, character and
the very being of God. Everything He
has done for us was because of His
love for us. John3:16 states “For God
so loved the world, that he gave his
only begotten Son, that whosoever
believeth in him should not perish, but
have everlasting life.” God’s love for
us is unconditional. This is the example
that God set for you on how to love
others as well as, yourself. Don’t get
caught up in the media or society's
hype. Your true beauty radiates from
within and is expressed outwardly. You
are more than a number or a size. It is
the very essence of God that resides in
you by His Spirit that shines through
you! So, you have set a goal or made a
resolution and you fell off the wagon so
to speak. Get up, dust yourself off, get
back on track and do you. Let this New
Year 2015 be the year that you make
certain to love you.
Empowered! Page 3
My grandchildren and I spend quality time togeth-
er full of talks, laughter and hugs. One time I
made arrangements to have them over for the
weekend because I had not seen them for a few
weeks. The older of the two girls asked her father
to call me the night before their weekend stay
and she said to me, "Gigi, I have something for
you”. So after dinner the girls and I gathered to-
gether to chat and watch a movie and she came
and handed me a drawing she had colored and
cut out of her extra-large sized, coloring book. It
was a picture of a woman and a young girl nuz-
zling together in a hug. Their faces exposed the
love and devotion for each other. I looked up from
the picture to see the prettiest smile on my grand-
daughter's face. As I write this article on love, I
remember that special night and what my grand-
daughter's exuberant smile was telling me with-
out words.
Her face and the picture said it all. Likewise, I
am filled with love and adoration for Almighty
God, my Father, who has continuously been
steadfast to show me how much He loves me
no matter the season of time. I can confi-
dently say that I am secure in His love. De-
spite my circumstances; in the good times
and in the not so good times my heavenly
Father’s love is consistent. My granddaughter
exposed her heart through the picture she
gave me. I expose my heart's love through
what I do, what I say and where I go. I have to
personally say as The Apostle Paul said, “I am
convinced that nothing can ever separate me
from His love”. Romans 8:38-39. When you
come to a place of security in God's love
through Jesus Christ you are able to expose
genuine love to others.
Love EXPOSED Lita Aleese
The lyrics in Christina Perry's song "A Thousand
Years" reflects the universal desire of men and
women to experience that "forever love." The
chorus "...I've loved you for a thousand years; I'll
love you for a thousand more" is symbolic of eter-
nal love by its use of a thousand. The song
speaks to bravery as she takes one step closer to
the love standing before her after realizing fear
and asking herself "how can I love when I'm
afraid to fall?" I chose this song to provoke us to
really think about wedded love and symbolically
our love as the bride of Christ (His Church). We
occasionally hear of stories where a man or wom-
an marries their love one as they prepare to die
of some terminal illness. More often we attend
weddings where the couple are planning for their
best days ahead. Rarely are the days of struggle,
sickness, sacrifice or sadness at the front of the
newlywed couple's minds. Ephesians 5 speaks to
a submission and sacrifice as demonstrations of
this love. Verse 25 reads "Husbands, love your
wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and
gave himself for it." I believe abuse in all relation-
ships within our culture have caused many to
incorrectly equate all pain with abuse. That is a
lie. Healthy loves sees value in oneself and oth-
ers. We recognize sacrificial love is seen in a
soldier sacrificing himself for his "brothers and
sisters" in war, Abraham was willing to sacrifice
his son as an act of love and obedience to God
and ultimately Jesus' willingly giving himself as an
innocent sacrifice for you and I on the cross. An
excerpt from Revelation 12:10-12 NLT reads
"they did not love their lives so much that they
were afraid to die.?" Restated...they weren't
afraid to die because they chose to NOT love their
lives or lifestyles more in the face of choosing
Jesus.
Forever Love
Michelle Roberts Motivating Moments Michelle Mardenborough
I talk to myself all day long, but not out
loud. Although I must admit there are times
when I walk out the door, get in my car, pull
out my space and realize I left something
very important at home. That’s when I let
myself have it! “Oh my goodness, you must
be going crazy how could you leave the
house without your wallet.” or whatever
item I forgot that day. Or I’ve been known to
walk into things or stumble over something
and stump my toe; that’s when I really fuss
myself out” You’re blind as a bat; you’re
going to kill yourself.” Now you might say,
“Michelle give yourself a break. You know
you’re not really going crazy or really going
to kill yourself.” I agree but then why say it?
We have to be cognizant and most im-
portantly responsible for the words we
speak to each other as well as, to our-
selves. Most of the time talking to yourself
is pretty harmless, until you have a major
challenge, or receive devastating news.
Critical scenarios identify what’s on the
inside of us. If fear is on the inside of you
that’s what you will confess. Words like“ I
don’t know how I’m going to make it, I just
can’t go on anymore, or no one loves me,
and no one cares ,I’m in this all by myself.
These are very negative, pitiful confessions
to speak over your life. I often hear people
confessing poverty over their lives, words
like “I’m always broke, I’ll never get out of
debt, I don’t have any money and of course
I can’t afford it. Every time you say I’m al-
ways broke, you are inevitably prophesying
poverty over your life. Whether you realize it
or not your words create your environment.
So instead of confessing poverty confess
prosperity, wealth, restoration , well being
wholeness and total satisfaction. Be mind-
ful of what rolls off your tongue. The Bible
states in Proverbs 18:21 that “Death and
life are in the power of the tongue: and they
that love it shall eat the fruit thereof. Most
of us focus on the death and life. But "they
that love it shall eat the fruit thereof; is a
powerful statement that basically means if
you are too chatty and love to hear yourself
talk, you will deal with the outcome whether
positive or negative. So make certain you
are speaking positive words of power and if
you don’t have anything good to say don’t
say anything. I realize that’s easier said
than done for some of us. Everyone who
knows me know that I enjoy talking there-
fore I have to watch my words carefully.
When I slip up at and make incorrect con-
fessions over my life I immediately catch
myself and say “delete delete” because I
realize my words create. Remember be-
loved, we are made in the image of God.
God our Divine Creator spoke everything
into existence and we do too. So begin tak-
ing responsibility for your words. Its critical
that you do; read what Jesus Christ states in
Matthew 13;36 “But I say unto you, That
every idle word that men shall speak, they
shall give account thereof in the day of judg-
ment.” Be cognizant of your conversation.
Make certain that it’s uplifting ,edifying and
encouraging . Paul teaches us in Colossians
4:6 “Let your conversation be always full of
grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may
know how to answer everyone.” NIV Now
that we know better lets do better by
speaking words of faith, prosperity and love!
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Unit - 54
St. Thomas, USVI 00802
I n f i n i t e P o s s i b i l i t i e s
www.infinitepossibilitiesvi.com
Publisher
Infinite Possibilities Inc.
Executive Editor
Michelle D. Mardenborough
Staff Writers
Ethlyn O. Farrell
Michelle Roberts
Nishon Geary
Lita Aleese
Editorial Director
Nishon Gearyo
Page 4 EMPOWERED!
2014 Steadfast Women's Beach Retreat Water Island, USVI