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mschristianliving.com ❘ JULY 2022 3
contents JULY 2022 VOLUME 16, NUMBER 12
PUBLISHER
MS Christian Living, Inc. EDITOR PHOTO BY STEGALL IMAGERY
Katie Eubanks katie@mschristianliving.com
MCL founder Marilyn Tinnin and current Editor Katie Eubanks look back on 20 years of divine provision and powerful stories. See page 18.
MANAGING EDITOR
Suzanne Durfey ART/GRAPHIC DESIGN
Sandra Goff
Shay Greenwood kicks off our new Faith, Fashion & Fitness column on page 14. Also, be sure to catch her at our 2022 women’s retreat on October 29 at Broadmoor Baptist Church, where she’ll be the keynote speaker!
columns 8 Outside In Finding courage
10 Modern Motherhood Are you expecting too much of yourself?
12 Mission Mississippi Moments
SALES
Suzanne Durfey, Ginger Gober CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Chris Bates, Samuel Bolen, Courtney Buzek, Pastors Maurice and LaShunda Calvert, Shay Greenwood, Dr. Sara Kimmel, Meggan Mickle, Lauren Dove Williams COVER PHOTOGRAPHY
Stegall Imagery DISTRIBUTION ASSISTANTS
Rachel and Nettie Schulte, Jerri and Sammy Strickland, Rachel and Bob Whatley
How deeper questions can improve relationships
14 Faith, Fashion & Fitness 3 tips to make picking an outfit easy
16 This Is My Story How my daughter’s illness changed my life
24 Lagniappe Recognizing our advertising partners
26 Food for Thought Deryll Stegall has shot nearly a hundred MCL covers over the years. Get to know him and his wife, Sherry, in our feature story on page 28.
Cool off with fruit this summer
30 Community Outreach Finding hope in the capital city
32 What’s Going On
cover story
• Restoration Church’s Outside Crusade • Pregnancy Resource Act
18 20 Years of MCL Plus, what YOU had to say!
in every issue
feature
6 Editor’s Letter 34 Quips & Quotes 34 Advertiser Index
28 Deryll & Sherry Stegall: Finding happiness in Christ
Coming next month 3 Christian counselors talk about breaking the stigma of therapy Krista Woods, LPC
Leona Bishop, LPC
Lisa Owens, LPC
CONNECT WITH US: facebook.com/MSChristianLiving 4 JULY 2022 ❘ Mississippi Christian Living
instagram.com/MSChristianMag
Mississippi Christian Living P.O. Box 1819 Madison, MS 39130
601.345.1091 mschristianliving.com Mississippi Christian Living is committed to encouraging individuals in their daily lives by presenting the faith stories of others and by providing information that will point every person, at every stage of life, to a deeper, authentic, personal, and life-changing encounter with Jesus Christ. Views expressed in Mississippi Christian Living do not necessarily represent those of the publisher. Every effort has been made by the Mississippi Christian Living staff to insure accuracy of the publication contents. However, we do not guarantee the accuracy of all information nor the absence of errors and omissions; hence, no responsibility can be or is assumed. All Rights Reserved. Copyright 2022 by MS Christian Living, Inc. Mississippi Christian Living is published monthly and is available for free at hightraffic locations throughout the tri-county area. Subscriptions are $29 a year. POSTMASTER: Send change of address to Mississippi Christian Living, P.O. Box 1819, Madison, MS 39130.
38 years,
EDITOR’S LETTER
Here’s to 20 more years!
P
STEGALL IMAGERY
raise God for the first 20 years of Mississippi Christian Living!
6 JULY 2022 ❘ Mississippi Christian Living
Twenty years ago, the Author and Sustainer of all things allowed Marilyn Tinnin to establish a publication showcasing His work in Mississippi believers; He kept it going until she was ready to retire in 2018; then He dropped the business into my lap (see cover story on page 18)! But I also owe thanks to many others. First to Marilyn, for choosing to place her “baby” into my hands and trust me with it, and for always being available to answer questions and help in any way she can. And to Sherye Green, who suggested Marilyn call me in 2018! I’m also grateful for my staff, contractors, and everyone who keeps the business going. Suzanne Durfey’s official title is “managing editor,” but she does far more than I can list here, and she happily helps and finds solutions for just about everything, especially technical questions. Ginger Gober makes more sales calls in a day than I’d care to make in a month, but she’s also full of ideas for how to make MCL better. Many changes or additions I’ve implemented have come straight from Ginger and/or Suzanne, and I am so thankful for them. Graphic artist Sandra Goff is probably the quickest designer I’ve ever met, but you’d never know it. Thanks to her, MCL looks better than ever. And photographer Deryll Stegall (see feature on page 28!) has been a joy to work with on every shoot, even when I am not. Of course, I also want to thank you — yes, you, the one reading this! If we had no readers, there’d be no reason for MCL to exist. I firmly believe in the power of story. Think about the parable of the prodigal son in Luke 15. No three-point sermon can say as much as the father running down the road to embrace his long-lost child. That’s why we have the Bible, first and foremost, but it’s also why we want to share each other’s stories in the here and now — so folks will know there is still a God who loves them, even when the world at large is seemingly more hateful and divided than ever. So thank you so much for choosing to read MCL, whether in print, online, or both. Finally, I want to thank our advertising partners — from the ones running a small ad in one edition to those who’ve been running a
full-page ad every month for years (you can read about some of the latter on page 24). Quite simply, we cannot keep the lights on without money, and the vast majority of it comes from advertising. I know this medium provides a benefit to those who choose to buy ads, but I’m also grateful that so many of them believe in our mission of pointing people to Christ and making their lives better. If you’re excited that MCL is turning 20 and want to see us make it another 20 years, here are three ways to help: ◼ Connect us with possible advertisers! It’s easier than you might think. If you know a business owner, or someone in leadership at a church, business or organization, ask if they’ve considered partnering with MCL — or better yet, send us their email, and we’ll ask them ourselves! And by the way, we aren’t just a print magazine (though most of our advertisers still prefer print). We offer web- and email-based ads as well, along with event sponsorships. ◼ Follow us on Facebook.com/MSChristianLiving and Instagram.com/mschristianmag. We get the most social clout from shares, so anytime you see us post something you like, please share it! Also subscribe to our e-digest, which is sent out four times a month, by going to MSChristianLiving.com and scrolling to the bottom. ◼ Get excited about our events! Save the date for our 2022 women’s retreat, happening Saturday, October 29 at Broadmoor Baptist Church in Madison. You probably read about our keynote speaker, Shay Greenwood, in last month’s cover story, and you can also get to know her better on page 14 of this issue. Ticket info coming soon! Whether you’re an advertiser, a longtime reader, or you’re picking up this magazine for the very first time, thank you. I still find it hard to believe I get the privilege of running MCL, and I’m so excited for what’s to come! Y
Katie Eubanks katie@mschristianliving.com
WE NEED YOU MORE THAN EVER! Even post-Roe, abortion remains legal in parts of the U.S., and pregnancy centers are a crucial resource for women facing unplanned pregnancies. Support Mississippi pregnancy centers by: PURCHASING the Choose Life car tag (take your current tag to your local tag office), or, PLEDGING to purchase the Adoption tag — visit
chooselifems.org Find your local center and volunteer or give directly in addition to purchasing a Choose Life tag.
Hey, y’all! NO MORE ROE!
mschristianliving.com ❘ JULY 2022 7
OUTSIDE IN
by CHRIS BATES
FINDING COURAGE
W
aterfowl hunting is a sport of many elements. On the
gear list, it takes extensive equipment, flooded habitat, and camouflage. On the encounter end, it includes sunrises, comradery, depth of nature, and perpetual memories. Those of us who have experienced these over a lifetime would not trade them for anything. What none of us want included, though, is danger. I was around 13 years old when our part of the world froze over that January. The anticipation was palpable when my grandfather Bert came over and loaded up my dad and my brother and me for a hunting adventure. We packed up every bit of warm gear we had, along with the boat, a motor and a mass of other equipment, before we headed to the Mississippi River. Because of the current, many of the backwater areas off the river remained unfrozen, but we all knew how treacherous the massive waterway could be in these conditions. We put into the river near Vicksburg and headed north. My grandfather knew how to access one particular remote area, and the magic began to happen as soon as we set up. There were more ducks in the area than I had ever seen before or have since. It was a hunt that provided permanent memories, including the shaking of the boat from our shivering in the freezing temperatures, combined with my grandfather’s excitement. I also, though, remember coming back out onto the main river as we left and hitting large chunks of forming ice. The men doubled up the life jackets on my brother and me and put us further down into the center of the boat. Extremely large barges made wakes that went for hundreds of yards and made our going even more dangerous. While we did make it off the river without harm, I vividly remember the wide eyes of my father and grandfather, and a deeper fear than I had ever felt at that young age. That situation brings to mind the ways in which we all face so many kinds of danger today. The dangers might not be caused by perilous conditions in the outdoors, but they are all around us. Sometimes they are far more invisible, subtle and divisive. Very real are the threats of 8 JULY 2022 ❘ Mississippi Christian Living
alcoholism, chemical dependency, eating disorders and mental illness. None of us are impervious to being children of broken families, sufferers of abuse, or victims of unfaithfulness. PTSD is dealt with not only by some members of our military, but it impacts others of us through car wrecks, injuries or crime. If one is not personally affected by at least a few of these dangers, then we certainly care deeply about someone who is. The great news for us today is that we have more resources for help, recovery and healing than ever before. The acceptance and open discussion of treatment and mental health help is changing the landscape and allowing so many to turn their lives around. To make that change, though, takes courage and faith on a much larger scale than our foursome experienced on that precarious river expedition. Mother Theresa said, “To have courage for whatever comes in life — everything lies in that.” The best news of all is for those of us who are in relationship with God. Courage can best be found in knowing that God carries us forever, and that our own weaknesses are the best opportunities for His work to be done. One of our greatest examples of this is in 1 Samuel 17:50 – “So David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, without a sword in his hand.” David was barely more than a boy, yet believed with all of his being that the Lord saves and would deliver victory. This shows us the source that can allow any of us to face these perils with every bit of bravery and courage needed to recover and succeed. God provides the people who care about us, the tools that we need and the pathway to change. We are to meet Him along the way by finding our warrior selves and showing valor, and the reward for that courage is a walk with our Creator. Y
Chris Bates is CEO and co-founder of AgoraEversole a full-service marketing agency in Jackson, and can be reached at Chris@AgoraEversole.com. He and his wife, Stacy, and their children live in Madison.
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by LAUREN DOVE WILLIAMS
Are you expecting too much of yourself?
M
y parents recently received a quote for some minor repairs and improvements around their house. My dad commented that the quote was about three times higher than what he expected, but he realized this was likely due to his bad expectations and not due to the actual estimate being unfair. As I scurried throughout the rest of my workday and packed up my laptop to go pick up my kids from school, God nudged this perspective back to the forefront of my mind. As a working mom, and honestly probably just as a mom in general, it’s easy to fall into the trap of placing unrealistic expectations on myself. In the back of my mind, there is an unwritten description of what life “should” look like at all times. You know this list, mama. The one that says you should be able to do it all, all the time. Somehow we’ve come to think our houses are supposed to be cleaned and picked up and look like an Instagram photo at all times. We should cook dinner and eat around the table as a Lauren Dove Williams with her husband, Kenny, and their kids, Grant and Elise. family four to five nights a week, go on date nights with our husbands to fancy steakhouses expectations? In 2 Corinthians 10:5, Paul says, the kids to bed and just sit on the back porch for monthly, be room moms, join civic “We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion 30 minutes of intentional conversation with my organizations, and play in a tennis league of our raised against the knowledge of God, and take husband and call it a date night. I know this own, all while driving our kids all over town to every thought captive to obey Christ.” If your list might sound trivial and simple, but to an soccer, baseball and gymnastics. of “shoulds” and expectations only align with exhausted new wife and mother, it was the most It’s the imaginary pressure to track our the world and not scripture, then it’s time to freeing advice I had ever been given. It’s okay to macros on an app when we eat, work out three take those thoughts captive. change your expectations instead of forcing your to five days a week, take a girls’ trip with our Early in my marriage, I was having lunch circumstances to meet them. friends, go to the beach in with a mentor and was So if you’ve been needing to re-evaluate a the summer, go skiing in the confessing my guilt of not certain thing on your list of what life is winter, and squeeze in a going on enough dates with “supposed” to look like, then this is me giving If your list of ‘shoulds’ my husband like we were Disney trip somewhere in you permission to shift your expectations if you between. We even feel the “supposed” to be doing. need to — from the girl in the normal house and expectations only need to apologize if our Now mind you, at the time that’s not photo-ready, whose kids eat fast food align with the world and hair, nails or brows are not of this lunch, it was the and from concession stands more than I like to not scripture, then it’s perfectly manicured at all middle of football season admit in writing, who works out sporadically, times. Throw in a weekly (my husband is a coach), and whose date nights are often on my own time to take those Bible study, daily quiet time, and we had two kids under porch. Y thoughts captive. a full-time job outside the 2. I was expecting her Lauren Dove Williams was raised in home, laundry, side hustles, response to be something Madison and now lives there with her and travel baseball … and along the lines of husband, Kenny, a football coach at it’s enough to make a girl’s head spin. reminding me that my marriage is the most Madison-Ridgeland Academy, and two My head was spinning the day God nudged important thing, and that I needed to just do kids, Elise (5) and Grant (4). They are my dad’s perspective about his home repair whatever it took to make those things happen. active members of Broadmoor Baptist quotes back to the front of my thoughts. What She smiled, laughed, and kindly but directly Church, their school, and their community. When not if, when we encounter unmet expectations, we reset my expectations. at MRA sporting events or chasing kids, Lauren stopped to consider that it might be the There is a season for everything, she said, and works as a project manager for Superior Foundation expectation that needed to change, and not the for that season of our life, date nights didn’t Services and co-hosts a podcast, “The Home and The circumstances? How much guilt, frustration and have to look like getting a babysitter and going Hustle,” helping Christian working moms find disappointment do I juggle due to misplaced to a restaurant. She gave me permission to put balance in both.
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10 JULY 2022 ❘ Mississippi Christian Living
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Congratulating MCL on 20 years! M E M B E R O F T H E A M E R I C A N A S S O C I AT I O N O F O R T H O D O N T I S T S
mschristianliving.com ❘ JULY 2022 11
MISSION MISSISSIPPI MOMENTS
First Presbyterian Day School congratulates
Mississippi Christian Living for 20 years of sharing stories of God at work in our fellow Mississippians. Alumni, students, families, and friends of FPDS have appeared in the pages of MCL for two decades, and we look forward to celebrating many more!
fpds.org
12 JULY 2022 ❘ Mississippi Christian Living
by DR. SARA KIMMEL
How deeper questions can improve relationships
A
s we continue our Mission Mississippi 2022 series with the theme A Deeper Dive into the Racial
Divide through Deeper Relationships, our focus this month is on deeper questions. For those of us who grew up in Mississippi, place or community is part of how we get to know people, and we establish connections through four questions: (1) Where’re you from? (2) Where’d you go to school? (3) What do you do? and (4) Where do you go to church? Our second-round questions usually identify common relations and experiences based on the first-round questions: (1) Do you know (insert name from town, school, work or church)? (2) Do you remember when (insert event from town, school, work or church)? In 20-30 seconds, we establish likeness or otherness. Deeper questions require trust. Trust requires relationship and a willingness to be vulnerable … or wrong. Deeper questions almost always start not with who, what or where, but why. In his testimony to Agrippa, the apostle Paul details his journey to Damascus, his witnessing a light brighter than the sun, his collapse to the ground, and the confrontation by Jesus with one deep question: “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” Saul had spent decades since the crucifixion persecuting followers of Christ, which Christ counts as persecution of Himself. Saul’s singling out Christ followers as heretical in first-century Rome underscores our own sense of “other” — those who don’t belong. Like Jesus’ deep question to Saul, deep does not imply eschatological or theological. The discomfort of our answers is deep, ingrained, and shaped by the complex intersection of attitudes, experiences, families, history, culture, education, economy and church. Our response can be as individualized as Paul’s, but the question is for us all, regardless of town, work, school, church, associates, experiences, age, gender or race. “Why are you persecuting Me?” Saul’s response to Jesus is telling: “Who are you, lord (little lord)?” Saul was one of us. This was his way of asking, “Where are you from, where’d you go to school, where do you work, where do you go to church”? Are you us or are you them? Are you same or other?
Saul knew he was a persecutor, but he (like we) had a self-righteous reason for every persecution he had participated in. Saul didn’t answer the why question. Jesus changed his heart, raised him up, and said, “Your why is not okay. Here’s what we are going to do about it! I am going to send you to the very ‘others’ you persecuted.” As a college student, a young arrogant me asked the age-old, why-do-I-have-to-take-thisclass-and-what-does-it-have-to-do-with-anything question. A wise person told me (and I try to share this with my students): Let’s rephrase your question. I think you mean to say, “What does this have to do with EVERYTHING?” Once the question changed, so did my attitude and outlook. I became more inquisitive and sought meaning instead of just answers. A character trait of Mission Mississippi is the organization’s insistence that we reframe our question from, “What does this have to do with anything?” to “What does this have to do with EVERYTHING?” In the spirit of “What are we going to do about it?” (and at the risk of meddling), here are a few questions for us to consider together: ◆ Who do I consider to be “other”? Why? ◆ Where do I live? Why? ◆ Where do my children go to school? Why? ◆ What church do I attend? Why? ◆ Where am I spending my money? Why? ◆ Are there communities I avoid? Why? ◆ What do I fear? Why? ◆ What does this have to do with EVERYTHING? Are you and I willing to change direction, get to our feet, and do what’s next? God wants our differences celebrated, not depreciated. Join Mission Mississippi as we explore these questions in deeper dialogue with one another. #DeeperQuestions Y
Dr. Sara Kimmel is an associate professor at Mississippi College, where she teaches international business and sponsors the Service Club.
Inspired by the words of founder Sam Patterson, “How big is your God?”, Reformed Theological Seminary was born in Jackson and has been supported by Mississippians from the very beginning. Little did they know the seminary would grow into the largest international Reformed institution in the world. Their mind for truth, heart for God, and life for ministry became our motto. Reformed Theological Seminary is pleased to stand on that firm foundation as we prepare leaders for the church in the city of Jackson for the next 50 years.
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mschristianliving.com ❘ JULY 2022 13
FAITH, FASHION & FITNESS
by SHAY GREENWOODCAMILLE MORRIS
3 tips to make picking an outfit easy
D
o you struggle with a closet full of clothes and nothing to wear? Here
are three tips to help you eliminate the overwhelm. Twenty-two years ago, when God called me to be a stay-at-home mom of my then three children under the age of 4, I found myself giving up my very corporate attire for sweatpants and Tshirts that really were the pajamas from the night before — or was it from the last four nights before? I felt myself moving into a place where I was not being thoughtful about what I was wearing — like, who even had time for that? I was learning how to navigate this new journey. Thankfully, I had a new side gig that allowed me to be a stay-at-home mom by day but, by night, required me to look like I could advise women on how to pull a cute outfit together. What I realized is that I felt so much better when I pulled myself together after a long day with the children. I then found flylady.net. (We didn’t have social media back then.) What a blessing she was to me all those years ago. One of the steps to organize your day at home better was to get dressed to your shoes in the morning. It changed my life! This simple act of picking out a cute outfit, getting dressed to my shoes, had been missing from my life. I felt more alive, confident
and productive after putting it into practice. I still believe that when I look my best, I feel my best, and then I do my best. If you have a closet full of clothes but find yourself frustrated when you can’t seem to find the perfect thing to wear, we have to remind ourselves that God is faithful even in this. He tells us in Matthew 6:25, “do not be anxious (about) what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?” We often feel anxious about picking out an outfit. But there are things we can do to prevent it. Set your timer for 45 minutes (I learned about setting a timer from Flylady), and let’s make your future outfit decisions easier! When you are doing this, keep focused and don’t overthink what you are doing. Here are three tips to organize your closet and eliminate the overwhelm in picking an outfit: • For the first 15 minutes, quickly separate your patterned and printed items from your solid color items. • For the second 15 minutes, separate your solid color items into three sections — blouses, bottoms, and layering pieces — and also separate by color. Then do the same for the patterned and printed items.
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Why do you do this? Our brains have enough hard, more important decisions to make during the day. Picking an outfit shouldn’t be the most difficult one. Patterns and prints mixed into your solid colors forces the brain to plan, and a confused mind says no. These separations can quickly eliminate the overwhelming feeling in your closet and help you see what you have better. (In September’s issue, I will break down the three steps for pulling together a look.) • For the last 15 minutes, treat yourself and order velvet hangers on Amazon. I prefer the beige ones. They keep your clothes on the hanger better, provide you more room in your closet, and you will love the way they look. My prayer is that these three tips will be a closet game changer for you like they have been for me, and ultimately that our hearts would be focused on being clothed “with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience” (Colossians 3:12). Ultimately, that’s what matters the most. Y Shay is a style coach with a mission to help women look and feel their best! Follow her on Facebook and Instagram @shaygreenwood.
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mschristianliving.com ❘ JULY 2022 15
THIS IS MY STORY
by MEGGAN MICKLE
How my daughter’s illness changed my life
G
rowing up in foster care gave me a different perspective on life. It gave me more perspectives than I knew
possible. I didn’t go into the system until I was a preteen, so I had experience knowing my biological family, taking care of myself and my siblings, and being able to fend for myself. However, while shuffling around from home to home, I saw other children who weren’t as strong and couldn’t make it out. It made me realize I wanted to help children and become a voice for those who did not have anyone. This was it for me: I was going to change the world. I thought I had found my purpose when I started my college journey. I knew that my purpose was to help people. I was going to become a police officer and help children like me. My plan was to start an outreach program for underprivileged and foster care youth. I thought I had it all figured out and was walking in my purpose. Then I found myself pregnant with twins. Excited and scared, I prayed for guidance because I thought my plan to become an officer and help people was destroyed. A few months into the pregnancy, I found out my daughter would be born I thought I had it all with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS). This was figured out and was devasting. Not only was I walking in my purpose. not going to become an officer, but my daughter Then I found myself would be sick. I thought this pregnant with twins. was it, but it was the beginning of God’s true purpose for me. I spent the first three months praying over my daughter while she underwent multiple surgeries, all while I lived at the Ronald McDonald House on the University of Mississippi Medical Center campus and cared for her twin brother. The first two months were the hardest, but while there, something inside me was growing. I tell people all the time that I can only remember the names of three nurses. They were the ones who didn’t just do their job. Those nurses had compassion and took the time in the middle of chaos to let me know it was okay. They gave me hope, and I didn’t feel like my daughter was just
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Meggan Mickle with her twins, Clyde Jr. and Madison.
another patient. I wanted to do this: I wanted to become one of those nurses and help as many people as I could. God had given me my path: I wanted to become a nurse. Having a child with special needs gave me another perspective. I thought about all the other parents with special needs children, because now I was one of them. God had done it again. I wanted to help children who couldn’t help themselves, but it was not in the original way I had thought. Becoming a nurse will allow me to help children, help parents, and give hope. My plans are to open a special needs daycare like my daughter attends now. God makes no mistakes, and He gave me my children to lead me to my purpose. I needed them, and my daughter is why I want to become a nurse. Y Meggan Mickle, a Crystal Springs native, is a junior at Belhaven University. She previously earned a bachelor of science in criminal justice from Jackson State University. She also earned a summer internship in pediatrics at UMMC, and the Mississippi Nurses Foundation selected her as the recipient of the 2022 Oneita Dongieux Award for Excellence. After Meggan graduates, she plans to stay in Mississippi and work in pediatrics.
If you aren’t sure whether you have a relationship with God or where you’ll go when you die, please don’t put this magazine down until you’ve read the following:
✝ THE PROBLEM For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God. – Romans 3:23 For the wages of sin is death … – Romans 6:23a The natural result and consequence of our sin is eternal death, or hell (Revelation 20:15), separated from God. This is because God is completely perfect and holy (Matthew 5:48), and His justice demands that sin be punished (Proverbs 11:21).
✝ THE SOLUTION … but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. – Romans 6:23b But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. – Romans 5:8 Jesus Christ died in our place on the cross and took on the punishment for all our sins (Isaiah 53:4-6). Then God raised Him from the dead (John 20)!
✝ HOW TO RECEIVE SALVATION If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. – Romans 10:9 Trust in what Jesus has done for you — His death for your sins and His resurrection — and trust Him as Lord.
✝ IS IT FOR ANYONE? For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. – Romans 10:13
✝ THE RESULTS Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. – Romans 5:1 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. – Romans 8:38-39
✝ WHAT TO DO NEXT So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. – Romans 10:17 If you decided to trust in Jesus, grow in your faith by reading more of God’s Word in the Bible. We recommend the gospel of John (it comes just after Luke) as a good starting point — or Romans! Finding a church close to you that teaches faith in Christ is another important step. It’s crucial to spend time with other believers so we can encourage each other in our faith. If you have questions about anything on this page, please contact us at 601.896.1432, or send us a message on Facebook @MSChristianLiving, Instagram @mschristianmag or Twitter @MSChristLiving.
mschristianliving.com ❘ JULY 2022 17
COVER STORY
by KATIE EUBANKS and MARILYN TINNIN • photography by STEGALL IMAGERY except where noted
20 ye Missis Chris Livi
18 JULY 2022 ❘ Mississippi Christian Living
ars of ssippi stian ing!
Katie and Marilyn celebrate 20 years of what began as Jackson Christian Family (see page 21). Many thanks to Thimblepress, owned by MCL cover girl Kristen Ley (December 2018), for the Push-Pop Confetti™ and Colossal Confetti used in this shoot!
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MANDY BUFKIN
Confetti doesn’t throw itself! Thanks to (from top left) Pam Miley and MCL Advisory Board Member Katrina Myricks, as well as (not pictured) CC Allgood and Chelsea Twiner, for making our cover “pop”!
T
wenty years ago this month, Marilyn Tinnin launched a little monthly newsprint magazine called Jackson Christian Family. Today that publication has morphed into not just a magazine, but a scholarship program, a growing digital and social media presence, a yearly women’s retreat, and so much more. Marilyn and current MCL Editor Katie Eubanks look back on God’s provision over the last two decades. Marilyn’s story It is no exaggeration to say that Mississippi Christian Living, originally Jackson Christian Family, began because of my mid-life crisis. It is also no exaggeration to admit everything I knew about writing and publishing I learned in kindergarten, or rather at the age when most children attend kindergarten. While my contemporaries were eating popsicles and learning their ABCs, my mother, a string reporter for several regional newspapers, was driving around the dusty Delta, with pen and pad in hand, scribbling out human interest stories on an array of local characters. Her preschooler rode shotgun beside her without a seatbelt or car seat and lived to tell about it. I loved watching my mother interview, and my heart, like hers, was in telling other people’s stories. And yet, I did not pursue journalism at all in college. What independent 18-year-old wants to become their mother?
20 JULY 2022 ❘ Mississippi Christian Living
It was not until 2002, when I faced the emotional void of an empty nest, that the idea of a Christian lifestyle magazine came to my mind. I did not give a prudent thought to my lack of credentials or business savvy. If I had truly known the ins and outs of publishing a magazine, I would have been too fearful to attempt it. My father, famous for his quick wit, often said, “God takes care of orphans and fools.” There were probably many who put this midlife ex-soccer mom in the second category. But God did indeed bless my efforts, a fact that affirms my belief that He equips those He calls. I was willing to work hard, but it was the Lord who day after day showed up and brought the advertising support, along with the talented pool of contributors, photographers, salespeople and administrative help that walked with me for 17 years. Relationships have always been the strength of Mississippi Christian Living. Mark Twain’s advice to writers was, “Write what you know.” What I knew was small town warmth, traditional faith and family values, America, and apple pie. I smile remembering how naïve and unsophisticated I was, but our stories resonated with a loyal audience. The world was on the cusp of a virtual and digital age, but there was still a hunger for personal connection. I like to think we encouraged our readers with positive information, inspiring testimonies of overcomers, and reminders of the difference a relationship with the Lord makes in one’s life. Katie’s story When I was a high-school senior, my creative writing teacher made me editor of our literary magazine, and I have been in love ever since. Give me any set of words and pictures, and I will want to see them laid out on a printed page. I actually tried to get a job at what was then Metro Christian Living in 2010, after graduating college. Marilyn didn’t have a place for me then — but God provided other opportunities that wound up preparing me for when she reached out in 2018 and asked if I wanted to buy the business! My dad, who worked his way up from nothing and knows the power of saving a dollar (or several), bought the business for me. Just before Labor Day 2018, thanks to God’s ridiculous grace, I became the owner of Mississippi Christian Living. That weekend, I attended a Christian leadership retreat in the Oregon desert. While in a van in the middle of nowhere, I got a call: MCL’s September edition would arrive at our storage unit late. I eeked out a few texts to the delivery drivers — and then immediately lost all cell service. I prayed, “You’ve got it, God!” Nearly four years later, 20 years after the magazine began, He’s still “got it.” He has proved His faithfulness over and over, and has taught me so much about relying on Him, seeking godly counsel, and deriving my worth from the cross — not from my “performance” as a business owner. I hope God has impacted your life through MCL as much as He has mine, and I’m so excited to see where He takes us next! Here’s to 20 more years!
MCL THROUGH THE YEARS: Memorable covers and cover stories
MARILYN LOOKS BACK Premier issue with Bill Buckner and family, July 2003 The late Bill Buckner, legendary state director of the Mississippi Fellowship of Christian Athletes, was a friend, a mentor, and a former employer. His story set the tone for all the cover stories that followed. Gridiron fans of the 1960s and 1970s remembered his football career, but few knew that behind his outward success were quite a few broken dreams and disappointments. His transparency sent the message that what was then Jackson Christian Family would be about real people in a fallen world and the hope that is found in Jesus Christ. Kathy Thibodeaux, December 2003 Ballet Magnificat! was approaching its 20th anniversary. Kathy and I strolled through the large facility she had turned into an impressive headquarters for the world’s first professional Christian ballet company. Ballerinas of all ages practiced their plies and pirouettes under the tutelage of seasoned performers, and contemporary Christian music echoed faintly through the hallway. The story of how God took Kathy’s talent and used it to bring multitudes of believers into His kingdom is one that should never be forgotten. William and Elise Winter, May 2004 As usual, I was nervous as I crossed the porch and rang the doorbell at the front door of former Gov. and Mrs. Winter’s Jackson home. I also had the sense that they were having second thoughts. The magazine was relatively new. If they had done any research at all, they knew my parents had not been William Winter fans. Although warm, they were guarded in their responses at first. It was their adorable schnauzer that broke the ice. Karla Pound, my photographer, insisted we put the dog in the cover photo. The dog posed perfectly. Something about focusing on the dog made us all relax! It was a great interview and a memorable cover! Pat Fordice, May 2005 Mississippi First Lady Pat Fordice greeted me in pink curlers the afternoon of our interview. Although she confessed to having written the wrong date in her calendar, she invited me in — embarrassed but gracious. We did the interview and returned a few days later to take the cover photo. Her story involved a fairytale marriage that wasn’t, and that beautiful silver-haired lady was candid, classy, and oh so real.
Boo Ferriss, June 2005 Boston Red Sox pitcher and long-time Delta State baseball coach Boo Ferriss had been a celebrity hero to me for as long as I could remember. Although a shoulder injury had sidelined his dreams, his strong faith in God never wavered. He was still answering fan letters that he received on a daily basis over 50 years after he made headlines as an athlete. He was the epitome of all that was best about the Greatest Generation.
Going independent and changing the name, June 2006 2006 was a defining moment for many reasons. Jackson Christian Family had been an affiliate of a Birmingham parent company in its first four years. When the leadership transitioned to a different business model, I chose to become independent, thus requiring a name change for the magazine. We had morphed beyond the city limits and were much more of a tri-county publication. Sandra Goff, our graphic designer, suggested the new name. With fear and trembling, we launched. A sidenote of interest: I launched the new name in the middle of breast cancer and divorce — a very upside-down time in my life. EDITOR
RESPONDS TO GANNETT GOLIATH TACTIC page 26
HOWARD MISKELLY
LISA CRONK MINISTRIES page 15
Judge James Graves, September 2006 Now a member of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, Judge Graves was a Mississippi Supreme Court justice in 2006. His story included a close-knit family and a dad who worked two jobs to support his wife and six children, and who made sure nobody took a bite of breakfast until he recited a memorized Bible verse on Sunday mornings. Judge Graves, too, was a committed husband and father who Hurry-Up Dinners from Metro Moms prioritized transferring his father’s values to his sons. He is a brilliant jurist, but there was nothing pretentious about him. He was funny, gregarious, and loved a pickup game of basketball or concocting his original recipes in the family kitchen. MANAGING YOUR STRESS
Wendy Putt, May 2007 “A Bride’s Best Friend,” the cover’s title, was true then, and it is still true all these years later. Wendy, the CEO of Fresh Cut Catering and Floral, is the poster child for Matthew 5:13-14, when Jesus speaks of being salt and light in the world. She makes wedding dreams come true regardless of a bride’s budget, but along the way, she takes seriously the opportunity to point a starry-eyed couple to the only steadfast anchor for their life together.
A Lesson on Sunday School
FREE MAY 2007
Teacher of the Year Should We WORRY?
A Mother Learns a Lesson on PRAYER
mschristianliving.com ❘ JULY 2022 21
Robert Khayat, August 2007 I remember being a nervous wreck the day I was meeting Robert Khayat at UMMC for our interview. It was 2007, and his leadership at Ole 2Perspectives on ANXIETY Make Over Miss had made him quite a rock star. I could not Your Busy Life have been more intimidated as I headed to meet BACK TO him. He was real. He was gracious. He was fun, SCHOOL ISSUE and he was wise. I made a lifelong friend that day. I interviewed him again in 2015. Although retired, he was the same faith-filled, down-toearth guy. I incorporated his prayer outline into my life. He prays every day for wisdom, courage, energy, and peace. Yes.
FREE
AUGUST 2007
Sister Dorothea, February 2009 Sister Dorothea was a complete surprise. Presbyterian that I am, I was just not sure how I might connect to this Roman Catholic icon, the face of St. Dominic Hospital and its myriad health services. Meeting Queen Elizabeth was about the only thing I could imagine as more daunting. Instead, I met a warm forever friend with a great sense of humor. I immediately loved her and knew that we loved the same Lord. She has been the guiding force behind much generosity from St. Dominic’s to the surrounding community.
LOVE AT FIRST BITE What Fills Your
Heart?
Worry In the Workforce
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JANUARY 2019
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Our favorite books, movies of 2018
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FEBRUARY 2019
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Maggie Wade Dixon and André Dixon The couple that laughs together Local couples tell ‘how we met’ Slave ship exhibit opens at Two Mississippi Museums
Changing the name (again!), May 2014 The magazine continued to travel in those first 10 or 12 years. We were picking up subscribers from all over the state, and when we paid for a reputable survey on readership, we discovered a much larger audience beyond our metro area. A knowledgeable marketing executive looked at the data and advised us to go statewide — hence the name change to Mississippi Christian Living. It was always a challenge to go into new cities, simply because we were so small in staff, but we gave it our best and made many friends. We also found many inspiring stories along the way. The culture, even here in the Bible Belt, continues to change. It is a daily prayer that God shows this little magazine how to be a conduit of truth and encouragement to all who read it.
FREE
MAY 2014
22 JULY 2022 ❘ Mississippi Christian Living
John Perkins, January 2019 Oh my word, I love this cover so much! Sometimes the traditional, look-at-the-cameraand-smile pose is wonderful, but in this case, a candid shot from my interview with Dr. John Perkins was so much better. If you don’t know about Dr. Perkins’ legacy, I would encourage you to search “John Perkins” on our website and read the story. If you’ve ever heard Switchfoot’s 2009 song “The Sound (John M. Perkins’ Blues),” the band sums him up pretty well: “John Perkins said it right / Love is the final fight.”
Maggie Wade, February 2019 I think everyone who gets to know Maggie, even just for an article, comes away feeling like her best friend. I certainly did. Her notoriously media-shy husband, André, was perfectly willing to share hilarious stories about his wife, and their chemistry together was undeniable. Maggie is just as sweet as she seems on WLBT, and I loved getting to know her better.
®
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FEBRUARY 2017
DO W N LO A FO LIKE D LL US OU O R W AP US P
The church: Is it relevant? February 2017 This issue was one of my favorites and one of our most popular issues ever. By 2017, secularism was entrenched in our culture and there was a hyper-sensitive demand for leaving Christian conversation out of the public square. We thought it would be worthwhile to give prominent church leaders a platform to speak freely about the challenges they anticipated in the current environment. It was encouraging to see amid much diversity, there was a great sense of unity in belief. The gospel is still the great remedy for society’s ills on every level.
KATIE LOOKS BACK
Christy Henderson, April 2019 When I interviewed Pinelake pastor Chip Henderson’s wife about her mental health journey, I was dealing with a bit of a crisis myself — to the point that I got emotional after our interview. Instead of backing away slowly, Christy reached out in genuine concern and prayed for me on the spot. She is the real deal. And I wasn’t the only one impacted: Later, I ran into a man whose niece sought help after reading this article.
Jill Ford, May 2020 Ah, COVID. What you might not know about this beautiful shot of state representative Jill Ford and her husband is that we did not shoot it. We planned to photograph Jill in the House chamber at the state capitol, but around that time, the governor issued COVID restrictions. Fortunately, the Fords had just had some gorgeous family portraits done. Also, read Jill’s story if you haven’t. She doesn’t hold back!
Betsy Primos, September 2020 This is one of my favorite cover shots — and stories — ever. Three women let me into their lives and shared the most painful memories any mother could have: losing their sons to suicide. Betsy Primos, Janet Ingram, and Kysia Owens each explained how they’ve found hope in the aftermath, and how they want to help other young people. When we photographed Betsy in one of her late son’s favorite outdoor spots, she played “There Was Jesus” by Zach Williams and Dolly Parton on her phone, and the results were perfect.
FREE
APRIL 2019
Pressing onward:
Christy Henderson on depression, mental health and her ultimate hope
Hope springs up for former inmates in Mississippi
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MAY 2020
The Women’s Issue
Mississippi women honoring God: • • •
In a wheelchair At home At the state Capitol
Jill Ford on how God directed her steps
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SEPTEMBER 2020
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Betsy Primos
and other mothers find hope after losing sons to suicide
The new logo, January 2021 Y’all, I love our new logo! I still say “new,” even though the Braddys’ son has shot up half a foot since we debuted the logo more than a year and a half ago. I wanted to be sure we had a clean background that would make our new graphic stand out, and Broadmoor Baptist Church turned out to be the perfect place. Not to mention, the honesty and vulnerability Josh and Katie Braddy Back home at Broadmoor displayed by the Braddys in this interview prompted me to visit Broadmoor, and I’m now a member! PS: Many thanks to Noble Motive Graphic and Web Design for making the words “Mississippi Christian Living” look better than ever. Y
FREE
JANUARY 2021
● How to stay hopeful in 2021
HOW MCL HAS MADE AN IMPACT Here are the words of just a few readers, writers and others who’ve been impacted by Mississippi Christian Living. “I just wanted to say thank you so much for putting on the ‘Christian Leaders of the Future’ event each year and for choosing me to be a part. You will never know how much this has blessed me, and I am so grateful for you and everyone who helps to put on this event. I don’t take being awarded the scholarship lightly and feel more encouraged than ever to spread the light of Christ (every day) because of it! By God’s grace, I will do everything I can to strive to live up to the investment you’ve made in me. Please extend my gratitude to everyone on the committee and the others who worked with you!” – JM Holmes, 2022 Christian Leaders of the Future scholarship recipient “I love your magazines. I love reading the feature stories of various people and their backgrounds and how God (has) blessed them in many ways. “I am hearing impaired. I lost my hearing to a childhood illness. I faced many challenges like school ... I have (a) high school diploma, a BS from Southern Miss, and a master’s degree in Christian education. (I) will never give up because God is always there (to) help me get through. “Thank you for (the) wonderful magazines.” – Nicole Duckworth Pounders, reader “The opportunity to step into stories of life change, heartache (and) triumph, motherhood and every life stage in between is perhaps one of the greatest gifts that Christ has given us this side of heaven. Jesus was a storyteller throughout the New Testament … stories connect us to the greater message of Hope, and MCL has been bringing Hope to the people of Mississippi each month. Thank you for sharing our stories, MCL!” – Libbo Crosswhite, reader and former “Modern Motherhood” columnist
MANDY BUFKIN
● New year, new look for MCL!
Checking out cover shots by Deryll Stegall (see feature article on Deryll and his wife, Sherry, on page 28).
“Terry Grove Missionary Baptist Church … has been receiving (Mississippi) Christian Living Magazine since 2011. We were honored to have a submission in the magazine during the building of our new church in 2012, and we have been blessed with the wealth of Christian-filled information, topics and articles that have not only touched my heart as a pastor, but the hearts of our entire congregation. I want to give a heartfelt thanks to Ms. Robin Latham and Ms. Valree Jennings for their tireless dedication to initially connecting us with the (magazine), as well as getting it delivered to our church.” – Pastor Dion Porter “As a Christian business owner in Jackson and Madison, I try to use Christian businesses whenever possible. One of our favorite Christian businesses to read and support with our marketing budget is Mississippi Christian Living. I’m very comfortable placing this magazine in our reception rooms. It’s hard to believe it’s been 20 years since Marilyn put that first magazine out — and when Katie bought the magazine from Marilyn, it was a ‘God thing’! “The Savior is glorified in each edition of MCL, and the magazines are free to pick up, as the budget is completely from advertising dollars. Pick up several for your office, to send to out-of-town friends, and to take to nursing homes, hospital waiting rooms and your churches! “It is great to know my marketing dollars are supporting a God-honoring company!” – Dr. Eugene Brown, Smiles By Design
mschristianliving.com ❘ JULY 2022 23
LAGNIAPPE Submitted by BELHAVEN UNIVERSITY
Recognizing our advertising partners
M
ississippi Christian Living would not exist without a steady stream of revenue, and we are so grateful to each and every one of our advertisers for choosing to use MCL to promote their businesses and organizations. Here is a closer look at just a few of our advertising partners. Thank you for helping us make it to 20 years!
Belhaven University: Only at Belhaven Submitted by Belhaven University
Belhaven University is now gaining national attention for two unique offers that are a first in the United States. The Free Online Master’s Degree and Double Major Promise are two new groundbreaking programs the university is offering to traditional-campus students. The Double Major Promise offers students the ability to earn a double major with free tuition in their fifth year of study. This promise enhances learning experience by encouraging a double major or degree and providing an extra year to finish tuition-free if you need it. The offer allows students to enhance their marketability and significantly broaden their knowledge by combining majors. For example, pairing a business degree and a STEM major is the most lucrative combination, according to the National Survey of College Graduates. While taking on two college majors may mean more work, it can also bring a much greater reward. In another first for universities in America, Belhaven is providing a free online master’s degree for traditional-campus students who complete a minimum of 60 consecutive hours. Those students can choose from high-demand master degrees in business, health administration, education, biblical studies, leadership, public administration, or sports administration. Because the master’s is online, students may earn their next degree from wherever they live and at the time best suited for their career goals. 24 JULY 2022 ❘ Mississippi Christian Living
Mascagni Wealth Management: Finding joy in helping others MCL Editor Katie Eubanks recently sat down with Randy Mascagni, founder of Mascagni Wealth Management, to talk about his business and how it impacts people’s lives.
Katie Eubanks: How did Mascagni Wealth Management get started? Randy Mascagni: (When I was) 23, just two years out of college, my father died suddenly. Forced to sell his small business, I then worked with an attorney friend to move some money to a trust for my mother. From that point I started working with a stockbroker to manage the trust for my mom. Through that process, I learned the need for financial planning and investing … and I loved it. Eleven years later, I changed careers. KE: What did you do for those first 11 years? RM: Right out of college I worked at McCarty Farms, a Mississippi chicken company. My boss taught me how to run a business and introduced me to investing. At some point he encouraged me to read Money magazine. My favorite TV show was Louis Rukeyser's “Wall $treet Week” and I tried not to miss a show. My wife noticed how excited I got watching this show on all things financial. When I decided to change careers, I had friends who said, “Yeah, I could see you doing that.” And my wife said, “Yeah, that is you.” So, at age 34 with a wife and two young sons, I
decided to change careers and went to work for a local financial planning firm for a couple years, and then we decided to open my own firm (then Mascagni & Company) in 1990. I had no intentions of being big — just wanted to be the right size for the clients that needed us, whatever clients God sent our way. Over the years we have grown to manage now over $300 million for our clients. KE: Tell me a little about what you do. RM: We provide financial planning such as retirement planning, estate planning, and the similar, as well as manage client investments. We see our work as somewhat of a ministry. Sure, we are here to make a living and do what we enjoy. But what drives us and brings us satisfaction is helping our clients. Many times, a new client walks in wanting to invest a sum of money, but we slow the process down and review their overall situation first. This helps us see what needs really exist, and then we are able to work with the client to address those needs and develop appropriate strategies to accomplish their goals. Usually when somebody seeks advice from an advisor, there’s been a major change in their life — a job change, retirement, their spouse is suddenly gone, or for whatever reason they have come into a sum of money. For some of these we try to pay off their mortgage if possible. Yes, they save interest, but (more importantly) their fear has calmed and now they are ready for the next positive step.
Some people will ask, “Is it too late (to invest or plan for retirement)?” but actually it’s never too late. A common fear we see people express is believing, “I’m going to outlive (my money).” And in markets like this, you want to offer good, solid, objective advice. (Otherwise) people get in a market like this and go to cash. Some time ago Vanguard did a study and found that folks who don’t have an advisor tend to make more mistakes that cost them later. We’ve never had a client run out of money — unless they have continued some bad habits and wouldn’t do what we advised them to do. KE: How would you suggest someone choose a financial advisor? RM: One good way is to ask family and friends who they use, or ask your CPA who they would recommend. Also do some of your own research on any referrals by reviewing their website, calling them and even having an initial meeting with them. Yes, you need someone who is competent and experienced. But you also need someone that you can trust, someone you can talk to, and a professional that is known to be a good “fiduciary” for their clients. Additionally, you can go to www.letsmakeaplan.org and find a list of Certified Financial Planner (CFP) professionals in your area. It’s unfortunate that many think “it’s too expensive,” or they don’t need a professional (to manage their investments, get financial advice, etc.). For some, they have a feeling of guilt paying someone. And there are some that can do their own investing or planning for a few years. But at some point, things get more complex and Google doesn’t have all the answers. People tell us they are tired of the 1-800 calls and they want someone that they can go in and sit down with, face-to-face, to get help. Clients want and need that person they can trust, and who also understands them. Remember that one costly mistake “avoided” can make it worth what you pay a professional, not to mention the peace of mind it can provide. KE: What’s been the hardest part of running your own financial firm? RM: It’s times like this when we have market corrections, 20 percent or greater market drawdowns. No one in our business likes to see their clients’ investments decline. Part of our work is to take the emotion out of the situation, draw on our experience and make the correct decision. The other difficult part is when you want to expand your business and need to find the right new person to hire. The recent pandemic has made hiring new people even more challenging.
KE: What brings you the most joy in your work? RM: Probably the most joy is to see when you have helped somebody. For instance, a client who is recently divorced or widowed may find that their spouse was the breadwinner and handled the finances. They may really need someone to depend on, and they are in a vulnerable situation: In short, they need someone to help relieve their financial stress and make work what “little bit” they have left. These are situations where Julie at our office helps walk alongside the client and even grieve with them, while the rest of our team is busy implementing the financial plan and providing any needed investment management. KE: What are characteristics of your most successful clients? RM: They’re open to advice, know they need help, and appreciate someone helping them. Also, this is someone who gives us good information and tells us what we need to know to help them. You know … It’s not always how much money you have. Everyone’s “harvest” is different. Rather, it is more about doing the right thing over time that can provide the most peace and the best outcome. C Spire: Welcome to C Spire Country Submitted by C Spire
What is C Spire Country? The easy answer: We make customers’ lives easier. And smarter. And faster. In C Spire Country, we improve lives through technology. It begins in our schools, where we fought to make computer science education available to all K-12 students — and then donated $1 million so teachers have the training they need to make it happen. You can see it in the kids who participate in our C3 Coding Challenges, and in the students who prepare for rewarding tech careers at BaseCamp Coding Academy and the C Spire Software Development Pathway. We believe that technology not only levels the playing field but also advances the people and businesses under our watch. To realize that mission, we are constantly building and improving a wireless network that knows no barriers and adding high-speed fiber internet access stretching from our cities to the heart of the rural South. We do all this, every day, with the speed that ensures no person or business is left behind. Welcome to C Spire Country, where progress reigns. Y
PLACE LIKE Holmes DID YOU KNOW that a composite score of 20 on the ACT could qualify you for a scholarship at any of our campus locations or online? That’s right! Holmes Community College strives to recognize students’ hard work and dedication by offering various scholarship opportunities. We look forward to you joining our Holmes family! For qualification details visit holmescc.edu. ON-SITE REGISTRATION:
GOODMAN August 10, 9 AM - 6 PM GRENADA August 10, 9 AM - 6 PM RIDGELAND August 11, 9 AM - 6 PM ATTALA August 11, 4 PM - 6 PM YAZOO CITY August 10, 4 PM - 6 PM
holmescc.edu | 1 (800) holmes-4 Holmes Community College does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, gender, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, religion, national origin, citizenship age, disability, veteran status, or genetic information. Employees, students, applicants for admission or employment, or other participants in Holmes Community College programs or activities who believe they have been discriminated against are entitled to seek relief through the Compliance Officer (662) 472-9429. Written inquiries may be e-mailed to: compliance@holmescc.edu or sent to: Compliance Office, P.O. Box 369, Goodman, MS 39079.
mschristianliving.com ❘ JULY 2022 25
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
by CHRIS FIELDS CAMILLE MORRIS
Cool off with fruit this summer
C
an we just say, summer 2022 already feels hotter than last year ever did? With that in mind, we hope you enjoy these COLD, fruity, refreshing dishes
that will (hopefully) help you hold off the heat. Stay hydrated out there!
STRAWBERRY PIE 3 1 1½ 1 2 1
WATERMELON FETA SALAD
tablespoons cornstarch cup sugar cups water (3-ounce) box strawberry Jell-O™ cups sliced strawberries (10-inch) pie crust, prebaked
Line the bottom of the crust with sliced strawberries. Combine cornstarch, sugar and water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and simmer, stirring constantly, until thickened. Add Jell-O and stir until dissolved. Pour gelatin mixture over strawberries and refrigerate until set.
¼ 2 ½ 3 1 1 ½ ½
cup extra virgin olive oil tablespoons red wine vinegar teaspoon kosher salt cups cubed seedless watermelon cup medium cucumber, chopped cup crumbled feta cup red onion, thinly sliced cup coarsely chopped mint, plus more for garnish Flaky sea salt for garnish (optional)
In a small bowl, whisk together oil, vinegar and salt for dressing. In a large serving bowl, combine watermelon, cucumber, feta, red onion and mint. Add dressing and toss to coat. Garnish with more mint and flaky sea salt if desired. Serves 4.
601.956.8636 110 Jones Lane, Suite C • Flowood, MS 39232
ProLifeMS.org 26 JULY 2022 ❘ Mississippi Christian Living
NO-BAKE BLUEBERRY CHEESECAKE 18 1 1 1 1 1 1½
graham crackers stick salted butter, melted (8-ounce) cream cheese cup heavy cream cup powdered sugar teaspoon vanilla extract cups blueberry pie filling
Crush graham crackers into a fine crumb. Pour melted butter into graham cracker crumbs. Press crumb mixture into the bottom and up the sides of a springform pan; make sure it is firmly packed. Refrigerate crust while preparing the rest of the cheesecake. Combine cream cheese, cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla in a bowl. Beat with a mixer until completely creamy and the mixture is stiff. Pour cream cheese mixture into crust and spread until even. Refrigerate at least two hours. Top with blueberry pie filling and enjoy! Y
Register at: prolifems.org/events/walk-for-life-2022 2022 Walk For Life: 8 a.m. Saturday, September 17 Locations: Biloxi, Flowood, Grenada
mschristianliving.com ❘ JULY 2022 27
FEATURE STORY
by KATIE EUBANKS
Deryll & Sherry Stegall: Finding happiness in Christ
I
t’s become a tradition at MCL cover shoots to capture photographer Deryll Stegall giving his favorite directive: “Happyyyyyy!” We all need a little encouragement to look happy for pictures sometimes. And with his affable, helpful personality, it’s hard not to be as joyous as Deryll tells you to be. But just what makes this guy so happy? When you meet his wife, the answer seems obvious. But Deryll and Sherry Stegall are quick to point out they do not get their fullest joy from each other, and that neither of them has gotten everything right in life. They’ve both experienced divorce and a host of mistakes and challenges. Instead, Deryll and Sherry put Christ and His grace into clear focus. That is where they find their happiness. ‘Everybody has problems’ Their lives were eerily similar before they met. They both grew up in south Jackson, came to know Christ at young ages, and even attended The University of Mississippi around the same time, though they never met there. Deryll was interested in photography for most of his life. “My parents had a little camera they got at a gas station in south Jackson. We took a two-week family vacation to California, and they gave me the camera. We got back, and my parents really encouraged me (in my photography and) printed an 8x10 of a photo I took of a stream at Yosemite National Park.” While at business school at Ole Miss, he took photography classes. Early in his career, he landed at Southern Farm Bureau Life Insurance Company, where he worked in customer service,
In marriage, both spouses have got to “get peace with every day feeling like you’re giving more than your fair share,” Deryll says.
accounting and other departments for 20 years. “But I had always loved photography. I did it on the side,” he says. Sherry knew she wanted to be a “career professional,” and wound up doing that as a certified public accountant (CPA). She joined C Spire, first in accounting, “then was in a very diverse succession of roles in leadership,” she says. “I was blessed to be part of a company that emulates Christian values. I hear about others who’ve experienced a lot of negative things in their work environments. For me to be able to promulgate those principles of integrity that go back to the company owners … you wind up
teaching young people coming into the company what’s right and wrong.” Along the way, they each got married — and divorced — and then met each other through choir at First Baptist Jackson, where Deryll had recently joined. His sister and a couple of friends set them up, and the two went to lunch at a Chinese restaurant on I-55 North after a Saturday choir rehearsal. “We dated for a short time (and then stopped),” Sherry says. “I needed some space for the Lord to work on me. And He did. He just really tamed me. After about five years, we started dating again, what we thought was casually, and three months later we were married.” They each had a child from their first marriages — Sherry’s son, Philip, was a junior in high school, and Deryll’s daughter, Carly, was in first grade. “God gave us all each other,” Sherry says. “A lot of people talk about the hardships of a blended family, and we have not (experienced a lot of that). Philip and Carly treat each other as brother and sister, and call each other brother and sister, with no extensions on that.” Everything seems too good to be true. But of course it’s not. Early in their marriage, seeing couples at church who seemed to have it all together “was not encouraging to me,” Deryll says. “It was discouraging to me. But over time I realized everybody has problems. “There’s a verse that’s stuck with me in Romans (7),” he says, paraphrasing: “I find this law within me — in my heart I want to do good, but I also have this sin within me. Thanks be to God for His grace. “So even Paul struggled, and he’s one of the biggest Christians there ever was. That helped me with that. Our life as a couple may not be
Deryll and Sherry are members of First Baptist Jackson, where Sunday mornings find Deryll running camera and Sherry singing in the choir. 28 JULY 2022 ❘ Mississippi Christian Living
perfect, but nobody’s is.” Their marriage isn’t perfect, but they’re determined to stick together by God’s grace, Sherry says. “We have tried to tell everyone we can, I would never wish divorce on anybody. The reason we divorced (from our spouses) the first time was that Jesus was not the center. But now He is. And we’ve come in with the spoken (vow that) divorce is not an option,” she says. “And if divorce is not an option, you’ve got to figure out how to make it work.” “I’ve told our kids numerous times: If me and (my first wife) Cindy had had the spiritual maturity and selfless attitude that Sherry and I have, there’s no reason we would’ve gotten divorced,” Deryll says. “And Sherry says the same (about her first marriage). “The whole world is so doggone self-centered. Everybody talks about marriage being 50/50. It’s not. It’s 110/110. You’ve got to get peace with every day feeling like you’re giving more than your fair share. Because chances are, your spouse is dealing with challenges that you don’t know about.” Sherry says Deryll frequently quotes a seemingly simple saying: “All there is to life is making somebody happy, sonny boy.” “My grandfather told me that when I was a teenager giving my parents a hard time,” he says. “If you think about it — if you make God happy, your parents happy, your employer happy, your spouse happy … that’s all there is to it.” So what else do they try to bring to this marriage that was lacking the first time? “Maybe patience,” Deryll says. “I need patience to not go off on a sermon. It’s always easy to tell someone how to live their life.” Sherry says she struggles with patience too. In fact, it’s the fruit of the Spirit she struggles with most. “I’m strong-willed and impatient,” she says. “I have had to ask for forgiveness so many times. And (Deryll is) always very gracious.” Taking leaps of faith Being part of First Baptist Jackson has enriched Deryll and Sherry individually and as a couple. Sherry feels called to be part of the music ministry and has sung in the choir since her 20s. “It’s about sharing the love of God and letting that plant a seed,” she says. Deryll runs camera during Sunday morning services, which are broadcast on TV. He’s heard letters from out-of-state viewers who’ve been impacted, and “that made me feel good,” he says. In addition, the Stegalls learned how to share the gospel with people in public via Evangelism Explosion (EE). Ken Blackstock and the late Ken Sims conducted a training, Deryll says. “It is so far outside Sherry’s and my comfort zone to share our faith. (But) we did it, and that’s been one of the neatest growth experiences of my life. We’d have some great conversations with people at the washateria, or in front of Baptist Hospital. We had a number of decisions (made for Christ).” Afterward, “I got bold,” Deryll recalls. “We had
Deryll and Sherry with their kids, Philip and Carly, on their first family vacation after blending their families in 1996 (above), and in their first formal family portrait (below).
a cable crew at the house. As they started to leave, my heart started beating faster. But I was determined to say something rather than nothing. I didn’t do a perfect textbook job according to EE … but I planted the seed. And maybe God used someone else the next day or the next week.” He and Sherry would encourage anyone to participate in EE or similar outreach efforts. Even now, Deryll would like to design a business card-size tract that he can hand to cashiers and others. The Stegalls have also loved getting to be part of Buried Treasures, a home and ministry for women who’ve been incarcerated or near incarceration. “I have just enjoyed seeing how God has worked in those women’s lives,” says Sherry, who
served as board president for 12 years. Deryll recalls shooting Christmas portraits of children of inmates and getting 5x7 prints made for the parents. He did this for Buried Treasures for a decade or more. “I’ll get choked up talking about it,” he says. “I remember (then Executive Director Dick Benz) coming back and telling me later, the look and the response from some of those prisoners when he would take them the 5x7 of their kids all dressed up and happy at Christmas — it’s an encouragement and a challenge to those parents to get out of there and get their life right and get back with their kids.” At a certain point in his career, Deryll and Sherry prayed and “decided we could take a leap,” he says. He stepped away from Southern Farm Bureau and went into photography full time. He says the biggest blessing in his photography career has been shooting cover stories for Mississippi Christian Living. Because he sticks around to take candid photos during the interviews, he gets to hear people’s stories firsthand. As this editor knows, those 60 to 90 minutes can be powerful. “It’s almost been like my own private little church experience,” he says. “I leave reinvigorated and inspired to do more with my own life.” Sherry says he comes home talking about those interviews a lot. “He gives me a trailer, if you will (for the article).” ‘If this is the worst thing … ’ One of the biggest life lessons the Stegalls have learned is to have a positive attitude. Not just blind, Pollyanna optimism, but gratitude and a clear perspective. “My kids have heard me say, ‘If this is the worst thing that happens today, it’s going to be a great day,’” Deryll says. “We get so in a wad because a flower died, or the garage is in a mess.” Sherry says Deryll often reminds her “there are others that are in situations that are so far worse than (whatever is bothering me that day).” He has to remind himself, too. For instance, “We had gotten this new boat, and I had stopped at Home Depot in Vicksburg with the boat hooked up to the back of my car. I hit a little car in the parking lot, rubbed the front of the car. “It was so disheartening. It just ruins your day when you do something like that. But I remember thinking in that moment, ‘If this is the worst thing that happens today, it’s still a good day.’ “I want (that saying) on my gravestone,” Deryll says. While that headstone would get a laugh, it would be fitting for a Christian — one who can see death quite differently than the rest of the world. “You’re going to go somewhere for all eternity when you die,” Sherry says. “And I’m very, very thankful that I know (where I’m going), by the grace of God and what Jesus has done on the cross.” Y mschristianliving.com ❘ JULY 2022 29
COMMUNITY OUTREACH
by SAMUEL BOLENy CAMILLE MORRIS
Finding hope in the capital city
H
ave you ever wondered if it is truly possible to make a difference in Jackson’s underresourced communities? What if Hope was more than a cliché but a reality? At Jackson Leadership Foundation, we believe there is Hope and you can make a difference! God has placed ministry leaders in every neighborhood in our city. These leaders are called and committed to the neighborhoods they serve. They have the relationships and trust needed to foster true spiritual, social and economic transformation in Jackson, block by block. But our ministry leaders need help! Did you know every year nonprofit ministry leaders are leaving their jobs? In 2020, Forbes published a report that 45 percent of nonprofit employees will seek new employment within five years. Of that group, 23 percent said that nonprofits would not be among the types of organizations they intended to pursue. Burnout, lack of resources, scarcity of manpower, discouragement, and leadership development needs are but a few of the factors causing
MAXIMIZE & MULTIPLY IMPACT JacksonLeadershipFoundation.org
30 JULY 2022 ❘ Mississippi Christian Living
Jackson’s ministry leaders to step away from their ministry commitments. Jackson Leadership Foundation sees a problem with this! Birthed out of the vision of local leaders with direction from Dr. John M. Perkins, Jackson Leadership Foundation partners with ministry leaders in Jackson to
“ Imagine where Jackson can be 20 years from now if we commit to invest in the leaders who are investing in our most needy of neighbors.
”
ensure they receive the support they need to grow as leaders and grow their ministries to the scale of the vision God has given them. JLF’s commitment is to empower ministry leaders in Jackson’s under-resourced communities through leadership development, volunteer and donor mobilization, and the incubation of new ministries. Pouring into leaders JLF’s Leader Lab program provides a free six-month nonprofit ministry training cohort. In tandem with the Mississippi Alliance for Nonprofit and Philanthropy, JLF ensures Jackson’s ministry leaders receive the best nonprofit ministry training available. JLF also offers top-notch leadership coaches (called Ministry Champions) to walk alongside Leader Lab participants, assisting leaders as they implement what they have learned. Felecia Marshall, founder of Grant Me Justice, is a current Leader Lab participant. Felecia’s daughter was murdered in March 2017. Devastated, Felecia then had to face the challenge of navigating the tedious and tiresome legal process. Traumatized by it all, Felecia felt the burden to create a ministry for other mothers who have lost children to gun violence. As a brand-new nonprofit ministry, Grant Me Justice entered JLF’s Leader Lab in January 2022. During her time in the Leader Lab, Grant Me Justice has grown tremendously. The ministry has increased in board members, resources, volunteers, and most importantly, impact. Through JLF’s Leader Lab and Felecia’s leadership, Grant Me Justice is a much-needed light for our neighbors. Felecia shares of her experience with JLF:
“The mere fact of knowing that every JLF staff member, every ministry partner, and every Champion is rooting for the success of our ministries is priceless ... Having a Ministry Champion like Nick Crawford and participating in JLF’s Leader Lab has armed me with every tool needed for Grant Me Justice to glorify God and to live beyond me.” Making connections Not only do our ministries need leadership support, but they also need volunteer and donor connection. JLF’s Nehemiah Network program partners with people willing to give their time, talent and treasure to serve alongside Jackson’s ministry leaders. Because of your support through JLF’s Nehemiah Network, ministry leaders in Jackson are well resourced and well networked. They are growing to scale and able to transform more lives spiritually, socially and economically. You can volunteer with a local ministry through JLF’s Nehemiah Network at jacksonleadershipfoundation.org. Providing an umbrella Thirdly, JLF also offers a Ministry Covering and Incubation service. JLF allows ministry leaders to operate their new or existing ministry under JLF’s 501c3 umbrella. For a small fee, JLF provides back-office support, governance, legal compliance, executive leadership, donation processing and more, so that a ministry leader spends more time serving on the street and less time behind the desk. We believe transformation is possible. You can make a difference! Mississippi Christian Living is celebrating 20 years in 2022. Imagine where Jackson can be 20 years from now if we commit to invest in the leaders who are investing in our most needy of neighbors. There is hope! Y
Samuel Bolen is executive director of Jackson Leadership Foundation, a Christ-centered 501c3 seeking the spiritual, social and economic transformation of Jackson’s underresourced communities through the empowerment of leaders, development of ministries, and networking of volunteers and donors. To learn more, visit jacksonleadershipfoundation.org.
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WHAT’S GOING ON
Restoration Church’s Outside Crusade
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e are Pastors Maurice “Moe” Calvert and Dr. LaShunda Calvert of The Restoration Church of Jackson. We are located at 3931 Hanging Moss Road, Suite H, and we bring you greetings from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. As many of you are aware, our capital city is experiencing atrocities that have left many families in despair, fear, hopelessness, and great emotional turmoil week after week. Our city is in trouble, and many are looking for solutions to rectify the problems our city faces. There is only one solution, and that solution is Jesus Christ.
God has led the ministerial leadership of our church to host outside crusades, declaring spiritual war for our city. Mark 16:15 states: “And he said to them, ‘Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.’” Spiritual war includes praying and hosting a crusade every second Sunday on the outside of our church until God says stop. The main objectives of the crusade are to lead people to Christ and to serve as a spiritual resource for nearby neighborhoods and communities, the city, and the state. We are hosting our next crusade Sunday, July 10, at 11 a.m., and we are asking you to
Pregnancy Resource Act The Pregnancy Resource Act is a new opportunity for businesses to redirect their tax liability to invest in the life-saving work of pregnancy centers that serve women in crisis situations. ◼ This law creates a DOLLAR-FOR-DOLLAR tax credit (not deduction) to businesses that make a voluntary cash donation to pregnancy resource charitable organizations (PRCOs) such as the CPC Metro. ◼ The credit can be for as much as 50 percent of the business’ state income tax liability, insurance premium tax liability, or for noncorporations, real property ad valorem liability. ◼ The credit can carry forward for up to 5 years. ◼ There is a capped limit of $3.5 million in allocated funds for 2022. ◼ Credits are issued on a first-come, firstserved basis, so apply ASAP! This is a great opportunity for businesses to use their tax dollars to progress life-affirming
32 JULY 2022 ❘ Mississippi Christian Living
by PASTORS MAURICE AND LASHUNDA CALVERT
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resources that will change the lives of women and families! The CPC Metro has served women in Hinds, Rankin and Madison counties since 1988. The work of pregnancy centers is vital to meeting the needs of women in Mississippi. Centers like the CPC Metro provide women in communities all across our state a safe place to talk through their pregnancy decision, learn about resources and support available to them, and ultimately make an informed choice about their pregnancy. PRCOs ensure that NO woman must face an unplanned pregnancy alone or believe the lie that abortion is the only option. The Pregnancy Resource Act allows businesses to help women get connected to the resources they need through their local pregnancy center. ◼ To learn more about the CPC, go to cpcmetrofriends.org. ◼ To speak to someone about the Pregnancy Resource Act, contact Betty@cpcmetro.org. Y
come out and support this spiritual movement for Jackson. Ultimately, we hope and pray that other churches will join us in this crusade movement and host outside crusades once a month at their churches throughout Mississippi. For additional information, please contact us at 601.573.4231. Y
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Don’t be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your request to the Lord. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. ~ PHILIPPIANS 4:7-8, NIV
Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, ‘The LORD is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.’ The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him. ~ LAMENTATIONS 3:22-25, NIV
Belhaven University...................................................2
I will declare that your love stands firm forever, that you have established your faithfulness in heaven itself. ~ PSALM 89:2, NIV
~2 THESSALONIANS 3:3, ESV
~ HEBREWS 10:23, NIV
Do not withhold your mercy from me, LORD; may your love and faithfulness always protect me.
~ PSALM 40:11, NIV
Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you. ~ DEUTERONOMY 31:6, ESV 34 JULY 2022 ❘ Mississippi Christian Living
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Prove me, O LORD, and try me; test my heart and my mind. For your steadfast love is before my eyes, and I walk in your faithfulness. ~ PSALM 26:2-3, ESV
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Let love and faithfulness never leave you. ~ PROVERBS 3:3A, NIV
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O Lord, you are my God;
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But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one.
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I will exalt you; I will praise your name, for you have done wonderful things, plans formed of old, faithful and sure. ~ ISAIAH 25:1, ESV
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From the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same the LORD’S name is to be praised. ~ PSALM 113:3, KJV
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Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow Blessings all mine with 10, 000 beside. ~ “Great is Thy Faithfulness,” Thomas Chisholm
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