Have a Wonderful Thanksgiving Day!

We celebrate Thanksgiving Day with food, fun and family. Yet, today is not the only day to show your thanks and appreciation for your many blessings. Give thanks every day!

Wishing you a safe Thanksgiving Day!

No One Should Go Hungry in This Country

We will be celebrating Thanksgiving Day on Thursday November 28th. Traditionally, this is a celebratory time of the season where families and friends gather together to partake in a feast and socializing on this day. While we reflect on stories of the first Thanksgiving, let’s be mindful to fast-forward that time to the present: Sharing + Food + Fellowship.

We are highlighting Feeding America, the nation’s leading domestic hunger-relief charity. Their mission is to feed America’s hungry through a nationwide network of member food banks and engage our country in the fight to end hunger. According to FeedingAmerica.org, hunger in America exists for over 50 million people. That is 1 in 6 of the U.S. population – including more than 1 in 5 children.

On their Hunger & Poverty Statistics page, it lists the hard core facts regarding supplemental poverty measure and food insecurity. There are several ways to get involved: volunteering, becoming an advocate, become a partner and spreading the word through various channels like social media. There are so many things that we should not and cannot take for granted. Wasting food when we have the means is something we must be mindful of, and recognize that unfortunately far too many people do not have the luxury of eating whenever they want to, if at all.

Throughout the year, we must be cognizant of the fact that there are so many people who would love a morsel of what we eat or throw away each day. We may not be able to completely eradicate this hunger problem, but we can do a little something to help ease the painful consequences resulting from hunger.

Saluting Our Veterans on Veterans Day!

Goodbye James Farmer!

So often, we get to a point in our lives when we come to a crossroad of sorts in our day-to-day living that certain events can leave us befuddled. When we see the senseless loss of lives or those suddenly taken from us without warning, it’s a hard pill to swallow. This morning, shortly after everyone got to work, we learned that one of the members of our corporate family passed away last night.

James Farmer, our CFO left us suddenly, unexpectedly and in a state of shock. Although we felt like life itself was momentarily sucked out of us when we read the corporate email from our President, we had to refocus on praying for his family. Loss is something that seems to be all too familiar to us the older we get. Perhaps it’s because it sinks in more than it did when we were younger. Or perhaps it is hitting home more than we realize. Or maybe it’s because of the relationships we build, whether personal or professional, are broken without warning at times.

For a while, we find that we are kinder, more sensitive to the needs of others and even more prayerful than we probably were before coming to work. Yet, at the same time, we feel compassion for the pain that James’ wife, children and the rest of his family are going through right now. We pray that God will grant them continued strength, comfort and healing.

We will always remember his huge smile, how he always dressed professionally and neatly (I never ever saw him without a sharp tie) and his strong work ethic. So long James! We will certainly miss you! 

Say NO to Domestic Violence!

Is it me or does it seem like domestic violence is getting worse? Today a co-worker told me about a tragic incident that happened yesterday involving one of her cousins. The result of the altercation left 2 people dead, one an innocent victim and the other the abuser. This is so sad and disturbing. The cycle of violence must cease. There are too many people losing their lives senselessly and there is so much heartache and pain that can be avoided.

Sometimes we have to look at the personal choices we make and see whether we are putting loved ones in danger. Abusers need help, but won't seek it. Victims sometimes feel that there is no way out or they're too embarrassed to seek assistance to escape the torture. I've witnessed too much hurt and pain resulting from domestic abuse and it is crippling. What will it take to live in peace within our own homes? How can the violence be stopped without innocent people getting hurt or killed? What can we do to avoid raising a new generation of abusers? My LORD, there is so much work to be done, but less work can be done when people seek you and find peace and comfort in your WORD!

Although we commemorate National Domestic Abuse Awareness Month in October, this is an ongoing problem throughout the year. May we be mindful and wakeup to the poison and torture this type of abuse brings. It's grip is shredding too many families and this plague must stop! Please, for God's sake, let's put an end to this epidemic.

Today is National Color Day

How does color affect your life? What does it say about you and your personality? Today is designated as a day to celebrate how color influences what you wear, how you decorate and the mood it puts you in. How does color affect your spirit? Color is a part of our culture. It is symbolic among many different cultures. According to Digital Skratch and Pantone, here are characteristics of color families.

Red is a very strong color. It is a noticeable color that is often used on caution and warning signs. It is often associated with stop or "beware". It’s a hot color that evokes a powerful emotion of passion, lust, sex, energy, blood and war. Red is a good color to use for accents that need to take notice over other colors. Red is often used in flags for nations, as it is a symbol of pride and strength. It is also a sporty color that many car manufactures choose to showcase their signature vehicles.

Orange is a combination of Red and Yellow. It is also a bright and warm color. It represents fire, the sun, fun, warmth and tropical images. It is considered a fun light color that has appetizing qualities to it. Orange increases oxygen supply to the brain and stimulates mental activity. It is highly accepted among young people. As a citrus color, orange is associated with healthy food and stimulates appetite. Any design relating to the tropics, something fun, easy going and youthful should incorporate some type of orange into the design. A darker, richer shade of orange can be associated with autumn.

Yellow is the brightest color to the human eye. It represents youth, fun, happiness, sunshine and other light playful feelings. It is a cheerful energetic color. Yellow is often used for children’s toys and clothes. Yellow is often hard to read when placed on a white background so designers must be careful when using yellow, that it isn't’t too difficult to read or notice. Though yellow is a bright cheerful color, as it starts to darken it, however, quickly becomes a dirty and unpleasant color. Yellow can also be associated with being scared and, cowards. The term "yellow belly" is proof of that.

Green is the color of nature and health. It represents growth, nature, money, fertility and safety. Green is a relaxing color that is easy on the eye and has a healing power to it. It is often used to represent anything having to do with health. Many pharmaceutical and nutritional companies use green in their logos and material to advertise safe natural products. Dark green is commonly associated with the military, money, finance, and banking. However it can also be associated with being new or inexperienced as being green or a "green horn". Green is becoming a very popular color in design for web sites.

Blue is a cool calming color that shows creativity and intelligence. It is a popular color among large corporations, hospitals and airlines.  It is a color of loyalty, strength, wisdom and trust. Blue has a calming effect on the psyche. Blue is the color of the sky and the sea and is often used to represent those images. Blue is a color that generally looks good in almost any shade and is a popular color among males. Blue is not a good color when used for food as there are few blue foods found in nature and it suppresses the appetite.

Purple combines the stability of blue and the energy of red. Throughout history purple has been associated with royalty, nobility and prestige. It symbolizes mystery, magic, power and luxury. Purple is often used to portray rich powerful kings, leaders, wizards and magicians. Purple combined with gold can be flashy and portray wealth and extravagance. Light purple and pink is good for a feminine design and is a popular color among teenage girls. Bright purple along with yellow is commonly used in promoting children's products. It gives the appearance of something that is fun and easy to do.

Black is often a color used to portray something evil, depressing, scary or even death in western civilization.  It has negative imagery with it at times such as "black mail" "black list" "black hole" etc. Black is also a very powerful color that also portrays one of class elegance and wealth.  Classy clothing is designed in black from the "power suit" to the "sexy black dress" to formal "black-tie attire". Black combined with other colors can have a very strong statement.  Black is a color that can fit into almost every design to add contrast, type, and make the other colors stand out more.

White is often associated with being pure, clean, fresh and good. The color of a fresh snowstorm brings up images of a peaceful and pure winter scene. White is a common background for Webster's as it is easy to read black or dark text on it. When used with a design using lots of negative space it gives a very clean look to it. White is also used lots for charities and non-profit organizations to denote something good and positive. Hollywood often portrays their characters in white as being good; the white horse, the cowboy with the white hat, the white wizard etc.  White usually is associated with being pure and almost heavenly, it is associated with hospitals, doctors, and heaven.

Words of Wisdom from Dr. Charles Stanley

Prayer is one of the sweetest experiences in all of life, but it’s also one of our greatest struggles. Since prayer is a battle, we need to think of ourselves as soldiers and realize that our Commander has provided everything we need to be victorious. Besides being appropriately dressed for battle, a soldier must be watchful, determined, persistent, knowledgeable and obedient to his commander’s instructions.

The next time you get on your knees, remember that you’re entering a battleground. So stand firm and never give up, because your effectiveness and personal victory in Christ are linked to the time you spend with the Lord in prayer.

This excerpt came from the origninal editorial written by Dr. Stanley, from In Touch Magazine (October, 2013).