Reginia Cotton is this weeks woman in our sportlight

Our woman in the spotlight this week is an encourager, motivator, and a leader. She has a true love for God and His people and a never-ending desire to impact the lives of other women. She is a graduate of Nova Southeastern University in Orlando, FL where she earned a B.S. degree in Business Administration and is currently pursuing a Masters of Business Administration degree from the same university.

Her name is Reginia Cotton and she is CEO / President of He ChoZe Me! where she is a motivational / inspirational speaker & mentor for women. He ChoZe Me! is designed to empower, enhance and encourage. She is also a youth mentor and a youth leader at Redeeming Light Center Church of Eatonville, FL, under the leadership of Pastors Thomas & Beverly Brown and the Director for Empowered4Life! Youth Mentoring & Leadership Development Program for ages 13-18. Her passion for the heart of women and young teen girls compels her to take this leap of faith and lean on God’s infinite wisdom through prayer and faith. Having dealt with abandonment, rejection, disappointment and abuse she rose up against all odds and moved forward in the spirit of excellence.

Reginia proudly proclaims that she is not what she use to be and that she is continuing to progress forward in the spirit of excellence. I had the pleasure of interviewing Ms. Cotton recently and happy to share with you our readers another inspiring interview with a gracious woman in ministry.

W2W: Reginia what motivated you to start HE ChoZE ME!?

Reginia: God actually gave me the motivation to start He ChoZe Me! I reflected back over my life and considered some of the trials I've had to face and a lot of it had to do with heartache and the desire to be and feel loved. As women we need that sisterhood and the feeling of oneness to help motivate, inspire, and empower us to continue pressing forward in the things that we desire to do. I didn't have that growing up and I don't want to pass up the opportunity to pour into the lives of other women, regardless of their background or walk of life in which one has had to travel. I can tell you, Sherri, I've definitely walked some miles in this journey. Then I realized that God chose me, according to Jeremiah 1:5.


W2W: With teens today facing so many temptations, dealing with different pressures and influences in the world, what is the most important thing you try to teach them about dealing with life in general?

Reginia: One thing I try to convey to teens is the fact that they have the ability to make good sound choices. We have choices in everything we do. Sometimes we are not responsible for the hand we're dealt but we have the choice to rise above situations in spite of what's before us. Young people (teens) should know that it's ok to not be the "norm". Most importantly, if they were to consider the consequence of an action, they may re-consider the course of action that is before them. Also, when having made an unwise decision, ALWAYS take something out of the situation as a memorial stone and learn from it. Let it be a reminder that you've been in that place before and to not go back to it again.


W2W: How did you rise above your circumstances and moved forward in the spirit of excellence?

Reginia: Wow! I wouldn't know where to begin answering this question! Prayer, prayer, and more prayer is what helped me rise above many trials I've had to face and still facing in life. I had to remind myself of the promises of God and trust Him. God is a faithful God! I couldn't have made it through without the love, support, and encouragement of my dear friends. I have some of the best friends that anyone gal can have! :-) I have to press through because when another "Regina" comes my way I have to be able to share with her how I made it over. As Marvin Sapp so eloquently says, "I'm stronger, I'm wiser, I'm better...so much better. When I LOOK back..." Sherri, I realize when I look back on a storm I then realize that I made it through. Praise the Lord!


W2W: What scriptures do you draw strength from daily?

Reginia: The Word of God is something powerful!! One of my favorite scriptures is Ephesians 3:20 "Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly ABOVE ALL that we think or ask according to the POWER that works within us". Thank you, Jesus! When I need to go to my safe haven from all the noise and spiritual warfare I go to Psalm 91. When I need to lie down in the green meadows I go to Psalm 23. When I need to be reminded of God's love I go to John 3:16. When I need to be reminded that no matter how bad the situation is God can turn it around I go to Romans 8:28 & Phil 4:13. When I dare to praise my way through a situation I go and read Psalm 105 and consider the words of David who never failed to exalt the Lord. Sherri, I love the love Letter that God left for His people and His Word continues to fall fresh on me every time I open the Letter to read it.


W2W: Besides the Holy Bible, the book our Heavenly Father is the author of, what books would you recommend for reading?

Reginia: One of my favorite Christian authors would be Elizabeth George. She wrote A Woman After God's Own Heart. If one desires to draw nearer to Him this is an awesome book. Also, Stormie Omartian who wrote Power of a Praying Wife. I'm currently reading Bishop T. D. Jakes, Reposition Yourself. These authors and many others have really written some awesome books that can assist in keeping you grounded in this walk with Christ. I pray to one day be among them with a #1 best seller!


W2W: Reginia please share your testimony of faith with us.

Reginia: As I stated earlier, God chose me at an early age of 11. I fell in love with Christ when I was a little girl. I grew up in a Baptist church in Faunsdale, Alabama. Yes, it was pure country. LOL! But nevertheless, I met Christ and we've been walking ever since. Sometimes I would take a different route but His navigation system (the Holy Spirit) always alerted me and I was back on track. God has spared my life and use His rod of correction to mold me and continue to design me for His glory. I believe because His word pierces my heart and He gives me a hope beyond what I can see. Paul says that if we hope for what we see then its not really hope. Jesus is an expressionless wonder in my life, meaning I can't find the words that would adequately describe or display who He is to me. I've tried the party and drinking when I was younger and one day I realized that is not the life I wanted to live and one night I called my former pastor crying uncontrollably and re-dedicated my life fully to the Lord and shall we say, "the story continues..."

W2W: In closing, how can we, your sisters, be in prayer for you?

Reginia: My prayer is that God will grant me wisdom and understanding as I "seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you" Matt 6:33. Also, that there would be a manifestation of His Spirit poured out among His people and that I remain a humble servant of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Woman2Woman Lounge would like to sincerely thank Reginia Cotton for granting us this interview. You can read more about her and He choZe Me by visiting her website @ http://hechozeme.com/


Sherri Walker, Editor
Woman2Woman Lounge, & co-Founder of
Moms Working for Kingdom
http://momsworkingforthekingdom.org

Tammy Arceneaux

Our woman in the spotlight this week is a wife, mother, and an award-winning graphic designer, who always had a passion for the creative gift she was blessed with. She has had a diverse career, which has spanned over 15 years as an art director/graphic designer. Anxious to make her “vision” come true she set out on her own and formed Visions Graphics Studio in 2005. Her name is Tammy Arceneaux and she is founder and creative Director of VisionsXpressed.

To me there is nothing more delightful than sharing your faith with others, proclaiming the gospel of Christ in whatever way you can, be it through your business, or just as you walk down the street and meet and greet people. The Bible says be not ashamed of the gospel for it is the power unto salvation to those who believe. Jesus himself said everyone who confesses HIM before men, HE will also confess before HIS Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies HIM before men, HE will also deny him before HIS Father who is in heaven.

Declaring your faith with boldness is what Tammy set out to do when she started Visionsxpressed in 2006. Their Dog tags and tee shirts allow you to literally be a walking billboard for the Lord.
Tammy says VisionsXpressed has been in the making for her entire life without her even knowing, however, she says, “God knew”! You can read our interview with Tammy @ www.woman2womanlounge.com

Myanmar state radio says cyclone death toll soars

YANGON, Myanmar - The death toll from the cyclone that battered Myanmar last weekend has risen above 22,000, state radio has reported.

A news broadcast on government-run radio said Tuesday that 22,464 people have now been confirmed dead from Cyclone Nargis, which tore through the country's heartland and biggest city of Yangon early Saturday.

The broadcast added that thousands more are missing.

Relief efforts for the stricken area, mostly in the low-lying Irrawaddy River delta, have been difficult, in large part because of the destruction of roads and communications outlets by the storm. The first assistance from overseas arrived Tuesday from neighboring Thailand.

Officials had said today that the toll could continue to climb higher than the 14,000 already feared dead from the Southeast Asian nation's devastating cyclone as the international community prepared to rush in aid.

In the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis, state radio reported that the government was delaying a constitutional referendum in areas hit hardest.

Myanmar's Information Minister Maj. Gen. Kyaw Hsan confirmed at a news conference that some 4,000 people had died in Yangon and the low-lying Irrawaddy delta region. He added that another 10,000 people could be dead in the delta.

Kyaw said tidal waves killed most of the victims in that region.

Earlier, Foreign Minister Nyan Win was quoted by state-run television as saying that more than 10,000 people had perished in Irrawaddy while a smaller number died in and around Yangon, the country's largest city.

"News and data are still being collected, so there may be many more casualties," he said.

It was not known why the two ministers presented different death tolls.

The World Food Program, which was preparing to fly in food, added its own grim assessment of the destruction: Up to 1 million people may be homeless, some villages have been almost totally eradicated and vast rice-growing areas are wiped out.

A state television report gave two different numbers — 59 and 130 — for the dead in what is known as Yangon division. It did not explain the differing tolls.

The country's ruling junta, which has spurned the international community for decades, urgently appealed for foreign aid at a meeting Nyan Win held with diplomats Monday in Yangon.

The U.N.'s emergency relief coordinator said Tuesday the government had indicated it was ready to start accepting international aid. The U.N., Red Cross and other aid organizations have been organizing supplies in preparation for shipping them to the country.

Some aid agencies reported their assessment teams had reached some areas of the largely isolated region but said getting in supplies and large numbers of aid workers would be difficult.

A military transport plane flew from Bangkok to Yangon Tuesday with emergency aid from Thailand while a number of other countries and organizations said they were prepared to follow.

Richard Horsey, Bangkok-based spokesman for the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Aid, said Yangon's airport is the closest to the region hardest hit.

"For those places accessible by land, there will be cars and trucks from those areas to meet at the halfway point with vehicles from Yangon," he said. "For remote areas, assessment teams and assistance teams will need to go by helicopters and boats."

The delta is riddled with waterways but Horsey said they are not easily accessible, even during normal times.

Based on a satellite map made available by the United Nations, the storm's damage was concentrated over about a 11,600-square-mile (30,000-square-kilometer) area along the Andaman Sea and Gulf of Martaban coastlines — less than 5 percent of the country.

But the affected region is home to nearly a quarter of Myanmar's 57 million people.

Images from state television showed large trees and electricity poles sprawled across roads and roofless houses ringed by large sheets of water in the delta region, which is regarded as Myanmar's rice bowl.

"More or less all the landlines are down and it's extremely difficult to get information from cyclone-affected areas. But from the reports we are getting, entire villages have been flattened and the final death toll may be huge," said Mac Pieczowski, who heads the International Organization for Migration office in Yangon, in a statement.

State radio reported Saturday's vote on a draft constitution would be delayed until May 24 in 40 townships around Yangon and seven in the Irrawaddy delta, which bore the brunt of the killer storm.

It indicated that in other areas the balloting would proceed as scheduled.

The appeal for assistance was unusual for Myanmar's ruling generals, who have long been suspicious of the international organizations and have closely controlled their activities.

Foreign governments were poised Tuesday to rush aid to the devastated nation.

The United States, which has slapped economic sanctions on the country, said it likewise stood ready. The U.S. Embassy is providing $250,000 in immediate aid from existing emergency fund. But first lady Laura Bush said Monday the U.S. would provide further aid only if one of its own disaster teams is allowed into the country.

The European Commission was providing $3 million in humanitarian aid while the president of neighboring China, Hu Jintao, promised $1 million in cash and supplies.

The government had apparently taken few efforts to prepare for the storm, which came bearing down on the country from the Bay of Bengal late Friday. Weather warnings broadcast on television would have been largely useless for the worst-hit rural areas where electricity supply is spotty and television a rarity.

"The government misled people," said Thin Thin, a grocery story owner in Yangon. "They could have warned us about the severity of the coming cyclone so we could be better prepared."

Yangon was without electricity except where gas-fed generators were available and residents lined up to buy candles, which have doubled in price since the storm hit. Most homes were without water, forcing families to stand in long lines for drinking water and bathe in the city's lakes.

Most telephone landlines appeared to be restored by late Monday, but mobile phones and Internet connections were down.

Some in Yangon complained that the 400,000-strong military was only clearing streets where the ruling elite resided but leaving residents, including Buddhist monks, to cope on their own in most other areas.

Myanmar has been under military rule since 1962. Its government has been widely criticized for suppression of pro-democracy parties such as the one led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been under house arrest for almost 12 of the past 18 years.

At least 31 people were killed and thousands more were detained when the military cracked down on peaceful protests in September led by Buddhist monks and democracy advocates.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080506/ap_on_re_as/myanmar_cyclone