February 2024 – Belleza

My take from the book of Ephesians

About the Christian life: My take from Ephesians Note: The italic sentences are quotes from the Explore book, and the bold are biblical verses Explore the Christian life, based on the book of Ephesians in the bible, was the last course in the Explore Programme of George Whitefield College. A program I commenced around six years ago (I know six years is a lot, but 4 of them were a break). Overall, it was a privilege to be on this journey to read the bible in detail and understand some pieces. The reading journey continues. It is the tested one that ends! Though I rarely remember all I read, I feel privileged to have embarked on this path, constantly learning and having such a valuable reference! Coming back to Ephesians. A concise book in the Apostolic writings, with only six chapters, which you can listen to in 10 minutes or read in 30 minutes at a moderate pace! Unlike other writings by Paul, this was not addressed to Ephesus solely, based on the fact that it doesn’t respond to local problems or emphasize Ephesians as a community. The book addresses Gentiles-turned-Christians, and Christians can relate to the message to this day! In Ephesians, Paul talks about the before, during, and after of a person on the journey to meeting Jesus, and he explains the how at each stage. As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. Eph 2:1-2 The status of a person who has not listened to and accepted the gospel (God’s announcement of his Kingdom headed by Jesus) is spiritually dead. The when, who, and how a person meets Jesus is all God’s doing, so no one can boast because the whole process or result is not anyone’s work. This is where we usually have questions and arguments on God’s fairness; a little change in perspective could make us recall Potter and Clay’s story and remember that everyone’s sins were bought. When and if anyone receives the good news that was not shared, ours is to believe, and this, too, is God enabled. We just don’t have to harden our hearts. #GraceJust!😀 “In Him, we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, by the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us” Eph1: 7-8 Now to Christians (whom Paul recognized based on their faith and love for other Christians); and using words such as # inheritance, #blessing, Paul highlights the package that comes with being a Christian. Paul stretches on the spiritual blessings that are found in Christ: selection, predestination, redemptions, the forgiveness of sins, wisdom, and understanding of God’s plans for eternity. The eternal plan is about God establishing His kingdom by placing all things under the headship of Christ. Here, I also learned that Jesus is the head and the church is the body. The two make a full body or a complete kingdom, which are alternately used illustrations to describe God’s family. The order is that when a person becomes a Christian, they join a community of other Christians; it is called a Church. Paul talks about the church, a gathering of God’s people where people live in unity through humility. Each member of the church is to serve other members using their gifts and ministries, which are God-given for the sole purpose of service! So, at the end of the day, it is not about what you or I can do; rather, it is about whether we use what we have to grow the church and not break it! And yeah, it is not about denominations either. Paul also said something about personal conduct once a Christian and in a church. Using workplace and family structure as a reference, he instructed Christians to learn from Jesus. To submit to the authority and not to abuse power. This advice on how we should live as Christians made me think of how I am living as a Christian. Do I submit to the authority easily, or it is with some resistance? Also, do I treat those I am in charge of right? #Foodforthoughts. 🤔He also recommends always seeking wisdom and sobriety. This one is for one own good. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, which is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession. In business terms, this means that the Holy Spirit is the deposit, but our full inheritance does not come to us until Jesus comes again to rescue us from this age by raising us from the dead. I don’t have more on this; I have not yet been on the other side, but for me, this means #fullness in one word. In the form of prayer or best wishes, Paul prayed for the Christians to know God deeply. I wish and pray the same to everyone, myself included, because then we can know the hope to which He has called us, the riches of our inheritance, and the greatness of God’s power for Christians. I find this more important than my usual prayers of health and wealth. As I conclude, please note that most of the time, I was not good at grasping all important points of the course for some reason 🤦🏾, so, yeah, please go ahead and read Ephesians for all about the Christian life! “When one reads the bible as a duty, it can be dull, but if it is seen as listening to God speaking to us, it gets interesting.” Have fun reading Ephesians, and be blessed. Lise Photo by Compelling Truth

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Growing up in Kigali

Social wellness / belleza

Growing up in Kigali Looking back 20 to 25 years ago, one of the things I am grateful for is having witnessed the evolution of Kigali and Kigali life over the years. In the 2000s, the hit show was Intashyo, and the only channel available was Rwanda Television. If you were middle class, you might have been able to afford Canal Plus, but it was uncommon. So, we would wait until 2 pm on a Saturday for the Intashyo show, and come back at 10 pm for the Derrick shows. The entertainment options were not running the streets as they say! Nowadays, for just 5000 to 10000 FRW a month, you can watch old movies on RTL9 or some novellas. Let’s talk about music. Around 2004, when I was in boarding school, I received a letter from my neighbor friend about a new song “In Da Club”. Around the same time, a new radio channel called Radio 10 had just launched. Since then, things have been moving forward, and today Rwandan music has expanded to all genres. Whatever your music preference is, you can’t be bored. This progress can be seen across many sectors if not all! All these reference stories are to say that I feel proud and glad about the journey. The strength of pioneers, the people who fought for our city to have bookshops, chic boutiques, nice restaurants, parks, good music, and so much more, and the best of all time, a “clean and beautiful” city, labeled as such on the globe! They give me the courage to stand for my field of work so that our sons and daughters have choices. Looking at how far we have come can be attributed to many names, but the ones I associate this journey with are resilience, independence, and patriotism. I am grateful to be part of the generation that has crossed all of that, a generation that appreciates progress and embraces the journey along the way! It has been a journey full of memories of growth, and stories of gratitude. If you have any memories, please share what you liked about growing up in Kigali and what you are grateful for today in the comments. Let’s share some for the people who were not here in the past. To our growth!

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Benefits of Shea Butter

Physical wellness / belleza

If you like reading about labeled cream jars or skincare products in general, you are probably familiar with the name shea butter. However, you might be wondering what it is and its benefits. I also got curious, and I did some research. Here is what I came across. Shea butter is a fat extracted from shea tree nuts. The Shea tree is a plant that commonly grows in the sub-Saharan region of Africa. Unrefined butter has a distinctive nutty aroma. Shea butter(Butyrospermum parkii) is a fatty oil with time-tested, nourishing, healing, and protective properties. Let’s categorize those benefits and look at them in a little more detailed way! You have probably noticed that when you read ingredients in many moisturizers, the product shea butter occurs quite often! This is because it has really good moisturizing properties. The fact that it does not dry out the skin and does not clog pores makes it good for any skin type! The oils in shea butter, when applied, are absorbed into the skin. They restore lipids and create moisture. The acids in Shea butter are fully absorbed by the skin, and this means that it doesn’t make your skin look oily after application. The fatty acids in shea butter also help clear the skin of sebum. It helps prevent acne because it restores moisture to your skin, preventing the skin from drying out. Shea butter’s moisturizing and antioxidant properties also help in the fast regeneration of healthy cells, leaving very few dead skin cells on your skin. There are some common inflammatory skin conditions, such as eczema and psoriasis, that can be healed by the application of Shea butter. The shea butter, when applied to the skin, triggers the inflammatory cells to slow their production, and this reduces the irritation. It heals cuts and scrapes. Its fatty acid levels soften scar tissue and speed up the scar-healing process. With its high levels of vitamins A and E, shea butter promotes antioxidants that prevent the skin from premature aging. Shea butter also kills spores of the fungi that cause athlete’s foot and ringworm. To a certain extent, shea butter prevents sunburn because it contains the Sun Protection Factor of 3 to 4. At this point, You can probably be wondering how a single product has all these benefits. Well, what can I say, Mother Nature got us!! It is even more likely to keep discovering more benefits as one uses it! we will keep going in-depth as we use it. Meanwhile, you can buy some and try it for yourself. If you are in Kigali, Rwanda, Reach out, and we can connect you to wholesalers!

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