Newsletter - July 2022

A newsletter from Building Strong Families, Inc.

And Dr. Pauline M. Rivers

July 2022

UPDATES

Hello Friends! It is always a blessing for us to check in with you, to let you know how much we appreciate you and value your support, and to let you know what we have planned.

We can only do what we do because you support us, you stand with us, and you allow us to come alongside and serve you and your families.

We thank you, always, for your support and your prayers…And as often as you think of us, please remember to pray for us….

Men of Courage Seminar Returned!

Last month, for the first time since 2019, we were able to host the Men of Courage Seminar! We truly believe that it was one of the best, most informative, and most anointed of our Men of Courage seminars. Men spontaneously got up and went to the altar to pray. And men gathered in groups and prayed with each other. It was such a blessing to experience. God gets the glory, and we thank you for your attendance, your contributions, and your prayers.

COMING EVENTS

July 16, 2022

A Special Time with My Sisters Event

“Estate Planning: Getting our Legal and Financial Affairs in Order”

Guest Speaker: Attorney Geraldine “Gheri” Hicks, Hicks Law, PA

11:00 a.m. 1:00 p.m.

Sadye Gibbs Martin Community Center, 302 S. Maryland Ave., Plant City

No cost, but Pre-registration is required by July 8, 2022

August 6, 2022

Healing Emotional Wounds Seminar for Women

Bethel Gospel Tabernacle Church, 1007 Ruby St., Lakeland, FL

10:00 a.m. -12:30 p.m.

Speakers: Khalilah Louis Caines, LCSW; Mikki Petit-Frere; Minister Barbara Wholuba

Topics: Self-Care is Not Selfish; Choose You: Triumphing Over Abusive Relationships; Bruised but Beautiful

Praise and worship by Mrs. Tonja Johnson

No cost, but Pre-registration is required by July 25, 2022

Coming Fall 2022: *

Lean into Your Success: Millennials, et. al. Summit

Strategies for Success: Workshops for Youth (Rescheduled from May 2022)

More than a Conqueror: Domestic Violence Awareness Webinar (October 2022)

*Dates and Locations to be announced…Stay tuned!

Returning in 2023:

Women of Worth Conference

Relationship Enrichment Seminar and Jazz Brunch

We Need Your Help!

At our Men of Courage Seminar in June, we got a couple of men to volunteer to serve on our Men’s Programming Advisory Committee (MPAC)! We are so excited to have input from men on programs and services for men! And we are still looking for additional male volunteers for that committee. We also are looking for volunteers for our Millennial Advisory Committee (the MAC). If you know someone who would be great for either of these committees, please call our office at 813-759-0260 or email Dr. Rivers at pmrivers@aol.com. Thanks so much! We are here to serve!

AN ENCOURAGING WORD…for Families

It Shall Be Well for Them!

I remember as a little girl, my mom would never go to bed until her children were safely back at home. She didn’t seem to be able to rest until her children were all at home and accounted for, no matter how late it was.

I think most parents, and especially moms, are probably like my mom was. It doesn’t matter how old our children are, they are always on our minds. We want to know that they are okay. We want good for them. We want health for them. We want to know that it is well with them…

One of my favorite scriptures is Isaiah 3:10 “Say to the righteous that it shall be well with him….” I speak that scripture over my life, daily. And I claim that promise for my children, that it shall be well with them. It doesn’t matter what I may see right now. I speak, and believe, that it shall be well with them…

I take God at His Word which says that “the seed of the righteous shall be mighty in the land” (Psalm 112:1-3) and that “the children of the just are blessed” (Proverbs 20:7).

That’s a promise for your children and my children! That they shall be mighty in the land and that they shall be blessed.

And I believe that God has great plans for their lives, plans for their good (Jeremiah 29:11), plans that He put in place even before they were born (Jeremiah 1:5). And I am fully persuaded that He is able to do what He promised (Romans 4:21) and that He will complete what He started in them (Philippians 1:6).

And so, let’s not focus on what we see right now, especially if what we see is different from what God promised! We serve a God who calls things that be not as though they already exist right now (Romans 4:17)!

So, let us commit to saying what God says about our children (young and older).

He calls them blessed! He calls them mighty! He calls them favored! He calls them healed!

And He says that it shall be well with them!

Be blessed! Be well! And keep believing God, that it shall be exactly as He said!

Dr. Rivers

…strengthening families to help them be great…

Contact us at: pmrivers@aol.com 813-759-0260 (office) PO Box 3272 Plant City, FL 33563

Visit us at: http://www.buildingstrongfamiliesofflorida.com

Newsletter - March 2022

A newsletter from Building Strong Families, Inc.

And Dr. Pauline M. Rivers

March 2022

UPDATES

It’s March already and this is our first time to be able to reach out to you to say, “Happy New Year!”

Each year we believe for an Ephesians 3:20 year and we are approaching 2022 with excitement, with expectation, with intentionality, and with momentum. Ephesians 3:20 says that if we ask it or think it, God can exceed it. So, we are thinking big, we are asking big, we are believing big, and we are committed to putting in the work so that we can continue serving you in a big way!

Our heart’s desire is to serve you and to be a blessing. We have no other agenda than to provide programs and services to serve, empower and strengthen families.

We can only do what we do because you support us, you continue to stand with us, and you allow us to come alongside and serve you and your families.

So, thank you…And as often as you think of us, please remember to pray for us….

COMING EVENTS

Mental Health Issues in the Family Webinar: Helping Our Families Heal

March 12, 2022

11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m.

Speakers and Topics:

Dr. Benetta Wholuba Mental Health Issues: Recognizing the Signs & Symptoms

Khalilah Louis Caines, LCSW Mental Health Issues in Children & Youth

Dr. Michael Mays, LMFT Men and Mental Health: Being that Safe Space

A free ZOOM webinar.

Registration is required: buildingstrongfamiliesofflorida.com or pmrivers@aol.com

Time with My Sisters Support Group: Celebrating Women

May 7, 2022

11:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

Strategies for Success: Workshops for Youth

May 21,2022

11:00 a.m. -2:00 p.m.

Location TBA

Employability skills training for high school through college freshmen: resume writing, completing job applications, interviewing skills and mock interviews, interview attire, appropriate work etiquette

Men of Courage Seminar

June 18, 2022

10:00 a.m. -12:30 p.m.

Allen Chapel AME Church, Plant City

Healing Emotional Wounds Seminar for Women

August 6, 2022

10:00 a.m. -12:30 p.m.

Bethel Gospel Tabernacle Church, Lakeland

Sisters Supporting Sisters

Allen Chapel AME Church-Plant City, Women’s Conference

April 30, 2022

10:00 a.m. -12:30 p.m.

Speakers: Dr. Pauline Rivers, Rev. Latisha Jones, Min. Barbara Wholuba

We Need Your Help!

We are looking for volunteers to serve on our Men’s Programming Advisory Committee (MPAC) and Millennial Advisory Committee (the MAC). If you know someone who would be great for either of these committees, please call our office at 813-759-0260 or email Dr. Rivers at pmrivers@aol.com. Thanks so much! We are here to serve!

AN ENCOURAGING WORD…for Families

Keep Believing for Them!

Several years ago, I heard a pastor say, “You all give up on people too quickly!”

That was over 30 years ago, and I still remember it. It was such a word of encouragement and an admonishment for us to be compassionate, to be understanding, to show mercy, and to be patient. Much like the father of the “prodigal son” must have been (Luke 15:20). He kept watching and waiting, and probably believing that one day, his son would return home.

And that’s how we need to be, especially when it comes to our family and loved ones. Despite what it looks like. Despite what we see. Never giving up hope. Continuing to pray. Continuing to believe. Continuing to watch. Continuing to wait. Continuing to thank God that, despite what we feel and despite what we see, even if things seem to be getting worse rather than better, we still believe Him! We believe Him for the victory. We believe Him for the turn around. We believe Him for the healing. We believe Him for the reconciliation and the restoration. We believe Him for what seems impossible. We believe for them even when they can not believe for themselves.

Let’s commit that we will not give up on them on them too quickly. We will keep believing.

Be blessed! Be well! And keep believing God, that it shall be exactly as He said!

Dr. Rivers

…strengthening families to help them be great…

Contact us at: pmrivers@aol.com 813-759-0260 (office) PO Box 3272 Plant City, FL 33563

Visit us at: http://www.buildingstrongfamiliesofflorida.com

Newsletter - August 2021

A newsletter from Building Strong Families, Inc. And Dr. Pauline M. Rivers August 2021

UPDATES ​ When we wrote to you in February 2021, we stated that “…we are excited about 2021…we have big dreams and plans and expectations for 2021!” And even though we still have a few months left in 2021, we continue to plan for, and expect big things. If we can imagine it and ask for it, God can exceed it We are so thankful for how you have continued to support us in 2021. Serving Virtually. Because the coronavirus has stayed with us much too long, we have continued to provide services virtually through Zoom. In March 2021, we offered the virtual webinar, “When it Comes to Your Door: Mental Health Issues in the Family”. And our women’s support group, “Time with My Sisters”, has continued to meet virtually in February and in May. Although these virtual platforms like Zoom, initially felt like an inconvenience (at least for me; just being real), they have truly turned into a wonderful way for us to stay connected, to continue to serve you, and to reach people from other states that might not otherwise have attended our programs. So, God does have a way of making things turn out for our good! Serving In Person. Following the CDC recommended guidelines, we have been able to safely host two in-person events. In June, we collaborated with Dr. Suzanne Foley of MaxLiving Health Center-Carrollwood to host a Heart Health Seminar at the Sadye Gibbs Martin Community Center in Plant City. And in August, we hosted the Healing Emotional Wounds Seminar in a hybrid format. Some of you joined us virtually through Zoom and Facebook Live, while others of you joined us in person at Bethel Gospel Tabernacle (our friend in ministry, who once again opened their doors to us). Celebrating a Milestone. This was a milestone year for us! Ten years ago in January 2011, the Healing Emotional Wound Seminar was launched. It truly is “the one that started it all”! Since we launched the Healing Emotional Wounds Seminar, our services have grown to include the Women of Worth Conference, Time with My Sisters Support Group, Men of Courage Seminar, the Relationship Enrichment Seminar, Strategies for Success Workshops for Youth, and most recently, the mental health wellness webinars. But it all started with the Healing Emotional Wounds Seminar in 2011! We can only do what we do because you support us. So, thank you for praying for us and supporting us. And as often as you think of us, please remember to pray for us…. UPCOMING EVENTS: Time with My Sisters Saturday, October 2, 2021 11:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m. A ZOOM Meeting ZOOM sign-on info will be sent to those who pre-register by emailing pmrivers@aol.com ​ More Than a Conqueror: Triumphing Over Trauma Saturday, October 30, 2021 11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. A ZOOM webinar You asked! We heard! We responded! This is a seminar that we have been asked to do so many times, and we are thankful that everything lined up, at the right time for us to have Dr. Benetta Wholuba (licensed clinical psychologist) and Sarah Smith (licensed mental health counselor) facilitate this session for us through Zoom. The session will focus on triumphing over abusive relationships (e.g., verbal, emotional, physical) and healing from the memories from traumatic experiences (e.g., assaults, childhood memories, etc.). The session also will address how family and friends can provide support in the right way. ZOOM sign-on info will be sent to those who pre-register by emailing pmrivers@aol.com Returning in 2022:

• Women of Worth Conference and Brunch

• Men of Courage Seminar

• Relationship Enrichment Seminar and Jazz Brunch

We Need Your Help! We continue to look for ways to enhance and expand our services so that we can indeed serve the entire family. So, we need your help! We are looking for volunteers to serve on our Men’s Programming Advisory Committee (MPAC) and Millennial Advisory Committee (the MAC). If you, or someone you know, is interested in either of these committees, please call our office at 813-759-0260 or email Dr. Rivers at pmrivers@aol.com. Thanks so much in advance! AN ENCOURAGING WORD…for Families Pray Like It’s Your Family! In this last year, I believe every week, and sometimes every day, someone has reached out to ask me to join them in praying for a friend, a family member, or even for themselves. I’m sure I am not alone. I am sure that has been your experience too. And I do my best to honor every prayer request, to put that name on my prayer list, and pray. I heard something recently that has truly focused and impacted the way that I respond to prayer requests. I was in a meeting a couple of weeks ago and the pastor shared how someone had asked him to pray for a family member. He stated that as he started to pray for that person, the Holy Spirit interrupted his prayer and asked, “would you pray differently if it was your child?” Wow! Think about that for a moment and let it sink in, like it did for me. Would you pray differently if it was your child? Would you pray differently if it was your spouse, or your parent, or your sibling, or your cousin? Would you pray differently if it was your family member? I am so grateful for that timely, appropriate rhema word. I am so grateful that the pastor was transparent and shared his experience, because now when I get a prayer request, I am deliberate and intentional to pray just as if I was praying for my own family member:

• I pray with fervor and intensity because the earnest prayer of the righteous makes tremendous power available and produces wonderful results (James 5:16, NLT)

• I pray the Will of God (the heart of God, the plan of God, what pleases God) because if I pray according to His Will (in agreement with His own plan and what pleases Him), I can be confident that He listens to me and hears me (1 John 5:14, Amplified, NLT)

• I pray the Word of God because I know He watches over His Word to perform it (Jeremiah 1:12), and not one of His good promises has ever failed (1 Kings 8:56).

• And, I pray truly believing, because Jesus Himself said in Mark 11:24, that “whatever you ask for in prayer, believe and it shall be granted to you.” (And…making sure that whatever I ask for in prayer lines with His Word and His Will because He honors His Word and His Will.)

​ So, let’s commit to keep praying for each other, without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5;17) and to pray for each other, just like we are praying for our own family members! ​ Be blessed! Be well! And keep believing God, that it shall be exactly as He said! ​ Dr. Rivers …strengthening families to help them be great… Contact us via email: pmrivers@aol.com

Phone: 813-759-0260 (office) Visit us at: http://www.buildingstrongfamiliesofflorida.com

Mail Us: PO Box 3272 Plant City, Florida 33563