1 

  2 

In This Issue...

Name: Nneka...

Age: 15

Happy to be alive

Favourite colour: ORANGE!

NIGERIAN ALL DAY EVER DAY!

♥ I’m a sanctified skanker ♥ Pages to come:

5&6- Dear Readers

7- Words, Words, Words

8&9- Feeling Good About Your Body

10- Are You In To Him

11&12- F.R.I.E.N.D.S

  3 

  4 

  5 

Dear readers,

My issues this week is about being yourself and

comfortable in your body. I will also bring up issues on staying in or starting a healthy relationship with your body.

How you feel about your body has an impact on almost every aspect of your life. Everyday life could lower your confidence a lot; looking at magazines, websites, and television and even seeing billboards on buses could make you feel less comfortable in your body. The images all around you could make you feel intimidated by people you don’t even know. However, there are steps which you can take to help you feel comfortable within your own body that would make you love yourself even more! Comparing is not an option. Simply put, do not compare yourself to anyone. The reason being is that, when comparing, yourself to another person. There is no point trying to fit into society's mold of how your body should look as you each and every one of us was uniquely designed and no matter what you are beautifully designed.

(http://minisites.contentthatworks.com)

mtstcil.org says “Have you ever heard the saying "only you can make yourself happy"? Well, as trite as it seems, it may be true. A surprising survey of adults by the American Psychological Association has shown that the most important factor to happiness and well-being is self-esteem. Also important were feelings of independence and competency, often brought about by high self-esteem. Surprisingly, common traits like popularity, power, money or luxury were rated the lowest.” (www.mtstcil.org)

CLOTHS

What do you think?

Most people think that appearance is everything. It is to some but cloths real purpose is to cover your body and fashion came much later. Everyone likes

  6 

to feel that they are wearing the latest garments but what is really important is how you feel wearing it. Clothing is getting very expensive these days and you can spend upwards of £100 just on a pair of jeans (shock of the season...) In my opinion clothes should not be so expensive just because they have a label. Labels such as “Ralph Lauren”, “Paul's Boutique” and “Lyle & Scott” are at height of fashion right now but trends come and go never stay for more than 2 months

Lanvin’s Alber Elbaz gave his reasons in an article this week about why his clothes are so expensive and said

“I’m taking out a lot of the corset that is like syoop,” he said, making a sucking noise and holding in his cheeks. “I took all the bones out, and I stitch, and to get there, you know, it took me forever. It took me six or seven dresses to make one. And it’s time and it’s money and we are not doing it in offshore countries — we pay sixty-five-per-cent taxes in France! It is so much work. Doing a collection for me is almost like creating a vaccine. Once you create the one vaccine, then you can duplicate it for nine dollars and ninety-nine cents. But see if you can create it for nine dollars and ninety-nine cents, and the answer is no. In that sense, I have absolutely no problem with the prices. I don’t think we do it just to do it so at least you’re wearing something with my personal touch. That wasn’t made in a sweatshop” (http://ethicalstyle.com)

Beauty comes in all sizes!

  7 

WORDS, WORDS, WORDS!!!

Loud and clear, or mumbled and garbled, HELLO to you or WAG. Whichever way we look at it, or language we speak, words can be

loaded with meaning or appear not to make sense-try understanding the words of 1 year old.

But however meaningless they may seem to us, words covey from the ‘wonder’ – the object or target of the speaker, something about the speaker’s character, what they

know, believe, their values, thoughts and intentions. Words also tell about the speaker’s fears, concerns and expectations.

WORDS, WORDS AND MORE WORDS!!...

Word up!

Gods Words:

POWER-PACKED! :

They are fully changed with energy ‘For the word of God id living and active. Sharper than a two-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and split, joint and morrow.’ (Hebrew 4:12a)

EFFECTIVE! :

When god speaks a word, it hits the mark bull’s-eye on target ‘My word that goes out of my mouth will not return to me without accomplishing what I desire, and achieving the purpose for which I have sent it.’ (Isaiah 55:11)

TRUE! :

God con never lie, because he is Love and he is the truth- ‘God is not a Man that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Doe he speaks and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?’ (Numbers 23:19). ‘I am the way the truth, and the life.’

(John 14:6)

EVERLASTING! :

In the beginning, he spoke things into being, and they still are today – ‘letting there be light.’ (Genesis 1:3), and guess what??? Light there was and still is today!!

“Some information was from special magazine issue 5 p.62”

  8 

Feeling good about yourself

Part of being a teen is having thoughts and feelings about different parts of your life, such as how you feel about:

♥ Your friends and other kids your age

♥ How you are doing in school and in other activities

♥ Your parents

♥ The way you look

While having these new feelings, many changes are also taking place in your body. It is normal to feel self-conscious or shy about the changes in your body and emotions but there are also changes to celebrate.

Sometimes feeling happy comes naturally. When things are going your way, it’s easy to feel happy. Say, for example, that you win the Euro million lottery. You may find yourself smiling for a week even a whole year!

Other times, you may have to work a bit to feel happy. There are things you can do to help. For example, did you know that exercise can help you feel happy? Getting regular exercise helps your body produce endorphins that make you feel good. You can also eat healthy foods and get plenty of sleep. This can help you feel good, too. Finally, find a hobby that you really enjoy. All of these things can help make you feel happy.

SELF- ESTEEM

You have probably heard adults talk about self-esteem, but do you know what it is? Self-esteem describes the value and respect you have for yourself.

If you have a healthy self-esteem, you feel good about yourself as a person and are proud of what you can do.

Having a healthy or high self-esteem can help you to think positively, deal better with stress, and boost your drive to work hard.

  9 

If you have low self-esteem, you probably feel bad about yourself all the time. A low self-esteem may get in the way of doing things you might enjoy. For example, if you have a low self-esteem you may not try out for the school play because you think you won’t get picked for a role. But how will you know unless you try? For some, low self-esteem can contribute to serious problems such as depression, drug and alcohol use, and eating disorders.

It’s normal to feel down sometimes. Everyone has their sad days and hard days. This is not the same as having low self-esteem. Having low self-esteem means that you feel badly about yourself all of the time, not just once in a while

SELF-CONFIDENCE

Self-confidence is a little different from self-esteem. Self-confidence is having a positive and realistic opinion of yourself and being able to accurately measure your abilities.

Self-confidence is also an important part of feeling good about yourself. Self-confidence is that little voice inside of you that tells you that you are okay, that you are a good person, and that you know how to deal with things in good times and in bad.

Confidence can develop as you grow up. As a baby, you started to learn self-confidence from knowing your family loved you. As you learned to walk, play, and talk you also learned self-confidence. Now as

a young woman, you are learning to be more self-confident in school, playing sports, and in other social settings. Sometimes this is hard. Participating in class, talking to new teachers or students, or trying out for an after-school activity may make you feel stressed or anxious. That is normal! The good news is, as you try new things, you gain confidence in spite of your fear.

  10 

Are You In To Him

The ABCD OF STARTING OVER Becoming a Christian is more drastic than getting married, but dead simple. So here's the ABCD guide to it: A= ADMIT that you've done wrong things, thought wrong thoughts and said wrong things. Say you are sorry to God. With His help, you can start all over again. B=BELIEVE that Jesus died on the cross for your sins (all the wrong things above) and that you trust Him and believe in Him.  C=CONSIDER that being a Christian is not a soft option - when you give God your life by accepting Jesus as your personal Saviour, people may think you're weird, you may lose friends, be made fun of, etc. You'll need to get to know God more by reading His word (BIBLE) and talking to Him (PRAYING). This takes time, energy and commitment. It's a new relationship - it takes time and effort to develop - it's NOT A RELIGION, it’s A RELATIONSHIP! ARE YOU UP FOR IT?

D= DO IT! If you know it's true, go for it. Live the life to the max! You can do it by asking God's helper, the Holy Spirit, to live in you and help you live a life pleasing to God. It's worth it!

A Song for you to sing!

“If you wanna be some body

If you wanna go some where

You got to wake up and pay

Attention.”

! You are one of his creation, DONT YOU EVER FORGET THAT!

 

  11 

Will your FRIENDS.... Be there for you? 7 Revealing truths about them

The bible has a lot to say about FRIENDS.

Do these truths remind you of anyone you’ve been hanging around with lately?

F aithful... or fair-weather when things are going well and you’ve got no problem, you’ve just got your pocket of money, or a new phone- who sticks around you, and the does a silent and speedy retreat when you’ve used up all your money, or when your feeling down? A friend loves you at all times (Proverbs 17:17)

Sticks closer than a brother or a sister (Proverbs 18:24)

Wealth brings many friends, poverty drives them away (Proverbs 19:4)

R eliable... can they keep a secret, keep their promise most of the time? Do they dish the dirt or zip their lips?

Gossip separates close friends (Proverbs 16:28)

Disregarding another’s fault preserves love, but telling about them separates close friends (Proverbs 17:9)

I nteresting... can you have fun, and have a laugh with them; can they listen to you, do you have similar taste- although you don’t have to be exactly alike in everything.

Can two people walk together without agreeing on the direction? (Amos 3:3)

E ncouraging... can they influence you to be good instead of bad, do they look out for your best interest, and do they help you to obey God and your parents?

As iron sharpens iron so no man sharpens another (Proverbs 27:17)

  12 

Do not make friends with a hot-tempered man; do not associate with the easily angered or you may learn his way and get yourself into trouble (Proverbs 22:24-25)

He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffer harm (Proverbs 13:20)

Do not be misled- bad company corrupts good character (1 Corinthians 15:33)

N ever envious... happy for you when things are going well. Can you give them good news, or do you hesitate because they may become jealous and spoil your good news? Do they celebrate your success as if it were theirs?

When he finds it (lost sheep) he joyfully carries it home on his shoulders, then he calls his friend and says “rejoice with me...” (Luke 15:5-6)

D emonstrative... even if they are too embarrassed to say how much they love and care for you, do they show it through their actions?

Just as lotions and fragrance give delight, a sweet friendship refreshes the sole (Proverbs 27:9)

S incere... will they tell you the truth in love, even when it hurts?

The wounds from a friend can be trusted, but kisses from an enemy do you in (Proverbs 27:7)

If you don’t recognise these truths and qualities in any of the friends you have, here’s a prayer you can pray:

Dear Father, please help me to meet and have friends who are chosen by you, Help me not to be deceived by outward appearances, but instruct my heart to make the right choices.

I ask in Jesus Name. Amen

  13 

  14 

  15 

Hope you enjoyed this Issue of Sugar Rush Magazine!

By Nneka...