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700 Club CBN Shows

The 700 Club

Claim Your Crown

GROWING UP
Tarah-Lynn learned of God’s love as a child from her parents, but her mom’s faith and strength despite a debilitating illness impacted her life. Over twenty years ago, Tarah-Lynn’s mom was diagnosed with avascular necrosis (the death of bone tissue due to a lack of blood supply) when doctors found her femur bones had rotted black. She had over eight unsuccessful surgeries. The bones in her thighs grind against her artificial bones causing severe pain and a walking disability. Although her mom’s body is in constant pain, Christ is her joy. Her positive attitude throughout Tarah’s childhood provided evidence of God’s love. Tarah-Lynn says, “I’m especially in awe of her ability to provide encouragement, to pray powerful prayers, and to carry the weight of others’ hurts and burdens.”

Early on in life her mom taught her to hold her head up and to represent herself well because she was royalty. Tarah-Lynn learned to keep her hair presentable, her face powdered, and her clothes ironed at all times. Her mom also taught her to carry herself with respect and dignity and that the real definition of beauty comes from the ability to bear fruit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control). God has shown Tarah-Lynn His love through her mother’s suffering, but it wasn’t until her own personal heartbreak that she truly experienced God’s love.

During Tarah-Lynn’s freshman year in college her mom suffered a stroke from an unrelated cause which led to a speech impediment and memory loss. It was difficult for Tarah-Lynn to see her mom confused and her eloquent speech sometimes replaced with stuttering. Tarah-Lynn pressed in to God for strength. During this time, she also launched her blog, Adorned in Armor (AIA), which was initially a school project. It is a place where she encourages women to conquer life through faith and fashion. “I help women conquer feelings of unworthiness to become the confident queens they were created to be,” shares Tarah-Lynn. AIA was inspired by Ephesians 6’s message about putting on the full armor of God. After less than a year, she was nominated by her readers and chosen as a finalist for the Best International Fashion Blogger in the 2014 Cosmopolitan UK Blog Awards. Adorned in Armor has a community of over 10,000, with Instagram at the forefront and continues to grow.

TEEN VOGUE WRITER
After college, Tarah-Lynn moved home as she waited on the opportunities God had for her. She felt like a loser when she couldn’t get a job. She realized the reason she felt nothingness was because she was basing her identity on previous accomplishments. “All the accolades don’t mean a thing if we are hoping to catch our identity outside of Jesus,” shares Tarah-Lynn. Her dream job was to work at Teen Vogue. Although her dad encouraged her to follow her dreams he also told her to take a professional job anywhere else in communications to work her way up. Tarah-Lynn did not feel peace pursuing a job that was the complete opposite of her. So, she continued to wait for the right job. Several months after graduation, she was invited to an event hosted by a radio show. They had found her blog on her website adornedinarmor.com. She covered the radio station’s women’s event in Brooklyn. They loved her and asked what her plans were for the future. She responded, “I want to write for Teen Vogue.” Turns out Elaine Welteroth, editor in chief of Teen Vogue, was presenting an award the following night…they asked if she would like to come. She jumped at the opportunity. She spoke with her after the event. Every other week she emailed Elaine, meanwhile she worked retail and worked her brand. She also created content for her YouTube channel. Tarah-Lynn and Elaine finally met for coffee and offered her work with Teen Vogue on a BeautyCon project. Elaine then put her in touch with the fashion editor. The waiting process took over a year.  “Sometimes we just have to put in the work, and even then, sometimes we simply have to wait. You may not be moving but accept that God is.”

MISS BLACK NEW JERSEY
In 2017, Tarah-Lynn went after another dream when she chose to participate in the Miss Black New Jersey pageant. She picked Stroke Awareness as her platform to honor her mom and was crowned Miss Black New Jersey 2018. As the reigning queen she had the opportunity to travel and talk more to young women. “Seeing their lingering gaze on my crown made me desperately want to show all women the crowns they already have,” shares Tarah-Lynn.

After her reign, Tarah-Lynn became the primary caretaker of her mom.

CLAIM YOUR CROWN
Tarah-Lynn believes too many women question their value and worth because they do not believe they are royalty. She says, “There is no official title needed other than child of the Creator of the universe.” The messages from the media and pop culture often feed into women’s insecurities, fears, doubts and guilt. She says it is time for women to replace society’s teachings for biblical principles and discover what it means to be a daughter of the King. She offers the following tips to encourage women to fully grasp their worth in Christ:
•    God isn’t a cruel ruler waiting to punish us as peasants. Our King is love.
•    Even when your request honors God He may answer with a no.
•    We look to God for beauty and find freedom in a Lord who makes no mistakes.
•    Have Christlike confidence. Your light will shine and the world will see it’s all about Him, not you.
•    God wants our whole hearts, not the pieces we left for Him after everything else has had its fill.
•    Minding the business of others limits how you view the way God has blessed you.

Mentioned in the Video

Guest Info

Credits

Author, Claim Your Crown, (Revell, 2020)

Crowned Miss Black New Jersey in 2018

Landed internships at Elle magazine and PBS

A Teen Vogue “It Girl” and a Teen Vogue fashion writer

Hosts the Dressed for Battle podcast

Founder of Adorned in Armor, blog platform that encourages and equips young women to conquer life through fashion and faith

Speaker; Graduated from Rider University with a BA in Communications and earned her Master’s degree from Syracuse University in Journalism

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