A woman who just turned 106 credits her long life to her faith in God.
Ruth Hilliard from Weldon, Northampton County, was born on June 5, 1913, and pursued a teaching career, continuing to mentor students throughout her life, according to WTVD.
She has a son, three grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.
Hilliard told the outlet she credited her longevity to God, and believed that it was her faith in God that blessed her with a long life. Although her vision may have suffered some losses through the years, she still managed to recite the passages of the Bible on a regular basis, she said.
Her favorite passage from the Bible was Psalms 91:15-16, which reads: “He will call on me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.”
According to the news outlet, she believes that God has given her these 106 years of her life for her to realize the true value of the words and meaning behind that passage, she said.
In celebrating her impressive age, the North Carolina House of Representatives delivered to her a certificate of special recognition for her age.
Hilliard was born before the invention of items we take for granted, such as stop lights, Band-Aids, bubble gum, ballpoint pens, microwave ovens, the discovery of Penicillin, the iPhone, and Google.
105-Year-Old Thanks God For Long Life
Back in 2017, another woman was celebrating her 105th birthday. Florence Motley was resident of the state of Washington, and at her age, she was given the title of the oldest African-American citizen in the state, according to CBN News. She lived through many milestones since her birth in 1912, among which were 19 presidential elections and two world wars.
She told the news outlet that for her, the key to a long life was her faith in Jesus.
105-Year-Old Woman Reveals Secret for Long Life: Jesus https://t.co/ySudbeKC7t
— CBN News (@CBNNews) March 28, 2017
“I give the Lord all the praise,” she said, and she considered her age to be a blessing from the Lord.
Motley grew up on a farm, and was very hardworking both as a child and in the workplace. She learned the values of hard work from when she was little and carried that work ethic toward other things, and ultimately, her work as a nurse.
“I had good parents, a great home life, I was a hard worker and very disciplined,” she told the outlet.
In addition to her 15-year work as a nurse at the Tennessee State Mental Institution, she also served on several church committees. She told CBN that she worked at the institution because she was able to care and help others with their problems. She also does her best to use her life story to inspire younger people to work hard and set goals.
“If you don’t have a goal and work towards it, you’ll just devolve into other things,” she said. She told the news outlet that her basic principles in life were to “eat right, rest, and study your Bible.”
Twins Who Turned 100
Nothing beats turning 100 with your twin. George and James Morrow would know.
The identical siblings from Arkansas will celebrated a century in mid-May. And they don’t plan on slowing down any time soon; one of them just got his license renewed, CNN affiliate KARK reported.
“I feel just as good as [I] did 25 years ago,” James told KARK.
As for George, he enjoys gardening and seeing “stuff grow,” he said.
Their secret to a long life? “Always be honest and truthful, don’t be afraid to work and leave the booze and wild women alone,” the brothers said. https://t.co/nRJHZKdaQW
— CNN (@CNN) May 6, 2019
The pair had a birthday celebration at a church in Morrilton.
They were born in 1919, but James and George aren’t the oldest in their family.
Their older sister Mabel Carter is 105. Their younger sister is 98.
So what’s the secret to a long life?
“Always be honest and truthful, don’t be afraid to work, and leave the booze and wild women alone,” the two told KARK.
