BELIEVINGLY His

My four-year-old ran towards the water of the mall fountain, unable to contain his awe and excitement.

“I want to THROW something!” he exclaimed, bouncing up and down in front of the small spectacle.

His big sister started rummaging around in her tiny, shiny little-girl purse and pulled out a single penny for him.

“Make a wish, first!” Rachel instructed.

My boy-child stood still for two whole seconds, then hurled the copper penny into the depths of the fountain with all his might.

The magic moment over, he turned to walk away.

Rachel asked, “Johnathan, what did you wish for?”

He replied, “A dinosaur.”

That’s right, folks. A dinosaur. Not a toy dinosaur, either. A real, live dinosaur. You know, the extinct kind.

All I could say was, “Way to dream big, buddy!”

The whole situation is so telling of my son. He sees no limits. He dreams impossible dreams. He wishes for the moon and stars … and dinosaurs. I love this about him. It makes me question myself:

When did I stop believing that all things are possible?

After decades of living on this earth, we all suffer disappointments. Santa doesn’t bring what we ask for, that crush doesn’t like us in return, our loved one dies, we don’t get that job or promotion we worked towards. We all experience let-downs. If we’re not careful, we can find ourselves disillusioned and – dare I say it ­- disbelieving.

So how do we maintain hope, faith, and optimism in the midst of our hard, everyday lives?

By looking to the very author of our futures.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

Jeremiah 29:11

I can’t say it any better than that. God Himself wants us to prosper and has constructed plans so we will do exactly that.  

We must focus on Him, not our momentary struggles.

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

PHILIPPIANS 4:8

When we focus on the eternal things of God, our transitory burdens become lighter and easier to carry. When we focus on a good God in control of the universe, we find goodness everywhere we turn. When we focus on the depth of love in our Savior’s eyes, we see love in those around us. When we focus on His mercy and forgiveness, we sense the great need to offer these to our hurting world.

Let your eyes look straight ahead;
    fix your gaze directly before you.
Give careful thought to the paths for your feet
    and be steadfast in all your ways.

PROVERBS 4:25-26

Ruth Chou Simons, in her book Beholding and Becoming, says “We become what we behold.” Turn and seek the face of God in the midst of your everyday life, then watch as faith, hope, and optimism show up in increasing measure.

Jesus looked at them and said,

“With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.”

MARK 10:27

With our faces turned towards our Heavenly Father, our minds fixed on His word, and our hearts aligned with His character, we can once again believe that all things are truly possible. Even dinosaurs.

Believingly His,

Nicki

Wholly His

CRASH!

Sticky coffee spilled onto the stone counter top and tile floor, dripping in streams down the wooden side of the counter. Coffee mug shards littered the hard floor after sliding themselves into haphazard places and corners entire rooms away. I stood perfectly still in my bare feet taking in the mess, not sure where to attack it first. Then it occurred to me which mug I was looking at, broken in pieces before me: my daughter’s confirmation gift from her grandmother.

I snapped a picture of the disaster and got busy cleaning it up. I then sent a text with the picture to my daughter, telling her how sorry I was for the accident. I followed that text with another apology, this time to my mother-in-law.

This is precisely the kind of situation that used to drive me crazy. I would mercilessly ridicule myself for my clumsiness or absent-mindedness. I would hesitate to use a “special” mug in the first place, because of the risk factor.

I’m not sure exactly when I changed, but although I’m sad I broke the mug and had to clean up the mess, I’m not beating myself up about it. Accidents happen. And I’m choosing to appreciate the joy that little mug brought every time we drank some warm goodness from it. It was beautiful and had a verse from Psalms written on the side. It represented a very special moment in my daughter’s faith life and the loving, prayerful support of her grandmother.

But I think that’s the point: it only represented those things. Nothing will erase the memories of her confirmation ceremony. No person nor thing can erase the vows she made that day. Nothing will ever change her grandmother’s love for her.

I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. 

john 10;28-29

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

romans 8:38-39

That pretty little mug may have been one of life’s simple pleasures, but it does not compare to the Kingdom gifts we will enjoy because of Jesus Christ. The here and now is minuscule compared to the expanse of God’s eternity, and our time here is fleeting. Instead of mourning a small loss this morning, I am choosing to be grateful for the experience of the gift itself.

Yesterday while driving through town, the radio played Matthew West’s song “Broken Things,” and I hear it playing on a loop in my head this morning.

“But if it’s true You use broken things,

then here I am Lord, I’m all yours.”

matthew west

Like that coffee mug, I am broken into pieces … by sin, disappointment, loss, health conditions, and an endless list of failures. I eagerly await the Kingdom of Heaven where I will be made new forever. Thank the Lord He loves broken things!

WHOLLY His,

Nicki

Prayerfully HIS

Today, I have a migraine. Actually, let me back that up a bit. Today is actually Day 3 of this particular migraine. It’s a doozy. But praise the Lord, I am able to type right now only because it is lifting. If you suffer from migraines, you know what I mean by “lifting.” It’s like a heavy cloud of pain and sensitive nerves and confusion and emotion just start lifting out of the top of your head. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

I just came from the chiropractor’s office. Sometimes – not all the time – my migraines are the result of a misalignment in my spine, often in the head or neck area. Given the softball-sized lump at the base of my cervical spine yesterday, I knew I needed an adjustment. I was sitting in the waiting room looking a frightful mess when a friend from elementary school messaged me. I don’t speak to this friend often, but he has an uncanny knack for messaging me when I’m in need. He randomly says, “Do you need prayer today?” I reply with an enthusiastic “Yes,” and then simply state that I have a migraine. So he types a prayer out for me, and my reading of said prayer is interrupted by the chiropractor coming out to get me. I go into the office and receive an incredibly painful adjustment. It’s just not normally like this. It hurt so much I’m immediately nauseous and almost throw up right there in his office. But by the time I leave, I realize the throbbing in my head is not as severe.

I get in the car, pick up my phone, finish reading my friend’s prayer over me, and then another message from him comes through. It says, “Can you feel it getting better? Did your neck pop?”

Ummmm…. I never told this guy I was at the chiropractor. I never mentioned my neck or that my migraine was stemming from there.

THIS, my friends, is the gift of intercessory prayer. My friend has it in spades. He lives on the other side of the country and we haven’t spoken in months, yet he knew EXACTLY how to pray for me today.

Scripture says that even when we don’t know how or what to pray, the Holy Spirit intercedes on our behalf.

“In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.”

romans 8:27-28

When we go to the Lord in prayer for others, we don’t need fancy words or eloquent speeches. Sometimes we have no words at all, and that’s okay, too. Just invite the Spirit to come and sit with you in your prayer time. He will lead you in what to say or not say. Trust that the Lord knows your heart. Spend some time simply focusing on His holy presence.

And like my friend, don’t hesitate to let others know you are praying for them! When God does miraculous things, it’s not solely for our benefit, but also for the benefit of others. Share what the Lord has done and continues to do for you and those you love.

Prayerfully HIS,

Nicki

Still HIS …

It’s chilly and wet and dark this morning. We don’t get a whole lot of days like this where I live. After all, it’s almost November and we’ve had three total days of below-70-degree highs so far this fall, while most days topped out in the 80s or 90s. Most of us welcome a cold front. We consider it a holiday of sorts if we can wear cute boots and sweaters and drink lattes and not sweat through our clothes.

Dressing for weather in central Texas is an extreme sport in itself, where the challenge of preparing one’s self and one’s children for a 30-degree temperature swing with a feels-like-a-40-degree-swing is all too familiar. We don’t layer here for warmth and insulation. We layer because it may be 30 degrees when your kid leaves for school, but by recess after lunch in full sun it’s 68 and feels like 75, and by after school pickup it will be 75 and feel like 80. Those layers are coming OFF, people.

But this morning feels different, so I’m still enjoying my fuzzy robe and indulging in too many cups of hot, delicious coffee. My beautiful devotional book sits in my lap, and Jesus and my furry pup serve as my companions.

We need to offer ourselves this kind of rest and quiet time of prayer and contemplation with God.

In my younger years, I never would have allowed myself this time. It felt like selfishness and luxury. I still tend to “should” all over myself. I know “self-care” talk is all the rage, but I’m not talking about that. I’m talking about soul care.

Scripture in Genesis says that even God rested! After six days of productivity creating the universe, God rested. Likewise, Jesus’ disciples say He often went off by himself to pray.

Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.

Mark 1:35

If the God of all creation needs a prayer respite, how much more do you and I?

But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.

Luke 5:16

When we create a space in our day and invite God into it, He always, always shows up. You may sense a need to call a friend, to pray for someone, to cook a meal. That’s not distraction – that’s the Holy Spirit guiding you into some Kingdom work! It is all too easy to become so distracted by the busy noise of our lives and our plans that we don’t hear God’s plans for our day or months or even years to come.

Every so often, we need to heed the advice of our Heavenly Father.

He says, “Be still and know that I am God…”

Psalm 46:10 (PARTIAL EXCERPT)

Still HIS,

Nicki

A little about me…

I am a full-time disciple of Jesus, a full-time wife, a full-time Mom to three, a part-time writer and editor, and a part-time worship leader. I am currently working on my first book, and the process has re-ignited a passion within me to write all.the.things.all.the.time. Blogging is a new avenue and outlet for my thoughts and words.

I whole-heartedly believe that God completely transforms our lives when we turn and seek Him in the everyday things. That’s what these blogs will be about … my ordinary life and the extraordinary God in charge of it all!

I love a good discussion and want to know you’re here, so please leave a comment for me!

Expressively HIS,

Nicki

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