Omniscient God...Infinite Potential!

"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations" 

~Jeremiah 1:5

Hey loves,

Before we get started, I would like for you to take a look at the video embedded below. This video is a major component of today's discussion:

Hopefully you watched the video, before reading on (if not, shame on you! lol!). In the video, Shaheen planned and practiced with one song in particular believing that it was his best. He decided to sing Amy Winehouse's song "Valerie" because everyone he knows loves the way that he sings the song. However, when he stepped on stage and began singing that song, he was quickly stopped by one of the judges, Simon Cowell. Now, if you have watched Simon in the past, you know that he is a stickler for perfection and can be quite annoying if you are a fan of the person that he is criticizing. This situation, however, was a little bit different from his typical criticism. 

Simon recognized very early in the song, that Shaheen was not performing well. Shaheen was focused on singing a popular song, and providing a good stage presence (he started strutting back and forth on stage while singing). Although, the crowd (and the other two judges on the panel) enjoyed the very short performance, Simon was not pleased. He asked Shaheen to choose another song that he likes to sing. Shaheen chose to sing Michael Jackson's song "Who's loving you". What happened next was amazing! Shaheen blew everyone away with his wonderful voice. He was more confident and sang from his soul. After he belted the first couple of notes, Simon smiled (obviously very pleased) and the crowd went wild.

Now I want you to put yourself in the place of Shaheen. He came into the situation believing that he was only capable of performing at a certain level. He did not bring his best to the competition because he didn't know that he was not performing at his best. We are the same exact way. We think that we are only capable of performing at a certain level, when in fact the Lord sees much more potential in us. We are often reluctant to step outside of our comfort zone because we are afraid of failure. We are comfortable doing what we think we are good at, but often times we fail to discover the talents and potential that God sees in us. 

God created each and every one of us. He knows the gifts that he has deposited in us and is saddened when we do not use them. Here are a couple of reasons why we do not use our gifts:

1. We are afraid 
2. We are unaware that we have them

 You may be asking this question: how do you learn about the gifts that God had given you? That's kind of a tough question to answer. Everyone for the most part has different gifts, but there is one gift that all believers in Christ have, the gift of the Holy Spirit. If you are struggling to learn more about what God has deposited in you, I encourage to seek guidance from the Spirit. Spend time with the Lord on a regular basis. Two to three hours a week on Sunday is not sufficient enough. You need to take time to GET AWAY and read the Word, and meditate on it (Jesus did it several times in scripture: Matthew 14:23, Mark 1:35-36, Mark 6:45-46, Luke 4:42, Luke 5:16, Luke 6:12, etc.). Talk to the Lord. Tell Him about your concerns. Have REAL conversations with Him. Don't focus on Christian cliches, or sounding eloquent in speech; talk to Him like you would a best friend. You don't have to change your way of speaking to talk to Him. Be real! If you are struggling with a concept or an idea, tell Him about it. If you are frustrated, let Him hear your frustration.

As you develop a stronger relationship with Christ, He will begin to reveal some things about your character, personality, skill set and faith. God is not only in the blessing business, He is also in the growing business. God wants us to grow in Him. As the growth continues, God will begin to provide you with divine constructive criticism. To learn more about Him and ourselves, we have to embrace that constructive criticism to get to the next level in our relationship with Him. If we embrace that criticism, we will be one step closer to discovering and developing our gifts. 

Going back to the video, recall that while Shaheen was singing the song "Valerie" the crowd went wild. However, once he was stopped by Simon, the crowd was very upset. Likewise, when God begins to reveal to you the gifts that you have, there are going to be some people that will not like what He is doing in your life. Understand right now that the growth process will be difficult (I am currently in it right now--> A New Direction: Now Entering the Spiritual Stretch Zone). There will be some that don't like the decision that you have made to grow closer with Christ. There will be some that will be mad that God has chosen you. However, once God is finished with you, He will be pleased and His name will be glorified through you. Both you and the world will be able to see the potential that God saw in you all along... You will switch from singing "Valerie" to "Who's loving you", just like Shaheen in the video. 

Are you ready to embrace and learn about the gifts that God has deposited in you? What gifts do you think God has deposited in you? Please comment below.

I love y'all for free,

nNb :-)

The SOVEREIGNTY of God

Hey loves!


Before I delve into this message, please open up your bible to two passages. The first is Matthew 27:62-66 and the second is Mark 16:1-4.

As I was studying my bible yesterday morning, I came across these two familiar passages of scripture. Now normally I gloss over these passages while reading my bible so that I can get to the "good" part--the part when the women realize that Jesus is no longer in the tomb. However, yesterday the Lord made me slow down and analyze those two points in scripture. For those of you that don't know, I use a Chronological Life Application Study Bible to study scripture. While it is a bit awkward to use during church services (the books are in chronological order, not canonical), this study bible is PERFECT for analyzing parallel passages of text (you can find it here if you are interested in learning more about it). Not only does this bible help you connect the dots between historical events that took place in scripture, it also provides some context into the situations that are occurring in the text.

Looking at both the scriptures referenced earlier, we find ourselves at a point in time three days after Jesus was crucified. He was taken off the cross and was buried in a tomb by Joseph and Nicodemus, while Mary and some of the others with them watched and grieved. All of Jesus' followers were filled with mixed emotions (sadness, anger, frustration, confusion, etc.). They just witnessed Jesus die on the cross and many were feeling dejected. The disciples did not remember that Jesus told them that He would be resurrected (Matthew 20:17-19), so many of them felt abandoned. In contrast to them were the Pharisees that remembered Jesus' words and were very fearful.

The Pharisees were so fearful that one of Jesus' followers would remove the body, that they took extra precautions to ensure that no one would have access to Him. The religious leaders had Jesus' tomb sealed by a giant stone that was rolled over the entrance. In addition to that, scholars say that they also had it sealed by a stringing cord across the stone that was sealed on each end with clay, preventing the stone from being moved. Last, they had guards placed at the entrance of the tomb so that no one could enter. These precautions that were made were supposed to ensure that none of Jesus' followers could get into the tomb and remove his body to to "claim" that he was resurrected.

Fast forward to three days after the burial of Jesus. Mary and some other women are walking to the tomb with spices to place on Jesus. As they were approaching the tomb, they discussed that they needed someone to unseal the tomb so that they could enter. Here are some key things to remember about this moment:

• The ladies did not remember Jesus' words about His resurrection
• They watched as the tomb was sealed with guards protecting it (they knew that they couldn't get in)
• They did not bring any men with them to help them unseal it

Sounds a little bit fishy, doesn't it?

So one might ask this question: Why were they walking to Jesus' tomb KNOWING that there was a very small chance that they could get it open? I believe that they were walking to the tomb, because God lead them to. Think about it for a moment, there was no guarantee that they could enter to tomb to see Jesus because there were guards posted in front of it AND it was heavily sealed. The women did not remember that Jesus would be resurrected, so the only reason why they were going to the tomb was to hopefully see Jesus. 

I argue that this is a very powerful moment in scripture because God ordered their steps and led them to the tomb so that they would see Jesus arisen from the dead! God placed the thought in their heart to pick up burial spices for Jesus (whom they knew that they could not get access to) so that they would be there to witness Jesus resurrected. The thought came to them like an ordinary thought comes to us.

Now let's think about how this can apply to our own lives. You might be in a situation right now that may seem bleak and almost impossible to overcome, but they text confirms that fact that God is SOVEREIGN! These women were sure that their savior was dead and inaccessible, however, they STILL went to the tomb and were able to see Him! Likewise, God allows us to enter situations that lead to His glory manifested in our lives. God places thoughts in our heads to do or say certain things that can in turn uplift and minister to others. Remember that God is sovereign and that He knows all. What you might think is a normal/rough/weird situation, may lead to a great blessing.

I want to leave you with this thought: Mary did not remember that Jesus said that He would be resurrected in three days. She doubted once she saw Jesus die on the cross. she also didn't expect to see the tomb open when she arrived. However, once she witnessed the Christ resurrected, her faith was restored! God manifested himself greatly for Mary at the moment and He wants to do the same for us. Never discount any moment/event in your life because everything that happens is done to bring us closer to God. 

To God be the glory!

I love y'all for free,

nNb :-)

What Flavor are You?

Hey everyone!

The Lord has placed an awesome message in me that I am finally (after 3-4 weeks) sharing with you all. Instead of posting it in textual fashion, I decided instead to create a video blog post. Check out the video below:

I hope you enjoy it! Please let me know if it ministers to you!

I love y'all for free,
nNb :-)

A new direction: Now entering the SPIRITUAL STRETCH ZONE!

"To live in the Stretch Zone is right where God wants us. It's the place of growth, fruitfulness, faith, and purpose. It's the place where we can feel out our depth, which causes us to become more dependent on the Holy Spirit. But being stretched increases our capacity for what God wants in our lives which effects how we believe, think and live our lives daily" 

-Clive Urquhart

Hey loves,

I know it's been a LOOONG while since I have written on this blog/posted YouTube videos. I'll be honest, I've been in a little bit of a funk for a while. I've been going through the motions, and have been debating about closing down this blog for some time now. When I originally created this blog, my intent was to chronicle my natural hair journey. However, as time passed, this blog became an outlet for other topics of discussion (music,vlogs, weight loss, etc.).

As I contemplated closing down this blog, the Lord started to reveal some things to me in his infinite wisdom. God has been placing messages within my spirit to share with the world for a while now, however, my timidness caused me to withdraw and keep some of those words that were intended for others, to myself. Not only did this selfishness/disobedience lead to a weakened relationship between myself and Christ, it also hurt those who God created and crafted those words for. After all, how can you minister to others, if you're too afraid to speak for Christ?
 
The Lord has been doing a LOT of molding and shaping of me over the last 10 months. I've been stretched in ways that I never thought possible, and have grown so much in my relationship with Him. Now I feel the Lord calling me to use this platform that I have to share his messages with others. The time for me to be silent is coming to an end, and He is now breaking that yoke of timidness and fear in me. The Lord has given me words to share with everyone who reads this blog, and I plan to oblige and take this task seriously (no matter how scary it may seem to me).

To be honest, I did not realize the significance of the words that are written on my blog/Facebook/twitter/etc. until someone that I know made a comment about how something that I had posted on my Facebook wall really gave them something to think about. When I posted the picture in question, it didn't occur to me that people could be so influenced by a picture that I just randomly clicked the 'share' button for. What felt random and ordinary to me, triggered deep thought in another. It was at that moment that I realized the power of the social media platform. What is even more prominent and exciting to me is that God is choosing to use this platform to minister to people as well... a lil 'ole blog created in 2009, that was on the verge of being deleted about a week ago. As I sit back and think about it, I realized that I was lead to create the blog in 2009, so that a platform for His words was already in existence and available to be used to minister to people in 2013. Look at how the Lord works! Praise Him!

Lastly, I just want to clarify that this blog will not only be used for ministerial purposes. I am a fun-loving and very silly girl, so the old posts will continue as well. However, I'm looking forward to growing in Christ and developing my voice, and I hope that you all are ready to learn and grow with me!

I love y'all for free,
nNb ♥

God wants all of your Baggage...

"'Come now, let's settle this', says the Lord. 'Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them white as wool.'"

~ Isaiah 1:18 (NLT)

Hey everyone!

I was surfing Facebook today and came across this picture posted on the left. This was a least my 3rd time viewing it and in the past, having formerly shared it with a caption that read "Amen" under it. However, when I came across the picture again today, I had a slightly different reaction. The caption below the picture simply reads "release those bags" and shows a woman dropping baggage as she walks toward the cross. While at first glimpse, this picture can be uplifting, there is also an underlying message that has permeated our generation  that is represented in it that says that you have to "get right" become you can become a Christian.

There is a misconception that people should hold off on accepting Christ as their Lord and Savior until they get their life "together". This logic states that people should come to Christ in a state of perfection. However, the truth is that God wants us as we are right now! He loves each and everyone of us and wants to be in communion with us. A high rating on the index of raggedyness (yes, I just created that term, lol!) does NOT disqualify you from being able to have a relationship with Him. He wants the broken. He wants to heal you. God's not in the coping business, meaning that He's not about helping you live with your burdens. He's in the healing business! If you accept Him, your life will never be the same!

Now, let me make it clear that accepting Him into your life doesn't mean that everything will suddenly become peaches and cream, but you will be comforted and healed. Your interests, preferences, and tastes will change for the better (most times without you making those choices consciously). It's not about physically stopping sin, but it's about developing a genuine relationship with the Lord. It's not you that makes that change (to be honest, we can't do it ourselves) but Holy Spirit that's deposited in you leads and facilitates that change. You cannot release the baggage yourself, otherwise, you would have already done it. The Lord allows certain things in our lives (both good and bad) to bring us closer to Him. This means that your healing can only be facilitated by Him. Period. Go to Him and bring everything with you. He can heal you, but after you first acknowledge that you have these burdens and lay them down on the altar of the Lord. He can and will heal you, but first you have to come to Him as you are!

Make the decision today to go to Christ with all that you have: guilt, shame, fear, hurt, etc. Don't try to drop any of your baggage before you get to Him. Accept Him into your life right now and give Him ALL of you. I promise you that it will be the best decision that you will ever make!

I love y'all for free,
nNb ♥

30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 22

Day 22: Kim Brooks.

Check out my explanation here: 30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 22

Source: youtube.com via Michelle on Pinterest

I love y'all for free,
nNb ♥

30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 17

Day 17: Robert Griffin III

Check out my explanation here: 30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 17

Source: washingtonpost.com via Michelle on Pinterest

P.S. I caught back up on the posts...we'll have a fresh one tomorrow :)


I love y'all for free,
nNb ♥

30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 16

Day 16: Forever Jones - "Every Moment"

Check out my explanation here: 30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 16

Source: youtube.com via Michelle on Pinterest

I love y'all for free,
nNb ♥

30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 15

Day 15: Bronzegoddess01's Strawberry Letters

Check out my explanation here: 30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 15

Source: youtube.com via Michelle on Pinterest

I love y'all for free,
nNb ♥

30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 14

Day 14: UBUNTU.

Check out my explanation here: 30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 14

Source: en.wikipedia.org via Michelle on Pinterest

I love y'all for free,
nNb ♥

30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 12

Day 12: Smokie Norful - I Understand

Check out the explanation here: 30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 12

Source: youtube.com via Michelle on Pinterest

I love y'all for free,
nNb ♥

30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 11

Day 11: My friends.

Check out my explanation here: 30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 11

Source: communityjournal.net via Michelle on Pinterest

I love y'all for free,
nNb ♥

30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 10

Day 10: The Pursuit of Happyness.

Check out my explanation here: 30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 10

Source: en.wikipedia.org via Michelle on Pinterest

I love y'all for free!

nNb ♥

30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 9

Day 9: The City of Detroit.

Check out my explanation here: 30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 9

Source: google.com via Michelle on Pinterest

I love y'all for free,
nNb ♥

30 Day of Pinspiration: Day 8

Day 8: Babies.

Check out my explanation here: 30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 8

Source: thegrio.com via Michelle on Pinterest

I love y'all for free,
nNb ♥

30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 7

Day 7: Orchids

Check out my explanation here: 30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 7

Source: free-extras.com via Michelle on Pinterest

I love y'all for free,

nNb ♥

30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 3

Day 3: Outdoor Tree Lighting

Check out my explanation here: 30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 3

Source: houstononthecheap.com via Michelle on Pinterest

I love ya'll for free,

nNb ♥

30 Days of Pinspiration Introduction/Day 1

"Don't say you don't have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Louis Pasteur, Michelangelo, Mother Teresa, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson and Albert Einstein."

~H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

Hey everyone!!

First and foremost, I want to wish everyone a happy Post-Thanksgiving and I really hope that you were able to enjoy it with loved ones.

With finals seasons quickly approaching, I've realized that I've been very stressed out lately. Even with prayer and mediating on the Word, I've still managed to find myself in a very stressed out state. After thinking about this for a while and wondering why I am much more stressed now than I was within the last 2 years, I finally got clarity. Although I have recently started grad school (which is a large stressor of it's own, lol!), I realized that my life is also lacking in one other department: INSPIRATION!

During the previous 2 years, I was a Corps Member in City Year Detroit. Despite the fact that both years were hard and emotionally taxing, I was constantly surrounded by inspiring quotes, people and children. Whenever times were hard, there was always a quote, speech, video, person or event that picked my spirits up. To top it off, I worked with some fantastic kids that eventually helped me discover the path that God wanted me to pursue. In those times, I was surrounded by what I like to call "tangible" inspiration! Now, as I look at my current position, I've realized that in order for me to get my "happy" back, I need to start surrounding myself around these positive things again. The bible says

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

~Philippians 4:8 (ESV)

As Christians, we already know that we have the victory, now what we need to do is make sure that we stay encouraged! Satan knows what God has in store for us, and he's freaking out! He doesn't want us to succeed, but instead he wants us DEAD! This is why it's important to keep yourself encouraged! (Whew! God really ministered to me through that one...). To help keep myself inspired as well making sure that you all are encouraged, I've decided to join others in the 30 Days of Pinspiration activity on Pinterest. Every day, I will be posting a picture of something that inspires me, and giving a description about why I chose it (those descriptions will only be on Pinterest, so make sure that you click the link above the picture to see them). If you plan on participating as well, follow my board and I will follow yours. It is my sincere hope that posting every day will force us to inject some positivity into each day ON PURPOSE. While looking at the description for the picture of the day, please make sure to check out other boards that are participating as well. I pray that this activity ministers to you all as it will for me. 

So, without further ado, here is my first 'pin':

Day 1: Barack and Michelle Obama. 

Check out my explanation here: 30 Days of Pinspiration: Day 1

Source: flickr.com via Michelle on Pinterest

The World's Reaction to Faithful Christians...

 "God makes everything happen at the right time. Yet none of us can ever fully understand all he has done, and he puts questions in our minds about the past and the future. (CEV)"

~Ecc 3:11

Hey everyone!

I know that it has been a LONGGG while since I've last posted...and I truly apologize. I will be posting an update blog post/video (haven't decided yet, lol!) soon.

The topic that I want to focus on today is the World's reaction to faithful Christians...
-------

When I woke up this morning, I took some time and went through my twitter feed and looked at some posts from my friends. As I was scrolling down, I came across a retweeted post from Paul C. Brunson directing people to a recent blog post of his entitled "His Timing Is Always Perfect". I took some time to read the post and was very inspired. To give a synopsis, Brunson was rushing in the morning to prepare himself for a meeting and came across every obstacle that he could imagine (including searching for toilet paper, which he so candidly shared, lol!). After he stepped out of the door, he realized that he was going to be late for his meeting because he still had to make one more stop at the dry cleaners to pick up his clothing and change, so he called to notify his appointment that he would be late. Mad at himself for being late, he starting beating himself up for not being a better judgment of time. As he was walking down the street to the cleaners, he was stopped by a police officer and told that he was lucky that he hadn't been walking down that street 15 min. earlier, or else he could have been shot. Brunson had just escaped being a victim in the Empire State Building Shooting.

The only thing that he had to say after that is that God's timing is PERFECT. That it truly is...All of his fumbling and obstacles that he faced during his morning routine, occurred for a reason, to keep him away from the disaster taking place at the Empire State Building. As I scrolled down to read the comments to his post, one in particular stood out. "You religious freaks have no sense of shame. It is all about you and HIM huh? F**k those victims who got shot.". You religious freaks? No sense of shame? Brunson is simply thanking God and sharing his revelation with the world. What upsets me most is that we are labeled as  "religious freaks" for trusting in God and sharing our faith.

This post might upset some people, but I don't really care. Christianity is NOT a religion, it is a RELATIONSHIP. Communion with the Almighty, All-knowing, All-Powerful God that I serve. I'm thankful for life as it has been given to me, because I didn't have to be here. God saw fit to keep me! God has a master plan, and EVERYTHING is designed to bring Him glory. Even if we as mere humans don't understand it. Period! Yes, there were victims of the shooting, but he was acknowledging that God protected  him from being one. He realized the severity of the situation and understood that he could have been another person shot if he had left at the time he originally planned for. We as Christians are not being selfish when we bring glory to God, we are praising Him anyway through the good and the bad!

Remember that our minds and thoughts don't even being to parallel those of God's! There are things that we don't and NEVER WILL understand about God and the things that He allows to happen in our lives, community, nation and world. We can rationalize it all we want to, but we will NEVER fully understand the workings of the Lord. All we can do is have faith and trust that every event that takes place happens for a reason. God knows what He is doing. Period.

Peace & blessings,
nNb :)