That was me to my brother, Kevin, this morning on my way to my God tree. I was begging him to record another one of his helpful voice notes that guided me to make some significant decisions. NEVER UNDERESTIMATE THE VALUE OF THE PEOPLE YOU SURROUND YOURSELF WITH!!!!

The most important lesson from Kevin that I cherish was one day under that tree when I was trying to process some messy things going on in my life. He incredibly said, “Neeks, all I can tell you is to make God your priority. Get closer to God.” THAT WAS THE BEST ADVICE EVER!!! The love and intimacy God shows me are so beautiful. He truly makes me feel as if I’m His favorite girl. Every morning I open our blinds overlooking this beautiful lake, and after mentioning that He now uses ducks as a symbol of His Presence (and strength) with me, I notice a duck always camping out under one of OUR trees (not any of the neighbors!) and I just smile with God.

Then, last night, I was so happy when my son, Joshie, noticed a little wink from Him. We were watching the movie ‘Hustler’ on Netflix, and my hubby called, so I put the film on pause exactly when there was 1 hour and 17 minutes remaining with my famous “1:17” showing up with God revealing another glimmer of His invisible Presence there with us. Joshie was amazed! He said, “And daddy never calls us this late!!’ Hubs woke up in the middle of the night to make that phone call to see if I had made it home safely after I told him I was staying late at work to focus on an important project. (Hubs is truly one of my gifts from God!)

Joshie didn’t know the value of that God wink to his momma, though. We were both snuggled so closely under one blanket, watching and enjoying that movie, when my husband called. It was another special reminder from God to me to stay on the high road with Him. That everything was between Him and me, not between me and anyone else. It was like God was saying, ‘Let’s keep going, my Nik, being the best wife, mom, and person. My Presence is right here with you (Wink! Wink!).” God said all of that with that “117” showing up! He is pretty talkative once you get to know Him and He COMMUNICATES ALOT THROUGH NUMBERS. It’s crazy but 211 now has one meaning, 311 another, 411 another 711 or 117 another, and recently, 811 another! Start paying attention!!! Hubs calling all the way from Nigeria when it was that specific amount of time remaining on that movie was no coincidence!!!

And that’s my reminder to you guys today! Let’s be God’s people out there going overboard in love, mercy, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, and patience, no matter the evil we may be surrounded by (it is what it is, folks!). Doing everything for His glory, especially in our homes and spreading out into the world. May we all be God’s influencers by looking to Him to help us make the utmost best decisions in every moment by tapping into His Almighty perspective for our lives. Not always easy, but His STRENGTH takes over where our human strength fails.

I promise you, this verse has certainly been my experience as I know that in every moment I have God’s love, protection, favor, wisdom, and guidance backing me up so that I can joyfully and peacefully hold on to Him, as I bravely and lovingly tackle all the challenges that come my way:

“Instead, You direct me on the path that leads to a beautiful life. As I walk with You, the pleasures are never-ending and I know true joy and contentment.” Psalm 16:11

I asked my hubby in Nigeria this morning before our son, Emmie, left for his middle school graduation ceremony. Hubs beautifully prayed for God to continue guiding his life, to give him wisdom, and bless him with good health and prosperity. Amen! Let me tell ya, (girls, here I go bragging again!) this son came to the US from Nigeria and didn’t just make the school’s honor roll for the entire year; he qualified for the USA’s National Honor Roll! That’s how we do, boo!

It was a huge fight with my husband for the boys to stay here for school because he wanted them back in Nigeria, but I explained to him that this school was where God Himself wanted them. Can you believe as much as I write about this “117” being a sign from God that His Presence is with me, BOTH of the boys were assigned computer-generated student numbers including the number “117 (Wink! Wink!).” No coincidence!!! All orchestrated by God to let the momma here know that this was indeed the school picked for them by Him.

And we weren’t disappointed. The boys continued from where they left off in Nigeria to learn focus, discipline, integrity, confidence, and courage, AND THAT THEY HAD TO WORK HARD EVERY SINGLE DAY. My daughter, Ember, said to me one day that it looked as if I had abandoned my sons. Ember, look at us now! Joshie only missed the honor roll by three points, and now he is telling me NOT to go easy on him because he wants to get into the University of Miami. Super proud momma here! Doing it all for the glory of God, baby!

I say all that to say that God is PERSONALLY INVOLVED IN OUR LIVES. It’s just for us to pay attention to all His communications that can show up everywhere. It’s really what gives your girl here her courage to take on her life. I feel God’s constant guidance in every aspect of my life. THAT STRONG FEELING/NUDGE/IMPRESSION I felt from God for the boys to stay at school in the US is what I tried to explain to my husband. Those feelings have guided me all my life to a very beautiful place. (HUGE SMILE)

I loved another exceptional communication from God today. We were leaving the graduation this morning, and I commented to the security people that I loved the name of their company, ‘ALMIGHTY Security.’ Not even an hour later, I got this message on my phone from a special messenger, Rani:

“God is saying to you, I will be your anchor in the storm. I will get you through your valley. I will lead you out of the dessert. I will be your provider. You have an ALMIGHTY (Wink! Wink!) Father in heaven who loves you. Have faith in me and know that I will keep my promises to you. Amen.”

That “Almighty” showing up in that message lined up too perfectly to be some ordinary coincidence. It was God finding a fun way to speak directly to us. I’ve learned God’s personality pretty well over the years, and His ways are endless in communicating with us. He is very talkative! Like I crazily told you guys about how God uses ducks to symbolize He is my strength. Guess where we were directed to park at the graduation by the attendant? Duck Point. Again, God’s sweet way of reminding me that His Presence accompanies me wherever I go!!! That I can have the strength, peace, comfort, and joy that passes all understanding, knowing He with me (and you can, too!). Our God is with us, and He is faithful!

I’ve been like a broken record telling you guys in almost every post lately what my brother, Kevin, taught me, “God wants you to know that you are secure in Him.” Can you believe God went to the trouble to actually confirm that this is where He not only wants me but all of us?

So, in the middle of my run yesterday, I felt overly anxious about everything going on in my life and decided to stop my run to see what God had to say to me. The Nike running club app said I had at that point run .41 miles, so I went to page 41 of our family’s website and look what astonishingly showed up there:

“GOD IS PRETTY TALKATIVE!!!

LET ME TELL YOU! I woke up in the middle of the night, and because I couldn’t sleep, I looked for my phone to play my usual podcasts, but I couldn’t find it. I ended up using my son’s Siah’s, and when I noticed that a Joel Osteen sermon oddly downloaded itself, I said I better listen because it might be a message from God for me. After beating myself up so much lately, and asking God what’s wrong with me, He lovingly answered. Turns out, it was a specific communication through Victoria Osteen to the crazy lady over here…:

…Victoria continued: “I believe that God wants us to understand that we are secure in Him (Wink! Wink!).”

Again, that lined up too perfectly to be some ordinary coincidence for Victoria to say exactly what Kevin told me that God wants me to know that I’m secure in Him. God Himself had me to stop that run at exactly .41 miles and then had me to go page 41 of our website to confirm that message He gave me through Kevin that I’ve been repeating like a crazy person. See how intimately God is involved in our lives? From over a year ago, He had me to listen to that message from Victoria in the middle of the night when I couldn’t sleep on my son’s phone (not even my phone!!!). And even to go as far as having me write her words out in a post because He knew that yesterday I would be out feeling stressed, overwhelmed, and anxious, and would need that reminder from Him in the middle of that run.

Does it better than this guys? Knowing that the Creator of the entire universe is always with You, walking with you, guiding you, advising you, helping you, supporting you, protecting you, loving you, approving of you and that you don’t handle life alone? The new message to the crazy lady in my head when she shows up:

“Trust God from the bottom of your heart;
don’t try to figure out everything on your own.
Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go;
he’s the one who will keep you on track.” – Proverbs 3:5-6

Start paying attention to God’s voice that is always talking to you. Notice how I felt God in my spirit telling me when to stop that run and where to go to hear from Him. His nudges, impressions, cues, signs, and messages are all within and around us. It’s up to us to develop a relationship with Him, learn His crucial voice, and be obedient to Him. This life is too hard to do on our own; WE NEED GOD!

My daughters say I brag too much, but I call it boasting about the greatness of God and how intimately He’s involved in every detail of our lives. Not only in my life but also in yours once you have eyes to see Him and ears to hear Him. And that’s where I get my life’s purpose from, sharing with you guys how God is so loving and how He wants to be personally involved in every moment of our lives.

Like I just hung up from my sweetie pie sister, Marilyn. I told her how God is using ducks to remind me that He is my strength to help tackle any challenge that comes my way. Every morning I see them out on my run. They come and sometimes line up on our backyard fence. I went to the mall the other day, and we parked somewhere different, and there was a duck and her ducklings at that entrance. I started talking to them, “What are you guys doing here?!?” I knew this was God’s way of showing me another glimmer of His invisible Presence with me. His love too!!! (HUGE SMILE)

Then driving back from Julie’s graduation yesterday, Ember and Julie told me about a duck that wouldn’t leave Ember alone that started running after her. To a Facebook friend sharing a video of ducks on her morning walk. This all started one day when I had to stop to wait for some ducks to cross the street, and a couple of hours later, my nephew, Duro, called me asking if I like to eat ducks because he was at a duck restaurant. I then Googled the spiritual significance of ducks, and it meant STRENGTH.

Call me crazy, but honestly, I need to tap into God’s strength more than ever. That’s why I go to my God tree every day to remind myself that I have God’s strength backing me up as I take on this super heroic role for my family right now. There is a lot going on, but I’m tapping into God’s strength on a moment-by-moment basis asking Him for the wisdom and strength to help me navigate every situation step by step. This is His loving invitation to each of us:

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” – Matthew 11:28–29

And this yoke that is used to tie two farm animals together by the neck is what I imagine God and I have tied around our necks, as I courageously go through my life with Him. When the burdens get too much for your girl, I just use it as a reminder that I’m taking on too much of the stress and not giving them to God. I constantly remind myself that I’m trusting God, and He hasn’t failed me yet. Like Kevin taught me, “God wants me to know that I’m secure in Him.” Our God is faithful! No matter the difficulties and challenges, He has our back to help guide and advise us through any tough time.

I loved watching All American yesterday when Layla gave me such a great perspective on life, saying something like she takes all the disappointments, betrayals, and unfair things that happen and responds to them with Love, Forgiveness, Hope, and Purpose. That’s what I’ve decided to do. I’m using the negativity to up my work for God to spread His fragrance everywhere. Like if you are not rolling with God, you are missing out on the best guidance, love, wisdom, help, and support available. I want us all going to God all day long, PAUSING and continually asking what He would have us do, what to say and even where to go.

Talking to someone recently about a decision they made that’s not working out too well, I asked, “Did you pray and ask God first?” They honestly replied that they didn’t, and they were just excited about the choice and did not involve God. They are now learning a costly yet very valuable lesson: INVOLVE GOD IN EVERY DECISION! Peace and excitement from Him mean move forward confidently. However, no peace, silence from Him, doubt, mean don’t move. God never answers, maybe. It’s either a BIG YES or NO. A new lesson He has taught me, though, is, “Do it afraid,” as I feel Him taking me entirely out of my comfort zone, knowing I’m secure in Him, and you are too!

I can’t get over these recent words from my messenger from God/brother, Kevin, when I called him from under my God tree. But what indeed amazes me, though, is the extent God would go to get me to understand that He stands STRONGLY with me in every aspect of my life.

Like yesterday, I was working on a crucial report, and one of the figures shockingly included “811118.” After working all day on it, I left it for a bit to just pray over it and have some conversations with God. A couple of hours later, I was lying next to my son Joshie, asking him the time. He replied, “8:11, and do you want to know why that is a God wink?” I screamed, “That’s a God wink at me!” I took him to my report to see the “811118” going forward AND backward. Wow! God freaked me out that I would ask Joshie what time it was at precisely 8:11 just to let me know He approved of my report. HEEHAW!!!

But can you believe the God wink for Joshie was a friend sitting next to him in his class yesterday who noticed “811” on the board and said to him that “811” is his lucky number? Would God really go to that extent to have that all lined up so perfectly to let me know I was secure in Him? Yup, He is pretty awesome and cool like that! Tell me, how could all that line up on its own to be some random coincidence? From me working on that report all day and for that 811118 to show up, to Joshie’s friend sitting next to him and saying, “811 is my lucky number,” after he sees it on the board, to me lying next to Joshie and asking him the time at precisely 8:11. That’s God’s love and intimate involvement in every moment of our lives!

Are you feeling His Presence with You? Notice He talks to me a lot through numbers and what we would call coincidences just as glimmers of His invisible Presence that is always with us. So that as we face the challenges and problems of life, we know that He is there with us, and we face nothing alone. OUR GOD IS FAITHFUL, AND HE IS WITH US!!! EVEN WHEN WE GET IT WRONG, HE WILL HAVE OUR BACK! He wants to be personally involved in every aspect of our lives, but we must take the time and effort to have a relationship with Him. No shame in my game; I run to God to get His perspective on every decision. Every circumstance. Every relationship. And I pray you do the same. (Wink! Wink!)

I can’t get over Him! The way He figures out these sweet ways to let me know that His invisible Presence is ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS with me. Like yesterday, I was doing some work and thought to take a break and have an appointment with God. I saw the number 53 and decided to go to page 53 of our family’s website, and there were two posts there that God used to let me know He is intimately involved in every moment of my life.

The first wink began with me having the best time that morning, singing my heart out to God while playing Justin Bieber’s song ‘One Time.’ Look what amazingly showed up on page 53:

“I LOVE MY LIFE WITH HIM as I’m learning to enjoy His company in every moment. Yesterday, that meant singing my heart out to Him in Justin Bieber’s song, One Time:

“So we keep climbing to the mountain top. Your world is my world. And my fight is Your fight. You by my side, them troubles them not trouble me. I LOVE YOU!””

Like God was saying, ‘Nik, I saw you this morning singing this song to Me!’ No coincidence that out of 129 pages, I went specifically to THAT page to see THOSE lyrics that I sang to God THAT morning.

Next, my sweetie pie daughter, Julie, came and asked where I wanted my Minnie Mouse stool that they steal from me sometimes. I pointed somewhere, saying that stool is where I go when I’m having stressful moments and need to talk to God. Again, look what incredibly showed up on page 53 hours after that conversation with Julie:

“Like as I type this, I have my computer on top of a Minnie Mouse stool in a little, quiet corner of our home, which is extremely full at the moment. But this stool has been my go-to spot to meet with God whenever I’m having a rough moment, and believe it or not, He comes to comfort me.”

Again, this was God’s way of letting me know that He is with me in every moment, every conversation, every thought I think, every song I sing, He is always with me. I get to wake up every day saying I’m His Rockstar wife, mom and person! This is where I find true joy, peace, and fulfillment, knowing I handle nothing alone and that God is with me at every moment, helping me, guiding me, loving me (He makes me feel as if I’m His favorite girl!) and giving my life such purpose and meaning.

“Sorry, I’m not the fun mom,” I said last night to my daughter, Ember. But I’m in love with my quiet and simple life with God. This is the life I’ve designed with Him, and I wouldn’t trade for anybody else’s. Yes, I have some stuff where I definitely know I can improve in and some crosses He asks me to carry, but that’s all a part of my journey and evolution with God. He is the greatest friend ever because He helps me be better by lovingly having situations come up that force me to really look deep inside myself to figure out where I’m going wrong without looking for drugs, alcohol, or anything else of coping with my life. I go to God.

Make sure you are having your alone times with Him! Take some time every day reading or listening to something that brings you closer to Him. God is quite talkative, but you have to take time to hear what He has to say specifically to you and only to you. See how He found those ways to remind me that His Presence is with me reading page 53 because I took a few minutes to say, ‘God, I want to hear from You.’ Don’t miss out, the best life is close to God!!! We need Him!

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” – John 14:27

That was me to my brother/angel from God, Kevin, under my God tree today. He has been my crucial guard rail for the past three years, helping me make some pretty significant decisions. I had called him to tell him how my daughter, Ember, got a chance yesterday to witness how his advice to me has paid off. My daughters often question my decisions as to why I’m always the first to apologize to their dad, even if he was the one wrong, looking at me as some “weak” woman. Yesterday, Ember got to see that her mom was actually being very wise, as Kevin has been teaching me to be, choosing her battles wisely and leaving the insignificant ones to God.

Someone had called me requesting some information, and I needed to call my husband. We talked about the girls, and seeing him not playing around with his responsibility as their dad just blew me away. After telling Ember about the conversation, I asked her, “Now do you see why mom apologizes even when I’m not in the wrong. Your dad may have his ways, but he is truly God’s gift to our family. That’s why I’ve been teaching you to overwhelm him with your love and respect.”

Your girl here has become a professional at swallowing some bitter pills and taking emotionally painful punches, but I feel that’s my special role from God (Me a soldier!). To be the glue that’s keeping my family together and at the same time show you guys that love can still exist within imperfections. Love is a decision that we can make every day despite whatever has happened in the past, and we do it all for God. Hubby certainly puts up with the crazy God lady here who writes posts sharing all our family drama with the world!

“Obey God and leave the consequences to Him,” was the advice of Dr. Charles Stanley that I want us all running with. His ways are definitely not our ordinary human ways; they are so much better. He exceeds my expectations giving me more than I can ever ask or imagine when I follow His leading. That conversation with hubs yesterday really brought that reality home, ‘Nik, you are blessed!’

That’s why it’s so important to learn God’s voice for yourself. Like the “311” that has been showing up from Him to remind me to stay on the high road with Him, and again, making that decision every day to be still and show up as the best wife, mother, and person, leaving the battles with Him, has paid off tremendously. Sounds crazy that God would say all that through the number “311” but that “311” has beautifully guided me. God is pretty talkative, and I want us all to get to know Him better and His voice to understand the people He is calling us to be.

Like right after talking to Kevin about how thankful I was for him teaching me to be patient AND reading about how prayer and patience go together under my tree with God, I got in my car to go home, and exactly at that moment, the very lyrics on the radio at precisely that moment was ‘Grateful I had all the patience,’ by Meek Mill. Wink! Wink! That lined up too perfectly to be a coincidence! It was all orchestrated by God to let me know that His invisible Presence is always with me as I take on this superheroic mission on His behalf. Also, His fun, sweet, and playful personality to have THAT song of all songs in the world playing on the radio at that very moment.

“The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…”

Let’s all be God’s superheroes doing everything for His glory, especially in our homes. This is how He guides us on the paths to the best life with Him as our Guide and Partner. Not always easy, but His Presence will be there to give us the strength, courage, and wisdom to get through anything. Grateful I had all the patience!

THIS IS THE GREATEST NEWS EVER!!!

We have God’s Presence continually with us in every single moment of our lives!!!! Are you getting this crucial message that we don’t have to handle the ups and downs of life alone?!? This is my special assignment from Him to share with you the most valuable information of your existence that God is with us, for us, and on our side. It’s just for us to develop a relationship with Him and make Him our first love and priority. Then, tap into His voice all day, asking what He would have you do in the 1,000 decisions you make. You handle whatever He asks you to the best of your ability, then you leave the rest to Him to take on in the spiritual realm on your behalf (Wink! Wink!) Let me tell ya, God is an expert in everything!!! But enough from me, I loved this message from Dr. Charles Stanley yesterday, who has tremendously increased my faith in God (HUGE SMILE):

_“”I’m going to be with you.” _

So, the important thing is that we recognize that God is going to guide us in whatever He tells us to do. You think about all the decisions you have to make in life and think about decisions that pop up that you and I don’t even plan on, things that we don’t even have any details about. But He says, “I will guide you.”

That’s a promise that belongs to every single child of God, that you can’t bring up any issue that He doesn’t know all about it. You can’t bring up any question He doesn’t have an answer for. And He’s not going to say, “Well, maybe. “He’s not going to say, “Well, I’ll think about it, “and, “I forgot that. “GOD WANTS TO BE PERSONALLY INVOLVED IN EVERY SINGLE AREA OF YOUR LIFE, because He knows you and I live in a world that’s wicked, vile, corrupt, you name it, and Satan is our enemy. And therefore, God wants to be involved in every aspect of our life.

Then there’s a third thing that’s important here, and that’s this, and that is there should be many times in life when there’s a time of personal worship and meditation in our life, seeking His guidance and direction. And the more critical the decision, but the more time you and I should be spending in doing what? Just what we’re talking about here: meditating upon His Word. What did He say? How does He operate? And that more than likely, you and I will never come to a place in life where we think, “Well, I’ve got that down. “When somebody is all that cocky about their understanding of everything, you better watch out. Because, listen, times change, things change. God doesn’t change. But God, listen, God may change our sense of direction.
He may change what we’re doing.”

Got that? GOD WANTS TO BE PERSONALLY INVOLVED IN EVERY SINGLE AREA OF YOUR LIFE. It’s just for us to invite Him in. Say this prayer with me: ‘God, I want a closer walk with You.’ Then start having quiet times with Him reading or listening to anything spiritual that you feel brings you closer to Him. I try my best to go to my tree where I meet God every day, and not one moment there is wasted. I may run there so overwhelmed, but by the time I get back home, you should see me happy dancing, knowing that God is with me to take on whatever comes my way during the day. HEEHAW!!!

Like right now, I’m back and forth between writing this and working along with my fierce daughter, Ember, to solve a problem. I told her that it’s God guiding her mom as to where the issues are and that she should never forget that He is there to guide her. God is even an expert in computer software! All these different solutions and ideas are coming up as we take on the challenge step by step, and we’re slowly tackling it, by the grace of God!