It would be for the entire world to come and know God as I’ve come to know Him. He is my Father, Greatest Friend, Planner, Strategist, Advisor, Counselor, Teacher, and Protector. And it’s my honor and joy to tell you about this awesome God that I have the privilege of knowing and telling you about every day. AS YOU SEEK HIM, YOU WILL FIND HIM. That’s my testimony!
It was a good 13 to 14 years ago that I had a relative come and stay with me for one week. By the end of that week, and having such an awful experience with her, having to call the police to have her to leave, I was running to church! I was like God, ‘You’ve kept me from people like this all my life? Wow!’ I had a newfound respect for Him! A neighbor had been inviting me to visit her church for a long time, but I never went. Until that experience! And the best thing happened. I met a Pastor by the name of Dan Hall, who, through some astounding sermons, introduced me to this very loving and REAL God. His sermons blew me away, and I got hooked. No matter how tired I was, I dressed our kids, and we were off to church!
Pastor Hall taught me all about having a closer walk with God, and I’m incredibly grateful. He said that as I seek God, I would find Him. He encouraged me to come to church every Sunday, but most importantly, He said that I have to wake up early and seek God for myself. I remember getting up every morning and going to a home office we had to sit and have alone times with God before doing anything else. Pastor Hall said to start reading the Bible for myself. I did that. He said to start with The Gospels. I did that. And that was the beginning of a beautiful love affair.
So, that’s my suggestion to you:
MAKE GOD A PRIORITY.
Wake up earlier and start giving God your first focus of the day.
Read or listen to anything spiritual you feel brings you closer to Him.
For me, lately, that means reading a page from our family’s website, werollwithGod.com. It’s my reminder of all the times God has come through for me and, most importantly, the person He is calling me to be in every moment.
Like right now, I’m looking for one of my fav old posts to share with you, but God is telling me to reshare another one. It’s one with a pic of me that out of old posts was reused and sent to me today by someone in a Whatsapp group. It’s one of my alignments where everything lines up too perfectly to be some ordinary coincidence, it was God’s way of saying, ‘Nik, please reshare this one.’ Who am I to argue with God?!? God is pretty talkative once you get to know Him! Here’s what that old post said:
“O DAUGHTER OF LITTLE FAITH, WHAT DO YOU FEAR?” (REPOST)
I love when God talks to me! I was feeling really anxious about some stuff last week and I went to one of my fav places to hear from Him, Tumblr.com, and like usual, He had the perfect message waiting for me in a post there:
“Fear is a greater evil than the evil itself. O daughter of little faith, what do you fear? No, fear not; you walk on the sea, amid the winds and waves, but it is with Jesus. What is there to fear? But if fear seizes you, cry loudly, ‘O Lord, save me.’ He will give you His hand: clasp it tight, and go joyously on. To sum up, do not philosophize about your trouble; do not turn in upon yourself; go straight on. No, God cannot lose you, so long as you live in your resolution not to lose Him. Let the world turn upside down, let everything be in darkness, in smoke, in uproar—God is with us. And if God dwelleth in darkness and on Mount Sinai, all smoking and covered with the thunders, with lightnings and noises, shall we not be well near Him?
— Letter from St. Francis de Sales to St. Jane de Chantal, 6 August 1606 (via catherineaddington)
Did you get that? “But if fear seizes you, cry loudly, ‘O LORD, SAVE ME.’ He will give you His hand: clasp it tight, and go joyously on.”
And that’s exactly what I did, I handed the issue I was worried and fearful about over to God, doing my best with what I needed to take care of, and I left the rest with Him. I noticed He’s training me to trust Him more and to let go of so many things I try to control in my little world. Like He’s saying, “Be brave and courageous, my daughter! Come out on this limb with me holding My hand, letting go of fear and live the best life with Me, afraid of nothing!’”
Notice how I sought God in that in really anxious moment, and I found Him – His sheep know His voice, and if you feel this is Him speaking to you, trust me, it is! He was there to comfort me on that awful day, and remind me that all will be well near Him no matter how explosive the world was looking around me. And that’s the love I want you to know. That no matter what you’re going through or struggling with, God’s presence is with you. Let’s all make Him a PRIORITY in 2021, waking up earlier and seeking Him, giving Him the first minutes of our day. And then seeking Him all day long, inviting Him to be a part of every moment of our lives, seeking to stay on the high road with Him, loving extravagantly and forgiving endlessly, being the people that seek to make Him proud and happy. I promise you, a life close to God is the best life! Wink! Wink!
That’s the message I’ve been sensing from God lately, with Pop Smoke’s song, ‘Enjoy Yourself’ playing in my head. Last year, the message from Him was about doing hard things. This year seems to also be about doing hard things, but with one added twist: Nik, you should enjoy yourself! Wink! Wink!
That was the message to my daughter, Julie, studying for a crucial examination she took today. ‘Have fun with it! Turn it into a lighthearted challenge that you enjoy doing!’ was my motivational speech to her. Shortly after that, God had something He wanted to add in when a Rich Roll podcast that I continued listening to said, “Finding the joy… Be your own biggest fan of your life…If you embark on something, doing something that feels like is connecting to your soul, what you’re meant to be doing here, it’s humbling…you feel so at one with the cosmos that you feel like a speck. Wow. That’s how beautiful the world is, and I’m playing my part.”
I told her that it was her and God who came up with these grand goals she’s set out for herself and that she should take the experience as an adventure with Him, finding the joy in being a speck in this massive universe, yet playing her part in the world that God has called her to do.
Then, Pastor Rick Warren had this to say to me today:
“Worship is far more than praising, singing, and praying to God. WORSHIP IS A LIFESTYLE OF ENJOYING GOD (Wink! Wink!), loving Him and giving ourselves to be used for his purposes. When you use your life for God’s glory, everything you do can become an act of worship. The Bible says, ‘Use your whole body as a tool to do what is right for the glory of God.” – The Purpose Driven Life
Let’s do it all for God’s glory, my peeps! Today I had the boys with me (trying to up my game with them after Ember harshly criticized me that I’ve abandoned them! The horror!)) while picking up Julie from school. We ended up stopping at three parking lots so that the boys and I could do some work to help out my husband. I was so proud to show them that life is about always giving our best in everything we do. All for the glory of God! Joshie made me laugh. He said that anytime I ask a question, the answer is always God! (SMILE) Let’s be the rocking people, enjoying God, doing our best, and leaving the rest with Him! IN GOD WE TRUST, BABY! (Wink! Wink!)
WEROLLWITHGOD.COM
“THANK YOU FOR CHOOSING GOD”
That was the sweet statement from my husband recently. I thanked him, too. And, honestly, us both making decisions from a ‘God, what would You have us to do here?’ has led our lives on a gorgeous path. God, thank You!!! We may not get it right all the time, but we keep striving to be the people God would have us to be.
I love how God got involved with a conversation between me and hubs yesterday. He said to me, “The dark veil that was covering your eyes has been removed. YOU CAN SEE CLEARLY NOW.” Fast forward to less than 2 hours, I go to listen to some of my podcasts while I cleaned up the kitchen, and of all the podcasts, the up next suggestion was Wayne Dyer’s latest update, entitled, “I CAN SEE CLEARLY NOW (Wink! Wink!).” It was another one of my God winks where everything lined up too perfectly to be considered some ordinary coincidence. It was God Himself revealing His invisible presence with hubby and me.
But what really blew me away was how my husband knew about this dark veil and how it has been removed. It was a prophet in Nigeria telling him what’s going on in his wife’s head in the US. Crazy right?!? It’s another testimony to the greatness of God, though. It’s like that dark veil just magically disappeared overnight. It’s like I woke up, and all the negative, depressing thoughts that followed me everywhere were suddenly gone. I CAN SEE CLEARLY NOW!!!
“We can heal from hard things,” was the message from Coach Bennet today on my run with God. That’s why I’m so thrilled to share this great news with you guys! Every time I would fall into these depressing spells, I would go running to God, and He has helped me. He turned the negative thinking into such positivity of hope, peace, and joy. Choosing to stay on the high road with Him has been the best decision going the extra mile in love and forgiveness.
I loved another God wink through Coach Bennet. Less than a minute after touching my God tree and saying to Him, ‘We’re together. We’re together. We’re together.’ Coach Bennet says to me, “WE’RE TOGETHER (Wink! Wink!). And, of course, I took it as a special message from God. Out of all the runs I decided on in the Nike Run Club app, for that message to be so perfectly timed after me telling God that we’re together, was all orchestrated by God to say back to me, ‘Nik, WE’RE TOGETHER.’ The sweet life with God, baby!
Don’t miss out on these God winks! Invite God to be a part of every moment of your life, continually seeking His wisdom, counsel (He’s the best therapist!), strength, love, and approval. 24//7 He is available!
That was the great advice from Chadd Wright on the Rich Roll Podcast. And helping me to be in this endeavor is God. My faith in Him has strengthened my spirit. This is my prayer for us all:
“I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ (God) may dwell in your hearts through faith.” – Ephesians 3:16-17
Honestly, listening to Chadd speak about his strong faith in God encouraged me! I related so much with him, especially when he spoke about running and his faith when I write so much about how running has helped me get closer to God. No shame in my game, on my daily run, there is a tree that I put both hands on and say to Him, “We’re together, we’re together, we’re together.” LIFE GETS HARD, and it’s my reminder that no matter what comes at me, I know that I’m rolling with God. I just show up doing my best in every moment, KNOWING He is behind the scenes helping me with the more difficult parts. That’s faith!
And I want you guys here with Chadd and me, with a strong FAITH in God. His invisible Presence is ALWAYS with us. It’s just for us to invite Him into every moment, no matter what we’re doing, seeking His wisdom, strength, and love.
Just this morning, everything I’ve done so far, I’ve felt God nudging me to do it. Like I had a nice drive with Julie to get her some Starbucks coffee and give her a quick driving lesson. I ended up kissing her and saying thank you because I enjoy our conversations so much. They’re sacred, and I always feel so motivated to be better. Our fierce babes’ alliance remains strong, my sweetie!
And can you believe God said the same thing to me recently? That He would be tempted to thank me for remembering Him. God, now I get it! (HUGE SMILE) Would you give God the honor and joy to be an intimate part of your life? He’s patiently waiting on your invitation. Say this prayer with me, ‘God, I want a closer walk with You! Amen. Trust me, He will thank you too! Wink! Wink!
That’s how I’m feeling today! I’m going through life knowing God is with me! In the 1,000 decisions I make every day, I’m learning to feel Him in my spirit, nudging and directing me as to what He would have me to do, what He would have me to say, and where He would have me to go. So, I don’t want to feel this close to Him by myself, I want you getting in on this love, wisdom, approval, and guidance that’s available to all of us.
He’s pretty talkative once you learn His voice. Like some months ago, hubby and I were in a dark space and I had a weird dream. I dreamt that I was feeling like a new love. The kind of love I first felt for my husband when we first met. The giddy type of love where we’ll call each other right back kind of love if we spoke on the phone. I freaked out like it was a nightmare – that hubs and I were going to split up! But after a few days of panic, God put it in my spirit, ‘Nik, that’s you and your husband!’ Can you believe that dream has come true? I honestly feel so blessed to have such a great husband who has been more than I can ever imagine or expect. We’re in the US right now, and to see him put so much love into our family, really blows me away. Thanks, boo! Ride or die chick forever!
But the real deal of what happened last year is that my identity was too much tied to being his wife. When I felt that was possibly being taken away from me, I was completely crushed. But God stood with me, and He taught me that my identity should not be tied to anyone, it should be tied to Him FIRST AND FOREMOST – GOD’S GIRL!!!. I don’t even wear a wedding band because every time I would try, I would feel irritated by it in my spirit. God wants to be our first love!!!
With His love, we can then live life from His perspective. Knowing He is with us and by our side, guiding, protecting, advising and LOVING us, we can seek to put Him first in our actions and decisions. God, what would You have me to do here? That’s how He beautifully guides us on the path to the best life. I’m so grateful that He kept me on track last year. He said to stay on the high road with Him, being the faithful, loyal, dependable, going the extra mile person for Him, and it’s paid off big time! I’m blessed!!!
