Category: Inspiration

No Limits

Author, Nicole L. Ross1 Comment

No Limits Sign

If you had to look at your life right now and determine a limit on how you were going to move forward in say, buying a house.  You might write down on a list that you want a three bedroom house, with two and a half baths and a two car garage and you want to spend no more than $150,000.  Or another example may be you want a new job that is full-time, have a good salary, with medical benefits, and flexible hours.  It is not bad to establish a plan, in fact the examples I have listed are great for trying to draw up a strategy on how to move forward in life.  Here’s the thing though, we have to understand that although it is good to lay out a blueprint for ourselves, it is not good for us to put limitations on it.  Simply put, there are no limits when it comes to the things of God and the people of God.  While you want that 3 bedroom house, God could desire to bless you with a 6 bedroom house.  Or, while you are still in an apartment paying rent every month thinking you could never afford to actually purchase a home or qualify for a mortgage loan, God is saying not only will I bless you so you can afford it, I will also restore and build up your credit rating.  You want a full-time job with good benefits working for someone else, when God could want you to have your own business.  I think it is just the way we are programmed to put limits on things, but we have to reprogram our thoughts and realize that when we put limits on any part of our present situation or future, we are putting limits on God.

How do we go about reprogramming our thoughts? You start by including God in the planning process.  Talk to Him.  Ask God what He wants for you.  As you make your plans, let Him know it is what you want but that you believe that if it is His will you can get even more.  When I first started this Blog, it was simply my desire to share my thoughts with people all over the world and allow God to use me to take His word to the nations.  Before doing it though, I had to really get in a place where I could hear from God.  I was able to share my plans with Him, but I knew right off the bat that the blog was only the beginning.  I refuse to put any limits on what this website can do because I trust with a sincere heart that God is able to do exceedingly, abundantly above all I can ever begin to ask or even think.  When we limit our dreams and goals, we limit God.  We limit what we believe Him to be capable of doing in all areas of our lives.

What is it that you are wanting?  What are your goals?  If you don’t have any, I challenge you to establish some in every area of you life (family, work, finances, health, etc).  Now, when you come up with the answer to these questions, my next challenge to you is to include God!  Talk to Him about all of it and take off all the limitations you have set for yourself.  For example, if you want to make more money this year, it is ok to say you want at least $50,000, but trust and believe that God can do more.  In other words, make your goals the minimum and let God add the maximum.  #iDeclare #nolimitstowhatGodcando

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Prayer:

Father God in the name of Jesus, I come humbly first and foremost repenting.  Please forgive me for putting limitations on you and what you want for me in this life.  I believe that there is nothing to hard for you Lord.  I decree and declare that I will include you in all my dreams and goals set for my life and what I set is only the minimum, while what you add is the maximum.  Oh Lord my prayer is that you would bless me indeed and enlarge my territory.  As I write the vision and make it plain, I will include you in every aspect of it.  I trust and believe you God for great and mighty things.  In Jesus name, Amen.

Scripture Readings:

Ephesians 3:20 NKJV “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us”

Habakkuk 2:2 KJV “And the Lord answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.”

Time

Author, Nicole L. Ross2 Comments

Amazing how things can change at the drop of a dime, literally.  If and when it does, one of the first things that come to mind is wishing we could have gotten that time back or wishing we could change the time we did have.  In the past month, two of my closest friends have lost their mother.  This has impacted me in a way that I could have never imagined.  Living in a different country and not being able to be there like I want to and even not understanding why it had to happen are two of the things I have been thinking about.  The one thing that did come out of these two situations has been that it truly is a reality check for me.  I have taken so many things for granted, never truly accepting the fact that tomorrow is not promised.  Having lost a parent nearly three years ago, you would think I have gotten this concept down pact but I guess in my healing and grieving process, I chose to overlook certain things instead of etch them in my heart and operate in that thing from now until the day I die.

The focus today is on time.  A long while ago, I came to learn that time was one of, if not the most valuable thing on the earth.  It is such a valuable and precious gift that God gives, and as we all know, it is irreplaceable so, once it is gone you can never get it back.  We hear people say often to use our time wisely, but it is not until we are able to fully comprehend just how valuable time is that we can truly apply this concept to our daily lives.  When you know better, you do better.  Once you have an experience for yourself in regards to time, such as going to school full-time while working a full-time job and raising two children then you are able to cherish and sincerely appreciate those free moments you have.

Too many things are taken for granted in life.  Like in my case for instance, it wasn’t until I had to deal with my husband being deployed for twelve months in the middle of a combat war zone, that I effusively realized the importance of treasuring the time I have now because I know what it is like to have that time taken away.  If you have children, you know and appreciate the younger years of a child’s life, because those moments are so precious and seem to go by much to quickly.

The bible reminds us in Ecclesiastes that there is a time and season for everything.  Time is indispensable and so is timing. While I write about understanding the value of time and how once it is gone, it’s gone.  It is also just as important to recognize the proper moments and seasons in life as well.  Seasons come and go in all of our lives on a regular basis, we just have to discern when this is happening and how to move forward.  All in all, God is the giver of time so whatever you do, be sure to include HIM, and give back at least a small portion of what He has given to you.  It does not have to be all day, but sometime throughout your day make an effort to spend time with God.  Talk to Him, read the bible, listen to a sermon.  Do something that is going to keep you connected to the source.  #iDeclare #timeisprecioususeitwisely

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Prayer:

Father God in the name of Jesus, I come first and foremost to say thank you for the precious gift of time.  Forgive me for taking it for granted and please help me Lord to always value and understand the importance of this gift that you have given me.  I decree and declare that from this day forward, I will take every day one day at a time and purpose in my heart to understand the correct timing and seasons in my life.  God I ask that you would transform my mind as it relates to time and timing. Increase my discernment God, in Jesus name I pray. Amen.

 

Scripture Reference:

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 NLT “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build,  a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance,  a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away,  a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.”

Ephesians 5:16-17 NIV “making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.  Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.”

Keep It Real

Author, Nicole L. RossLeave a comment

One of the biggest problems in the body of Christ in my opinion is people who seem to want to fake and front and appear to be someone they really are not.  Although it really does bother me, I think it is important to identify and understand the real reason this sort of behavior takes place.  There was once a time in my life when I was younger, entering into adulthood, where I put up a front and pretended to be something I really wasn’t.  Whether or not anyone knew it or not, I don’t know, if they did they never called me out on it.  Nevertheless, I pretended to be something I wasn’t, and I can say with an honest and open heart that the reason why I did this is because I was not happy with myself.  I wasn’t happy with where I was in life, so I figured if I made it appear as though my life was bigger and better than it really was, I could cover up all the hurt, pain and struggle that I was dealing with internally.  I remember reading one day about the importance of understanding who we are in Christ.  Learning that I am an heir of God and a joint heir with Jesus Christ, I am above only and not beneath, I am the head and not the tail. All of these things sound great, but the revelation for me was that it is in the bible, which we know is the word of God and truly a word that I needed to stand on and believe.  When you believe in the word completely, no matter how many flaws you may feel you have, the desire to make things up and pretend should not exist.  It was at that moment when I found the ability to truly come to grips with myself by being completely transparent.  God changed my mindset about who I was in Him, which in turn changed my behavior.  He took the desire out of my heart to pretend, and placed the desire in my heart for me to love me again, imperfections and all.  To love all of me, no matter what the world standards appeared to be, love me by letting go of my past trusting God that no matter how bad it seemed in my eyes it was all predestined to bring me into the individual I am today.

It seems as though this acting, is extremely prevalent in the church.  As the body of Christ, we are supposed to reach the lost and draw people in.  How can we do that when we are so busy turning our noses up at people because they have on a tight dress or smell like alcohol.  If we aren’t doing turning up our noses, then we are trying to make them believe we are something we aren’t and they don’t even see Jesus in us because they too busy trying to look beyond all the foolishness.   We can’t be a reflection of God until we look in the mirror and take a true reflection of ourselves first and ask God to change whatever it is within us that is not like Him.  He does not expect us to do it on our own, He just wants you to acknowledge the reality of who you are in Him.  How do you begin to know who you are in Him?  Study your word. It’s all written in the bible.  Once you study your word and see what it says, you must then believe what it says.  Believe that there is a King in you.  Believe that you are a royal priesthood. Believe that nothing, absolutely nothing can ever separate you from the love of God.  Find your identity in Christ alone and you won’t have to struggle with being fake or phony.  Love you just the way you are.  Your creator sure does.  #iDeclare #keepitreal

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Prayer:

Father God in the Name of Jesus, I come now thanking you for showing me who I am.  Forgive me Lord for times I have appeared or acted in a way that was false.  Help me to find my true identity in you Lord.  I decree and declare that I am the head and not the tail, that I am above only and not beneath and that there is a King in me.  I am a royal priesthood.  Help me to do what you have called me to do, so that when people see me they will see you.  I die to myself right now in the name of Jesus and I thank that you that I will never have to be fake or phony another day in my life.  I embrace the real me, the person you created me to be and I love me.  Thank you Jesus for hearing my prayer and for life changing transformation.  In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

Scripture Reference:

Deuteronomy 28:13 KJV” And the Lord shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if that thou hearken unto the commandments of the Lord thy God, which I command thee this day, to observe and to do them:”

2 Corinthians 5:17 NKJV “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.”