I came home from traveling tonight and GOT MY MIND BLOWN!!!
But let’s pause just a minute while I give you some back story.
Called to travel.
We travel A LOT in order to speak at churches and conferences. Packing and unpacking can get REALLY messy, especially when I pull things out and just kinda-sorta put them away. (Fully intending, of course, to do it right later.)
But then, we have to leave again and I pack different things this time. The chaos that is our bathroom and closet becomes an unmanageable monstrosity of mayhem more and more every week.
On the airplane ride home, I thought of our bathroom and the daunting task of unloading my suitcases once again. I actually got a little stressed about it and found myself rubbing my head. I HAVE to make time to make this problem better! TIME to clean out cabinets, is something I just did NOT see in my near future. We were coming home from an event that God wanted us to do.
Now, I’m sure that He did, because the side journey after the event had led me to a place of decision.
A whisper from Heaven.
Afterwards, we were invited out to dinner with our host and some marvelous people that were SO beyond me in what they’ve achieved. These people are Giants of success… and… well… then there was me. For some reason, one of these very accomplished people (if I started listing their credits here it would take up the entire rest of the blog), started pouring out their heart about some real serious hurts that were happening in their life right now.
Wow! Everyone at the table grew quiet and respectfully listened. I mean, what would someone even say to an amazing person like that???? And that’s when it happened! God put it on MY heart to share something with them. With every fiber of my being I did NOT want to open my mouth! I was the youngest and most inexperienced person at this table. WHY should I say a word??????
And then, PRICK – it happened again! God was beckoning me to share.
Obedience pays off.
So, I swallowed my pride, hoped for the best and shared as quickly, caringly and concisely as I could. Then I kind of ducked, in case someone threw something at the obviously ignorant novice at the table.
But instead, a dialogue opened up. Others joined in on, what ended up being, a powerful and obvious move of God to encourage and uplift this well respected leader. I was obedient to God when I wanted SO BADLY for Him to use someone more qualified than me.
So let’s “fast forward” to the trip home. Remember, I’m sitting on the airplane, stressed out about the messy cabinets. Except, they weren’t a mess at all! When I got home, they were organized and beautiful and beyond what I would have EVER done with them. A brand new rack system had been installed, and all of the products that had been just thrown under there had been completely organized.
Turns out, it was a late birthday present from a friend for my husband. But WELL beyond that, and much more impacting to me, it was a sign from God himself!!! While I was out taking care of what HE wanted me to do, he was leading someone else to take care of the very desire of MY heart.
He will do the same for you!
When I saw those cabinets, I cried. They weren’t just a picture of organizational prowess; they were a sign that the creator of the universe was pleased that the LEAST at the table was doing what He wanted done.
So, if you think you’re the least at the table today doing your best to be obedient to God when you feel out of place, outclassed or insignificant – know that God Almighty is looking for a way to fulfill the desire of YOUR heart in that very moment.
JOIN THE CONVERSATION
Encourage us and share an experience when God has sent a whisper from heaven in a special way that has let you know that He is looking out for you and taking care of you.
Lov it pastor! Somthing similar happened to me last friday. I was at the grocery store dreading the thought of having to make a big dinner again. After all, my husband would b n town this weekend after being gone for 12 days. I thot “wt kinda wife would I b to just pik up chinese or order pizza? Well, I decided to make a simple salmon with rice and salad. While n line to pay, I heard a woman complaining of back pain and a headache. I am unctioned to offer prayer. After paying, I loaded the car and waited til she came out. She was parked right next to me. Imagine that! I asked if she would like prayer and she said yes. I laid my hand over her head and rebuked satans attack over her. She was very appreciative. I gave her a church card and went home. After an hour or 2 Dallas texted me and asked if I would like him to pik up dinner. I was so pleased and new that was God cuz Dallas lovs my cookin too much to offer that. God is good especially when we obey! Lov u pastor!
Tricia,
This just goes to prove that God is so good to us even in the little things, like not having to cook! One of my favorite things too 🙂 especially when we are good to others, like you were at the grocery store 🙂
In short yes many times but this one is very special to me and I really don’t share it much because it is very personal. In 2006 things seemed to be going so well I was working at a great job built my first dream home and was newly married. I had set out to obtain some important goals in my life and grow in new areas of my life. I thought life was perfect I was having a mountain top experience at that time in my life, yet I was crying out to God I want to do more, touch more people, see more and go to new places. I know He heard the cries of my heart but the way He was to start answering these prayers was not what I was expecting. I started having attacks from the enemy and they were coming on strong. I ended up loosing my job and I was the 2nd highest performer in the whole department of 100+ people and I made them allot of money. I was having a inward struggle with myself, God and the enemy of my soul. I started to panic because financially I was going to be in big trouble because at the time I was the bread winner in the family and now………….. well I was without a job and I was mad because what had happened was unjustified. God was with me but I had spent 6 1/2 years building up to that particular job promotion and I had achieved some awards along the way and I was excelling but God had something better for me no matter how the enemy tries to destroy me. The short version I tried to commit suicide because I became so angry at the person who stabbed me in the back and God for allowing it to happen and the fact of what was happening. I felt hopeless and I had worked so hard and did the best I could and then…. A couple days before halloween 2006 I laid down on highway 370 at about midnight hoping to go to heaven early. I wanted to make sure I did it right and that I get this miserable life over with. You ask, “How can this be helpful?” Hold on I have more, I tried for an hour to end my life and God was with me the whole time I never had a scratch. I had many things happen after that but the most important thing is the lives I touched after that event. I had to go to the hospital because of the trauma of the experience and the depression. I wanted to die seriously I did but God. I ended up ministering to all the people on my floor but first God had to speak to me personally. I wouldn’t come out of my room for days to eat or talk. The Lord spoke to me and He reminded me He loves me in the way only He can do. I started talking to people and praying for them one by one. You know I saw some crazy miracles in that hospital. I should of wrote them down but it was such a beautiful experience to give people hope and in doing so I was healed myself. I had a jewish doctor and I told him God was going to heal me and he told me most people do not recover 100% percent after what I went through. God healed me and he saw it and he didn’t know what to say he saw the change and it freaked him out a little. I saw other people get healed and go home early because God was touching them during halloween. The one thing that I remember most is this young black man who wrote rapper songs and he would sing them. I remember one day we had a break to go outside and this young man wrote a song a christian song for me and rapped it out loud to me on a particular day that I was not doing so well. He was not a christian at the time but I did minister to him. I cried when he sang it to me and that was like God singing it to me. I can tell you my soul went to the depths of hell and I believe to an extent I experienced hell but God was with me the whole time. I will never forget the joy of giving to others when I think I have nothing to give and I have so much to give. I am completely whole today and when I did get home God had been taking care of everything for me. I can tell you it was not an overnight process but it was so worth the journey.
Amber – Your share today is so sincere, so heartfelt and so amazingly honest. Amber, this is a rare quality that a few people possess! You truly are an amazing woman capable of so much in this lifetime. Obviously you have been given gifts from God and are using them wherever you go, whenever you go there. Never stop my friend! There is no telling all the things that God can accomplish through a woman like you 🙂
What an awesome message Pastor Nicole. Thank you so much. Luvya.
Shelly – Thanks for being a faithful reader of the blog. And I love how you always have something to say! You have a lot to share with the world 🙂
I just started a new job in retail. While assisting an older woman, she started talking about her late husband, she misses him so much, but still feels him in her heart. She sees him in her dreams often, but worries because he always has “these women” around him, she wonders what is he doing in heaven without her. Looking a little sad, I just told her, “oh, don’t worry about those women. He’s letting you know, these women are helping him get a great castle ready for when it’s your time to join him there!” She smiled and thanked me for that thought, it helped her feel better.
So how did that help me? This company is starting to build their “seasonal help” staff, so right now there are very few hours a week for those of us new “seasonal help”; we should start picking up more hours in November. Well, that is not going to help pay my bills these last weeks of October, so I was thinking I’m going to have to figure something out. Praying, I first thanked God for the job I have now, but, please help me find a way to get the money needed to contribute my support to Faith Church, help others as I can and pay my bills. My next scheduled day to work is Saturday, but this morning they called and asked if I would like to “pick up some extra hours”. I said, “yes, ma’am, I will be there!” Thank You, God for helping me receive what I need! Thank You, Lord Jesus! Thank you, Pastor Nicole for sharing, teaching and helping all of us follow the way of our Lord.
Christine –
I’m sure God is pleased with the way you take time for other people and especially when you’re so busy! I am so excited about the things God is doing in your life 🙂
Thank you for sharing this story Pastor Nicole 🙂 I just cleaned my desk at work and found paperwork from 2009 🙁 clearly I have needed to do this for some time!!
Theresa –
Life can get messy quick can’t it! I think God wants to help us all by giving us the desires of our heart and if this is the desire of your heart, I think he’s going to make it happen for you!
Love your blog this week Pastor Nicole. A couple of weeks ago I was sitting at my kitchen table doing my homework and I was just so stressed because the homeowrk assignment was really hard and this semester is really ahrd as well. So I took a break from my homework assignment and I walked outside to sit on my front porch it was there that God whispered to be and told me that he was going to help me get through this semester and that he is always going to be there for me no matter what happens in my life. It was at that very moment that I knew I could finish my assignment because god gave me encouragement. I believe everyday god gives me encouragement, whenever I am in a situation and I don’t know what to do God will whisper to me and tell me what to do it may not be what I want to do but it is what god really wants me to do. When god whispered to me and told me that he was always going to be there for me and help me get through school I looked up and said “Thank you God”. Just the other day at Meramec my classmate Ashley was going through a difficult time she didn’t want to particpate in class that day and that’s when I knew something was wrong. I sat her down and talked to her and told her that God and I will always be there for her no matter what and then I started telling her all about Faith Church and how I call faith church my home. Everything I said to her about Faith Church made her sad face into a happy face. Then I started telling her about two of the best pastors ever David and nicole, she loved hearing everything that I had to say. Now my friend Ashley loves to tell all her family about faith church she even watches every service on sunday morning. Love you pastor Nicole. great blog this week
Cheryl –
The way that you’re taking time out for others, even as a busy student who is struggling for time yourself, really pleases God! He knows you have greater things in mind. So He will certainly encourage you and what you were doing to get your part done!
Ihave had a long journey and God is opening a lot of news doors for me ,but I have had to wait longen than I wanted .when I came back form St Louis to Kansas City ,i had stayed with this 74 year old man twice before who was very hard hearted to me and would even critizice me .once He told me I was gonna die because I was taking sleepping pills to able to sleep there .i SHOUTED BACK AT hIM”NO I”M NOT GOD’S GOT GREAT PLANS FOR MY LIFE AND HE HAS PROMISES OVER MY LIFE” .his home was also a 120 year old slave house and he was horder and it was the nastiest place I had ever in my life ,but if I offered to help clean it up he would get mad at me cuz he didn’t want anything outta place .there were spiders in the shower and in my bed its was undiscribale and gross .when I came back in August from St Louis I didn’t want to go there and everything in my heart didn’t want to be there.But God changed my towards him and he gave me a hug when i got back and told me how much he had missed me .God started speaking to my heart to make him dinners and he was the most picky eater on earth but I did it and we would eat together and conversation and he would enjoy it .I also outta the blue made him a cake and then another and it became a weekly thing and we would have cake and ice cream or apple pie and ice cream and before long when baking one my cakes he let me listen to Christian radio station while making the cake ,instead of listen to hard rock that I listened to as a teenager but I couldn’t stand it..He even started letting watch Joel Osteen on Sunday morning and he would watch it with me.when before he would get angry and turn it off and tell me I could watch it in the living room if I wanted.God used me in that home that was so full of darkness and death to shine my light and show him God’s love .His lung cancer has come back and so has his throat cancer .He has no wisdom and wont listen.I pray for his salvation ,but he smokes and ONLY drinks coffee and then wonders why he has leg cramps in the middle of the night and every couple hours with cramps and gets up and smokes and drinks his coffee and goes back to bed.I know I can’t tell him anything but I can pray that the love I showed him will draw him to Jesus .I have offered on my days off to take him to get radiology .please be in pray for me since God has brought me this far him that He will use me to bring this man to the Lord before He dies.God says in Acts 17:26 and He made from one (common origin,one source one blood)all the nations of men have definitely determined (their ) allotted periods of time aned the fixed boundrues of their habitation((their settlements land and abodes)
that means God knows exactly where we will live and He determines it wheather we like it or not .My time their was longer than I wanted and I was having surgery today and they just moved my trailerto be moved so I could be in my new home on OCt 15th ,which was suposssed to be on Sept 7th .it was down to the wire and I was was freaking cuz things wern’t going right in my moving ,but I believe beacuse of my obiedience to God He worked all things out to get in my trailer. Today when I came home from having my surgery so I could be in my own bed with my two little dogss,My best friend came over and helped me last Saturday arrange it so I could sleep- in my bed ,she even made my bed and we arranged my living room and got everything ready .today the day of my surgery my 18 year old son had his girlfriend pick me up from the hospital and bring me home .I had borought my dogws before surgery so they there when I got home. ,then whenmy 1`8 year old son got off work he came back and brought me my car and he arranged things again so It alot more livable and my friend that helped me on Saturday came over with her sister and brought me home made stew ,home made macaronit and chesse and fresh cooked brocolli about 10 slices of ham and a cake that looks like its a cake form heaven.I am so happy and so grateful to be in my home after so long,and to see God work EVERYTHING out to get me here today .He got my electrity on today after i got back from the hospital.I have felt so much love from my family and friends for helping me get here so I could be in my home and recover .If you asked me if I had to do it again it was worth all the wait showing that man as much of God’s love as I could because he had no one else to show him and live a example of what a Christian and their walk was like .I was the only bible that man ever saw .i still watch you guys online quite a bit and I love you guys dearly .thanks for obeing God and being where He wants you cuz you and David have touched my life so much in so many ways because of your obedience and i cant forget pastor Omar .he really helped me when I was in St Louis and going to your church
MaryAnn – I am so glad that things have turned a corner in your life and that you are living in the new season that God has for you!!!
Thank you the encouraging blog about stepping outside yourself to speak the right words into someone when you feel unqualified. A relationship I believed in and prayed for ended, painfully. I couldn’t understand how I had missed God and His purpose when I had done all that I knew to do. Then people started showing up around me that needed prayer and motivation to stand firm and fast in their faith for their struggles, particularly in their relationships. I had to step outside of myself and my hurt and speak God’s word to bring life back into their circumstance and inspire hope. Giving into someone else’s life when I felt I had nothing left has given me a renewed hope, strength to go on and an unwavering belief that God is working ALL things for my GOOD!