Inspiration by Kathleen Nestor

Count your many blessings see what God has done! As the year closes we may be tempted to think of the negative things that might have taken place in our lives. Let me encourage you that before you go off on a negative rant, think of all the good things that has happened to you in spite of. Take on a new attitude, call it an "in spite of -I am grateful attitude." I am Blessed! Whatever it maybe, you have made it to the end of 2011 and now ready for 2012. You have more mountains to climb and more valleys to walk through. You are not getting weaker but in Christ growing stronger. You are not just going to be a conqueror, you are, according to God's word, "more than a conqueror." The fact that you are alive makes you a candidate for God's blessing. So today "count your blessings" and as the song says, "name them one by one and it will surprise you what the Lord has done." You are blessed, so be a blessing to someone. Have a Happy and Bl...

This is the declaration of the Psalmist David as he spoke of the Lord's greatness. He blessed the Lord and ascribed greatness to Him. He exponded on His majesty and honor, His splendid nature and faithfulness to His creation. He then declared that He would sing praise to God as long as he lives. He says that his meditation of God will be sweet and that he will be glad in the Lord. Meditation God has called all us to live and enjoy His abundant life. One of the tools that God has given us to preserve and practice the abundant life is meditation. As in natural, so in the spiritual, the right foods when eaten sustains us physically, so the right spiritual conditioning will strengthen us spiritually, guaranteeing our spiritual success. The art of meditation calls for discipline. It is a setting apart of oneself to get close to God. Someone said whatever you pay attention to will grow. My time spent with God causes my relationship with him to grow. I will have greater awareness ...

In the Bible Jesus was asked to heal a blind man. He responded by laying His hands on the man then asked him the question, "What do you see?" The man's response was “I see men that look like trees.” After this response Jesus put his hand on him again, then his sight was completely restored. The question I ask you today is "What do you see?" What kind of vision do you have? Do you have a clear vision for life or is your vision clouded? Jesus had to pray twice to ensure that this man had perfect vision. He wants us to move beyond our limitations to His limitlessness. He wants to ensure that you are free from all that would cloud your sight and be set free to see all the boundless potentials he has embedded in you. Men as trees! Whatever the level of my vision or visualization amounts to my reality. What I perceive, I believe. I must lift my level of perception, I must have clarity of thought, I must see clearly. I must have a clear understanding of Hi...

Be free to be who God has made you. Stop playing the role that others think is yours or you should play. Self authenticate. Forget people who refuse to celebrate your uniqueness. You are who God has called you to be. SPECIAL! Full of His love, in fact with all the capacity in the world to love and be gracious. Have fun with yourself. Like yourself. Celebrate your own uniqueness. Do not be afraid for the very one who has created you to be who you are will sustain you with the gift of life and give you the strength to live it. You will be empowered from on high with his strength. Do not fear rejection, neither let it make you feel a lesser person. There will always be those who are for you and those against you. You are a child of God's universe "no less than the trees and stars," in fact you named them "trees and stars." Now call out your name "Special" blessed of God, unique, one of a kind, abounding in His love and creativity, full of His goodn...

There is a story in the Bible about a man named Lazarus who was dead for four days before his friend Jesus came and raised him from the dead. What a remarkable event. Mary and Martha with the help with others were already mourning Lazarus their brother. He had been dead for 4 days when Jesus arrived on the scene. Jesus is never late! It does not matter how drastic or dramatic the situation is. He, Jesus, is never late. “It’s never over until He says it is over” says someone. He is in control of all situations. Nothing passes His eyes. Not even a sparrow falls to the ground without Him knowing. “He is forever making intercessions for us the Bible says. Remove the stone! To get the needed deliverance from His negative situation, Lazarus’s loved ones were commanded to remove the stone that blocked the tomb. Let us remove what may be representing a stone in our lives. Is there any fear, doubt, prayerlessness, anger, unforgiveness, these can hinder God’s move in our lives. Now be...

I laughed so much last night. It was good, so good. It had been so long since I had such a good laugh. It began when I decided to look up some caribbean poems that I loved since I was a child. My daughter helped me in my desire to recapture old memories. I felt like I was one of those secret artists, the one who always wished to appear on stage reciting some of the great West Indian poems. Here was my chance to live it. With my bedroom as an auditorium and my daughter the audience, I began, "Song of the Banana Man," by Evan Jones. Yes that poem. The one I always tried to say for every Jamaican I met, only to incorrectly recite the first verse and then stop because I did not know the whole poem. As I recited it and got to the end I emphatically articulated the words "BY GOD AND DIS BIG RIGHT HAN, YOU MUS RECOGNIZE A BANANA MAN!" We roared with laughter. A bolt of energy ran through my soul. The story of the banana man was so familiar to me. I knew Banana men, not in ...

Everyone wants to know what their future is going to be like. Some of us want to know if we will succeed or fail, will get married, have kids, will we grow old or die young, will our business trip be successful or not. So many questions, what are the answers? Our desire to know our future is all too human. This desire to know the future is propelled by our anxiety about life. Some of us face circumstances that are almost nightmarish. We wish that it would stop or go away. It drives us with such a force that some may go as far as to consult with mediums to know what their future holds. One man told me that he even wanted to know if he would go to heaven. He asked the crystal ball if he would go to heaven. He was told 'do not count on it.' Well I have good news that you can count on, that is, the promises that God has made to us through His word, these promises the bible says are "Yea and Amen" in Christ His son. You can trust God's word. The bible says...

As humans we all have dreams and desires that we secretly nurture for years. We lay on our beds and we picture in our minds the whole scenario of what our life would be like if only our dreams would come to pass. We say to ourselves maybe, if our circumstances were different, if we were born into a different family, if our teachers were more understanding , if only our friends were different. If only my mother, the pastor, priest, lawyer, doctor, if only. And the list goes on. No more 'if onlys' ! We must declare to ourselves today that the story of if only's will stop with us. No more if only's. We are destroying that premise and starting on a new theme, " WE ARE WELL ABLE ." My dream can be a reality, it begins with me. I declare to myself, I am responsible for my 'if only' and I am going to take control of the dream that God has given me. Yes, no more fear, no more excuses, no more if's. I am free to dream! With God's help today, I...

There are times when you feel as though you are walking through a strong sand storm and the winds of adversity seem to be pushing you backwards everytime you try to move forward. This is what life is all about. Life at its best brings with it lots of joy but with some level of adversity. I want to say to you today to push forward and fight back not in your strength, but in the strength that God gives you. Ways that will help us in pushing forward: Queen Esther had a difficult situation. Her uncle's life was at stake, so she set out to do something about it but before she proceeded she used what I think is one of the greatest tools in helping us to succeed in adversity. She prayed and fasted. She told her folks to pray and fast for her. We know the results, the wickedness that was meant to destroy her and her loved ones fell back on the one who planned it. God helped her to gain the strength during this difficult time to do an unusual thing. Have a right attitude! Another...

I can hear the sound of the drums and the trumpet approaching me that day. It was the day that the boy scouts paraded down the street next t0 the town hall where I worked. Everyone wanted to see the parade. Hundreds of boys were camping somewhere nearby and they were parading down the streets in their own order. The music was pulsating. I felt the vibrations of the drum roll as the boys marched closer. I felt like jumping and dancing. Something was happening. It was as if I was getting happier and happier with such amazing sounds. It was like heaven on earth. They were playing one of the local songs, a calypso. It was so sweet that I felt like jumping but I restrained myself. The happiness I felt was contagious. Everyone was excited, but as the trumpet blast and drum rolls passed me, so did the happy feeling. Just like that a momentary feeling of euphora all gone. The joy of the Lord is important. Like the beautiful music I heard there are many things that give joy but joy ...

Have you ever seen a school yard fight in which a friend or family member was attacked and another friend or member jumped into the fight just because they felt that they could not just stand by and let someone get beaten up? Well you know what, we have someone who is ever present with us and is willing at any time to fight for us. God himself will fight for us. No battle is too big for Him! It is not the size of the battle, but the size of our God. He is bigger than any problem we can have, bigger than any battle. No weapon, the Bible says, formed against us will prosper and any tongue that has risen against us He will condemn. Our God is strong and mighty. He shows himself as captain of the host to protect. In Psalm 91 it says, "those who live in the shelter of the Most High, will rest in the shadow of the almighty." He will be our refuge and fortress, no harm will befall us, for He will command His angels to protect us and guard us in all our ways. When we call u...

One day my family and I had set out on a journey to visit a relative in the country area. The roads were steep and precipitous and this was the first time we were driving this truck because we borrowed it from a friend. We were going around the winding roads, then suddenly the truck spun around and somersaulted and turned toward a precipice, everything was out of control. The only one that could help was God himself. Immediately instinct came in and I shouted "Jesus". The truck stopped. What happened next was only short of a miracle. A peace filled the truck at that moment before stopping. There was no fear. When we stopped human nature took over, my knees were buckling when I looked down and saw what I was facing. The front of the truck stopped at the edge of the precipice. There was only a bit of dirt between our tires and the edge of the precipice. Death might of been certain, but it was not time for us. His angels were surely there, my cry to Him for help was heard. He wi...

Have you ever really given thought to what it is like to be a child of Royalty? What a privilege that is, the finest of everything available to you. Even the poorest of monarchies have their privileges, fine clothes, the best cars, the best seats at functions, the best schools, foods, the best of everything. Wow! I wish I was born into royalty. What privileges! You are Royalty! As long as you have God as your Father, then you are royalty. He sees everyone of us as very special. He who created the Kings and Queens, has also created and destined us to greatness. We are the apple of his eye. Everyone of us He sees as unique, special in His eyes, full of his love and goodness, increased with boundless possibilities and giftings, set free to walk into dimensions of greatness. You are a child of the King! You are a child of the great king Jehovah, so walk like children of a King. Let your mindset be that of royalty, special, favored and blessed. Your rights and privileges are boundless becau...

My daughter told me the story of a college student who had to see one of his professors about an urgent matter. The secretary was expecting the professor back soon. The student waited. One hour slipped by and the student began to get tired of waiting and decided to leave. Guess what? Two minutes after the student left the professor came into the office. Only 2 minutes later. Waiting is hard to do Today, I want to encourage you to hold on for the thing you are hoping for. A change is coming your way. You may be at your wits end and cannot see the of the road, do not get afraid or nervous, frightened or give in to your circumstances. Everything or everyone might have failed you, your expectations might have been dissappointed in the past but do not give up. Stay put, try again, ask again and you will get a breakthrough. While waiting Keep your focus, pray daily for God's help and guidance, read and practice the word of God, stay in his presence and hope in his love and goodness. WAIT...

I loved to hear the song that was played at the beginning of the early morning devotional program on the radio. It was a pleasure and I looked forward to hearing it. "Be still my soul, the lord is on thy side." God was on my side. It gave me the assurance, comfort and confidence for the day. The Lord is on my side. The Lord Jehovah himself, strong and mighty, loving and kind is on our side. Today you can have this same joy that I feel when I hear these words. Be still. The Lord is on thy side. Be Still my Soul by Katharina Schlegel (Verse 2) Be still my soul; your God will undertake To guide your future as in ages past Your hope, your confidence let nothing shake all now mysterious shall be bright at last Be still my soul the waves and wind still blow The Christ who ruled them while he dwelt below

Come Every day is a celebration. God's creation celebrates each dawn's awakening. A new day, a new season, life as we know it is not the same. Another gift of day light, a celebration of creation. As each day brings with it a sense of order, God's divine plan unfolds (for his creation). For some it is a season of joy and laughter, for others pain and grief. Whatever the dawn brings we rise to greet it with grace and gratefulness, pain or solitude, as we comfort ourselves in the awareness of his presence and his loving care for us all, knowing that our excellent creator knows and does all things well. We look to him in praise and gratitude seeking his help to walk with the same gracefulness in joy or in sorrow, knowing that whatever state we are in, it is but for a season. We understand that seasons come and seasons go, but through all the changes we keep strong as we remain in his presence, in prayer, whether silent or verbal. He is always there for us. Though it may seem a...

You are Special In case you might have forgotten, I just wanted to remind you that you are one of a kind, God's chosen, fearfully and wonderfully created. It does not matter how you feel, how you look, what your circumstances are, these things do not define YOU. What defines you is who or what you think about yourself. So today, I want to encourage you to push through negative thoughts and feelings and believe the truth of your uniqueness. You are not only fearfully and wonderfully made as God said, you are also strong because He has promised to be your strength and shield. So today, I encourage you to know that you are somebody loving, kind, full of warmth, smart and beautiful. 'Your past is history' Your past is history. It does not have to determine your destiny because God himself has already determined it. So many people live and die without knowing that they are special, that they are somebody and that they are unique, important, loved, wanted and appreciated. Today ...

Joy to the World " Joy to the world the Lord has come" this is a song we sing every Christmas time, and every year we go through the same routine knowing very well that for some of us by the end of the Christmas season our joy will be packed or thrown away with the Christmas decorations and trimmings. Today I want to remind us that the joy that God gives is not seasonal but is always there. He encourages us to "rejoice in the Lord always." Rejoice in the Lord always Rejoice in the Lord always and again I say rejoice. This is an exhortation given to us by the word of God. God wants us to be full of joy. Webster's dictionary describes the word "rejoice" as being joyful and "joy" as great happiness or delight. God wants us to be joyful, that is why He says that we should rejoice in the good times and the bad times. He does not want us to pack away our joyful feelings with the Christmas decorations or throw it away with all the seasonal trimming...

About two months ago I met an acquaintance at the mall. I told her how she looked so wonderful. She told me that she was not well but that her cancer had returned and that the treatment for her illness had caused her to put on a little weight. None the less, she was in the mall, in front of the cosmetic counter choosing a lipstick that would match the dress she would wear to the church service she had to attend the next day. I mused at her courage. She was strong and full of hope, still holding on to everything good that she could have thought of. There she was, still looking forward to blessing others with her presence, with her beautiful lipstick and an attitude of gratefulness to God. 'I was INSPIRED' I was INSPIRED . Many times we sulk and gripe about so much. I gripe about my hair and there she laughed with me about her wigs, how for years they have been her best friend. We gripe for so many things trivial. We seem disatisfied easily, get hopeless so quickly, discouraged, ...