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 ...