Nikki Rosen's Blog, page 27

Stand up

Linking up with Charlotte at Spiritual Sunday and Laura at  Faith Filled Friday

"Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen." Winston Churchill

When I was a kid.....I never put my hand up in class....not even when I knew the answer. 
Fear wouldn't let me. 
Fear of being laughed at. 
Fear....it's what always kept me from having my voice. 
Fear....a brick barrier....a solid wall.....always blocking me from standing up and speaking out.

Although I still don't like speaking in groups or standing up and knowing everyone's eyes are on me.....I push myself now. I know I have something to say ...a truth that someone might need to hear.....a message of hope.....that nothing is impossible to overcome.....and that some things done to others is not right or fair.

And I never used to think that sitting down and listening took any guts.....This last year I've learned that it really does. Listening and not reacting takes courage, especially when everything inside wants to shout and scream and fight back.

Standing up....speaking up.....sitting down....listening - it never came easy for me. I always have to force myself.....get in a mindset....gear myself up.....but something I discovered.....the benefits are incredible.

Stand up for what you believe in.....

Thankful Thursday

“Your time is limited so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't let the noise of other's opinions drown out your own inner voice. Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They already know what you truly want to become.” Steve Jobs

Time....it flies fast. Hard to believe it's thursday already or that my oldest is 16 and my youngest is in middle school. 
Time...we're only given so much of it. I want to use whatever time I have to listen to my heart...and follow it's lead. That means silencing the voices that try to discourage...or tell me something I want is impossible....or list reasons why something can't be attained.

I'm listening only to those people who believe like me....that nothing is impossible....and that everyone has the right to try for their dreams. This week I'm thankful for.....

-book sales of dancing softly have been wild. Someone bought 15 to give away; someone else took 6 plus 6 of my first book to sell in a quaint little shop in the country. She read my 1st book and wants to promote them. Woo hoo. And everyday I've been selling a few  online and off.
-encountered this older woman...amazing gentle and kind. It still jolts me when I encounter someone like that. I won't ever forget her or the way she made me feel. And I'll pay forward her kindness to me.
-The circle of giving. Some people this week told me I'm their hero...a mentor...someone they look up to....that also really humbled me and in turn there are those people I look up to....who mentor me....who shine Light in my life. I love that whatever we give out comes back to us.
-My city. It's the best....I love it. I love everything about it. It was actually listed as one of the best places to live. I'm grateful for living here.
-Grace.I don't fully get it except that it's something that holds me up like salt would in the Dead Sea..it keeps me afloat and never lets me sink.

Power of Love

Linking up with Charlotte at  Spiritual Sunday  and Laura at Faith Filled Fridays

"You can't touch love but you can feel the sweetness that it pours into everything." Annie Sullivan

The power of love - it does what nothing else can...
The power of love - it comes with added benefits  - courage, strength, hope.
The power of love - it's what makes each of us shine and become who we're meant to be. 

The power of the touch of love - it builds...it frees....it empowers...

Most of my life what I knew and experienced was violence and force and bullying. All that did was push me deeper into darkness...

But when He touched me....He cut through all that hatred with love so intense....I couldn't resist it. I felt it. The touch of the power of His love did what nothing else could do....it changed me....softened me inside...took away the fears.....padded me with hope to hold on....to stay in the game...to never give up. 

His love gave me courage to walk free..... 
His love...the most amazing, most powerful force ever. The neat thing....it's free and available for everyone. Totally love that. 

Happy Sunday Guys!

I can't resist the tenderness of You.....

Thankful Thursday

"The greatest work that kindness does to others is that it makes them kind to themselves." Amelia Earhart

It's a funny thing about kindness....Whenever someone treats me kind.....and I see it in their eyes...in the way they look at me....or I hear it in the tone of their voice or feel from their actions.....it has this on me that makes me want to be kind too. I treat myself better....more gentle and patient. And I want to treat others the same. My hope is to move in that kind of power all the time...the real power that changes people for the better....that makes a difference in how they see themselves and how they move in the world around them.

This week I'm thankful for.....

-Chance meetings. We were out for a drive out in the country and came across a home with a large sign out front that said Faith. We pulled the car into the long driveway and rang the doorbell. Really glad we did. Two of the nicest people invited us in.. They asked us to come back to visit. We promised we would.
-Sells for Dancing Softly have been going strong....I hope it inspires whoever does read it to know how much their own life is a gift.
-The man who took my work, tried to get a book table at large convention. He was turned away and told there's an issue of copyright and they won't give him a platform. Yeah!!!
-Spoke at a church writer's group. The women present all had stories of trauma, abuse and addictions. I was honoured to be able to give them hope and encouragment.
-Mostly...for His promises that I can trust....it doesn't matter if they've happened yet or not...if they're taking a long time or come together quickly.....His promises are one thing I can really count on for sure.   

Stillness

Linking with Still Saturday  Laura at Faith Filled Friday  and Charlotte at Spiritual Sunday

"You can listen to silence, Reuven.You can listen to silence and learn from it. It has a quality and dimension all its own. It talks to me sometimes. I feel myself alive in it. It talks. And I can hear it.” Chaim Potok, The Chosen

There are times I just crave silence. It's a need....to be alone....to get away from all the noise and busyness and go into the woods....or up in the hills.....somewhere outside in nature.....where it's quiet and I can listen for the whisper of His voice....and feel the awesome of the power of His gentleness. 

I come home changed - I'm stronger...more courageous, more determined to live life with greater compassion and trust. And I feel more connected to everything and everyone around me. 

Silence. 
In the silence...in the quiet...in the calm....I hear His voice.  
In the silence...He empowers me to stand up stand strong and never be afraid.   In the silence...I hear His song in my heart speaking peace. 

 Be still my soul

Thankful Thursday

Linking with Cami at Thankful Thursday

"I have a dream" Dr.Martin Luther King.Jr

He had a dream.....a huge dream...one that many believed would never become reality. But he was determined...he fought for it and rallied others to stand with him....to believe in what he knew was right. It took time....a long time....but today....Martin Luther King Jr.'s dream lives on in all of us.

She's just a girl....only 13...but she took a stand for what she believed is right....education for everyone....girls and boys. She wouldn't keep quiet even though she knew to voice what she believed put her life at risk....And it did. The Taliban wanted her silenced so they shot her. Remarkably...Malala is alive and strong and determined to live her dream.

The brave...the strong....the people who don't back down but follow what's in their hearts....they come in all shapes, sizes, ages, colours, male...female...and they totally inspire me. This week I'm grateful for.....

-Following my own heart to write what I know...what I believe....what I need. My second book, Dancing Softly, is available now for sale at Write2Empower or for digital download at Amazon.com I hope it makes a huge difference for someone.
-The absolute beauty in fall. We've been hiking...in the woods...in the quiet....feeling the gentleness of His presence - there is nothing that equals it.
-Opportunities....to share my story...to tell what I know...to give hope...to shine His awesomeness...to make a difference in someone's life. 
-Tight friendship with people in my world...who shine love and acceptance and joy and fun and make life so much easier. 
-Kids..they bring out the fun...the playful...the silly.....They help me let go and run free and just be.
-And mostly...no matter how crazy things get...and I don't understand the whys...the messes....the frustrating...the crazies.....I refuse to stay down long. I think it's 'cause He's inserted this happy chip in my heart...a God chip....and it always ends up making me sing and believe He's got a purpose. 

Gratitude

Linking with Laura at Faith Filled Fridays   and Charlotte at Spiritual Sunday

"Life's not  measured by the breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away." Hilary Cooper

The week has been wild,wonderful....perfect. Everything's come together like an orchestra in beautiful symphony. It's all left me stunned.... amazed....and mostly thrilled.  This week. I'm over the moon thankful for.....

-My dentist.....I was about an hour in the chair...had a couple of x-rays taken and when I went to pay....all he charged was $23. When I told him he made a mistake he smiled and said, "No. I didn't."
-Got the final proof for Dancing Softly. It's perfect. I absolutely love how it turned out. The books will be here next wed. Nov. 14. Yeahhhh. It's done!!!!
-Standing in line at the post office, two women asked if they could see the book. When they handed it back, they gave me their information and said they want a copy when it's out. Blew me away.
-Came home and some government lady showed up at the door doing a survey on mental illnessf. She said it's b/c more people are reporting they're suffering from it. I gave her a flyer for my book and she's coming back next week when the book is out.
-Mostly....since He came into my world...broke through the pain and darkness...life has been one huge incredible awesome adventure. 

My dgt. made a video trailer of the book.....Hope you like it. 
 
   

On The Front Lines

Linking with Charlotte at  Spiritual Sunday and Laura  Faith Filled Friday

"We all know it's brutal up there at the front, especially those of us at the rear" Frank Burns

I remember as a kid living in a tight Jewish community...coming home from school one day and seeing a missionary sitting with my mother....telling her about 'God.'  

I think that woman was sent to our home for a a purpose....I think she prayed for us......and I think God heard. When I grew up and my life changed.....I asked whatever happened to her. I was told....after she left us...she went to Africa to share her faith and died from some virus she caught there. 

Although I barely know what she looked like or what she had said to my mother at the time......I've never forgotten her and that somehow she -  a gentile, a missionary on the front lines in His service arrived at our Jewish home to shine His hope. I don't even know her name or who she was or where she came from. But I never forgot that woman and when He touched me, broke through the darkness of my life.....instinctively I thought of her. 

He knew....she would go.....and tell. He knew....she would make a difference whatever the cost.

There are people everywhere...soldiers on the front lines...making a difference....

So today...this post...is for all those unknown soldiers....on the front lines. And you know what - I want to be one of them! 

He's no fool if he would choose to buy what he can never lose...

Thankful Thursday

“What lies behind you and what lies in front of you, pales in comparison to what lies inside of you.”  Ralph Waldo Emerson

There are things that happen.....that trip me up....that sometimes leave me feeling...'what's the use.' But then eventually something in me comes back fighting...It's always been that way.  And b/c of that fight...that determination....I've accomplished things I never thought I could. 

There's an issue with the printer. At first I got down....the problem seemed  insurmountable. But this morning.....I woke up thinking.. it's only a glitch....something else to overcome. And I will. 

I have a dream....to give hope to others...to show His awesomeness....that with Him nothing is impossible to overcome. And I've figured out...even in hard times.....He's there turning things around for good. I'm pumped. Problems are minor things that try to prevent me from living my best. Wont' happen.This week thankful for.....

-Glitches...the issues with the printer....I know He's on the scene and totally in control. 
-Faith....without it I have nothing. With it.....I can scale mountains...
-Faith....it's the thing that makes me want to try one more time.
-Faith...knowing that everything is coming together for good. 
-Mostly that He's got my back....and I already have so much proof of things He turned around in my favour. I know He'll do it again and again and again. 

All's Good

Linking with Charlotte at Spiritual Sunday and Laura at Faith Filled Friday 

The finest steel has to go through the hottest fire" John Mitchell

I heard something so cool....a $5 bar of steel can be made into horseshoes worth $10. That same bar of steel can be made into needles worth $350....or it can even be made into watch springs worth $2050. 

The more it's manipulated....
The more it's hammered, beaten....put through the fire, polished ...the value of that $5 bar of steel increases.

Sometimes it's hard to understand why He lets stuff happen....the bad stuff....the stuff that drives me crazy.....But I'm discovering.... that with every tough situation.....I'm getting stronger...more sure of me and mostly....more sure of Him. 

Refiner's fire....My heart's one desire...to be set apart for You..