Quill of Ruach

" Burn your journals ." **inserts every type of "shock" emojis* Early one cold afternoon in January 2016, I heard those words in my spirit. I don't remember the exact day, but I do remember the month and year. Not only was it cold, but it was windy this particular afternoon.  Burn them? How? We have no fireplace, no fire pit. "Maybe I'll shred them,"  I reasoned.   Surely, God will understand...right? Burn them. First of all: I love journaling.  I used to refer to journals as "diaries" when I was a child. Sadly, I developed an unhealthy way of journaling over time.  Unknowingly, I etched disparaging words about myself, words birthed out of a swirling acid-filled pit of despair, unstable emotions, indecisiveness, low self-esteem and worthlessness ("feeling sorry for myself"). Simply put, it was damning. A simple shredding of the papers littered with such words was merely not enough.  It had to be destroyed by fire .  I called a d...

The human body is a unique machine, divinely created by the hand of God. He fashioned every organ, tissue, sinew, ligament, bone, and vein to work in concert for optimal functionality. Humans are sentient beings who are impacted by senses and in some cases, governed by them. To operate at an effective pace, we must nourish the body by fueling it with life-giving, healthy foods. Albeit self-healing, proper maintenance work is required for the body to function optimally at a comfortable continuity. This is all done and accomplished through prayer, faith, proper diet and exercise.    Praise God, my husband and I are on a path to better health and wellness. Both of us are from families who endured (and even transitioned) from various types of debilitating conditions. Our eyes opened to the realization that we are chief stewards of our own bodies. Polluting our bodies with food and food-like products that are heavily processed alter the harmony of our bodily systems. In some cases,...

As much as we would love a straight-lined, cookie cutter life, it's impossible.   Period, point blank. This life varies and shifts with all types of winds. We can bask in the soothing brisk wind of happiness one minute; next thing you know, the winds shift, moving suddenly before turning into a severe storm of sadness, hailing random quips of ridiculousness that either bring laughter, shock, grief, and much more (i.e., 2020 pandemic). But on the flip side, that's the beauty of life. No day is the same; if it was, it would eventually become robotic and boring (speaking for myself). Life starts life-ing to the point that sudden change happens. This abrupt yet inconvenient change may result in the need to pivot. Pivot? Why? Well, let's explore its meaning. There are several definitions for "pivot" in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary; however, this particular definition aligns with this blog post: an adjustment or modification made (as to a product, service, o...

 **This blog was originally published on March 19, 2018 on my old blog site; edited 12/31/24** Faced with a deadline, I was deep into my editing work when a particular thought from the book inspired me:  Oftentimes, betrayal is part of the plan .  Of all things, why betrayal? Because sometimes, chaos is necessary to produce greater results.  Oftentimes, pain is part of the plan to fulfill a purpose.  I know, it still seems unfair. But if we could only see the end results, the end is glorious. Most of us are familiar with that passage of Scripture where Apostle Paul had a thorn in his flesh. Some believe that it was literally a thorn; however, if you read further, you'll determine that it wasn't literally a thorn. I will not go into much detail, as this blog would transform into a theological study and that's not the goal. My point is that Apostle Paul had an issue, and he went to God about it not once, not twice, but three times. God's response?  "My gra...

I love a good "God-wink" revelatory moment. Last week, it seemed like many revelations were shared pertaining to gardens and plants.  God's creation was speaking loudly, and I am here for it all! We have two potted peace lilies in my home office from my mother-in-love's service two years ago.  (Roses and lilies are my favorite flowers, by the way). After her service, we brought them home and cared for them. The peace lilies continue to thrive and grow in abundance, so much so that repotting them became necessary.  After we repotted them, I noticed that they gradually stopped producing lilies.  I used to care for the peace lily at my old job, and it produced lilies all throughout the year, as long as I kept it watered. So quite naturally, " Did we do something wrong ?" was my first thought. Nevertheless, the greenery continued thriving. We -  well, my husband actually  - continued to care for them (watering the soil, spraying the greenery, placing them in go...

In your opinion, which one of the following is more valuable: time or money? I would imagine that many people would say that money is more valuable. I mean, money answereth all things, according to Ecclesiastes 10:19, right? Money is often necessary to obtain the things we need and desire. However, in my humble opinion, time is more valuable than money.  Time is the one thing you can't get back . Money is a tool that's obtainable virtually at any time, from working a job to panhandling on the street. Some even make money in their sleep. Some are privileged to wake up to direct deposit notifications on the daily that are complementary to their salary. However, once that second, minute or hour goes by, it's gone. It will not return, and you can't get it back.  Therefore, making good use of the precious time presented to us is of the utmost importance, while we have breath in our bodies.  The principle of tithing is commonly associated with money.  Some give ten perce...

One of my "happy place" moments is spending time with Jesus in the quiet solitude of the morning.  I anoint myself with my favorite essential oil , and then I sit on the balcony with a hot cup of coffee,  Jesus Calling devotional and YouVersion Bible app. On the morning of July 30, 2024, I had the most amazing morning. Sitting quietly before the LORD gave space for divine downloads and regal revelations.  And it all came from simply basking in the handiwork of our LORD (Psalm 19).  The skies were completely overcast.  The gloomy dark clouds loomed overhead, and the probability of rain was prominent. Sitting on edge, I wondered if I should just stay outside or go back inside to avoid being rained on. I decided to stay outside and see what happens.   Gazing at the sky, I noticed how those dark clouds moved slowly toward the east. Their slow migration ultimately unveiled beautiful blue skies accentuated with white puffy clouds, enhanced by the light of th...

Gifts. Talents. Abilities.  Lovingly and purposely endowed upon us by Father God, our gifts, talents and abilities should all be utilized with pure intentionality.  Despite inevitable obstacles, we have the awesome benefit of asking God to reveal unto us the ways to accomplish the assignment or even how to maximize our gifts. As we work in cooperation with Holy Spirit, we will see our assignment to completion and the fruit of our labor shall be our reward.  Approaching my last three semesters of undergrad, I was divinely laid off from full-time employment. Traveling along the homestretch towards graduating with my bachelor's degree in communications, I enrolled in three classes, all of which were writing intensive courses with one being the capstone.  The beginning of the semester was rough; even one of my professors, Mr. Jack Lessenberry, who doubled as my curriculum counselor, asked, "You sure you wanna take these classes? Two of them are with  me. "...

Imagine this: You are at the home of a dear friend or close relative for dinner.  You've worked all day and had no time for lunch. So, you are really looking forward to breaking bread.  The table is set; you're invited to sit at the table. In eager expectation of a good, delicious meal, you're smiling from ear to ear, filled with anticipation and gratitude.  The plate is dropped in front of you. Not placed there gently but dropped. You look at the plate, and your smile disappears in 0.04 nanoseconds.  Photo courtesy of Unsplash ( Portuguese Gravity ) The dinnerware and flatware are still decorated with the remnants of the previous meal. A greasy lip print stares at you from its place on your glass of juice. Your plate lacks presentation, as the food looks as if it was thrown on the plate like slop in a trough. A long streak stretches from one edge of the plate to the other, looking like it was licked by "Fido." Although you make a conscious effort to show apprecia...

  "God, this is not what I envisioned!" "God, I had no idea this would happen to me!" "Why, God? Why me?!" Isn't it lovely (sarcastic quip) when that colloquial monkey wrench gets thrown smack dab into our plans, ideas and vision?   In the words of Sophia Petrillo from The Golden Girls, "Picture it! Sicily, 1912..." In this case, "Picture it!"  You've had a dream--a vivid, reoccurring dream that's so potent, you can't stop thinking about it.  Every fiber of your being resonates with the significance of this dream, as it aligns with the desires of your heart. To add some delicious icing on the cake, prophetic words went forth, confirming that what you've dreamed and seen in the spirit is true, and that it is God's will for your life.  You're rejoicing and excited about all God is doing and is going to do. You're anticipating, expecting, praising and proclaiming by faith that your vision is indeed coming t...

  As a new mom, I'm constantly in awe of Little Ali's actions--the new things he's learning daily, watching his little personality develops, hearing his babbling in efforts to communicate with others.  My ten-month-old is growing right before my eyes; it's happening so quickly that I often have to retreat to the thousands of photos of him in his newborn stages just to reflect and remember how small he was.  I am so glad that I followed the advice of many: TAKE PLENTY OF PHOTOS. His looks will change and change fast. They grow up so quickly.  And it is so true.  We can also learn some big lessons from our children. One of the things that keeps me in awe is his interactions with my husband, his dad Big Ali.  When Little Ali sees Big Ali, he cries for him to come get him.  Once he is swept up into Big Ali's arms, he smiles, laughs and wraps his little arms around his neck.    ... in thy presence is  fulness   of   joy ... Psa...

God is so mindful of us that He will use commonly overlooked things to give us a message.  "Hold your head still," the shampoo assistant said to me while she blow-dried my hair. Using the comb attachment, she combed the blow dryer through my hair to straighten and dry my hair simultaneously. I found myself moving with the motion of the blow dryer instead of keeping my head still . Moving my head with the blow dryer only got in her way and probably made her job a bit challenging. The interesting thing is that when I comb my own hair, my head remains still because I know who's controlling the comb.  I guess it's different when it's someone else ("an outsider") controlling the comb.  Be still and know that I am God... Psalm 46:10 How many times do we find ourselves being moved by circumstances instead of being still in the presence of God?  How many times do we find our thoughts running off rails because of a negative situation? Easier said than done, but w...