transititon

Lessons from Mary on How to level Up

Lessons from Mary on How to level Up

My word for 2019 was Luke 1:45

“Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.”

Here’s a bit of context around that verse:

Earlier in that chapter (Luke 1), the angel Gabriel had appeared to Zacharias to announce the birth of John the Baptist- who just so happened to be Jesus’ cousin (Luke 1: 5-23).

By the time Gabriel appeared to Mary to tell her about Jesus, Elizabeth (John the Baptist’s mother) was already 6 months pregnant; so Mary went to stay with her (Luke 1:26-38).

This one move on Mary’s part shows us, as modern women, how a God-given vision requires us to level up

Lessons from Lot's Wife on How to Submit to God

Lessons from Lot's Wife on How to Submit to God

If you’ve been apart of the Far Above Rubies Collective for any length of time, you’ll know that I’m totally obsessed with gifs (this post is probably the most extreme example of that lol). This is because I LOVE to express myself and I just adore how simple yet effective gifs are for adding that extra layer of meaning and/or emotion to my blog posts, emails and even a social media comment or two!

Next to gifs, I love memes. As you’ll know if you’re apart of my Facebook or Instagram communities, I like the inspirational ones and post those most often but I love the funny ones too- so you can imagine my delight when I came across one that said:

We are called to be the salt of the earth; not salty!

a few weeks ago!

In case you’re unsure, the Urban Dictionary defines the term “salty” as “the act of being upset, angry or bitter” and, if we’re honest, the path to purpose can make us feel that way sometimes- especially if it:

  • Changes life as we know it

  • Costs us our relationships or attachments

  • Causes us to relinquish control (of our plans/what we had in mind in favour of God’s)

  • Arouses fear and so on

We see this (and more!) clearly demonstrated in the life of Lot’s Wife via Genesis 19 as her inability to submit to God’s command, not only made her salty as defined above, but literally got her turned into a pillar of salt!

She’s a great example of the fact that, although the gift of free will means that we have the freedom to say “yes” or “no” to God, there are always consequences for either decision- for better or worse. So we need to know how to make the right ones (even when they don’t necessarily align to what we want), all of which I shared on my Facebook page this week via the (live) video below.

Lessons from Noah's dove on how to start over

Lessons from Noah's dove on how to start over

Have you ever had one of those moments where the Holy Spirit asks you to do something and it has you all confused?

Well, that was me when I was prompted to go back to the story of Noah this week.

You see, as far as I was concerned, I'd already spoken in depth about his female relatives (and what the events of their lives can teach us, as modern women). So, I really did not understand why God seemed to want me to revisit the story.

However, I'm glad I did because there does happen to be another female in Noah's life who is and was extremely instrumental to his story. A dove! One that teaches us the importance of:

  • Reliance on the Holy Spirit

  • Not being afraid to try again

  • Seeing failure as feedback so that we, like Noah, can manifest our God-given vision(s).

She also provides us with feminine symbolism for God as well as the Holy Spirit, demonstrating that we, as women, are not the cursed afterthoughts that we are often painted as. Rather we are also made in God's image and therefore powerful- all of which I shared on my Facebook page this week via the (live) video below.

How to live an authentic life with Tabitha Brown

How to live an authentic life with Tabitha Brown

In today's interview, I will be talking about how to live an authentic life with none other than the amazing Tabitha Brown (believer, wife, mother, actress, designer, host and vegan food vlogger).

By the end of this video you will know:

  • Why it's so important to be authentically you (and how do it)

  • Tabitha's advice for those who want to pursue their God-given passions and purpose

  • How to become vegan/more plant based

  • And much more!

Sound like your cup of tea, lovely?

Great! You can do whatever it is you need to do to get comfortable and press play to access this awesome conversation, below:

What to do when all hell breaks loose (the birthing process)

What to do when all hell breaks loose (the birthing process)

Today's devotional is different in that rather than basing my musings on a particular woman of the Bible, I will be speaking on a an experience that is unique to women- giving birth.

Whilst this process is understood as a natural or physical (reproductive) process, today I am going to be speaking about the process of giving birth to our spiritual children or brainchildren (ideas, goals, dreams, vision).

"What got you thinking along these lines, Nina?"

Glad you asked...

Lessons from The Woman in Timnah on Learning from Mistakes

Lessons from The Woman in Timnah on Learning from Mistakes

For the last 2 weeks we have been studying the women in Samson's life. So far we've looked at:

  1. His mother: and what she had to teach us about leading by example
  2. Delilah: and her example of being persistent in our (prayer) requests to God

But there was one more woman of significance in Samson's life, who tends not to be spoken about. Like many women of the Bible, including his mother, she is nameless. As such, the Bible only identifies her by where she came from in Judges 14:1- "a woman in Timnah of the daughters of the Philistines".

What I find interesting about this woman is that she came before Delilah; yet there are many parallels between the 2 of them:

Lessons from God on Femininity and Motherhood

Lessons from God on Femininity and Motherhood

Traditionally, we tend to think of God in mostly masculine terms, especially as Father. However, did you know that the Bible also ascribes feminine features and characteristics to God? In particular, He is described in terms of motherhood on several occasions. Here are some examples:

(By the way you can continue on with this devotional by listening to the audio below, if you prefer. You can also spread the love and share it with those who may enjoy it too)