Another Centipede | Miracle Story - Episode 12

Monday Meditations - Episode 1 - 2 Timothy 3:16

Monday Meditations – Episode 1 Today's Meditation Verse: 2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; This scripture seems like an obvious statement. But there are aspects to this verse that many people disregard. One item is the very first word. It says ALL scripture is inspired by God and profitable… I know that there are many people in many walks of life, in many different churches, who say that only parts of the scriptures are relevant to us today. They disregard the history of the Old Testament. The genealogies of Christ and others. They can't understand the book of Revelation so they push it off for later. Of course Numbers and Leviticus is difficult. But this scripture says ALL scriptures are profitable for teaching, reproof and correction, for training in righteousness. Even the most difficult to read hold nuggets that will help transform your life. As you meditate on this scripture this week, contemplate what scriptures you have neglected, avoided or ignored and ask the Father to help you read them with understanding and to learn from them. Each Monday I am going to be having 'Monday Meditations'. I hope to bring to you each Monday a verse to mediate on for the week. This is not for memorization, but to think about and to dwell on. The word meditate, in the bible, means to mutter. So this week as you go about your life, think about and mutter to yourself the verse for the week and think about how it applies to your life. Meditating on a verse will bind it to your spirit and it will become part of you! The more of the Word you meditate on, the more it will transform you into the image of Christ! Shop all versions of my novels here: Shop Here [https://nancyjacksonauthor.com/collections/novels] My Media Website: NancyJacksonPodcast.com [https://nancyjacksonpodcast.com] Check out my website: NancyJacksonAuthor.com [https://www.NancyJacksonAuthor.com] Follow me here: Substack: https://nancyjackson.substack.com/ [https://nancyjackson.substack.com/] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NancyJacksonAuthor [https://www.facebook.com/NancyJacksonAuthor] Twitter: https://twitter.com/NAJackson [https://twitter.com/NAJackson] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/najackson/ [https://www.instagram.com/najackson/] Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/nancyannjackson [https://www.pinterest.com/nancyannjackson] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/NancyJackson [https://www.youtube.com/@NancyJacksonAuthor] TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@nancyajackson?lang=en [https://www.tiktok.com/@nancyajackson?lang=en]

Honest Motivation | Archive Story - Episode 13

Honest Motivation Listen to my professionally narrated audio books and other podcasts here: AUDIO BOOKS & ALL PODCASTS [https://thestorywithnancyjackson.supercast.com/]. Why Are You Writing Those Blogs? A friend asked me earlier this week why I was writing the blogs I've been writing. It seemed like an odd question to me. Wasn't the 'why' obvious to this friend of mine? We proceeded to have a discussion regarding my 'why'. I was able to articulate exactly my 'why' for each of the three blogs that I write weekly. But, her asking gave me a reason to verbalize a concise reason for my motivation. Why Do We Do What We Do? Sometimes, we don't know why we do what we do, we just do them. We get into routines of work and home and rarely think about why we are doing what we are doing. I believe that motivation is an issue rarely delved into, but something that should be examined often. We have no trouble stating what we believe to be someone else's motive. I'm not talking about that. I am talking about us each day evaluating openly before God, our own personal motivations. Be Brave - Ask Yourself Why Dare I say that if we were to humbly take a look at them and allow God to show us the truth of the matter, we would not be as bold and brash to ascribe blame to someone else and why they do something. Two of the most simple and prominent motivators are money and pleasure. It is often just that simple. We work for money and we play for pleasure. If we reduce our motivations down to these two motivators, we will find our lives empty and hollow. Even if we find great pleasure in our work, that too will soon become empty. Are You Dragging Through Life? The world is filled with so many people dragging themselves to their workplace every single day. They do it to get paid. If they don't go, they don't get paid. Then, they don't have a roof over their head and food to eat. I see another generation of people who have witnessed their parents and grandparent engaging in this daily drudgery for their entire lives, only to die at the end unfulfilled and they are asking themselves, do I want to live this life of drudgery too? https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!hZls!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7cda300c-69f3-46bc-94cb-77fa98982e0d_400x100.png Seeking Pleasurable Experiences Instead, they seek an experiential lifestyle that will bring them pleasure. They reduce the need for a roof to the smallest and simplest they can. They live a small footprint on the earth so that the money they do have can be spent on gaining pleasure, which they are convinced is not in things. But the pursuit of experiences for pleasure's sake will also grow hollow. It will not sustain the necessary motivation for the long term. When the money and pleasure no longer satisfy, it is often hard to admit. Disappointment usually sets in, then discouragement, depression, and then despondency. How Long Can You Force It? Depending on your type of personality and upbringing, this may happen quickly or take several years to surface and is challenging to recover from. There was once a person who had it all. He had all the money a person could want. He had all the pleasure a person could hope for. The euphoria of having it all did not last, and it did not sustain because he had lost the one and only life giving motivator and could not get it back. Ecclesiastes 1:3 What advantage does man have in all his work Which he does under the sun? Ecclesiastes 1:8 All things are wearisome; Man is not able to tell it. The eye is not satisfied with seeing, Nor is the ear filled with hearing. Ecclesiastes 2:1-2 I said to myself, "Come now, I will test you with pleasure. So enjoy yourself." And behold, it too was futility. I said of laughter, "It is madness," and of pleasure, "What does it accomplish?" Ramblings of a Near Madman These are just a select few ramblings of a man who had everything but had left his first love and source of joy, King Solomon. He had it all. God gave him wealth to have it all because he had desired wisdom. But, in the end, he had grown far away from Jehovah God, dabbled in idol worship, did as he pleased when he pleased, and disappointment, discouragement, depression, and then despondency set in. The words in Ecclesiastes are the ramblings of a man in the throes of despondency. And yet both the motivational factors of money and pleasure he had experienced to the full. If Not Money or Pleasure, Then What? What are we to conclude, then? That neither money nor pleasure for motivation will ever fulfill you. But you already knew that. And yet… we are still driven by them both. And so was I for most of my life. That was until I too began to see the lack of fulfillment there. The growing realization that to be genuinely fulfilled with an internal joy that God gives, we need, we must follow the path that he lays out for us. Most people are afraid to ask God what his plan is for them. They are convinced that his plan will provide very little money and no pleasure. We believe he will stick us in some obscure place as a missionary or something that in our mind is hard, boring and unfulfilling. God needs you in the profession where your heart will sing and you will flourish. Because he loves you. Because he has designed you with the gifts and talents that are needed in this world we live in. If you are a round peg trying to fit into a square hole because of money or pleasure, ask God where your place is. Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." He does want you to have money and pleasure, but if we seek those things without his guidance, we will never be truly fulfilled by them. Money is Only a Medium of Exchange We cannot be driven or motivated by money. Money is just a medium of exchange. It cannot bring internal satisfaction. Pleasure is so fleeting and fickle that sustainability is not obtainable. I've had many shifts in my career through the years. Most have been wildly profitable. Some were very fulfilling for a while. Recently, over the past couple of years. God has been leading me down a path of writing. I wrote four novels in one year with his help. Disappointment Comes When You Least Expect It Everyone showered me with great reviews and comments. It thrilled me because this validation was sure to lead to financial profit. But it did not. I am just being real here. The royalties on books is so very slim it is shocking. Multiplied, it adds up, but when you are a new author, climbing the mountain to being 'known' is daunting. After writing those four novels and reeling from all the hard work that it had been, I was ready to rest. Particularly since the motivation of money was not there. Neither was the motivator of pleasure. Process vs. Reward Yes, it was pleasurable, but not in balance to the degree of hard work that it required. One did not justify the other. Pleasure should not be that hard to obtain. Then, a little over a year ago, God pushed me to define the call he had placed on my life and to streamline my focus to what he wanted me to do. It has been a journey of prayer and faith. He has called me to write. He has given me many books to write. There are a few other sidebars on that call, but for now, I am focusing on writing. Will You do it For The Lord When There is no Other Motivator? In the meantime, until it is profitable, he has graciously given me a career that is profitable and one where I am also helping people. So, I answered my friend, why I write the blogs. Here were my answers. Why I Write I write the Inspirational Blog posts because I have an overwhelming desire to encourage and help people to be all that Christ has for them to be. I long to see people walk free of bondages that have kept them from their best life in Christ. So, I write… I write the Writing Blog posts because I love to encourage others and see them succeed. I share freely what I have been given so others may not have to try so hard to figure out what to do like I did. I pray they take my research and trial and error and run with it. So, I write… I write the My Life of Miracles Blog posts because I want to encourage others who are growing discouraged from lack of answered prayer that God still hears, sees, and does miracles. He honors your faith and he will do all that he says that he will, not just for me, but for you, too. So, I write… Profitable? Not yet. But, I believe it will be. I hope it will be. I pray it will be. Pleasurable? Not always. It is hard work. I do a lot of writing, proofing, and marketing, etc. But, then there are times it makes my heart sing, particularly when someone tells me it has blessed them. What is my motivation? I am doing it because it is what God has set before me to do. It is my calling and the only way to see it fulfilled in my life is to be obedient and do it. I trust him that in this journey I will see more than I ever dreamed of. For me this is a test of trust. Do I trust him while there is no money and little pleasure? Do you? This is what I keep hearing... Do the work. God will do the rest. For you and for me. Originally published by me here: https://nancyjacksonauthor.com/blogs/inspirational/honest-motivation [https://nancyjacksonauthor.com/blogs/inspirational/honest-motivation] https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!xfoC!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fa65bb9df-f5e2-4c82-84e2-8f09a9a23217_7325x1604.png Shop all versions of my novels here: Shop Here [https://nancyjacksonauthor.com/collections/novels] Check out my website: NancyJacksonAuthor.com [https://www.NancyJacksonAuthor.com] Follow me here: Substack: https://nancyjackson.substack.com/ [https://nancyjackson.substack.com/] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NancyJacksonAuthor [https://www.facebook.com/NancyJacksonAuthor] Twitter: https://twitter.com/NAJackson [https://twitter.com/NAJackson] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/najackson/ [https://www.instagram.com/najackson/] Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/nancyannjackson [https://www.pinterest.com/nancyannjackson] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nancyajackson/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/nancyajackson/] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/NancyJackson [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBawU_f3R6wfeNv2vytrfmA] TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@nancyajackson?lang=en [https://www.tiktok.com/@nancyajackson?lang=en]

Deliverance From a Spirit of Rejection | Miracle Story - Episode 13

Deliverance From a Spirit of Rejection I am adopted. I found out in the third grade. The way I found out was in a very cruel way. It was spat at me by a classmate, as if he were trying to find the worst word he could think of to sling at me. He said, "You're adopted!" Listen to my professionally narrated audio books and other podcasts here: AUDIO BOOKS & ALL PODCASTS [https://thestorywithnancyjackson.supercast.com/]. Adoption Argument An argument ensued from whatever we had been arguing about to whether or not I was adopted. Our teacher must have been close because she came running back into our room and stopped the argument. I told her what he had said, wanting her to correct him. I wanted her to tell him I was not adopted. You see, my mother was the fifth grade teacher in that same very small school. My teacher and my mother knew each other well. Sad and Confused But, rather than correct him, she diverted us to our desks and back to our classwork. Honestly, this was frustrating for me and left me a little confused. The following Sunday, my mother and father and I were driving to Oklahoma City to go see my grandmother, my father's mother. I was in the backseat, sitting in the middle, but scooted up and resting on the front seat. We did not wear seatbelts then. I blurted out, "That Fake Name said I was adopted!" Caught Red Handed My parents' heads swiveled around to look at each other instantly. I claimed I was not and how horrible he was for saying such a terrible thing to me. I didn't know that it was horrible, but in the context he had used it, I assumed it had to be a horrible thing. So, then they stumbled all over themselves explaining that yes I was, but that it was good and why it was good, and all the reasons why it was good, and why my poor biological mother couldn't keep me. I can feel myself frowning now, just as I did then. Something about it all didn't ring completely true, but at a third-grade level, I had no idea what it was. I was not happy with them. If it was indeed a good thing, then why hadn't they told me? This Made Me Different One thing was certain, I was different from everyone else, and that also meant Fake Name was right. Which also meant that he had known before I had known. That is a tough pill to swallow. But, I owned it. The next day I stood in front of the class and told them all that yes, I was adopted and it was a good thing. And life went on. A Seed of Rejection But a seed of something that had been planted in me germinated that day. It was a seed of rejection. I can write volumes on this topic and what and how to help someone who may be challenged with this, but this is not what this particular article is about. What I want to write about is the miracle of God's deliverance from the spirit of rejection that had attached itself to my life. God's Miracle One day I was meeting a friend at the little church we attended for a Saturday children's group we led. When I walked in, she made a comment that caught me off guard. I'll admit, I don't remember what she said. It was something that alluded to me being free from something. Since I was so caught off guard and did not know what she was talking about, I insisted she tell me. So, she told me about the spirit of rejection she had seen on me and how it was affecting my life. She said when I had walked in that day she thought for a moment that I had been delivered from it. https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!IIaz!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdec1bf91-d9eb-488c-bae8-d7f417ebc83b_400x100.png I Went to God About It Not sure what to do with this new information, and with the kids arriving, I tabled it. You can be sure though that I went to Father God about it asap when I was alone. I realized that because I was adopted, the enemy had used that as a legal open door to attach a spirit of rejection to me. It was the same as when he had attached a spirit of fear to me through something someone had said. I didn't know then to resist or it would have never gained a foothold. The spirit of rejection came so early. Dare I say at the moment my biological mother separated from me? It came from no fault of my own. It came in spite of these people's love for me and desire to do the right thing for me. It was a legal doorway that the enemy used. The Truth Revealed As I prayed and sought the Lord, he showed me all of this and also that I was NOT rejected. It was all a lie that the enemy perpetrated. The lie told me I was rejected, so I felt rejected, so others rejected me. God confirmed to me he loved and accepted me and that the truth was that I was not rejected by the God who created the universe, therefore any other rejection I saw or felt was in direct violation of God's word. Okay, but what was I to do about it? His instructions were simple. He first brought to my mind the scripture… 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 3 For, although we are in the flesh, we do not battle according to the flesh, 4 for the weapons of our battle are not of flesh but are enormously powerful, capable of destroying fortresses. We destroy arguments 5 and every pretension raising itself against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive in obedience to Christ, My assignment was to renew my mind by confirming to myself that I was not rejected, but accepted by the one who mattered most. Then when that thought that I was rejected would come, I was to take that thought captive as it says in verse five, and reject it as a thought that was contrary to the knowledge of God. I felt delivered the moment that God said he accepted me and that I was not rejected, but that didn't mean that the enemy wouldn't try to reclaim and hold his ground. You Have to Do the Do I was persistently obedient about this. I meditated on the words I had heard when God said he had accepted me and that I was loved by him. Then, when the thoughts would come of rejection, I would just literally say, "No, I'm not." Then I would go about whatever I was doing. This was an ongoing thing for a while. At first, it seemed like I was doing it a lot, but soon those thoughts of rejection came less and less and I felt freer and freer. The enemy cannot stand up to God's word, whether it be his logos, written word, or his rhema, spoken word. John 8:31-32 31 Jesus then said to those Jews who believed in him, "If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." God showed me how once again in a completely unique situation, how to fight spiritual warfare with his word. The truth, his truth, was that I was not rejected. That truth once revealed to me set me free. But I had to maintain my freedom. I did that by renewing my mind and taking every contrary thought captive. Still Today I still practice it today. I've spent a lifetime feeding myself on the written word of God. It is in me. It has renewed my mind. So, when a thought comes that I know is contrary to the word of God, I just say, "No. I don't receive that." I know I can't afford to let it take root in my mind. I am still learning and growing in God and having his truth grow more solidified in me each day. And, each day that I do, it becomes clearer and clearer what thoughts are injected from the enemy in an effort to derail my life. Do You Want to See Change in Your Life? If you truly want your life to be changed. If you want to be free, then you too can be. Read God's word. Let it soak into you. Then when thoughts come to you that you know are not in alignment with God's word, just say, "NO!" You do not have to suffer from adoption rejection. Originally published by me here: https://nancyjacksonauthor.com/blogs/miracles/miracle [https://nancyjacksonauthor.com/blogs/miracles/miracle] https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!9TV2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F186dbfca-9aab-4c40-844b-49b6658df209_7325x1604.png Shop all versions of my novels here: Shop Here [https://nancyjacksonauthor.com/collections/novels] Check out my website: NancyJacksonAuthor.com [https://www.NancyJacksonAuthor.com] Follow me here: Substack: https://nancyjackson.substack.com/ [https://nancyjackson.substack.com/] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NancyJacksonAuthor [https://www.facebook.com/NancyJacksonAuthor] Twitter: https://twitter.com/NAJackson [https://twitter.com/NAJackson] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/najackson/ [https://www.instagram.com/najackson/] Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/nancyannjackson [https://www.pinterest.com/nancyannjackson] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nancyajackson/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/nancyajackson/] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/NancyJackson [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBawU_f3R6wfeNv2vytrfmA] TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@nancyajackson?lang=en [https://www.tiktok.com/@nancyajackson?lang=en]

After the Story - Choices Like Rivers - Episode 63

After the Story - Choices Like Rivers - Episode 63 This podcast discusses each chapter of Choices Like Rivers and each episode is posted directly after the book episode. This to The Epilog Listen to my professionally narrated audio books and other podcasts here: AUDIO BOOKS & ALL PODCASTS [https://www.nancyjacksonpodcast.com/]. More ways to read and follow along with my books | Author Signed Hardcover [https://nancyjacksonauthor.com/collections/books] | Author Signed Soft Cover [https://nancyjacksonauthor.com/collections/novels-author-signed-soft-cover] | eBook [https://nancyjacksonauthor.com/collections/novels-ebooks] And there you have it. All the holes filled in and the full scope of the why's. We see the contrast in the two women. If there was one over arching theme I felt pressed to get across, it was this paragraph that Sharon read from one of Donna's journals. Each day that I wake up I stand before a fork in the road. I have a choice to make. I can go down one road that leads to dark thoughts, self-pity, and despair. Or, I can go down a path of thankfulness of what I do have and see the joy that each day holds. It is up to me each day, each moment, to decide which path I will take. We have a choice each day. All of us. I do my best to make that choice the moment I realize I have woken for the day. There are countless moments through the day that I need to reaffirm that choice. This book is about so much more though. It is about being free on the inside through the grace and power of God even if our physical bodies are captive. The disciples knew this well. I have a friend who spent 30 years in prison wrongly accused. I can't even begin to imagine how hard that must have been. But she knew God. And God set her free from prison just like he many times did the disciples. But many of us are free physically while still very captive on the inside. No matter how much physical freedom we have, if we won't submit our spirits to God to redeem, heal, and set free, we will never be truly free. https://buymeacoffee.com/nancyjackson Shop all versions of my novels here: Shop Here [https://nancyjacksonauthor.com/collections/novels] Check out my website: NancyJacksonAuthor.com [https://www.NancyJacksonAuthor.com] Follow me here: Substack: https://nancyjackson.substack.com/ [https://nancyjackson.substack.com/] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NancyJacksonAuthor [https://www.facebook.com/NancyJacksonAuthor] Twitter: https://twitter.com/NAJackson [https://twitter.com/NAJackson] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/najackson/ [https://www.instagram.com/najackson/] Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/nancyannjackson [https://www.pinterest.com/nancyannjackson] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nancyajackson/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/nancyajackson/] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/NancyJackson [https://www.youtube.com/@NancyJacksonAuthor] TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@nancyajackson?lang=en [https://www.tiktok.com/@nancyajackson?lang=en]

After the Story - Choices Like Rivers - Episode 62

After the Story - Choices Like Rivers - Episode 62 This podcast discusses each chapter of Choices Like Rivers and each episode is posted directly after the book episode. This to Chapter 21 Section 4 Listen to my professionally narrated audio books and other podcasts here: AUDIO BOOKS & ALL PODCASTS [https://www.nancyjacksonpodcast.com/]. More ways to read and follow along with my novels | Author Signed Hardcover [https://nancyjacksonauthor.com/collections/books] | Author Signed Soft Cover [https://nancyjacksonauthor.com/collections/novels-author-signed-soft-cover] | eBook [https://nancyjacksonauthor.com/collections/novels-ebooks] Hmmm. Will you look at that? How often is the answer to a prayer right there in front of us and we never see it. I believe this particular answer of Bill coming into her life as a love interest was intentionally withheld by God until Sharon could heal. She had realized in the last section that Will was no longer what she wanted for her life. She had healed to the point where she could clearly see and make the right decision from a good mental and emotional state. But Bill. He had always been there. He had always loved her. He had loved her in a way that was never putting his needs above hers, patiently waiting for God to do his work in her. The original working title of this book was Paper Dolls. But when the phrase that contained Choices Like Rivers came resonating through I immediately knew that was the name. The cabin was small but full of life and of love. It resonated from every wall. There isn't much to say about this section. It pretty much speaks for itself. But there is one final section to come which genuinely completes the story. https://buymeacoffee.com/nancyjackson Shop all versions of my novels here: Shop Here [https://nancyjacksonauthor.com/collections/novels] Check out my website: NancyJacksonAuthor.com [https://www.NancyJacksonAuthor.com] Follow me here: Substack: https://nancyjackson.substack.com/ [https://nancyjackson.substack.com/] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NancyJacksonAuthor [https://www.facebook.com/NancyJacksonAuthor] Twitter: https://twitter.com/NAJackson [https://twitter.com/NAJackson] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/najackson/ [https://www.instagram.com/najackson/] Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/nancyannjackson [https://www.pinterest.com/nancyannjackson] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nancyajackson/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/nancyajackson/] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/NancyJackson [https://www.youtube.com/@NancyJacksonAuthor] TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@nancyajackson?lang=en [https://www.tiktok.com/@nancyajackson?lang=en]