TOP 5 FAVORITE: BIBLE VERSES

NanoPoblano2015 Day #2!!!

Hello my loves, today I thought I’d kick off the Top 5 Favorites series with a faith related post. Going to try and stay as close to the theme of my site as often as I can.

Here is a short poem to go along with my Top 5 Favorite: Bible Verses.

Roses are red.

Violets are blue.

Scripture is sweet.

& Jesus loves you.

I love God’s love letter to me, and you!

There are a bunch of bible verses that are my favorite!!!! I will only share 5 of them in no particular order.

Jeremiah 29:11

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Esther 4:14

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Habakkuk 2:3

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Psalm 139:13-14

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Romans 8:28

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I hope these verses do something for your heart as much as they do for mine!

Comment below with one or all of your Top 5 Favorite: Bible Verses and stop by tomorrow for another Top 5 Favorites. I think this series will be pretty fun! 🙂

Keep Shining, Nat

I AM A TINY PEPPER

Hi my name is Natalie and I am officially a tiny baby pepper.

Today is day one of NaNoPoblano!

What is NaNoPoblano? You might ask. Well I’ll explain it this way. It’s a month of blogging! A blog post every day for the month of November. And NaNoPoblano is a community of bloggers who commit to the challenge. I am super excited to join this community.

Today’s post is super basic. I wanted to let you know that I’m in for the challenge. I have a list of ideas I’ll be blogging about. I thought it would be awesome to take this opportunity to get to know each other so I’ll be sharing more about me and my favorite things. For my loyal Women of the Bible readers, don’t worry I’ll still post my WOTB posts on Fridays. However make sure you tune in because I will be working on some pieces expanding on patterns I’ve seen among the women we’ve talked about.

Make sure to follow me on Instagram and Twitter to keep up with what I’m blogging about daily.

Love you guys for your support and encouragement during this month. I’m sure I’ll be in great need of it.

Keep Shining, Nat

HELLO ZIPPORAH PART I

I hope you enjoyed last week’s guest blogger, Sarah! If you didn’t get a chance to read that post then click here. Also, I highly encourage you to check out her blog as her words are so real and encouraging, click here.

Today we continue our journey through Exodus. It just so happens that Moses had quite a few women in his life. So far we talked about his biological mom, his adoptive mom, and his big sis. Today we focus on his wife, Zipporah in Exodus 2:15-21.

At first glance Zipporah seems like a character to be quickly over looked. The first time she is mentioned we don’t know her name. She is just one of seven sisters, the daughters of the Midian priest, Reuel. The sisters were out doing their daily chore of watering the family’s flock when Moses showed up.

The sisters were probably like… “Heeeeyyy!!!”

LOL I bet it was unusual for them to see random guys coming up to the well. Especially when this random guy became their knight in shining armor. The problem was that the men of that area didn’t want to share the water with them. Who knows why…  I really can’t imagine it was a quantity issue as much as it was a gender equality issue, but that’s just my opinion. Anyhow, Moses defended the Midian sisters and got water for their flock.

(This sounds familiar but I’ll table the patterns for a later date.)

So the girls are like, “Moses!! Our Hero!!”

They go back home singing his praises and tell their dad about the foreigner who saved the day. Of course Reuel wanting to thank the one who helped his daughters tells them to go back and invite him over for dinner. He accepts the dinner invitation.

Moses didn’t just get dinner he also got a wife. In verse 21 we learn the lucky sister is Zipporah, Moses’ new wife.

This creates so many questions in my mind.

Continue reading →

She got it from her Momma! by: Sarah

Wait, actually, she got it from her….Maker, her Father, whether she knows Him or not. 
Maker of heaven and earth, made and designed each one of us. 

Whaaaaat… all your quirky personality traits, your strong ability to scan a room and notice someone who is all alone, your singing talent, love for poetry, sports ability, all of it. Made by God.

“For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth” -Psalm 139:13,15
Now imagine God knitting you together… choosing yarn, what your features would be like (including the ones you don’t always love).  Putting in enough goofiness to make others, but mostly yourself, smile. Creating your mind, knowing how much He desired and still desires for you to focus less on the distractions and fear around you, and more on how much he loves you. 
“Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.” -Psalm 139:16
Picture God as He created you. He was knitting and knitting away as he planned each day of your life before you even began it. He didn’t stop in the middle of my life, or your younger years, and think “not good enough…I should just stop.” He didn’t give up on you. And more than that, He planned an amazing future for you. 
But what happens when the completed work the Father makes isn’t happy? When we hate the life we are given, unhappy each morning? Let me ask you something, does the quilt cry “I hate this pattern!” or the tablecloth complain “why can’t I be a sheet?” Neither should we be so focused on parts of our bodies or lives that seem incomplete compared to the girl down the street. 
God made you this way and guess what? He loves every part of you. How could he not? Remember, He made you?
“I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” -Psalm 139:14
Do you know that full well? That His works, cough cough YOU, are wonderful. Then let’s praise Him. Let’s think of God the next time someone compliments us on a project that turned successful, on the goal we made to win the game. Let’s thank Him for the moments we are proud of, knowing He made us this way. And let’s thank Him for the parts we are sometimes afraid to let show, for He loves those even more. 
“Many, Lord my God, are the wonders you have done, the things you planned for us. None can compare with you; were I to speak and tell of your deeds, they would be too many to declare.” -Psalm 40:5
God has so precisely knit our lives together. We’ve all experienced moments in our lifetime that we think “wow life is crazy awesome!” I will strive to now think, “wow, how awesome are the plans the Father has for me…” I’m so thankful that He knit me. 
Sarah is a dear friend and fellow blogger.
If you enjoyed this post go on over to her blog Single, yet loving Him and check out some of her other pieces. This girl has such an amazing heart after God I just had to have her share here on SuperStarNat.com. Feel free to share this post! And come back next week as we continue our journey through the book of Exodus!
Also make sure to subscribe to the newsletter as some new and exciting things will be happening here starting Nov. 1st!
Keep Shining, Nat

HELLO MIRIAM PART II

love of a sisterI‘m so excited to continue this Hello Miriam Mini Series. Last week we got to take a look at Miriam as a child. This week we get to see her as a worship leader! Truly, I love her story. There is actually more of her story in the book of Numbers so I think we will add to this series when we get to that book. If you didn’t catch Hello Miriam Part I click HERE before you continue reading!

By the way THANK YOU so much for being here!

This part of Miriam’s story has always spoken to my heart. I haven’t talked about my testimony very much so I’ll take this opportunity to share a little bit of it. I became a Christian at the age of 15. I remember it like yesterday. It was a Friday night in 2000. I was at Generation Noah youth group. The preacher did an alter call and my spirit did somersaults. God was calling me by name right at that very moment. Jesus met me right where I was and in return I walked up to the front of that alter and knelt down before the foot of the cross. I accepted Jesus as my LORD and savior that night. I bawled my eyes out thinking about the sin I was being cleansed of. Grateful that God would sacrifice His son. Grateful that Christ would sacrifice His life. For me! It was a pivotal moment. Everything changed. Life as I knew it was never the same. It hasn’t been perfect. It’s been really difficult at times. But one thing I know for sure is that when you say Yes to Jesus it’s like God ties a string around your heart and never let’s go. No matter how far you drift…. He will ALWAYS pull you back in! That’s been my story.

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Ok so how does my story tie into Miriam’s?

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HELLO MIRIAM PART I

Hello again!

The book of Exodus is all about how Moses, a Hebrew boy, who should have died was saved from the Nile river by the very daughter of the one who ordered his death. This same Moses then grew up to lead the Israelite people out of captivity in Egypt alongside his brother Aaron and his sister Miriam. So far in the series Women of Exodus we have seen some very courageous midwives who refused to murder infants. We met Moses’ biological mother and his adoptive Egyptian mother. Today I want to take a close look at his older sister, Miriam. She plays a great part in the story of the Hebrews’ exodus out of Egypt. She can very well be one of the most important women of the Old Testament. I’m so excited to take a look at her life and share her story with all of you.

We first meet Miriam in Exodus 2:4 His sister stood at a distance to see what would happen to him.

Continue reading →

HELLO PHARAOH’S DAUGHTER

A couple of weeks ago I introduced the book of Exodus with, HELLO SHIPHRAH AND PUAH. Maybe you’ll remember that these ladies were midwives who stood up to pharaoh. The pharaoh in Exodus was more ruthless and a bit of a coward compared to the pharaoh in Genesis who was generous and respected God’s people. The new pharaoh wanted to suppress the people of Israel who resided in Egypt. He did so by condemning all new born baby boys to death. How disgusting is that?! The following week I spoke about Jochebed. She was a Levite woman who was brave and sacrificed her safety in order to save her son’s life. Today I want to tell you about the Egyptian woman mentioned in Jochebed’s story. That Egyptian woman was pharaoh’s daughter.

The evil pharaoh had a not so evil daughter. We can see her goodness come through in Exodus chapter 2.

Exodus 2: 5 Then Pharaoh’s daughter went down to the Nile to bathe, and her attendants were walking along the riverbank. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her female slave to get it. 6 She opened it and saw the baby. He was crying, and she felt sorry for him. “This is one of the Hebrew babies,” she said.

The first characteristic we see is that she was compassionate. She felt pity for the poor child that was doomed to drown in the river.

The story continues and in verse 9 pharaoh’s daughter shows mercy. She literally saved the boy’s life.

9 Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Take this baby and nurse him for me, and I will pay you.” So the woman took the baby and nursed him.

In verse 10 she demonstrates a generous heart.

10 When the child grew older, she took him to Pharaoh’s daughter and he became her son.

She adopted the child knowing that otherwise he would be murdered. She was offering him a life that would be far better than the life of a slave under her father’s rule.

Overall pharaoh’s daughter exhibits all of the qualities that her father was lacking. She saved a Hebrew while her father was attempting to murder all of their baby boys. She also was kind and caring.

Without knowing it she harbored the one who would be used by God to set the Israelites free from pharaoh’s reign.

Honestly, my main take away is that you do not have to inherit the negative qualities of your parents. I know I sometimes think about my parents and their qualities. I consider the ones that I want and the ones that I struggle internally not to take as my own. We don’t have to be full of worry, negative, doubtful, bitter, and unforgiving, a quitter or any other negative trait you can think of.

As a matter of fact. Take a minute and think about what that characteristic is. Do you see it in your mind?

Now say this out loud:

I DO NOT have to be (insert negative quality here) like my mom/dad.

Did you do it? Do you believe it?

I want to expand my faith that it may cover you and help you believe.

Like pharaoh’s daughter, let’s not take on the poor mindsets or attitudes of those before us. Instead let’s choose to inherit their positive qualities and add the ones they are missing which we want to pass down to the generations coming after us.

My Prayer For You:

Jesus, I pray that you may give us the courage to change. Help us identify the qualities that can easily stick to us but which would not give you glory. Help us to honor our parents by praying to you for their healing. Help us to reflect you in all that we do with our lives. That the generational curses may end with us. That we may not continue passing down destructive cycles, be it of worry or bitterness. Jesus, thank you for your word that is rich and complete. I pray that as we learn from it, it may renew our minds and satisfy our spirits. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Memory Verse: John 8:32

John 8:32 32Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 

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Come back next week for HELLO MIRIAM!!

HELLO JOCHEBED

I bet you’ve never heard of Jochebed before! Have you? See, I knew you’ve never heard of her because her name is given in one of those long, and kinda boring, lists of names often found in scripture. As important as these names are for historical purposes, to make connections and family trees, they are a bit bland. Jochebed is first mentioned by name in Exodus 6:20 “Amram married his father’s sister Jochebed, who bore him Aaron and Moses. Amram lived 137 years.”

That’s right! Jochebed was Moses’ biological mom. Remember last week we took a look at two extremely bold and courageous women, Shiphrah and Puah. If you didn’t get a chance to check out that part of the story go ahead and click on their names to read that first. You will want to know what was going on politically during the time of Moses’ birth.

Exodus 2 begins with the story of a Levite family who became pregnant and had a son during a period of time when all Hebrew baby boys were under a severe genocide. The mother and father are left nameless until chapter 6 when we learn that the father is Amram and the mother is Jochebed. The baby boy, who according to pharaoh, should not be alive was the very one who would one day be used by God to deliver the Israelites from their bondage in Egypt.

Jochebed broke man’s law to honor God’s law. She was a God fearing Levite woman. I have no clue if she had some kind of premonition that her children would change the course of history for their people. What I do know is that she was brave. Jochebed loved fiercely enough to risk her own life in order to spend even a few months with the child who grew in her womb. I think she might have kept him hidden longer if it wasn’t for the fact that Moses was growing and could not be safely hidden any longer. Again, the love of a mother kicked in. I can’t imagine that any mother would choose to sacrifice their child’s life. This particular mother became creative and instead of plainly throwing her child into the river to drown she placed him within a waterproof basket. I bet she was strategic in choosing her basket launch location. Moses floated along with the current and was safely discovered by an Egyptian woman. Imagine that! Next week I will tell you more about who the Egyptian woman was. If you know the story of Moses then you probably already know.

Releasing the basket in the river was not the end of the story for Jochebed. The Egyptian woman who found Moses selected his very own mother to nurse him and care for him until he was old enough to go live with her. WOW!

How great Jochebed’s faith must have been! To believe that God would protect her son in the middle of this horrendous genocide. She believed and God delivered. Her son survived. He grew up to lead his people out of slavery.

This story encourages my faith. Sometimes when our faith is weak it helps to read a story as powerful as this one to remember God’s faithfulness is true.

My Prayer for You:

Dear Jesus, I ask you for every single person who is struggling with their faith. I pray that you may surround them with people who will encourage them and love them. I pray that you may help every single one of us draw near to you as you meet us right where we are. Thank you for your patience and your countless opportunities as you work on our hearts and character. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Memory Verse: Luke 1:45  Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!”

 

Sassy And Single?

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As I write this post, I am chuckling to myself because I know that I can be a little sassy! Lol! Ok let me keep it real what I really meant to say is that I can be VERY sassy at times😜. I attribute my sassiness to just simply having A LOT of personality and possessing STRONG leadership skills😂.

I’ve often wondered can a woman be sassy and single? Is that a lethal combination or just the right type of spice with everything nice mixed in? It can be a challenge to have a colorful personality and date because there are men out there that might be put off by a strong/sassy lady.

As I’ve grown older I now realize that I can only be who God has created me to be and I can’t tone down the beauty and essence of what constitutes me; the strong, loving, kind, silly…

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HELLO SHIPHRAH AND PUAH

Well hello there women of Exodus!!

I’m so excited to continue moving forward in my study of the women of the bible. Today we actually get to start checking out the women of Exodus. It only took 8 months to get here! Wow we were in the book of Genesis for 8 months! We covered a total of 31 women. I encourage you to go back and check out some of those posts here. I learned so much and am looking forward to what God will continue revealing through the stories of the women who made history.
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BOY OR GIRL
We left off in Genesis talking about Joseph’s Egyptian wife, Asenath. She had two sons who along with the rest of Jacob’s grandchildren married and had children of their own. At the beginning of Exodus we see that Joseph’s generation and their children’s generation died and Egypt had a new pharaoh. This is important because it helps set the scene for the actual story of the book of Exodus. The new pharaoh didn’t know Joseph or even cared to know. All he saw was the increasing number of foreigners who were residing in Egypt. These foreigners were all of Jacob’s descendants. Out of fear of being betrayed or overtaken by the ever growing Hebrew population the pharaoh made quite a disturbing decision.
In Exodus 1:15 we meet the two women who the pharaoh tried to recruit for his vile plan.
Exodus 1:15 “The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, whose names were Shiphrah and Puah,”

Shiphrah and Puah are the women we will be focusing on today. The next few verses describe them as midwives and God fearing. The fact that they are midwives tells us that they are working women. I love that God didn’t forget about the working women.

If you are a working woman, remember that YOU matter to Him too!

In verse 16 pharaoh gives Shiphrah and Puah what he probably thought was a command that must be obeyed. He said,  “When you are helping the Hebrew women during childbirth on the delivery stool, if you see that the baby is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, let her live.” Pharaoh thought he would be able to control the rate at which the Hebrews were increasing. I literally shake my head. Seriously pharaoh? Last I checked, mankind does not have that type of power. Also, don’t mess with God’s people!

I’m so glad this next verse is here, 17 The midwives, however, feared God and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do; they let the boys live.

Shiphrah and Puah valued God more than pharaoh’s orders. They knew that what pharaoh was asking of them was the wrong answer and they stood up for what they knew to be the truth. They were so gutsy! I mean pharaoh had the power to kill them if they chose to disobey him. These women were brave and demonstrated a true faithfulness and trust in God.

Heart check moment!

Am I standing up for what I know to be the truth or am I conforming to the ways of this world?

There are so many topics in our society today that are sensitive issues. Topics like abortion and gay marriage. I’m not going to get into them but let me just say this… are we conforming to this world’s view and what this world is saying the correct answer is? Or are we standing firm in what we know God’s word says is the absolute truth?

Obviously pharaoh was going to find out that there were new little Hebrew baby boys all over the place. He went to the midwives immediately questioning them. Verse 18 “Why have you done this? Why have you let the boys live?” What nerve!

I love Shiphrah and Puah’s response. These women were so darn bold. They stood up to pharaoh without any reservations. 19 The midwives answered Pharaoh, “Hebrew women are not like Egyptian women; they are vigorous and give birth before the midwives arrive.”

Shiphrah and Puah defended God’s people and all were blessed. First the nation of Israel and then the midwives themselves.

20 So God was kind to the midwives and the people increased and became even more numerous. 21 And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families of their own.

Verse 21 is such a great reminder that when we are obedient and faithful we too shall be blessed. We have no indication as to the age of these Godly women. We don’t know if they’ve been praying and crying out to God for children of their own. We can simply imagine the pain they might have felt every time they helped bring a new child into the world, a child that wasn’t theirs.

Shiphrah and Puah’s example sets forth a great challenge for us today. Will you join me in definding God’s truth? Will you commit to standing up for God’s word? Let’s be gutsy and bold like these two midwives, they stood up for what they knew to be true and were blessed.

My Prayer for You:
Dear Jesus, I come before you asking you to search our hearts today, Lord. Search us that all that is not of you may be removed and replaced with your love and compassion. I ask you for courage for myself and every single reader you’ve sent here today. I pray that we may stand firm in you because your word is living and true. I pray that we may not deny you but that we may live unashamed of our faith and belief in you. Heavenly Father thank you because you equip us with all that we need through your scriptures and place examples like Shiphrah and Puah in your word to remind us that your return is near. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Memory Verse: Romans 1:16
Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.

Thanks so much for stopping by.
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