8th Wonder ...

First off ,  just a sinple apology for my vsitors/followers. You will not find any great 'style options' here. Simply because my hair is so soft that the delicate twist out I had done previously may have hindered my loc'ing process, needless to say I just stopped it! I can tell you since I did not wash my locs for 8 weeks and left it completely alone I now see a MAJOR difference
A note to those who have  fine texture and loose curl pattern hair, do not (avoid if at all possible) over manipulating your loc's into styles UNTIL you have fully loc'd up. It can contribute to or even cause slipping and unravelling from the ends, and no end of frustration.

OK, last night I realised something  ... interesting ... happened/ is happening to my hair. My locs felt ... FEEL different. I can't seem to find the words to accurately describe it, but they feel heavier on my head.
It may have something to do with shrinkage, my hair being loose curly in its natural state, curls up like a spring once wet, that has not changed since I got my Sisterlocks, However, it seems to shrink a lot less now ... anyway I digress, My locs feel full, and heavier. Also, my first loc at the nape seems to have lots of company now ( nape loc' never shrinks!) because I can no longer differentiate it apart from the others. (it was much longer and stood out from the rest!) ... Hmmm .... What do you think? ... DARE I say it ...?

My styling choice is wild and free, suiting my nature! In fact I have never been good at playing dolly in my hair, even in its relaxed state I would roller the hair on rods and let it out and go, falling anyhow.
I opted for sisterlocks because it offered me freedom from all that, I just wanted to be able to wash and go allowing my mane to do as it pleased ...

Today I played about with my web cam to try and create some images to help explain to you guys this stage in my process,

8 Months After

8 months Before

A blast from the past. My pre loc'd natural hair. This pic was taken the night before installation. Notice the shrinkage when washed.

Loc TIGHT!

Hello everyone! Hope you all are having the happiest new year EVER! I KNOW I AM!

Well ... to start with, I missed my seven month locversary. I kinda did that intentionally because my hair just did not SEEM to be getting with the loc'ing programme. Well yesterday I had that BIG appointment.

Just to recap my consultant was concerned that my lovely curly hair was doing everything it could to unlock itself. Soo she booked me in to push down the locks that were too loose. Loose because my natural hair pattern ( she informs me) is a loose curl, so every time I got a retight it loosened iteslf out (why I cannot wash my hair more than ONCE a month) If I did I would have an afro in no time!
So much so i was asked if I could go without washing until next appt, which was approx 2 months.
This was not as difficult as I had envisaged, We had 2 weeks off work for the hols, and a lovely surprise week of snowdays :). That meant I left my hair completely alone, the good old fashioned dreadlock way ...

Well for those of you who are already aware, my head was soo sore Liz had to give me the mummy talk. It went something like this  " .... Now Naomi! PLEASE! we are nealy finished, only 2 more to go, you sitting so uptight is making me uptight, now PLEASE sit properly on the chair and KEEP your head down like THIS CHILE! ... " well actually she didnt say chile but I would'nt have blamed her. LOOOOOOOL!!! was not laughin yesterday trust me!!! She did do a brilliant job tho!

Oh I almost forgot, I was suppose to take the retight class but cos of my rebellious little head, I had to leave it a few more months, soo instead Liz asked me to 'model' for her, which was really cool. I just sat there sleeping for  most of the time! All in all, my tighten and retight took about 4 hours and one sore head.

HOWEVER ... the GOOD news is ... that all the loc's at the back of my head have finally loc'd, the problem is mainly the loc's at the front!!! one thing for certain tho, is I will have the curly ends for a loooonnngg tiimmme! I am glad, love them anyway :)))

I am joyfully approaching my eighth month loc'd.  The growth is lovely to see, It took me ages this evening to braid and band because my hair is much longer and thicker ... and to think how fine my hair used to be ... ! THE BEST THING I EVER DID! I LOOOVE my LOC's!!! and enjoying this journey :))

Straight after retight.

S.F Devotional - God Is Doing A New Thing!

Monday, January 11, 2010

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Dr. Creflo A. Dollar

It is a new day and God wants to do something new in your life! If you are a Believer, you have a right to receive the manifestation of every word God has spoken over your life. As you lay hold of it by faith, it will come to pass. It is easy to become discouraged when you don't see things happening quickly enough, but as you seek His face through praise, prayer and worship, He will begin to reveal more of who He is to you. The more you know about Him, the more confident you will become in His ability to do exactly what He said He would do.

You may have been going through some troubling circumstance or struggling with a certain situation for some time now. But the good news is that your days of strugg ling are over! If you want to experience the power of God in your life, it is critical that you find out what God promises in His Word. He doesn't want you to stay in your current situation; He wants to take you to new levels of glory every day! All it takes is your unwavering belief in what He says in His Word.

Isaiah 43:19 (AMP) says, "Behold, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs forth; do you not perceive and know it and will you not give heed to it?" God is a God of new beginnings. That's right! He is multifaceted and always wants to show you an aspect of Himself that you have never seen before. In addition, He wants to do some new things in your life. He wants you to see and experience abundance like you've never before experienced it.

Expectation is key to receiving the new things God desires to do in your life. Whether it is healing, deliverance, financial breakthrough or restoration of a relationship, God will come through for you if you expect Him to. He is a loving Father Who wants to bless you.

As you expect to see the goodness of God manifest in your life, you must lay hold of it by faith. Nothing in the Kingdom of God works without it. Habakkuk 2:4 says, "...but the just shall live by his faith." In addition, you must be sure that you are walking in love--first toward God, and second toward others. These two commandments are the keys to activating your faith and confidence in God.
Finally, your words--specifically the Word of God that you confess--will connect you to a new reality of living, one that is characterized by God's glory overtaking you. If you're not saying anything, you're not creating anything! You have to use your God-given authority in order to begin experiencing something new.
Your "new thing" may be debt freedom or buying a new home. Whatever it is, find scriptures on those areas and begin meditating on them. Get them in your heart until they become so real to you that you can't see things any other way than through God's eyes. Having the blueprint of a new reality and way of life in your heart and mind through consistent meditation will fuel your faith. Then when you speak the Word with boldness, it will come to pass. But first, your heart must be established in the truths that are contained in it.

I want you to begin thinking differently about your life. It's time to get rid of the old attitudes, habits and lifestyle that you have been living and holding onto and usher in the new! By standing on God's Word, walking in faith and love and using your authority, you can literally change your reality. God is ready to reveal His glory to you in a new way; the question is, are you ready to receive it?

Dr. Creflo A. Dollar

Resist Fear

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

"Withstand him; be firm in faith [against his onset—rooted, established, strong, immovable, and determined]…"

(I Peter 5:9, AMP)

TODAY'S WORD from Joel and Victoria

The very moment you first feel fear, you have to resist it. You have to act against it. If you make the mistake of dwelling on your fears and start thinking about all the reasons why you can't do what God is telling you to do, then it won't be long before you develop a negative mindset that will keep you stuck where you are.

In the Bible, when God told David to go fight Goliath, it says that David moved quickly toward the battlefield. In other words, he didn't think about it. He didn't allow fear to grip his heart and talk him out of it. He just did what God wanted him to do.

So many people today are just sitting on the sidelines of life. They have tremendous potential on the inside, but they keep letting the enemy talk them out of doing what God wants them to do. Every time they get a vision of victory for their life, the enemy brings fear; and they just swallow his lies hook, line, and sinker. Don't let that be you! Instead, obey quickly. Resist fear and boldly embrace every blessing the Lord has in store for you in 2010!

A PRAYER FOR TODAY

" Father God, today I choose to resist fear. I choose Your Word. I choose Your love. I believe that with You, all things are possible. Thank You for giving me the power to live in victory in every area of my life. In Jesus' Name. Amen."

Avoid the Trap of Fear

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

"Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe"

(Proverbs 29:25, NIV))

TODAY'S WORD from Joel and Victoria

Fear is one of the enemy's favorite tools to keep us from going forward in our lives. As soon as we make a decision to step out in faith and do what God is telling us to do, immediately the enemy will bring fear. He'll put thoughts in your mind like, "What if I fail? What will others think? Maybe I don't have what it takes." He'll do his best to use fear to try to convince you to shrink back and just stay right where you are.
The Bible tells us that fear is a spirit. It affects your emotions. But when you choose to put your trust in the Lord, no matter how you are feeling, you are combating fear.
Today, I encourage you, don't allow fear to trap you and hold you back. Instead, take a step of faith knowing that God is on your side. He is for you and with you, leading and guiding you in the path of victory all the days of your life!
A PRAYER FOR TODAY
" Heavenly Father, I choose to put my trust in You. I choose to press forward and overcome fear. I believe You have my best interest at heart and know that You are leading me in the paths of righteousness all the days of my life. In Jesus' Name. Amen."

Streaming Faith Devotional

The Art of Re-gifting

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Robin May

A few weeks ago during the Christmas holiday, I posted the following question on my Facebook page: "Do you believe that re-gifting is tacky or resourceful".
As I am sure you can imagine I received a plethora of responses that varied from "Yes! It most certainly is resourceful" to the exact opposite, "I think it's absolutely tacky". While I posted that question just to spark casual conversation about the common practice of re-gifting, I have since been unable to shake the question out of my mind.
Most often in my walk with the Lord, when something stays on my mind, it's often a whisper from God to my heart. However, it was hard for me to take myself seriously this time. What in the world could God have to say about 're-gifting?'
When we think of re-gifting what do we mean? In the simplest definition it means receiving a gift and then instead of keeping the gift, passing it on to someone else. Are you catching it yet? You receive a gift and you pass it on to someone else. That summarizes exactly what God has called us to do!
He has placed in each of us a special gift. All of us, I don't care what you've been told or what you've experienced, all of us were created with a specific purpose; a unique gift. (If you don't believe me I encourage you to read Jeremiah 1:5, 2 Corinthians 4:7, or Isaiah 42:6).
But the gift that he has given us is not intended for us to hold on to them, but rather "re-gift" our gift from God! In Mark 4:21 Jesus asks "Is a lamp brought to be put under a basket or under a bed? Is it not to be set on a lamp stand? " In other words, a light is meant to shine for others to see.
He gave gifts to us for us to pass them onto someone else. But there is one distinction. Most times we re-gift items to others that are our left-overs or items we don't want. That's not God's desire. He wants us to re-gift our very best. Because as we all know "every good gift and every perfect gift is from above..." (James 1:17).
As you ponder this issue of re-gifting allow me to ask you a few questions:
Do you have the gift of song?
If so, don't simply use your gift for the confines of your shower; allow your gift of song to calm someone's anxious heart.
Do you have the gift of writing?
If so, don't simply use the gift for your personal journal; allow that gift to encourage someone during a challenging time.
There is a popular TV show called "Hoarders" and it highlights persons struggling with an obsessive compulsion to stockpile things in their home to the extent that it causes personal crisis in their life. At risk of being an extremist, I believe that those of us who have been given a gift from the Lord but refuse to share the gift with others could be accused of being a lot like these persons on this show...hoarders.
As we embark upon this New Year I am sure you have at least thought about what you want to improve upon in this new decade. Why not add the habit of re-gifting to your list? Believe it or not, it's not tacky at all!

Choose Faith Today

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

"This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go"

(Joshua 1:9, NLT))

TODAY'S WORD from Joel and Victoria

Did you know that fear works just like faith but in the opposite direction? In the same way that faith opens the door for God to work in our lives; fear opens the door for the enemy to work in our lives.
The Bible says that fear has torment. Fear has no mercy. If you act on fear instead of acting on faith, it will keep you depressed, miserable and lonely. And so many people today are missing out on God's joy, peace, and victory because they keep giving in to fear. They feed fear by what they watch on TV or read in the news or on the internet. Don't let that be you! Romans tells us that faith comes by hearing the Word of God. The more you fill your heart and mind with God's Word, the stronger your faith will be so you can stand against the powers of darkness. Choose faith instead of fear by choosing God's Word.

Remember, the power that is in you is greater than the power of fear. When thoughts come that say, "You're not able", choose faith by saying, "I can do all things through Christ!" Choose faith today so you can overcome fear and live in the freedom God has in store for you!

A PRAYER FOR TODAY

" Heavenly Father, I receive Your Word today which is life, health, and strength to me. I choose to close the door on fear by guarding what I say, what I listen to, and what I dwell on. Fill me with Your love and faith, and I meditate on Your Word. In Jesus' Name. Amen."

Finished with Fear

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

"For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline"

(II Timothy 1:7, NLT)

TODAY'S WORD from Joel and Victoria

So many people today are missing out on God's abundant life of joy, peace, and victory because they keep giving in to fear. They are afraid to make a decision, they are afraid to confront issues, they're afraid to step out in faith, they're afraid of the past, and they're afraid of the future. But as believers, we don't have to live that way.

Fear is not from God. God has given you power, and His power is greater than the power of any of your fears. You have to make a decision to deal aggressively with fear. You can't be passive and expect to live in victory. The only way to conquer fear is to confront it head on. As long as you're running from your fears, just ignoring them, or sweeping them under the rug, you're not going to get any better. Refusing to deal with fear doesn't make it go away. Instead, decide to be finished with fear. Be strong-willed and determined knowing that the enemy is defeated.
Today, declare God's Word that says you can be bold and strong! Be finished with fear so you can move confidently into the destiny He has in store for you!

A PRAYER FOR TODAY

"Father God, thank You for giving me power to overcome fear. I choose to face fear head on and drive it out of my life. Show me any areas of my life where fear is holding me back so that I can press forward into the life of victory You have for me. In Jesus' Name. Amen."

Power over Fear

TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

"For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline"

(II Timothy 1:7, NLT)

TODAY'S WORD from Joel and Victoria

God's desire is that we continually progress, that we reach higher heights and go to new levels. Oftentimes, as soon as we make the decision to step out in faith and obey God, the enemy brings in fear to try to stop us. He'll bring thoughts like, "What if you fail? What are other people going to think? You don't have what it takes." He'll do his best to use fear to try to convince us to shrink back and stay where we are.

The Bible says that fear is a spirit. It plays on our emotions and holds us back. But the good news is that we have power over fear! The Bible says that perfect love casts out all fear. When we receive God's perfect love, we will have confidence about the future because we know His plans are for our good. I've heard it said that fear is an acronym for False Evidence Appearing Real. Understand that fear is a lie. Today, choose to believe God's Word and receive His love so that you can overcome fear and move forward into the good life He has prepared for you in 2010!
A PRAYER FOR TODAY

"Father in heaven, thank You for giving me power, love, and a sound mind. I open my heart to You and receive Your perfect love. Fill me with Your confidence and assurance to embrace everything You have for me. In Jesus' Name. Amen. "