Dear Friend,
As Fall foliage begins to emerge, and here in Texas the temperature has finally begun to fall below 70 degrees, I am looking expectantly to winter and the holiday season that will soon be upon us. Cold weather and the change it signifies are invigorating! Although in Texas we've only had one tiny cool spell, it indicates that a transformation is already underway -- to me, a welcomed transformation from 90 degree heat!! In a similar way, winds of change began to blow in my heart this summer. The Holy Spirit descended upon my spiritual walk in a way I have never known. As Fall gives a glimpse of the winter to follow, what God has birthed in my spirit in recent weeks is but a hint of the change -- the revelation, the anointing, the outcome -- that is underway. After tasting His presence in a new way, I long for more! And quickly! I can only imagine where He's going and how much of His heart I will eventually experience! But God is barely tipping His hand...This is a transformation of duration -- a slow development as I diligently seek Him, not an overnight sensation. God began this new work in my heart over the summer as I sought His direction for this season's Passionate Pursuit. Since that time I have never been the same! And never will be! With all my heart, I believe God initiated this change not just for my benefit, but for yours. He began this work with the women of Passionate Pursuit in mind. I believe He longs to do a new work in your life as well. And I like "new," don't you? I like living in a region of the country where we experience different seasons. And I like being transformed from glory to glory. None of us wants to grow stagnant with no new birth of God in our lives. God isn't just doing a little makeover, He's rearranging my whole world spiritually -- for my benefit, yes. And for His, as He will have a more mature servant. But also for your benefit, that you might have another place to receive a fresh touch from Him. That's how God brought this change to my heart -- through ministries and people upon whom He'd similarly moved. God has blown such fresh wind into my spirit that I cannot approach Passionate Pursuit the same old way. He is doing a new thing! And I look expectantly to what is ahead!! The winds of change signify that a deep transformation -- to more anointing, more of God's presence, more spiritual results in your life -- is already underway for Passionate Pursuit.
Next Thursday's Passionate Pursuit is going to be different -- "new." Well...there will be one repeat - Hotel Fredonia's bread pudding (knew you'd be glad for that one!). But apart from that, come expecting something new and fresh from the Lord, tailor made just for you.
Mark your calendar and RSVP: Thursday, November 5th, 6:30 p.m. Come be a part of an incredible evening as we
welcome a new move and anointing of God upon our lives. How glorious and life changing the result will
be!! Join me in a Passionate Pursuit and let's experience God's
promised reward.
"...for he who comes to God must
believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently
seek Him" Hebrews 11:6 (emphasis
added).
Your Sister in Christ, Natalie Nichols
President,
Shades of Grace Ministries
www.shadesofgrace.org
P.S. Please note that RSVP's are required by 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, November 3rd for dessert reservation.
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Passionate Pursuit
A Joyful Journey to
More of Christ
Ladies, join us every first Thursday
of the month.
Come
and enjoy coffee and dessert, uplifting music and a transforming
message as Natalie Nichols, founder of Shades of Grace Ministries, shares an encouraging word for
your present need.
Join us as Natalie leads us on a Passionate Pursuit to know Jesus and the power of God's Word more intimately each day.
Mark Your Calendars Now!
November 5 - 6:30 p.m.
Vein of Silver with Sandra Nichols.
With effortless humor and and engaging candor, Sandra shares nuggets of godly wisdom gleaned from the mine of hard times. Sandra's segment will fill you with joy, laughter and the calm assurance that God is in control.
Nothing Less with Natalie Nichols.
We were created to know Jesus intimately, to live by His life andd be satisfied with nothing less! There is no other joy on this earth but Jesus Christ. How sad, sick and cheated an existence to accept pitiful substitutes, mirages of happiness. Through these stirring messages, the Holy Spirit will inspire you to make one simple determination that will transform your life:"No matter the cost, I will pursue Christ passionately and I will be satisfied with nothing less!" Moment in Concert
Throughout the Bible
and the history of the great revivals,
concerts of prayer
have preceded a life-changing, revolutionary descent of God
upon the soul of man,
the heart of the church and the life of the community.
In this new segment, we bring our
instruments of prayer together for a moment in concert.
Hotel Fredonia
200 N. Fredonia Nacogdoches, TX 75961
Admission: No Charge
December 3 - 6:30 p.m. Location: TBD
Invite Your Friends!
Forward this email to a friend as their invitation.
RSVP online or by phone at 936.569.8741.
RSVP required for dessert. RSVP requested by 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, November 3, 2009.
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Blog Message: What will you do with your arrows?
As we join together at 6:30 today to pray in concert, I would like
to share a passage of scripture that has encouraged and motivated me in
my prayer life.
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Elisha had become sick with the illness of which he would die. Then
Joash the king of Israel came down to him, and wept over his face, and
said, "O my father, my father, the chariots of Israel and their
horsemen!" 15 And Elisha said to him, "Take a bow and some arrows." So he took himself a bow and some arrows. 16 Then he said to the king of Israel, "Put your hand on the bow." So he put his hand on it, and Elisha put his hands on the king's hands. 17 And he said, "Open the east window"; and he opened it.
Then Elisha said, "Shoot"; and he shot. And he said, "The arrow of the
LORD's deliverance and the arrow of deliverance from Syria; for you
must strike the Syrians at Aphek till you have destroyed them." 18 Then he said, "Take the arrows"; so he took them. And he said to the king of Israel, "Strike the ground"; so he struck three times, and stopped. 19
And the man of God was angry with him, and said, "You should have
struck five or six times; then you would have struck Syria till you had
destroyed it! But now you will strike Syria only three times."
--2 Kings 13:14-19
The real victory in this scene was not won on the battlefield; it
was won behind the scenes. Similarly, real victory is won in our
private life--in the "bed chamber" of our prayer life.
Elisha was aging and ill, so Joash came to him in his bedchamber.
Elisha told Joash, "Take a bow and arrows." Joash took them privately
- the same way we take our weapons of prayer every morning in private.
What we do with our weapons, in this time of prayer, is important. It
determines what God does publicly - in our lives, the lives of those
for whom we are praying; in our businesses, our careers, our families,
our churches. What happens publicly merely...
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To the Point
Quotes on Prayer
"Holy,
holy, holy, Lord God Almighty" the four living creatures say (Rev.
4:8). This is the highest expression of God's glory in heaven by beings
who live in His immediate presence and bow low before Him. Dare we imagine that we, by thinking and reading and hearing, can understand or become partakers of the holiness of God? What folly!
"Oh that we might come to the inner chamber, a place where we can be
alone with Him, and bow low in prayer, "Lord, let your holiness shine
into my heart!" Let our hearts be deeply ashamed of our prayerlessness
through which we have made it impossible for God to impart His holiness to us. What
is God's holiness: an unspeakable aversion and hatred with which God
regards sin. He preferred to see His son die than to let sin reign. He
had such a hatred of sin that He preferred to die rather than men be held in sin's power.
"Therefore, holiness is God's pledge that He will do everything for us to deliver us from sin. Holiness
is the fire of God that will consume sin in us and make us holy
sacrifices, pure and acceptable (Ro.12:1).For this reason, the Holy
Spirit came down as fire. He's the Spirit of God's holiness, the Spirit... of sanctification in us. No man can expect to make progress in holiness who is not often and long alone with God.
- Andrew Murray
"If the Holy Spirit is power, we need to learn how to operate the
throttle. And if the Holy Spirit is a Person (and He is), then we
really need to learn how to let Him operate us. I admit to being
resentful when some soul, uninstructed in the Spirit, suddenly closes a
prayer meeting that very obviously the Spirit has in control. How can
shrinking flesh be so stupid? We cannot turn the Holy Spirit on and
off with the lights of the sanctuary...I feel deeply that we trifle with
the Holy Ghost even in prayer. What a trivial round of petitions we
get in the average prayer meeting!...In prayer we need holy men;
for holy men are bold, reaching out in the Spirit and feeling the tug
of divine yearnings. Like their Master, holy men also know strong
crying and tears. ...Satan fears prayer and offsets it at every angle.
At every opportunity he stalls the impulse to take part in it, for he
has felt the smart of men who pray in the Holy Ghost. Again and again
hell has shuddered because of the onslaughts of men who have taken the
kingdom of heaven by violence."- Leonard Ravenhill
To The Top
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Discover Natalie Nichols and
Shades of Grace Ministries
In the midst of severe illness caused by undiagnosed Lyme Disease, Natalie Nichols came to rely on God's Word to comfort and sustain her. Now through Shades of Grace Ministries, she shares how you and your loved ones can experience God's comfort and grace through life's trials.
Our Mission The core mission of Shades of Grace Ministries is to lead others to seek and apply the Word of God in every circumstance of life. Our Vision Shades of Grace Ministries desires to see a world where every Christian walks by faith and stands upon God's promises as found in His Word. Watch Natalie's Journey
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In This Issue
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Thursday, November 5 6:30 p.m.
Fredonia Hotel & Convention Center 200 N. Fredonia Nacogdoches, TX 75961
Invite Your Friends!
Admission: No Charge
RSVP online or by phone at 936.569.8741 RSVP required for dessert. RSVP by Tuesday, November 3rd, 6:30 p.m. _____________
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Shades of Grace now on YouTube!
Click here to visit our channel
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to visit the
Passionate Pursuit page ____________________
visit Natalie
Nichols on Facebook.
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Click here to follow Natalie on twitter.
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