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Author: Matik Nicholls

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The Real Pandemic

The spread of the Covid-19 virus has been described as a pandemic because of the extent of the spread of the disease. Currently, it has affected every major continent and many countries around the world. However, there is a more deadly and pervasive pandemic threatening the church – idolatry. We have been worshiping a god fashioned by our own hands. A god that is primarily concerned with keeping us rich and happy. A god that keeps us from suffering once we are good, obedient children.

Ironically, what is most insidious about the idolatry pandemic is the same factor that makes Covid-19 particularly dangerous – their victims can appear asymptomatic. Hence, the number of ‘believers’ living in idolatry is much greater than we think. We look healthy, but we are not. The good news is that crises like the current Covid-19 pandemic may be exactly what we need to bring to light our true condition and allow us to take the necessary steps to a healthy faith.

What do I mean? To explain, let’s turn to one of the oldest books in the bible – Job. The bible, especially the books of Numbers and Deuteronomy, contains many instances of plagues that decimate the population of Israel. Typically, these have been sent by God in response to disobedience and rebellion. However, Job is the only book that documents in detail an instance of tragedy poured out on an upright and blameless man.

Job faces the death of his children, loss of his wealth and serious illness, all at the same time. So, it’s not surprising that bubbling up from his heart we near this cry, “I am a righteous man before God so this should not have happened to me!” This same cry is being heard in many quarters today as Corona touches the lives of Christians around the globe. The faith of many are being shaken as more and more bad things are happening to good people. Why is God allowing this? Why did God allow Corona in the first place?

Job’s friends reacted in the same way many Christians are tempted to react today. They call for repentance as this virus must have been sent by God because of something bad that we did. In contrast, there is a popular sentiment right now that God does not judge like this anymore and to ascribe this pandemic to God would be a grave mistake. Frankly, I stay away from any statements that claim to know exactly what God would and wouldn’t do, and the reason for that is because of what I have learned from Job.

As a younger man studying Job and Romans 9 one of the questions I had to wrestle with was, ‘Does God send bad things our way?”. I came down firmly on the side of YES. Some argue the semantics of God doing evil versus allowing evil. I won’t. I think we can agree due to the overwhelming evidence that He at least allows it. The second question I had to wrestle with was, “Does He allow evil as a consequence of free will? Has He given up sovereign control over the affairs of men and thus, our bad choices are the real cause of evil being prevalent on the earth?” After pouring over the evidence in Job and Romans I had to concede that this was not the case. God is still sovereign, and He sovereignly allows evil in our lives. This is clear from the story of Job. Job was righteous not by his standards but by God’s standards; he did nothing to warrant the tribulations that was meted out against him. In addition, satan was clearly operating under the authority of God. Romans 9:14-18 also makes the compelling argument:

14 What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God’s part? By no means! 15 For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” 16 So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy. 17 For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I might show my power in you, and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.” 18 So then he has mercy on whomever he wills, and he hardens whomever he wills.

The ground-breaking truth here is that God was in control of Pharoah and in fact raised him up for the specific purpose of persecuting Israel so that God could show His might and power as he brought out the Israelites, Wow. If you have never considered this, you may need a moment here to take it all in.

So, there I was having to hold in tension that God is good, yet He allows bad things to befall good people. This was a watershed moment in my faith. I had to let go of the god I wanted and embrace the God who is. I had to destroy my idol. I had to relinquish my definition of what good is and let the One who is good be the standard. This was strangely empowering. The strength of my faith increased exponentially. I could genuinely meet trials knowing that God was in control and would make it all work for good in the end because he was in ultimate control. Further, I had to conclude that bad things, even death, served a higher good that I could not see or comprehend. I had to see things from God’s vantage to accept that suffering and even death were smaller matters than they appeared to me. They were not outside of God’s scope and ability.  In fact, they were part and parcel of the tools of creation that He used to craft a bigger, better picture and bring glory to His name!

Essentially, I learned what Job learned without having to go through the Job experience. For some, who refuse to learn from Job it may take tragedy to wake them up and this is the good news in the Covid-19 pandemic. I know it doesn’t sound good, but it is exceedingly so! The revelation that Job received out of tragic circumstances was, I believe, the treasure that God thought was worth more than all that Job had lost. To be able to stand in the face of horrific tragedy and trust that God has a purpose in that; to elevate His purpose and love as truer and bigger than your pain; is priceless! It is the mountain of faith from which Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were emboldened to say, “Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.” If you think about it, a Christian afraid of dying and meeting Jesus is an absurdity and a Christ-follower who expects to follow Christ in everything except suffering is an oxymoron.

Who is the God that you believe in? Job found out that He was different than who he thought He was:

Job 38:1-7

1 Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said:

2 “Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?

3 Dress for action like a man; I will question you, and you make it known to me.

4 “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding.

5 Who determined its measurements—surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it?

6 On what were its bases sunk, or who laid its cornerstone,

7 when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?

“Or who shut in the sea with doors when it burst out from the womb,

9 when I made clouds its garment and thick darkness its swaddling band,

10 and prescribed limits for it and set bars and doors,

11 and said, ‘Thus far shall you come, and no farther, and here shall your proud waves be stayed’?

12 “Have you commanded the morning since your days began, and caused the dawn to know its place,

13 that it might take hold of the skirts of the earth, and the wicked be shaken out of it?

14 It is changed like clay under the seal, and its features stand out like a garment.

15 From the wicked their light is withheld, and their uplifted arm is broken.

16 “Have you entered into the springs of the sea, or walked in the recesses of the deep?

17 Have the gates of death been revealed to you, or have you seen the gates of deep darkness?

18 Have you comprehended the expanse of the earth? Declare, if you know all this.

Job 42:1-6

1 Then Job answered the Lord and said:

2 “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.

3 ‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’ Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.

4 ‘Hear, and I will speak; I will question you, and you make it known to me.’

5 I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you;

6 therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes.”

Are you serving the true God or an idol of your own design? Have your eyes seen Him?

Copyright 2020, Matik Nicholls. All rights reserved.
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A Love That Fights

A couple of weeks ago I spent an afternoon at the beach bodyboarding with my eldest son. I have not gone bodyboarding since maybe I was in my twenties and it’s been a while since he and I have done something like that together, without the rest of the family. We had so much fun racing down the waves together. Just the two of us, carefree sea-buddies. I will remember that day forever.

Afterward, I dropped him home. We parted with our usual little goodbye ritual and I started the journey home. It was night by this time and as I cruised along the highway with my thoughts for company a strange feeling came over me that started with a sudden epiphany.

“He’s eighteen now! He’s an adult!”

In my mind I saw the little one-and-a-half-year-old baby the last day that I held him before the events that led to his mom and I getting divorced. I had done it. I had stayed alongside him all the way to adulthood and now here we were; father and son and more than that – buddies. I had stayed true to the commitment I made to that little baby boy to be the best father I could be to him even though I lived in a different house.

Tears ran down my face as the streetlights blurred past. But I could not understand why I was crying… Some emotion filled my soul, but I had no idea what its name was. Was it, relief? No. Was it some sort of pride at my paternal accomplishment? No, it wasn’t that either. Even as I was overcome with emotion, I struggled to understand what I was feeling.

Memories flashed through my head. It had not been easy to be the type of father I wanted to be to my son. Many times, I had to fight tooth and nail to be a part of his life while trying not to fracture the tenuous relationship with his mother which would defeat the very purpose of my effort. In truth it has been a constant battle-dance. Without God I would have failed miserably.

When I left the marriage, I became untrustworthy and when I left her church, I became a bad influence. Those two demon-labels were hell to wrestle against while I was trying to be a significant part of my son’s life. But I fought. Sometimes I lost. I did not get much say in the schools he attended. But I fought. I was not allowed to be there for his baptism. But I fought.

It was in his early teens when he had an assessment with a psychologist, and she unearthed that he had a fear of me leaving him. I was heartbroken. How could he not know that I would never leave him?? I had fought so hard to be there for him in every way I knew how. I learned that day just how insidious the enemy is and how fragile the human heart is. The enemy magnifies every event, thought and conversation that would perpetuate his nasty lies and destabilize our lives with fear. Well I was not going to let the enemy win! At the earliest opportunity I let my baby boy know in no uncertain terms that I would NEVER leave him no matter what. I know it made a difference in his heart. My only regret is not knowing sooner that I needed to say it.

As I write this, it is only now that I understand what I was feeling; what I can feel even now. It’s the feeling that you have after years of hard battle when you look back at the sacrifices, the wounds, the scars and you can say that it was worth it. The prize of the fight was worth the years of hardship on the battlefield. The love I share with my son was worth it all. This was what it was all for. There may still be many a skirmish to come and I won’t be backing down, but I can see the victory.

God spoke to me that night. He said, “I feel the same way about you. I will never leave you nor forsake you all the days of your life. My love is steadfast.” My Father knew that I also needed to hear it.

It was as if the fierce love that I felt for my son suddenly flew up out of my chest, multiplied a hundred-fold in the air and returned to encompass me – the warm embrace of my Heavenly Father. My tears also multiplied, as I understood in a new way that perfect love casts out all fear.

To receive more content like this in your inbox and to receive a free e-copy of my book, The Primacy of The Voice of God – Elevating the Word of God to Its Rightful Position, please subscribe to www.authenticjoy.org.

Copyright 2020, Matik Nicholls. All rights reserved.
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What I Love About Covid-19

You are probably thinking that I’m an unsympathetic bastard to have such a headline. I did not mean to offend, but I did hope to catch your attention and to highlight a silver lining that you might not have seen before.

People have been dealing with this global outbreak in a variety of ways. Many have succumbed to fear and panic as their souls are being constantly inundated by hundreds of negative messages raging through their media feeds. The result? Paranoia, panic buying, anxiety and stress. Many have been countering this fear narrative by using statistics that compare Covid-19 with other diseases or by highlighting recovery rates. I remain uncommitted to both viewpoints. I don’t think panicking and fearmongering are useful, but I do think that the situation is a very serious one.

I’ve decided to adopt an attitude of cautious optimism. Actually, that’s not entirely true because apocalyptic events do get me a tad excited (hides face). Hear me out… I don’t mean excited in a doomsday prepper kinda way (ok maybe just a little bit) and I’m definitely not one of those judgment day/ end times/ Christ is coming soon kinda Christians. What I mean is that I believe there is an opportunity in every crisis to redefine yourself, to redefine what it means personally for you to be human. There is nothing like a crisis to show you who you really are and what you really value. Let me explain. I love how a crisis will even the playing field. Money can’t buy you an option to opt out of Corona. Your particular race won’t stop it. It isn’t fazed by your degree, pedigree, luxury car or over-priced fur coat. Disaster has the wonderfully scary effect of bursting the bubble of security that we may live in based on our wealth, social status, intelligence etc. In the face of calamity, we have the opportunity to see clearly, if even for an instant, the frailty and vulnerability of the human life. Many squander this opportunity. Don’t you miss it!

Why does this excite me? Because a sense of your own vulnerability often leads to a renewed value for life in general and other human lives in particular. And that is something the world desperately needs more of! It gives me great joy to see when people (solely or in corporations) respond to crises with heightened awareness, thankfulness, generosity, compassion, empathy and love. No posts have gotten me more excited than the ones where people in quarantine describe their renewed appreciation for green spaces, time with loved ones, sharing with community and time with God. Oh sing my soul, in the midst of Corona, how great Thou art!

For all of us, but perhaps more so for the believer, Covid-19 holds yet another test: What have we built our life on? You see, while crises like wildfires, floods, earthquakes and the Covid-19 pandemic reveal our human frailty they simultaneously reveal a dramatic contrast to eternal constancy of God. This verse illustrates:

Matthew 7:24-27

24 “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. 26 And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”

What is your life built on? This is not an issue of merely saying ‘My trust is in God.’ There is a vast divide between confession of the lips and faith of the heart. At times like these the true state of our heart is revealed. Are we caught in the turmoil of fear? What are we afraid of? Losing our job? Losing our home? Losing our loved ones? Losing our life? That fear reveals something about what we really believe. Will we remain standing at the end of this pandemic if everything we held dear was lost? Essentially, the question, the test of the storm is this: Are we standing on Christ? Is He our ultimate treasure and security?

This may be a test but it’s not the final exam and that is why every disaster that touches us is, in a sense, an act of God’s mercy; it is an opportunity to weigh our life in the scales and make changes now. It’s an opportunity to listen to what God has been saying to us personally and put it into practice… now. An opportunity to build your life (house) by His instructions. That’s why I said at the beginning that every crisis carries with it an opportunity – an opportunity to redefine what it means personally for us to be human.

So, as we walk forward in these uncertain times can you pray a bold prayer with me? “Lord, shake whatever can be shaken so that only that which cannot be shaken will remain.”

Copyright 2020, Matik Nicholls. All rights reserved.
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Is It Too Late For Me?

I often ask myself, “Have I missed it? Did God’s ultimate purpose for my life pass me by while I was distracted with earthly pleasures or ‘normal life’?” I’m going to be 47 this year and you know… I have a good job and a great marriage and awesome kids but…. But have I really hit on a life spent in the glorification of Jesus? I don’t think so. It’s not that I’ve done nothing… I’ve written books, I’ve been involved in ministry, but such score-carding is so pathetic compared to that knowing deep down in my soul. It’s hard to describe. It’s like a smouldering fire in my gut that yearns to be turned loose. Like I’ve tasted a little bit of God, like a faint scent that comes and goes, but my heart longs to be completely subsumed in His Presence.

Sometimes, especially when the weight of sin overwhelms me, I feel like giving up. I feel like throwing in the towel on the fight for a life that Paul described this way in Galatians 2:20 (ESV) “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” Selah.

But… every time I consider giving up, God whispers in my ear, “The best is yet to come.”

Recently, two people have given me great hope. The first is Francis Chan. I love this guy. I watched this video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmKqD2FlFds) yesterday and I was filled with such a renewed desire for more. At 52 years old Francis, is packing up his family (including married children with their spouses) and heading to Burma to spread the good news. He talks about the decision to go and how it was birthed as he was preaching the gospel on a trip to Burma and he was so happy, so fulfilled, so thrilled as people believed and made the decision to serve this God that he knew, that he was like, “This is what I want to spend the rest of my life doing! What better thing could we do with our lives? This is why I’m alive!”  So, he says to his wife, “What if we move?” and she says, “Let’s do it.” Wow. He also talks about experiencing miraculous healing first-hand on a massive scale for the first time! As he speaks, I’m tearing up and my heart is doing somersaults because he finally saw what he read in the bible come to pass in his life. Oh God, me too! If you did it for Francis you can do it for me!

Then He talks about the fear and the fight to follow his convictions… how he is discussing the move with his wife about how nice church people can talk us out of our convictions and somehow convince us to play it safe… things like, it’s our Christian duty to keep our kids safe and give them a good Christian education.. I felt the tension… I feel it in my soul every day. But if Francis, at 52, can break past the fear of losing his life, maybe it’s not too late for me?

The second reason for great hope is Jesus. It hit me earlier this year: The Son of God took 30 years to prepare for ministry… The Son of God! 30 years! Think about it. I get so discouraged when I see this preacher who started preaching at 18 and that one who started a ministry at 22 and, and, and…. I’m like what am I doing with my life?!?! Then God said, “Consider Jesus.” The fact that between Jesus’ birth and His entrance into ministry there is little recorded in the bible and nothing recorded in secular history until His rabble-rousing days means this: He did nothing remarkable during that time! The Son of God lived a life so ordinary that there was nothing of note worth mentioning. Now this may sound bad but that gives me hope! If Jesus took 30 years to mature and prepare before healing a single person, making a single public sermon or working a single miracle then who am I to complain about how long it’s taking me? (Secretly, I’m comforting myself with the thought that preparation time is correlated to greatness of impact… but don’t tell anybody.)

If you are like me and struggling with the smallness of your life compared to the great examples we have in scripture (Peter, Paul, Stephen et al) and even in church history (Smith Wigglesworth, John G. lake, William Seymour and the like)… don’t despair. If you are wondering if it’s too late for you… don’t give up on your dreams. It’s not too late! It’s never too late!

Copyright 2020, Matik Nicholls. All rights reserved.

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Wild & Free

Oh to live wild and free! There is a desire deep in my spirit to live wild and free before God. When religious people hear that phrase they think that it means living with carnal desires unchecked; a life abandoned to pleasure-seeking. But that is far far beneath what I mean. I mean truly free. I mean to soar so far above the noisy world as to render it mute. I mean to exist where the sin issue is so irrelevant that one does not have to live with the constant hesitancy and censure indicative of the fear of impure motives. I mean to exist in a place of such oneness with Christ that the fire of one’s soul blazes unfettered and the life of Christ is unleashed from one’s life like gushing rivers of living water! Oh to live wild and free!

I imagine what living wild and free looks like…

Proverbs 30:18-19 ESV

Three things are too wonderful for me; four I do not understand:

the way of an eagle in the sky,

the way of a serpent on a rock,

the way of a ship on the high seas,

and the way of a man with a virgin.

It looks like something doing exactly what it was created to do! I can imagine that eagle soaring on the wind… It is not thinking in the least about glorifying God or serving God or trying to be righteous or trying to be anything! It is completely present to the moment! Its wings adjust to the wind without a thought. Feathers ruffling in the wind. Eyes scanning far below. It is majestic without a thought about majesty. It is beautiful without pursuing beauty. God spoke it into being and therefore it manifests that creative word in every moment. It was born to fly!

I believe this is what Christ died for. John 8:35-36 says:

Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.

Christ came so that we could be free…forever. Forever unfettered from sin and free to be united with Christ in eternal life! You can choose emancipation today and leave the slave-house of sin. In contrast, if you take up the offer of freedom in Christ, you become a son not a slave… and a son is always a son… free forever. Some say that since the fall of Adam, man’s natural inclination is toward sin. I am not sure that what happened in the Garden of Eden is that simple but I am sure that Christ came to birth in us a natural inclination toward righteous. We were not born again to merely have victory over our sinful desires but to completely conquer the very desire to sin! We are born again with the spiritual DNA of our Heavenly Father. That means righteousness is in our genes! This I believe, is the truth that the enemy does not want us to know. He wants us to live a life of constant strife. That is not freedom. We were made for more! Still don’t believe me? Listen to the prelude to John 8:36 as Christ teaches in the temple:

John 8:28-30

So Jesus said to them, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me. And he who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to him.” As he was saying these things, many believed in him.

Jesus says some interesting things here. He says that He does nothing of His own authority and that He always does the things that are pleasing to His Father. Then He goes on:

John 8:31-32

So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

First of all, Jesus says that everything He does flows from His Father’s will and therefore He always pleases Him. Secondly, He tells the Jews that if they continually obey His word, they will know Him (the truth) and He will set them free. I believe the connection between those two thoughts is inescapable. They would be free to do what? Free to please the Father, always, just like Jesus!

Oh to be wild and free! Oh that my every thought, word and deed would be pleasing to Thee oh God! My Father, I have your genes. Let me manifest my true identity as Your son! Holy Spirit guide me into the abiding oneness with Christ; into complete and eternal freedom!

Copyright 2019, Matik Nicholls. All rights reserved.

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Sunshine Blogger Award!

Well 2020 is off to an awesome start! I was nominated by Rest & Chaos for the Sunshine Blogger Award! Please check out Rest & Chaos for a healthy dose of inspiration. And I’m not just saying that because they nominated me. The Rest & Chaos blog is truly refreshing, genuine and insightful. You won’t be disappointed!

The Sunshine Blogger award is given by bloggers to bloggers who inspire positivity and creativity in the blogging community. The rules are:

  1. Thank blogger(s) who nominated you for a blog post and link back to their blog.
  2. Answer the 11 questions the blogger asked you.
  3. Nominate up to 11 new blogs to receive the award and write them 11 new questions.
  4. List the rules and display the Sunshine Blogger Award logo in your post and/or on your blog.

So, here are the answers to the questions that Rest & Chaos asked me:

1, If you could have lunch with anyone, dead or alive, who would it be? And why?

This may sound cliché but I really want to have lunch face to face with the Father, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. I imagine that it would be the most wonderful, inspiring, loving and edifying meal I would ever have! I imagine the tangible love that would flow between them! I imagine the playful banter and the mysteries of the universe explained! I imagine I would understand more fully what it means to be a member of the family of God! I believe it would change me forever.

2. If you had an hour to yourself what would you do?

I would take a nap, catch up with the wifey, spend time with God, write, read a book, or watch Netflix… it really depends on my mood.

3. What made you decide to start writing?

I was just coming out of a dark season in my life but a season where I had found Jesus in a whole new and much more tangible way and I had this burning desire to share my story. So, I decided to write a book. Then I felt that I should complement the book with a blog and thus Authentic Joy the blog and the book were both born. The book was actually published about nine months after I started the blog.

4. Who has inspired you the most in your life?

This is without a doubt Jesus. He inspired me for most of my life in a far-off kinda way. He was the God-Man from the bible who walked this earth with such gloriously absolute perfection. In the scriptures I beheld Him as authoritative and gentle, just and merciful, always working yet at perfect rest, sitting with the sinners and then shining like the sun at the right hand of the Father. On those pages I saw love personified. But in more recent years He has inspired me up close and personal! I have encountered His love and His glory. I have wept as he has touched my brokenness with His love and mercy. He causes my heart to burn and exult with every word He whispers in my ear and every touch of His Spirit deep in my heart. I have met love personified.

5. What is the one character trait you want to be remembered for?

Authenticity. For me, this is not just a nice character trait that I want to have, this is my calling. I was created to be authentic like a bird was created to fly. Sometimes I feel pressured to be less than that… to be politically correct or diplomatic or superficial… And I don’t wear it well. I am most inspired, fulfilled and at peace when I am truthful to who I am. Many times, that means being vulnerable about my failures, weaknesses and sins. Sometimes it means saying the unpopular thing or swimming against the prevailing current and dealing with the consequences. But it is for me a small price to pay for living wild and free before God.

6. What is your fondest memory of your childhood?

I think my fondest memories are of the days when my dad, my mom, my sister and I would spend the day at the beach. My parents would be up before sunrise cooking lunch and packing the car. Then we would be bundled in the back seat for the hour and a half drive into the sunrise; to Manzanilla (a beach on the East coast of Trinidad). As the cold morning air blew through the windows, we would slowly wake up to the brightening sky and the anticipation of a day frolicking in the sea and sleeping under coconut trees. We would take walks along the miles of beach, dig for chip-chip (miniature clam-like shellfish) and try to catch the fish that always seemed just out of reach. We would jump waves and swim underwater until our fingers crinkled. But I think what really makes these memories the fondest for me is that on those days my parents were always happy and carefree and even playful.

7. What is your greatest strength?

I think my greatest strength is my weaknesses. To be very honest, I think if I did not have such huge weaknesses (and reaped the fruit of them) then I would be much too full of myself for God to reach me. Thank God for my weaknesses!

8. What is your greatest weakness?

If I had to pick one, I would say my lack of self-control. I can be described as a ‘free spirit’. I want to experience everything, and I don’t want to be controlled by anyone. This sort of recklessness is an asset in my ‘no holds barred’ pursuit of Christ but a liability when it comes to resisting sin. Especially, when one comes from a country like mine that celebrates revelry, sexuality and licentiousness. ‘Free up yuhself!’ is a stereotypical Trini credo.

9. If there is one thing you could change about your life what would it be? And why?

This is a tough one. There have been many negative choices and experiences in my life but I’m not sure I would change anything because each one contributed to the person I am today and where I stand in Christ. So, I will give a lighter answer – my voice. I’ve always wanted the baritone singing voice of Barry White. In reality let’s just say that my wife jokes that her voice is deeper than mine 😑.

10. If someone gave you a million dollars what would be the first thing you would do with the money?

Invest it! Immediately! And take time to really think about what would be the best way to leverage God’s purpose with it (while it collects interest of course 😊)

11. Do you have goals for 2020?

Yes! I am a big planner. My wife and I did a review of 2019 and set our goals for 2020 a couple weeks ago. We do this every year and we have found it to be very effective. We have four categories – physical, spiritual, vocational and relationships.

Unfortunately, I do not subscribe to 11 blogs. I try to have a minimum number of things coming into my feeds and email. I only subscribe to things that really contribute to my growth. So, here are my 2 nominees:

  1. Sara, Living Free
  2. janbeek, Loving One Another

And here are my 11 questions:

  1. Who is your favourite author and why?
  2. What was your biggest life lesson from 2019?
  3. How do you normally hear from God?
  4. What country would you like to visit and why?
  5. What do you most admire about your spouse and why?
  6. What do you do to fuel your passion for God?
  7. Describe an event or revelation that significantly changed your faith journey?
  8. What is one way in which you think that you are often misunderstood?
  9. What is one pet peeve you have about the church?
  10. What is one thing you love about the church?
  11. Why do you blog?

That’s it! Looking forward to reading the answers!

Copyright 2019, Matik Nicholls. All rights reserved.
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What’s The Formula For Breakthrough?

We love formulas. Give us five prayers that unleash the power of heaven or three steps to walking in victory and we are all over it like a hog in mud! We approach the bible with this same mindset. We read about Daniel and all of a sudden we have a new formula called the Daniel fast! We read about the worshippers who circled Jericho and we have another formula: leading spiritual warfare with praise! However, as I study the scriptures I’m becoming more and more convinced that the only formula is that there is no formula! I mean, if we made a list of all the different strategies the people of Israel employed to win their battles, it would be quite a long and diverse list. No two strategies seemed the same. It seems that God emphasized not a formula-based faith but a God-dependent faith. The formula is to hear from God all the time, every time.

This was brought home to me in a fresh way as I studied Matthew chapter 2 yesterday. It is a really interesting chapter in that it contains the fulfillment of three Messianic prophesies. It starts with the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, Israel. Then Joseph has a dream by which the Lord warns that Herod will seek to kill the child and directs Joseph to take his family to Egypt. Finally, after Herod dies, Joseph takes his family back to Israel (but to the town of Nazareth this time), again prompted by divine direction. The author of Matthew is careful to point out that there is a prophecy about the Messiah coming from each of these three cities; Bethlehem, Egypt and Nazareth.

So I tried to put myself in Joseph’s shoes but with a 21st century mindset… I know, quite a mind-twister lol. Ok so here I am, I got the Saviour of Israel in my care… (no pressure). I’m also a Jew so I know the scriptures pretty well (like by heart) and I know that there are three prophesies about where this child comes from. So what’s the formula for successfully raising God’s promised Messiah? Which city should the child be born in? Do I plan a visit to each city? When? In what order? To figure it out, I naturally pull out my Strong’s Concordance and study all the Hebrew words in the prophecies and Google all the articles and YouTube videos on Messianic prophecies. (By the way, this exercise kinda reminded me of the eschatological gurus who keep getting the end of the world wrong… hmm.. whatever happened to all the blood moon fanfare last year?… anyhoo, I digress…)

The thing is, that was not how Joseph approached life…not at all. He simply did what God told him when God told him. An angel of the Lord appeared in a dream and told him to go to Egypt, so he went. Another angel appeared in another dream and sent him back to Israel when Herod died and he went to Nazareth. Simple. No formula. Just a simple faith that totally trusted God to direct his path.

As I begin to think about my 2020 goals, I’m thinking in 2020 I want to get back to a simple yet powerful faith. I want to grow in obedience to the Holy Spirit, step by step, day by day… there are no formulas, only a life fully surrendered to Christ and completely led and empowered by the Holy Spirit.

Copyright 2019, Matik Nicholls. All rights reserved.

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The Joy Of Giving

Christmas holidays as a child were spent at my grandparents’ house. The first sign that it was Christmas was the opening of the ‘special cupboard’. Out of that cupboard would emerge a smorgasbord of treats to delight our taste buds. There would be Peardrax, marshmallows, cashew nuts, nougat, chocolates and of course a tin of Danish cookies.

The next event on the Christmas agenda would be the decoration of the Christmas tree. Grandpa was in charge of this affair. He would delegate tasks and oversee the entire production starting with the assembly of the plastic tree with the fake tinsel snow (This is the Caribbean. Ain’t no white Christmas here.) The grand finale would be the turning on of the multicoloured lights that blinked in time to a music box and we would all sit back and take it in with warm hearts and twinkling eyes.

But, like most children, what I was most excited about was the presents! It was all a countdown to the opening of the presents on Christmas Day. Everything else was just the supporting acts to that main event. I could hardly sleep on Christmas Eve as the adrenaline pumped through my veins.

Then the big day would come! The final hurdle between us and the presents was praying with Granny. We would dutifully clasp our hands and close our eyes while butterflies danced on the inside and then….. we would tear into the pile of gifts under the tree!

This pattern repeated year after year from as far back as I can remember. But soon I started to notice another pattern; by the end of Christmas Day I would have this sinking feeling in my heart. It was a strange feeling. I couldn’t define it for years until one year it hit me – the presents never lived up to the anticipation. It was kind of like going to a movie that you were looking forward to seeing all year and it turned out to be crap. I had an expectation that the presents would bring me euphoric joy and they never did. That was the day I discovered the vanity of material things. They cannot deliver joy no matter how big or expensive.

But I also discovered something that exceeded my expectations every year… the joy of giving! From that year forward I put more thought into the presents that I got for my family than the ones that I received. I began to look forward every year to seeing the joy on their faces as they opened my tokens of love.

Christmas taught me that it really and truly is better to give than to receive.

As Christ came not to receive but to give His life so that we would gain eternal life, let us celebrate the reason for the season by giving to the less fortunate and showing our loved ones how much they are treasured.

May your Christmas be joyful!

Copyright 2019, Matik Nicholls. All rights reserved.
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Seeing Christ In The Blend

Many years ago, I remember listening to a popular psychologist speaking on a radio programme and she was saying that she never got into a relationship because she had a daughter and she did not like the idea of having a step-parent in her daughter’s life. I also remember thinking at that time that it sounded good, but something wasn’t sitting right in my spirit.

Now, with a lot more of life under my belt, I look back and I know what it was that disturbed me. It was a lack of faith. A lack of a bigger view of Christ and His ability to redeem the human condition. I understand her fears. There are many horror stories involving stepparents but Christ is bigger.

It has been 6 months since my wife and I exchanged vows joining our lives and our families as one, and these 6 months have not been without its challenges. (There were some days I just felt completely overwhelmed.) As soon as we got back from the honeymoon things got real pretty quick. Putting children with completely different backgrounds, experiences and family cultures under one roof is not something I would recommend for the faint of heart. There are issues of different parenting styles, feelings of jealousy toward this new person taking my mother’s/father’s time, issues of annoying new siblings and so on and so on…

Many times, it is easy to see the negatives and what isn’t working but I am determined to see the opportunity for Christ to be glorified in the midst of the chaos. The scriptures say (Mat 5:43-48 ESV):

43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47 And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? 48 You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

This passage reveals a kingdom secret – Christ is glorified not by how we love the lovable when things are ideal but by how we love the unlovable in the midst of difficult circumstances. The opportunity in my family is for us to demonstrate love in the midst of a situation that is not simple or ideal. And it’s for this reason that I’m undaunted by the challenges of my blended family. In fact, I’m excited and I get more and more so every time I see a glimmer of that redemptive love of Christ at work.

Christ does not write off people. There is not a situation or person so badly wrecked that Christ cannot transform it or him/her into something beautiful and life-giving. We must never forget that. We must hold onto that standard and never let go.

Again, I reminisce… many years ago, as a newbie in Christ, my pastor proclaimed from the pulpit that the men in the church were so messed up that they were beyond help and he had to start from scratch with a new generation. I cringed, but even so, I still did not fully grasp the magnitude of ignorance of Christ revealed in that statement. I pray I never lose sight of who Christ is to such a degree. I pray all who read this would receive a fresh impartation of faith to believe God for the resurrection of dead situations, dead relationships and rotten people. Lazarus was rotting but he wasn’t too far gone for Jesus to turn death into life!

Some Christians may see a blended family as an icon of failure; a second-rate Frankenstein assembled from the broken pieces of ‘real families’ but I see it as a place where the resurrection life of Christ can shine brightly. I see it as a place where second chances are redeemed by the blood of Christ. Second chances to exemplify the true love of husband and wife (Christ and the church) that children may have never seen before. Second chances for children to witness the centrality of Christ in the home as love is manifested in the down-n-dirty of long-suffering, patience, self-control, kindness, gentleness and compassion.

I see the first little green buds of that resurrection life in my family. I see it when the children all invade our bedroom just to sit on our bed while we pretend to protest about the invasion. I see it when the older ones show concern about the younger ones when they are sick or feeling down. I see it when my wife treats my children like they are her own (sometimes better!). Yes, there are big challenges, but Christ is bigger!

Copyright 2019, Matik Nicholls. All rights reserved.

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Riding The Wave

I love surfing. Riding a gigantic pulse of oceanic energy is a singular experience. It manages to somehow be both thrilling and calming at the same time. There is a peace in the zone where you become part of the wave; part of something so much bigger than you. I am pretty sure God created surfing. 😉

But surfing for me, has also become a perfect analogy for how to journey well with Christ. I have been prompted to share this with my friends on two occasions in the past couple days so I thought I would share it with my e-family as well.

To ride a wave you have to put out effort to catch it but after that the wave provides all of the energy for your movement. To catch the wave, you have to paddle fast enough to be in sync with it as it is breaking. It requires positioning, timing and keen observation. You have to observe where the wave is breaking and which way it is breaking and how fast it is breaking and adjust your position and paddling speed to merge your path with that of the waves’.

The Holy Spirit moves in our lives not unlike the waves in the ocean. The Sprit is ‘breaking’ at some point in our lives, meaning that She is working on something, at some particular point where our flesh needs to yield to Her Spirit. The part we play is to get in sync with where the Spirit is at work in our lives. It requires effort, but the effort is mainly to recognize where that point is and get ourselves aligned with it.

There are two ways in which we can be out of sync.

  1. We can be sitting in the ocean just bobbing as waves pass us by, hoping that we will be supernaturally swept along without doing anything. This is carnal living. No awareness of, response to or alignment with the Spirit. Disengaged, lazy Christianity.
  2. We can be expending great amounts of energy paddling and paddling out of step with the wave, all in our own effort. This is religious activity; works of the flesh. A lot of action but not by the power of the Spirit.

The entirety of my Christian walk can be summarized in me trying to get this balance right. Too little effort versus too much effort. The right kind of effort (relational effort to be in sync with Him) versus the wrong kind of effort (religious effort to achieve spiritual advancement). I’ve been on both ends of the spectrum. I’ve also tasted catching the wave and what a joy that is! That place of being smack plumb in His will. That place of rest in His arms in the midst of activity. That place of being at peace with your imperfections, not trying to be anything for anybody yet convicted daily to grieve when He is grieved and changing day by day because we feel His grief so deeply at the core of our soul. That place where our whole motive is to stay on the wave; to stay in sync with Him because the disconnection from Him is like death. It is death.

So, stay in sync with the Spirit my friends!

Surf’s up! 🤙

Copyright 2019, Matik Nicholls. All rights reserved.