The Quiet Quill

6 days ago
2 min

Happy Resurrection! What Now?

I shy away from blogging on Easter weekends—probably because the greatest point in history needs no commentary from a first-year geek at her Macbook. It speaks powerfully enough without my help. It's Monday. Easter has come and gone, and it's amazing how neatly we tuck the climax of history—Jesus' death and resurrection, HALLELUJAH!—into one weekend. We've spent a few days appreciating it; now it's back to work. Life goes on, doesn't it? It does, but that doesn't mean that th

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nikiflorica

Feb 25
2 min

Let's Talk Toast... and Jesus

Funny thing about toast—when you smell it, you want it. Ever notice that? I mean, there was a time when I would sooner eat dirt than toast, and I still can't deny its magical property of being appetizing in any and every context. It's just one of those things. Innately appealing, we need only to experience a whiff of it to crave it. Something in us just wants toast. What if I told you that Jesus and toast have a lot in common? See, the Word of God calls us to follow Jesus, bu

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nikiflorica

Feb 10
2 min

Jesus Laughed.

I can happily say that my new favourite show is officially The Chosen—not only marked by quality acting, sweet costumes, killer screenwriting, and loveable characters, but also featuring Jesus. Yeah, that's right. Jesus. Need I say more? As far as cinematic Jesus depictions go, The Chosen paints my favourite picture. Unlike in the original Ben-Hur film, he is not a faceless figure who floats through scenes on strings of otherworldly music. And, unlike in the film version of T

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nikiflorica

Jan 18
3 min

It's Not All Your Brain's Fault

I don't abide by everything in my psychology course, but here's a fun fact (at least as I understand it): between ages 15 and 25, the limbic system of the human brain is maturing more rapidly than surrounding sections. The result? Until roughly age 25, we tend to be ruled by our emotions. I don't know about you guys, but I'm pretty sure Mr. Psychologist is talking about me. What rules you? Is it your goals? Your logic? Your morals? Your personality? Or is it your emotions? Th

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nikiflorica

Dec 21, 2020
3 min

A Cumulation of Clarity

A day or so ago, I entreated heaven for clarity. I've struggled for a long time with the desire to use my passions for the Lord, but my preconceived notions of what that should look like have been and are getting in the way. I prayed for God to speak to me, to show and tell me the path I should be following and how I should move forward—if I'm to move forward at all, or else wait on more specific direction. Clarity can come in a single overwhelming downpour. Other times, it c

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nikiflorica

Dec 15, 2020
3 min

Ahikam's Lead

Jeremiah—what a book. I mean, really, what a story. Like so many of God's prophets, he was thrown into a role he felt ill-equipped for, only withstanding the hostility and depravity of his people by God's supernatural provision. I can't imagine being given a job knowing that 90% of it will feel like a waste of time. To be tasked with proclaiming a message daily that no one (almost literally) will listen to. Jeremiah was known as the Weeping Prophet. Considering the emotional

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nikiflorica

Nov 30, 2020
3 min

Joy to the World

God's was the first voice I heard when I woke up this morning. He didn't speak through words, but He was among the first thoughts in my head, and as I threw back the covers, I felt joy bubbling close to the surface, risen from the deep place in me where it normally simmers under my other emotions. I have things to say today and I'm not sure what they are yet. I'm just pounding on my keys and asking God to speak through me, asking you to follow where it goes. Joy is a beautifu

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nikiflorica

Nov 25, 2020
2 min

Glorify Thy Name

I had a beautiful weekend. My brother gave his life to Christ, my other brother from a couple of provinces away was here to witness it, and God is always and ever good. One line from the sermon clung like a burr, though, a blog post waiting to happen. "God is glorifying Himself today." If I step out of my upbringing and personal relationship with Christ, I can see how words like these might send a confusing message to those who don't know God. I mean, among human beings, glor

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nikiflorica

Nov 10, 2020
2 min

Constellations

Since making the spontaneous decision to start a brand new project for National Novel Writing Month, I've been thinking a lot about constellations. And relationships. And family. And how they all connect. It's a project I've been mentally preparing for months, but didn't think I was anywhere close to actually drafting. See, I'm the type of gal who likes to have her ducks in a row before the cursor hits the Google Doc—and I mean all in a row. I usually wait for months before I

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nikiflorica

Nov 3, 2020
3 min

NaNoWriMo and Me

It's National Novel Writing Month, and I'm a roiling blend of nerves and excitement and dreams of a finished product by the end of one month. And "dreams" is probably the right word—the chances of me actually writing a 50 000-word manuscript in 30 days are slim, but all the same, it's an exciting time of year, and my first time doing a November NaNoWriMo project. Over the past few months, writing has been difficult for me. My WIP series has hit some roadblocks I didn't antici

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Strength and Endurance . . . But Mostly Endurance

nikiflorica

Oct 26, 2020
3 min

Strength and Endurance . . . But Mostly Endurance

One of my favourite verses in the New Testament is: "The one who endures to the end will be saved." (Matthew 24:14) Not because it's poetic or flowery in its language, not because of its spiritual complexity, but because of its clarity, the simplicity of its promise. Endure to the end. Keep the faith to the end. Cross the finish line and don't stop or turn around or give up on the race before it's over. Endurance. I don't consider myself to be an insanely strong person, physi

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nikiflorica

Oct 8, 2020
2 min

Unsinkable

I've always known what it's like to have Someone in my life who would never let me down. You'd think after all this time I'd figure out that He's the only one. I'm not a fast learner. No matter how many times I allow my trust to drop an anchor in worldly seas—in a friendship, a hobby, a passion, a person—I'm always left floundering when that anchor doesn't hold and God reminds me, once again, that He is the only one I can really, truly rely on. Maybe I don't appreciate that f

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nikiflorica

Oct 5, 2020
3 min

Even the Fearful

I've done it! Finally! After too many years of eyeing it on my shelf, I have completed The Pilgrim's Progress and checked it off my mental TBR. Interestingly, having now read both Part I and Part II, I can say that both pilgrimages are profound works of spiritual allegory, but Part II—Christiana's journey—struck me most deeply. The Pilgrim's Progress is the allegorical journey of a Christian on the road to Heaven, leaving all behind (including his family) to pursue the Celest

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nikiflorica

Sep 30, 2020
2 min

Reflections from the Swing

I'm sitting on the wooden swing in my backyard, under an aquamarine sky, the wooden slats warm and familiar against my back. Everywhere I look, there is movement—leaves swaying, colours changing, clouds drifting, wind dancing, my shadow rocking back and forth with the slow arc of the swing. I'm alone, and yet, I know I'm not. It's an exhilarating feeling. God is here with me. He always is, but sometimes it takes a slow swing on a sunny day to remember how close He is, how muc

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nikiflorica

Sep 22, 2020
2 min

Floating

Sometimes we prefer our messages minced—into soft little bite-sized pieces that go down without much thought or pain or conviction. Painless. Isn't that just the human way? To crave the sense of virtue that comes from hearing the Word preached, but shy from any obligation to be changed by it? To be convicted? This world and Satan have a grip on us, even if we're free of their condemning chains. This world and Satan nurture a love of the wrong things in us, an aversion to the

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nikiflorica

Aug 18, 2020
3 min

100% His—Reaching for the Next Level

God is so much bigger than I've always known, and He's beginning to show Himself to me in ways I hadn't imagined before. I and people in my life are seeing miracles, feeling true Spirit-filled convictions, hearing God's will with a clarity I'd only groped for before. God hasn't changed, so I know it must be me. My perception of God's power has grown, and the more I believe He can do, the more He does. Yesterday, I needed to make a choice—a choice between acting or waiting. I

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nikiflorica

Aug 13, 2020
3 min

Life is Joy—And What To Do About It

Earlier this week, I blogged about the inevitable reality that life is pain, and that we have only two options in that regard: to suffer, or to suffer with Christ. It's as true now as it was days ago, as it was months ago, as it was two thousand years ago . . . but that doesn't mean there aren't other facts of life that are equally true as well. Life is joy, for example. A contradiction? I think not. It's the kind of paradox that can only exist within the infinity that is God

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NIKI FLORICA

Happy Resurrection! What Now?

Let's Talk Toast... and Jesus

Jesus Laughed.

It's Not All Your Brain's Fault

A Cumulation of Clarity

Ahikam's Lead

Joy to the World

Glorify Thy Name

Constellations

NaNoWriMo and Me

Strength and Endurance . . . But Mostly Endurance

Gimme a Boost?

Unsinkable

Even the Fearful

Reflections from the Swing

Floating

Passion Is a Puppy

100% His—Reaching for the Next Level

Life is Joy—And What To Do About It

Life is Pain—And What to Do About It