Seeing His Fingerprints and Leaving Ours

 

The last couple of posts have been about the things we learned at the NBEPC Women's Retreat under the theme Searching for God’s fingerprints...those quiet, holy marks He leaves on our lives. The moments when we look back and realize, He was there all along. Sometimes gently. Sometimes unmistakably. Always faithfully.

As we wrapped up the retreat, though, we shifted just slightly—from noticing His fingerprints on us to recognizing how God invites us to leave our fingerprints on others.

Not in big, dramatic, spotlight-worthy ways.
But in ordinary moments, through ordinary women, empowered by an extraordinary God.

God so often begins His work with stories—so let’s start there.

We don’t share our faith by having all the answers.
We share it by telling the truth about where God has met us.

Those God moments don’t have to be perfectly wrapped testimonies.
They can be quiet experiences of:

peace in grief,
clarity in confusion,
beauty rising from ashes.

Our stories don’t force conversations—they open doors.
They invite, rather than debate.

No one else on earth has your fingerprint.

That’s not just biology—that’s theology.

God placed His mark on you.
A unique stamp.
A personal imprint—almost like a divine QR code—designed to be scanned by the people only you can reach.

Here are a few truths we learned and we were encouraged to carry with us:

God works through us personality, not around it.
Whether wer're an introvert or an extrovert, quiet or bold, reflective or action-oriented—there is someone who needs us exactly as we are.

Our life experiences are part of our calling.
The good. The hard. Even the painful.
God never wastes a story. There is a reason we walked through what we did—so we could comfort, encourage, and walk alongside someone else.

We don’t have to imitate anyone else’s faith expression.
Martha served with action.
Mary worshiped in stillness.
Both were faithful. Both were seen.
God delights in diversity of devotion.

So here’s a gentle question to sit with:

Where has God uniquely positioned me to leave fingerprints?

Let's think about the spaces of our lives:

• Home
• Work
• Church
• Friendships
• Community

Who is already there?
What situation, conversation, or moment might God be inviting us into?

God rarely announces Himself with neon signs.
He leaves fingerprints—on moments, conversations, interruptions, and ordinary days.

And so can we.

Closing Prayer 

Lord, help me notice You.
Help me trust that You are at work—even when I don’t see it clearly.
Help me see Your fingerprints in my life…
and help me leave Your love wherever my life touches another.

 

Blessing

May you walk from this place attentive to holy moments,
confident that your life bears the mark of God,
and bold enough to leave fingerprints of love wherever He sends you.

What Did I Miss?

 

Sometimes God’s work in our lives is easier to see in hindsight than in the moment. What once felt confusing, delayed, or even painful can later reveal itself as guidance, protection, or preparation. Scripture reminds us, “In all things God works for the good of those who love Him” (Romans 8:28). His fingerprints are often subtle, but they are always personal.

If you want to begin noticing God’s fingerprints in your own story, start by looking back prayerfully:

1. Trace the unexpected turns.
Think about moments when life didn’t go according to your plan — a closed door, a new opportunity, a change in direction. Ask: How did that shape where I am today? God’s guidance is often written in those pivots.

2. Notice the timely provisions.
Recall times when help, strength, or encouragement arrived right when you needed it — a conversation, a resource, a sense of peace, or someone who stepped in. These moments often carry God’s quiet signature.

3. Look for growth through difficulty.
Consider seasons that stretched your faith or patience. What did you learn? How did your character deepen? God frequently leaves His fingerprints not by removing hardship, but by transforming us through it.

4. Write the evidence down.
Take a few minutes to list three moments where you now see God’s presence more clearly. Writing them helps train your heart to recognize His work both past and present.

5. Pray for present awareness.
Ask God not only to help you see His past faithfulness, but also to recognize His activity today — in small mercies, daily strength, and ordinary grace.

When we learn to see God’s fingerprints behind us, we gain confidence to trust His hands ahead of us. The same God who was faithful then is faithful now, still shaping your story with care.

Prayer:
Lord, open my eyes to see Your fingerprints in my past and Your presence in my present. Help me remember Your faithfulness so I can walk forward with trust and peace. Amen.

Retreat Thoughts

 How long has it been? Way too long if you ask me.

But it's OK. We're here again and that's what matters.

Take a breath...yes, I'm talking to you, but also to myself.
Let the noise of the day fall away.
We don’t have to solve anything at this moment.
We just need to be present – and listen for God’s whisper.

Scripture reminds us that God’s presence is often revealed not in the dramatic, but in the quiet and the ordinary. Like fingerprints left on glass, His touch is both personal and unmistakable—evidence that He has been here, that He is near, and that He is still at work.

Sometimes we look for God in the grand answers, the big breakthroughs, or the perfectly clear path. Yet more often, His fingerprints appear in small mercies: a timely word, unexpected strength, a moment of peace, a door gently opened, or even a closed one that protects us. They show up in relationships restored, courage found, prayers whispered, and hope that refuses to fade.

Tonight, instead of asking, “Where is God working?” try asking, “Where have I already seen His touch?” Consider the moments—recent or long past—where His guidance, comfort, or provision quietly shaped your story. Each one is a mark of His faithful presence.

God’s fingerprints are also on you. You are created intentionally, known fully, and loved deeply. Your gifts, your story, your calling—even your growth through difficulty—bear the imprint of the One who formed you.

As you sit in this moment, invite God to open your eyes to His fingerprints: in your life, in this group, and in the path ahead. And trust that even when you cannot see them clearly, His hands are still gently shaping your story.

Prayer:
Lord, help us notice Your presence in the small and the quiet places. Open our hearts to recognize Your fingerprints in our lives, and give us peace in knowing You are always near. Amen.

Moving On??

 I can't believe it has been so long since I was last in this space...life is just passing by and I don't know where is going. So much has happened since January...it just seems impossible that we are in the last days of the last "J" month...it is scary how fast time slips away...like water through my arthritic fingers. It just keeps moving on, and we have no say in it, no control, no way to slow it down, let alone, stop it. I want to hang on to it, but I can't. It is not mine to bottle up or store for later. Time is the now, and the now doesn't wait. We have to move on with it whether we like it or not...whether we want it or not. 

"Moving on..."

What does that even mean? These are the types of expressions from the English language that puzzle me to no end. It is a combination of words that makes no sense to me. In my early years learning this exceedingly frustrating form of communication, I was taught that "to move" was a verb that meant to change positions, as in one's body or even to change your body to another place. But, what about that little word "on"? What is "on" doing there? I was taught that "on" was a preposition that indicates a resting position upon a surface, as in the plate is on the table, which to me it gives the impression of being static. So, in my English as a second language brain, putting these 2 words together is kind of contradictory: make your body change positions or place while staying put/static upon a surface...all I can picture in my mind is to dance in place or to run inside the surface of one tile...I even picture one of those inflatable dancers we see at car dealerships. I guess it is possible. But what's the point?

Exposure to cultures and languages has taught me that it is not about the literal translation of words. Meaning goes beyond what a single word "means." 

When someone directs, suggests, commands, invites, encourages someone else to "move on" it does not mean that you should shake your body within the confines of a 12" x 12" tile pretending to be one of those inflatable dancers. What "they" mean is, get going, transition to a different location, the place where you were is no more, change.

A bit harsh, is it not?

As well intended as it might be (and usually is), the thing is that the idea of "moving on" as the phrase is intended to be, is not just emotionally weighty, but often it feels just simply impossible to do.

And you know what else I have discovered? It. Is. OK. 

There is no time limit as to how long we are supposed to stay on our 12"x12" tile, running, dancing, waiving our arms up in the air, fainting, kneeling, curling up in a ball, numb, deflated, crying, laughing, reminiscing, regretting, hopping, praying, cursing, shaking our fist, wondering, confused, in awe, in reverence, in love, in loneliness, in anger, in shock, in dismay, or just staying put until we are ready to venture one foot out.

It does not matter if time and life seem to be passing us by. Sometimes we need to stay a little bit longer before we can "move on." That's what God's grace is all about. Grace finds us wherever we are, and that is all we need, for His grace is sufficient...and Christ is enough. His timing is perfect. His ways are not our own. But we trust Him and we surrender to His plan for our lives. Time is the now, and the now does not wait...but it doesn't matter, because our time is in His Hands, and He will not leave us behind. Even if we are just like an unplugged inflatable figure, deflated, unable to waive our arms hysterically...we will NOT go unnoticed. He sees us. He picks us up. He carries us and takes us where we need to be. In The Precious Name of Jesus, We Praise! Amen!

What's the Point?

What's the point of all the pain...of all the sorrow...of all the loss...of all the hurt...of all the stress and worry and fear that surround us? What's the point of it all? Don't you just wonder about it? Don't you just want to ask God to answer so at least we'd know that there was a point...a purpose to it?

Often, as Christians we feel bad questioning God. We tend to believe that we need to just be accepting and meek and obedient...and just take it...like good little soldiers of the faith. Complaining is not in our vocabulary...or at least it shouldn't be, right? We are so very blessed. And yet...so we feel bad that we do...and yet...

I don't think we should feel too bad, though. People in the Bible, giants of the faith, have done their fair share of questioning and complaining and of giving grandiose exclamations of the ridiculousness of it all. For instance, look at how the the writer of Ecclesiastes, attributed to King Solomon, opens his book. 

“Meaningless! Meaningless!”

says the Teacher.

“Utterly meaningless!

Everything is meaningless.” Ecclesiastes 1:2

These words might seem unsuitable for those of us who profess our faith in the Almighty. I dare say that not many who seek to memorize encouraging Scripture filled with hope and peace to have them as part of their arsenal so they can defend themselves when the enemy attacks, might count Ecclesiastes 1:2 as one of their go-to...at least I don't. These utterings are a declaration of something fiercely raw. They express vulnerability, a boiling point when there's not much left to do but to admit that what we had thought is not so. 

I don't know about you, but when I read the opening lines of a book exclaiming that "everything is meaningless," I don't particularly feel hopeful, warm and fuzzy inside. This is not the kind of hook that makes me want to grab the book, and curl up with it in front of a cozy fire with a warm blanket and socks in a winter night so I can feel protected and safe. Instead, this opening puts me right outside in sub-zero degree temperature, sinking in the snow, naked.

And these words coming from "the Teacher"? That just adds a deeper sense of doom to the whole thing. 

Why? Why is "the Teacher" sounding so defeated? Why is he saying that everything is meaningless? Maybe because it is...

I read that the word translated "meaningless" or even "vanity" in other versions, means "wisp of vapor." Like vapor, the author is telling us that the things of this world are without much substance. How is that possible? All our toiling under the sun is useless...empty. Really? In a way, yes. These are the words of someone who has found out that the material world is not the end goal. The things of this world belong to this world, and as we know, we do not! This world is not our home. We belong to Heaven. Our focus, therefore, needs to be on the things eternal. Our true realm is the spiritual, and as such, that's where our eyes should be. That's where we transcend. That's where we find meaning and substance. That's where God is. That is our true home.

What's the point then? The point, I believe is that we ought to let the world keep its things. All the pain, sorrow, loss, tears and fears will remain here once we've departed for our final destination. They were part of the refining fire, the furnace that burned all the impurities and allowed the gold to come out. They were part of the cross that everyone must carry along with Jesus as He redeems us through the blood of His sacrifice. While we journey through the emptiness of this world, gratitude for the blessings sees us through, always remembering not to get too attached. 

Therefore, let's live for eternity. Let's not worry too much because this life is but a vapor. God can take our questioning. He is bigger than our complaining and anguish and our neediness. He welcomes it as part of our growing, and He invites us to walk with Him as He shows us how eternity has already begun.

And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 1 John 5: 11

What is Success?

 What do you think of when you hear the term "success" being applied to something? To me, success is pretty much always linked to gains or wins. I think I'm successful when I win at something. It usually is a result of hard work and the outcome is that I get something. As a teacher, I tell my students stuff like: work hard, complete all your assignments and turn them in on time and you'll be successful in this class (meaning, they'll pass). Anyway, success to me is a word very much associated with the material. In other words, it is closely linked to the world. But is it? Is there another aspect of success? Does success have another angle? A different face?

I'm currently wresting with a piece of Scripture that is, as all Scripture is, amazingly brilliant but at the same time, seemingly unattainable. The verse is, Romans 12: 2,

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Do you know what I mean by "seemingly unattainable"? How in the world (literally) will I ever renew my mind? How will I ever accomplish such a transformation? How could I successfully complete this daunting assignment and submit it on time so I can pass this class?

Could the impossibility of this task have something to do with a flaw in my interpretation of "success"?

Hard work, effort, completing assignments, winning...did I leave out some important elements? What about prayer? And the Holy Spirit? And Scripture? And seeking Godly guidance? And Jesus being the Way?

I guess I forgot to think about success from a spiritual perspective...sigh...

When I read Romans 12: 2 all I see is my part: I have to stop conforming to the patterns of this world. I have to be transformed. I have to renew my mind. I have to seek, find, see and understand God's will. I, I, I, I...it's all on me. It's no wonder the task seems impossible. Of course I don't think I could ever be successful enough to win. I'm relying on my own abilities...my own strength...I'm going at it alone. Is it because I want the glory at the end? Am I thinking this is all on me, and only me, because I want to be able to say: look at me and what I have accomplished! I was a wreck...but I am now transformed! Or is it confusion? Am I confused as to what my role is in this journey to the deep transformation of my mind?

I believe it might be a bit of both. But mostly, I think I'm just not sure how to go about it and what my responsibility is and where I have to just let God be God. In reality, though, if I am honest with myself, isn't it all in God's hands? Isn't He the Only One who can? Isn't my role to just trust Him and rely on His strength through which I can do all things? I think that's it, isn't it? My job is to give Him my all, which include my feeble efforts at not conforming to this world, at taking every thought captive and not allowing my mind to rule over me, but me rule over my mind...and trust that God will equip me to accomplish this as He works in me through the process of sanctification!

This is a life-long process and it requires my all and my desire to follow Him. It requires me to invoke the Holy Spirit, trust in the Father and follow Jesus as He is the Way, the Truth and the Life...the Only Way, the Only Truth and the Only Life through which I could ever be successful in this journey to a full transformation...a transformation that may not be rewarded until I am in His presence. 

What is success, then?

Success is surrender.

Success is surrendering to God's will for us, whatever it is, trusting His Word which He has given us in Scripture, and walking with Him for as long as He gives us life, knowing that He loves us so much that He will not leave us the same. It doesn't matter if the change did not produce the metamorphosis we envisioned...but nobody would ever stay the same after an encounter with the Living God...for we will all be transfigured in Him. And that's the biggest win of all!

You Are Magnificent!

 Do you believe you're magnificent?

Do you see yourself as radiant?

Do you take people seriously when they say that you are wonderful?

No, nope, nada...

Why do you think some of us struggle to find, believe, accept our worth? Maybe that's not one of your struggles, but I know it is certainly one of mine. I have a hard time finding, believing, accepting that I have something valuable to offer and that I am not just a mistake of my parents...which they didn't say I was...they just called me a "surprise" but in my head that sounded a lot like, "Holy...blip...what a mistake!"

At any rate, sometimes I believe that in the process of trying to become humble and act in humility, often we...me...end up falling for the trap of denying my essence. My insecurity regarding my value comes from a place of darkness that is not of God. It is the enemy's tool to bring me down and to make me feel unworthy of God's enduring, mysterious, unexplainable, never-failing love. 

Why would God love me? I suck! I am totally unlovable! I'm the worst person ever to walk on this earth! Expressions like these are not communicating humility. They are communicating lack of understanding of who we really are. This type of self-destructive talk expresses an internal struggle between believing God's word and falling for the lies of the devil. 

How do we end such an internal battle?

I think, I'm not sure...here's my insecurities acting up again...but the answer is in internalizing the truth! And what is the truth? Well, for one, Jesus died for me. I mean...that's a pretty significant truth that should lift me up any time I feel low, don't you think? God loved me so much that He sent Jesus to be born and be sacrificed for the forgiveness of my sins...yes...mine...not just the sins of others...my sins too. He died for me as well. Over 2,000 years before my birth, Jesus died for me.  Mind blowing, isn't it? But TRUE!

I was created in the image of God. How's that for believing I'm valuable, huh? Not at the image of my earthly Father (which is what I always think since I am so much like him). I was created in the image of God Himself! I'm part of His creation, and all He created has His spark in it. Belittling myself is denying I have God's essence in me. I was fearfully and wonderfully made. And Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well, and that's the truth! I'm not boasting on how wonderful I am. I'm boasting on how wonderful Our Creator is, and on how marvelous His creation is and I praise Him for making me a part of it...a part of His workmanship, created for His good works! And as part of His creation, I look at Him, and He makes me radiant! And that's a FACT!

That's why the enemy works so hard on deceiving us. That's why the devil pushes us with such constancy against the wall of our insecurities. He wants us to believe the lie and forfeit the truth. He wants us to believe the lie of our worthlessness masqueraded in false humility to forfeit the truth that regardless of being completely undeserving, God chose us to be His own and to be a recipient of His Love and the temple of the Holy Spirit for a purpose that fits in His master plan, and through Him, despite all our flaws, we are magnificent!

Thank you, Lord, for reminding us of the truth. May we keep reading Scripture consistently so through its power You protect our hearts from the harmful lies of the enemy as we assimilate the truth of Your Love and of who we are: Yours! In the Precious Name of Jesus, Our Healer, Redeemer, Restorer and Friend. Amen!

Scripture references:

Psalm 34: 5  "Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame."

Ephesians 2: 10 "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works".

Psalm 139: 14 "I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well."

2 Corinthians 5: 17  "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come."

Genesis 1: 27 "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them."

1 Corinthians 6: 19 "Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own,"

Genesis 1: 31 "And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day."