Category Archives: Movies

10.16.22
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Seeds of Doubt

Yesterday, I had another Saturday, home, resting and healing from a recent accident. I had to also watch my youngest nephew for a little more than a few hours. I was able to keep him still just for a bit while we watched movies, as he ate snacks and lunch, and he took a nap. Thank God because my nephew is one busy toddler, lol!

But it was one movie that we watched, moreso myself, that I got another eye opener. I have watched this movie several times but this time I got a ping from the Holy Spirit with a word.

Spoiler Alert below.

I was watching The Hand That Rocks The Cradle where a pregnant mom gets molested by her doctor. She comes forward to expose him, he takes his life and his widow realizes not only is his life over but hers is collapsing also. She goes into labor prematurely and the baby doesn’t survive. She is in the hospital recovering after such loss of her child and I believe she also had an emergency hysterectomy done. She sees the victim of her husband on tv and this is where the grief and anger surfaces as well as the evil wheels get to spinning.

Six months later, the lady, Claire, who was molested by the doctor has given birth to her second child and he is now three months. The widow of the doctor, Peyton, meets Claire. She is applying for the nanny job and Claire and her husband approves of her. Peyton moves in with them to begin her duties. They do not know who she is and she is not going to reveal it.

After Peyton moves in, all hell breaks loose. I am not going to tell you all the things that happened but Peyton was behind them all. And it was how she did everything. The light bulb went on and I’m like man, this lady is crazy and evil, and her schemes were working at first.

Peyton caused chaos, confusion and strife. And how did she? By sowing seeds of doubt. Sowing seeds of doubt about Claire’s family handyman’s interaction with her daughter who was totally innocent. By sowing seeds of doubt about her husband and his faithfulness. By sowing seeds of doubt about her competency as a mother. She did more stuff but you have to watch or rewatch the movie if you have seen it before.

And that is what the enemy does. He sows seeds of doubt. According to the Idioms – Free Dictionary.com, sowing seeds of doubt is To cause someone to have doubts, worries, or concerns (about something); to introduce someone to a doubtful or worrisome idea. He plants seeds of doubt and causes strife and confusion and everything in between.

Now Peyton came in the door winning everyone over. She was supportive and a great help to the family but slowly turning the household upside down. Sounds familiar?

What helped them realize at first something was wrong although they couldn’t put their finger on it fully? There was too much disorder and confusion. Claire was falling apart at the seams. She couldn’t as she said go on like that. There was no peace or little peace.

And Peyton seemed to be at the source of it all.

Peyton even tries to seduce Claire’s husband. But love was stronger, boundaries were set. He looked like he may have been wrestling a bit in his head but he clearly respected his wife and marriage and didn’t take the bate.

So, realize the enemy comes in to sow seeds of doubt. He may not send a Peyton but he may send something or someone else and in a different way. And we must do the following to overcome:

  • Be alert. Know the spiritual climate of your home and when something is off, seek God’s wisdom and address it. Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8) Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Mark 14:38
  • Guard your heart. Guard it with the Truth of our Lord and Savior, Christ Jesus. Saturate in the Word of God. Ask God to cleanse it and to heal any areas of it that need healing. Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life (Proverbs 4:23) Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:6-7) Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me (Psalm 51:10).
  • Ask God for wisdom to discern the enemy’s lies. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him (James 1:5).
  • Set boundaries and enforce them. Set standards and keep them. Setting boundaries protects you and others. It enforces self control and it draws the line with disrespect, unhealthy or ungodly intrusion. It show people how to respect you and treat you. For scriptures regarding boundaries, I will just include the link here. https://www.openbible.info/topics/boundaries
  • Know your enemy. Even if he disguises himself, we should be able to recognize his tactics, his M.O, his ways, etc. And remember we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places (Ephesians 6:12). For knowing your enemy, I will include more scriptures regarding such here. https://www.openbible.info/topics/knowing_your_enemy
  • Trust God and know that His love is unfailing. He will win and help you overcome. Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses (Proverbs 10:12). So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand (Isaiah 41:10).

Claire and her husband’s love won and in the end they trusted one another and came together to protect their family.

Whew, we don’t always see the enemy coming nor realize that he has been either invited in, has crept in, or finessed his way in, but I pray we realize more and more his tactics and lies. And I pray we replace his lies with the Truth of the Lord. That is what Jesus did. He fought the enemy with the Word of God, the Truth, and His commitment to the Father didn’t wane. Sidebar: He also knew His own identity and He knew His opponent. Knowing who you are as well as knowing and receiving God’s love and purpose for you are so crucial in our walk of life and continual fight for our destinies, souls, and families. We are in this fight whether we want to be in it or not.

Moreover, be alert as best as you can. Allow God to remove the distractions, heal you where needed, and to see things the way He does. We need His insight, wisdom like never before in these times. I pray peace for all over our homes, the kind of peace that surpasses all understanding and that peace only comes from Jesus.

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01.01.22
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Happy New Year: My Own 12 Favorite Posts

Happy New Year!!!! I pray that this year is one that you continue to grow, heal, learn to trust God, have God’s peace that surpasses all understanding, and that you have joy for the joy of the Lord is your strength. And that you are healthy, laugh a lot, and live life as well as live meaningfully.

Alrighty then, in celebration of a new year and with much reflection brought upon this time, here are my 12 favorite posts I have written since the start of my WordPress and public writing/author journey.

No specific order here:

1. Walking In Your Own Shoes

I wrote this post in relative to the release of my second book. I explored what it meant to walk in your own shoes. What it meant and what it meant for me. I remembered setting my heels out for a photoshoot for the book cover. The process for this book was fun and a great time of reflection.

2. Go To War

I love this post also. I love when God download or shall I say uploads a word to my spirit for myself as well others. It more so feels like a word for me that I get so excited about and sometimes nervous about sharing with others. Sometimes, if you are like me, confrontation and fighting scares you but there is a spiritual warfare that we as Christians cannot ignore. And God wants to teach us how to fight and how to strengthen our faith while doing so.

3. The devil’s loss

This is my favorite poem. I wrote this for a church service/event. Much prayer and seeking God led me to the book of Job and reflecting upon my own experience. Subsequently, this poem was birthed. Thank You, Jesus!

4. Seized By The Storm

I wrote this post after watching an episode or entire series of Raising Dion with the youngin’. We enjoyed this series. And as usual when I watch some things I found a lesson or two that spoke to my heart. I feel like God uploaded another one to my spirit.

5. The Enemy’s Trick (Lesson’s From The Walking Dead

The Walking Dead is my favorite tv show. And I wrote this post after watching one of the episodes (I forgot the season, it may have been 9). Anyways, once again the lightbulb went on and I got another word.

6. Tannika’s Writing Vault: Sunday School Blues

I started a new series last year I believe or the year before: Tannika’s Writing Vault. This post featured a skit I wrote for church that never made it to production or event. Yet, I had so much fun writing it and preparing for it.

7. Guard Your Heart Like An Athlete Guarding A Football

This is another favorite as I visited what it looked like for me as a Christian and subsequently someone else to guard their hearts. As a believer and follower of Christ Jesus, I am to guard my heart and do so intentionally, even when my flesh says otherwise.

8. Let Go and Let God

This is one of my all time favorite posts. I wrote it for another blog titled EmpowerMoments. My time with EmpowerMoments brought a lot out of me as a writer and editor, and I am forever grateful. This post, whew, I knew it had to be another upload to my spirit from God partly because of the transparency and the grace to write it and upload it. And I love how He used a scene from a movie I enjoy watching to express a message to me that was needed.

9. Introducing My New Book

This post is simply that, introducing my latest book, titled Bring It To The Surface: Poetry & Journal. I love my growth as a self published author. And this book, I believe showcases my growth as an author, poet, and writer. I also was so excited to bring forth something a little different than what I had done previously with my poetry books. A Journal for self reflection. A guide to self reflect and begin a journey of healing. One that allows God to bring some things or all of them to the surface but one day/step at a time.

10. Was I Really Free?

I wrote this post because the I Am Free promo photoshoot for my first book or post for it resurfaced and it got me to reflecting on my life and struggles with anxiety and fear at the time. I felt like I either was lying or had fallen backwards since I wasn’t feeling free. So hence, the post “Was I Really Free?” came about.

11. My DIY Project

I desired to change my bathroom for awhile and finally did so. I documented the journey and thought it would be different and fun to post. I had fun painting the bathroom walls, not so much the ceiling. And I enjoyed redecorating the bathroom.

12. Favorite Christmas Movies

I don’t really like being on camera. I am a behind the scenes, shy one. However, I thought I would step out of my comfort zone as I thought of fun videos to do for Christmas, especially since I was in the Christmas spirit. This is what came to mind. I had fun doing the video and definitely watched my most favorite one the next evening.

So there you go! I love many more posts and I also enjoy my writing tips series and the interviews I did showcasing awesome writers/authors and much more; nevertheless, these are my favorite 12 posts for now.

Sincerely,

Tannika Nikeya

09.12.21
by

Film Review

I decided that I would catch a movie today around the same time my preteen was going to be seeing a movie with the program he is in. And this was an opportunity to take myself out. And I could wait for him while the kids were watching their movie. The movie I wanted to see was only playing in the evening time so I had to look for another movie. One particular film caught my eye. It turned out to be a documentary and I admit I seldom watch documentaries. However, this documentary was being produced by the Kendricks Brothers, and they do not disappoint. Remember the Kendrick Brothers brought us War Room.

This documentary happened to be playing around the same time as the movie my preteen would be watching. I was elated and interested in how the documentary would actually be.

I cried, laughed and expressed my heartfelt “thank You, Jesus” several times all while sitting reclined in my comfortable red seat.

The documentary is called Show Me The Father. It is a documentary from the perspectives and voices of men I wasn’t too familiar with. I was familiar with the Kendrick Brothers and Dr. Tony Evans but not the likes of Deland McCullough and Sherman Smith.

The documentary was about the impact of the fathers on the lives of these men. Some had fathers or even father figures who were present and pouring into their children as best as they could. Other had fathers and stepfathers not present, abusive, or struggling in some kind of way. Oh and the twist at the end regarding one of the men. Ok, hope I am not spoiling anything.

Nonetheless, what the Kendrick Brothers wanted you to realize is that there is one father that can fill the void of an absent father or a negligent father, and who loves us beyond measure. And that He can also heal the hearts of men looking to change the impact they are making in their children’s lives.

Whether you are a father or mother, the child, young or old, saved or unsaved, please go see this film. Whether your father was present, a protector and a provider or not present like mine, go see this film. And bring your kleenex.