Before You Move…

Posted on May 11, 2023 by rolerrol

We need to wait on God’s voice before we move, more and more.

The days of doing things because it’s a good idea or because everyone is going the same way must be rethought (if that’s

a word). We need to go back to the drawing board and rethink how we are living because we are in the end times and there

are so many voices, trying to show us the “true” way which is not the way God wants us to go. We need God’s voice, plain

and simple. I want to share a scripture which really drove this point home for me. And it’s the story of Noah.

After the flood he and his family waited for the waters to subside and they did. That’s where I want to pick up the story;

“In the six hundred and first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, the waters were dried off from the earth.

And Noah removed the covering of the ark and looked, and behold, the face of the ground was dry.

In the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth dried out. Then God said to Noah, Go out from

the ark, you and your wife, and your sons and your sons wives with you.

So Noah went out, and his sons and his wife and his sons wives with him.”

Genesis 8:13-19

Noah did not move until God told him to move. The door of the ark was opened but we don’t read of Noah going out to

explore or to stretch his legs. For nearly two months from the time the door of the ark was opened Noah waited on

God’s next instruction.

“In the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth dried out. Then God said to Noah, Go out from

the ark, you and your wife, and your sons and your sons wives with you.”

Even when he saw the earth was dry he still waited for God to speak. He could have gone a few steps out of the ark to see

the new world but he didn’t. He wasn’t in danger of drowning but he still didn’t move. He waited on God speak to him

about his next steps. I love that!

“And Noah removed the covering of the ark and looked, and behold the face of the ground was dry.”

That challenged me a lot. I don’t want to go through life doing my own thing. There are so many times I went ahead on my

own and messed up.

I want God to lead me.

And He wants to lead me and guide me because He knows best.

And that’s my challenge to you. Seek God’s voice more in your life today. He wants to direct your steps.

He has great things in store for you and He wants you to have them.

I think of Joshua who was commanded by God to destroy the enemy who lived in the promise land. He wasn’t

allowed to make a treaty with them but to annihilate them. But there were a people who were afraid and

they devised a plan to deceive Joshua. They didn’t want to be destroyed with the surrounding nations. So they

came up with a plan and the plan worked. They deceived Joshua and he made a treaty with them. (Read Joshua 9)

The word says,

“So the Israelites examined their food, but they did not consult the Lord. Then Joshua made a peace treaty with them

and guaranteed their safety, and the leaders of the community ratified their agreement with a binding oath.”

Joshua 9:14 NLT

Because Joshua did not seek God’s voice with the Gibeonites he wasn’t able to carry out God’s command to the letter.

We need God’s voice in everything we do. We can’t go through life without it.

Let’s make sure we ask for His guidance with every step we take.

Because like I said earlier, He wants to direct us to the amazing things He has for us.

Bless you friends

Rolain

Do You Have Unbelief In Your Heart?

Posted on April 27, 2023 by rolerrol

It’s so easy for unbelief to creep into our hearts. And that is why we need to constantly check our hearts and see if we are

walking by faith or if we have unbelief in our hearts.

Unbelief can come so stealthily.

When things are not going the way we expect, or prayers don’t seem to be getting answered and it seems like we

are hitting a wall, that is when unbelief can creep in and the negative thoughts.

“When Jesus had said these things, he departed and hid himself from them. Though he had done so many signs

before them, they still did not believe in him,”

John 12:36-38

Jesus was doing amazing miracles, healing people, raising people from the dead and so on but he saw people’s

heart and saw their unbelief. He knew they didn’t believe Him in spite of all the great things He was doing.

We need to be careful too. Jesus has done so much for us but it’s easy to forget. Unbelief can do that.

Even when things are not happening, and our prayers don’t seem to be getting answered, we must determine

in our hearts to always trust in Him.

The Israelites failed to enter the promise land because of unbelief,

“So we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief.”

Hebrews 3:19

I will say it one more time, It’s so easy for unbelief to creep into our hearts.

Let do the regular heart checks to see if we are walking by faith or if there is unbelief in our hearts.

As I close I want to share one more scripture,

“Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God.”

Hebrews 3:12

Bless you friends

Rolain

Gather Your Stones

Posted on February 9, 2023 by rolerrol

We need to do everything we can to remember what God has done for us and not in a once-off kind of way but as a lifestyle.

God has done so much for us and He is doing so much more that we can’t afford to forget. Forgetting is so easy and

the enemy would love us to forget. he would love us to be so focused on the trials and the giants that we don’t even

stop to think WHO is on our side and the power He has.

I was talking to a friend this week and He reminded me of this truth. I was talking to him about a few things I was trusting

God for when he reminded me of what God had done for me in the past. As he reminded me my faith got energized

and I left that conversation repenting to God. I realized that God had come through for me in pretty amazing ways in

the past so these current things I was trusting for were not a big deal to Him.

We MUST do everything we can to remember. Throughout out scripture God continually reminded His people to remember

what He had done for them.

Take Joshua for example. he was about to enter the promise land but before entering it he came across the Jordan river. God

then gave him an interesting command;

“He told them, “Go into the middle of the Jordan, in front of the Ark of the Lord your God. Each of you must pick up one stone

and carry it out on your shoulder—twelve stones in all, one for each of the twelve tribes of Israel.

We will use these stones to build a memorial. In the future your children will ask you, ‘What do these stones mean?’

Then you can tell them, ‘They remind us that the Jordan River stopped flowing when the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant went

across.’ These stones will stand as a memorial among the people of Israel forever.””

Joshua 4:5-7 NLT

God told him to gather stones from the Jordan to help His people for generations to come remember what He had done.

Over and over in the Word we read how God’s people continually forgot what He had done for them.

“They did not keep God’s covenant and refused to live by his instructions.

They forgot what he had done—the great wonders he had shown them,”

Psalm 78:10, 11 NLT

“Again and again they tested God’s patience and provoked the Holy One of Israel. They did not remember his power and how he

rescued them from their enemies.

They did not remember his miraculous signs in Egypt, his wonders on the plain of Zoan.”

Psalm 78:41-43 NLT

As you can see, they continually forgot what God had done and instead of trusting God they complained, were fearful, murmured

and didn’t trust God.

If you are going to enter a new level and receive the new things God has for you, then you need to remember! Do everything you

can to remember. That’s what David did when he faced Goliath,

But David persisted. “I have been taking care of my father’s sheep and goats,” he said. “When a lion or a bear comes to steal a

lamb from the flock, I go after it with a club and rescue the lamb from its mouth. If the animal turns on me, I catch it by the jaw

and club it to death. I have done this to both lions and bears, and I’ll do it to this pagan Philistine, too, for he has defied the

armies of the living God! The Lord who rescued me from the claws of the lion and the bear will rescue me from this Philistine!”

1 Samuel 17:34-37 NLT

Because David remembered what God had done to the lion and bear, he had faith that God would deliver him from the giant!

Don’t forget what God has done to the lion and the bear in your life.

There are more victories in store for you.

As I come to the end of this post I want to share one more scripture to help you remember the amazing things God has done

consistently,

“But watch out! Be careful never to forget what you yourself have seen. Do not let these memories escape from your mind

as long as you live!”

Deuteronomy 4:9 NLT

And with that I have come to the end of this post. I would love to hear your thoughts on this topic. What do you do to remember

the amazing things God has done for you?

And on one last note, I have a video version of the posts I write on my YouTube channel. If you prefer watching to reading then

click here to follow me on YouTube and even if you prefer reading, still follow me 🙂

Thank you friends and see you soon.

Rolain

God Turns Our Ugly Story Into A Beautiful One.

Posted on August 11, 2022 by rolerrol

“And David comforted Bathsheba his wife, and went in unto her, and lay with her: and she bare a son, and he called his name Solomon: and the Lord loved him.”

2 Samuel 12:24 KJV

In David’s darkest time , in the midst of the monumental mess he made, God turned that situation around into something beautiful.

Solomon came out of that mess and the Word says God loved him.

I always think to myself, why didn’t God do something through Abigail who was an amazing woman. There was no drama there but I think it’s for a good reason. The reason I think is because God wanted to show how powerful He is.

The enemy had been victorious over David in the case of Bathsheba and Uriah. There was no doubt about that and I believe it was the devil’s end goal to stop David’s purpose. But God in His power went into that mess and turned it into victory so the defeat could be turned into triumph and God would get the glory, not the devil.

The enemy will not have the last say in your life friend. He would like you to believe so but it’s not true. God has the last say and as you are in a dark place right now know that God will turn your ugly story into a beautiful one. That’s how much He loves you.

And it’s not about what you can do, your strength, how intelligent you are etc.

It’s about God’s amazing grace, His love, His mercy towards us, His strength! The devil is totally powerless against all of that.

I am also reminded of Peter who also made a huge mistake.

“Jesus answered, “Die for me? I tell you the truth, Peter – before the rooster crows tomorrow morning, you will deny three times that you know me.”

John 13:38 NLT

Peter denied Jesus and if you are thinking of an ugly story that just about tops it. But once again his ugly story was turned into a beautiful one. The devil did not have the last say in Peter’s story. He thought he did but once again he was very wrong and he is wrong about your life. And we see the same pattern in Peter’s life.

Peter’s story was changed because of God’s mercy, grace and forgiveness. Jesus knew Peter would deny him.

“But I have pleaded in prayer for you, Simon, that your faith should not fail. So when you have repented and turned to me again, strengthen your brothers.”

Luke 22:32 NLT

So no matter how bad it seems know that God turns your ugly stories into beautiful ones.

We must not listen to the devil’s lies. He is going to try everything he can to get you to focus on the ugly. He is going to use that to bring in shame, condemnation and guilt. He is going to make you feel unworthy of being used and loved by God. He will try to isolate you so he can take you out. But it’s a lie.

God loves you and forgiveness is available to you. All you have to do is ask Him to forgive you and receive the grace He freely offers you.

So as I close remember that your story is not even close to finishing. He is turning your ugly into something beautiful.

Bless you friends

Rolain

Is God Really Good?

Posted on June 23, 2022 by rolerrol

“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever.

Psalm 107:1 NLT

If there is something we as sons and daughters of God need to always remember is that God is good. At His core of who He is, He is good. And it’s important to have that truth secured in your heart because the devil will try to challenge that truth by using the painful things we have been through, the heartbreak, the rejection, the loss, the unanswered prayers and so many other things. And we need to be careful to not listen to the lies he tries to tell us as he reminds us of the painful things that happened to us. A good example of that is with the people of Israel. God delivered them from 400 years of slavery but destroying Pharoah and his people but even on their journey to the promise land they doubted God. Their trust in him failed numerous times. Let’s look at what happened when they reached their destination.

“Then the whole community began weeping aloud, and they cried all night. Their voices rose in a great chorus of protest against Moses and Aaron. If only we had died in Egypt, or even here in the wilderness! they complained. Why is the Lord taking us to this country only to have us die in battle? Our wives and our little ones will be carried off as plunder! Wouldn’t it be better for us to return to Egypt?”

Numbers 14:1-3 NLT

God in His goodness had led them to the promise land to give them what He had promised but the people didn’t understand that. Instead they thought God wanted to kill them and their children!! And this kind of talk happens a few times in the desert.

The enemy wants us to believe God is a cruel God, he wants us to believe God is evil, unforgiving, mean, hateful, uncaring, unloving and so many other negative things but we can’t let him convince us because at the core of who God is He is good. He loves us so much.

So let me ask you this.

What do you believe about God in the difficult times, when your prayers haven’t been answered, when things are not going your way? Or let me ask it in this way. Do you believe God has got you in the midst of all the terrible things you have been through? Do you believe there will be a turnaround in your situation because He is good? Look at some of the people in the bible. Job went through some terrible trials but God showed him His goodness by revealing Himself to him and restoring double what he lost. Then there is Hannah who was barren. God gave her a son eventually. He showed his goodness to Abraham and Sarah by giving them a child in their old age and fulfilling the promise he made to them. And then David. Even though he sinned numerous times God in his goodness extended his grace and mercy to him. He called him a “man after his own heart”

God at His core is so so good. Hold on to that truth no matter what comes at you. As I close I want to share one more scripture;

He who diligently seeks good seeks [God’s] favor, but he who searches after evil, it shall come upon him.”

Proverbs 11:27 AMPC

So because God is good we need change our expectations. We need to expect good. The Word says we must SEEK good because when we do that we seek God’s favor! We go through so many tough things that at times we just expect bad things to happen. “No good things happen for me” is what we tell ourselves but that’s contrary to God’s word. We need to expect and seek His goodness to show up in our lives. Expect Him to answer your prayers. Expect the breakthrough to come. Expect the door to open for you. If I could sum it all up I would say,

Expect Him to be good to you! Period.

So with that I have come to the end of the post.

God is good all the time and all the time God is good!

Bless you friends!

What Voice Are You Listening To?

Posted on June 2, 2022 by rolerrol

“To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.”

John 10:3, 4 ESV

“And the sheep follow him, for they know his voice”

How well do you know the Lord’s voice? As His sons and daughters we should know his voice right? This is so important because the devil is also whispering lies to us and would love us to believe what he is telling us. Can you tell who is speaking to you? I came across a piece online that talked about this very thing. It spoke about how you can identify the Lord’s voice and when the enemy is speaking and I thought it was so on point. Let me share some of the points;

God’s Voice

stills you
leads you
reassures you
encourages you
comforts you
calms you
convicts you

The enemy’s voice can be identified by these things. His voice

rushes you
pushes you
frightens you
confuses you
discourages you
worries you
condemns you

As I read that list I could see how I have let the enemy’s voice be dominant in my life. What about you? Is the enemy’s voice who you listen to the most? Let’s look at a few examples from the word of how the enemy speaks;

King Saul was rushed into making a sacrifice which he was not authorized to make all because he was fearful. (1 Samuel 13:8-12)
The king of Assyria sent the Rabshakeh to frighten God’s people when Hezekiah was king. (2 Kings 18:26-28)
Zechariah in a vision saw Joshua the high priest being accused and condemned by the devil. (Zechariah 3:1)

I could go on and on but I think you get the picture. Ask God to teach you to know his voice and to also detect when the enemy is speaking. When you can tell the difference then you are less likely of being deceived and lied to by the devil and more likely of walking in victory. Will we get it right all the time? No. But we can get better at knowing when God is speaking and we can get better at detecting when the enemy is speaking.

God wants you to know when he is speaking. He is not the author of confusion and he loves you deeply. So make that a goal and desire, to know His voice.

Bless you

Rolain

The Victory We Are A Part Of – An Easter Story!

Posted on April 15, 2022 by rolerrol

Happy Easter to you all.

I hope you are having a great time celebrating the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.

This is a strong day for us as Christians, a day of power for sure. I am so excited about this weekend because of what it represents. This is what makes the Gospel the Gospel if you know what I mean. If Jesus never died and rose again we wouldn’t be here and Christianity would be nullified. The power of our faith is based on the death and resurrection of Jesus. Paul speaks about this in 1 Corinthians 15:13 so I encourage you to go and read that passage of scripture.

But I want to focus on another story in this post.

“Then Jesus uttered another loud cry and breathed his last. And the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.”

Mark 15:37

As we all know Jesus died on the cross. And for a brief moment the devil thought he had won. He thought he had victory over Jesus. And for a brief moment Jesus’ followers lost too. But that was not the end of the story…

“The women were terrified and bowed with their faces to the ground. Then the men asked, “Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is alive?He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead!”

Luke 24:5, 6

Jesus rose from the dead! He conquered the devil. He won the war.

He was victorious and because of what he did we too have that same victory. And that’s why this weekend is so powerful, so important. There is a grace for us if we will only see. We need to ask the Lord for his help because he was victorious for us.

So if you are in a dark place today, and it seems like the enemy is too strong and the giants are too many I want you to know that there is victory available to you. The devil does not have the last say in your story. Jesus does! He has the last say and it is good and it is final. His Word cannot be overturned by the devil.

When the curtain in the temple tore into two, our access to God was now cleared of all obstacles, We could now go to him anytime. We now have a direct line of communication to the Creator of the Universe, to the Lord of Armies.

So as you can see, a lot of important things happened that day when Jesus rose from the dead and that is why this is such a strong day for you and me. As I come to the end of this post I want to encourage you to reflect on what Jesus did on the cross and how that affects your life. I read a definition of what it means to be a Christian that challenged me recently that goes,

A Christian is someone who believes in the physical resurrection of Jesus Christ and lives in light of the implications of that event

I love that and I am so challenged.

With that I have come to the end of the post.

Have a great and blessed weekend friends.

Bless you!

Derailed Plans

Posted on February 4, 2022 by rolerrol

“They saw him from afar, and before he came near to them they conspired against him to kill him. They said to one another, “Here comes this dreamer. Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits. Then we will say that a fierce animal has devoured him, and we will see what will become of his dreams.”

Genesis 37:18-21

Joseph was in serious trouble. His brothers plan seemed full-proof so what chance did he have? But we know what happened. Joseph was sold into slavery instead of being killed. What happened there exactly? First of all we know that the devil was behind the plan. He comes only to seek, kill and destroy so I believe in was him pulling the strings. He wanted to take Joseph out. Now that’s out of the way, let answer the real question.

Why wasn’t Joseph killed?

Did the devil change his mind and think slavery was better than death? Because if he wanted to stop Joseph then death would have been better.

But I believe something else happened, Someone interfered in his plans – God! I believe the enemy was trying with all his power to kill Joseph. He hadn’t taken his foot off the pedal. In fact I think he pushed the pedal down harder to make sure.

But the truth was undeniable in that situation, God’s plans for Joseph’s life were stronger than the devil’s plans for Joseph. Nothing could change that. And you need to always remember that. Even though the enemy has plans for you, remember that God’s plans for your life are stronger and more powerful than the enemy’s plans for you. His plans will not succeed over you. God will derail them every time.

I think of Paul as well. There were 40 high powered officials that had conspired against him. It seemed like Paul was done for but once again God stepped in and derailed the enemy’s plan to destroy Paul. (Read the story in Acts 23:12-23)

Throughout scripture we see this truth played out again and again. So as I come to the end of this post I want to encourage you and remind you that God’s plans for your life are so much stronger than the enemy’s plans for you. The enemy’s plans will be thwarted and no weapon forged against you will prosper.

Bless you friends!

Rolain

The Big Plans of God for You

Posted on January 25, 2022 by rolerrol

Today I want to talk about the plans God has for you. I know you have been told numerous times to pursue what God has for you but today I want to remind you and encourage you of God’s amazing plans for your life. They are pretty awesome and like nothing you could have ever imagine.

In Genesis 15:5, 6 God took Abraham outside and showed him the amazing plans he had for him.

In case you forgot, God is not trying to hide his plans for you from you. He wants you to be fully assured that his plans for your life are real, very real. You are not on this earth to just survive or to get by.

In this life we go through difficult things and at times those things can make us believe we have nothing to get excited about. We go through life thinking we are just a statistic. But it’s not true.

And the amazing thing about God’s plans for us is that it’s a gift.

God hasn’t given you purpose because you are more intelligent than others, or because you went to the right school, you got a degree, or you grew up in the right family etc

He has given you a purpose because of his grace and mercy.

It’s by faith and only faith that you can walk in the amazing purposes he has for you.

Romans 4:16-21 says,

Therefore, [inheriting] the promise is the outcome of faith and depends [entirely] on faith, in order that it might be given as an act of grace (unmerited favor), to make it stable and valid and guaranteed to all his descendants—not only to the devotees and adherents of the Law, but also to those who share the faith of Abraham, who is [thus] the father of us all.

If you are going to walk in all the amazing things God has for you then you will have to do it by faith and faith alone. So trust God today to guide your steps.

Bless you friends

Rolain