A two letter word for doubt.

“How long has this been happening? Jesus asked the boy’s father. He replied, “Since he was a little boy.

The spirit often throws him into the fire or into water, trying to kill him. Have mercy on us and help us,

if you can.” What do you mean, “If I can?” Jesus asked. Anything is possible if a person believes.”

Mark 9:21-23

 

“Have mercy on us and help us, if You can?”

 

Why would the man ask for help if he doubted the Lord’s ability?

But before I go on a tangent and criticize the man I need to confess something. I have realized

the amount of times I use the word “If” in my conversation. It’s instinctive so it was hard to catch it

but recently I have been noticing how many times I have been using it.

When it comes to the Lord ability it’s either He can do it or He can’t. The word “if” suggests doubt

and uncertainty in the Lord’s ability.

“I would love to do this or that “IF” God comes through for me”
“I am believing for that situation to change “IF” the Lord hears my prayer”

 

These and more were the kind of statements I would make not knowing that I was casting doubt

on the Lord’s ability. The truth of the matter is that He can! He always can!

There is never an “IF” when God is involved. He is more than able to answer your prayer, to turn

things around in your life.

This year I have decided to get rid of the word “IF” from my vocabulary. It will mean intentionality

on my part. It will mean being more aware of the words that come out of my mouth. It will mean deliberately

choosing faith over doubt even when things don’t seem to be working. The issue is never God’s ability but if

we really believe Him. That’s what I took away from what I was shown.

The Lord wants us to believe in His ability because He is more than able. Deal with the doubts and misgivings

you have. Be honest about them and bring them to Him. He wants us to be in a place of faith and trust always.

It’s faith that pleases Him.

 

“The father instantly cried out, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!”
Mark 9:24

Bless you friends.

 

Rolain

Hope is not lost because God is with us…

“Then He said to me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Behold, they say, 

Our bones are dried up and our hope is lost; we are completely cut off. Therefore prophesy and 

say to them, Thus says the Lord God: Behold I will open your graves and cause you to come up

out of your graves, O My people; and I will bring you [back home] to the land of Israel. 

And you shall know that I am the Lord [your sovereign Ruler], when I have opened your graves

and caused you to come up out of your graves, O My people.” 

Ezekiel 37:11-13

 

I love reading the story of the dry bones coming to life. But I love it even more now because I saw

something I hadn’t seen before. In the scripture above God tells Ezekiel the meaning of what just

happened. The Israelite’s had lost hope. They thought they were doomed.

But God wanted them to know that hope was not lost even in the bleakest of circumstances.

 

They thought all hope was lost,

 

“Behold, they say, Our bones are dried up and our hope is lost; we are completely cut off.”

 

But hope was not lost.

 

Are you in a place where you have lost all hope? Are you in a place of despair, in a place where you

can’t see a way out. I am writing this to tell you that it’s not over. As dark as things seem

the Lord will make a way for you. Don’t be afraid to hope again.

 

The Lord will breath life into your dead situation. You will live again.

The Lord is not going to sit idly by as the enemy kills, steals and destroys.

There is hope for you friend!

 

The Lord asked Ezekiel a very important question in the valley of very dry bones;

 

“Son of man, can these bones live? 

 

The answer to that was a resounding yes! The dry bones would live again. You will live again!

Hope in the Lord today. Your situation is not hopeless. The Lord is turning it around.

 

“Thus says the Lord God; Behold, I will open your graves and cause you to come up out of your 

graves, O My people” 

 

Don’t abandon hope. Put all of your trust in Him and see Him do the impossible in your life.

Watch Him bring the dead back to life and turn darkness to light in your life.

 

Bless you friends

 

Rolain

Let’s talk about the dead things in our lives

“The Jews said, see how [tenderly] He loved him! 

But some of them said, could not He Who opened a blind man’s eyes have 

prevented this man from dying.”

John 11:36, 37

 

Lazarus had died. Jesus could have saved him but got there late, four days late!

Everyone agrees that the outcome would have been better if Jesus got to him in time.

 

“Martha then said to Jesus, Master, if You had been here my brother would not have died.” 

John 11:21

 

“When Mary came to the place where Jesus was and saw Him, she dropped down at His feet, 

saying to Him, Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.”

John 11:32

 

But I noticed something not just in this story but throughout the new testament. Jesus was not

intimidated by death. While everyone stopped and came to a conclusion because of death,

He moved forward.

Jesus saw death as something to be conquered which He did.

 

That gives me hope.

When a dream appears to be dead or hope lost, Jesus is beckoning us to keep trusting, to keep hoping.

He is calling us to not give up, to keep believing because He brings the dead things to life!

We may have been disappointed over and over again but we need to remember that Jesus is stronger

than death. Its not “the end” for you.

 

Jairus experienced this truth. His daughter was deathly sick so he went to Jesus for help. (Mark 5:22-43)

He found Jesus and took him to his home. But on the way some men came to him and told him

that his daughter had died. It was all over for him it seemed. But listen to Jesus’ words,

 

“Overhearing but ignoring what they said, Jesus said to the ruler of the synagogue, 

Do not be seized with alarm and struck with fear; only keep believing.” 

Mark 5:36

 

Jesus brought his daughter back from the dead! Death didn’t stop Jesus.

When everyone stopped at death Jesus moved forward and pushed death aside!

 

What is dead in your life? Where has hope been lost?

Look to Jesus because He brings dead things to life. Its not over yet.

Keep believing in Him.

He is the God who performs miracles!

 

Break the limitations we have placed on ourselves Lord. 

You see no limitations! 

You only see breakthrough! 

Amen! 

 

Rolain

 

 

Let faith lead you and not doubt, anxiety and fear.

“The just shall live by faith.”

Galatians 3:11

 

I was challenged a few days ago as I thought about this scripture and what it meant for me.

It’s not talking about having faith occasionally and it’s not talking about faith as an event.

Instead this verse talks about faith as a lifestyle, as the driving force behind everything we

do.

As I live my life there needs to be an expectation that God sees and is working things out

for my good. I need to believe He is faithful to what He promised and even though

things are hard, He will deliver me and that my best days are yet to come.

I am not where I am by accident, so there needs to be a conviction that God has led me here

and He is directing my every step. The things that are happening in my life are not a coincidence.

The things I am believing for will come to pass. He has a purpose and plan for the gifts and talents

He has given me. I was not an after thought when He made me so there is so much more in store.

That’s what it means to live by faith and that’s what I feel I was challenged about as I read that

verse.

 

When things don’t go the way we want or we encounter difficult times that’s when

it becomes harder to hold on to faith, to live by faith. The difficult things we face can distort our

vision. We can lose sight of how great God is and instead of living by faith the doubts, fear, and anxiety

lead us. Instead of faith we become discouraged and hopeless. We lose sight of the big picture and

go into survival mode. But that’s not the way God wants us to live.

 

The just shall live by faith. 

 

In everything, He wants us to trust Him. In sickness, He wants us to trust Him for healing, in financial

turmoil He wants us to trust He will provide, in economic hardship He wants us to hold on to the truth

that He is our provider. When the door is closed He wants us to believe He can open the door.

When faced with a dark and grim life, He wants us to believe He has a future and an expected end

for us, that our lives will get better.

 

Don’t fall into the trap of getting by. As you work, or go to school have faith. He wants you to believe.

Because the truth of the matter is this;

 

The Lord is working on your behalf

The Lord is directing your every step

He is your Shepherd so you won’t lack

You were created for a purpose

Your life has meaning and relevance so even though it doesn’t feel that way, He is busy making sure

everything He planned and promised for you comes to pass!

 

Be expectant. Don’t take your life for granted. Don’t give up hope.

The Lord is in control and that’s all that matters.

Live by faith!

 

Blessings to you friends.

 

Rolain

 

 

The sisters believed and saw God’s glory…..

“Then Jesus said to her, “Didn’t I tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God.” 

John 11:40

 

Mary and Martha thought Yeshua would heal their brother but He never got to them in time. Lazarus

died and by the time He got there Lazarus had been dead for four days.

 

How hard that must have been for the sisters. They had put their hope in the Lord but He never

showed up in time. Lazarus had died end of story. Yeshua would have to pay his condolences

when He came but that’s not what happened. When He arrived, He challenged them in their faith.

The story was far from over.

 

“Then Jesus said to her, “Didn’t I tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God? 

 

The glory of God Yeshua was speaking about was answer to prayer, breakthrough, Lazarus being

raised from the dead.

But the sisters needed to keep believing if they were to see the glory of God!

 

That spoke to me this week. If I am to see the glory of God in my life I need to keep believing. 

What does the manifestation of God’s glory look like in your life today?

Is it healing, restored relationships, breakthrough of finances……

 

The sisters had put their faith in God. It was hard seeing their brother’s health fade away.

Where was the Lord? Had He forgotten about them? Did He love them as much as they thought?

(the bible tells us they had a close relationship)

But in a moment of time it seemed like their faith in God was misplaced. “He couldn’t even come on

time.

But the Lord as we know had not forgotten. He loved this family and would do something amazing

for them.

He would bring Lazarus back from the dead and that is why He challenged them to keep believing.

 

We need to keep believing friends. As you put your hope in God you WILL see the glory of God

manifest in your life. That’s the message today.

The glory of God will be manifested in your life so keep believing. The Lord is faithful and won’t

back down on His promises. Even when it’s difficult believe and see His glory!

 

Bless you friends

 

Rolain

 

 

 

What’s the answer to the pressures we face??

“Martha had a sister named Mary. Mary was sitting at Jesus’ feet and listening to Him teach. 

Martha became angry because she had so much work to do. She went in and said, “Lord, don’t 

You care that my sister has left me alone to do all the work? Tell her to help me!”

Luke 10:39, 40

 

This story spoke to me today. I know I have made Martha’s mistake so many times. Instead

of sitting at Yeshua’s feet I have been hard at work doing, and doing and doing.

I would like to believe Mary was as hard working as Martha but when Yeshua came to their house

she knew what was more important.

 

“Martha became angry because she had so much work to do.”

 

I was challenged to spend more time at His feet when I read this. I tend to be really busy and not spend time

at His feet.

The fact of the matter is, we need to spend time at His feet as much as we can. We cannot go far if we

are busy all the time. I know this scripture is used a lot in the context of serving in the church but

it goes deeper than that. Sitting at His feet should be natural for us. Let’s look at how Yeshua responded

to Martha,

 

“But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are getting worried and upset about too many things. 

Only one thing is important. Mary has chosen the right thing, and it will never be taken away from her.”

Luke 10:41

 

Wow! What a statement!! There is peace, comfort, wisdom, love, joy, clarity and so much more at His feet.

I neglect all that when I am always busy, when I don’t make sitting at His feet a top priority like Mary did.

To deal with the pressures of life we need to stop and spend time with Him. Sitting at His feet is the

answer and it’s exactly what we need right now. You could be facing situations that are getting you

stressed and frazzled but the answer is taking the time to sit at His feet. Don’t ignore Him.

Make time for Him. He has all the answers you need!

Blessings to you friends…..

 

Rolain

 

 

 

 

When will the Lord answer us?

Is this the day?

Is this the day the door opens?

Is this the day my prayers are answered?

Is this the day I get my breakthrough?

 

The truth is I don’t know the day but that’s not the point. The point is to be expectant.

The point is to put your hope in the Lord. Today could be the day but if it’s not keep trusting,

Keep declaring, Keep doing, fully confident the day is coming.

The question is no longer, “will the day come” but “when is the day”.

 

The enemy will try to deceive you into believing the day won’t come. He will try to make you believe

the sickness is permanent, the lack is permanent, the broken relationship is permanent, the addiction

is permanent, the list goes on and on but he is wrong.

Your answer to prayer will come, it might be already here, the sickness will leave, you are healed,

what the enemy stole will be restored, poverty will be broken off your life…..I think you get the

picture.

 

Mephiboseth was a cripple and didn’t have much going for him. As a baby his nurse fled with him but

in her haste she dropped him and he became a cripple. He didn’t have a say in the

matter. (2 Samuel 4:4) Talk about an unfortunate circumstance.

But when all was lost something pretty amazing happened.

 

“The king said, Is there not still someone of the house of Saul to whom I may show the [unfailing, unsought, 

unlimited] mercy and kindness of God?”

2 Samuel 9:3

 

There is nothing Mephibosheth did differently to get the kings attention. No one went to the king and

appealed on his behalf, no. He was a nobody in one instant and in the next he was eating at the

king’s table! And that is why we must live a life of expectancy and faith.

I don’t think Mephibosheth had any idea his life would change so drastically. But as sons and

daughters of the King we can be expectant. A life without hope is death. What David did

for Mephibosheth is a picture of the Father’s heart I believe. We don’t deserve His goodness, grace

and mercy but He has given it anyway.

Like Mephibosheth the Lord can do the same thing and more. We need to be expectant always.

 

 

Expect YAH to move in your life today.

Expect an answer to your prayers.

Expect healing, expect deliverance, expect breakthrough.

The Lord is faithful. He won’t let us down.

Have a great weekend friends……

 

Rolain

 

 

 

What do we do when we don’t see God’s entire plan for our lives??

“And behold, the word of the Lord came to him, saying, “This one shall not be your heir,

but one who will come from your body shall be your heir.”

Then He brought him outside and said, “Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if

you are able to number them. “ And He said to him, “So shall your descendants be.”

And he believed in the Lord, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.”

Genesis 15: 4-6

 

Happy New Year friends!! I hope you have had a blessed holiday. I am really excited for all YAH has

in store in the new year.

Without further delay let’s jump into the word today.

For a long time I have believed that YAH has an incredible plan for my life. I am not about to settle for

where I am in this season of my life.

And you shouldn’t settle too. Trust Him with your life and watch Him do wonders with it.

 

“YAH has a great plan for your life”

 

I have heard those words many times and I am guessing you have too but my question to you is, have

you fully grasped their meaning? I thought I had an idea but I was wrong.

Let’s take a look at Abraham,

YAH took him outside and told him to count the stars if he was able to.

“So shall your descendants be” YAH told him.

But did Abraham understand what that meant? Did he fully grasp what YAH was telling him?

 

What blows my mind is the fact that YAH spoke to Abraham about having descendants as countless as the

stars but at that time Abraham and Sarah couldn’t have children! (Genesis 11:30)

How crazy was that? It would have made sense for YAH to speak to a couple who could bear children, but no,

instead He spoke to a couple that COULDN’T have children!

He is the God who does the impossible! Why do you think He did that? He wanted to show how powerful

He was.

You may look at your life and think He can’t do the impossible but that’s just not true.

 

Something else that blows my mind about Abraham is that even though he and Sarah finally had a child they

would never be able to have descendants as countless as the stars without YAH’s help. I don’t even think they

knew what the Lord meant by that. They probably had an idea that YAH’s promise would transcended

their lives but I am not sure if they knew to what extent.

We are still benefiting from the promise YAH made to Abraham all that time ago!!!

There is was nothing Abraham could do in his strength to make sure he would have descendants as countless

as the stars, absolutely nothing!

Trusting YAH was the only way to ensure the promise would come to pass.

Every aspect of YAH’s plan for Abraham needed Him. Without YAH the plan would not work.

But there is something very crucial we need to understand about this whole thing, even though Abraham may

not have understood the full extent of what YAH was telling him the word tells us;

 

“And he believed in the LORD, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.”

Genesis 15:6

 

Abraham didn’t need to have the whole picture; all he needed was to believe the Lord.

 

You may think nothing can happen for you but things can and will happen. You need to believe in the

Lord like Abraham did.

We cannot stop believing in the Lord. He has a plan for our lives and even though we may not see

the full picture we must believe!

 

He has a purpose for your life and He wants to show you what it is. If you have no clue

then pray, ask Him to reveal it to you. He is not trying to hide it from you.

And if you do know the plan know that it’s not the entire picture. There is so much more, more than

you could ever imagine or make up. Trust Him to direct you step by step.

 

“Then He brought him outside and said, Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to

number them.”

 

As I close remember it’s your faith that is the key. It’s not your strength or willpower but your faith

in the Lord. How much do you trust Him? He will bring everything He has planned for to pass.

Every promise He has given you, He will fulfill……

 

  “And the Lord visited Sarah as He said, and the Lord did for Sarah as He had spoken.”

Genesis 21:1

 

Bless you friends.

 

Rolain

What do we do when life doesn’t go the way we expect??

Living out God’s plan for my life has not gone anything like I expected!!

There have been turns, twists and surprising additions but nothing like I expected.

There have been difficult things I had to wrestle with.

There have been disappointments.

And as I write this post I still don’t have the full picture of YAH’s plan for my life!

Can anyone else identify??

 

Even though there is a lot I am still in the dark about concerning YAH’s purpose for my

life one thing remains, my faith in Him!

When we talk about purpose we need to talk about faith. Without faith in YAH we will

not accomplish His plan for our lives.

We may not make sense of what’s happening but we need to trust Him.

It may not happen like we imagine but we must trust!

 

And this is the thing, faith must be exercised every step of the way.

Think about the Israelites for a bit. YAH had a plan for them;

to take them out of Egypt (bondage) to bring them to Canaan (a land

flowing with milk and honey).  (Exodus 3:17)

A trip that was supposed to take eleven days took forty years! (Deuteronomy 1:2)

They consistently doubted YAH’s goodness, mercy and faithfulness.

They had a crazy amount of things happen to them along the way and things could have

turned out differently for them if they only trusted but as we know it didn’t.

They didn’t get into the promise land because of their unbelief.

Without faith in YAH we will fail. I want to share a scripture that

emphasizes the importance of faith in the life of a believer;

 

“Thus says the Lord: Cursed [with great evil] is the strong man who trusts in and

relies on frail man, making weak [human] flesh his arm, whose mind and heart turn

aside from the Lord.

For he shall be like a shrub or a person naked and destitute in the desert; and he

shall not see any good come, but shall dwell in the parched places in the

wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land.”

Jeremiah 17:5, 6

 

Before I carry on I want to say something. The price for relying on our own

strength or another man’s strength is steep. The message is very clear for

those who don’t put their trust in YAH.

This is not a scare tactic to get you to trust In YAH.

 

He wants us to come to that revelation on our own. He wants us to realize

that we can call to Him when things are not going our way. He wants us

to know that we can call on Him always! He loves us deeply and He

can be trusted. His desire is to see us accomplish all that He has planned

for us.

Let’s carry on;

 

“[Most] blessed is the man who believes in, trusts in, and relies on the Lord,

and whose hope and confidence the Lord is.

For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters that spread out its roots by the

river; and it shall not see and fear when the heat comes; but its leaf shall be green. 

It shall not be anxious and full of care in the year of drought, nor shall it cease

yielding fruit. “

Jeremiah 17:7, 8

 

God has amazing things in store for us but we need to walk by faith.

Things may not go as we expect but faith in Him will keep us steady.

We may have no clue about the next step but faith will keep us moving.

Faith in YAH will preserve us when the fire comes, when the doubts rise.

We don’t need to see the whole picture to accomplish our purpose, we

need faith!

Let’s always walk in complete trust no matter what comes our way!

Bless you friends

 

Rolain

 

What God does with your little…….

“By faith, barren Sarah was able to become pregnant, old woman

as she was at the time, because she believed the One who made

a promise would do what He said.

That’s how it happened that from one man’s dead and shrieveled

loins there are now people numbering into the millions.”

Hebrews 11:11-12

 

I really love those pictures! They are so powerful.

The first picture is one of an old woman (Sarah) who was way past

the age of bearing children but because she believed God would

follow through on what He promised her, gave birth to a child.

 

The next picture is just as amazing. The picture is of an old man

whose loins are dead and shriveled. Naturally, it is impossible

for the man to have children, he is just too old!

But from this man (Abraham) there are people numbering into

the millions!

All because He trusted the Lord!

 

You may think you don’t have much and your life is going nowhere

but that contradicts what the word says!

Abraham and Sarah could not have children period!

It was impossible for them to have children but because they

trusted in God’s word to them they were able to have a child and

not just one but millions!

 

As you look at your life you may see nothing that indicates greatness

and the fulfillment of God’s promise but have faith.

Your little is exactly what God needs to move!

Don’t let your present circumstances trick you into believing

“this is the way things will always be!”

 

Your life may be one big mess at the moment but that doesn’t mean

It will remain like that for the rest of your life.

Things will change. Your life will change if you choose to reject

the lies of your present circumstances.

It will change if you trust God’s word for your life above the voices

of your peers, the government, and so many other “well meaning”

voices that have told you how your life will be.

 

Just the other day I was looking at my life. I was discouraged as I

looked at the problems.

I was discouraged at the amount of work that there is still to be

done.

I am nowhere near perfect, not even close!

“Is this it”, I asked myself?

Have I reached my limit? Is this where my potential ends?

Is this the life I should accept?

 

But that is when I read the scripture I shared with you

earlier (Hebrews 11:11-12)

That gave me hope.

That encouraged me to keep trusting the Lord where I am.

My life is not over!

I have not reached my limit!

There is still so much in store for me.

There are new heights to be reached, new places to see, fresh

blessings to walk in to!

I will not let up, I will trust in the Lord even more today than I

did in the past.

 

Don’t call it quits friends. You are not washed up!

Your story is not ending, it has just begun!

The Lord has so much in store for you even if your circumstances

don’t say it.

He has so much in store for you even if you have nothing in your

hands.

Even when your life seems like it will always be a mess know

that things will turn around!

It may seem like nothing is happening but things WILL happen!

What’s happening around you is not a good indicator at all.

Faith is what you need! It’s only by faith that you can receive

all that He has for you. Doubt and fear will only set you back.

Trust in Him! Believe in the word He has spoken to you.

 

“That’s how it happened that from one man’s dead and shrieveled

loins there are now people numbering into the millions.”

 

Amen….

 

Rolain