What’s the big idea?

During this Covid-19 period the amount of books I read has increased drastically. I love reading so in this season I have had a  chance to read, read and read. Anyway, this year I was introduced to Myles Munroe. Before 2020 I had never read any of his books but am I glad I found him. In the book I am currently reading there is a chapter he talked about ideas. The way he explained what ideas are, made me realize some very important and critical things that I would like to share with you. Here are a few points he made about them:

• Ideas are more powerful than death and ideas produce everything.
• Everything began as an idea and is the result of the conception of an idea.
• The most difficult thing to fight against is an idea.
• Ideas can be transferred and live on for generations.

There are two more points that are the reason for me writing this post,

• The only way to defeat a bad idea is with a better idea.
• Ideas are destroyed by ideas.    

(This reminds me of one of my favorite movies, Inception! 🙂)

We all have an idea of who we are, about life, about what we are going to do, where we going to live and so on but I realized I was still living with some outdated ideas about myself and what I can do. The source of those ideas predated my days as a Christian.

But I was so encouraged to read that those ideas can be replaced by better ones. The only way to destroy a bad idea that I have been living with for years is by replacing it with a better idea and when I say better I mean with God’s word.

That was so liberating. There is hope. We all have a chance to change. We don’t have to accept the negative ideas we were given about ourselves.

We need to be habitually giving ourselves better ideas. It can’t be a once off thing but a lifestyle. And as sons and daughters of the King we have a true source of ideas in abundance.

I want to live out the ideas the Lord has for me because they are amazing, graceful, and they are truth. He created me so He knows better than I know myself.

What ideas are you living with today that are limiting you, that are keeping you from living to the full potential God designed you to live?

Prayer

Lord, reveal areas where bad ideas are reigning supreme and help us to replace them with better ideas, with Your ideas.

Break the power of fearful and limiting ideas in our lives.

Give us Your amazing ideas from this day on.

Amen!

Blessings to you friends

Rolain

What is God really up to in the midst of the pain I face???

I finally finished reading, Live, Love, Lead written by Brian

Houston. What a journey it’s been. I loved every chapter

of it. I would like to share something he said in the last chapter

that spoke to me deeply. It has been a source of peace for me

in this week:

 

“We know that all things work together for good to those who

love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”

Romans 8:28

 

“Simply put, life has moments that we could not describe as

good, some simple inconveniences and other serious trials.

But in case there is any doubt, let me drive the point home

for you.

In Romans, the Bible is talking about ALL THINGS.

All things means inconvenient things, difficult things, upsetting

things, hurtful things, confusing things, painful things,

shameful things, sorrowful things, and ucertain things.

God wastes nothing, and somehow, he weaves everything

together for his glorious future, as only he can. All things

includes connections and disconnections, things coming

together and things falling apart, your best day and your

worst day, opportunities gained and opportunities lost,

good seasons and tough seasons, problems and solutions,

conflicts and resolutions, trials and triumphs, relationships

and acquaintances, sickness and health, poverty and wealth.”

 

What a profound thought. I have always read that scripture

but the way it was explained really blew me away. God works

ALL THINGS for our good. No matter how bad, no matter

how confusing, no matter how frustrating, all things work

together for good. God knows exactly what He is doing.

I am comforted that in the hard times, God is working things

out for good.

 

It’s amazing to think that the bad that has happened is not the

end of my story. There is a better end.

You may be going through hell but God is working things out

for your good. The enemy may think he is working things out

for the worst but he is seriously misinformed. No matter what

he throws at you, God is working it out for your good! He is

working all things together for your good. There is a man in

the bible who experienced this truth first hand. His name was

Mephiboseth.

 

Jonathan, saul’s son, had a son whose feet were crippled.

He was five years old when the news [of the deaths] of

Saul and Jonathan came from Jezreel. And the boy’s nurse

picked him up and fled; but it happened that while she was

hurrying that while she was hurrying to flee, he fell and became

lame. His name was Mephiboseth.

2 Samuel 4:4

 

Of no fault of his own, Mephiboseth was crippled. That must of

been hard to deal with. He didn’t ask to be crippled. It just

happened. What were his thoughts like?

Where there days he wanted to give up?

Did he hate his life?

Had he forgiven his nurse who dropped him? Things would

of been very different if she had been more careful.

To top that all off, his father had been killed in battle. How

much of his father did he remember?

Did he see King David as the enemy?

Did he think things would ever turn around for the better?

 

He may of thought things would never change but the fact is,

God turned his situation around for good. In the baddest of bad,

God turned things around for good in his life.

 

“And the king said, “is there no longer anyone left of the house

(family) of Saul to whom I may show the goodness and

graciousness of God?”

Ziba replied to the king, “There is still a son of Jonathan,

[one] whose feet are crippled.”

2 Samuel 9:3

 

David gave him everything that king Saul

owned. He also told him he would eat at his table for the

rest of his days. (2 Samuel 9:11-13)

Things turned around for good in a way Mephiboseth never

imagined! No man could ever orchestrate how things would

turn out for him.

But God who is true to His word turned things out for

Mephiboseth in such an amzing way.

I love that.

 

I love that through the pain, the confusing times, the intense

times, the good times, God is working all those things out for

my good.

And that is true for you. He is working all things together

for your good! The enemy will not win. Things will not stay as

they are. God is working all things for good. Will you trust

he is working all things together for your good? You may not

see it, and it may not seem like it but things are working

together for your good! That is the God we serve and He is

worthy to be praised! Amen

 

Rolain

 

photo credit: google images

 

 

The Tuesday that changed everything……..

I have not written in a while. Not because I had nothing to write about, but because I was involved in a car accident! To be honest I didn’t want to write, I guess it was shock! It is not easy writing about the accident but after a week I know God has been challenging me to write about what happened!

 

Last Tuesday……

I was on my way to do shopping when a man ran out on the road unexpectedly! Thank God it was raining because it made me drive slowly! Anyway this guy ran out on the road and before I knew it he was in front of me. I tried to avoid him by turning sharply away from him but I was not successful. I hit him with the side of my bumper which sent him falling to the other lane.

But another car going much faster bumped him and sent him flying in the air. He landed on his head. I was not alone in the car so we jumped out of the car and ran to the man. We called the ambulance a few minutes after that. When they finally arrived they tried to revive him but it was too late, he had lost too much blood. He was declared dead…….

I can’t begin to describe to you the feelings and emotions that I went through. I was in shock! I couldn’t believe he had died! I just stood there in the rain looking at the corpse! I saw life leave him…….

 

God’s goodness……

During this traumatic time a few things happened which I can only describe as God’s amazing love. A friend who I had not seen for at least 5 years saw my car and stopped to help!! I had seen him earlier in the day which was amazing in its self but a few hours later in another part of town he stopped to help me! That was God indeed.

In a few minutes of him leaving another close friend of mine who heard the news arrived! As a guy I was putting on a strong front for the people that were at the scene but when my friend came he understood. He saw through the front I had made. I broke down when he came. We embraced and he kept on telling me, “It wasn’t my fault”! Once again I can’t tell you what that did for me! God knew what I needed. It wasn’t something I could put into words but He knew. When I stopped crying my friend left. But those few minutes he spared were so crucial that day! Sometime after that another friend came. He was driving when he seen me. He turned his car around and came and asked if I needed anything. There was nothing he could do at that precise moment so he left but as I left the scene of the accident with the police he returned with a hot cup of coffee! I had been in the rain the whole time and I was freezing but I never noticed it until he handed me the cup of coffee….!!  God is so good.

 

Lessons learned…..

Things have changed since that day. My relationship with God has gone deeper. It’s crazy to think but a few weeks before the accident I would have days where I would get nothing from the word, just dryness! Nothing would jump out at me but after the accident, it was like I was reading a different bible. The bible I was reading was alive. Every day had something new and something for me, something I could hold on to. My prayer times where different. In actual fact they still are. Something has changed. It’s like the blinders have been taken off. I see God more clearly! When I read my word I see Him, when I listen to music (worship music) I hear Him, I see Him in people when they come to encourage me, and pray for me, when I spend time with Him I feel Him!

Whatever pain or tragedy you are going through know that God has a plan in the midst of the pain! He wants you to run to Him. And as you run to Him, He will comfort and deliver you. He will not leave you to go through the pain alone! He will be with you every step of the way! His hand will be on you……That’s a promise!

 

Today……..

I am still waiting on the police. They are still working on the case and I am waiting for them to come to a decision. They can press charges or let it go. I am believing for the latter! I would really appreciate your prayers in this time!

I am much better than last week. I realize I will never forget what happened that day and I need to make a decision how I go from here. I can live in guilt and blame myself and I can live in fear of driving and so on or I can trust God!

Rolain

Staying pure in your singleness!

I have been reading a book called “Hero” written by Fred Stoeker. It has been a Godsend. It has really challenged me concerning my purity! This is not a review of the book. I want to encourage you to read it if you are single especially if you are a man! It is up there with books like “Boy meets girl”, and “I kissed dating goodbye” by Joshua Harris. (I am biased towards Joshua Harris because I am still to find a book on dating I have enjoyed as much as his books!)

But this is why I am writing this post, because I HAVE found a book that is as good as or even better than the books I have read! As I read “Hero” purity was and is on my mind. Do we really understand what purity is in the context of life and relationships??

The first thought that came to mind was singleness. What is God’s purpose for singleness? Why does He allow us to go through a season of singleness? Singleness is not a time of nothing! It is not the “trailer before the movie”! God has specific purposes and plans for us in our season of singleness! After reading “Hero” I am convinced one of those purposes is to understand what purity is and walk in that understanding!

After reading “Hero” I made a decision:

I will fight for my sexual purity with all that I have! I will not allow the enemy to take it away through his deception and lies! It is my responsibility as a man to take up my sword and fight for my purity! It’s a gift from God which honors Him and will bless my wife! I will not wait for someone else down the line in my family who is more disciplined and who loves God more to fight this fight because I am weak! It stops here….. I will fight for the future generations! I am the one God has called to fight this giant and strike down with His help of course!

Purity is more than abstaining from sex before you get married! Let me show you what I think it is now:

1. It is about watching what you watch! Stop watching those illicit movies! Pornography has to go! What are you watching?

I DICTATED a covenant (an agreement) to my eyes; how then could I look [lustfully] upon a girl? Job 31:1

Job had to make a covenant with his eyes so he could stay pure and we need to do the same! When it comes to purity we can’t play games! It’s a war against anything and everything that will threaten it.

 

2. For the weapons of our warfare are not physical [weapons of flesh and blood], but they are mighty before God for the overthrow and destruction of strongholds, [inasmuch as we] refute arguments and theories and reasoning’s and every proud and lofty thing that sets itself up against the [true] knowledge of God; and we lead every thought and purpose away captive into the obedience of Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One).  2 Corinthians 10:4-5

Being able to control your thoughts is what purity is all about. After reading “Hero” I realized I had mindsets and thoughts I had adopted from the media which were wrong and not biblical. They had to be torn down and that process is still happening! Bring thoughts that have exalted themselves against Christ.

 

3. I have addressed what you should do with your eyes and your mind. Purity means making a covenant with your eyes by watching what you watch. It is being careful what you think about. Every thought must be brought captive to the obedience of Christ. The next thing is watching what you say.

A man’s [moral] self shall be filled with the fruit of his mouth; and with the consequences of his words he must be satisfied [whether good or evil]. Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and they who indulge in it shall eat the fruit of it [for death or life] Proverbs 18:20-21

Put away from you false and dishonest speech, and willful and contrary talk put far from you. Proverbs 4:24

What’s the point if you have decided to watch what you watch and watch what enters your mind when you have a filthy mouth so to speak? It doesn’t add up. Life and death are in the power of the tongue so are you using it to give life or are you killing with that tongue of yours???? Being pure means being able to control how you speak, it means dispensing life with your words!

 

This is the final point:

Keep and guard your heart with all vigilance and above all that you guard, for out of it flows the springs of life. Proverbs 4:23

Guard your heart with all that you have! If your heart gets corrupted you will find yourself in a whole heap of trouble! How do you guard your heart?

You guard it by analyzing everything you allow. Everything should be tested. Don’t believe everything, don’t listen to everyone, measure everything according to the word of God! Is the heart pure?? I don’t know! But the one thing we can do is guard it.

 

It looks like there is a lot of work to do in the season of singleness!  It’s an important season of your life. Use the time you have wisely! You won’t be single forever. That is what I think purity is now and that is all thanks to “Hero” the book I read. As I read it purity began to become clear to me! It was then that it dawned on me we have a lot of work to do in our singleness! I hope you will get a copy of the book if you haven’t read it. With that said, please have a great weekend!

Rolain

You are not alone in your pain!!

THOUGHT OF THE DAY.

You’ve kept track of my every toss and turn

through the sleepless nights, 

Each tear entered in your ledger, 

each ache written in your book.      Psalm 56:8

 

You toss and turn in the night. Your mind is busy! Thinking about how you will pay

your bills!

You toss and turn in the night wondering how you will make it through the week!

You toss and turn in the night because you are restless, unsettled, worried, and fearful.

You toss and turn in the night, sleep has escaped you…..it has left you to try and find

and answer to the problems you face but…….

There is Someone who keeps track of your EVERY toss and turn! He not only knows

but gives you help. Sleep, rest, don’t fret, don’t worry because the thing that is keeping

you up has been taken to be solved by the One who is bigger than ANY problem you

will ever face!

God sees your every tear……every tear! He sees your tears and cries with you! There is not

a tear that goes unnoticed and

unrecorded. He knows your every ache! He sees through the mask you have donned to

hide the pain in your heart. He is not a cold hearted God who doesn’t care! On the

contrary, He cares so much that He takes the time to document your pain, your tears.

He cares about the ache in  your heart. He cares about the tears you shed! If you are in

pain run to Him! When the tears flood out look to Him! Don’t believe the lie that no

cares and no one knows! When you are going through your darkest hour remember

Jesus. His heart was in pain, He shed tears but He took it all to God in prayer! He knew

His Father cared and loved Him!

You serve a God who understands and cares for you! You are not alone in your pain.

You may feel like no one understands what you are going through but He does! This is

the God we serve, how amazing is He??!!!!

( In total awe)  Selah!

Rolain……

 

 

 

5 Practical Things To Do To Get Closer To Your Purpose.

1 – Read Your Word: This is your starting point. One of the main ways God speaks to us is through His Word. His plan for your life is in the Word. Get hungry for the Word. It is the key.

2 – Pray: What is prayer? Prayer is simply talking to God. How much time do you spend talking to God? A relationship is pretty much ruined without proper communication and that holds true for your relationship with God. He knows what you going through but He wants you to speak to Him about it. He wants to hear what challenges you facing. He wants you to speak to Him about the deepest issues of your heart.
The thing is this, prayer is a sign of faith. When you come to God in prayer you are declaring your faith in Him.

3 – Do the small things faithfully: The best way to explain this step is with a scripture. Luke 2: 51, 52 says,
And He went down with them and came to Nazareth and was [habitually] obedient to them; and his mother kept and closely and persistantly guarded all these things in her heart.
And Jesus increased in wisdom (in broad and full understanding) and in stature and years, and in favour with God and man.

Jesus was the Son of God yet He submitted to His earthly parents. He could of just done His own thing but He didn’t. He was obedient to his parents. They were like any other parent in that time so I am guessing Jesus had chores to do, He was sent to the shops, He was probably asked to clean the house at times and so on. I am guessing He was reproved as well when He was naughty. But in the light of all these things we see that He was obedient to do the menial things. He was obedient to do the small things. To accomplish your destiny you will need to do the small things as well.

4 – Learn: If you know what you called to do there is a season of learning. There is a time to practice. You don’t get up one day and find yourself just doing great things. It starts with you practicing. You need to learn as much as you can about what you want to do. And there is a time to become skillfull at what you doing.
I would suggest you read as many books as you can. Speak to as many qualified people as you can. If possible get to do what you want to do part time. That will be a very eye opening experience for you.

5 – Have a Mentor: We all needs mentors. We have never been on this road before and that is why we need mentors because they have been on this road we have just started on. They can help us identify the traps we just can’t see. Because they have been on this road we have just started on they have acquired experience. We need that experience. We need the wisdom they have gained. Insanity is described as doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results. So a mentor keeps us from insanity because he or she keeps us from doing the same things that made them fail by showing us a different way. Do you have a mentor? A mentor is someone you trust and someone who you know will tell you the truth no matter what. He or she will not be afraid to confront you and show you the ugly parts of you. That is a true mentor.

And those are the 5 practical things you can do to get closer to your destiny. They will really help you on your journey to accomplishing your destiny.

Rolain.P