What about the little things…..?

“He who is faithful in a very little [thing] is faithful also in much,

and he who is dishonest and unjust in a very little [thing] is

dishonest and unjust also in much. “

Luke 16:10-12

 

How much value do you put on the little things you are doing right now?

In other words, how much value do you put on the responsibilities you have

been given right now (no matter how small) as you pursue the grand dreams YAH

has put in your heart?

 

The things we are doing now that we think are insignificant and small play a very

big role in the scope of our purpose and calling.

As I read Luke 16:10-12 I saw something that I don’t think I fully grasped before.

 

He who is faithful in a very little thing IS faithful also in much [emphasis mine]

 

I never fully grasped that before. This scripture is not only saying I will be given

more because I am faithful with the very little but it’s saying, he is who is faithful

with very little IS faithful with much!

 

We need to take the little things we are responsible over more seriously.

You will be faithful with the big things only if you are faithful with the little

things!

What you do with the very little things determines everything!

And that is why you need to be faithful with the little things YAH puts in your hands.

 

Since reading that verse I have been looking at the things I am struggling to be faithful in.

If I remain unfaithful the word is clear,

 

“and he who is dishonest and unjust in a very little [thing] is dishonest and unjust also

in much”

 

You may think what you do now doesn’t matter but it does matter. It has an impact on your

purpose. If you are reckless and irresponsible now, that means you will be reckless and

irresponsible with the big things. Those attitudes won’t automatically go away because you have

been given more responsibility. You need to look at those things that are stopping you from being

faithful and work on them. Bring them before YAH and allow Him to work on you.

 

We need to change the way we look at what we are doing. It is important. Don’t disregard

the responsibilities you have in this time.

Always remember that if you are faithful with the little things you ARE faithful with the big things!

Bless you

 

Rolain

Puzzles and life…..

For some of you that may not know, I work at my church’s

children’s ministry. I really love it there. It’s more than a job

to me. This is part of what I was created to do – working with

children.

So today I had to sort out a few puzzles in preparation for Sunday.

To be honest, I was a bit worried about the puzzles.

Let me just say it’s being a “while” since I played with

traditional puzzles.

I was worried I had forgotten to assemble a puzzle.

I would never hear the end of the story if I failed to assemble

the puzzles…haha

Start I did and rocky it was. Panic started to set in!

Before I got carried away I spotted the pictures on the side of the

box.

What a difference it made. Because of the pictures I

assembled all the pictures at once.

 

It was at that moment I realized how powerful a picture is!

 

Have you got a picture of where you want to go in life?

Are you holding up a picture of what you want your life to be

or are you on auto pilot at the moment, an anything goes attitude?

A picture makes all the difference!

 

And we are very fortunate because the Lord has pictures for us.

He has a plan and purpose for our lives (Jeremiah 29:11)

When you have a picture for your life you will not be easily

side tracked. You have purpose and are focused when you have

a picture.

 

And make sure the picture you have is one God gave you and

not what people have given you. People’s plans for you will always

fall short of what God has in store for you.

 

As I close I want to challenge you to seek the Lord for the

picture. He has amazing plans for your life so don’t go

through life without a picture in front of you.

 

Rolain

 

 

Why “perfect” doesn’t work with God……!

In the past two weeks I have been feeling inadequate, not enough, useless, for the purpose God has for me. A door of opportunity has opened up for me but instead of proudly walking through it I have had doubts and more doubts! I have second guessed my ability and come up with a conclusion:

I am not the right person for the job. I am unequipped and unqualified for this. 

But as I had that thought I was reminded of Jesus and the disciples! Jesus had chosen them, entrusted them with the job of spreading the good news after He was gone! They would be His hands and feet, they were to be His voice! They had some VERY big shoes to fill….

These are the men Jesus called:

– They couldn’t stay up and pray with Jesus in His most trying time!  Matthew 26:45

– They fled and abandoned Him when He needed them the most. Matthew 26:56

– Peter denied Him.  Matthew 26:74, 75

– They struggled to understand what Jesus was saying a lot of the time! Matthew 15:16

– They couldn’t cast out a demon because they lacked faith.                 Mark 9: 17, 18, 19

– They fought among themselves.   Luke 22:24

 

This is what Jesus had to work with. These men who had so many faults, these men who let Him down so much, these are the men who turned the world upside down for Jesus. They gave their all for Him! These were the men Jesus commissioned to spread the good news! Despite their flaws Jesus used them and He still does the same thing today!

God knows your faults, your weaknesses, your failings, but He has CHOSEN YOU!

Don’t think He has made a mistake because He hasn’t!

Whatever your weakenesses know that He wants to use you! Will you let Him use you??

Don’t believe the lie that God can’t use you because you are not perfect! We are far from perfect but God can still use us!

As you can see, my fears and anxieties were very irrational. After having those feelings I realised something, God wants me to trust Him every step of the way. He knew I wasn’t qualified but He wanted me to trust Him to guide me.

I have a sneaking feeling this won’t be the last time He calls me to something out of my depth! My purpose is way out of my depth not because He is mean but because He wants me to trust Him. If I can accomplish my purpose in my own strength how would God be glorified?

God’s calling is always bigger than you, it is always out of your depth! With all your faults and short comings He wants you to trust Him! He has an amazing plan for your life…..!

Rolain

 

 

The Compromise of the Calling…..

 

 

We all agree that God has a destiny for each and everyone of us. No matter who you are or how you were brought up or where you lived, God has a destiny for you. Like the people of God you have a purpose and a calling. I would like to make a point but to do so we need to look at a few scriptures. Let us look at Judges 1:19:

The Lord was with Judah, and [Judah] drove out the inhabitants of the hill country, but he could not drive out those inhabiting the [difficult] valley basin because they had chariots of iron.

But the Benjamites did not drive out the Jebusites who inhabited Jerusalem; the Jebusites dwell with the Benjaminites in Jerusalem to this day. Judges 1:21

Neither did Manasseh  drive out the inhabitants of Beth-shean and it’s villages, or of Taanach or Dor or Ibleam or Megiddo and their villages, but the Canaanites remained in that land.
Judges 1:27

As you read the rest of the chapter you will see a trend. You will see how Israel failed to drive out the inhabitants of the land. They compromised the call of God. They were specifically told to destroy the nations around them but they couldn’t. Why?

The promise God has for us is not easy to attain! We see this clearly shown in the scriptures I just wrote. Walking the path God has for you is not for the faint-hearted! It is hard, and difficult to attain. God was speaking to Joshua and this is what He told him as he was about to get into the promise land:

No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you.
Be strong (confident) and of good courage, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land which I swore to their fathers to give them.
Only you be strong and very courageous, that you may do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you, Turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go. Judges 1:7

Have not I commanded you? Be strong, vigorous, and very courageous. Be not afraid, neither be dismayed, for The Lord your God is with you wherever you go. Joshua 1:9

Is it possible that Israel compromised because they didn’t understand what it really meant to walk into the promise land? Did they expect it to be a walk in the park? Did they not know it was going to be difficult?
Walking into what God has for you is not only difficult but impossible!!! In our own strength we don’t stand a chance,it would be better to give up right now.

When Moses told all this to the people of Israel, they mourned long and hard. But early the next morning they started out for the high hill country saying, We’re here; we’re ready – let’s go up and attack the land that God promised us. We sinned, but now we’re ready – let’s go up and attack the land that God promised us. We sinned, but now we’re ready.” Numbers 14: 39-45

We all know the story. The Isralites were defeated. They could not take the land in their own strength. This is what I would like you to see.
God has a calling and purpose for us. In the natural, it is impossible to accomplish it. The only way to walk in your purpose is to trust God. You will accomplish all He has for you when you look to Him and rely Him.
But even with all that said, to accomplish our purpose we need to be strong and very courageous. It takes a strong person, a person who knows who he is in God to accomplish his purpose!

God will not leave you alone. He will not expect you to finish the race on your own because He knows you can’t do it. We compromise the call of God on our lives when we think we can do it by ourselves in our own strength. The truth is we can’t. God is with us willing to help us. We just need to ask Him for help. As you trust in Him, He will help you and strengthen you.

I can see where God is leading me to next in my walk with Him. I also see it’s going to need me to be strong and courageous as I walk with Him. I also see without Him I will fail, no doubt but in the midst of all that I am confident He is with me. He will not let me down. And so it is with you. As you pursue the desires God has put in your heart know that He is by your side. There will be days when you will feel like giving up but just keep pressing on. He will bring you to the other side! He is good indeed!

Rolain

 

No matter what happens, God is in control!

You have a calling….. You were brought to earth for a reason and that is the truth. What I have been thinking about are the journey’s of all the great men and women in the bible. I don’t believe the road God paved for them was easy. And this is the thing though, we read their stories and we know their ending but the actual people didn’t. For example, look at Joseph, Esther, and Rahab.

Joseph – We know his story but imagine what he went through. He was sold as a slave. What was going through his mind at that precise moment? Just before that his brothers threw him down a pit and were planning his death! Did he think his life would amount up to something? Did he feel like God had abandoned him? Did he lose hope? Did he ever feel like just giving up? I think he went through all these things but when we read his story we know the end. We know God would deliver him in a mighty way. We know he would become second to Pharaoh! We know he would save the world from a severe famine but did he? I don’t think he knew that when he was in the pit. But the fact is this, God was in control, even when things didn’t seem like that. He knew the end and that is what matters. Joseph may of felt abandoned because of the circumstances he found himself in but he wasn’t abandoned. God had not abandoned him! God was guiding him and making a way for him. God was preparing him for something big.

Esther – She was orphaned. She didn’t know who her parents were. She was abandoned and was being raised by her uncle, Mordecai. (Esther 2:7) And to top things off, she was a women. Not the greatest thing to be at that time in history. What did she struggle with? Did she even think she was called? Did she know God had an amazing plan for her? Did she struggle with identity and rejection? But as we read the story we know the end. We know she would be crowned the new queen and she would save an entire race! Did she know that in the beginning? I don’t think so but again, God was in control. She may off thought of herself as dirt but God had planned something so amazing for her. He loved her and God was with her. I wonder if she knew that in the beginning????

Rahab – She was a prostitute! I can only imagine what she went through before the spies visited her. She had to struggle with people mocking her. Did she struggle with abuse, physical and verbal? I most definitely think so. Did she struggle with self-esteem? People looked down on her? She was treated like trash. She wasn’t even a Christian!!! She was a prostitute for crying out loud. In her eyes and the eyes of everyone else around her, her life path was clear, there was no mistake of what she would amount to. She would amount to nothing!!! There was no hope for her. Did she believe that God had chosen her? Did she know something amazing was about to happen to her?? I don’t think so. But again, God was in control. He had a plan for her even if she couldn’t see it, even if everybody else around couldn’t see it. God had a plan and that made all the difference!

This is what I am trying to get to. God has a plan for your life. Even if like Rahab everyone says you are going nowhere, God has a plan for your life. Put your faith in God. His plan for your life is going to blow you away. Take comfort in the fact that, GOD has a plan for you. Your circumstances might be saying the complete opposite but God has a plan. Don’t give up. At times I don’t see. The circumstances around me get my focus off the bigger picture. But God has a plan even if it seems like He has abandoned me. Don’t believe the lies. God is in control. He created your beginning but He also created your end and it is wonderful!! It is grand and it is breathtaking!!! He knows how it’s going to end because He is the one who WROTE the end!!

Rolain.

The man at the intersection…..

I was driving in town when something pretty amazing happened. I got to an intersection where the traffic lights stopped working and things were really moving slowly. But to make things worse drivers from both sides were becoming impatient and an impending traffic jam was about to happen when suddenly the guy that sold airtime to motorists ran to the center of the intersection and started controlling traffic!!! Now in other countries they would probably have a traffic policeman come in and control traffic until they fixed the traffic lights and I guess it’s the same here but the only difference is, it would take longer to get a traffic policeman where I stay! But on this day the airtime guy ran to the center and started controlling traffic!! (For all of you who don’t stay in Zimbabwe or Africa you may have no idea what an airtime guy is. Well, we have people who for a living sell airtime to motorists. They stand on the road throughout the day selling airtime for cellphones. We have people that sell newspapers and other random stuff like ironing boards! It’s not the greatest job but for these people it’s a source of income).

As this guy controlled traffic a few motorists gave him money. It was something no one had seen before. This guy saw a need and even though he didn’t have the permission to do what he did he still helped a lot of people get to where they needed to go. And that got me thinking. Finding your destiny is so much like that. Martin Luther King Jr saw black people being treated unfairly and did something about it.He changed the world. William Wilberforce saw slavery and did something about it.Clara Barton was the founder of the American Red Cross and Harriet Tubman was the leader of the underground railroad which brought slaves to freedom. The world would never be the same because of these great men and women. They all saw injustice and did something……Can finding your calling be that simple, yes!!!

God has called you to fill a need…. A specific need! A need that would be hard for the next person to fill. God made you that way. What is it that God has called you to fix???

Rolain

Who’s Story is This?

Who is this story really about? Is this life about what I am doing or is it about what God is doing through me? Is it about what you are doing and what you want or is it about the amazing things God is doing through you?? My life, our life should be about God. It should be God’s story! This story should not be about what I can do in my own strength but about what God is doing because I trust in Him completely!!!!

Rom 4:1-3 – says,” Abraham entered into what God was doing for him, and that was the turning point. He trusted God to set him right instead of trying to be right on his own.” (MSG)

Abraham trusted God to set him right instead of trying to be right on his own. God is not impressed with our masculinity and our show of strength! He hates it!!! He wants me to rely on HIS strength…..
There are times that I thought God was so impressed with my macho-ness but He was not.

The word says “Abraham entered into what God was doing for him and that was his turning point”.
Am I focused on what I am doing to make things right in my life or am I focused on what God is doing in my life because that is so much more important?!
This life is not about me but it is up to me. This life is about me trusting God in every single area of my life.
It is only by “trusting Him to do it” that gets me set right with God, and not on any other grounds!!

Another thing to note is in Rom 4:18 which says: When everything was hopeless, Abraham believed anyway, deciding to live not on the basis of what he saw he couldn’t do but on what God said he would do. (MSG)

Are we living our lives on the basis of things we see we can’t do instead of looking at the things God said He would do and is doing? Are we avoiding things in our lives because they seem to be out of our reach, too extravagant and impossible to attain instead of bringing those things to God and trusting Him to make a way??? Are we going around saying what we can have and what we can’t have because we are the ones judging what is attainable or not attainable instead of running after what God said we can have no matter how outrageous it is???!!!

The conclusion is this, “Abraham was declared fit before God because He trusted God to set him right!
He knew his life was God’s story and not about him!
There needs to be a mindset change. God is the One who is making me right. I don’t have the power to do that. God is first and I am second!!! God is in charge, not me. We are second and God is first!!! This is His story and not our story!!!!

God bless.

Rolain