….the men told them things that made them afraid!

THOUGHT OF THE DAY

“I was 40 years old then. When I came back, I told Moses what I thought about the land. 

The other men who went with me told the people things that made them afraid. But 

I believed the Lord would allow us to take the land.” 

Joshua 14:7, 8

 

This was Caleb speaking to Joshua and he was talking about what happened when the 12 spies

got back from spying out the land of Canaan. That was the land YAH had promised his people.

But instead of going to possess it like the Lord promised 10 of the spies managed to strike fear

into the heart of the nation which stopped them dead in their tracks.

I want to zone in on a specific part of the verse I just shared;

 

“The other men who went with me told the people things that made them afraid.” 

 

We have to be careful what we are hearing from others. There is so much stuff happening around

us that can make us afraid which in turn paralyzes us and makes us inoperable.

This is not a casual call I am making but a desperate one.

As much as we can, we need to beware of what we allow ourselves to hear.

 

Israel failed to enter YAH’s promise land because of 10 men who told them things that made them

afraid.  This is serious.

 

Our country is about to have elections and there are a lot of people saying things that have the potential

to make me afraid but I have made a choice to block out those negative conversations. I have to do that

if I want to hold on to YAH’s promises concerning the nation. I know YAH has an amazing plan for my nation

but listening to all the negative things people have to say about what’s happening or going to happen will

not help me declare and hold on to what I need to hold on to.

 

You cannot operate in faith and fear at the same time. It’s either you believe or you fear. It’s that simple.

Don’t get me wrong, there is a place for news and trying to keep up to date with a situation, or things

happening around you but it gets tricky when those things perpetuate fear and dread instead of

faith and hope. You decide.

 

Joshua and Gideon refused to believe what the 10 men said. They were fully confident that YAH could

deliver them.

On the flip side, are you the one telling people things that make them afraid? It’s so easy to talk about the

bad things. Let’s change what comes out of our mouths.

When you do talk about a problem make sure you have a scripture, or word of encouragement that speaks

directly to the problem. Don’t leave the room or person on a negative.

 

“The mouth of the [uncompromisingly] righteous is a well of life, but the mouth of the 

wicked conceals violence.” 

Proverbs 10:11

 

If you have heard or read things that have made you afraid then bring them to YAH.

Ask Him to replace that fear with faith and peace and hope.

One of my friends had destructive words spoken to him that were directly targeted to what YAH

had called him to.

Those words hit him hard, harder than he could ever imagine. He is still dealing with the effects

of it today.

Negative words are destructive.

Let’s learn to speak life and healing. That brings glory to YAH.

With that I am out…..

 

Blessings to you friends….

 

Rolain

 

 

 

A story about coffee and blessings…..

“Be intentional about being blessed”

 

Coffee led me to this revelation……  🙂

I am serious. Let me explain.

Someone owed me coffee about two weeks ago. It’s a long story but all you

need to know is someone owed me coffee.

A day passes, two days pass, a week then two weeks and still nothing.

I hadn’t collected the free coffee! (that’s insane right??)

In fact I was reminded to collect the free coffee last week but I forgot to!! (unacceptable for sure!!)

I was then reminded yesterday and I was what the heck???!!!

It’s a free coffee! One would think I hated coffee but that’s not true.

I love coffee.

Let me rephrase that,

I loveeeeeeee coffee!!!!

 

It was at that moment when  a thought came to me,

“Be intentional about being blessed”

 

I was supposed to get a free coffee but I let busyness get in the way.

I thought it was a good excuse but it’s not.

To get the coffee I had to be intentional.

There were things I had to do to receive the coffee……!

In this case I had to simply go and remind a friend to buy me the coffee but I didn’t.

 

I started thinking if there were other areas of my life I was doing the

exact same thing!

God wants me to have so much but if I let busyness and other excuses to get in the

way then I am the one who loses out.

 

Being intentional looks different for every person.

It could be declaring what God spoke over you

It could be obeying Him in that thing that He told you

It could be trusting God for something

It could be spending more time with Him

It could be waiting on Him

It could be reading more of the His word.

 

Remember, blessings are not just material things. They are also spiritual.

Blessings could be a new level of influence, a new gift, dominion and so on.

 

Whatever it is, be intentional.

God has so much in store for you but you need to desire it,

you need to get hungry, pursue Him with all that you have,

speak, declare, prophesy, but don’t just sit there doing nothing.

Open your mouth, lift up your hands, move your feet, whatever He is telling

you to do, DO!

 

Elisha was very intentional about being blessed. He followed Elijah everywhere.

He had to be separated from Elijah by a chariot and horses of fire (2 kings 2)

 

The blind man who was begging near Jericho was intentional about being blessed.

Let’s read his story,

 

^“As He came near to Jericho, it occurred that a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging.

 And hearing a crowd going by, he asked what it meant.

They told him, Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.

And he shouted, saying, Jesus, Son of David, take pity and have mercy on me!

But those who were in front reproved him, telling him to keep quiet;

yet he screamed and shrieked so much the more, Son of David, take pity and

have mercy on me!”

Luke 18:35-42

 

The blind man wasn’t silent as Jesus passed by. The Amplified says he screamed and shrieked

so much the more!!! I hope and pray you understand the message I am trying to get across.

Being intentional is going to be different for each and every one of us.

God will show you what you need to do.

 

But before anything else, be intentional about getting to know Him.

That must be the most important goal and desire in  your life.

If that’s not your main desire then the other stuff is pointless, it has no meaning.

It’s better you forget everything I have said in this post.

God will bless someone who loves Him and wants to be used by Him.

He will bless someone whose desire for Him far outweighs the desire for stuff.

He will not bless a selfish person.

He will not bless someone who is looking out for himself.

It’s the people who love Him with all of their heart, soul and mind

that make a real impact in this world!

Let’s be more intentional about being blessed!

Blessings to you friends!

 

Rolain

He cares about purpose.

“Those who had seen it told them how the man who had been demon-possessed had been healed.

Then all the people of the country of the Gerasenes and the surrounding district asked Him to leave them, because they were overwhelmed with fear. So Jesus got into the boat and returned [to the west side of the Sea of Galilee].

But the man from whom the demons had gone out kept begging Him, pleading to go with Him; but Jesus sent him away, saying,

 “Return home and tell [about] all the great things God has done for you.” So the man went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him.

Luke 8:36-39

 

The man who had been delivered begged Jesus to take him

but Jesus said no! What an asset he could of been

if he had gone with Jesus. What a testimony he had but Jesus

said no! The man was just beginning to get to know the Savior

and he would know so much more if he had gone with him

but Jesus said no!

 

It might be hard to understand but this is what the man

had been born for. He was to declare the great things the Lord

had done in his life and he did. Jesus cared about the man’s

destiny and wanted him to accomplish it!

 

“But the man from whom the demons had gone out kept begging Him, pleading to go with Him; but Jesus sent him away, saying, “Return home and tell [about] all the great things God has done for you.” So the man went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him.”

Luke 8:38, 39

 

Jesus wanted the man to accomplish his purpose. He wasn’t

being cruel. He knew what would happen if the man obeyed

and stayed. A lot of people would have their lives changed forever!

A lot of people would get to know Jesus through the

man’s testimony! That was his purpose. That’s why he had to stay!

 

 

Let’s bring it home.

Jesus has a purpose for you and He wants you to

accomplish it.

A lot of people will be saved when you do what He has created you

to do and a lot of people will get to know Him because of the great

things He has done in your life.

As I end I want to leave you with a thought,

are you walking in what God has purposed you to do? People

lives are going to be changed as you do…….

 

Bless you

 

Rolain

 

 

 

 

 

 

When you look at what is in your hands…..

I have been looking at my life and all the things that

need to be done. I have seen the plans I have and the

things I want to do and have realized things are not

adding up.

I am not earning the salary that will help me get all the

things I need, that will get me to the places I want to

go.

In other words, I don’t have much in my hands as far

as resources are concerned. Money, knowledge, skill

and so on.

But does that mean I should give up?

Does that mean I should dream small?

Does that mean I should change the way I pray?

Does that mean I have to abandon some things?

 

You might be in the same boat as me. You look

at your life and you don’t have enough. You don’t

have much in your hands. What do you do?

Some people tend to make their dream smaller.

They pray pocket sized prayers to fit what they

see in their hands but is this what God wants us

to do????

 

As I was thinking about all this I realized something,

God doesn’t want us to down size anything!

He didn’t make a mistake when He gave us the desires

that are in our hearts.

So for example,

If I have a desire to travel the world but I don’t have the

money right now it doesn’t mean I should abandon the dream!

The enemy would like us to give up on the dreams that

have been planted in our hearts but don’t.

 

God is not looking at what is in your hands to bless you.

He is not waiting for you to get everything in order so

He can bless you! (We are surely doomed if He is waiting

for us to get ourselves sorted out!) He is not waiting for

you to get the right salary so He can start opening doors

for you…!!! Get that kind of thinking out of your head right

now. It will stop you from getting God’s best!!!

 

You must stop looking at what’s in your hand if you

want God to move and bless you!

 

Jesus looked up and saw a crowd of people coming

toward Him. He said to Philip, “where can we buy

enough bread for all these people to eat?”

He asked Philip this question to test him. Jesus

already knew what He planned to do.

Philip answered, “we would all have to work a

month to buy enough bread for each person here

to have only a little piece!”  John 6:5-7

 

I feel like this is my story. Situations happen

in my life and Jesus is asking, “where can we

buy enough bread for all these people to eat?”

And I keep making the mistake of looking at what

is in my hand!

What do you do when He asks you that question?

Philip did the same thing. He knew that Jesus was the

Messiah but what was the first thing he did? He looked at

what was in his hands!!!

The truth is, JESUS already knows what He has planned

to do!

He is testing you so you can look to Him! He has so

much in store for you but all those things are in

a realm that are way beyond your capabilities in

every sense of the word!

I am here to say, stop looking at what you have

in your hands!

Your life may not be adding up, you don’t have the

slightest idea where you are going to get money

to go to university, you don’t have an inkling of

how you are going to start that business, you don’t

have enough money to take care of your family.

I am here to encourage you to look to the Lord!

He knows what He has planned to do in your life.

No matter how impossible your situation seems

He knows what He is going to do.

 

Then Elisha said, Hear the word of the Lord.

Thus says the Lord: Tomorrow about this time

a measure of fine flour will sell for a shekel and two

measures of barley for a shekel in the gate of

Samaria!  2 Kings 7:1

 

The Israelites were under siege by the Samarians

with no hope of escape. Food had run out, so things

were getting really bad. Israel was in a really bad

situation. There was no one to turn to. There was

no help coming but despite all those undeniably difficult

circumstances the man of God declares a word. It was

in-conceivable to think everything would be back to normal

the next day.

 

Then the captain on whose hand the king leaned  answered

the man of God and said, If the Lord should make windows

in heaven, could this thing be? But Elisha said, You shall

see it with your own eyes, but you shall not eat of it.  

2 Kings 7: 2

 

The captain looked at what was in his hand. He heard the

word of the Lord but instead of trusting the word

from God he looked at what was in his hand.

The lesson can’t be any clearer. Look to the Lord who

knows what He is going to do. Our job is not to figure

out the “how”. Our job is to trust in the Lord with

all of our hearts even if things don’t make sense.

As sons and daughters of God let us start taking our

focus off what is in our hands and instead looking

to God……….

Rolain

 

 

 

 

 

 

Is Christmas still relevant today?

I love Christmas!

But I have a question.

What does Christmas really mean?

(Deep in thought……)

Christmas is about Santa Claus

It’s about giving and spending time with family. It’s about food (lots of it) haha

It’s also about the birth of Christ! For Christians this is the main purpose of Christmas.

It’s that time of the year we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior.

But as I reflect on Christmas a few things come to mind:

The 2014 Isla Vista killings – where a man shot and killed six people and injured thirteen others before committing suicide! I can only imagine what the families are going through!

The disappearance of Malaysian Airlines earlier this year which resulted in the loss of hundreds of lives! Hundreds of families will spend Christmas alone!

The death and loss caused by ISIS. There are people still fleeing for their lives. There are people still losing loved ones. There are lots of people living in fear because of ISIS.

The kidnapping of 200 girls by the Boko Haram.

Women and girls who have been trafficked and haven’t been rescued!

The list goes on and on!

As I thought on this I thought to myself,

Surely Christmas is more than gifts, food, Santa Claus, and family? Those things are important but what does Christmas offer to the person who has lost everything?

Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. (‭Luke‬ ‭2‬:‭10-11‬ NKJV)

We were lost doomed to die but Jesus came and changed that. He reversed our death sentence to one of life! When I think of Christmas, I think of the hope it brings!  A hope that the world desperately needs. A hope WE desperately need!!

Christmas offers hope for everyone! No matter how bad things are, no matter how hopeless they seem, there is hope! Don’t be discouraged, don’t lose heart. You have been given a second chance!

Christmas is a beacon of hope to all that need hope!

Bad things have happened and are still happening but the birth of Jesus Christ is the answer to the pain and the terror that has happened.

When you think of the birth of Jesus Christ, His death and what He accomplished should come to mind! You cannot separate those two powerful, world changing events!

He came to give us life, peace, joy, a reason to live again, hope and a whole lot more!

If you are in pain, if you are alone, if your future looks hopeless know this:

There is hope for you……

You have a second, third, fourth chance!

God cares for you and looks after you.

Christmas represents HOPE for everyone!

Merry Christmas to you all.

Rolain

Are You Really Desperate?

How hungry are you for God? How desperate are you for Him? Are you as desperate as Jacob was? He was sleeping alone and about to meet his brother Esau. This is what the word says:

And Jacob was left alone, and a Man wrestled with him until daybreak.
And when [the Man] saw that He did not prevail against [Jacob], He touched the hollow of his thigh; and Jacob’s thigh was put out of joint as he wrestled with Him.
Then He said, Let Me go, for day is breaking. But [Jacob] said, I will not let You go unless You declare a blessing upon me.
Genesis 32: 24-26

Jacob was desperate for a blessing and he fought with everything within him. He would not let go at any cost. Even after his thigh was put out of joint, Jacob never let go. He was desperate.

Can your desperation match Jacob’s?

But I have realised something. We ask for more of God but we don’t put any action to our prayer. We ask for more of God and just keep on sitting down expecting sparks and fireworks!! We ask for more of God but don’t pray more. We ask for more of God but we don’t read our bibles more. Instead we just sit there. We don’t change what we watch. We don’t change how we speak. We just keep on living the same way we did before we prayed! Are our actions sending the right signals?
I was in this boat sometime ago. I would pray and pray for more of God but really not change anything.
People of old were wiling to give their lives for more of God. They were desperate for God and they showed it through their actions. And they are our models today.
We need God and we love Him desperately so let us show Him through our actions.

Rolain.P