What has God put on your heart? Pray and keep praying…..

In one of my last posts of the year (2017) I spoke about YAH wanting us to go to new levels

in life. In this post I want to continue on that thread.

Today I want to talk about a new level in prayer.

There is another level of prayer for us to go to if we so desire. As we advance in the purpose

YAH has for us we need to also grow in our prayer life. Without prayer the chance of failing

increases hundredfold.

 

This week YAH has been showing me how important prayer is, in regards to the things

He has put on my heart, the dreams and desires He has put in me. He has been challenging

me to bring those things to Him constantly. He cares about the things on my heart, about the

desires I have, the dreams I have.

But there has been disappointment in the past. There have been things I believed Him for that didn’t

come to pass. There are things I am still waiting for and it’s been years waiting…..

I think that’s one of the reasons I have not been as vigilant in bringing ALL my desires, and dreams

CONSISTENTLY to Him.

But this is the thing, He knows everything in my heart intimately and love is what powers what

He does and does not do concerning the things in my heart.

 

What are some of the things that stop you from consistently bringing your desires and dreams to Him?

 

The Lord hears our prayers and answers them! Let’s look at a man I have spoken about before, Isaac.

 

“Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah as wife, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Padan Aram,

the sister of Laban the Syrian.

Now Isaac pleaded with the Lord for his wife, because she was barren; and the Lord granted his plea and

Rebekah his wife conceived. “

Genesis 25:20, 21

 

“Afterward his brother came out, and his hand took hold of Esau’s heel; so his name was called Jacob.

Isaac was sixty years old when she bore them.”

Genesis 25:26

 

Isaac prayed for Rebekah who was barren and the Lord answered his prayer. That is amazing, but

even more amazing is how long he had been praying for. Over a period of twenty years Isaac prayed

to YAH! He didn’t give up on his desire, he never shelved it. He kept going to YAH with his desire.

He had faith YAH was going to do something or else he wouldn’t continue praying.

 

(On a side note: Isn’t it interesting that YAH joined Isaac and Rebekah together knowing full well

that Rebekah was barren and also knowing Abraham’s promise would carry on through them??!

Once again, YAH didn’t chose someone who was “able” but used someone

who couldn’t have children to be a vessel of His promise to Abraham about giving him descendants

as countless as the stars!!)

That’s a story for another day, let’s continue with the post………..

 

 

What has YAH put on your heart? What are you believing Him for?

Keep bringing your requests to Him in faith. Don’t give up no matter how long its been.

If you have given up then it’s time to get back up. Trust Him again. There is a reason He hasn’t

answered your prayer. Remember, its love that powers every thing He does.

 

The time is now to go to another level in our prayer life. Look to Him for help. You can’t do this alone.

He wants to help you get there.

We serve a God who hears our prayers and answers them friends. Keep praying and keep hoping.

 

Bless you

 

 

Rolain

 

 

Why I don’t want to just speak……..

THOUGHT OF THE DAY

 

Therefore I do not run uncertainly (without definite aim).

I do not box like one beating the air and striking without

an adversary.

But [like a boxer] I buffet my body [handle it roughly,

discipline it by hardships] and subdue it, for fear that

after proclaiming to others the Gospel and things

pertaining to it, I myself should become unfit [not

stand the test, be unapproved and rejected as a

counterfeit].

1 Corinthians 9:26, 27

 

I don’t know about you but as a writer there is always

this urge to share everything I learn! It has been something

that has been a continual fight to be honest.

 

“What to share, and what not to share” is the constant

question I ask myself. I have won at times and I have lost.

The issue is not just in sharing but am I living out what I share?

Do I live what I preach? Get the drift?

I don’t ever want to get caught up in sharing for the sake

of it without ever looking at my life and trying to marry the

two things, what I say and what I do.

 

As leaders we need to do everything in our power to make

sure our actions are matching up with what we are speaking.

What we say and what we do should go hand in hand.

Paul didn’t want to be disqualified from the race because of this

very same thing. He didn’t want to get to a place where after

showing people the way, he couldn’t enter himself because

his actions didn’t match his words!

 

Thank God we are not alone to do this. The Holy Spirit is here

to help us. We must humble ourselves and ask for His help.

He doesn’t want us to fail, to miss heaven. He wants us to

bring as many people as we can to the kingdom.

Thank God we have the Holy Spirt to help us.

We are not alone in this. He is helping us…..

So as I end, remember to live what you preach!

 

Rolain

 

photo credit: google images

 

The girl who beat me……!

 

This is not going to be an easy post to write but write it I must.

I love all things healthy. I love exercise,  eating healthy and so on

but in the last couple of months I had lost the vision. I stopped

going to gym and I stopped eating healthy. I just stopped. I can give

all the excuses in the world but that is all they will ever be,

excuses!

 

But that all changed last week when I started exercising again.

It was good to be back. On the day I started I saw a lady who

I exercise with.

Let me rephrase that, the lady I used to see every time I went

out to train. I would get up every morning

to exercise and I would see this lady go for a run. I have never

spoken to her in all of our exercising and we never crossed

paths. Anyway, on my first day of getting back, I saw her,

again. Like clock work she was about to go on her run……

At that moment a thought came to me;

 

And that is what makes her better than you.

That is why she will be fitter than you.

That is why she will win and achieve her goals.

 

Because she has stayed consistent!!

 

And I was like, “ouch”!!

She has been disciplined to keep up her routine on a daily

basis. When I do exercise I hit it hard, very hard but that

doesn’t matter because I am not consistent!

I haven’t stuck to it, haven’t done the things that need to be done

on a daily basis!

 

Isn’t that how life is though? The disciplined people, the people

who don’t give up, who push through no matter how painful

it is, those are the people who win.

A disciplined person will win over the undisciplined person

any day. The focused and diligent person can have anything

they want.

 

I was so challenged by her dedication and persistence!

I want to be disciplined. I can have all the

passion in the world but it will come to nothing if I am not

motivated, disciplined. I won’t get it right all the time but

I need to keep on pushing!

It was hard writing this. It’s never easy writing about

your own weaknesses but I know I have a chance. I can make a

decision to learn from her or choose to ignore what I saw.

I can change and AM changing! The person I am today can be

and will be different tomorrow. As long as the Holy Spirit is in me

I have a chance and so it is with you. There may be things you

don’t like about yourself but there is hope. Ask for God’s help.

The process is not easy but it’s worth it……

 

And that is how I was beaten by a girl!  🙂

 

image credit: google images

 

Rolain

 

 

 

 

 

 

Will you be that friend??

 

 

 

 

 

And her [promised] husband Joseph, being a just and upright man and not willing to expose her publicly and to shame and disgrace her, decided to repudiate and dismiss (divorce) her quietly and secretly.    Matthew 1:19

This is such an inspirational verse and it is one of my favorite scriptures. As I read the scripture this time round relationships came to mind.
In verse 18 we see that Mary was found with child through the power of the Holy Spirit but Joseph didn’t know that. It normal circumstances it meant Mary would be stoned to death. Was Joseph hurt? It could be possible. He had every right to be angry at her and tell everyone what she did but he didn’t……
Instead, he protected her, he covered her. Men, we need to learn to have that same mindset. We need to protect the women in our lives. We need to cover them. But I don’t want to just talk to the men. Let us look at this passage in the context of friends. As friends we need to be there for one another. The word says Joseph was NOT willing to expose her publicly! We need to cover our friends and not expose their faults for the whole world to see. If you see something not adding up in their life then you have a right to confront them but in a way that builds them up.

When you are confronting them or rebuking them do it with the mindset Joseph had. He didn’t want to expose Mary publicly even though it seemed like she slept with another man.
He didn’t want to disgrace and shame her. I would dare to say that his relationship with her was far more important than the “sin” he thought she committed.
Our friends need our support and love. They need us to be transparent and real. They want us to have their back. Will you be that friend?

Rolain

The “Gifts” God gives us…..!

I don’t know where to start and I don’t know how to begin this post. All I can say is that the word “gift” has

taken a whole new meaning for me. A few months ago I found out my friend, was leaving the country for good! We were first friends, then he became my boss, then pastor, then mentor, then family!

My world turned upside down that day. I had people leave before and it was painful but this, this was a whole new level.

My pastor’s wife called me and sat me down as she told me the news. I was devastated and confused. Why God I asked?

This can’t be happening I thought. I had known my mentor’s family for over 10 years! I knew them when they

had their first son. They have four boys now and I love them to bits.  Anyway I remember going to God and

crying out to Him for answers to the question why. Nothing came. Instead revelation came……

 

God showed me how they were gifts from Him. I met my mentor when I had just met The Lord. I am a sinner

now but back then I was much worse. If there is a word worse than sinner I was it. I was truly lost. I had no

direction and no plan. I had crazy issues I was beginning to work out. I had just became a Christian and this new

life was still…..new! I was dealing with a lot of things. I had no confidence and I had no self esteem. When he

employed me a year after meeting him I stole money from him! It was that bad. I WAS that bad! But thank God he never fired me or called the police. He gave me a second chance…….

 

I didn’t trust anyone back then and when he tried to help me out I would think he had some evil intension! When he disciplined me at work I would take it personally. When he made a joke about me I would get extremely angry. My stuttering was so bad back then which didn’t really help things! So believe me when I say, things were bad back then, really bad!!!

But God used him and his wife to mold me into who God wanted me to be. They taught me so much. They stood by

me when I had family issues. They helped me out financially countless times. They sat down and taught me so much

about God and life. In one of the darkest times in my life they were there.

 

God showed me how that was not an accident.

He knew all the change that needed to happen in me. He saw all I was going through and because of that He sent them

into my life. They were gifts. We serve a God who is the giver of gifts but the mistake we make is thinking gifts come in the form of money only. That’s not true. God’s gifts are so much more than money. They are deeper than that. During that time I never thought of them as gifts. We had our good times together and we had hard and difficult times.

 

The fact of the matter is this. God sent me gifts in the form of my mentor and his family. I just didn’t know it at the time and I never gave them the honor they rightly deserved. I wish I never took them for granted. I wish I honored them more and thanked them more for all they had done for me. I can’t put into words all that they did for me. A lot of who I am is because of their input in my life.

They saw so much potential in me and stood by me patiently. They are my family. I am telling you all this because….

…….they left on Wednesday this week! It’s been a hard week I must admit. They had my back. But in the midst of the pain God showed me how He will bring other “gifts” into my life after all; those “gifts” came from Him. He is the giver of all gifts. My mentor and his family never willed or planned to do all they did for me. God was behind it all. My mentor never knew the kind of impact he would have in my life but God did because He planned it. God was behind it all……

Yes, I am sad and broken at them leaving but I am also at peace because God has some amazing “gifts” in store for me.

I pray I be a “gift” to someone else as well. Would God use me to be the kind of “gift” my mentor was to me……

 

Have you acknowledged the “gifts” God has put in your life? There is a reason He has placed them in your life.

Don’t take them for granted. Thank them for all they are doing for you. It is not easy for them. There is always a

sacrifice on their part. May we always appreciate the “gifts” God has given us, always!

 

 

* This post is dedicated to the Stewart family. *

The Stewart family!

 

Rolain.

What Does Your “Strong Room” Look Like?

I have been doing some reflecting this new year and I have seen a lot of
areas in my life that need help. Today I wad reading a book that really
challenged me which I think will challenge you.  The author in this chapter                                     was speaking about “strong rooms“.

– The first point he made was, “You will end up being who you choose to train
and do life with! If an athlete works out in a “strong room” with championship
winning coaches and competitors who are doing everything they can to be the
very best, that athlete is in the best position to reach his or her potential. But if
an athlete, no matter how great, trains in a weak room, with coaches who aren’t
creating champions and people who don’t have the commitment skills, work ethic,
or the desire to win, that athlete will most likely fail to reach his or her potential.”

In light of what the author has just said I have realized who I hang around is very important if I am to grow and succeed. I need to ask myself, are my friends pushing themselves to be the best in what they do? Do I hang around people who are better than me academically, spiritually, financially and so on? The main question would be, what am I doing to grow myself on a daily basis? Who am I speaking to? These are the questions that we need to ask ourselves. Where are you on this scale?

– He goes on to say, “If you are looking at your skills on a one-to-ten scale, you cannot hang around the “two’s” and expect to become a “nine”. Any way you look at it, you are the sum total of the people you spend time with.

The most important thing I got from this statement was, what am I? Do I inspire people? Do people leave me feeling better or feeling worse than when they came to me? I want to be that person who inspires and challenges. Are you that person? Do people leave better off after they have spent time with you?

– You can apply this to all areas of your life. What does your “faith room” look like? Are you following people who trust in God no matter what? Do you have friends who love the Lord and who have made Him the center of your life?What does your “personal growth room” look like? Do you have a strong set of coaches-people with strong intellects that are directing you towards the best books to read, the best classes to take, and the programs to watch and listen to?What does your “relationship room” look like? Do you have a coach who’s been happily married for twenty-five years or more? Are you surrounded by couples who don’t have the word divorce in their vocabulary and are continually working on their marriage and interpersonal communication skills? What does your “financial room” look like? Do you have a coach who has the kind of resources and lifestyle you aspire to and who wants to help you achieve them? Do you “train” with people that have similar financial goals, are reducing their debt, want to see you become wealthy, and have a phenomenal work ethic? What does your “parenting room” look like? Do you know someone with children who are nice to other kids, love Jesus, get good grades and respect their parents? Make them your coach.

That was a lot of stuff to share but I thought it was important. I need to evaluate what my “faith room, personal growth room, relationship room, financial room and last but not least my “parenting room” looks like.  How do you think you are doing in all these rooms?

I also realized this is not just going to happen. It is me, making a decision to speak to those specific people. It is not going to happen all by itself. It all depends on the need to succeed. Do I want to succeed or not?

This has been about me but it is also about you. As we have started the new year let us make some decisions. We want to succeed and accomplish our destiny but we need to start making some changes in the way we do things. What are you doing everyday that makes you grow? What are you reading or what are you listening to? What are you exposing yourself to that is totally new from what you know? Do you spend time with people that challenge you in the areas of your life where you are struggling? In other words if you struggling financially are you following people who are not, if you struggle eating healthy you are friends with someone who is a health freak?!

If I could say it another way, if you playing any sport you would be thrashed senselessly!!! These are the type of people we need to spend time with. This is a new year and I am really excited and I hope you are.

God bless!

Rolain

3 Things To Know About Discipline.

As Christians we need to be disciplined. I believe there are areas where we are disciplined and other areas where we need help in. For example, you may be disciplined when it comes to keeping time but you are not disciplined when it comes to spending money. The goal of this post is to make you see the need to strive to be disciplined in every area of your life. There is a reward for being disciplined. Without wasting anymore time let us get into the 3 points.

 – Character is the by-product of discipline.
Your character as a person speaks loads about how disciplined you are. Are you a person of character? Your character is developed when you are disciplined. You cannot be a man or woman of character if you are not disciplined. Can you call someone who sleeps around a person of character? Can you call someone who is generally undisciplined a person of character?  We need discipline if we want to be men and women of character.

   –  The undisciplined person is always at the mercy of the disciplined person.
That is the truth! If you are not disciplined you will always be at the mercy of the person who is. I don’t want to be at the        mercy of someone else. I want to be in control of what is happening in my life and not succumb to someone else idea because I am not disciplined! Which category are you in? Are you at the mercy of disciplined people or are people following you because you are disciplined?

 – To successfully lead others you need to be able to lead yourself.
Are you self disciplined? If you are undisciplined in your own life then it is impossible to lead others. Master yourself first before you master others. If you are disciplined when it comes to money then you can lead others when it comes to money. If you are disciplined when it comes to purity then you can lead others in purity and so on and so on.

This is the point, men and women of character are not born but are made by choices and decisions they make everyday.
Let us make the right decisions. Let us make a decision to be disciplined. Look at your life and see the areas you need to be disciplined and ask for help. Let us desire to be disciplined in every area of our lives. And remember, it is a process. It doesn’t just happen. You will need to work hard at it.

Rolain.