When courage is lost.

“[Those aboard] mount up to the heavens, they go down again to the deeps; 

their courage melts away because of their plight. 

They reel to and fro and stagger like a drunken man and are at their wits end [all their 

wisdom has come to nothing]. 

Then they cry to the Lord in their trouble, and He brings them out of their distresses.”

Psalm 107:23-30

 

“Their courage melts away because of their plight” 

 

I can understand that. Life throws things that have the potential to melt away your

courage. It can throw things that render you hopeless and weak.

Situations that leave you clueless and powerless.

But what I want to look at and discus is how you deal with those situations. There will always

be giants stronger than us. We will always be faced with hard things that we don’t have answers to.

But knowing how to deal with those situations will make all the difference.

 

Psalm 107:23 paints a vivid picture for us. There were sailors out at sea and a storm

arose. The sailors knew a lot about the sea and you would expect that knowledge would help them,

but it didn’t. Their wisdom came to nothing. With all their experience and knowledge there was

nothing they could do. They didn’t have answers.

All hope they had of being saved was crushed. Their courage was lost.

But things turned around because of one thing and one thing alone, God. Their situation turned around

not because they were skilled, not because they were sailors and had tons of experience, and not because

of their strength.

When they cried out to God in their trouble He heard and saved them. The bible says it this way,

 

“Then they cry to the Lord in their trouble, and He brings them out of their distresses.”

 

When you are at your wits end, when your courage is lost because of the enormity of the

storm cry out to God. He doesn’t expect you to deal with the storm by yourself. He expects you to call Him.

He expects you to trust Him in the fiercest of storms.

 

When the sailors cried out to God, He delivered them from their distress.

What are you going through today? What trouble are you facing?

Has your courage gone because of your plight? Is your hope lost?

Don’t lose heart in the storm.

God is with you and He will carry you through.

 

Bless you friends

 

Rolain

The kingdom of God is for everyone!

THOUGHT OF THE DAY

 

“After this I looked and a vast host appeared which no one could 

count, [gathered out] of every nation, from all tribes and peoples 

and languages. These stood before the throne and before the Lamb;

they were attired in white robes, with palm branches in their

hands.”

 

Revelation 7:9

 

I love this verse. There is a truth here that I would like to share

with you.

John got an opportunity to see a vision of heaven and that is one

of the amazing things he saw.

He saw a great host of people from every nation, from all

tribes and peoples and languages!

 

The truth is this,

 

The kingdom of God is for everyone!

It’s not reserved for a certain color,

it’s not only for the rich,

it’s not only for the poor,

it’s not only for the learner- ed (if that’s even a word 😉   )

The kingdom of God is for everyone!

 

There is so much hate in the world today.

Do they know the kingdom of God is for everyone??

As long as you acknowledge Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior

of your life you have a place in His kingdom no matter your

color, the school you went to, the neighborhood you

grew up in…..get the picture??!!

As Christians we need to let this truth sink deep into our hearts.

We will reach more people when we grasp it. (I am taking to myself

to.)

 

The kingdom of God is for everyone!

There is so much racism and animosity in the world,

and not just stemming from color! It’s so much broader now but..

 

God is not racist. He loves everyone and so should we.

If that is something you struggle with there is grace, mercy and

help at the throne of God!

 

As I close remember, the kingdom of God is for everyone!

 

 

“After this I looked and a vast host appeared which no one could 

count, [gathered out] of every nation, from all tribes and peoples 

and languages. These stood before the throne and before the Lamb;

they were attired in white robes, with palm branches in their

hands.”

Revelation 7:9

 

Bless you friends…

 

Rolain

Why we need to endure in a broken world…..

This is crazy. There is so much bad happening in the world

at the moment. It’s enough to make you go crazy.

And it’s not just in one place, no. It’s everywhere. War, famine,

natural disasters, economic meltdown, and so on. You don’t

have to go far to know all the bad that’s happening in the world.

At times, the bad gets really overwhelming. It all feels so hopeless.

What is the answer in such perilous times and make no mistake

about it, we are in very perilous times. If you are not careful

your faith can get snuffed out by the bad that is happening around

you. I deliberately moderate the amount of news I ingest.

It’s guaranteed that if I spend a significant time watching the

news or reading it I will be left in a state of fear.

In times like these the prospect of heaven seems really

appealing.

 

“God will wipe away every tear from thier eyes; and death

shall be no more, neither shall there be anguish (sorrow and

mourning) nor grief nor pain any more, for the old conditions

and the former order of things have passed away. “

Revelation 21:4

 

I don’t know about you but I want that.

 

Things on earth can

be so diffcult so what is the answer?

Does God enjoy seeing us suffer?

Does He want us to have a hard life?

Does He have a plan in the midst of such tragedy?

 

I have to say, being born in Zimbabwe makes it a bit

easier to deal with what’s going on in the world. Our country

has gone through some incredible challenges which I have

talked about countless times. We have had to trust God

with everything we have got. The pressure we have

experienced has forged iron in us. The people who have

stayed and endured have come out stronger in faith.

 

God has a plan for keeping us in this broken world. In fact

I want you to see how imperative it is you endure all the

pain and hardships on this earth. Yes, we are just passing

through and yes we are not citizens of earth but we need

earth more than we think. Look at what James 1:2-4 says,

 

“Consider it wholly joyful, my brethren, whenever you are

enveloped in or encounter trials of any sort or fall into

various temptations.

But let endurance and steadastness and patience have full play

and do a thourough work, so that you may be [people]

perfectly  and fully developed [ with no defects], lacking in

nothing. “

 

 

Let me be clear, without the trials, and pain we encounter

on a daily basis we would not be fully developed. That’s what the

word is telling us. There would be no endurance, patience and

steadfastness built into us. We would be incomplete without hard

times and storms.

 

(let that sink it for a bit)

 

We need heaven but at this moment we need to endure on

earth for a bit longer! You may be fed up with the craziness

that is happening all around you but hold on, don’t give up!

God has a plan and He is in control.

 

So when something crazy happens to you or you hear of

bad things happening in the world don’t fret or panic. Like

James said, we need to count it all joy when those things come.

Instead of destroying us those things make us grow into the

people God created us to be.

Don’t run away from trials and storms.

Look to the Lord.

In a world so broken God wants us to step up, not back down.

 

Let me say it again, without pain, without trials, without storms,

without hard times we will not be complete. We need not pray

for those times but when they come our way our trust should

be found in the Lord…..

He is a good God who is directing our every step through the

most intense darkness the world has ever seen.

Will you shrink in fear when you hear or read of all the craziness

happening in the world or will you allow God to build patience,

endurance and steadfastness in you??

That is the question….

 

Bless you!

 

Rolain

 

 

 

The Promise…..

“Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also

had been baptized, and [while He was still] praying, the [visible]

heaven was opened

And the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove,

and a voice came from heaven saying, You are My Son, My

beloved!

In You I am well pleased and find delight!”

Luke 3:21, 22

 

This is a very familiar passage of scripture we can all agree. Pretty

straight forward as well but there is something else I saw that I

would like to share.

Jesus was about to start His ministry. But before He started He

had to be baptized. Something powerful happened as He got

baptized. The Holy Spirit came upon Him.

As I read this scripture I couldn’t move on. There were some

things which stood out for me.

 

Jesus would not be able to accomplish His mission without the

Holy Spirit. He would not be able to do all the things He did

without the Holy Spirit. He wasn’t getting baptized because it

was a “nice” thing to do.

Without the baptisim of the Holy Spirit Jesus would be powerless

and He would fail His mission.

As I was getting these insights I couldn’t help wonder if I really

understood the role of the Holy Spirit in me.

 

“However, I am telling you nothing but the truth when I say it is

profitable (good, expedient, advantageous) for you that I go away.

Because if I do not go away, the Comforter (Counselor, Helper,

Advocate, Intecessor, Strengthener, Standby) will not come to you

[into close fellowship with you]; but if I go away, I will send Him

to you [to be in close fellowship with you].”

John 16:7

 

I have not fully understood the role of the Holy Spirit in my life.

I have taken Him for granted but I see now.

I was wrong!

 

But it makes sense right, all the sense in the world! It makes

sense how God uses the foolish, the broken, the weak, to do

great things.

I have issues, major issues, flaws, weaknesses……..

I don’t do the right thing a lot,

I think wrong,

I get afraid at times,

I struggle speaking to strangers about Christ,

I struggle with self esteem,

I am lazy,

I am selfish…..the list goes on and on

 

We are broken but God knows that and He has the answer….

 

Let’s look at one man who had major issues, Peter.

He was afraid, he doubted Jesus a lot, and he denied the Lord

three times. He had issues like we do but….

 

“But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and

adressed them: You jews and all you residents of Jerusalem,

let this be [explained] to you so that you will know and

understand;

listen closely to what I have to say.”

Acts 2:14

 

He was bold!

 

“And [Peter] solemnly and earnestly witnessed (testified) and 

admonished (exhorted) with much more continuous speaking and

warned (reproved, advised, encouraged) them, saying, Be saved

from this crooked (perverse, wicked, unjust) generation.

Therefore those who accepted and welcomed his message were

baptized, and there were added that day about 3000 souls.”

Acts 2:40, 41

 

He wasn’t afraid anymore. He spoke with power and authority,

something he didn’t have before.

 

“But Peter said, Silver and gold (money) I do not have; but what I

do have, that I give to you: in [the use of] the name of Jesus Christ

of Nazareth, walk!

Then he took hold of the man’s right hand with a firm grip and

raised him up. And at once his feet and ankle bones became strong

and steady, “

Acts 3:6, 7

 

I could give you more examples but you get the idea. There

was an amazing transformation in Peter’s life. He wasn’t perfect

but there was a change. He was spirit-filled!

He did amazing things for God because he had the Holy Spirit

living in him.

May we get a revelation of what it means to be spirit filled.

As I end I would like to share one more scripture:

 

“And if the Spirit of Him Who raised up Jesus from the dead

dwells in you, [then] He Who raised up Christ Jesus from the

dead will also restore to life your mortal (short-lived, perishable)

bodies through His Spirit Who dwells in you.

Romans 8:11

 

The same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead lives in me, lives

in you. I missed it somewhere but I see now.

I want to walk in the same power Jesus did? I need Him…

Without Him there is no power, no impact, no fruit!

What about you?

Will you seek Him, cry out to Him?

We all need Him if we are going to impact this world for Christ!

God bless you friends……

 

Rolain

 

photo credit: google images

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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

 

 

 

 

 

 

To say goodbye….

THOUGHT OF THE DAY

I have a confession to make, I hate goodbyes! I really really hate them. I had to say goodbye to a friend today and it was not fun! That got me thinking………

Why does it hurt to say goodbye?

Is it a reminder we are missing something? SOMETHING we as humans cannot function without, SOMETHING we cannot do without, that if we tried to do without we would die??!!

Just because goodbyes are a normal part of our lives doesn’t make it natural or something that was meant to be. It seems cruel. We go through the whole process of meeting someone only to have them leave!!

Are goodbyes meant to remind us that God is the ONLY one who can complete us and NO person can ever fill that gap no matter how great they are…..

(please bear with me as I rant!!!!)

Are goodbyes a reminder we are not home yet???

I long for home because when I am home there will be no more goodbyes!!! What a thought! In heaven we will never have to say goodbye ever again!!! Our friends and family will always be there but more importantly, Jesus will be with us! No one will ever have to say goodbye! I long for that day. But for now I know God has a reason He allows goodbyes to happen. I don’t know why exactly, I just know He has a plan!

I do admit there are things and PEOPLE we need to say goodbye to. We need people and at the same time we don’t. Some people really need to go because they are drowning us! But that is a post for another day!

All I am saying is, I hate goodbyes! They are never easy and I long for the day I will never have to say goodbye!!!!

Rolain

 

Warning! Warning! Not For The Faint-Hearted!

I was so challenged by a scripture which my Pastor shared. It is in Matthew 11:12 which says:

And from the days of John the Baptist until the present time, the kingdom of heaven has endured violent assault, and violent men seize it by force [as a precious prize-a share in the heavenly kingdom is sought with most ardent zeal and intense exertion].

This gospel that we preach and live out is not for the faint hearted. This gospel is one of violence. What I mean is that men and women had to obtain the prize with a fight. They had fought for their lives to obtain the prize. Some gave their lives for the prize.
Hebrews 11:33-38 hits the nail on the head when it says:

Who by [the help of] faith subdued kingdoms, administered justice, obtained promised blessings, closed the mouths of lions,
Extinguished the power of raging fire, escaped the devouring of the sword, out of frailty and weakness won strength and became stalwart, even mighty and resistless in battle, routing alien hosts.
[Some] women recieved again their dead by a resurrection. Others were tortured to death with clubs, refusing to accept release [offered on the terms of denying their faith], so that they might be resurrected to a better life.
Others had to suffer the trial of mocking and scourging and even chains and imprisionment.
They were stoned to death; they were lured with tempting offers [to renounce their faith]; they were sawn asunder; they were slaughtered by the sword; [while they were alive] they had to go about wrapped in the skins of sheep and goats, utterly destitute, oppressed, cruelly treated –
[Men] of whom the world was not worthy – roaming over desolate places and the mountains, and [living] in caves and caverns and holes of the earth.

This gospel is one that cannot be obtained by weakness. We need to be forceful. We need to be violent in a good way.
Listen again to what the last part of Matthew 11:12 says:

A share in the heavenly kingdom is sought with most ardent zeal and intense excertion].

Where is your zeal at in regard to the gospel? Are you giving it your all in your relationship with God? Could your passion for God be described as intense? This is for me as well. I am so challenged to not only give 100% but 200% to God. The men and women of the bible who turned the world upside down were fired up for God. Their passion for God was intense. They gave it their all and more!

Let us follow their example. To obtain the prize which is the kingdom we need to increase our passion and zeal. Let us ask God for help as we make a decision. He is willing to help.

Rolain.P

Warning! Warning! Not For The Faint-Hearted!

I was so challenged by a scripture which my Pastor shared. It is in Matthew 11:12 which says:

And from the days of John the Baptist until the present time, the kingdom of heaven has endured violent assault, and violent men seize it by force [as a precious prize-a share in the heavenly kingdom is sought with most ardent zeal and intense exertion].

This gospel that we preach and live out is not for the faint hearted. This gospel is one of violence. What I mean is that men and women had to obtain the prize with a fight. They had fought for their lives to obtain the prize. Some gave their lives for the prize.
Hebrews 11:33-38 hits the nail on the head when it says:

Who by [the help of] faith subdued kingdoms, administered justice, obtained promised blessings, closed the mouths of lions,
Extinguished the power of raging fire, escaped the devouring of the sword, out of frailty and weakness won strength and became stalwart, even mighty and resistless in battle, routing alien hosts.
[Some] women recieved again their dead by a resurrection. Others were tortured to death with clubs, refusing to accept release [offered on the terms of denying their faith], so that they might be resurrected to a better life.
Others had to suffer the trial of mocking and scourging and even chains and imprisionment.
They were stoned to death; they were lured with tempting offers [to renounce their faith]; they were sawn asunder; they were slaughtered by the sword; [while they were alive] they had to go about wrapped in the skins of sheep and goats, utterly destitute, oppressed, cruelly treated –
[Men] of whom the world was not worthy – roaming over desolate places and the mountains, and [living] in caves and caverns and holes of the earth.

This gospel is one that cannot be obtained by weakness. We need to be forceful. We need to be violent in a good way.
Listen again to what the last part of Matthew 11:12 says:

A share in the heavenly kingdom is sought with most ardent zeal and intense excertion].

Where is your zeal at in regard to the gospel? Are you giving it your all in your relationship with God? Could your passion for God be described as intense? This is for me as well. I am so challenged to not only give 100% but 200% to God. The men and women of the bible who turned the world upside down were fired up for God. Their passion for God was intense. They gave it their all and more!

Let us follow their example. To obtain the prize which is the kingdom we need to increase our passion and zeal. Let us ask God for help as we make a decision. He is willing to help.

Rolain.P