What God Thinks About Our Imperfections.

As I begin I want to ask a question.

Do our imperfections stop God’s grace from operating freely in our lives?

For the answer let us look at Matthew 1.

I want to focus on the genealogy of Jesus Christ because it is there that we find the answer.

You would think that list would be comprised of the who’s who at the time.

The rich and powerful, the superstars and such like people. But that was not the case.

The people on that list were the complete opposite. They were anything but perfect.

What I want to do is focus in on five women that were mentioned on that list.

The ONLY five women mentioned and I don’t think that was a mistake.

The women were Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheba and Mary.

I am not going to talk about Mary because we know she was the mother of Jesus.

So let’s talk about the other women.

Rahab – We know she was a proustite but the direction of her life changed when she

welcomed and hide the spies by faith. Despite her past the Lord turned her life around.

Her imperfections, her past, her past sins did not stop the Lord from doing something

amazing in her life.

Bathsheba – At a time when kings were supposed to go for war, David stayed behind and

got into trouble. He slept with Bathsheba and had a child with her. To hide the fact, he got

Uriah her husband killed.

In a dark time, the Lord gave them Solomon and they found favor and grace. When

there didn’t seem to be a way out the Lord made a way for them.

Ruth – Ruth was a Moabite and was in a unique position.

“No Ammonite or Moabite or any of their descendants may enter the assembly of the LORD,

not even in the tenth generation.”

Deuteronomy 23:3

The Moabites had a curse on them because they tried to stop Israel when they came from Egypt.

There was nothing Ruth could do about her nationality. She was born into it but that didn’t stop God from blessing

her in amazing ways. The Lord was with her despite her nationality.

Tamar – To read Tamar’s story you will have to go back to the book of Genesis 38:6-30

Judah had three sons and he got Tamar to marry his firstborn son. But he displeased the

Lord and was killed. She was then given to his second son and once again he displeased

the Lord and was killed. So Judah decided to not give Tamar his third born son because

he was afraid he would lose him too. But Tamar had a plan. She disguised herself as a

prostitute and slept with Judah and they had kids.

(this is a very condensed version of the story)

That was crazy right but that is the Tamar that is in the genealogy of Jesus Christ. She was a descendant

of Jesus Christ!

As you read all these women’s stories its clear to see how God did amazing things considering the

diverse things that happened.

The lesson is a simple one,

Don’t let your failures, your sins, where you were born and so much more make you believe that God

can’t use you.

He is not hindered by your imperfections. They don’t limit Him one single bit.

Trust Him to use you in amazing ways.

He loves and cares for you.

And to answer the question I asked in the beginning. The answer is no.

Our imperfections don’t stop God’s grace from moving in our lives.

Bless you friends

Rolain

God remembered her…

“Then God remembered Rachel; He listened to her and enabled her to conceive.” 

Genesis 30:22

 

Rachel couldn’t have children but that all changed because God remembered her.

Don’t lose heart.

Keep praying and keep believing God will come through for you.

We serve a God who never ever forgets us and because of that we can have hope.

 

Rachel prayed and prayed and it seemed like God wasn’t listening but He was.

He is always listening.

No matter what it seems like today know that the Lord remembers.

You will have breakthrough this year because the Lord remembers you.

Trust Him in the difficult times when nothing seems to be happening.

He is always faithful.

 

Bless you friends

 

 

 

No problem is too far gone for the Lord.

“Now Abraham and Sarah were old and well stricken in age; 

and it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women.” 

Genesis 18:11

 

“and it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women” 

 

I was so encouraged as I read that verse. No matter how dead a thing may seem, no matter how hopeless

a situation appears, with the Lord there is hope. It’s not a faint or in the distant hope but a real and

tangible hope.

 

Sarah’s situation was beyond impossible but even in those circumstances the Lord gave her a son!

You may in a really bad place in your life right now and not sure how are you going to get through the new year

but know that the Lord is more than able to bring your dead situation back to life.

 

“Is anything too hard for the Lord? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the 

time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.”

Genesis 18:14

 

Nothing is too hard for the Lord. Don’t limit Him this year. What has seemed impossible in the previous

years can be accomplished if you only put your trust in Him. There is no situation that is too far gone for

the Lord. There is nothing off the table for the Lord. Everything is game because the Lord is with you!

Have a great new year friends!

 

Rolain

In the face of overwhelming odds……

“And the Philistines gathered to fight with Israel, 30 000 chariots and 6000 horsemen and troops like sand 

on the seashore in multitude.” 

1 Samuel 13:5

 

Saul and his army were in serious trouble. The enemy outnumbered them 1000 to 1 (it could have been more).

The enemy had cornered them with no way of escape, they were trapped!

 

As I read this story I think about the battles, the trials, and the storms we face. They vary right?

Some are not as devastating, then there are some that have the potential to rip your world apart.

But whatever the case storms are difficult. They test us, they rock us to the core. They show us who we

really are and where our faith and focus are.

 

Saul and Jonathan were in real danger. To add to the fact that the army they were facing outnumbered

them 1000 to 1, they had no weapons! (read 1 Samuel 13:19-22)

The only people with weapons were Saul and Jonathan. It’s crazy to think they had 2 swords

between them!  How big was Saul’s army? He had a 600 strong army (read 1 Samuel 13:15)

 

So as you can see, their chances looked grim. But this is where the story gets interesting because against such

overwhelming odds something amazing happened. What happened is a lesson, a strategy for us to use as we

face the terrifying storms, the trials, and the challenges.

Let’s take a look at what happened;

 

“One day Jonathan son of Saul said to his armor bearer, “come let us go over to the Philistine garrison

on the other side.” But he did not tell his father.” 

1 Samuel 14: 1

 

So to backtrack a bit, the only people with swords were Saul and Jonathan but Jonathan decided to go over

to the Philistine garrison without telling his father which meant he had one sword.

With one sword Jonathan would face an entire garrison! Had he lost his mind???

Look at what he told his armor-bearer;

 

“Jonathan said to his officer who carried his armor, “Come. 

Let’s go to the camp of those men who are not circumcised. Maybe the Lord will help us. It doesn’t matter

if we have many people, or just a few. 

Nothing can keep the Lord from giving us victory.” 

1 Samuel 14:6

 

Jonathan was brave but his dependence was on God. That’s why he was so confident, so sure.

His faith wasn’t in his ability with a sword. His faith was in a God who was stronger than any enemy

he would ever face. And it wasn’t his sword that delivered him. It was his faith in God. That made all the difference.

And that’s how powerful faith in God is.

What situation are you facing today? What kind of storm are you in? Is your faith in God or are you focused

on something else??

It’s not the people you know, your intelligence, where you work,

how much you serve in your church that will get you through the storm.

It’s faith through and through. Faith really does move mountains.

Faith in God is not a lost cause.

There are times when it seems like God is silent and taking matters into our hands seems like the next

best thing but it isn’t. Give God room to move. Put all of your faith in Him and see the things He will do.

God knows everything. There is not a single thing that gets past Him.

In your darkest season trust Him. It’s your faith in God that makes all the difference.

Bless you, friends.

 

Rolain

 

 

 

The sisters believed and saw God’s glory…..

“Then Jesus said to her, “Didn’t I tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God.” 

John 11:40

 

Mary and Martha thought Yeshua would heal their brother but He never got to them in time. Lazarus

died and by the time He got there Lazarus had been dead for four days.

 

How hard that must have been for the sisters. They had put their hope in the Lord but He never

showed up in time. Lazarus had died end of story. Yeshua would have to pay his condolences

when He came but that’s not what happened. When He arrived, He challenged them in their faith.

The story was far from over.

 

“Then Jesus said to her, “Didn’t I tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God? 

 

The glory of God Yeshua was speaking about was answer to prayer, breakthrough, Lazarus being

raised from the dead.

But the sisters needed to keep believing if they were to see the glory of God!

 

That spoke to me this week. If I am to see the glory of God in my life I need to keep believing. 

What does the manifestation of God’s glory look like in your life today?

Is it healing, restored relationships, breakthrough of finances……

 

The sisters had put their faith in God. It was hard seeing their brother’s health fade away.

Where was the Lord? Had He forgotten about them? Did He love them as much as they thought?

(the bible tells us they had a close relationship)

But in a moment of time it seemed like their faith in God was misplaced. “He couldn’t even come on

time.

But the Lord as we know had not forgotten. He loved this family and would do something amazing

for them.

He would bring Lazarus back from the dead and that is why He challenged them to keep believing.

 

We need to keep believing friends. As you put your hope in God you WILL see the glory of God

manifest in your life. That’s the message today.

The glory of God will be manifested in your life so keep believing. The Lord is faithful and won’t

back down on His promises. Even when it’s difficult believe and see His glory!

 

Bless you friends

 

Rolain

 

 

 

He changed His environment…..

The Lord wants to do some incredible things in you and through you and because of that you need

to pay attention to what you are exposing yourself to consistently. You need to take a long hard look at the

people you call your friends and ask yourself if they are encouraging you in your faith or are killing

your faith. You need to take a long hard look at all that you digest (social media, music, media) and ask

yourself if it’s strengthening your faith or killing it.

How is it at home? Have you created an environment for Yeshua to speak to you easily or are there

just too many distractions? (I am dealing with this right now)

All this matters. Like I said in the beginning, the Lord has incredible things in store for you.

Let’s look at a story in the bible that will bring home what I am talking about.

 

In Mark chapter 5 a man named Jairus meets Yeshua. His daughter is near death and has come to

the Him for help. The Lord agrees to go with Jairus and we pick up the story when Yeshua

arrives at the house.

 

“And when He had gone in, He said to them, Why do you make an uproar and weep? The little

girl is not dead but is sleeping. 

And they laughed and jeered at Him. But He put them all out, and taking the child’s father and mother

and those who were with Him, He went in where the little girl was lying.”

Mark 5:39, 40

 

The Lord was about to perform a miracle but in order to do that He had to put out the people

who were laughing and jeering at Him. He had to change the environment. It would be impossible for

Him to do what needed to be done if the people stayed.

 

And that is why the parents stayed. They may have had their doubts but their little faith was enough.

All the Lord needs is a little faith. But doubt, and fear are a different story.

In the very next chapter we look at how the Lord could not do any miracles except heal a few people here

and there because the majority of people didn’t trust Him, doubted Him.

 

“But Jesus said to them, A prophet is not without honor (deference, reverence) except in his [own]

country and among [his] relatives and in his [own] house. 

And He was not able to do even one work of power there, except that He laid His hands on a few 

sickly people [and] cured them.” 

Mark 6:4,5 (emphasis mine)

 

If there is no faith it makes it hard for the Lord to move, very hard!

 

But to my main point, the Lord had to change His environment by putting out the negative crowd.

If the Lord did that how much more do we need to? We need to take a long hard look at every aspect

that makes up our environment that I mentioned earlier and start making some decisions.

If we are to walk in all the amazing things the Lord has for us we need to cut off the things that

are weighing us down, the things that keep us in fear, the things that make us doubt YAH, the things

that contradict the word the Lord gave us about your lives. When I talk about things I am also talking

about people. We have some really toxic relationships and think it’s okay but it’s not. Those toxic

relationships are doing you major harm.

We need to ask for the Lord’s help and wisdom. This can only be done successfully with Him.

On that final thought enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Bless you friends

 

Rolain

 

 

Spend time with God today…..

THOUGHT OF THE DAY

Don’t underestimate the power of a quiet time.

This is something the Lord has been showing me in this season. It seems like the amount of distractions

have increased exponentially today. But we must keep at it, we must fight through, we must put down the

phone/turn off the TV and spend time with Him.

This is something we must take seriously. Let me show why;

 

“The council members were astonished as they witnessed the bold courage of Peter and John,

especially when they discovered that they were just ordinary men who had never had religious training.

Then they began to understand the effect Jesus had on them simply by spending time with him.

Standing there with them was the healed man, and there was nothing further they could say.”

Acts 4:13

 

“Then they began to understand the effect Jesus had on them simply by spending time with Him.”

 

I love this so much. Something happens when we spend time with Yeshua. We are empowered, we are

changed. Look at the disciples for instance,

They had changed. The Pharisees who killed Yeshua noticed something different in them.

They were bold, and fearless and had just performed a miracle. They had only seen that in one other man,

Yeshua!

Time with Yeshua had changed them. They were no longer the same. They were filled with the Holy Spirit.

All of this and more happened as they spent time with Yeshua.

I have found this to be true in my life. The more time I spend with Him the more sensitive I am to His voice

and leading. The more empowered I am…..

 

The world is getting darker and darker in need of light. We can be that light, the answer to the darkness but

we need to spend time with Him. The disciples were able to turn the world upside down because of the

empowerment they got from spending time with the Him and I believe that’s His desire. He wants us to

be a light in the sphere’s we are in.

It’s in His presence we find peace, purpose, identity, strength, joy and love. So in other words everything we need.

The answers to the storm we are facing are found in His presence.

The strength we need to endure are in His presence.

The wisdom we need now, is in His presence.

There is always room to be better and I want to be better. I want to spend more time with Him.

Let’s do all we can to spend as much time as we can with Him…..

Blessing to you

 

Rolain

 

 

 

He knows exactly what you need…..

“There, at the Temple Gate, was a man who had been crippled all his life. Every day he was carried to this gate

to beg. He would ask for money from people going into the Temple. The man saw Peter and John going 

into the Temple and asked them for money.” 

Acts 3:2

 

The man thought his problem was not having money but his problem was much deeper than that.

Peter and John knew what he really needed. I believe the Lord led them that way at that precise time.

He wanted to help the crippled man so He sent Peter and John.

 

Yeshua knows exactly what we need even if we don’t. That is why we trust Him with our lives.

We may not know how to articulate the things in our hearts but He can. Trust that He knows.

There is nothing about our lives that surprises Him. He knows it all.

 

The beggar asked for money but got what he really needed. The Lord knew what he really needed.

 

“Peter and John looked straight at him and said, “Look at us!” The man looked at them; he thought 

they were going to give some money. 

But Peter said, “I don’t have any silver or gold, but I do have something else I can give you: 

By the power of Jesus Christ from Nazareth – stand up and walk!”

Acts 3:4-6

 

I am not saying don’t ask for money. What I am trying to show is that the Lord knows exactly what you need

so trust Him completely where your needs are concerned. Depend on His goodness to give you exactly what

you need, when you need it.

You may not know what you really need but He does, so stop panicking about your life.

Pray with that understanding, live with that understanding.

 

People may not know where you are at in your life right now, and they may not know the cry of your heart

but that’s okay because Yeshua does. He knows where you are exactly. He knows everything that’s in your

heart. He knows exactly what you need for the season you are in!

He loves you so much.

 

Bless you

 

Rolain

Why wait till tomorrow??!!

“Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron, and said, Entreat the Lord, that He may take away the frogs

from me and my people; and I will let the people go that they may sacrifice to the Lord. 

Moses said to Pharaoh, glory over me in this; dictate when I shall pray [to the Lord] for you, your servants,

and your people, that the frogs may be destroyed from you and your houses and remain only in the river. 

And [Pharaoh] said, Tomorrow. [Moses] said, Let it be as you say, that you may know that there is no one

like the Lord our God.” 

Exodus 8:8-10

 

I am stumped! The land of Egypt was overrun by frogs (this was the second plague in a series of plagues).

When Pharaoh couldn’t get rid of them he called Moses and Aaron to pray to YAH to get rid of them.

When they came, Moses gave him an interesting proposition if you can call it that,

 

“dictate when I shall pray [to the Lord] for you, your servants, and your people, that the frogs may be 

destroyed from you and your houses and remain only in the river.”

 

Instead of saying “immediately” Pharaoh told Moses to pray “tomorrow”!!!

And that’s what got me stumped! Why wait till tomorrow???

The plague could have stopped immediately but instead, the plague would stop the next day!!

 

How many of us are like that though?

How many of us are tolerating today waiting to pray tomorrow??? (I am guilty of this!!)

Yeshua is waiting to move in your life today not tomorrow, next week, next month or next year.

He wants to move in your life today. He wants you to pray today, to put your faith in Him today!

You may think you need to wait for everything in your life to get right before you pray but that’s a lie.

The time is now!

The time to seek Him is now, not when you are perfect.

 

Pharaoh’s problem could have been solved straight away but he decided tomorrow would be the day.

Please get the heart of the message. Now is the time to get your breakthrough.

Yeshua is ready to move today and not tomorrow.

Don’t wait to ask, don’t wait to pray.

Your victory is not scheduled for some day in the future so be expectant today.

Expect YAH to move in your life today because today is the day!

Bless you friends….

 

Rolain

 

 

 

How will we see breakthrough in our lives today?

THOUGHT OF THE DAY.

“And Simon (Peter) answered, Master, we toiled all night [exhaustingly]

and caught nothing [in our nets]. But on the ground of Your word, I will

lower the nets [again].

 

And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish;

and as their nets were [at the point of] breaking,

They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and take hold

with them. And they came and filled both boats,

so that they began to sink.”

Luke 4:5-7

 

Peter and his team had spent the whole night toiling trying to catch fish but caught

nothing.

With all their experience, resources and strength they came up empty!

 

Is that not a perfect picture of what happens when we rely on our own strength

instead of relying on the strength of YAH??

We need to understand that in our own strength we will fail, period!

No amount of money, no amount of experience, no amount of strength will ever

be enough.

 

But look at what happens when Peter listened to Yeshua;

 

“And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish;”

 

They caught an incredible amount of fish. The number was so great

that they had to call their partners to help them.

But the number was still so great that both boats began to sink!

 

We need to stop relying on ourselves and look to YAH.

It is when we respond to Him and obey Him that things begin to

happen.

Impossible things begin to happen as well when we look to

Him instead of looking to ourselves.

 

We have a choice today, we can either “toil all night in our strength”

but come up empty or we can obey what Yeshua has told us and see

breakthrough in the situation we are in at the moment?

The choice is yours!

 

Bless you friends.

 

Rolain