God Turns Our Ugly Story Into A Beautiful One.

“ And David comforted Bathsheba his wife, and went in unto her, and lay with her: and she bare a son, and he called his name Solomon: and the Lord loved him.”

2 Samuel 12:24 KJV

In David’s darkest time , in the midst of the monumental mess he made, God turned that situation around into something beautiful.

Solomon came out of that mess and the Word says God loved him.

I always think to myself, why didn’t God do something through Abigail who was an amazing woman. There was no drama there but I think it’s for a good reason. The reason I think is because God wanted to show how powerful He is.

The enemy had been victorious over David in the case of Bathsheba and Uriah. There was no doubt about that and I believe it was the devil’s end goal to stop David’s purpose. But God in His power went into that mess and turned it into victory so the defeat could be turned into triumph and God would get the glory, not the devil.

The enemy will not have the last say in your life friend. He would like you to believe so but it’s not true. God has the last say and as you are in a dark place right now know that God will turn your ugly story into a beautiful one. That’s how much He loves you.

And it’s not about what you can do, your strength, how intelligent you are etc.

It’s about God’s amazing grace, His love, His mercy towards us, His strength! The devil is totally powerless against all of that.

I am also reminded of Peter who also made a huge mistake.

“Jesus answered, “Die for me? I tell you the truth, Peter – before the rooster crows tomorrow morning, you will deny three times that you know me.”

John 13:38 NLT

Peter denied Jesus and if you are thinking of an ugly story that just about tops it. But once again his ugly story was turned into a beautiful one. The devil did not have the last say in Peter’s story. He thought he did but once again he was very wrong and he is wrong about your life. And we see the same pattern in Peter’s life.

Peter’s story was changed because of God’s mercy, grace and forgiveness. Jesus knew Peter would deny him.

“But I have pleaded in prayer for you, Simon, that your faith should not fail. So when you have repented and turned to me again, strengthen your brothers.”

Luke 22:32 NLT

So no matter how bad it seems know that God turns your ugly stories into beautiful ones.

We must not listen to the devil’s lies. He is going to try everything he can to get you to focus on the ugly. He is going to use that to bring in shame, condemnation and guilt. He is going to make you feel unworthy of being used and loved by God. He will try to isolate you so he can take you out. But it’s a lie.

God loves you and forgiveness is available to you. All you have to do is ask Him to forgive you and receive the grace He freely offers you.

So as I close remember that your story is not even close to finishing. He is turning your ugly into something beautiful.

Bless you friends

Rolain

This Is How God Delights In Us!

“By this I know that you delight in me;

my enemy will not shout in triumph over me.”

Psalm 41:11

I love this verse. As I read it I got excited and I knew I had to share it with you.

Because God delights in us He will not let our enemies shout in triumph over us.

Whatever battle you are in at the moment, take heart that God will not let the enemy be victorious over you.

The enemy will not win over you. You may fall but you will get up and be victorious all because God loves you and delights

in you!

And don’t let the devil or anyone else for that matter tell you that God doesn’t care for you. Don’t let the negative voices

lie to you that you are unloved and alone because they are all lies. God cares for you and is for you. He thinks about you

all the time and loves you.

“How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! If I would count them, they are more than

the sand. I awake, and I am still with you.”

Psalm 139:17

God delights in you!

He loves you!

And because of that you will be victorious!

Your enemies will not triumph over you!

Bless you friends.

Rolain

God Does!

“Who rises up for me against the wicked?

Who stands up for me against evildoers?

Psalm 94:16, 17

The question is obviously rhetorical. The author knows that its God who stands up and rises up for us.

But do you know that?

I want to encourage you in way of reminding you that God stands up for you when trouble comes your way.

God is the one who rises up for you when giants surround threatening to take you out.

He is the one who lights your path and shines his light when there is confusion and you don’t know what to do.

You can call on Him because he is with you.

Bless you friends

Rolain

The Victory We Are A Part Of – An Easter Story!

Happy Easter to you all.

I hope you are having a great time celebrating the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.

This is a strong day for us as Christians, a day of power for sure. I am so excited about this weekend because of what it represents. This is what makes the Gospel the Gospel if you know what I mean. If Jesus never died and rose again we wouldn’t be here and Christianity would be nullified. The power of our faith is based on the death and resurrection of Jesus. Paul speaks about this in 1 Corinthians 15:13 so I encourage you to go and read that passage of scripture.

But I want to focus on another story in this post.

“Then Jesus uttered another loud cry and breathed his last. And the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.”

Mark 15:37

As we all know Jesus died on the cross. And for a brief moment the devil thought he had won. He thought he had victory over Jesus. And for a brief moment Jesus’ followers lost too. But that was not the end of the story…

“The women were terrified and bowed with their faces to the ground. Then the men asked, “Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is alive? He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead!”

Luke 24:5, 6

Jesus rose from the dead! He conquered the devil. He won the war.

He was victorious and because of what he did we too have that same victory. And that’s why this weekend is so powerful, so important. There is a grace for us if we will only see. We need to ask the Lord for his help because he was victorious for us.

So if you are in a dark place today, and it seems like the enemy is too strong and the giants are too many I want you to know that there is victory available to you. The devil does not have the last say in your story. Jesus does! He has the last say and it is good and it is final. His Word cannot be overturned by the devil.

When the curtain in the temple tore into two, our access to God was now cleared of all obstacles, We could now go to him anytime. We now have a direct line of communication to the Creator of the Universe, to the Lord of Armies.

So as you can see, a lot of important things happened that day when Jesus rose from the dead and that is why this is such a strong day for you and me. As I come to the end of this post I want to encourage you to reflect on what Jesus did on the cross and how that affects your life. I read a definition of what it means to be a Christian that challenged me recently that goes,

A Christian is someone who believes in the physical resurrection of Jesus Christ and lives in light of the implications of that event

I love that and I am so challenged.

With that I have come to the end of the post.

Have a great and blessed weekend friends.

Bless you!

What’s It Going To Be, GOD or Giants?

I was watching a live stream this week of an upcoming movie and the presenter was talking about a book he was reading from Eugene Peterson called Leap Over A Wall ( I think)

He talked about how David had a God-dominated imagination while Israel had a Goliath-dominated imagination. And because David had a God-dominated imagination he wasn’t afraid of the giant and that is why he stepped out in faith. He not only took on the giant but killed him. All he saw was how strong God was.

Israel on the other hand had a Goliath-dominated imagination and they cowered away in fear. All they saw was the giant and God was no where in sight. They were not able to get the victory because the giant was so strong in their mind.

And that really spoke to me.

It’s time to switch from a Goliath-dominated imagination where all you see is giants and not God, to a God-dominated imagination where all you see is God no matter the giants that come up against you.

You are sons and daughters of God and your portion is victory but the enemy wants to corrupt your mind. he wants you to believe he is stronger and there is nothing you can do. He wants you to forget about God and to not even consider Him as an option when the fight is at it’s thickest. Don’t let him do that.

Let God be all you see when the enemy rises against you. Let Him be the One you cry out to when you are overwhelmed and have no answers to the trials and tribulations you are facing.

God bless you friends

Have a great weekend!

Rolain

There Is More To Your Story

“The chariots of God are twice ten thousand, thousands upon thousands;

the Lord is among them; Sinai is now in the sanctuary.

You ascended on high, leading a host of captives in your train and receiving

gifts among men, even among the rebellious that the Lord God may dwell there.”

Psalm 68:17, 18

The first thing I want to say after reading that amazing verse is that you have victory.

The Lord went out and conquered. He was victorious over all His enemies and because

of that we have victory.

The word says he led out a host of captives.

Who were those captives? Sickness, poverty, anxiety, fear you name it.

He defeated them all and because we are His children victory is our portion.

But at times it seems like the enemy is so strong. It seems like he is winning from

every direction. Where ever we turn we seem to be losing BUT..

The same thing happened to Jesus.

The devil thought he had won over him when He was crucified.

End of the story he thought.

Victory he thought.

But he was so wrong. There was still more to the story, much more.

Jesus defeated death and rose again and saved us all!

So no matter how bleak it seems, remember there is more to your story.

It’s not over yet, no even close. The devil may seem to be winning at the moment but he doesn’t

have the final say.

Jesus does and He has defeated all your enemies!

Bless you friends

Rolain

Silence In The Enemy’s Camp

“By this I know that you delight in me;

my enemy will not shout in triumph over me

Psalm 41:11

David had a lot of enemies in his life.

Strong enemies that wanted him out of the picture.

People that wanted him to fail, get sick, die you name it.

Even close friends became his enemy (Psalm 41:9)

But in Psalm 41:11 he made an amazing statement. He knew God favored him

and delighted in him because He never allowed his enemies to shout in triumph

over him!

In other words, because God delighted in him, He never allowed his enemies

to have victory over him.

I love that.

Because it’s the same for you. God delights in you and will not let the enemy shout

in triumph over you. They will not have victory in your life no matter how hard they try.

Even in the case of Bathsheba, it did seem like the enemy had victory over David. It seemed

like God’s purpose for his life came to an end because of what he had done but God in His

grace gave David another chance. He gave him the opportunity to repent and when he

did he received redemption and a second chance. There were no shouts of triumph in

the enemy’s camp in that regard.

As I close I want to encourage you with that.

The enemy WILL NOT have victory over you because the Lord favors you and delights in you.

When you fall He will pick you up.

The Lord will fight for you against the enemies that come against you and win.

Bless you friends!

Rolain

When The Enemy Has Appeared To Have Won, God Steps In!

“When Uriah’s wife heard that her husband was dead, she mourned for him.

After the time of mourning was over, David had her brought to his house,

and she became his wife, and bore him a son.

But the thing David had done displeased the Lord.’

2 Samuel 11:26, 27

We all know the story.

David slept with Bathsheba and to hide what he did, he got Uriah her husband killed.

That was a dark season in David’s life, if not THE darkest.

All seemed lost for him. The enemy appeared to have won against him but God stepped

in! He intervened in David’s hopeless situation.

He stepped in and pulled David out of the dark pit he was in.

When Nathan the prophet confronted David he was quick to confess his sin and received

forgiveness. But there was more…

“And David comforted Bathsheba his wife, and went in into her, and lay with her:

and she bare a son, called his name Solomon: and the Lord loved him.”

2 Samuel 12:24, 25

As I read that verse I had a thought. Why didn’t Solomon come from David’s other wife Abigail?

She was amazing and had less “baggage.”

But I believe God used Bathsheba because He wanted to make a statement.

God took the darkest and ugliest situation in David’s life and turned it around.

The enemy’s proof of victory was no more. The “souvenir” he kept with pride was now turned

into a testimony of God’s goodness, mercy and power.

He could no longer brag about the destruction he caused in David’s life because God redeemed

the situation!

And God will do the same for you and me.

He will take the enemy’s victories and turn them around into powerful testimonies of His goodness,

mercy and power!

Even if you have messed up big time and it seems like the enemy has won, he hasn’t. The Lord

has the final say. When He steps in there is nothing the enemy can do to stop Him.

Forgiveness, mercy and grace are a prayer away. Call on the Lord for help when you are in trouble.

Call on Him when sin has made you stumble.

He wants to help you.

And with that I have come to the end of the post.

If you would like to support what I am doing here financially, you can do so with a few dollars a month.

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Bless you friends

Rolain

How To Talk To “Giants”

How do you speak to the giants that come against you?

As I read the Bible this week there was a story that made me think about that.

There is a way we are meant to speak to giants. We are not supposed to

cower away in fear or terror because God is our Protector.

He is so much stronger than the giants we face

I was reading the story of David and Goliath in 1 Samuel 17:45-47 and there

were a few things that stuck out to me that I would like to share about how we

should speak to giants.

• David didn’t talk to Goliath about his strength. He spoke about God’s strength and power.
• David knew the battle wasn’t his but the Lord’s. He knew that the God who delivered him from lion and the bear would deliver him from Goliath.
• David never negotiated or pleaded with Goliath. He TOLD him what was going to happen to him.
• Because David had faith in God, he knew he was going to win.

We don’t have to let giants determine what happens to us.

Our faith in God will make us see giants differently and will make us talk differently because that’s what

happened to David. He didn’t run away in terror when he saw Goliath, he defeated him and told him

he was going to kill him.

Keep trusting the Lord and don’t let go. Let your faith be the driving force behind the words and actions

you speak and take against the giants that come against you.

And before I go I have some exciting news.

If you like what I do here and would like to support me financially, you can now do so.

With a coffee or coffees you can support on Buy Me A Coffee.

You can also become a member if you really enjoy what I do.

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And with that, I have come to the end of the post.

Bless you friends

Rolain

When The Battle Seems Lost, You Have Help.

“Then Samuel took a stone, and set it between Mizpeh and Shem,

and called the name of it Ebenezer, saying, Hitherto hath the Lord

helped us.”

1 Samuel 7:12

The Philistines came against Israel to wipe them out. They were strong

and powerful. It seemed like Israel had no chance but Samuel prayed

to the Lord for help and his prayer was heard.

He fought for Israel and won against the Philistines.

The Lord is your Stone of help. When it seems like the enemy is winning,

remember that you have help, God’s help. Call on Him in your time of

trouble. Don’t fear or lose hope. You have victory because God is your Helper!

“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God.

I will strengthen you and help you;

I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

Isaiah 41:10

Bless you friends

Rolain