Becoming that man…..

 

Being a male is a matter of birth but being a man

is a matter of choice

 

I love this quote because it is so true…..but I am

not here to discuss the quote. I am here to discuss

something more, something that has been stirred

in my heart this past weekend.

Our church had its annual conference which was

so powerful. It started on Wednesday evening and

ended on Sunday. The messages were all so relevant

and powerful but the men’s meeting we had on Saturday

stood out the most. I love our men’s meetings because

there is something powerful that happens when men

get together to worship the Lord!

 

My pastor was speaking about becoming THAT man in today’s

crazy world. He said as men we are on the road to becoming

THAT man. That got me thinking……..

 

I am committed to becoming THAT man!

But what does that really mean?

 

Becoming that man means making God first in my life.

I am not the man! God is the THE Man. He died for me

And He is the One who is directing my life.

 

Becoming that man means making a stand for purity!

We live in a sex-saturated world and as men the battle

is everywhere. There is no sitting on the fence for this

battle. A line has to be drawn, a decision must be made.

Will you get swept away in this sex-saturated world or

will you make a stand for purity?

 

I dictated a covenant (an agreement) to my eyes;

how then could I look [lustfully] upon a girl?

Job 31:1

 

Becoming that man means living by the word of God.

The word must be our guide. We can’t rely on our own

strength. As men we feel the need to show our strength but

we need to realize God wants us to trust Him. Our strength

doesn’t count for much in God’s eyes. Look to God and not

yourself.

 

How shall a young man cleanse his way? By taking

heed and keeping watch [on himself] according

to your word [conforming his life to it].

Psalm 119:9

 

This is the thing men, the world doesn’t want men

to take their place. It doesn’t want us to walk in

what God has called us to. The world is distorting

the image of man. We have a lot of males but not

a lot of men! Don’t believe the lie…….

 

Men are not better than women, God just made us

different. It’s not about who is better, faster, cleverer….

God made man and woman in HIS image!

That means we are an expression of God, man and

woman!

I think we can all agree that God is strong and powerful.

There is nothing weak about God, so if we are an expression

of God why do we see women as weak and treat them like

they are insignificant????

God is all powerful. He doesn’t have one strong side (man)

then one weak side (woman)…but there are men who think

that by the way they treat women!

It makes me mad when men think they are better than women

just because they are men!!!

But God made women to express a part of Himself so please help me

understand why you think He would make them weak and useless

when He isn’t any of these things????

That kind of thinking has to stop.

(I don’t know where that came from because I didn’t plan

on talking about that)…..

 

Without a man leading a home, a family is lost!

The enemy is destroying our kid’s right under our noses.

We leave our kids in front of the TV and think that’s

parenting but that is wrong! We need to take responsibility

men. We must protect our family…..

We need to protect the women in our lives.

Would Eve have eaten the fruit if Adam had protected her

from the enemy??? She had to face the enemy alone and

deal with him alone! But things would have been different

if Adam stood up for her and protected her…..

Young man, you are called to protect. Don’t play with women’s

emotions. You should be protecting them!

The women you are playing with are precious in the eyes of the

Lord. He loves them and has a unique call on their lives….

Why do you think the enemy is working overtime to destroy

her?

 

As I end I hope I have challenged you to become THAT man!

A lot of people are waiting for us to walk into our calling

as men! The enemy will not win. I refuse……!

 

As a man I make a decision to be THAT man…..!

Will you be THAT man too?

 

Rolain

The arrogance of man….

And Saul built an altar to the Lord;

It was the first altar he built to the

Lord.  1 Samuel 14:35

 

Saul built an altar to God. It was probably the only

altar he built to God.

Why he built the altar is not really clear but the point

is this, he built an altar.

Saul building that altar almost seems out of context.

In fact, it’s so out of Saul’s norm that the word says,

 

“It was the first altar he built to God.”

 

Building an altar meant on a very rare

occasion Saul remembered God, he honored God!

It was one of those very rare occasions where

Saul put God first, where Saul stopped to thank

God.

The altar that Saul built tells us a lot about where

his relationship with God was. He didn’t build altars

which meant something.

 

On the other hand let’s look at David.

Building an altar wasn’t out of context for him.

He built countless altars to God. That also said

something about his relationship with God.

David was a man after God’s heart. God was the

most important thing to him….

 

David and Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11:1-5)

David kills Uriah (2 Samuel 11:14-23)

In both these situations David repented to God.

He confessed his sins and asked God to forgive him.

His heart broke because of what he did.

 

David counts his people (2 Samuel 24:1-9)

After counting the people the word says:

David felt ashamed after he counted the people

and said to the Lord, “I have sinned greatly in

what I did! Lord, I beg you, forgive me for my

sin. I have been very foolish.”

2 Samuel 24:10

 

Once again David humbled himself before God.

He confessed his sin to God quickly!

 

David wants to build a house for God.

(2 Samuel 7:1-18)

Even in peace David still sought the Lord.

He never forgot Him!

 

This is what I am trying to show you,

We need to be like David who built countless

altars to God. He loved God so much. Yes,

he sinned many times but he always turned 

to God. No matter how bad things got he

always turned to God and even in good times

he still turned to thank God!

 

Saul didn’t put God first a lot of the time.

Some would say he was proud. He believed

he could make it on his own. He was a skilled

warrior who was a “head taller” than everyone

else. (1 Samuel 9:2)

Whatever the case we must aim to be like

David who humbled himself before God.

He never relied on his own strength. Instead,

he relied on God and ALWAYS turned to

God, always……

The goal is not to be David but it’s to take

those things that made his relationship

with God stronger and apply them to

our lives.

The goal is not to discredit or attack

Saul but it’s to look at his life and

learn from his mistakes. We all sin

so attacking Saul would be foolish…

 

God wants us to put Him first….

Pride will always resist God.

We need to be humble and allow

God to lead us.

Rolain

 

 

Will you hold on…???

I had an amazing couple of days this past weekend.

The month of April in my country

marks the end of the first school term so that means holiday

time and holiday camps! And since I serve in our kids ministry

I went for camp with the kids I teach.

This was one of the best camps I have been on. Yes, I was

involved in the planning and organizing of it but I still had fun!

The kids we went with had a blast! As a leader it was a privilege

serving the children.

But what stood out the most for me was how God came and

ministered to me and the other leaders. I have been trusting

God for a lot of things and I have to admit it gets hard. It’s

hard holding on in faith and this weekend my faith was tested.

But in the testing God used the three days I was on

camp to re-adjust my focus.

This is what He spoke to me about:

 

“Now when Jesus returned, a crowd welcomed Him, for they

were all expecting Him.

Then a man named Jairus, a synagogue leader, came and fell

at Jesus feet, pleading with Him to come to his house

because his only daughter, a girl of about twelve, was dying.

Luke 8:40-55″

 

We all know the story very well but there are a few things

that I saw that jumped out at me that I would like to point out:

 

– Jairus came to Jesus because he had faith in Him. He believed

Jesus would heal his daughter. Jairus was desperate! He may

of tried a few doctors but with no luck.

 

– Jesus stopped walking when the woman with the issue of

blood touched Him. I am sure Jesus knew how desperate and

serious Jairus’s situation was but He still stopped?? How do we

know the woman with the issue of blood had that problem for

twelve years and how do we

know she used all her money on physicians with no change?

We know all this because one of the disciples must of taken

the time to speak to her. He must of spent some time asking

questions or Jesus must of simply listened to a healed ecstatic

woman tell Him how she had spent

all her money on physicians with no results and tell Him how

long this went on for!

Whatever the case, Jairus was waiting! What was on his mind as

all this was happened? Did he push Peter to speak up…?

 

“When they all denied it, Peter said, Master, the people are

crowding and pressing against you.” Luke 8:45

 

Where was his faith then?

Did he convince Peter of the absurdity of Jesus question? We

don’t know…..!

Then it happened….!

 

“While Jesus was still speaking, someone came from the

house of Jairus, the synagogue leader. ‘Your daughter is

dead,” he said. “Don’t bother the teacher anymore.” Luke 8:49

 

What exactly was going through Jairus mind? It was faith

and desperation that led him to Jesus but was that faith

still there? Did Jesus take His time with the woman knowing

Jairus was desperate?? Did He want Jairus to endure

in his faith???

Having faith and enduring in your faith are two completely

different things. We do well when we trust God but is that enough?

We must also learn to endure in our faith. That’s the lesson

I learned on camp.

Jairus had faith in Jesus but his faith was tested. He had to

learn to endure in his faith he soon found out.

Don’t lose hope along the way! Jesus has not forgotten your

faith! Jairus may of felt like Jesus didn’t care or had forgotten

him but He didn’t!

 

“But Jesus, on hearing this, answered him, Do not be seized

with alarm or struck with fear;

Simply believe [in Me as able to do this], and she will be

made well.     Luke 8:50

 

When Jairus faith was failing, Jesus was right there

to encourage him. Jesus wants us to endure in our faith.

You may be trusting God for something and weeks,

months and years have passed without anything happening

but be assured,

something will happen as long as you endure in your faith!

Don’t give up in your faith. Don’t let fear cloud the truth

about your faith.

The truth is, God will come through!

God has heard you and will not let you down!

He wants to help you more than you will ever know!

Your faith is precious to God!

Your faith pleases Him.

As long as you have faith, the enemy will always lose!

 

At the end of the day, Jairus got his daughter back. Jesus

did a miracle in his life because he endured in his faith no

matter how bad things seemed!

Jesus knows where you are at. He has not forgotten about

you. He says,

 

“Simply believe [in Me as able to do this], and she shall be

made well.” Luke 8:50

 

Believe He is able to help you.

Believe He has heard you because He has.

 

As I sign off I want to encourage you to endure in your faith.

That is what I was challenged to do on camp!

God bless….

 

Rolain

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Purity and dating….What really matters here???

 

I had a thought the other day about my blog. I have rarely written anything

about dating. I have written a few posts here and there but nothing really substantial

about this very important piece of my life. It’s what I pray about constantly and talk to

God about. It’s an area I struggle trusting God in. If there is one thing I have

realized when it comes to finding the one, it’s we as people have no control over who we are to be with.

What I mean is God is the one directing us and guiding us in our relationships. He is involved

In the choosing process, it’s not just us. If it was up to me only I would of being married by now,

I would of chosen someone and that would have been that. But that is not the case for me. God has

really used this area of my life to teach me to trust in Him wholeheartedly! That is what I believe and

that is what I have experienced. This won’t apply to everyone. We are all unique and God works

differently in all our lives.

 

What is your point you might be asking??? Please bear with me a little longer. I am getting there….

 

I had a great week last week. It was great because God spoke to me about grace. I have always

known what grace is but last week was different. I got a whole new perspective on grace. But with

that perspective certain areas of my life were highlighted. The area of dating and relationships

was one of the areas that were highlighted in my life.

Let me explain. I have always prided myself in the values I have been taught concerning dating.

 

–         I have never dated in my life ever!

–         I have never kissed anyone passionately (That honor will go to my wife)!

–         I signed a covenant of chastity even.

 

 

There are others but this post is not about what my values are and getting the praise but about

what God showed me. These are the things that made me proud and even conceited. Because of the

values I had I thought I could dictate who I wanted. God, I want this kind of woman and she must

be that and and and………

I am so ashamed writing this because I was seriously misguided. This is not how God works.

One of the things I prided myself in……
But what matters is God’s grace!

 

Last week He showed me how getting a wife was not because of all the things I had done,

and the high standards I had and the values I believed in but because of His grace!

It is because of His grace that I will find the One. It won’t be because of my intelligence and

how holy I appear to be and how together I try to be but it will be because of His grace!!!!

This is one area He will get the glory! He wants the glory in every aspect of our lives.

When I realized this I was dumbfounded. How could I have not seen this?

 

Please understand me here, keeping yourself pure and all those other decisions about purity

you have made or should make are important. But those things need to be done to glorify God.

I had that intension when I first started out but it changed some where. It became about me

some where down the line.I will meet the woman God has for me because of His grace. I won’t

have anything to add on and say to God “but it’s because I did this or that…..no!”

That is how amazing God’s grace is. His grace extends to every other area of our lives and not just in

our relationships.

 

Will you lean fully on His grace? Don’t rely on what you have done or what you can do and and and….

Rely on His grace!

 

Rolain

The things God is behind……

Easter is over but at the same time it’s not! How can we go on from here as normal? There are things that must change. yes there is reflection, but that reflection must translate into something meaningful. There has been so much revelation I have got from Easter. I will hold it in my heart and make sure that revelation is acted upon. Today is a new day. Today, the day after Easter marks a new way of living, a new way of thinking and a new way of doing things. There is victory and there is hope! Will it be hard? Yes! But I can’t live my life the way I lived it before Easter….I just can’t! There is too much that I have been shown. I am accountable for the revelation I have been given.

Don’t let Easter just be a holiday! It is more than that…..

Anyway, that was a side note. That was not the main topic. On Saturday I read a scripture that really got me thinking. It is from Judges 14:3, 4 and it says,

His parents said to him, “Isn’t there a woman among the girls in the neighborhood of our people? Do you have to go get a wife from the uncircumsised Philistines? 

But Samson said to his father, “Get her for me. She’s the one I want – she’s the right one.”

(His father and mother had no idea that God was behind this, that He was arranging an opportunity against the Philistines. At the time the Philistines lorded it over Israel.)      Mesage.

As I read this passage a few things came to mind. Samson’s parent’s had no idea that Samson’s desire for a Philistine woman was part of God’s plan. He was behind that. But I think Samson had no idea as well. I don’t think he knew God gave him a desire for Philistine woman because it would lead to events that would lead to the down fall of the Philistines! He may have known, but I strongly think not.

But what does that mean? Could that mean there are things in our lives that are confusing and that look out of place that God is behind???

Samson’s parent’s must of been confused, and worried. But the fact remains, God was behind it. It didn’t seem like it, but He was.

God is behind a lot of things in your life. And it’s poosible you may not even have the slightest clue.God knew how He was going take down the Philistines. The parents didn’t. God knows how your life is going to take shape and you don’t but He want’s you to trust Him.

As I read this passage I was encouraged. Encouraged in the fact that God is in control of my life. Even with those things that don’t make sense at all. Now I know He is behind it all. Nothing is happening in my life just for the sake of happening. God is orchestrating all those things to meet an end, a good end!

That could be you. There may be things happening in your life that just don’t make sense at all! God may be behind it. Ask Him and seek answers. Did the parent’s eventually know the plan? I don’t know. They knew what the angel told them but did they know where their son’s desire would lead him too? Did they know it would lead to the deliverance of Israel? I don’t know. Let us trust God in the midst of confusing times. When things don’t happen as you expect, trust God! When something happens that confuses you trust God! He has a plan and His plan is always good.

Rolain.

Relationships From A Friend’s Point of View……

 

Relationships!! When I say that I mean between a man and a woman. How do we carry ourselves around each other? As a man I see how we need help and grace! We are to honour God in the relationships we have, we are to put Him first as well. This post is directed more towards the men because as men we are called to lead. We are the ones who called to be the head. As men we can be so clueless at times hence this post. So if you are in a relationship and you don’t have a clue about what you supposed to be doing then this is the post for you. If you are not yet in one then this will help as well.

These are the thoughts of one of my best friends. She was kind enough to let me share it because I think it will give you an idea into how to treat a woman but more than that it will teach you how to honour the women God has placed in your lives.  It will teach you to treat her the way God wants you to treat her. We live in a world where relationships are painted as some small thing but it’s not. God created relationships.  We need strong relationships in our lives to grow and as men it’s our responsibility to lead the way. Women need us to be strong to lead. They need us to lead them deeper into God but to do that you as a man have to know! How can you be that man if you are clueless??? So let us move on.

*please note that this is not how all women think. This is how my friend thinks but she is a woman but not just any woman but a wise woman so I think there is a lot we can learn as men from what she has shared!!!
I am going to highlight a few things from what I have read and if I see a need to expound more on a point I will.

THOUGHTS OF A WOMAN ON RELATIONSHIPS

– In any interaction with a lady you BOTH need to decide, are we bringing each other closer to God or further away, and this also is true if she is just a friend, God needs to be at the centre.

This is so true. She is so right about that. If God is not at the centre of your relationship you are in trouble. God needs to be the focus of your relationship. He is not second or third or fourth! He is first!!
Men, it is our job to initiate where the relationship is going. It is our responsibility to lead the relationship towards God. Do not wait for the woman to start the conversation. You lead her! I read a quote the other day that said, “The greatest thing a man can do to a woman is to lead her closer to God than to himself.

– Games are for the court, field or the computer not a relationship and that goes for a friend too! You playing games and trying to get a reaction out of her leaves room for miscommunication, misinterpretation and it proves you are secure.

– A lady’s heart is a precious jewel and should be treated as such.

– Women are emotional, get over it and get used to it, it does not make them weak. Emotions are human. It’s HOW she deals with her emotions that is important.

– Study her, but she is not a test to be passed or failed. Never stop learning about her.

– (I really like this one 🙂 ) Be aware that a lady is always thinking 5 steps ahead of you in regards to this relationship whether purely friendship or something deeper, she is ALWAYS thinking and quite possibly taking what you say out of context, women look at details and will analyse them so you need to know that what you say IS IMPORTANT even if you are “joking”.

– The pace and direction of any relationship is dependent on the man. You are the leader, take responsibility for that. If she ends up going in the direction of a serious relationship do not blame her, you lead her that way!!!
(that is a hard one men)

– Your word means something…keep it and if you have not, man up and tell her!

– The best thing that you can do is be honest with her.

– You have no business  telling a lady how you feel about her if you are not prepared to act on those feelings.

I think I will stop there. I have given you a lot to think about. Relationships are so important. We need to guard the relationships we have. I hope your eyes have been opened but just beside been opened I hope you have been enlightened!!!
This is just a little of what I have been given but the bit I have shared should help you. Let us learn to honour God in the relatonships we have with each other!

Rolain.P