What Report Do You Believe?

September 9, 2012 by Olga 34 Comments

What Report Do You Believe?

Everybody is going to encounter problems in life, even the person who is in right standing with God. We can expect it because God said so in Psalm 34:19, but God promises also that He will be there for us and that He will rescue us. Not only will God deliver us, He wants to deliver us!

The state of the economy has played a significant role in the lives of many people over the last few years. People have lost their jobs and homes and some have diminished or completely emptied their life’s savings. Just watching the news can trigger some hopelessness.

Even though the reality is that the economy has affected our lives, dwelling on it won’t change the situation. We can’t be moved by things we see, like high gas prices, closing businesses, and negative bank balances. Our focus should be on the One who can change it all.

There is a lot of darkness in the world now. And if the only thing we’re feeding off of is negative television, negative news reports, and negative people, we’re going to be negative.

Positive Options

Thank God there are positive options also available through television, radio, music, books, and even magazines. When we take in negative information, we are influenced by it and ultimately participate in it by complaining and finding faults in others.

Let’s have a look at the story of Caleb in Numbers 13 and 14. Moses and the Israelites were traveling through the desert in search of the Promised Land. God told Moses that Canaan was the place designated for His people to inhabit. He asked Moses to send spies to inspect the land and its people. The land was already rich in resources and filled with everything they could possibly want or need.

When the twelve spies returned, they confirmed that the land was indeed flowing with milk and honey. The grapes were sweet and ripe and everything was plentiful. But soon their report became flooded with doom and gloom about the people who lived there.

All they could focus on was how big the people were. As a result, the spies feared they would be destroyed. They described the people in Canaan as giants! Rather than seeing themselves equipped for potential battle, the spies described themselves and their own people as small, defeated grasshoppers. The Israelites heard the report and began to stir. They constantly complained and were overcome by fear.

However Caleb, one of the spies, had a different report. He saw the same land and the same people the other spies saw, but he chose to see things from a positive perspective. Numbers 13:30-32

But the people were overcome with fear and began complaining to and about Moses. Rather than accepting the hope that Caleb provided, they chose to believe the negative report of the other spies.

Have You Missed Out?

How many blessings have we missed out on by choosing to focus on the negative? I believe one of the most valuable lessons we can learn from this story is the value of choosing a positive perspective. Had the Israelites chosen to believe Caleb’s report, they would have entered into the Promised Land in God’s timing.

Instead, they opted to believe all the negative things they heard, and, as a result, they were overtaken with fear.

The perspective we choose to take on is by which our circumstances generally determine the type of life we will lead and the results we will achieve. The results the Israelites received would have been far better had they chosen to trust Caleb’s optimistic perspective.

Instead they bought into the negative report, complained, and remained ungrateful. Canaan flowed with milk and honey just as God said. The spies confirmed that it was filled with everything they could even need or desire. Sure there were giants, but as Caleb reminded them, God was on their side. Their victory was guaranteed!

Being positive is a choice. We choose to see the glass as half full or we can choose to see it as half empty. Either way, it’s the same glass. Caleb, as well as Joshua, saw the glass half full while the other 10 spies saw it as half empty.

These great men of faith were able to see beyond the obstacles and embrace the destiny God had prepared for them. Although they were outnumbered, it was Caleb and Joshua’s optimistic view that earned God’s favor. He blessed them by allowing them and their descendants to live in the land.

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How To Train Your Children To Make The Right Choices

August 12, 2012 by Olga 33 Comments

How To Train Your Children To Make The Right Choices

by Olga Hermans

My children are all grown up now; I have a daughter and a son. I love them both; they are on fire for God and desire to serve Him with everything they have. They are truly a blessing to me and my husband.

But….if I would have a chance to do everything over again, I would spend less time on teaching my kids to obey me and spend more time teaching them to make wise choices. I remember the times that I thought it was the most important thing for them to obey us as parents. That is how I had grown up and so I didn’t know any better.

And of course, don’t misunderstand me. It is good for children to obey their parents, but it is better for children to hear directly from God and obey Him because they want to.

So, what are we doing when we make all the decisions for them? They won’t know how to make decisions for themselves.
There are so many areas in life where they need to know how to make a decision and how to choose for themselves. You can start with things that really don’t matter; things where they don’t sin when they make the wrong choice.

I remember when one of my children wanted to build a friendship with some body that I knew wasn’t the right choice. I knew that this friendship wasn’t going to last for more than one reason, but she wanted to hold on to that choice just to find out later that it really wasn’t what she had expected from it and it was a short friendship.

So, now she knew that some choices that seem to be right are not always right.

Then there comes a time that your children get older and you need to allow them to say no to you at times. For example: you might want to go to a particular restaurant for lunch, but your children don’t like it. It’s okay to let him or her make some of the decisions as long as it is not rebellion or manipulation.

Another important aspect of teaching our children to make right choices is allowing them to experience the consequences – good or bad – of their choices.

You and I as parents want to “rescue” our children from experiencing the negative consequences of wrong choices. When we do this, and we all do, we actually teach our children that it is okay to make a wrong choice because someone will always be there to save them and in the end, we set them up for failure.

Remember Eli in the Old Testament with his sons: Hophni and Phinehas. Eli should have taught them and warned them about the wrong things they were doing; they were dishonoring the Lord and defiling the temple and their own temple. But, Eli never confronted them and kept them employed as priests at the temple, which was not a good thing. The Bible says, “their sins will never be forgiven.”(Samuel 3:14)

This is difficult for us as parents to confront our children for certain things. I am much more confronting with our children than my husband is. I know the heartache of being in the unknown of some things in life and I have wished many times that my parents would have informed me of certain things. My father was a hard working business man, but he never talked to us about what he had to do to come that far.

He only told us that money didn’t grow on trees and that we had to work hard to make some money. So, when he died at 57 years of age, we all were in the unknown and experienced some heartache in our lives.
You see, if we rescue our children from certain consequences in life, we are not allowing the law of sowing and reaping to operate in their lives.

Here are 4 ways you can help your children make the right choices

1. Allow your children to make their own choices some of the time and as they get older; allow them to say no to you as well. When you do, it lets them feel independent and it shows your children that you trust them.

2. Let them experience the consequences of their choices; the good, the bad and the ugly so to speak. If you protect your children from the bad consequences, they will never learn from their mistakes.

3. Teach your children to follow their conscience; this should be fun! Every child loves to learn this; it makes them feel responsible for themselves. Every child has a conscience. Why do we as parents always have our kids check with us when they have to make a choice to watch a certain movie or read a certain book? We should be training them to listen to that red and green light on the inside of them.

4. Last but not least, we need to teach our children to think right thoughts, because our choices are a product of what we have been thinking about.

I think that most children don’t even realize that they have choices. We owe it to our children to teach them that they have control over what they think. That is the only way that they can have control over their own life. We as parents don’t have any control over what they are thinking, even God doesn’t have that control; we need to inform our children that what they think and speak will eventually become their destiny.

I truly believe that if we do these things we empower our children to make the right choices; they will do mighty exploits on the earth because God’s blessing will be upon their lives.

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3 Things You Need, to Discover The Life You Were Born to Live

August 5, 2012 by Olga 37 Comments

3 Things You Need
to Discover The Life You Were Born to Live

by Olga Hermans

#1. A Plan

The purpose of life is to discover your gift, which means that you need to discover the things that you like to do. If you are inspired and motivated to “Discover The Life You Were Born to Live” and make a difference with your life, then you must have a plan. Nothing will just happen automatically. The primary reason why most people do not succeed is because they do not plan. Planning is one of those lifestyle choices.

This morning my husband and I were talking about some things that we want to do with our life. He said a few things that just hit home to me. “Yeah, yeah, that’s where we’re going” was my quick reaction to it. And I saw it so very clearly what we are going to do in the next few months, the next year and the next five years.

I’ve discovered that most people do a better job at planning a trip that will only last for a week than they do planning their life which is a lifetime. A lot of people do not succeed simply because they do not plan. God didn’t just wake up one morning and said, “You know, I think I will make a universe.” That is not how God operates. Nothing that God does is by coincidence. God is the master-planner.

If you are one of our valuable readers, you have read a few times that we have talked about the fact that God has a plan for your life even before you were formed in your mother’s womb.

You know as well as I do that if you want to be a doctor, then you have to make plans to be a doctor. If you want to own a business, then you have to make plans to own your own business, and if you want a better life, then you have to make plans for a better life. All of that is a choice.

So many people live for the moment. Whatever happens, happens. What will be, will be. You are not going to experience God’s best with that attitude. It takes planning. Success in any endeavour requires planning and planning is a choice. If you never succeed at anything, it is simply because you didn’t plan to succeed. Success doesn’t come easy, if it did, everybody on the planet would be successful.

Just a few weeks ago I was at a party where some of my friends shared that they had gone through very stormy conditions in their life. Life can be full of stormy conditions and that is why you need a plan. With a plan you can maneuver through life’s storms much easier.

A person who never sets goals is like a ship without a rudder; a ship without a rudder is like a person who just wanders aimlessly through life. Aimlessly wandering is like depending upon which way the wind blows. There are a lot of people like that today.

#2. Positive thoughts, words and actions

This universe is governed by certain laws, which were put into motion by God Himself. One of them is called the law of gravity. This works for everybody the same way because it is a law. If you let go of a book in your hands, it will drop on the floor. If a baby rolls over to the edge of a table too far, it will fall on the floor. This law of gravity cannot decide that because the baby is a baby, it will not go into affect.

If you don’t want to be a failure, then you have to learn certain laws that produce success. One of these laws is also the law of seedtime and harvest; or the law of cause and effect. The way you live today is the result of the seeds sown in the past. If you don’t like the way you live, then you have no one to blame but yourself. So, if you don’t like the harvest, stop planting it.

I want to encourage you to take the time to sit down and carefully look at what you have been doing that is preventing you from having success. Most importantly, take time to listen to yourself. Whether you realize it or not, you are applying the law of cause and effect or as the bible calls it, the law of sowing and reaping every time you speak.

In my new book “Pursue your Destiny with Passion and Purpose” I cover this subject in great depth. It is a very important subject and we need to learn to apply this law and put it to work for the contentment and happiness of our life.

# 3. Perception

In order to discover the life you were born to live, you have to learn how to become perceptive. Every problem has a solution. Many times people fail, because of wrong perception. By changing how you perceive your problems, you can literally change your life from failure and defeat to victory and success.

You know the story of David and Goliath. When David saw Goliath, his perception of that challenge was totally different from that of his brothers and the entire armies of Israel; they perceived Goliath as too big to kill. When David looked at him, he thought he was too big to miss. Same giant, same problem, a different perception.

You and I are created by God to succeed and not to fail. Success does not come without adversity; there is no such thing as success without adversity. Most people run from it though.

Learn to look at every situation, every problem, and every challenge with a different perception that your problems are subject to change. That is how you can endure anything.

If you don’t like the way you are presently living, then it’s time to make some choices. If you don’t like where you are, then you have got some decisions to make. One thing you have to do for sure is to Pursue Your Destiny with everything that is within you. Stir up your passion to make a plan, to think on good things and let those thoughts come out of your mouth. Use your words as the rudder on that boat and decide to take some action. You will see your life from a totally different perspective.

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Your Season Can Shift With One CHOICE

July 29, 2012 by Olga 54 Comments

Your Season Can Shift With One CHOICE

by Olga Hermans

Sometimes it feels like we need a shift in our life, we are in the middle of the wilderness, that there are no roads or even signs that lead anywhere. Even if you would have a choice, you are not expecting anything good; nothing exciting at all. I’d like to share a few things with you that might change your way of thinking; a powerful insight about understanding your own times and seasons.

We all know that God loves us and that He wants the very best for us no matter what. His desire for us is that we prosper in every area of our life. We want His will to come into our life because that is the very best for us. He created us and placed our gifts and talents on the inside of us and in a way that makes us dependable upon God. By the way, God likes that and it helps us if we like that.

God is all-powerful and unstoppable and holds our times and seasons in His hands. But the thing is that many people relegate the season they are in to God’s sovereignty. Oops! Big mistake! They give everything into God’s hands as if He made us a robot. They leave the breakthrough in their life, or getting their life to a better place up to God. It’s all up to God to heal them whenever He wants it to happen and then they wait for it. They think God wants to teach them a lesson.

Others have said concerning the call that’s on their lives, “When God wants to open a door for me or use me in a certain way, it will just happen.” And they sit and wait and wait and wait.

We are more involved in our destiny and the season and times that we are living in than we realize. You remember when Jesus came to the well and met the Samaritan woman “by accident”? Her life was all messed up and bound in immorality; she knew no way out any more. Here she was, just going about doing her daily tasks like any other day. Here she is at the well and meets this man who knew everything about her life and still wants to talk to her. That was very rare for her. From that day forward her whole life was changed around.

You see, this woman was open to a change in her life and seized the moment so to speak. Her messed-up circumstances made her desperate and longing for a change. Her eyes were opened to who Jesus was and went and told it to everyone in her town. Her season was shifted in one single moment.

There are so many stories and situations in the Bible that show us that when Jesus shows up, things drastically change. I remember in my own life when my husband and I went through a very difficult time in our marriage and we thought that the only way out was a divorce. We were meant for each other, but circumstances and family situations had brought too many hardships, and we just wanted to give up.

But Jesus showed up at a moment we didn’t even know Him yet, but He turned the whole situation around in 1 moment on 1 day. After that, the word “divorce” went out the window which was the best decision we ever made.

Your season can shift with one CHOICE! You see, sometimes we need another person to speak into our life for our life will move forward. But WE have to be willing and we have to be open!

In order to make the right decision that can change your entire life and launch you into your new season, you have to have faith that is produced by clarity of vision. Every fear, every doubt and every distraction must be thrown out of your heart. You must learn to trust yourself and gain confidence and the way you do that is by living out of your spirit, not your soul.

Our emotions, our will and our mind make up our soul; our emotions can drive us away from the path that we need to go. Our thoughts can keep us captive in fear and doubt. Our will can be so passive that we don’t even want to make a choice. That is a bad situation waiting for a disaster to happen. You need to be able to take your will and change gears and tell yourself to get up and create a change in your life.

Engage your will in what YOU want to do and bring all your feelings and stinky thoughts under submission to your will and if you have your will submitted to the will of God; good things are going to happen. God WANTS you to prosper, so whatever you are confident in doing, start doing it! Our will is a powerful thing. If we don’t want to yield to the will of God, nothing is going to happen.

So many people are soul-driven, while God is calling us to be Spirit-led. God speaks into our spirit; He gives us ideas and witty inventions to create wealth. He has empowered us to create wealth. So, let’s engage our will and step up to the plate and do it! Will you do that?

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Don’t Be Controlled and Manipulated

July 25, 2012 by Olga 30 Comments

Don’t Be Controlled and Manipulated

by Olga Hermans

God has placed a divine destiny on your life. As you begin to walk in this destiny, you will not only have to deny yourself, you’ll also have to say “no” to others when the demands they place on you are in conflict with how the Holy Spirit is leading you.

If we are overly committed and caught up in meeting other people’s needs, it may be an indicator that something is out of balance. Our first priority is to seek wisdom regarding any commitment. For a season, the Holy Spirit may lead us to give sacrificially of our time and ourselves. But God is our source and we need to always stay connected to Him with our spirit, soul and body.

Taking proper care of ourselves is not selfish when it’s for the purpose of being a fit vessel. How can we be of service when we are depleted spiritually, physically, mentally, and emotionally? It is possible to carry this idea too far and become preoccupied with our own interests at the expense of serving others. That’s not what I’m suggesting. But I am saying that we cannot be continually responsible for others’ poor choices.

Many believers take on burdens and responsibilities that they were never intended to bear. We think we must meet every need we encounter. For some, it’s very easy to habitually take on others’ responsibilities. Those habits, left unchecked, can lead to believing that it is our job to keep everybody happy. It is one thing to be used of God as a source and it’s entirely another to take on others’ responsibilities to the extent that WE become their source.

And those who have no intention of carrying their own burdens, or of being responsible for their own choices, seem to have a sixth sense as to who are these hyper-responsible Christians. They seek them out like a heat-seeking missile, ready to offload their own God-given destinies and responsibilities on these willing burden bearers. Although they may not be aware of it, these people want to manipulate and control you. The truth is that some people don’t want to be helped; they don’t want to change. They like the attention their problems bring them. If we seek the Holy Spirit about our commitments, He will guide us as to whether to become involved or not.

It’s upsetting, frustrating, and discouraging when we find that we’ve made a wrong choice of taking on way too much responsibility for someone who won’t do what is right. Being responsible for someone else’s lifestyle choices and happiness is a heavy load.

It is not God’s intent for us to be controlled and manipulated by people who refuse to make good choices. We cannot be responsible for anyone else’s happiness. Even Jesus did not promise to give us happiness – no questions asked. Instead, His Word instructs in the way that leads to joy. If others are controlling us, it’s not their fault; it’s our own. We must be led by the Spirit to set appropriate boundaries. For example, don’t allow people to call at all hours of the day and night to dump their problems on you.

My oldest sister, who is mentally ill, still lives in The Netherlands. I don’t know how she did it, but she could make me feel so guilty whenever I didn’t do whatever she wanted. A few years ago, I would call her every day at the same time to speak scriptures over her life. She really enjoyed it and seemed to be doing so much better.

At some point, my husband and I scheduled a conference in Dallas. My sister expressed how afraid she was to have to miss our daily calls, so I agreed to call her every day while we were in Dallas. I disrupted my schedule and my focus on the conference to call her at our agreed upon time, but she wasn’t in. She had gone to a movie. I finally realized that even though she is mentally ill, I had to respond differently to the expectations she placed on me. My decision to set boundaries with her was very hard on me, but I had to do it.

Quit trying to be the keeper of the universe. That is not your job. Of course, it is not easy at first. God calls us to be givers and care for each other. But there is a big difference between caring and giving and allowing somebody to control you and make you feel guilty until you do what they want.

Will you choose to free yourself from being a people-pleaser and give those people to God?

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Filed Under: 6 Your Destiny Tagged With: choice, choices, Christians, Controlled, decision making, destiny, divine destiny, Don’t Be, God, good choices, happiness, Jesus, lifestyle choices, make choices, Manipulated, people, poor choices, the Holy Spirit, The truth

7 Vital Choices You Have To Make In Life

July 17, 2012 by Olga 46 Comments

7 Vital Choices You Have To Make In Life

by Olga Hermans

#1: Make a choice to take a stand in your own life
It is one of the most frustrating things when we have the idea that our own life is just rolling down the road. Sometimes there are seasons in our life that we don’t even realize what is going on and why things are the way they are.

Do you realize that you are a unique individual? Do you know that there is not one other person in the whole world like you? God made you special, just the way He wants you. He has a unique purpose for your life. Realize that, and you are on your way to being a winner.

#2: Make a choice to be responsible for your own life
You cannot dodge responsibility for how and why your life is the way it is. Take ownership of your own life. If there are things in your life that you don’t like; you probably made a wrong choice somewhere. If you are in debt, you are the one that is responsible. Your job, your weight, your marriage; you are responsible.
There is absolutely no reason to blame others or look at the past. There is no victory and no progress in doing that.

When you choose to think and speak negatively, filled with anger and bitterness, you will experience isolation and hostility around you. That is something that you don’t want, right? Start making right choices from now on. When you choose the right behavior and thoughts, you will see the right results in your life.

#3: Make a choice to do what works
Somehow you have to discover the payoff that drives your behavior. This is a biggie. If we would realize what consequences our behavior would have in the long run, we wouldn’t be so tolerant of ourselves. Who wants to be lonely and bitter and hostile? No-one in their right mind would want that.

I know people who have a self-destructive behavior. My sister died of anorexia nervosa last year because she rejected herself, she punished herself by always asking for negative attention. Remember, you are EXTRA-ordinary because you are one-of-a-kind. When you have even a little self-love and self-worth because of your awareness of God in you; you will start developing Christ-motivated habits that will make you a winner for sure.

#4: Make a choice to acknowledge the issues you want to change
You only can do that by getting real and getting brutally honest with yourself. Look at the areas that aren’t working for you and stop making excuses.

You cannot afford to lie to yourself! You have to know where you are in life and where you want to go. Your life is like a GPS system in your vehicle that must have two pieces of information to function. First, it must know your destination, and second, it must know your current location.

#5: Make a choice to take action
Once you’ve made some decisions, you have to act. Nobody cares about what you think unless they see you do something. Talk is cheap; being a doer determines the course of your life. Take all your revelations, insights and awareness and convert them into purposeful and constructive actions. That is when your life will gain value and meaning.

Realizing you have to change might be painful, but staying where you are and not doing a thing is more painful. So, take the pain that burdens you have now and turn the situation to your advantage.

#6: Make a choice to take charge of your life and hold on.
Our life needs a manager and you are the one! God has given us authority to rule our own life. You really should make it your objective to be very active in doing that. Do it in a way that generates high quality results. You are the only one who can make your life work.

The key to managing your life is to have a strategy. You need courage and energy to execute that strategy. If you do have a strategy, the future looks bright for you. You know, if you don’t require much of yourself, your life will be of poor quality. If your standards are too high, you will give up and you will have more difficulties.

#7: Make a choice to get clear about what you want.
When you know what you want you can take your turn. You need to be awakened to things God has for your life; He has an awesome plan and a purpose for you here in the earth.

By being specific in defining your goal, the choices you make along the way will be more goal-directed. You will recognize which behaviors and choices support your goals — and which do not. You will know when you are heading toward your goal, and when you are off track.

What choice is your most favourite choice and which one do you struggle with the most?

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When Life Throws You A Curveball

July 15, 2012 by Olga 50 Comments

When Life Throws You A Curve Ball

by Olga Hermans

You know a curve ball starts one way and then goes another. A well-thrown fast ball is predictable – you know where it is going – and because of that, it is fairly easy to hit. But a curve ball is different. The pitcher makes the ball curve by pulling down on it with his fingers as he releases it. The ball spins diagonally and then curves.

When I say a curve ball, I am referring to an unexpected problem, a surprise obstacle or a twist in the way you thought things were going to happen. For example, you thought your marriage was going to be everything you hoped for and you thought you were going to live happily ever after. Then you found out that it wasn’t the way you thought it would be.

Maybe you were hired for a new job and you thought it was going to be a certain way, but you found out you had a boss or an employee that was a real pain in the neck. That was a curve ball. You did not see it coming. It started out the way you thought it would, but suddenly there was a change.

Sometimes you get those balls that are thrown at you that are just crazy and you don’t know what to do with it. You’re thinking: “how in the world am I going to hit that one?”
I think about what happened to the disciples; they weren’t counting on Jesus dying. Jesus was their savior; He was their King and all of a sudden He is hanging on the cross and they are hoping that He will have a comeback and then he gets buried.

That was curve ball for them, they weren’t ready for that and they didn’t know how to hit that kind of a ball.

Have you ever had a curve ball in your life? Something happened unexpectedly, something you didn’t plan on. Maybe somebody in your family died or maybe your parents got a divorce.
Maybe something happened that you didn’t see coming and you had no clue whatsoever to do with the situation? The disciples had to make a choice; was their faith going to be based on the circumstances around them or continue to carry on what Jesus told them to do?

When I was 18, my father died unexpectedly. I remember the day that my mom and dad were going to a birthday party of a friend. They were dressed up and I remember my father making really nice compliments to my mom, how good looking she was and all that. All 5 of us always enjoyed it so much when he was “dating” my mom.

Anyway, off they went. At the party while he was dancing, he fell on the floor and had a heart attack; he never stood up again. It was devastating to my mom and all of us; she was speechless, she just couldn’t get her mind around the fact that he was gone. It was a very, very tragic moment for all of us; our life was never the same thereafter.

There are many times that people are not correctly handling problems and obstacles in their lives because they have failed to make an adjustment in their timing. The point is this: Most of us are accustomed to handling things straight on, so it can be very difficult when we get a curve ball thrown at us.

There are situations in our life where we feel we are totally undone because of something unexpected and unwanted came into our life. You have to make choice. You can be destroyed and fall apart or you can bounce back and hit that ball!

You can look at it this way: in the ocean there are sharks, but in the boat there is safety. You can stay in the boat (Jesus) and cross the ocean (go through life in this world) and the sharks will not get to you. In Christ there is victory, joy and peace. In the world, there is tribulation, but in Christ, you can go through the world overcoming every circumstance and situation. It doesn’t change the things that are in the world; it just changes your ability to overcome the world.

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Learn How Important Growing Up Is For You!

July 7, 2012 by Olga 34 Comments

Learn How Important Growing Up Is For You!

by Olga Hermans

Most Christians desire to fulfill the will of God. They know that they are redeemed from the curse and they want everything that Jesus purchased for them by shedding His blood on the cross. But things like the news and people around them on the job try to talk them out of that; they diminish their belief in their covenant with God, especially when it comes down to their financial provision.

There is a wonderful inheritance waiting for those who are mature, responsible and faithful.

Galatians 4:1-2 says, “Now I say, that the heir, as long as he is a child, differs nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all; But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father.”

So this means that when we want to qualify to receive our inheritance, childlike tendencies will hinder us. Wow, that hurts and it may sound totally unfair, but let’s have a look at it! You might be reading this and know you have children that you cannot give a car to because they are not mature enough to handle it.

It’s the same with our heavenly Father; He loves us so much that he knows that when He would give us everything that we desire, it might destroy us. For that reason it is important for us that we understand what we need to do to walk in a life filled with blessings!

Growing up is a process and in order to grow up, you need to locate yourself, you need to know where you are in life. All of us begin at the New Birth as spiritual babies in Christ, but God doesn’t intend that we stay that way. His desire is for us to grow in all areas of our lives-spiritually, mentally, emotionally, physically and financially.

Although we all may grow in different areas in our own way, we are supposed to grow up. He is right there on our side to make it all happen. Psalm 115:14 says, “The Lord shall increase you more and more, you and your children.”

One way we can make our growth process a little easier is by waking up unto God and that happens when we desire to read the Word of God more than ever before. We grow when we desire the sincere milk of the word. 1Peter 2:2 When you do that, you place a demand on the Holy Spirit who causes you to grow. 2 Peter 3:18

One thing is for sure, God expects us to grow spiritually. When you grow up, you are able to handle trials and temptations; you have God’s wisdom flowing in your life. Plus you will be able to grow strong relationships with others.

When we keep on walking with the Lord through all our trials and struggles, we will have grace in every situation that we face. His grace is always sufficient and He always causes us to triumph. He anoints us with His power and His ability. It will require that we make a quality decision to allow God’s Word to mature us.

There are things that we do as children; we speak differently, we understand things differently and we think differently. It is time to put them away. 1Cor.13:11 There is no need for us to sweat the small things, because in the eyes of God everything is a small thing. It doesn’t matter, what matters is that you and I are going to finish the race strong.

Why would we be jealous and not be glad when a friend gets promoted; God has a way better promotion for you. Why would you concern yourself with what other people think of you? Breaking free from worrying about what people think of you might be your biggest breakthrough.

In order to discover the life you were born to live, you need to grow up from your old ways of doing things. If what people think about you is more important than what God thinks about you, then God cannot be the source of your life. John 12:42-43

It is important to stay focused and to get all our priorities right in 2012. It’s very simple: God is our loving Father. He is the all-powerful and all-knowing creator and possessor of heaven and earth. We should live to please Him. What Anna, Ken and John think doesn’t matter.

We should give our full attention and stay focused on God. If we keep listening to criticism and sarcastic remarks and the opinions of others, it will cost you your blessings, your healing, your provision and even the salvation of your family members. It is not all about you; it is all about what Jesus did for you and me on that cross. Our full inheritance is waiting for us, especially in 2012. God wants to bless you so that you can bless others (Gen. 12:2-3).

Watch out for people who satan will use to discourage you in everything that you are believing for. Satan is the father of lies, and lieing is all he can do. John 8:44 He will try to get you in trouble and put shame on you. Don’t believe his lies; don’t let him succeed in deceiving you in any way. Be bold enough to apply the Word of God to your life and receive His blessings with a grateful heart.

I remember the time when my husband and I decided to leave The Netherlands when our children were still quite young. Most people around us discouraged us, but there was that peace on the inside of us that kept us moving forward with the decision and you know what? Because they saw how steadfast we were in our decision, they came alongside of us. It was a great experience and because we had been obedient to what God had called us to do, we were tremendously blessed.

Sometimes it takes determination to not listen to other people’s opinions in the small things of life and in the big things of life. When you believe for healing for your child, that is not a small thing! Stay with the people who are in agreement with you and leave the opinions of those that bring doubt at the door.

It doesn’t matter who disagrees with your acts of obedience. Walk in complete liberty from people and their opinions so you can possess all the Father has for you.

If you are born again, Jesus Christ has made you free from the bondage of opinions so you can glorify God, free from poverty so you can be rich and free from sickness and disease so you can be healed. He made you free to walk in liberty.

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How To Pray To Stop The Devil

July 4, 2012 by Olga 24 Comments

How To Pray To Stop The Devil?

by Olga Hermans

What do you think about when you hear that question? Do you think “it is too difficult” or “I don’t want to fight with the devil”; what do think about when you need to fight the devil?

You know, you have been given the victory through the death of Jesus and His burial and resurrection over anything you will ever face. Maybe you are wondering how to see this happen in your own life and have no clue where to start. Maybe you started once and you gave up.

First things first; you must resist the devil in your daily walk, or James would not have mentioned it. The enemy has been conquered, but he still must be resisted.

The way to start resisting the devil is with submitting to the word. To submit to God means to surrender to Him, to yield yourself fully to Him, to come under His authority. To submit means to be a doer of the Word and not just a hearer. It means to believe, speak, and obey God’s Word. Submission could be stated another way: Trust God in every way possible

Prayer that stops the devil is based upon believing, speaking and acting upon what God says. Submission is not only to the written Word Of God, but also to the spoken Word spoken under the submission of the Holy Spirit.

There are people who will not submit to God because they want to be under His authority. They have failed to realize that if you aren’t under God’s authority, you are under the devil’s authority. There is no middle ground. People who are selfishly-ruled are satan-ruled.

To resist the enemy means to have an active, willful decision to say “no” to the devil with your heart, mind, words and attitude. Every time you invite the will of God to be done in your life, you are saying “no” to the devil. Every time you praise God, you are saying “no” to the devil. Every time you obey the Word of God, you are saying “no” to the devil. In other words, you are making positive choices that literally evict the enemy!

You are choosing the will, purpose and desires of God. When you resist the devil, he will flee from you. To pray to stop the devil, you must believe in the power of the blood of Jesus. Hebrews 10:16-19

We have boldness, confidence and liberty to enter into the holiest place through the blood of Jesus Christ. I have heard a former Satanic witch say once ad I think it was on the 700 club, “Whenever the blood of Jesus was mentioned, it stopped the power of Satanists.”

It was the blood of Jesus that destroyed Satan’s hold over you and me. It was His blood that ransomed us from Satan’s authority. It was His blood on the cross that bought and paid for our total salvation, so when we come to God, we are coming through the blood of His Son. Every time we quote Romans 8:1, we are declaring the power of the blood of Jesus: There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

If you do not believe in the power of the blood of Jesus, you will not pray with authority. You will be reminded of what you’ve done in the past, of your failures and shortcomings, and as a result your prayers will be like a wet noodle. The devil knows when you don’t know your authority.

It takes the blood of Jesus to free you of guilt and condemnation. It takes an understanding of the blood of Jesus to know your sins have been remitted. When you call on the blood of Jesus, you have immediate access to the heavenly Father.

To have prayer that stops the devil, you must approach the Father in the name of Jesus. John 16:23-24

God wants you to have fullness of joy. He doesn’t want the enemy to overrun your life in any area. The Bible says that the shield of faith quenches every fiery dart of the wicked (Ephesians 6:16). David the psalmist declared, The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. Psalm 23:1

Jesus already won the victory that is sufficient to give us complete liberty from the devil’s work in our lives, but we have to enter into the type of prayer that will stop him. That’s believing prayer in the name of Jesus.

When we use the name of Jesus, we have used the highest name in heaven, on earth and under the earth. There is no other authority greater than the name of Jesus.

You and I have been given the power of attorney to use that name! Jesus was saying to His disciples and to you and me, “I am going away. I will send the Comforter [My Spirit] to you. Carry on business as usual, because I am giving you My name. I will never leave you. I will never abandon you. I will be with you always to the end of the world.

To pray to stop the devil, you must declare the Word of the Lord. Hebrews 4:12

Because the Word of God is a living entity, you can take it into your prayer closet. This is an aspect of prayer that many people have not entered into because they have not recognized the value of it. They pray, beg and plead, but they never come with the Word. If you will start your prayers with God’s will, which is His Word, you will never pray amiss.

If you are approaching God for healing, come into agreement with His promises of healing in Isaiah 43:4-5; Matthew 8:17 and 1Peter 2:24. You can pray, “Father, I am coming to You through the blood of Jesus, in the name of Jesus and with Your Word. You put sickness and diseases upon Your Son, Jesus Christ, so I wouldn’t have to bear it. By His stripes I am healed. Thank You for my healing now, in Jesus’ name.”

What are some experiences that you have had with resisting the devil? Give us one of your great testimonies in the comment section; thank you! Check out my book on prayer, that teaches you even so much more on how to be effective in prayer.

You can subscribe to The Daily Choice which is a SPIRITUAL Devotion that helps you to make the right choices in your life!

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Speak to Your Mountains

July 1, 2012 by Olga 13 Comments

Speak to Your Mountains

by Olga Hermans

Now is the time to speak the Word Of God to the mountains in Your life and see them removed; whether is the mountain of sickness, lack, division, torment, oppression, or some other challenge. On one of Jesus’ final trips over the Mount of Olives before His betrayal and crucifixion, He taught His disciples in Mark 11:12-19

Jesus and His disciples left Jerusalem on the same route they had taken into Jerusalem, up over the Mount of Olives, down to the little town of Bethany. He taught, ministered and spoke each day in the temple. Mark 11:20-26

Often overlooked is the parallel between the fig tree and the nation of Israel. Jesus came to the fig tree, and it was supposed to be bearing fruit. It wasn’t so He spoke to it and it withered. Jesus came to the nation of Israel, and it was supposed to be bearing fruit; the fruit of a righteous, holy nation. He came to the temple and found a den of thieves. What he has done to the fig tree, He did to the temple and found it a den of thieves. He overthrew the money changers and spoke to them that their house would be left desolate.

It was only a few years later, 70 A.D., after Jesus had spoken it, that the Roman general Titus surrounded the city of Jerusalem and destroyed it.

In the Bible, we are likened to trees. The trees of the field shall clap their hands Isaiah 55:12. Jesus is the vine, and we are the branches John 15:5. Jesus is looking for fruit in our lives; the fruit of answered prayer, the fruit of souls being won to Christ, the fruit of the Spirit of love, joy, peace, long suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

On one occasion when this parable was told, the landowner said, Let’s destroy the tree. Then the Word came, No, give it one more year. Let’s dig around it, fertilize it and see if it brings forth fruit. Thank God, He is merciful!

Jesus left us an example that we are to follow. He left us a pattern of faith. In verse 14, He spoke to the tree, and the disciples heard it. In other words, it wasn’t one of those whisper things. He spoke out loud. Nothing happened visibly at that moment. As you release your faith, nothing may happen visibly at that very moment.

But when Jesus returned by this same route some 24 hours later, the fig tree had dried up from the roots. In the natural, it is impossible for something to dry up that quickly.

Then Jesus commanded, Have faith in God. Romans 12:3 says,…God has dealt to each one a measure of faith.

Romans 10:17 says, So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Hebrews 11:6 says, But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. Hebrews 11:1 says: Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

It has been said, Faith is the title deed to that which is invisible. Corrie ten Boom said, Faith is the radar that sees things and catches an image of them, even though they may be beyond natural sight. The image of it is imprinted in us by the Word of God. Then Jesus said, For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain…Mark 11:23

Jesus was using the terminology of speaking to a mountain as a figure of speech, saying, If you have a problem, a difficulty, an obstacle that is like a mountain, you can speak to it to be removed. Jesus was saying that you can speak to any mountain-size problem to be removed and it has to go. Maybe your mountain is sickness or disease, depression, discouragement, fear, dismay, or financial lack.

Many people talk about their mountain, discuss their mountain and even evaluate their mountain. They take samples of their mountain and compare it with other people’s mountains. Then there are mountain conferences or dialogues where people get together and discuss their mountains!

Jesus didn’t say that we are to discuss our challenges. He said, “Speak to them!” Speak to cancer. Speak to financial lack. Speak to the rebellion in a child. Speak to the mountain in a situation. How do we get to the point where we believe that what we say will come to pass and that when we speak to our mountain, it will be removed?

Jesus said, If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you John 15:7

One of the primary keys to your confidence in prayer is to know that what you are speaking is the will or the Word of God. This is the day and the hour for God’s people to do great exploits because we are in covenant relationship with Him; speaking His Word, praying His Word and obeying His Word.

What is your experience with speaking to your mountains? Please let us know in the comment section.

You can subscribe to The Daily Choice which is a SPIRITUAL Devotion that helps you to make the right choices in your life!

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