Get Out of The Cave in 2012

January 2, 2012 by Olga 6 Comments

Get Out of The Cave in 2012

by Olga Hermans

The philosopher Plato wrote an allegory in which he compared people to prisoners chained in a cave. The only reality they knew was the tiny space of their surroundings. But if a person would stand up and break out of the chains, they could step out of the cave and into the light. This analogy can relate to our lives spiritually. The Bible says in John 1:5 that God is light and in Him there is no darkness at all!

You could be in a type of a cave. That cave could symbolize fear, depression, shame, or bitterness. The awesome thing is that Jesus has already paid the price for you to be free from the chains of the enemy. God has called you out of darkness and into the light of Christ Jesus.

There are so many distractions that will try to keep you from fulfilling your God-given purpose. You see, the enemy knows the potential that resides on the inside of you and he will do anything he can to keep you in fear of stepping out into something greater.

But you must wake up and realize you have been brought into the Kingdom for “such a time as this”. God has a purpose, an assignment, for you to fulfill. It is time to get out of your cave and be a light in this world.

God called Gideon out of the cave and to step out. “Cave dweller”, that is how Gideon, an Israelite, would have been labelled. The background on why this man was living in a cave is found in Judges, chapter 6. The story starts where the children of Israel had gone away from God.

They had begun to worship other gods, so they got out from under God’s protection. The Midianites (their enemies) took control for seven years, causing the Israelites to resort to dwelling in caves to hide from their enemies. Basically, the Israelites were in bondage and fear.

While in hiding, Gideon’s eyes were opened to the promises that God had for him. The angel of the Lord brought a word that Gideon needed to hear in Judges 6:12.

I love this because “God calls those things that are not as though they were” Rom 4:17, and that is what God does in our lives. Gideon was in hiding and God came and said, “Gideon, you’re a mighty man of God.” And Gideon said, “Who? Me?”

Gideon is wondering why everything had happened to them if the Lord was with them and where all the miracles are that all their fathers told them about. Judges 6:13

So many times we do that as well. We think, Well, if God is really with me, why are all these things happening to me? Gideon was complaining, but the children of Israel actually put themselves in the situation because they had gone away from God.

And so, the Lord turned to him and said: “Go with the strength you have, and rescue Israel from the Midianites. I am sending you!” “But Lord,” Gideon replied, “how can I rescue Israel? My clan is the weakest in the whole tribe of Manasseh, and I am the least in my entire family!” Judges 6:14-15

Gideon did what most of us have done: He began to compare himself with others and say, “But me? I am the weakest. I am the least. What do I have? Why are you choosing me, God? I can’t sing like that person. I can’t do this like that person.”

The Bible tells us it’s not wise to compare ourselves with others. 2Cor.10:12. Why? Because God is not going to help you to be anyone else other than the person He made you to be! God has put gifts inside you to bless someone else, not for you to get jealous or compare your gifts with someone else’s gifts. You better accept yourself as God made you.

Psalm 139:13-15 “The Message” says, “… You formed me in my mother’s womb … I am marvelously made! … You know exactly how I was made, … how I was sculpted from nothing into something …”

You are uniquely designed by God for a special purpose. God has put gifts and talents inside of you that no one else has, and He desires that you use them for His Glory! Don’t let comparison or fear keep you from stepping out into your destiny.

I remember the time that my husband and I stepped out to build a bible school in Amsterdam. I remember how overwhelmed I felt by the assignment and didn’t feel capable, but He saw something in us that we didn’t see. We had to trust God that He would give us the grace in everything that needed to be done.

I felt like Gideon at the time, trying to make excuses of why I couldn’t do it. But then we finally said, “Lord, we will do it, but we need your wisdom to do it.” We knew it was God’s will for us to do it, and He was faithful to give us the grace needed for the task. My husband and I had to choose to get out of the “cave” and depend on His grace and power to help us accomplish what He was asking of us.

Gideon was a lot like Moses. Gideon had a word from the Lord, and he started making excuses of “I’m the weakest, and I am the least.” I thought about the story of Moses in Exodus 3. Moses was the same way with God. Here are two men in the Bible who are listed as people whom God used, and they both made excuses of how they didn’t think God could use them.

Both Gideon and Moses were about to put their lives on the line. They were looking for the absolute knowing that the Lord had called them to take on their enemies and deliver their people.

When the Lord calls us to do something for Him, it’s not a lack of faith to ask Him to confirm the word that He’s told us. Remember, He’s more concerned about your doing the assignment than you are, and He’s well able to send a clear sign to you about how to fulfill it. But He doesn’t want you to hold back in fear. He wants you to use all that is available to you so that you can step out of your cave into something extraordinary in 2012.

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Hold On To Your Dream!

December 29, 2011 by Olga 9 Comments

Hold On To Your Dream!

by Olga Hermans

What have you been dreaming about lately? You may not realize it, but the dream on the inside of you is the beginning of the life God has for you. You can’t look at life with a “whatever will be, will be” attitude, because everything begins with a dream. Dreams are the power that push you forward in reaching God’s destiny for your life.

No matter what stage of life we are in, we should never stop dreaming. And once we have a dream, we should never give up on it. Do you have a dream that is burning on the inside of you? Or has it slipped away because of seemingly impossible circumstances?

The book of Genesis records the story of Joseph. Genesis 37:5 says, “One night Joseph had a dream” NLT Joseph’s family was like many other people today. They didn’t understand or appreciate his dream. In fact, it was because of his dream that his brothers sold him into slavery. And Joseph went though many difficult years when it seemed as if his dream would never come to pass.

God had a very special plan for Joseph’s life, which was shown to him through dreams. The Lord also has a perfect plan for your life; He may not reveal it to you through a dream that comes while you are asleep, but He will give you the desire to bring that plan into fulfillment!

When you became a born-again believer, something very special happened to you: you received your birthright as a joint-heir of God with Jesus Christ. You now belong to the Father in heaven. People with spiritual birthrights are called by the Lord to fulfill His plan on earth, and that is why the Lord gives them spiritual dreams. It is His way of causing them to “occupy” and be fruitful until the return of Jesus.

Has the Lord given you a goal? That is a spiritual dream; you don’t have to receive the Lord’s call through a vision which comes in your sleep! Your inner desire to bring a specific plan into fulfillment IS your dream. If you don’t have a specific goal, get one! Without a dream, a vision, you will drift aimlessly along life’s flow. With a dream you will be fruitful and fulfilled.

God gave Joseph a spiritual dream, and his brothers hated him. Right after Joseph told his brothers about the dream, and shared it with his father, Jacob became upset. At first he didn’t understand how Joseph could imagine such things, but then Jacob began considering the contents of Joseph’s dream, and he began to believe that there was something more to it than he had initially realized.

Jacob discerned Joseph’s dream with spiritual judgement, but his sons did not discern it at all; in fact they were plotting against Joseph. They thought he was a dreamer. Doesn’t that sound like what the world has to say about Christians? They sometimes say, “Oh, those Christians are such dreamers! They should stop all that dreaming and get back to reality.”

Be prepared for the reaction of people around you, for they will often misunderstand you. Some people might even think that you’re crazy. So what? You have a dream, a goal which they might not have. Just like Joseph’s brothers, they had no such understanding of spiritual dreams, and when Joseph approached them, they banded together and grabbed him, stripping him of his colourful coat. They hated that coat with a passion.

Right then, Joseph’s life took an unconventional path. After being sold into slavery, he was thrown into prison, accused of things he did not do. But later Joseph realized that these difficult times helped prepare him to fulfill his dream.

Joseph eventually was elevated to second-in-command of Egypt. After his father died, and his brothers stood before him, he said to them, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me in this position so I could save the lives of many people.” Gen.50:20 NLT

Many people have dreams, but they don’t make any preparations to accomplish them. They think that if their dream is from God, it will just happen. But those who have accomplished the desires burning in their hearts can tell you that it didn’t “just” happen. There was some hard work involved.

Preparation time can be difficult. But without it, you can’t step into your DESTINY. I can see that in my own life. There have been many times that it seemed as if what I was doing would not help me reach the dreams that were in my heart. But looking back, I can see how God was in every step along the way.

Preparation is never easy, but when the time comes to step into your DESTINY, you’re ready. When Joseph’s time came, he acted on his dream. Gen 41:14

I want you to notice that Joseph didn’t sit in prison wondering, “Should I do this or not?” You may think that sounds crazy, but many people today sit in the prison of your thoughts, refusing to act on opportunities knocking at their door. Joseph acted on the opportunity presented to him and stepped into his DESTINY.

Are you ready to step up to the plate and accomplish what God placed on the inside of you? I encourage you to endure whatever hardship you are experiencing. Know that it will pay off in the end. And when you finally step up to the plate of your DESTINY, it will outshine the endurance that it took to get there.

That’s why people call the past “the good ole days.” The process may not seem like a good place to be at all. But when their dream, their destiny became a reality, all of that hardship didn’t mean anything anymore.

No matter what you are facing, don’t give up on your dream. It’s worth standing for. It’s worth fighting for. It’s worth enduring the difficulties for until it becomes a reality.

Dream a dream. And let it lead you into greater visions, followed by even greater ones! Stop being critical of other people’s dreams. When you have a dream, don’t let the enemy steal it. Joseph had to wait thirteen years before it came to pass. Purpose for 2012 to be a Joseph; Hold on to your dream!

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The Missing Element in Your Life

December 26, 2011 by Olga 8 Comments

The Missing Element in Your Life

by Olga Hermans

As I was thinking about what to write today, I kept thinking of why Jesus came to this earth. We all know that He came to save us, to give us a new life, and to restore our relationship with God again; we all know that. But we have to realize that He came to give us abundant life and that we can live in the full blessing; we forget the key element why He came that changes our life for good.

These can be the best of times and these can be the worst of times, but for those who are in the household of faith, everything is going to be all-right! And to be in the household of faith, you have to read the Word of God.

We are living in extraordinary days and while we are moving toward the end of 2011 to enter 2012, I thought it would be great to talk about this key element. Let me know what you think by making a comment!

I want to show you something that might be missing in your life that is key to your discovery of the life you were born to live.

You had no idea of any of this, didn’t know the first thing about the way God works, hadn’t the faintest idea of Christ. You knew nothing of that rich history of God’s covenants and promises in Israel, hadn’t a clue about what God was doing in the world at large. Now because of Christ–dying that death, shedding that blood–you who were once out of it altogether are IN ON EVERYTHING Eph 2:12-13 The Message Thank You JESUS!!

There are people right now that are experiencing challenging times and financial pressure in their lives. Sometimes when people get under pressure they try to figure it out on their own; they are trying to figure out how to supply their own need. Under the pressure they forget to include the key element; they forget the help of the Holy Spirit. They forget to include what I believe is a key element, that would completely alter their situation.

What happens when you leave out a key element? I, myself am not a very good cook. But when you are cooking something and you leave out a key element of the recipe, it wouldn’t turn out so well, would it? It wouldn’t taste the same because you don’t have all the ingredients.

Many times when we get under pressure, we try to figure it out ourselves; we try to figure it out on paper how we can get out of our financial situation. But the key element that I believe that people miss is THE ANOINTING. There was a time that you were without Christ, you didn’t know the first thing about the way God works, hadn’t the faintest idea of Christ. But NOW you are IN CHRIST.

The anointing means the burden removing, yoke destroying power of God. If you want to know more about the anointing, I would recommend reading a book about it, so you know what to expect from the anointing. It changes everything!

The word CHRIST means THE ANOINTED ONE and His ANOINTING. You need to know how to factor the anointing in your life, because there is no hope without it, whatever the problem is.

Whenever you come to a financial challenge in your life, don’t forget to factor in the anointing! You factor in what God says about your situation, you factor in the truth on your situation and that destroys the yoke and removes the burden from your shoulders. The anointing will change the natural by the power of the supernatural.

Luke 4:18-19: The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; (You don’t have to be poor any more) he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord.. And then He said in verse 21 “You’ve just heard Scripture make history. It came true just now in this place.”

Jesus is talking about the poor! People who don’t have enough money are broken-hearted. People, that are under the bondage of debt are in captivity. When people are under spiritual or natural pressure, they can’t see the next day. Pressure is all around them.

That acceptable year of the Lord was the year of jubilee. Jesus was anointed to preach the gospel to the poor, that they didn’t have to be poor anymore and they would be released by the power of that anointing. That was the year of the jubilee and we live in the jubilee.

Jesus said in verse 21 This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears. So, with Jesus preaching that the poor don’t have to be poor anymore is for us today! But you have factor the anointing of God. Don’t forget to apply the anointing of God into your financial situation, which is the power of God. Debt is a burden, that needs to be removed and destroyed for good.

Isaiah 10:27 tells us what the anointing is. And it shall come to pass in that day, that his burden shall be taken away from off your shoulder, and his yoke from off your neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing.

Practically speaking, what does that Anointing of God on flesh do for us? According to Isaiah 10:27, it destroys the yoke of bondage. It is the burden removing, yoke destroying power of God. It is the power of God that removes the burden of lack, sickness and disease. It is the power of God that destroys the yoke of debt. It is God’s “super” abundance added to our “natural” situation.

It is the power of God poured on us, smeared on us, rubbed into us and into our lives. You could say it this way: the anointing for prosperity is God’s provision poured over us, smeared on us and rubbed into our financial lives. The Anointing of God is the power of God on our flesh doing those things only God can do. It is God’s power on our flesh doing what our flesh doesn’t have the ability to do.

That’s why you can have hope in the most hopeless situations. It doesn’t matter who you are or what color your skin is. It doesn’t matter if you never made it past the sixth grade. You can break out of that hopeless situation if you’ll apply the anointing to your life.

I want to strongly advise you to begin factoring in the anointing on your life from now on and especially this new year. If someone tells you that you cannot do a certain thing or that you cannot succeed. You can’t expect to prosper. Ask yourself this question: “Is there a yoke holding me back?” Then you know that the anointing will destroy it!

The anointing changes everything! It’s that easy! It is God’s provision poured over you. It is an essential element in your life. The anointing will make a way where is no way. The anointing will restore your marriage and your relationship with your children. The anointing will give a promotion on your job. The anointing of God will reveal the wisdom you need to thrive and not just survive in these times.

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Filed Under: Making Choices in Life Tagged With: 2012, a home run, answer, answers, breakthrough, choice, choices, Christianity, decision, destiny, discipline, disciplined life, discover, dream, driven life, effective, excerpt of book, for such a time as this, future, God, home run, how to live a life, how to live life, ignite, increase, Jesus, joy, life, life choices, lifestyle, live a life, live life, money, passion, Prayer, profit, prophecies, prophecy, purpose, Restoration, Right Place, Right Time, self control, step up to the plate, stress, supernatural, the answer, the calling, the choice, the life, the power, this is your life, to live, trouble, vision, What does it mean, word, your life

Life Has Two Doors: Faith and Fear

December 19, 2011 by Olga 13 Comments

Life Has Two Doors: Faith and Fear

by Olga Hermans

There are so many things going on in the world right now, that it is very easy to let fear strike our hearts, especially in this time of the year. Christmas can bring all kinds of feelings to us and as we get to the end of 2011 to enter into 2012, uncertainties, worries and doubt try to get to us.

If there were two doors in front of you: one is called FEAR and the other is called FAITH; which one would you choose for the New Year? Of course, you would choose the door of FAITH. But do you realize that as you enter through the door of FAITH that FEAR doesn’t live there?

Many people are afraid of losing their health, their wealth and their loved ones. Some people are afraid of life itself. When you look around, you can see that many people are ruled by fear. It can absolutely take over a person’s life. I made a commitment to myself that I will not live in fear. This is what I confess on a regular basis.

Until the power of fear is broken in our lives, we are held captive to it, which means we are not free to follow God. To discover the life that You were Born to live and to enjoy all the blessings He wants to give us, we simply must refuse to live in fear. If fear rules in our lives we cannot enjoy anything we do. Fear brings torment and we must refuse to entertain it or our lives will be miserable.

Satan will always intimidate you through words, actions, or signs. But did you know that God does that as well; He also approaches you with words, actions, or signs. God desires for you to act on what He says, because then His Words will come into manifestation. When we act on what God says, we will be blessed in our deeds.

Satan will always try to intimidate us and tempt us to act upon our fears. Fear will bring things to pass just like faith will. Job said, “The thing which I greatly feared has come upon me” (Job 3:25).

Many of us have a fear of failure and are being intimidated or tempted by Satan to act on that fear, but there is absolutely no way that he can cause that to become a reality unless you start acting on what he says.

I remember a teacher in our bible school telling us that she had asked this question of God: “Father, can the devil do anything that he wants to do, anytime that he gets ready to do it?” God told her, “If he could do anything he wanted to do, anytime he got ready to do it, then why would he have to deceive you first?”

God has given us a choice and the choice is up to us what we do when satan comes to us with temptations to fear. When we refuse to fear, satan has to flee from us with his intimidations.

Man stands in a strategic position. He can be contacted by both God and Satan. You might say that man is the establishing witness (Matt. 18:16; 2 Cor. 13:1).

Satan intimidates and tempts us with thoughts and words of fear and if we act on them, they come to pass. God contacts us through His Word and if we acts on His Word; it comes to pass. We can choose to refuse fear and act in faith.

The devil is limited and cannot do anything unless he first comes in and deceives, intimidates, or tempts the man and then gets him to fall for it and act in fear. If we do not refuse him in faith and believe his intimidations, then he has a legal right to cause it to become a reality. It’s as simple as that.

We all have been through difficult situations, where we thought there was no way out. I have been in a couple severe situations; some very painful and some very, very emotional. But God always showed up to rescue me and showed me the way out of my distress and as I stepped through the door of FAITH, my life changed from faith to faith and from glory to glory again!

There are more types of fear than we could name or count, but they all have the same source and the same purpose. They are all from the enemy and they are intended to rob us blind if we choose to let them. God is always right there to show us the way of escape.

As we go through trials, we must develop a right mental attitude and the only way to do that is to know what the Word of God says. If you do not recognize that God will always make a way of escape available in every circumstance then you will stay negative about your problem and expect satan to beat you.

The Bible says in Psalm 34:19, “Many are the afflictions of the righteous; but the Lord delivers him out of them all.”

Remember, there are two doors in front of you and when you enter the door of FAITH, there is no fear there. Faith and fear are like magnets: faith is a magnet that draws the very best and fear draws the worst; they both are expectations!

Fear is the opposite of faith. We receive from satan though fear, and we receive from God through faith. We can know and do God’s will through placing our faith in Him, but we can cooperate with satan’s plan though fear. When we are afraid, we may fail to do what God wants us to do and, instead, end up doing what the devil wants us to do.

When fear knocks at the door of your life, but finds you full of faith, it cannot enter in. I’d like to encourage you to meditate on and confess that you are filled with faith. Say: “I am full of faith!”

When satan comes to attack you with fear by bringing pressure, you can confidently say something like this: “Satan, I refuse to fear. I am not moved by what I see. You can do whatever you want, but God will always provide a way of escape. God will not allow you to defeat me; He showed a way of escape to Job and He will do the same for me. God is on my side; He is not a respecter of persons; you can’t beat me!”

That is the right mental attitude to approach the pressure that satan tries to bring against you. When difficult times come upon you, that is the time for you to grow in faith.

Everybody can go through tests, trials, and temptations and come out on the other side beaten and worn out. But there is a strength, a power that comes when you approach your situation with the right mentality. Make a choice to enter through that door of FAITH and come out victoriously instead of entering through that door of FEAR and be defeated.

The decision is up to you! Think about it!

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Filed Under: Walk By Faith Tagged With: 2012, a home run, answer, answers, breakthrough, choice, choices, Christianity, decision, destiny, discipline, disciplined life, discover, dream, driven life, effective, excerpt of book, for such a time as this, future, God, home run, how to live a life, how to live life, ignite, increase, Jesus, joy, life, life choices, lifestyle, live a life, live life, money, passion, Prayer, profit, prophecies, prophecy, purpose, Restoration, Right Place, Right Time, self control, step up to the plate, stress, supernatural, the answer, the calling, the choice, the life, the power, this is your life, to live, trouble, vision, What does it mean, word, your life

How To Enjoy The Holiday Season with Your Family

December 15, 2011 by Olga 4 Comments

How To Enjoy The Holiday Season with Your Family

by Olga Hermans

The holiday season is a time to spend with loved ones. For some people that means that you celebrate Christmas with family members that you haven’t seen for a long time, or maybe spending time with some individuals that you have issues with. We all know how that feels and how much stress that can bring.

This Christmas, I encourage you and myself to celebrate Christmas by demonstrating agape love, which is God’s unconditional love. Make a quality choice to make a decision to give your family the best of yourself even if that requires a sacrificial offering of yourself, your time, and your undivided attention.

Maybe your first thing could be to turn off your cell phone and refuse to allow other commitments to distract you from spending quality time with your family. Let your family know that you want to be there for them and do something that they really enjoy by focusing on what makes them feel loved and accepted.

Find out what their plans are for the next year or their most treasured holiday memories; show an interest in what they love. Allow Agape love to guide you in everything that you do; giving the gifts, cooking the meals, and some fun things.

I love to spend time with my family members, the people that I love and that are closest to me. I like to make the holidays memorable by doing exciting things and setting aside time to relax.

We should not allow Christmas to be reduced to a time of materialism, selfish gratification, and stress. That is not what the Holiday season is for. Today, Christmas has lost its meaning because people don’t know the real meaning of Christmas any more. So sad. It is the most profound celebration of the year.

The other day I was listening to a classic Christmas song: “And men live for-evermore because of Christmas Day!” I always knew that song, but never really heard what the words in fact were saying. This is a profound message.

But today the hustle and bustle of gift-buying, shopping, and catching the best sale consumes the majority of people around this time of year. However, God’s purpose for the Christmas celebration is for us to remember and meditate on the most precious gift of all—Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. The gift that makes you live for-evermore.

Our Heavenly Father has given Jesus to humankind as the ultimate gift. We all would be doomed without Him. God loved us all so much that He gave Jesus to us. He came to die for all our sins so we don’t have to die; the ultimate sacrifice.

It is so easy for us to get all wrapped up in the receiving aspect of the Holiday season; our focus is on what we can expect to get from someone else. Let’s make a shift of focus by imitating what God did through giving Jesus. I believe that this shift of focus would meet everybody’s need; love would flow though our families like never before, and everybody would get blessed.

The blessing of Christmas is bigger than a tree, unwrapping presents, and getting everything on our wish list. It is really all about Jesus! He is the One who deserves the glory, honor, and praise for the awesome work He did on our behalf. He gave us the gift of salvation, something we did not earn or deserve.

Let’s make this Christmas a memory by focusing on other people and purpose to be a blessing to them, just like Jesus was and is, to us. Write down your family members and ask the Lord to show you what you can do to make their lives merrier. After all, it is a Merry Christmas! Find out what and how God wants you to give so He can demonstrate His love to someone through you. This is the true meaning of Christmas.

Please, don’t understand me wrong by thinking that I am against receiving gifts and experiencing the joy of getting something you really desire. God wants to bless you too! But in the midst of all that is going on around you, remember the reason for the season. Jesus is the One who gave us the gift of eternal life. Now that is something worth celebrating!

Someone wisely said:

If our greatest need had been information,
God would have sent us an educator;
If our greatest need had been technology,
God would have sent us a scientist;
If our greatest need had been money,
God would have sent us an economist;
If our greatest need had been pleasure,
God would have sent us an entertainer;
But our greatest need was forgiveness, so
God sent us a Savior.

Even if this has been a really tough year for you… perhaps a year of great challenges, we pray that you have a Merry Christmas. We have been redeemed unto God, and we belong to Him. Satan’s tyranny no longer reigns over us, we no longer sit in the shadow of death, and because of Christmas Day men live for-evermore. Think about that!

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Restoration Is Yours!

December 12, 2011 by Olga 17 Comments

Restoration Is Yours!

by Olga Hermans

Have you ever gotten out of bed one morning with a good attitude and a smile on your face, feeling great, looking forward to the day ahead and suddenly everything turns around? Or what about waking up in the morning thinking you can’t do this any more; everything is too overwhelming.

Let me encourage you to NOT give up and to NOT quit. It’s time to pick yourself up, rebuke satan and declare that there is something great about to happen in your life. You have to ask yourself, “Am I willing to wait for it?” No matter how devastating the attack might be, or how overwhelming things might look right now, God can turn things around and cause the blessing to equally overwhelm you.

The blessing can wipe out everything, seriously!! The blessing is no respecter of persons. Deut 28:2 says: And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee … The Brenton Translation says it like this: “All these blessings shall come upon you and shall find you….The Heb. says: all these blessings shall reach you…”

There are times that we think we have missed opportunities or blown chances. We can look back and think, why did I spend all those years running with the wrong people, partying, when I should have been getting ahead?

It’s true that some of you missed out on opportunities because you were raised in an unhealthy environment or grew up in poverty. Whatever the reason, when things don’t go our way, it’s tempting to think that you missed all your chances and your seasons. But the good news is that God always has another season in store for you.

He says in Joel 2:25 that He will restore the years that have been stolen. I have experienced a lot of rejection in my own life and on top of all that both my parents died within 2 years before I was 20. My mother in law rather saw me going than coming. It always felt there was no break in my life with people around me that really loved me. But God brought my husband in my life that stood with me through thick and thin. I don’t want to relive my whole childhood, so I want to leave it with that for now.

You probably have gone through things that have you wonder, why am I here on this earth? Wasn’t that what Job asked God? After he started praying for his enemies God turned his whole life around; He will do the same for you!

I am sure that God can make the rest of your life so rewarding and so fulfilling that it makes up for lost opportunities in your past. There are times of restoration. You are entitled to it; it belongs to you.

Let’s have a closer look at Joel 2:25 “And I will restore to you the years…” It talks about years. God says that He wants to restore YEARS that have been stolen from you. Now, be honest, has the devil stolen anything from you over the last five years? Do you want it back? Are you entitled to it? Yes, you are! Let that sink in deep on the inside of you! Everything that the devil has stolen from you.

Start believing God for everything that satan has stolen from you sevenfold!

Joel 2:26 says, and you shall eat in plenty! This is your condition immediately after your restoration. See how your lifestyle will change immediately after God restores everything what the devil has stolen for years; you shall eat in plenty.

Plenty is the nature of God. That has been the plan for you and me since the beginning. It never was the plan of God that we live in the land of “not enough” nor the land of “just enough,” but God has always intended for us to live in the land of “”more than enough,”

Have you ever lived under the shame of not being able to pay your bills? I have and it is not the nicest feeling either! God says in that same verse of Joel 2:26: “My people shall never be ashamed.” The shame of not being able to provide for your family like you really want to. After a while you feel terrible when you can’t do something that you really want to do because you’re limited and restricted.

God said, “When I restore the years, you shall eat in plenty. You will be satisfied. I will deal wondrously with you, and you will never know shame again.”
It is time to make a choice to remove everything that holds you onto your past. You can’t drag your past around with you and expect to enter into God’s destiny for your life.

So let me encourage you and challenge you today. Whatever has been stolen from you, you can get it back – and then some. Don’t get offended by God; it will only delay you restoration. What’s the bottom line of Satan stealing from you? To get you offended at God and delay your victory.

Why? Because when you’re offended at God, you’re not in His presence. And if you’re not in His presence, then you’re not in position for restoration. If Satan can steal from you and get you offended at God and keep you out of God’s presence, then he doesn’t have to repay you.

God is saying to you: “If you will persevere even though it’s difficult and believe even though you don’t see anything happening, then I will step in and do what you can’t do. I will make up for lost time. I will propel you to new levels. I will bring supernatural opportunities. I will put the right people in your path at the right time.

God will make up for your lost time. Every opportunity you’ve missed, every chance you’ve blown, all those years you may have wasted, I declare over you: restoration is coming your way.

God will restore those years. Things are changing in your favor. Your latter days will be better than your former days; I declare the rest of your life will be better than the first part of your life. So choose to receive it by faith!

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The Privilege of Prayer

December 8, 2011 by Olga 10 Comments

The Privilege of Prayer

by Olga Hermans

Last weekend I watched the season of Survivor 22, where Matt Elrod the Christian guy was blindsided twice. Poor guy 🙂 I really liked his boldness about his faith in God though; he prayed a lot and still lost. Without any criticism on him I really thought it would be good to give a few thoughts on how to pray.

I heard somebody say once that all Christian failure is a Prayer failure. Actually it is very, very simple because the Word says: “You have not because you ask not.” “You ask and receive not, because you ask amiss.” In other words, when you are praying, you don’t know what you are doing. You might not be praying correctly.

The bible is very specific about praying in different forms and so forth. 1 Timothy says: first of all prayer, intercessions, supplications and petitions and with thanksgiving. Why do you think is it so specifically detailed?

God has put certain safeguards on the prayer system to keep the devil out of it. You can go to the bank having money in your account; go to the president’s office and lay there on the floor screaming and hollering and kicking to tell him that you need your money. He won’t give it to you, even if he may know you personally.

But until you put your signature in a specific manner on the line of a specific withdrawal document, you are not getting your money out of there, even if it is yours. God is not trying to keep your money from you, He is trying to protect you and your money from thieves.

And that is what is happening in the prayer system; there is a definite connection between the Kingdom of God in heaven and the Kingdom of God in the earth. And Jesus said: “If you seek first my Kingdom and its righteousness, all these things will be added to you”.

So, in that seeking are different forms and kinds of prayer. Maybe you don’t know what you are doing while God is trying to tell you what to do, but you might not be listening to Him. You might think that God never listens to you, but the fact is that He is not trying to make it hard on us; He is trying to make it hard on the devil.

When you and I follow God’s system that opens the Kingdom of God everything that is involved in it blocks the devil. This should not be a struggle. The struggle comes from a lack of knowledge. It starts by not knowing what the plan is in the first place. Faith begins where the plan of God, the purpose of God and the knowledge of God is known. We need to allow the Word to renew our mind concerning prayer.

Let me ask you a question: “What do you see when you pray?” I am asking you this because we don’t think in words, we think in pictures, images and patterns. When you talk to yourself, that inner conversation that goes on, on the inside of you; you are hearing the words, but you are seeing the images!

There is a way of thinking. There is a whole body of thoughts that got into you from the time you were born up to now, if there never has been any renewing of it. And this whole way of thinking, if it never has been renewed by the Word of God might be leading you in the wrong direction!

There is a way that seems right to men, but the ways thereof are death. They look good and sound good because that is the way you always thought. The only way you can trust to change those thoughts is through the Word of God.

Let’s say, you have made a decision to pray about something and you go before God and you go on your knees. Now, what do you see in your mind’s eye? Where are you? Do you see yourself at the feet of Jesus? You might not even be aware that you are seeing something, but let me encourage you to look at it when you start to pray, what do you see?

That image has been developed since the day of Sunday school; you have a place where you go in your mind. And you need that place to be what the scripture says, not what you dreamed up or had formed in Sunday school or when you were a child or whatever. Find out! That is very important!

We begin with the answers to the prayer, not the questions! When you base every prayer on the Word of God, then you will have confidence. 1John 5:14

One of the great things about praying is being able to do it with confidence. Most people don’t have any confidence; they wonder if their prayer got any higher than the ceiling. They wonder if they broke through.

Hebrews 4:16 says to come boldly to the throne of grace; so we can come before God with boldness and with great confidence and when you say “amen”, it means “so be it”. In other words, when you walk away from your prayer time, you walk away with confidence. You know He heard you and when you know He heard you, you know that you have what you asked for.

That is God’s attitude of prayer. God never intended for prayer to be guess work; He never intended it to be something like when you are finished, you walk away and you wonder if anything had happened. He intended that when you say “Amen” that you walk away with confidence, that what I just asked God for; I know it is on its way and I know that God began moving on my behalf before I even finished the prayer.

God’s attitude about prayer is always: obtain, have confidence, come boldly; in other words, He expects it to work! He expects you to achieve something and to accomplish something when you pray. God never intended it to be something that you try to do and hope something lands. It is that when you pray, you get results. That is the way, that He expects us to approach prayer. It is that it is an avenue through which our source of supply meets our needs.

Somebody once asked me: “why do I have to ask God?” If He already knows my need before I ask, why do I have to ask? Because that is simply how He put it in the book. He said: “you have not because you ask not.”

And then again, He knows what I need before I ask, but prayer is communication with Him. It is being able to converse with the Creator of the Universe and it being able to know that you have the right to stand in His presence and do it with boldness and then when you come to the conclusion of that prayer, you walk away with the attitude; “I believe I have received it”.

What a privilege!

You need a new mindset about prayer itself, because prayer is not just always going to God with a need. Prayer is communication with God. And when you get in that higher level where you don’t think about prayer that is something I need to do when I am hurting or when I am in need. Prayer is communicating with God; it is fellowshipping with God. And in the process your needs get met.

We have all been there and done that, but it is time for the new and especially since the New Year is coming; 2012 will be a different year.

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Get Ready For Your Restoration

December 5, 2011 by Olga 12 Comments

Get Ready For Your Restoration

by Olga Hermans

Has your life been devastated in some way? Has satan attacked your family, you marriage, your health or your finances? If so, then it’s time to get fed up, march into satan’s camp, look him square in the eye and shout, “Your time is up, devil!

You may be under the greatest pressure you have ever been under, but now is not time to give up and quit. Now is the time to make a quality decision to stand firm. It is time to get back everything Satan has stolen from you. Proverbs 6:31 It is time to start declaring restoration in your home.

It is time for you to get fed up with satan stealing from you. Nothing will change in your life until you get completely fed up with the condition that you are in right now. John 10:1o tells us clearly that the devil comes to steal, kill and destroy. Don’t take that lightly, because he is on a mission to destroy your life and he won’t stop until you make him stop!

Whatever you are going through right now, it is not too big for God to handle. There is no impossibility that God does not have a possibility for. You may not realize this, but God can only be as big as you allow Him to be. When you believe there isn’t any way out of your situation, God has just become smaller than your problem.

Take the limits off of God. He is able to deliver you out of all your afflictions. Psalm 34:19 He is bigger than anything you may encounter, and He will cause you to come out on top! God is able to work in any situation. He is able to turn any adversity around and cause you to triumph when things seem impossible.

God wants you to get every mountain of hindrance out of your way so you can possess your promised land, the mountaintop of God’s blessings in Christ. God has provided a way for you to become established in His Word and remove the barriers that stand in your way of possessing everything that God has for you in this life.

These are exciting times that we are living in. Read a prophesy by clicking here. Supernatural increase and restoration are in the air, and God wants you to be affected by it. He wants it happening to you. It’s happening to those who will get in the position to receive. This is a new day and satan is scared, because he knows that there is an army rising up in the earth today that is militant.

Last week I posted a prayer in our facebook-group, because this was swelling up on the inside of me.
This is my prayer for you as our readers as well.

Father God, I pray for this group of people, that you will raise them up to be mighty warriors to fiercely tread down the powers of darkness and set the captives free. Cause them to rise up and take authority over the forces of the enemy that have blinded the nations to follow the paths of destruction. Pour out Your Spirit upon them. Transform their lives as their minds are renewed. Strengthen them to walk as sons and daughters of God in the earth, in total victory, not ever overcome with evil, but overcoming evil with good all the time, in every situation, without fail. In the name of Jesus!

We need to become aggressive; we have to make up our minds. This is the time that people start making new resolutions; this should be one of them. Say: “This year 2012 is MY year”, this is a year where you will be debt free, all your bills will be paid on time and you have more to put in your storehouses to overflowing.

God has done absolutely everything that is necessary for you and I to live an overcoming life. Jesus does not have to go to the cross again for that to take place in your life. He has already gone. He has already made that provision. He has already given His Word. He has already shed His blood. The covenant is in effect, and all you have to do is get in position to receive, stand your ground, and don’t let the devil steal your blessing.

Let me ask you a question. Have you ever had a blessing stolen from you? There are a number of ways that satan will attack you hoping that you will drop your guard so he can steal your blessing. The devil is stealing from everybody. Some people just give up and let him do it. They don’t even put up a fight. The devil is stealing blessings from us that belong to us, and we just sit there and let him get away with it.

God says, But if He be found, he shall restore sevenfold. Proverbs 6:31

There is a deceiver in the earth, and if you are ever going to get back what he has stolen from you, you are going to have to live by the sword. That sword is not a defensive weapon, it is an offensive weapon! If you are passive, you will never get your blessing back. You have to get militant. You have to become assertive. You have to get aggressive, or you will never get your blessing back.

This is what you need to confess: Devil, everything you have stolen from us I command you to repay us now sevenfold. I speak life to every area of our lives that you have tried to destroy. Click here for more.

You are not going to change your lifestyle until you are fed up with the way you are living. You have to be fed with your children being on drugs or with them not living for the Lord or whatever the situation might be. The moment you get fed up, things will change.

When you get fed up, you are going to take that yoke off your neck. When you get fed up, there isn’t any demon in hell that can hold you back! As long as you are still tolerating it, you’re not fed up! Don’t just accept your condition. Don’t make provision for failure. Instead of petting the problem, you need to make a choice to be fed with it! That’s the moment that you are getting ready for RESTORATION!

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Filed Under: 6 Your Destiny Tagged With: 2012, a home run, answer, answers, breakthrough, choice, choices, Christianity, decision, destiny, discipline, disciplined life, discover, dream, driven life, effective, excerpt of book, for such a time as this, future, God, home run, how to live a life, how to live life, ignite, increase, Jesus, joy, life, life choices, live a life, live life, money, passion, Prayer, profit, prophecies, prophecy, purpose, Restoration, Right Place, Right Time, self control, step up to the plate, stress, supernatural, the answer, the calling, the choice, the life, the power, this is your life, to live, trouble, vision, What does it mean, word, your life

Confession of Faith

December 3, 2011 by Olga Leave a Comment

Confession of Faith

According to Phil. 1:6, I let the communication of my faith become effectual by me acknowledging every good thing which is in me in Christ Jesus.

I am now releasing my faith by confessing this to be the greatest day of my life. This is the day that the Lord hath made: I will rejoice and be glad in it. I am a recreated being. Old things have passed away and all things have become new. I am created into His glorious image and likeness.

I am His workmanship and am complete in Christ. I am full of His Spirit and divine power. I have the fruit of His Spirit, which is love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, meekness, temperance and faith. I am humbly submitting myself to the authority of His Holy Word for He and His Word are one.

I am obedient to His commandments and He enlarges my capacity to receive revelation knowledge, wisdom, understanding and ability in all things that pertain to life and godliness.

I am God’s property. I have been bought with the Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, I am free from the curse of the law. Sin, sickness, poverty, fear, doubt, worry, confusion, and all that Satan represents shall not have dominion over me. I am prospering in my spirit, soul, body and finances, for I am a liberated person.

Jesus said that I would know the truth and the truth would set me free. I am standing fast in the liberty wherein Christ has made me free. I am a disciplined person. I study God’s Word daily. I meditate upon its precepts.

I confess who Christ is, what He has done and what He is doing in and through me now. I am acting upon truths and I am expecting God to meet my needs and to do super abundantly above all I dare ask, hope, dream or desire in every area of my life.

I am a beautiful person full of God’s forgiveness and love. I forgive as God has forgiven me. I love as God has loved me. Therefore, His faith is working in me by love.

I speak directly to every mountain of satanic adversity in my life and command them to go in the Name of Jesus! They cannot stay, they must go in Jesus’ Name!

Through the abundance of God’s grace, I have received the gift of righteousness and am now reigning in this life by Christ Jesus. In Genesis 1:24-31 and Genesis 2:8-15, God has told me what it was that a righteous man was to reign over.

Praise God, I am a righteous person and I’m reigning over God’s creation now. “Christ has been made worthy to receive power, riches, wisdom, strength, honor, glory and blessing.” I am now a joint heir with Christ and as He is, so am I in this world.

He has made me worthy to receive all that Jesus represents. Praise God, I am everything that the Word declares that I am. I have communicated my faith by acknowledging every good thing which is in me in Christ Jesus.

I believe my faith is now working effectively and that all of my needs and desires have already been supplied by His riches in glory through Christ Jesus.

I worship with all my heart, soul and strength. I lift up my voice and hands in praise and adoration to His glorious Name for He is worthy of praise and He has made me worthy to praise His Name.

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Choose Faith over Fear

December 1, 2011 by Olga 13 Comments

Choose Faith over Fear

by Olga Hermans

You know, images of fear are all around us and there is a fear of failure that is trying to get a grip on the hearts of many people. Especially a fear of financial failure with this economy and all the foreclosures that we hear about on the news. People are asking themselves: “what am I going to do?”

We must aggressively take our stand against financial fear and believe that everything is going to be all right. There was a prophetic word that had come forth through Kenneth Copeland in August 2010 that told us that: “Everything is going to be all right in the household of faith”. Don’t feed fear and trouble into your life and into your mouth. No! Quit living in that house. Get back over here in the household of faith. Feed on my Word and not on the bread of sorrow.

“Have no fear of this world. I have overcome it,” saith the Lord. “I left nothing, absolutely nothing, that faith won’t overcome. I left it no power. I left it no strength. It has NO-THING over you.”

Fear and faith are both expectations; faith expects the best and fear expects the worst. What are you expecting? Are you expecting the very best or are you expecting the worst?

Fear is nothing more than a feeling that causes certain manifestations. It may cause us to tremble, turn red or sweat or have shaky knees.

My brother almost always turned as red as a tomato when there was just a little bit of fear in him, when he started to turn red and then he feared that people would see it of course and guess what? He would turn more red and sometimes even sweat. He always felt sooo embarrassed and it really was embarrassing for him. He overcame it though; right now he is a teacher, which means he is standing in front of people and looking them in the eyes and keeping the cool.

Fear is a tactic that the devil uses to hinder your faith and keep you from accomplishing God’s will for your life, but you don’t have to give in. You are delivered from fear. Many people struggle with fear and insecurity. The first step to overcoming fear is to recognize where it comes from.

There are so many references in the Bible that tell us to “fear not”. One particular scripture that stands out is 2Tim. 1:7. If your financial situation worries you, you could say: “I have not been given the spirit of fear over my finances – but of power and love and of a sound mind”.

Faith and fear are magnets; faith is a magnet that draws provision and fear is a magnet that draws lack. That is how it works! I want to encourage you to make the right choice today. Don’t let fear keep you from moving forward in the plan of God for your life. Choose to exhibit faith and boldness and start enjoying the liberating freedom from fear. God has given you freedom to choose.

What would your life look like if you were free from all fear? In Who Switched Off My Brain? Dr. Caroline Leaf says that fear triggers more than 1,400 known physical and chemical responses, and activates more than 30 different hormones and neurotransmitters” and that fear is at the root of all stress.

The fear of failure prevents us from ever trying new things or stretching ourselves to do more than we feel comfortable doing. The fear of the future can cause us not to enjoy today. My sister in law has a fear of flying which prohibits her to discover and enjoy the beautiful places all over the world.

Fear always tells you what you’re not, what you don’t have, what you can’t do, and what you never will be. Remember that Jesus overcame that fear; He left it no power and no strength. It has NO-THING over you. You have to make a choice to be confident and to feel secure; God is on your side!

The devil hates it when we are confident that God is with us, and enabling us to do whatever we need to do in life. Say it out loud: “I will not live in fear”. It really helps when you keep thinking about it before you have to face fear. Make up your mind that you will not bow down to fear. You have already made the decision that you will not be afraid.

Fear is the opposite of faith. We receive from the enemy through fear, and we receive from God though faith. Fear is the enemy’s method of faith; it is his counterfeit. We do God’s will through faith in Him and we work together with the devil through fear. When we are afraid we fail to do what God wants us to do and end up doing what the devil wants us to do.

The enemy is the author of fear, not God. Fear and faith cannot coexist; where you have one, you cannot have the other. You need to choose. Deut.30:19 You have to develop a “zero-tolerance policy” toward any form of fear.

Here is something that you and I can do together; we are going to confess these confessions as long we need them. Here we go!

I refuse to fear.
I am not moved by what I see.
I am not fearful over my financial future.
God is the source of my provision.
He provides cars to drive, food to eat, clothes to wear, places to live and everything else I need in liberal supply.
I am not subject to the times.
I live in the household of faith, not the dungeon of fear.
My household is flourishing and not failing.
Every bill is paid, every need is met and every debt is wiped out.
I walk by faith and not by fear, in the name of Jesus.

I truly believe you will begin to feel different and more confident than ever before. You only have one life to live, so live it boldly and never let fear steal God’s best for you!

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Filed Under: Walk By Faith Tagged With: 2012, a home run, answer, answers, breakthrough, choice, choices, Christianity, decision, destiny, discipline, disciplined life, discover, dream, driven life, effective, excerpt of book, for such a time as this, future, God, home run, how to live a life, how to live life, ignite, increase, Jesus, joy, life, life choices, live a life, live life, money, passion, Prayer, profit, prophecies, prophecy, purpose, Right Place, Right Time, self control, step up to the plate, stress, supernatural, the answer, the calling, the choice, the life, the power, this is your life, to live, trouble, vision, What does it mean, word, your life