On Sunday, November 1, 2026, Miracle Place Church in Baker, Louisiana, welcomed guest speakers Pastor Roelie and Luanne, who traveled all the way from South Africa to minister with us. Two days before Election Day, their message was clear: our country is at a crossroads, and the way forward starts with God’s people getting back into His Word and His presence.
Arise and shake off the dust
Pastor Roelie opened with Isaiah 52: “Arise, shake yourself from the dust.” The dust, he said, is our flesh: our comfort and our own plans. “God didn’t send us here just to be comfortable. He sent us because He has a plan and a destiny for this nation.” Reading Isaiah 54:2, “Enlarge the place of your tent,” he challenged the church to stop being so inward-focused that we miss the bigger picture of what God wants to do.
He then led the church in prayer for the nation: repenting where we haven’t stood up for God, asking forgiveness where our comfort got in the way, and praying that God’s people would be a light, “a city upon a hill” (Matthew 5:14), shining His glory every day and not just on one day.
Get into the Word
Luanne brought a strong word about discernment. We’re in a season with a lot of confusion, she said, and Jesus warned that even the elect could be deceived (Matthew 24:24). The answer is simple: make time for the Word, spend time in God’s presence, and “stay childlike, but grow up.”
Whatever you do, if the Word cannot back it, you’re out of line.
Growing up means getting to the place where we don’t chase signs and wonders. Jesus is enough, “when it’s snowing or raining or it’s a hundred and seven.”
Dig your own well
Many of us always ask someone else to pray for us. Luanne compared that to drinking from someone else’s well: our pastors dug those wells through prayer, intercession, and pain. But when you dig your own well, Jesus said, “rivers of living water will flow from within” (John 7:38).
If you constantly drink from their wells, you’re going to have a second-hand experience of who your Master is.
Like the river in Ezekiel 47 that grows from ankle-deep to deep enough to swim in, the water inside you affects everyone around you. “Are you grumpy, miserable, irritated, impatient? They’re tasting your water.” When you’re full of God’s river, the people around you get healing, hope, joy, and peace.
Let go and come up higher
“None of us had perfect parents,” Luanne reminded us. People will hurt us and we’ll hurt people, but Jesus gave us a blueprint: forgive them, love them, bless them (Luke 6:27–28). As long as we feel sorry for ourselves, we stay stuck. God is calling us higher: “Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart” (Psalm 24:3–4).
She also told a personal family story: her daughter’s long road away from God and back home, and the promise God gave her along the way. “Sometimes my children don’t stay in My will, but it does not break the power of My word over them.” Like Jonah in the belly of the whale, God’s Word will come and get you, if you let Him.
Swim out of the troubled waters
With so many scary predictions in the news and on social media, Luanne shared what she believes God told her: “Swim out of the troubled waters of the media.” Get onto the shore where Jesus is waiting, and eat the breakfast He has already prepared (John 21:9). The most important question isn’t what will happen next. It’s “Do you know Jesus?”
She closed with Ephesians 6: “Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the whole armor of God,” and Isaiah 41:10: “Do not fear, for I am with you.”
Scriptures from this message
- Isaiah 52:1–2, Isaiah 54:2, Isaiah 60:1
- Matthew 5:14, Matthew 24:24, Luke 6:27–28
- John 7:38, John 21:9, Psalm 24:3–4
- Ezekiel 37, Ezekiel 47:1–5, Isaiah 61:1
- Ephesians 6:10–13, Isaiah 41:10
Your next step
If this message touched your heart and you want to give your life to Jesus, you can pray this simple prayer:
Lord, I ask You to forgive me. I open my heart for You to come live in me. Change me and save me, in the name of Jesus Christ.
We’d love to help you take your next step. Get connected with Miracle Place Church.
Join us in Baker: Sunday School at 10 AM and Sunday Service at 11 AM; Thursday free community dinner at 5:30 PM and service at 6:30 PM. Miracle Place Church, 2080 Main St, Baker, LA 70714. Can’t make it? Watch live on Facebook, YouTube, or BoxCast.
