http://www.nicoleneduplessis.com/

Nicolene Du Plessis, Cape Town (2026)

09/06/2026

Who is in control?

When life feels chaotic, our instinct is often to take control.

We strive harder.
We worry more.
We analyse every detail.
We try to hold everything together ourselves.

But God’s word speaks directly into the middle of our panic:

“Be still, and know that I am God! I will be honored by every nation. I will be honored throughout the world.” (Psalm 46:10 NLT)

The Hebrew word translated “be still” means to let go, release, loosen your grip, and cease striving.

So what does a lack of trust often look like?

• Working relentlessly with no rest because everything depends on you.

• Neglecting friends and family because there is always one more problem to solve.

• Neglecting your spiritual growth because you are too busy managing life to sit with God.

• Over-analysing every detail and every possible outcome in an attempt to create certainty.

• Struggling to be present with the people around you because your mind is consumed with trying to control what might happen next.

• Carrying burdens that God never asked you to carry.

At first glance these things can appear responsible, diligent, or even sacrificial.

But often they reveal a deeper belief:

“If I don’t hold everything together, everything will fall apart.”

Trust says:

“God is God. I am not.”

The nations may rage. Circumstances may shake. The future may feel uncertain.

But God remains on His throne.

Today, ask yourself:

What am I trying to control that God is asking me to release?

Because sometimes the only way to know that He is God…

is to stop trying to be.

04/06/2026

Exhausted? Overwhelmed? Running on empty? Needing strength?

Isaiah 40 reminds us that God’s answer to our weariness is not “try harder.”

It is:

WAIT. “Hope, trust”

The Hebrew word for wait is Qavah — to bind, weave, or twist strands together into a strong rope.

Waiting is not passive.

It is trusting, hoping, depending, and tying your weak strand to God’s unbreakable strength.

Then comes the divine exchange.

The Hebrew word for renew is Chalaph — to exchange.

God says:

“Give Me your weakness, and I will give you My strength.”

That renewed strength shows up in three gears:

🦅 The Lift — Peace and perspective in the storm.

🏃 The Sprint — Supernatural stamina for intense seasons.

🚶 The Walk — Grace for ordinary days and faithful obedience.

And remember to steward your life from God’s value system.

God values rest.
God values family.
God values your marriage.
God values spiritual growth.
God values sustained faithfulness.

He is far more concerned with who you are becoming than merely what you are accomplishing.

Sometimes faith looks less like striving and more like trusting.

Wait.

Qavah.

Tie your strand to His.

02/06/2026

My inheritance ❤️

📖 Psalm 16:5
“Lord, You alone are my inheritance, my cup of blessing. You guard all that is mine.”

David writes these words during a season of pressure and uncertainty—yet instead of focusing on escape, he focuses on God.

“The Lord is my portion.”

What does that mean?

It means:
👉 God is enough.
👉 His presence is security.
👉 His purpose is greater than comfort.
👉 His support is stronger than striving.

Many of us spend life chasing the next breakthrough while missing God in the field He has already planted us in.

Your current season is not random.
Your work is not meaningless.
Your assignment is not void of God’s presence.

The places we work, serve, lead, build, and live are opportunities to:

* steward what God entrusted to us
* discover His purpose
* experience His presence
* trust His support

David also says:
👉 “You guard all that is mine.”

Some translations say:
👉 “You maintain my lot.”

If God entrusted it to you, He will help you steward it.
If God planted you there, He will sustain you there.

This removes striving.

We stop living from:

* exhaustion
* comparison
* proving ourselves
* fear of losing control

because we trust:
👉 God is watching over what He entrusted to us.

The boundary lines become pleasant places when we learn to find Him within the assignment.

👑 “True security is not found in what you possess, but in Who possesses you.”

PresenceOfGod TrustGod Contentment Jesus DailyDevotional KingdomLiving GodIsEnough ChristianEncouragement BibleStudy InChrist

01/06/2026

OX Strength: Built for the Harvest

There is a harvest attached to your calling — but harvest always comes with weight, responsibility, sacrifice, and pressure. In this powerful message, we unpack what it means to have the strength of an ox in a generation that wants increase without sacrifice, revival without responsibility, and harvest without hard work.

Through Proverbs 14:4, we discover that “you need a strong ox for a large harvest.” God is not looking for perfect people — He is looking for believers willing to be yoked to Christ, carry Kingdom responsibility, and remain faithful in difficult seasons.

This sermon explores:
🔥 Faith to step into the field
🔥 Sacrifice required for increase
🔥 Strength to endure pressure
🔥 How Jesus is the “Master Ox” who carries the weight with us
🔥 Why burnout happens when we carry loads disconnected from Christ
🔥 How to work from rest and not anxiety

You were not built to run from the field.
You were built for the harvest.

📍 InCourage Church — Cape Town
🕘 Sundays at 09:00
📍 Golden Grove Primary, Rondebosch

https://youtu.be/DAWeX3dQ8aM?si=qVlE64aAOzlS7p-_

26/05/2026

STANDBY — THE LIGHT IN THE TUNNEL

📖 John 16:7 (AMP)

There’s a well-known phrase:
👉 “the light at the end of the tunnel.”

Many people live constantly trying to reach the “light”:

* the breakthrough
* the answered prayer
* the healed relationship
* the financial relief
* the end of grief
* the preferred outcome

But sometimes we focus so much on getting out of the tunnel that we miss the Presence of God within the tunnel.

Jesus described the Holy Spirit as our Helper.

The Amplified Bible expands the word parakletos into:

* Comforter
* Counselor
* Helper
* Advocate
* Intercessor
* Strengthener
* Standby

The word literally means:
👉 “one called alongside to help.”

The Holy Spirit is not distant from our pain.
He stands beside us in it.

Standby does not mean passive.
It means:

* always present
* always available
* always near
* always ready to help

Even when circumstances scream:
“You are alone…”

He stands by.

The Holy Spirit is also like the sole of a shoe.

Without a sole, every sharp stone and rough surface is felt. Walking becomes exhausting because there is nothing beneath you to support or protect you.

In the same way, life without the Holy Spirit leaves us exposed to fear, pressure, and burden.

But His presence in the tunnel brings peace and joy.
He carries us through what would otherwise crush us.

Maybe the goal is not only reaching the light at the end of the tunnel…
but learning to recognise the presence of God within it.

26/05/2026

STANDBY — THE LIGHT IN THE TUNNEL

John 16:7 (AMP)

There’s a well-known phrase:
“the light at the end of the tunnel.”

Many people live constantly trying to reach the “light”:

* the breakthrough
* the answered prayer
* the healed relationship
* the financial relief
* the end of grief
* the preferred outcome

But sometimes we focus so much on getting out of the tunnel that we miss the Presence of God within the tunnel.

Jesus described the Holy Spirit as our Helper.

The Amplified Bible expands the word parakletos into:

* Comforter
* Counselor
* Helper
* Advocate
* Intercessor
* Strengthener
* Standby

The word literally means:
“one called alongside to help.”

The Holy Spirit is not distant from our pain.
He stands beside us in it.

Standby does not mean passive.
It means:

* always present
* always available
* always near
* always ready to help

Even when circumstances scream:
“You are alone…”

He stands by.

The Holy Spirit is also like the sole of a shoe.

Without a sole, every sharp stone and rough surface is felt. Walking becomes exhausting because there is nothing beneath you to support or protect you.

In the same way, life without the Holy Spirit leaves us exposed to fear, pressure, and burden.

But His presence in the tunnel brings peace and joy.
He carries us through what would otherwise crush us.

Maybe the goal is not only reaching the light at the end of the tunnel…
but learning to recognise the presence of God within it. ✨

22/05/2026

No matter the battle- He is able to do more.

19/05/2026

There is something in us that often wants security faster than surrender.

The temptation usually starts with a whisper:
👉 “God isn’t moving fast enough… maybe I need to help Him out.”

That pressure can lead us into:
- shortcuts
- compromise
- dishonest gain
- fear-driven decisions
- self-preservation

In Joshua 7, Achan secretly took silver, gold, and a Babylonian robe from Jericho after God instructed Israel not to touch what belonged to Him.

What seemed hidden and harmless eventually affected an entire nation.

📖 “I saw… I coveted… I took… I hid.” — Joshua 7:21

Fear and greed often push people to build security outside of trust in God.

But Scripture reminds us:

📖 1 Corinthians 3:12–13
Some build with gold and silver. Others build with wood, hay, and straw. Fire reveals the foundation.

Not everything that looks successful is built to last.

👑 Kingdom principles:
- integrity over shortcuts
- surrender over control
- obedience over compromise
- faith over fear
- stewardship over selfish gain
- eternal fruit over temporary success

Sometimes we also try rebuilding things God already dealt with:
- old patterns
- unhealthy relationships
- fleshly coping systems
- compromised structures

But Kingdom living is about building what God is building.

👑 What we build outside of God may look strong for a season—but only what is built with Him will endure.

Discipleship Integrity TrustGod KingdomCulture Jesus

19/05/2026

Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.”
— Psalm 37:3 ESV

The phrase “befriend faithfulness” is powerful because it reminds me that faithfulness is not something we manufacture on our own — it flows from trusting Jesus.

The more we trust His faithfulness, the more faithfulness is formed within us.

I’m learning that vision carried with Jesus can be carried for longer.
When vision is built on pressure, striving, or performance, it eventually becomes heavy. But when vision is carried in trust with Jesus, faithfulness gives us the strength to endure.

Faithfulness is what keeps us steady when excitement fades.
It keeps us grounded when growth is slow.
It keeps us obedient when no one is watching.

Faithfulness is rarely formed in dramatic moments.

More often, it is built quietly in the daily decisions:• to trust God when we cannot see• to obey when it feels inconvenient• to keep showing up when progress feels slow• to remain trustworthy in both pressure and success• to keep praying, serving, and doing the little things well

Great vision is often sustained by ordinary obedience.

You want to go far? Go together.
Go with Jesus.
Walk with Him daily.
Trust Him in the process.

Because lasting fruit is rarely built through shortcuts — it is built through consistent obedience over time.

Over time, what once felt difficult becomes devotion.

And the small acts of faithfulness we repeat daily eventually shape the person we become.

Nicolene Du Plessis

09/06/2026

04/06/2026

02/06/2026

01/06/2026

26/05/2026

26/05/2026

22/05/2026

19/05/2026

19/05/2026

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