22 Nov 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a fool, a nuisance, a pronouncement of victory, all things I have commanded you, almighty god, ambassadors, authority, backsliders, baptizing them, Christ's Church, christianity, Controller of the universe, converting, converting influence, converts, Creator, disappointed men, disciple, discipleship, eight hours sleep, eternal life, evangelizing, ever-faithful, faith, friendship, getting old, glory hallelujah, go ye, gospel, grand finale, help, hurry, I am the beloved of god, I am with you always, I can trust my friend Jesus, I'm not what I do, I'm not what I have, I'm not what people say about me, in the name of, Jesus Christ, lack of interest, Living Lord, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, loved unconditionally, martyred leader, power, proclaim His gospel, promise of salvation, promises, proselytizing, resentment, resistance, reverential devotion, salvation, selflessly, share His love with the world, sinless life, sins, something else, teach all nations, teaching them to observe, thanks, the church, the end of the world, the evil influence, the Father, the Great Commission, the Holy Ghost, the prince of darkness, the risen Saviour, the SON, the vehicle of Christ's mission, things of God, things of the world, to pay for our sins, triumphant, trust, Tuesday Mantra, victory, walking to the beat of the world, worry
Matthew 28:19. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
Ah friends, I don’t know who decided that we need eight hours of sleep per night nuh, but it obviously does not apply to me. Why am I saying that? Because last night, after a busy day, I decided to go to bed fairly early, around 11 p.m and get a good night’s rest.
But lo and behold, when I got up at 6 this morning, my ole back was a mess. I was stepping around gingerly, like an old man. (smile) I had to go and find my back brace and put it on, something I have not done in ages.
The sad part is that I know I can’t lie in bed for such long periods, but it never reverberated in my brain, (smile) until I got up. This getting old is something else yes!
But yuh know what? If that is my biggest problem for today, then I’m certainly giving much thanks, since it’s something I can handle. Anyway, let’s get the day started with our Tuesday Mantra, to renew our faith and trust.
As one now: ‘I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
Yes friends, we have it all! Glory Hallelujah! We are LOVED unconditionally by Almighty God, the Creator and Controller of the universe, and we have a most wonderful friendship with His Son, Jesus Christ, who selflessly laid down His sinless life to pay for our abominable sins.
Wow! It couldn’t get any better than that nuh mih people! And all we have to do is to share His LOVE with the rest of the world; tell them about His wonderful gospel, the faithful promise of salvation and eternal life, if they make Him their Lord and Saviour too.
But unfortunately, that isn’t as easy to do as it sounds, because we get a lot of resistance, resentment and lack of interest from the masses, who, under the evil influence of the prince of darkness, are more into the flimsy, worthless things of the world, rather than the everlasting things of God.
That doesn’t mean we have to stop trying. In fact it ought to make us try harder, as we follow Jesus’ directive in our Bit, what is known as the Great Commission. ‘Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.’
Ah mih people, proselytizing, evangelizing, converting and baptizing are to be our earthly tasks. And we need to take them seriously, though not to the point that we make a nuisance or a fool of ourselves.
And here is a very important scripture that directly relates to Jesus’ directive. Before our Bit Jesus said to His disciples: ‘All power (authority) is given unto me in heaven and in earth.’ (Matt.28:18) That means Christ indeed had the authority to give the order that He then gave.
Now our Bit was only the first part of the Great Commission, hear the rest of it. ‘Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always(s), even unto the end of the world.’ (Matt.28:20)
Yuh see my fellow believers, even when Jesus gives us a task to do, He doesn’t leave us all alone to do it. He promises to be always with us, and we all know that He is ever faithful to keep His promises.
So why aren’t we doing better than we are eh? Why are people leaving the church in droves and walking to the beat of the world eh? I don’t know. What I do know is that we’re not doing such a bang up job for Jesus, and we definitely need to come up higher.
Now listen to some interesting info from the scholars on the subject. ’28:18-20. The Great Commission brings the first Gospel to its grand finale. Christianity is not represented here as the mere reverential devotion of disappointed men who honour their martyred leader.
Here is a far different scene. The triumphant, living Lord sends forth His ambassadors to proclaim His gospel throughout all the world. The Great Commission is not just an order but a pronouncement of victory (mundus regium Christi) by the risen Saviour through His disciples.
All power or authority (Gr. exousia) is now in the hands of Christ, in heaven and on the earth. On the basis of that authority and power the Christian disciple is to carry out the Great Commission of the church.
Go ye, though a participle, conveys the force of a command: “Go.” In other words the idea expressed is that you must go and make disciples. Teach all nations can be translated “disciple all nations.” Thus the converting influence of the gospel is indicated here.
The “all nations” clearly indicates that the commission to the church is a worldwide one, encompassing the entire missionary effort. The church is not to be merely “missionary-minded.” The church is the vehicle of Christ’s mission to the world.’
Ah friends, the scholars really give it to us there! From what they say, Christ’s church is not doing as well or as much as it should, else we’d be having more converts than backsliders.
Anyhow, the church, though one body, is made up of many individuals, and it all begins with each of us. So today, please let’s take a serious look at how the Great Commission is being enacted in our own lives; if we are doing our best to enforce it.
And as always, whatever answer we come up with, let’s turn to our heavenly Father and ask Him to help us do better, because we can always do better. And He never refuses a sincere plea for help. Much LOVE!
…discipleship means living our lives as Christ’s ambassador…and a worthy one at that…
26 Jul 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: actions, almighty god, ambassadors, baptizing them, bless my soul, bounden duty, Christian brethren, commanded you, control our thinking, dedication, defined by, despair, destruction, diligent, disciple, earthly kingdom, faith cometh by hearing, faithful, fighting for Jesus, friends of Jesus, go ye, gone astray from God's word, hearing by the word of God, Holy Ghost, hurry, I am with you always, improve, in the name of the Father, into the heads, Jesus Christ, Jesus' work, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, lusts, make changes, making hay while the sun shines, martyred leader, missionary effort, missionary-minded, no time to waste, observe all things, overthrow, parameters, pass the baton, pronouncement, quagmire, risen Saviour, save us, serious, share His love, sharing the love of Jesus, sin, sloth, spread the good news of Jesus, teach all nations, teaching them, testing my patience, the beloved of God, the church, the enemy, the gospel of Jesus, the Great Commission, the lusts of the world, the Roman Empire, the SON, the vehicle of Christ's mission, time, to the end of the world, trust my friend Jesus, Tuesday Mantra, unbelievers, victory, working for Jesus, worry
Matthew 28:19. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
Bless my soul; Tuesday has rolled around again! Brother! These weeks are flying by so quickly! Wasn’t it Tuesday just a few days ago? (smile) And don’t talk about the month of July; that’s almost finished…and it seems as though it just began!
That means there’s no time to waste or loose my Christian brethren, we need to seriously get together and do Jesus’ work. Remember, we are His ambassadors here on earth, and as we go, so does His earthly kingdom.
And believe me, right now, I don’t think that’s going as well as it can, or ought to. We’re not as serious, as diligent and faithful as we should be. We’re still allowing the enemy and the lusts of the world to control our thinking and our actions too much.
We need to make changes, improve as soon as possible, because time is not waiting on us, and while we laze around, the enemy is making hay while the sun shines. And the best place to begin is in figuring out and believing who we are. So let’s declare our Tuesday Mantra, which does that, in a loud, proud and grateful manner.
As one now: ‘I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
Yes friends, that’s who we are; the beloved of God and friends of Jesus! It’s time we sincerely and truly believe that and stop allowing the world to dictate otherwise to us, for we are not defined by its parameters, but by those of Almighty God!
And we definitely need to improve our attitude and efforts in sharing the LOVE of Jesus with the world, for that’s our basic duty. We should be getting into the heads of the unbelievers, making them want to be like us, not the other way around.
And we can’t do that until we’re really serious about working and fighting for Jesus, going all out to make sure the world understands who He is and the wonderful things He stands for.
Oh friends, our world badly, desperately needs to hear and learn about Jesus because it’s quickly sinking into a quagmire of sin, sloth and despair in its current direction. We have totally gone astray from the Word of God, and returning to His wonderful and comforting fold is the ONLY thing that will save us from total destruction.
And the world can only learn and hear about Jesus from us, His followers and believers. As Bruh Paul says in Romans: ‘So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.’ (Rom.10:11)
So if the unbeliever doesn’t hear the word from us, how are they ever going believe eh? That’s why we need to ramp up our efforts to spread the good news of Jesus’ kingdom to all and sundry as He directed in the Great Commission, our Bit for today.
‘Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.’ Yes my people, that’s our bounden duty as dictated by our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ!
And He continues: ‘Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always(s), even unto the end of the world.’ (Matt.28:20)
Oh my fellow believers, it’s all there in black and white; simple and straight to the point. The disciples took it seriously and ran with the baton that Jesus passed on to them, and eventually, through sincere work and dedication on the part of believers, the gospel of Jesus was prominent in the overthrow of the great Roman Empire.
Ah friends, there’s such power in the Word! Now it’s time for us to accept the baton and run with it. And it so happens that in this era of modern technology, we have the parts to spread the gospel, easier, wider and further than any other generation before us.
So let’s seriously, sincerely and diligently step up to the plate and perform our bounden duty nuh, because Jesus is depending on us to spread the good news of His glorious kingdom. And we certainly don’t want to drop the baton, or pass it haphazardly to the next generation.
Now here is some interesting info from the scholars. ’28:18-20. The Great Commission brings the first Gospel to its grand finale. Christianity is not represented here as the mere reverential devotion of disappointed men who honour their martyred leader.
Here is a far different scene. The triumphant, living Lord sends forth His ambassadors to proclaim His gospel throughout the world. The Great Commission is not just an order but a pronouncement of victory (mundus regium Christi) by the risen Saviour through His disciples.
All power or authority (Gr. exousia) is now in the hands of Christ, in heaven and on earth. On the basis of that authority and power the Christian disciple is to carry out the Great Commission of the church.
Go ye, though a participle, conveys the force of a command: “Go.” In other words, the idea expressed is that you must go and make disciples.
Teach all nations can be translated “disciple all nations.” Thus the converting influence of the gospel is indicated here. The “all nations” clearly indicates that the commission of the church is a worldwide one, encompassing the entire missionary effort. The church is not to be merely “missionary-minded.” The church is the vehicle of Christ’s mission to the world.’
And who is the church my brethren? We are! Therefore we are the ones who are expected to spread the gospel to all nations! Let’s do our job nuh! End of Story! Much LOVE!
…unless believers spread God’s Word…the world cannot be saved…
P.S. Please excuse the lateness of the Bit, I woke up late, then had some problems with Outlook. Ah Lord eh! It’s just testing my patience! Much LOVE!
19 Mar 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a day in the life, actions speak louder than words, all things work together for good, almighty god, baptizing them, blessed, called according to God's purpose, caring, Christians, come to save that which was lost, common to man, compassion, corruption, Creator, deprivation, depths of our hearts and souls, do good, downtrodden, forget not, give ear, glory hallelujah, God is faithful, God's justice, God's people, greed, hard work, hear, homeless, hope thou in God, hungry, I am with you always, in the name of the Father, live for Jesus, LOVE, LOVE Revolution, make disciples of all nations, my salvation, o ye kings, o ye princes, observe all things I commanded you, provider, revere, sacrifice of praise, selfishness, share, sick and suffering, sing praise to the Lord, sing praise to thy name, stand up and be counted, strangers, suffering, temptation, the church, the fruit of our lips, the god of Abraham, the health of my countenance, the Holy Ghost, the Holy Spirit, the SON, the things of the world, thou Most High, to them that love God, unbelievers, ungodliness, unto the end of the world, widows and orphans, wine and roses, worship
Judges 5:3. Hear, O ye kings; give ear, O ye princes: I, even I, will sing praise to the Lord God of Israel.
One more day in the life friends, one more day in the life! And what a blessed day it always is when you are being led by the Holy Spirit of Almighty God, as we Christians are supposed to be!
Our Divine Creator and Provider always has His eyes on us; on each and every one of those who sincerely worship and revere Him. Not one single hair from our head falls out without His knowledge. That’s how closely He monitors our well-being.
And the joyful shout of ‘Glory Hallelujah! Blessed is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, who sincerely cares for us and faithfully fills all of our needs!’ echoes across the land from the mouths of God’s people.
Oh friends, how wonderful that sentiment would be if it came from the mouths of many of the current unbelievers. And that’s our job; to show the unbeliever how wonderful it is to work and live for Jesus; not only by our words, but even more importantly by our actions. Remember actions speak louder than words.
Unfortunately though, the actions of too many supposed Christians don’t jive with their words, or the lifestyle espoused by Jesus in His earthly sojourn, and expected of His disciples down through the ages.
Where is the unconditional LOVE, the compassion, the caring for those less fortunate, for the homeless and hungry, the widows and orphans, the strangers, the downtrodden, the sick and suffering, the lost that Jesus came to save. As He said: ‘For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost.’ (Matt.18:11)
So my people, why are so many of our brothers and sisters suffering such want and deprivation when there is such abundance eh? It obviously means that we, first as individual believers, and the church, as the earthly body or organization of Christ are not fulfilling our Christian mandate. That doesn’t speak very highly of us my fellow believers.
Oh my brethren, it’s in these times of full-scale greed, selfishness, corruption, ungodliness, widespread poverty and suffering that Christ’s church and the people involved need to stand up and be counted. Jesus is depending on us to successfully carry out His LOVE Revolution, and we obviously can’t do that from the comfort and ease of our living rooms.
Friends, we need to get up and get going; place Jesus sincerely in the depths of our hearts and souls, so that we go can out and proselytize, evangelize, and do whatever it takes to bring Christ to those who don’t know Him.
Remember His last instructions to the disciples. ‘Go ye therefore, and teach (make disciples of) all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway(s), even unto the end of the world.’ (Matt.28:19-20)
Friends, those disciples did their thing and brought a whole lot of believers to Jesus. It’s now our turn, but we’re not doing so well because we’re afraid of what the world will say, and also too taken up with the things of the world. Remember friends, following Jesus is not all wine and roses, in fact it entails plenty hard work and a fair amount of suffering, but it is all worth it in the end.
As Bruh Paul says: ‘And we know that all things work together for good to them that LOVE God, to them who are called according to His purpose.’ (Rom.8:28) Yes my people, there’s nothing to fear, the Lord will work everything out for our good eventually. And remember too that Jesus said He would always be with us, right to the very end, so we’ll never be alone. Jesus will always be alongside us.
And then we have this wonderful scripture: ‘There hath no temptation taken (overtaken, befallen) you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that yea are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.’ (1 Cor.10:13)
So my people, we have all the tools and the protection to go out and do the work that Jesus has called us to do. Let’s develop some belly and backbone and go and do it nuh; stop being fearful, stop making excuses and stop allowing the lusts of the flesh to hold us back from performing our bounden duty; the Great Commission. And that’s my spiel for the day. (smile)
Now let’s turn to our Bit about giving our great God the praise and glory He so rightfully deserves. ‘Hear, O ye kings; give ear, O ye princes: I, even I, will sing praise to the Lord God of Israel.’ Yes my people, that is what we were created to do!
But sadly in this modern age and supposedly progressive times, we have forgotten about God and are foolishly putting our trust in man and the destructible things of the world. And we’ll continue looking at some scriptures of praise, hoping they will make a serious impact on us.
Let’s begin with the confession of the priests and Levites after Ezra read the law to the Israelites and they repented and fasted. ‘Stand up and bless the Lord your God for ever and ever: and blessed be thy glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise.’ (Neh.9:5b) That’s the awesome truth friends! Now listen to Bruh David from Psalm 9 –Praise for God’s justice. ‘I will praise thee, O Lord, with my whole heart; I will show forth (tell of) all thy marvellous works. I will be glad and rejoice in thee: I will sing praise to thy name, O thou Most High.’ (Ps.9:1-2)
Yes my brethren, that how we’re supposed to operate as true believers. And even when times are rough, we can say: ‘Why art thou cast down, O my soul? And why art thou disquieted within me? Hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance (my salvation) and my God.’ (Ps.42:11)
And we’ll close with these well-known verses from Hebrews. ‘By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name. But to do good and to communicate (share) forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.’ (Heb.13:15-16)
Ah friends, I can only encourage us to do better and pray that the Holy Spirit will work in all our hearts, minds, souls and bodies to the bettering of Christ’s kingdom here on earth. Much LOVE!
…when thanks and praise flow from our hearts…God opens the windows of heaven and pours down His wonderful blessings on us…
18 Nov 2015
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a silver lining, all things I have commanded you, anger, back in bad shape, baptizing them, Beelzebub, believe on Jesus, betrayals, called by His name, Christian persecution, communication technology, decadent society, eternal life, false prophets, for a witness, glory hallelujah, going to bed early is for the birds, good news of Christ, hatred, I am halfway home, I am with you always, I'm looking straight ahead, I'm not focusing on the past, I'm not looking back, I'm not turning back, I'm so glad to be alive, in the name of the Father, Jesus is the best thing going, lack of love, LOVE, moaning and groaning, my gripe, my hands are on the plough, natural disasters, no laughing matter, norm of 8 hours sleep, persecution, preached to all the world, rest, rumours of wars, salvation, signs of the world's demise, sleep, spreading of the gospel of Christ, stand strong and steadfast, strife, teach all nations, teaching them to observe, thank God, the breath of life, the disciples came unto Him privately, the end of the world, the gospel of the kingdom, the Holy Ghost, the long and short of the story, the Mount of Olives, the SON, then shall the end come, to a glorious future with Jesus, turmoil, unto the end of the world, wars, Wednesday Wail, what shall be the sign of thy coming, when shall these things be, wisdom
Matthew 24:3. And as he sat upon the Mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world (age)?
Aye Friends and neighbours, if I never truly believed it before, I certainly do now! And I guess you’re wondering what the ole fogey is talking about eh? (smile) Well I’m talking about going to bed early is really for the birds.
I had a long and busy day yesterday, so last night I decided to go to bed early, early my time, that’s about 12.30, so I could get some of the much vaunted and valuable rest and sleep. Hn!
Unfortunately, though normally one would think fortunately, I got up at 8 o’clock this morning.And would you believe, I could hardly get out of the bed because my back was in such bad shape.
Ah Lord eh! Obviously I’m not meant to lie in bed for even a measly 7 hours. And its not like I never got up at all. I got up at least twice to go to the bathroom. So what does this supposed norm of 8 hours of sleep per night do for me eh? Absolutely nothing!
And it’s not like I don’t know that I cannot lie in bed for so long, but I never intended to get up so late either. But I guess the ole body needed the rest. And there I was gingerly putting one foot in front of the other, moaning and groaning with every step. Hn, hn, hn!
Ah friends, I can laugh now because I’m sitting down writing, but an hour ago, it was definitely no laughing matter. But let me stop joking about it yes, because when I get up from here, it might not be a laughing matter either. (smile)
The long and the short of the story though is that I just have to stick to my short times of rest, and do it more often. Now that’s my gripe for the day, and I’m sticking to it! (smile)
And since today is Wednesday, it means we have to declare our Wednesday Wail. So altogether now, let’s wail: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday! I am halfway home.
My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’
Oh my people, though my back is in a sad state I truly am glad to be alive, and am looking straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus, because NO ONE else has such a glorious future to offer!
And I do hope that you feel and believe like me, because Jesus is undoubtedly the BEST thing going, the BEST show available in this evil and disturbed world! Obviously He is not a thing or a show, but that is just the language that some of us best understand. (smile)
And finally we come to our Bit: ‘And as he sat upon the Mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world (age)?’
Ah mih breddren, it does seem as though all the signs of the world’s demise point to a time in the not too distant future. As we recently saw, the numerous wars and rumours of war are on the increase. So too are the natural disasters; earthquakes, floods, disease, volcanoes, famines. They are happening all over the world, in some of the least expected places.
Persecution of Christians is also on the rise as Jesus foretold, just because we are called by His name. Then there’s serious hatred and anger, with strife and betrayals on the rise in our decadent and decaying society. False prophets abound like Jesus said, and the lack of LOVE is certainly noticeable.
But in spite of all of these negative happenings, Jesus reminds us to stand strong and steadfast in His name, because if we endure to the end we will be saved. Now isn’t that wonderful news my brethren? It surely is! With Jesus there’s always a silver lining to the dark clouds. Glory Hallelujah!
But while we’re waiting for the end to come, we ought to be doing ONE more thing. Listen to Jesus. ‘And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.’ (Matt.24:14)
Yes friends, the good news of Christ MUST be shared with ALL the nations of the world, before the end comes! And whose job is that eh? Ours of course! It’s all a part of the Great Commission that Jesus gave to the disciples, and consequently every following generation, which now includes us.
‘Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always(s), even unto the end of the world.’ (Matt,28:19-20)
So there it is my fellow believers, despite all the turmoil and uncertainty in our world, we are expected to stand strong and steadfast in Jesus’ name, as well as to spread His Word to all parts of the earth. And strangely enough, we are the first generation who actually have the wherewithal to do that, through our modern communication technology.
So please, let’s get up and do that nuh. Let’s seriously engage ourselves in the spreading of the gospel of Christ, so that many others might hear it and believe on Jesus, and thus not get lost with the infidel Beelzebub, but instead attain to salvation and eternal life, as our heavenly Father so greatly desires. Now that is indeed the wisdom of heaven! Much LOVE!
…the Lord doesn’t want to lose even one of His human creation…so what we doing to prevent that eh…
31 Aug 2015
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a la Jesus, adrenalin, aura of love, baptizing them, believers in Christ, confidence, Controller, Creator, declare God's glory among the heathen, do some good, enthusiasm, faith, friends, further God's glorious kingdom, holy spirit, humble servants, I am with you always, in the beauty of holiness, invincible, Jesus Christ, kick some butt, let the earth be glad, let the heavens rejoice, let the sea roar, lord god almighty, LOVE, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, motors revving, O sing unto the Lord a new song, omni-present, omnipotent, omniscient, proclaim the good news, provider, put our best foot forward, rejuvenation of spirit, renewed vitality, righteousness., salvation, saviour jesus, sing unto the Lord all the earth, spiritual armour, spread some love, stand your bounce, steadfast faith, teach all nations, teaches you a lesson, the Great Commission, the Holy Ghost, the Lord comes to judge the earth, the Lord reigns, tremble before God, truth, ungodly world, weary souls, wisdom, worship the Lord
Psalm 96:1. O Sing unto the Lord a new song: sing unto the Lord, all the earth.
Awright Friends, the big day, Monday, has rolled around again. So how are we going to handle it eh? Are we going to whimper and complain, or are we going to make the best of a bad thing, put our best foot forward, like our Lord and Saviour Jesus expects of us?
Yuh know that if this morning you are tired and miserable, possibly hung over, it’s all your fault, you didn’t listen to my good advice and spend yesterday getting ready for today. So now you just have to stand your bounce; feel the pain, and get out there and do whatever is necessary. And I surely hope it teaches you a lesson, so that next Monday you’ll be up early, bright and fresh like a daisy. (smile)
Now let’s see about getting us going on the right foot this morning, by singing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn with much gusto and gumption. All together now: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle. Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Ah mih people, that was a tad scratchy, what with the sore throats and hoarse voices. But overall it wasn’t too bad. At least our choir conductor, Jesus, could see us making the effort. It’s just that our physical abilities weren’t up to par. (smile)
But at least the adrenalin is flowing now, and I can hear our motors revving, meaning that we’re ready to go out into the evil world and kick some butt, do some good and spread some LOVE, a la Jesus! Glory to our great God my people!
And if we’re ready to face the ungodly world, then that means we’re also ready to do what our Bit advises: ‘O Sing unto the Lord a new song: sing unto the Lord, all the earth.’
Yes Friends, we are called upon to praise our omnipotent, omniscient and omni-present Deity, for he is the Creator and Controller and Provider of ALL!
Now our Bit comes from psalm 96, which itself is a part of Bruh David’s famous song of thanksgiving, after they had brought the Ark of the Covenant up to Jerusalem. (1 Chr.16:7-36) But we’ll just concern ourselves with Psalm 96 today, which continues thus after our Bit.
‘Sing unto the Lord, bless his name; show forth (proclaim the good news of) his salvation from day to day. Declare his glory among the heathen (the gentiles), his wonders among all people. For the Lord is great, and greatly to be praised: he is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the nations are idols: but the Lord made the heavens. Honour and majesty are before him: strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.’ (Ps.96:2-6)
Oh my fellow believers in Christ, there is not one word of untruth in all those statements! Our God is what it says, and has done all that is stated. That is why we should do as the psalmist continues: ‘Give (ascribe) unto the Lord, O ye kindreds of the people, give unto the Lord glory and strength. Give (ascribe) unto the Lord the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come into his courts.
O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness: fear (tremble) before him all the earth. Say among the heathen (gentiles) that the Lord reigneth: the world also shall be (is firmly) established that it shall not be moved (shaken): he shall judge the people righteously.’ (Ps.96:7-10)
Oh Friends, more indisputable truth! We need to give our wonderful and mighty God His just due, and to let the world know about Him, by spreading His Word to all the ends of the earth as Jesus desired in the Great Commission. ‘Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway(s) even unto the end of the world. (Matt.28:19-20)
And you know what Friends? They did as Jesus desired. They spread his word far and wise, so that today we have it in all its rich and splendid glory. Now it’s our turn to continue that commission.
And as the psalmist wisely directs: ‘Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea roar, and the fullness thereof (all that is in it). Let the field be joyful, and all that is therein: then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice Before the Lord: for he cometh, for he cometh to judge the earth: he shall judge the world with righteousness, and the people with his truth.’ (Ps.96:11-13)
Oh Friends, let us indeed rejoice with nature and be glad, for our Saviour cometh, and this time He is coming in all His majesty, power and glory to rule and to judge the earth with righteousness and truth!
That my people is no joke, so please let’s prepare ourselves for that awesome and glorious day, whenever it might be. For that is what is termed, heavenly wisdom. Much LOVE!
…if you’ve heard the word…then Jesus comes and finds you wanting…you’ve no one to blame but yourself…
18 Nov 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a catch 22 situation, a living Deity, a stubborn and rebellious generation, adversity, affordable housing, affordable housing in the suburbs, almighty god, baptizing them, bounden duty, burst our bubble, commute, declare thy mighty acts, disobedient to God's Word, done god a grave injustice, full of compassion, generation, glory of God's kingdom, God has a good plan for our lives, God will never leave nor forsake us, God will work it all out for our good, God's goodness, going to hell in a hand-basket, grateful shout of joy, guilty, heathen, I am with you always, in the name of the Father, jehovah god, Jesus, kill our spirits, LOVE, Moses warned the Israelites, one generation shall praise thy works to another, overpriced accomodation, passing the Olympic torch, Pharisees, praise Your Holy Name, promises of the Creator, rave, reality of modern life, saints, set their hope in god, steal our joy, teach all nations, teach them to thy sons, thank you heavenly Father, the Great Commission, the Holy Ghost, the Lord is gracious, the SON, the Ten Commandments, traffic snarls, true believers in Jesus christ, trust, wintry Canada, wisdom
Psalm 145:4. One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts.
Ah Friends, it looks like it’s going to be another day like yesterday in my area; snowy and rainy. But what yuh going to do eh? Not much, but dress for it and take your time along the wet, slick roads. That means you’ve got to leave home even earlier than normal, if you want to get to work on time.
Steups! Some of us can’t leave home much earlier than we already do, and that’s not only in wintry Canada, but all over the world, where traffic snarls are now a twice-daily occurrence. At the rate we’re going, it might just be better for us to sleep at work…Hn, Hn!
Don’t laugh, because it’s true, since the traffic going into the city is backed up before six a.m in my neighbourhood and by 3.00 p.m leaving the city. A lot of people have to leave home at 5 a.m if they want to reach to work for 8. That’s because they bought affordable housing out in the suburbs, and now that affordable housing is being decimated by the long and terrible time wasting commute.
But unfortunately that’s the new reality of modern day life. Lots of people are moving back to the city, but that’s only increasing the prices of accommodation there, so we end up with a catch 22 situation – live in the somewhat affordable suburbs and bear the traffic and commute burden, or buy exorbitant, overpriced accommodation in the city.
What ever you do though, you will pay for it, either in time or money. But Friends, as true believers in Jesus Christ, we can’t afford to let those things worry us, otherwise they’ll just drive us crazy. Oh, we must be concerned and pay close attention to them, but we can’t afford to let them burst our bubble, or kill our spirits and steal our joy.
That’s because we have the awesome promises of the Creator of the universe and all therein, that He will never leave nor forsake us, that nothing, no adversity will overpower us, for He has a wonderful plan and a great future for our lives, and if we trust Him, He will work everything out for our good eventually. Wow!
And all God’s people raised a grateful shout of joy to heaven: ‘Oh thank You heavenly Father for promising to look after us, even though at times we can be very disobedient to your Word. We LOVE You and praise Your Holy Name! Amen!’
And sadly my people, one enormously important area in which we have been very disobedient is not telling our children and the world about Jehovah God. We are indeed very guilty of not following our Bit: ‘One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts.’
Ah mih breddren, we’ve certainly done our most merciful and gracious God a grave injustice in that respect. We have failed to do as Moses warned the Israelites: ‘Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul (yourself) diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons’ sons.’ (Deut.4:9)
Oh Friends, we haven’t seen as much as the Israelites had seen, but we have indeed seen enough to know that Almighty God is real, a real and living Deity! And if we haven’t taught our sons about Him, who will teach their sons about Him eh, and how will the great message of God be passed on to future generations?
Remember Jesus’ last instructions to His disciples: ‘Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always(s), even unto the end.’ (Matt.28:19-20)
Oh my people, if those old time disciples hadn’t taken that Great Commission seriously and done as Jesus asked, we would never have heard about Him. That just shows how important passing on the message to the next generation is. It’s like the symbolic passing of the torch that we all so rave about in the Olympics. So let’s rave about passing on the wonderful Word of God too nuh!
And sadly, in our fear and lethargy we have allowed the evil powers of this world to take God out of the schools and other public places, resulting in less God in our society. The Ten Commandments, which should be the basic rules of any society that wants to flourish, are now being flouted with immunity, so why are we surprised when our society is quickly going to hell in a hand basket?
As a generation, we have a lot to answer for my people. We have not done as the psalmist Asaph so wisely said in Psalm 78 – A reminder of God’s goodness to Israel. ‘For he (God) established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children:
That the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born; who should arise and declare them to their children. That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments. And might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation; a generation that set not their heart aright (did not prepare their hearts), and whose spirit was not steadfast with God.’ (Ps.78:5-8)
And Friends, if we’re honest, that last verse describes us to a T! We talk a whole lot about God, but like the hypocrite Pharisees that Jesus lambasted, we don’t walk the walk as well.
But it’s not too late walk it properly, to do as Bruh David declares after our Bit: ‘I will speak of (meditate on) the glorious honour (splendour) of thy majesty, and of thy wondrous works. And men shall speak of the might of thy terrible (awesome) acts: and I will declare thy greatness. They shall abundantly (eagerly) utter the memory of thy great goodness, and shall sing of thy righteousness.
The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy. The Lord is good to all, and his tender mercies are over all his works. All thy works shall praise thee, O Lord; and thy saints shall bless thee. They shall speak of the glory of thy kingdom, and talk of thy power;
To make known to the sons of men his mighty acts, and the glorious majesty of his kingdom. Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and thy dominion endureth throughout all generations.’ (Ps.145: 5-13)
Oh Friends, oh Saints, that’s what we should be doing! Please, I implore us to go out and do it, so that the Word of God will keep being passed on from generation to generation. That’s our bounden duty, as well as heavenly wisdom! Much LOVE!
…if we say we LOVE the Lord and don’t pass on His Word…then we lie…and are no better than the heathen…in fact we are much worse…
25 Oct 2013
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: alive and kicking, baptizing them, barren, basic purpose on earth, Beatitudes, believe and accept, best interests, blessed, bounden duty, busy schedules, buy wine and milk without money, dear life, desires, divine mercy, each and every day, emotions, evangelize the world, exalted, fallen man, feast, fellowship, filled with hope and faith, fleshly lusts, form and fashion, Friday chant, fun, furthering God's glorious kingdom, generosity, generous help, God's bountiful earth, God's free offer of mercy, good things, grief of spirit, holding out the carrot, hope and faith, howl, hunger and thirst, hungry, I am with you always, jesus name, Jesus' Mother, John the Baptist, joy of heart, light our path, magnanimous god, Mary, mercy, modicum of circumspection, new resolution, offered for free, one more day, prisoners of hope and faith, promises of God, put down, read and spell, rebellious, rejoice, relaxation, rest, rich, righteousness., scriptures, scrumptious delights, show us the way, sorrow of heart, spiritual pregnancy, spiritually hungry and thirsty, teach all nations, technological toys, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, Thanks Lord, the end of the world, the Father, the Great Commission, the Holy Ghost, the Lord's servants, the Magnificat, the SON, true wisdom, try and change the world, wail, warning words, week of work, weekends, wonder of wonders
Matthew 5:6. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
Oh Friends, one more day, one more day we’re alive and kicking on God’s bountiful earth, filled with hope and faith!
And we’re filled with so much hope and faith in the wonderful promises of Jesus Christ and Almighty God, that we can truly call ourselves lifelong prisoners of hope and faith!
Wow! What a wonderful body, the church of Christ, we belong to eh! And the best part of it all is that today’s Friday, the last day of the workweek before the upcoming glorious weekend.
And to that news, there’s a sterling shout: ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday yes, and massa work soon done! Thank God for Friday and the weekend! Glory Hallelujah!’
And Friends, before we run off and spoil the weekend by doing too many ungodly and worldly things, let’s chant our Friday Chant, which will hopefully keep us in check, show us the way, and light our path.
As one grateful voice now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through. Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’
Yes my people, we need to have a general modicum of circumspection in life, but especially on the weekends, where we tend to get easily lost in and taken up with fleshly lusts.
Oh, and please remember that resolution we made over the last couple days, to try and change the world in some form and fashion, each and every day. We really shouldn’t have to be reminded of it, because it’s our bounden duty, for some of Jesus’ last words to His disciples was to go out and evangelize the world.
And He gave them this Great Commission: ‘Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.’ (Matt.28:19-20)
And there you have our basic purpose on this earth my brethren! So trying to change the world is not a new thing. And in any case we can’t change much, if anything, without the desires and emotions contained in our Bit, truly beating in our hearts, minds, bodies and souls. ‘Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.’
Yeh people, it’s the same Beatitude from yesterday, because there were a few scriptures I wanted to include and couldn’t, for it would have made the message exceedingly long. Yuh see mih people, all yuh see how I’m looking out for your best interests, keeping in mind your busy schedules! (smile)
And the first scripture I want to share comes from Mary, the Mother of Jesus. Even as a young girl, but filled with the Holy Spirit, she knew about hungering and thirsting after righteousness. We see that after she was told about her upcoming spiritual pregnancy and went to visit her cousin Elizabeth, only to find her, who was once considered barren, pregnant with John the Baptist.
Thereafter, in her song of praise, ‘The Magnificat,’ she proudly and confidently proclaims: ‘He hath put down the mighty from their seats (thrones), and exalted them of low degree (the lowly). He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away. He hath holpen (helped) his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy.’ (Luke 1:52-54)
Ah Friends, even when we don’t remember or deserve God’s mercy, it’s still there held out to us!
Meanwhile, Isaiah, in God’s free offer of mercy to all, enthusiastically declares: ‘Ho, everyone that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.’ (Is.55:1)
Oh Friends, our God is unmatched in His generosity! From way back when He’s been offering those who were spiritually hungry and thirsty to come to His magnificently laid table and feast on His scrumptious delights FOR FREE!
What a most magnanimous God we serve and worship, my brethren! His mercy and salvation are open to all; you just have to believe and accept it. No other supposed deity has ever offered, or can ever offer such a wondrous opportunity for fallen man!
And we’ll close with some more poignant, but grave warning words from Isaiah. ‘Therefore thus saith the Lord God, Behold, my servants shall eat, but ye shall be hungry: behold, my servants shall drink, but ye shall be thirsty: behold, my servants shall rejoice, but ye shall be ashamed: Behold, my servants shall sing for joy of heart, but ye shall cry for sorrow of heart, and shall howl (wail) for vexation (grief) of spirit.’ (Is.65:13-14)
Oh Friends, I can’t put it any simpler or better than that. As the old people would say, the Lord’s reading and spelling for us there. And sadly, nothing has changed after so many thousands of years; man is still rebellious, possibly more so, especially with his new found technological toys.
But wonder of wonders, our great God is still holding out the carrot to us, it’s now up to us to take it and show true wisdom. Please, let’s all do that today nuh. Much LOVE!
…when divine mercy is held out… is offered for free…a prisoner of faith and hope…wisely grasps and holds on tightly to it…holds on for dear life…
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