03 Apr 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a great cloud of witnesses, as in Adam all die, be born again, believe, christianity, comfort one another with these words, despise not the chastening of the Lord, Easter, Easter Sunday, endure to the end, eternal separation from Almighty God, faith, forgive others, forgiveness of sins, god, Good Friday, halfway home, hands on the plough, hellfire and damnation, in Christ shall all be made alive, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ our Anchor, Jesus defeated hell the death and the grave, Jeus's triumphant resurrection, lest ye be wearied and faint, LOVE, my eyes are fixed straight ahead, not turning back, our redeemer, our rock, ramifications of Easter, resurrection, run with patience, salvation, sealed the deal, set down at God's right hand, thank God, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, the breath of life, the dead in Christ shall rise, the firstfruits of them that slept, the race set before us, the Rapture, the trump of God, to a glorious future with Jesus, Wednesday Wail, whom the loveth he chasteneth, wisdom
1 Corinthians 15:22. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
It’s a wet, windy and cloudy Wednesday! And it’s not just some spring showers, but the effects of a North American wide storm moving all the way from California, across the continent dropping snow and rain in its path in unusual proportions. This rain has been falling in my area since yesterday, and has attached to it the potential for some wet snow. So there’s reason to be careful, either through flooding or slipping and sliding if the snow materializes. What a good thing it is that we have our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, our Anchor, our Rock, our Redeemer, to help us in all and any situations! All praise to His holy name!
And since the Lord has spared life today, let’s keep the promise we made yesterday and turn to the second part of our discourse on the ramifications of Easter. Now, yesterday we saw the great benefit Jesus’ death on Good Friday wrought for us; that’s the forgiveness of our sin debt. However, we need to first believe, be born again, and forgive others of their trespasses against us, if we want the Father to forgive us our trespasses. And if there was any doubt, Jesus’ triumphant resurrection on Easter Sunday, sealed the deal! Yes, He defeated Satan and his negative domain, that’s hell, the death and the grave!
Wow! And because Christ rose from the dead, all those who believe in Him are promised eternal life, that’s the continued living of their soul with Christ, wherever He is. As Jesus said so clearly: ‘And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven. and as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him shall not perish, but have eternal life.’ (John 3:13-15) There you have it friends, because Christ was raised from the dead and ascended into heaven, so too shall those who believe in Him be raised from death into eternal life with Him!
As Bruh Paul writes to the church at Corinth: ‘But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits (the anticipated harvest) of them that slept (have died). For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.’ (1 Cor. 15:20-23) Ah my fellow believers, that’s just so wonderful! Because Christ rose from death, so shall we. And that last verse promises that when Christ comes for the church at the Rapture, believers, all those who died believing in Christ will also experience resurrection. And the scholars offer these references for that that situation: (cf. 1 Thess. 3:13: 4:14-18).
And that second reference reads thus: ‘For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent (precede) them which are asleep (have died). For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump (trumpet) of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever (always) be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.’ (1 Thess. 4:14-18)
Now, let’s hope we all sincerely believe that promise, find sure comfort in it, take it to heart very seriously, and consequently live the earthly life that will make it come through for us, because it’s not going happen automatically; not unless we believe and live according to Christ’s desires. And what are Jesus’ desires you ask? I believe this passage from Hebrews explains it perfectly. ‘Wherefore seeing (since) we also are compassed about with (surrounded by) so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset (ensnare) us, and let us run with patience (perseverance) the race that is set before us.
Looking unto Jesus the author (originator) and finisher (perfector) of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him that endured such contradiction (hostility) of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint (discouraged) in your minds (souls). Ye have not yet resisted unto blood (bloodshed), striving against sin. And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children (sons), My son, despise not the chastening (discipline) of the Lord, nor faint (be discouraged) when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord LOVETH he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.’ (Heb. 12:1-6)
Yes, my fellow saint. We have a whole lot of others to look to, who testified or witnessed to the benefits of our faith, but the chief one for us to emulate is our founder and finisher, Jesus Christ! And like Him, to run the race required of us, we have to drop all the stuff that weighs us down; sins, clothes, personal baggage, whatever, and endure all that comes against us, like Jesus, for the joy of spending eternity with Him! That means even enduring the Lord’s discipline without too much complaining, because if the Lord LOVES you, he will discipline you, just like we discipline our children, because we LOVE them and don’t want to see them go astray.
And with those ramifications of the Easter occurrences in mind, let’s go home declaring (awright!!!) our Wednesday Wail, letting the whole world know of our wonderful position in Christ Jesus! As one voice: ‘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!’
Then there’s this promise; that if we endure to the end with Jesus, then we’ll experience a future so glorious that we cannot ask or imagine it. Now that’ certainly something to look forward to eh. Hope to see you then! Much LOVE!
…without the awesome happenings of Good Friday and Easter Sunday…we’d be headed straight for hellfire and damnation…eternal separation from God…
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20 Apr 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a second time, almighty god, Anselm's quotes, any change, be born again, believe christ died for us, blood sweat and tears, born of flesh, born of Spirit, born of water, builds the bridge to success, complete annihilation, discomforts, do it, drawbacks, drive us to action, drive you, driving force, Easter Sunday, emotional time, eternal spiritual life, evil world, except a man, Good Friday, he cannot see, help, holy spirit, human, I say unto thee, infallible, innate power, intent paired with action, intimate relationship, knowledge, live change, live it, mistakes, Mother's womb, new beginning, New Birth, Nicodemus, of the spirit, passion, patience, persevarance, perseverance, power in our words, problems, rain rain go away, rose triumphantly from the dead, sons of abraham, speak change, spiritual rebirth, strong purpose in life, success, success is something you do, the kingdom of God, to shape your life, verily verily, wisdom
John 3:3. Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again (or from above), he cannot see the kingdom of God.
Rain, rain go away, come again some other day! Chuh! I like rain, but after experiencing it for my last three days in Tobago then coming back home to it, it’s become a tad much. And the warnings of extensive flooding don’t help. But how to keep us happy eh?
When we have a lot of sunshine, and it’s hot, we complain. A lot of cold and snow also cause bitter mutterings. And we don’t like it much when it rains on our parade either. (smile) And when you’re sick and feeling lousy, like I am, that state of affairs doesn’t help matters either. So I guess there’s just no pleasing us and we just have to learn to live with whatever Mother Nature supplies. End of story! (smile)
And since it’s Saturday, let’s see what quotes our friend Anselm sent us this week as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. But first let me apologize for a typo in yesterday’s Bit. I talked about Peter cutting off the high priest’s ear; it was actually the servant of the high priest’s ear he cut off.
I knew that very well and it was what I intended to write, but somehow or the other didn’t write that. And you can imagine my disgust when a friend wrote and pointed it out to me because I don’t like to make mistakes in the Bit. But I guess that only shows I’m human and thus not infallible. (smile)
And the first quote says: ‘If you have a strong purpose in life, you don’t have to be pushed. Your passion will drive you there.’ I guess there is much truth to that statement as passion is usually a driving force in our lives.
However, passion alone will not bring us to our destiny, we need other things like wisdom, knowledge, help and perseverance. In other words, blood, sweat and tears must be combined with our passion to provide success! (smile)
And that segues in nicely to this other quote: ‘You’ve been given the innate power to shape your life…but you cannot just speak change, you have to LIVE change. Intent paired with action builds the bridge to success. You can’t just want it; you have to do it, live it…BE it! Success isn’t something you have; it’s something you DO!’
Ah friends, we see there it’s all about the doing, the living, the action! We just can’t sit on our fannies and expect things to change or our lives to be good because we wish it or talk about it. Yes, there is power in our words, but that power needs to drive us to action, to actually doing something to bring about the changes we desire!
But then we come to this quote that appears to throw a spanner in our wheel: ‘Any change, even a change for the better, is always accompanied by drawbacks and discomforts.’ So true, so true my people! Whatever we try to do, be it good, bad, or indifferent, things rarely run as smoothly as they should, or as we expect them to.
But that’s just life! Life that seems to take pleasure in mucking up our best efforts! But that’s where things like patience, perseverance, ‘stick-to-it tiveness,’ and don’t give up come in! And as true believers in Christ, we all know that giving up is not in our vocabulary.
Remember Jesus said that we’d have problems in this evil and ungodly world, but we can handle them with grace and a smile, because He’s already overcome the world. (John 16:33)
Now here is the last quote: ‘We all have two lives. The second one starts when we realize we only have one.’ And isn’t that the awesome truth my fellow believers? We have one life when we’re born of our mother’s womb, and then a second when we’re born of the Holy Spirit which brings us into serious communication and an intimate relationship with Almighty God!
Jesus said it quite plainly to the Pharisee Nicodemus who came by night to enquire about Jesus’ awesome power and works. ‘Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again (or from above), he cannot see the kingdom of God.’
Yes friends, to be included in the heavenly realm we all need to be born again of the Spirit as Jesus also told Nicodemus, when, in his confusion, he asked about entering his mother’s womb a second time.
‘Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.’ (John 3:5-7)
And the scholars provide this interesting explanation: ‘3:3. Verily, verily (lit. “amen, amen”) occurs only in John’s gospel, and then always for emphasis. Born again may be translated either “again” or “from above.”
Perhaps both ideas should be combined here, to indicate the repetition of an act from another source. John might have said “again” had he wished to indicate repetition of an act from the same source. Only John uses this expression in the gospels.
This concept of the New Birth includes these implications: (1) It undercuts Jewish dependence on being sons of Abraham (cf. 8:39). (2) It reveals that there must be a work of God “from above” since the Jews considered children (new births) to be God’s blessing. (3) It teaches the necessity of a new beginning.’
Yes my brethren, to be able to enter God’s kingdom a spiritual rebirth is absolutely necessary. But it’s also very simple. All we have to do is to believe that Christ died for us on Good Friday, as we commemorated yesterday. And then that He rose triumphantly from the dead and the grave, as we will celebrate tomorrow on Easter Sunday!
Oh my people, there’s no better time to give our lives to Christ than RIGHT NOW! So let’s BE BORN AGAIN nuh, at this most exciting and emotional time of Easter, as we celebrate Christ’s total victory, His complete annihilation of the evil enemy Satan, ruler of hell, death and the grave! All Heaven will rejoice if we do! Much LOVE!
…eternal spiritual life…calls for spiritual rebirth today…
25 Jan 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a new beginning, a new creature, all things are become new, appreciation, ask god for help, be born again, be in christ, believe in, believers, born of the flesh, born of the Spirit, born of water and the Spirit, boundaries, cannot see, Christ's kingdom, Christians, cognizant, come from God, conduct, corrupt, deceitful lusts, driving, enemy, enjoying mihself, evil cohorts, exuberance, feared criticism, fellowship, fervour, forfeiting fun, former conversation, freeze their nutsies off, Friday chant, furthering your kingdom, generous help, go about life, God be with him, having a good time, holy spirit, in Jesus name, Jesus' philosophy, jump in the lake, laughter, leggo beasts, let the horses run wild, listen to, LOVE, new creation, Nicodemus, obey, old things are passed away, open our Bibles, practical things, refeshed, relaxation, renewed, repercussions, rest, restrained, riding shotgun, serious problems, soul body and mind, sufficent fun, TGIF!, Thank God is Friday, the church at Corinth, the kingdom of God, the truth in Jesus, the weekend, trap, trusted sidekick, unbridled behaviour, weekend song, with gay abandon, workingman
John 3:3. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again (from above), he cannot see the kingdom of God.
‘Driving, driving…’ Yeh friends, the ole fella went driving himself in that nasty weather yesterday, for the first time in some five weeks, and it wasn’t bad. It was like sex and riding a bicycle…you never forget how to! (smile) And though the weather was gloomy, the roads weren’t too bad. And above all, I had my trusted sidekick Jesus, riding shotgun beside me, so there was no need to worry. Glory be!
What a way we can feel safe when we know He’s always right there beside us eh, as well as dwelling within us through His Holy Spirit! Christians therefore have no reason to be afraid of life and whatever it brings. But unfortunately too many of us are still fearful of even our own shadows, much less the trials and tribulations of life. But we won’t get into that right now, because the workingman is waiting to sing us his weekend song. (smile)
And he wails out: ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday! And yuh better believe the weekend is upon us! What would we do without the weekend end eh? I refuse to even think about it! All I know is that I’m going to be enjoying mihself, having a good time, eating, drinking and doing whatever I want over the next couple days, regardless of the weather and what anybody else thinks! And if they don’t like it, then yuh know what they can do…Go jump in the blooming cold lake and freeze their nutsies off, because this is my time, and I’ll do what I so and so want to do with it! Thank God for Fridays and the weekends yes!’
Ah mih people, sometimes it would be nice to be like the working man and just go about one’s life with such gay abandon, but that unfortunately leads to serious problems eventually. So please, let’s be thankful that we’re believers in Christ Jesus who don’t adhere to such unbridled behaviour!
Jesus needs His followers to be more restrained in their exuberance, but that doesn’t mean forfeiting fun and laughter, just being more cognizant of the dangers that lie in wait when we let the horses run wild. And that’s why our Friday Chant is somewhat less rah rah and self-serving than the workingman’s song. So let’s belt it out now with the same fervour and even greater appreciation than the workingman did nuh.
All together 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 brethren, we have some boundaries to stay within, because we don’t want to fall into the ever-waiting trap of the evil enemy and his evil cohorts. Consequently, we’re not allowed to behave like leggo beasts as the workingman can do, and certainly does. And I just espied this interesting list on one of the many bits of paper beside my computer. It tells us seven things we need to do to be a true follower of Jesus. I believe I got it from Uncle Charles (Charles Stanley).
Here they are: (1) Be born again. (2) Pray. (3) Listen to Him. (4) Believe Him. (5) Obey Him. (6) LOVE Him. (7) Suffer for Him. Now those are certainly ALL things true believers should do! We can’t leave out even one of them, else our faith walk will suffer serious negative repercussions! But the most important of them all is indeed the first one: ‘Be born again.’ That’s because if we’re not born again we can’t get into Christ’s organization and then the other things don’t matter.
And that’s exactly what Jesus told the Pharisee elder, Nicodemus, who came to Him under cover of night to find out whom He really was. Now Nicodemus did admit: ‘Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles (signs) that thou doest, except God be with him.’ (John 3:2)
And the scholars offer this explanation: ‘3:2. By night: Probably he (Nicodemus) feared criticism. John refers several times to “fear of the Jews” (see 7:13; 9:22; 12:42-43; 19:38). Nicodemus accepted Jesus as a teacher and a rabbi from God who worked miracles, but Jesus was not impressed with the depth of Nicodemus’s belief or understanding. Many unbelievers still agree that Jesus was “a great man.’
And no doubt, He was, but He was also much more than that; He was the Son of God! Thus Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again (from above), he cannot see the kingdom of God.’ That says it all right there my people! We have to be born of water and the Spirit to be a part of Christ’s kingdom. There must be a new beginning in our lives!
That’s why Bruh Paul emphasizes to the church at Corinth: ‘Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature (creation); old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.’ (2 Cor.5:17) Yeh friends, to get truly hooked up with Christ, we have to become new people, and change our old ways, which don’t sit right with Jesus’ philosophy. I guess a simple way to put it is, we have to stop singing the workingman’s song and belt out the Friday Chant instead. (smile)
And finally, as Bruh Paul tells the Ephesians: ‘If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus: That ye put off concerning the former conversation (conduct) the old man, which is corrupt according to deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.’ (Eph.4:21-25)
Ah mih people, to get in with Jesus we have to become totally new people, be born again, change our old habits! And Bruh Paul lists some of the practical things we need to do when we become born again in Ephesians 4:25-32. It might be a very good idea to open our Bibles and read that list today. I’m sure it will give many of us cause to stop and ponder our lifestyle and ask God for help in whatever area in which we are deficient! That’s wisdom to the nth degree! Much LOVE!
…that which is born of the flesh…is flesh…that which is born of the Spirit…is spirit…
01 Aug 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a glorious future, a new creation, a new creature, afraid of light, all things are become new, atoned for, awesome privilege, be born again, be born of water and the spirit, be in christ, brings light to our souls, bron of the Spirit, choose Jesus, cold weather, common sense, compass your soul, deeds are evil, enter into the kingdom of god, eternal life, evil, fleshly nature, God the Good, Hades, holy spirit, if any man, live in obedience to christ, look forward to heaven, LOVE, Lucifer, lusting, Nicodemus, not looking back, old things are passed away, one presence, only one power, paid for all your sins, pain, peace, reconciled to the Father, sacrifice, sins, sorrow, spiritual nature, spiritually minded, stick staunchly, summer, summer memories, talk personally, the breath of life, the cross at Calvary, the gift of God, the prince of darkness, the things of the flesh, the throne room, the wages of sin is death, thumb their noses, true colours, washed white as snow, weather patterns, Wednesday Wail, wisdom
2 Corinthians 5:17. Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
Can you believe it friends, it’s already the first day of August, which means that the summer is almost over! Steups! Only thirty more days before the cold weather begins ominously creeping in… And oh, sometimes it doesn’t even creep in, it just comes roaring in full blast. So we need to make as many special summer memories as we can this month, because with the strange weather patterns going nowadays, who knows what will happen.
But before we go any further, let me remind us of this momentous and everlasting truth: ‘There is only ONE Power and ONE presence here – God the Good Omnipotent! Wow mih breddren! And is he ever Good and Omnipotent! He had to be; otherwise we’d be ALL now heading for Hades to dwell with Lucifer, instead of having the option to look forward to heaven with Christ! Praise His Holy Name!
And it really surprises me that so many people refuse to even look at the option with Jesus that brings light to our souls, even thumb their noses at it and stick staunchly with the prince of darkness and evil. Why are we so afraid of light eh? I guess because our deeds are evil and we’re afraid to expose them to the light because then others will see our true colours and know that we’re not what or who we claim to be.
But friends, when you wisely choose Jesus, that’s not a problem, because He washes away all of that muck with which you’re covered. His sacrifice on the cross at Calvary has already paid for all your sins for all time, and you become a new creation in Him, washed white as snow, atoned for and reconciled to the Father, with the amazing opportunity to go right to the throne room and talk personally with the Father.
Wow! What an awesome privilege that is my breddren! Yuh think Lucifer has time for you like the Lord does? Yuh think Lucifer is waiting to care for and comfort and relieve your sorrows like the Lord is? Not on yuh life! Lucifer just wants to get you into more evil and compass your soul with more pain and sorrow.
Thus Bruh Paul tells us in our Bit, in his second letter to the church at Corinth: ‘Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.’ Glory be mih people! What a blessing it is to throw off our old sinful, fleshly nature and receive the new, refreshed spiritual nature of Christ!
That’s why Jesus told Nicodemus when he asked about eternal things. ‘Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.’ (John 3:3) That means a new beginning, however a spiritual one, must be had to be associated with Christ.
As Jesus further told Nicodemus: ‘Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth (wishes); and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit. (John 3:5-8)
Yes friends, once we get in with Jesus, we no longer live an earthly or carnal life, we begin living a spiritual life, one from the inside out, not vice versa. That’s because once you become a believer the Holy Spirit of Jesus comes to dwell within you and lead and guide you in a spiritual manner.
As Bruh Paul reminds us when he wrote to the church at Rome, dealing with life in the Spirit: ‘For they that are after the flesh do mind (set their minds on) the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death: but to be spiritually minded is life, and peace.’ (Rom.8:5-6)
So to keep on lusting after the things of the flesh, the things of the world is death. However when we become spiritually minded, live in obedience to Christ’s Holy Spirit, we achieve a sense of peace and look forward to eternal life. And Bruh Paul puts it all nicely together earlier on in his missive to the Roman church. ‘For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through (in) Jesus Christ our Lord.’ (Rom.6:23)
Ah friends, knowing that, how can we not LOVE and revere the Lord eh? If we have the slightest amount of common sense or wisdom, that verse would surely enlighten us to the fact that if we hang out with Jesus, through God’s mercy and LOVING-kindness, His unmerited favour, we won’t get what we deserve; eternal damnation, but rather eternal life. It’s up to each individual though to make a choice. Let’s hope we all make the right one.
And for those of us who have already made the right decision, let’s go home declaring our Wednesday Wail, proudly letting the world know our position in Christ. In strong voice with sincere hearts: ‘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!’
And my fellow believers, as I keep saying, that future will be even more glorious than we can ask or imagine! Much LOVE!
…why foolishly choose death…when we can wisely choose life eh…
16 Apr 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a change of conduct, a sense of sorrow, a word to the wise, all bets are off, aura of love, bad weather, be born again, Billy Bishop Airport, blasphemous attitude, Canada, commute, confidence, courage, crapaud smoke we pipe, energize, enthusiasm, eternal life, evil, explode, faith, friends, God's mercy, greater toronto area, high winds, humble servants, ice, implode, invincible, Jesus Christ, joy, leading man, lies, LOVE, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, power outages, rain, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, repent, repnetance, rest, rising temps, salvation, shining brightly, sleet, snow, spiritual armour, spread the message, steadfast faith, sufficient, talk to the world, taunts, the end times, the gulf of Mexico, the kingdom of heaven is at hand, the result of, the SON, the status quo, tornadoes, travel, trust, ungodly world, wiles, wisdom
Matthew 3:2. And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
Well friends, it’s been a helluva weekend in North America! From the Gulf of Mexico all the way up to Canada, it’s been a succession of high winds, rain, snow, sleet, ice, tornadoes, and any other kind of bad weather one can experience, and it has caused havoc in all areas of life, especially travel and power outages. And in some places in the U.S it hasn’t eased up yet.
In the Greater Toronto Area we had mostly ice, high winds and rain, and outside still looks like the frozen tundra of the Arctic. At one stage at the Billy Bishop Airport in Toronto they experienced winds of 90 km/h per hour. Wow! Why would one want to be flying, or even be out in winds that strong eh? Let’s hope that the rising temps today along with the rain will melt and wash away all of that ice.
I can imagine the state of the commute this morning. And the warning still stands; if you don’t have to go out, don’t go out. And yuh better believe I’m going to take my advice, because I have a doctor’s appointment in the city at lunchtime, but I can guarantee you it’s not happening. Anyway, enough about the weather, let’s turn to our faith, which helps us to handle the inclement stuff.
And this is one day that we definitely need our Monday Morning Battle Hymn to raise our adrenalin level as we contemplate the severe negative aspects of getting to work safely. So with sincere heart and strong voice, let’s sing:
‘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!’
Now that ought to raise our level of confidence and courage and energize us this dreadful looking morning. And please remember that regardless of the outward circumstances, the SON is still shining brightly, and is always there to help us in whatever area we may need it.
Now let’s turn to our Bit: ‘And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’
Yeh friends, those were the warning words of John the Baptist as he began his ministry foretelling the coming of Jesus. And I think we’d do well to seriously consider them in these evil and ungodly times. Too many out of the ordinary things and circumstances are happening all over the world for them to be just coincidence or happenstance.
And as believers, we know that NOTHING just happens by accident or chance, the hand of the Lord is always involved somehow or the other. And remember how He destroyed the world when it was so sinful in the time of Noah? Well He only promised not to destroy it by water again – possibly by fire and brimstone next time. And it just seems that we’re playing with a lot of fire and explosive material these days.
A lot of destructive stuff is happening in these especially sinful times, and I just wonder if the Lord is not giving us a not so subtle message to beware, He’s getting fed up with our endless shenanigans and trying to rid our society of His presence. Friends, I’m suggesting that we be safe, rather than sorry, and REPENT, give up our evil ways and return to the Lord’s fold.
As the scholars explain: ‘3:2. Repent (Gr. metanoeo) means a change of mind that results in a change of conduct. Repentance is not merely sorrow. It involves a complete change of attitude regarding God and sin and is often accompanied by a sense of sorrow and a corresponding change in conduct. Such repentance does not arise in man himself, but is the result of God’s mercy in leading man to it. (Acts 5:31; Rom.2:4; 2 Tim.2:25).’
Oh my people, please look at those scriptures and let them work in our hearts, for the end times are drawing nigh, and if we are not prepared then salvation and eternal life will be denied us, and that’s the worst thing that could ever happen to a human being.
The world is too sinful and ungodly for the Lord to put up with it much longer. And if we keep going the way we are, with or without His help, we’ll either implode or explode. But the status quo cannot last much longer. Remember too, that Jesus can return at any time, like a thief in the night, and once He comes back, all bets are off.
So it behooves us, believers, to talk to the world, to spread the message, to get it ready. Saying, let’s repent, let’s change our sinful, blasphemous attitude towards our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, be born again, and accept His free offer through grace, of salvation and eternal life. That’s the wisest and best offer going! Otherwise…crapaud smoke we pipe! Much LOVE!
…a word to the wise is sufficient…
22 Feb 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a Christian, a journey, a piece of gnarled barked, a positive outlook, a process, abides for ever, abundance, acceptable, aimless, apostle Paul, as a man thinks, awesome light of the Son, be born again, being obedient, blessing, christianity, clear direction, compassionate heart, conformed to the image of Christ, conformed to this world, courage, crashing breakers, cultivate us, curse, drifting back and forth, enemy of God, enmity, favour, fence sitting, follow God's direction, friendship with the world, from glory to glory, get to know Christ, glory to God, going to school, good, grow in Christ, grow spiritually, Grow Up, heresy, hold back, immature Christian, jump from church to church, let go, life journey with Jesus, love not the world, lust, made no effort, more than sufficient, negative word, no set purpose, one goal, One Year Book of Bible promises, only one way, perfect, play second fiddle, praying, put in the effort, root us, Ruth Harms Calkin, share blessings, shining brightly, single minded, soaring, spiritual puttering, spoken over someone, studying God's Word, success, talent, the battle is in our minds, the renewing of your mind, the will of God, things of the world, Thursday's Blessings, to meet our needs, tossed to and fro, total commitment, transformed, trust, undisciplined, unsteady, wading in self-pity, water us, wet weather, will of God, willingness, wisdom, wishy-washy Christians, ye may prove, yearn for change
Romans 12:2. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
Good news friends; after about three days of wet weather, it’s cloudy but dry in my neighbourhood! Wow! Let’s hope the sun comes out later to make it an even more pleasant day. But even if it doesn’t, we still have the awesome light of the SON shining brightly in our lives, and He is more than sufficient to meet ALL of our needs! Glory to God!
And without further ado, let me share something from our One Year Book of Bible Promises, with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin. I don’t know if I’ve ever shared it before, but is it ever so appropriate for our currently trying and troublesome times. It’s simply titled ‘Grow Up.’
Please read with me. ‘Picture it with me: a piece of gnarled bark tossed to and fro over the crashing breakers. First one direction, then another, back and forth, over and under. Aimless. No set purpose. Drifting…always drifting. What an accurate picture of an immature Christian. Nothing but spiritual puttering. Up and down, in and out.
One study group for a few weeks, then another. One church for a while, then another. Undisciplined, unsteady, one day soaring, the next day wading in self-pity. No consistency. The apostle Paul tells us to grow up! Not grow older, but grow up into Christ.
What we are today is more important to God than what we were yesterday. Our life journey with Jesus is now – this very day, this very hour. Why yearn for change if we’ve made no effort to follow the direction God has already given us?
To grow spiritually we must be single-minded. Our one goal? To be conformed to the image of Christ. He longs for our willingness to let Him root us, cultivate us, water us. Above all else, God wants our total commitment. He will take anything we give Him except second place.’
And isn’t all that the gospel truth friends? It surely is! God wants our total commitment, but we’re not prepared to give it. We want to hold back stuff from Him. But that won’t work. As I said yesterday, God doesn’t play second fiddle to anyone! Only one fiddler in His band; that’s Him!
And what we don’t seem to realize is that being a Christian is a process, a journey, like going to school; you begin in ABC (kindergarten) and work your way up through elementary, secondary and tertiary levels. But you must put in the effort required at each level if you wish to be successful and proceed to the next.
Christianity is exactly the same; you get to know Christ and become more like Him by first putting your entire trust in Him, then studying His word, being obedient, sincerely and constantly praying (communicating) and thus gradually growing in His image; slowly – from glory to glory.
But unfortunately today we have a whole lot of wishy-washy Christians, who talk a great talk, but don’t know the real Christ. We jump from church to church, apparently seeking what we want to hear, and not what the word really says. And the sad part is that plenty churches seem to preach that heresy.
But friends, there is ONLY ONE WAY to truly grow in Christ, and that’s the one advised by Bruh Paul to the church at Rome, our Bit for today. ‘And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.’
Yes my brethren, it all begins and ends in our minds. The battle between a true relationship with Christ and one with the world is fought primarily in our minds. That’s why they say, as a man thinks so is he. Therefore, if we want to be born again and grow in Christ, we have to let go of the things of the world, we have to stop conforming to what the world wants us to be.
As James so blatantly puts it: ‘Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of (with) the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be (wants to make himself) a friend of the world is the enemy (makes himself the enemy) of God.’ (James 4:4)
John though puts it a little nicer: ‘LOVE not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man LOVE the world, the LOVE of the Father is not in Him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.’ (1 John 2:15-17)
That’s it in a nutshell friends; we can’t be friendly with world and be friendly with God at the same time! So let’s stop trying to do it nuh. Now let’s go home declaring our Thursday Blessings, that the Lord has so graciously bestowed on us who truly believe and are obedient to His will.
In sincerity and truth now: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment!
I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and everyday! Amen!’
Remember, a blessing is not a blessing until it’s spoken over someone. So let’s go out and generously speak those blessings over others nuh, for that’s why God gave them to us. Much LOVE!
…sitting on the fence is not an option…you’re either FOR God…or AGAINST Him…
22 Oct 2015
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a millstone were hanged about his neck, a newborn spiritual child, and become as little children, be born again, be not afraid of them that kill the body, Behold, behold I stand at the door and knock, do not let me be afraid, drowned in the depth of the sea, enticements, except ye be converted, faith, fear not little flock, follow me, forbid them not to come unto me, God is in full control, God will never give us more than we can bear, God will not leave us in the lurch, God's call of love, God's great universe, Gramps Schuller, hath the power to cast into hell, Hour of Power Devotional, How high Lord, humility, I will come in and sup with him, I will make you fishers of men, if any hear my voice and open the door, it is your Father's good pleasure, love can knock at my heart, of such is the kingdom of heaven, prophetic condemnation of death, resist God's affectionate touch, respond to Jesus' call, run with open arms, sin, Suffer little children, the power to not be afraid, the spirit of a little child, there is one lawgiver, to give you the kingdom, trust, welcome christ Himself, who art thou that judgest another, whomsoever shall humble himself, wisdom, woe unto the world, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven, Zebedee
Matthew 19:14. But Jesus said, Suffer (allow the) little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.
Well hello there Friends and neighbours! It’s another glorious day in God’s great universe and we have so much to be thankful for this autumn Thursday morn! Glory to God!
Now we don’t have a Battle hymn, a Mantra or a Wail to declare this morning, (smile) but we do have a li’l something from Gramps Schuller from his Hour of Power Devotional to welcome the day and give God some thanks and praise and well-deserved recognition and acknowledgement.
Please pray with me: ‘Thank you, Lord, for bringing me to the place where LOVE can knock at the door of my heart. O Father, do not let me be afraid. I shall not resist your affectionate touch. Let me, O Lord, have the spirit of a little child and dare to respond and run with open arms to your call of LOVE. Amen.’
Yes Friends, a simple but surprisingly wide-ranging prayer. It touches on God’s knocking at the doors of our hearts, willing us to open them and let Him in. ‘Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come into him, and will sup (dine) with him, and he with me.’ (Rev.3:20)
Oh Friends, how many times many of us have heard that knock and refused to let Jesus in eh? That’s not heavenly wisdom at all. So the next time He knocks, please let Him in. It’s a decision you will never regret.
The prayer also includes the power to not be afraid, because our God is in full control of everything and everyone in His universe.
On that subject, Jesus declared to the disciples: ‘And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell: yea, I say unto you, Fear him.’ (Luke 12:4-5)
And the scholars tell us that:’12:4. The body’s death is not the end of a person’s life.’ ‘12:5. God is the one with this power. (James 4:12).’
And for our enlightenment, I’ll quote James here, because I know that very few of us will go and check it for ourselves. (smile) And James says: ‘There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy: who art thou that judgest another?’ (James (4:12)
Then the prayer talks about not resisting God’s affectionate touch, which so many of us unwisely do, for one reason or another. Ah mih people, when God touches us, it’s always for a very good reason. I remember quite well when He called me some eight years ago to write the Bit, my first plea was that I couldn’t because I was not knowledgeable enough.
But when God really wants us, it’s foolish to try to resist, because He will not stop, and we will only be making life harder for ourselves. It’s always best if we answer on His first call, and ask, ‘How high do you want me to jump Lord?’ Remember, He will NEVER give us more than we can bear or ever leave us in the lurch!
Yuh see how Peter and Andrew responded to Jesus’ call? ‘And he saith unto to them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men, And they straightway left their nets and followed him.’ (Matt.4:19-20).
The same goes for James and John. When Jesus called them, the Good Book says: ‘And they immediately left the ship and their father (Zebedee), and followed him.’ (Matt.4:22)
Can you imagine poor Zebedee’s consternation when his two sons, his only help, just got up and walked off after this itinerant preacher. Hn! But that’s the kind of faith and trust we’re called to have in Jesus my people.
Then the prayer talks about the ‘spirit of a little child and run with open arms to your call of LOVE.’ Remember too how the young children ran to Jesus’ opened arms and how He rebuked the disciples for trying to stop them?
And that scripture is our Bit for today. ‘But Jesus said, Suffer (allow the) little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.’
Oh my brethren that is such an important scripture, one of the most important Jesus ever spoke. And His monologue earlier on, when He explains greatness to the disciples, explains it all.
‘At the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them, And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.
Whomsoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me. But whoso shall offend (cause to sin) one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he was drowned in the depth of the sea.
Woe unto the world because of offences (enticements to sin)! for it must needs be that offenses (enticements) come; but woe to that man by whom the offence (enticement) cometh.’ (Matt.18:1-7)
Yes Friends those are Jesus’ words. And I just read some of the scholars’ explanations and though they will make the Bit longer than I desired, I believe the info there is very worthwhile.
So here goes. ‘18-1-4. The dispute over who is the greatest was settled by Jesus’ emphasis that it was the one who was willing to forgive the most! Be converted means a “turning” (Gr. strepho) of one’s whole life and person toward God.
This is the true biblical picture of conversion. It is far more than a mental acknowledgement of the truth or intellectual assent to certain ideas. To become as little children means to be born again (converted) as a newborn spiritual child, characterized by faith and humility.’
‘18:5-7. The little child represents a new convert or young believer. To receive such a fellow believer is to welcome Christ Himself. Therefore, the basis of true Christian fellowship is established in Christ Himself.
Offenses are viewed as a reality that must be accepted in the present world, but woe (the prophetic condemnation to death) to the one who is the source of the offence. A millstone is literally an “ass-stone,” or a large grindstone turned by an ass.’
Yes Friends, that’s it for today. I know it’s long but them’s the breaks! (smile) If you can’t give up a few extra minutes for Jesus, then what’s the point eh? Happy fellowshipping today! Much LOVE!
…fear not…little flock…for it is your Father’s good pleasure…to give you the kingdom… (Luke 12:32)
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