07 Oct 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a leisurely day, anger, at the forefront of our minds, away from have to things, be of good cheer, behooves us, burn out, coddling a pent-up rebellion, come to know and love him like we do, didn't want to go to church, do what we feel like, doing a brisk business, faith, fear, followers of Christ Jesus, foolishness, for His name's sake, get away from the alarm clocks, get away from work family friends, God is a refuge for us, greed, handle our problems properly, hate, he leads me beside the still waters, he leads me in the paths of righteousness, he makes me lie down in green pastures, he restores my soul, holy spirit, hurry, i have overcome the world, I shall not want, I will fear no evil, In God is my salvation and my glory, in god's eyes, in me ye might have peace, in the world ye shall have tribulation, insecurity, Jesus Christ, learned a profound lesson, let not your heart be troubled, life is good, lock stock and barrel, lose our focus, lose the capacity for personal enjoyment, LOVE, mental illness, mercy, my hope is from him, my peace I give unto you, my refuge is in God, my soul wait thou only upon God, neither let it be afraid, not as the world gives, of whom shall I be afraid, Once in a while we can, once in a while we can do what we want to, once in awhile we need to walk think meditate, One Year Book of Bible promises, only God can satisfy our deepest longings, our competitive society, Peace i leave with you, personal enjoyment, pour out your hearts before him, pressing commitments, propaganda, rely upon God, reminiscent of our current society, retain our sanity in this crazy world, salvation, Selah, sense of purpose, share His love with my neighbours, share our private secrets with God, share the amazing love and friendship of Christ, the beloved of God, the Lord is my light and my salvation, The Lord is my shepherd, the Lord is the strength of my life, the mind doctors, the negatives running rampant in our society, the rock of my strength, the shattering pressures, these things I have spoken unto you, thou art with me, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, thy rod and thy staff they comfort me, to whom we belong, trust in him at all times, trust my friend Jesus, truth, trying to keep up with the world system, unfair systems of the world, whom shall I fear, wisdom, without hurting someone, worry
Psalm 23:1. The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
And finally the bright sunshiny days have come to an end! Yes, rain is in the offing for today. We’ve already had a small drizzle, but with all the cloudiness around, we’ll probably have some bigger showers later in the day. And we really can’t complain because we’ve had such beautiful unseasonable weather recently, and though rain might fall, the temperature is still almost summer-like. (smile) So let’s give thanks, for life is good; we’re alive, and the weather is fine!
Now, here’s a very interesting and rather appropriate writing from our One Year Book of Bible Promises, with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin. And though I’m sure I’ve shared this one before, it’s worthwhile hearing again, because it’s highly reminiscent of our current society. It’s aptly titled, ‘Once in a While We Can.’
So please read with me: ‘One bright Sunday when I was twelve, I didn’t want to go to church. I wasn’t coddling a pent-up rebellion. I simply pictured a leisurely day away from “have to” things. How to explain and be understood! Finally I just blurted it out as Mother prepared breakfast. She listened attentively. “Honey,” she said calmly, we can’t always do what we feel like doing without hurting someone.” That settled it, I thought. I was sorry I had asked. Suddenly I heard, “But once in a while we can do what we want to – just because we want to. You may stay home this Sunday.”
The memory of that day is still vivid. Not because I stayed home from church, but because I learned a profound lesson: Once in a while we can! Once in a while we can get away from the alarm clocks, peanut butter jars, milk cartons…away from the shattering pressures of our competitive society. Once in a while we need to get away from work, family, friends, and pressing commitments. Often we lose the capacity for personal enjoyment. Once in a while we need to walk, think, and meditate. Only God can satisfy our deepest longings. He longs for us to share our private secrets with Him. Once in a while we can.’
And that my friends is ever so true! In fact, it’s not only we need to do it, but we must do it, if we’re to retain our sanity in this crazy world in which we now live! Everything is fast and quick, busy and now for now, that if every so often we don’t get away from it all, we’ll simply burn out, lose our focus and sense of purpose. And that’s not a very nice picture to contemplate, much less experience.
And all around us, we see the danger in living at the crazy pace our society dictates with the high amount of mental illness and burn out that now exists. Pharmaceuticals for tiredness and mental illness have reached a sky high level, and the mind doctors are doing a brisk business because of the amount of fear, insecurity, greed, anger, hate, and all the other negatives that currently are running rampant throughout our world. And please note that this downward trend is not filled with only unbelievers, but also many believers, who are trying to keep up with the world system, but unfortunately are not doing so well at it.
Why? Because we have forgotten where our hope, health and strength come from. And just to remind us where it comes from, please listen as Bruh David passionately declares: ‘The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life, of whom shall I be afraid?’ (Ps. 27:1) Yes my fellow believers, as a follower of Christ Jesus, that’s where our health, hope and strength are supposed to come from! Not from the insecure, unfair and uncompromising systems of the world, that so many of us are trying to get them from.
That’s why Bruh David also penned these words in Psalm 62: ‘My soul, (silently) wait thou only upon God; for my expectation (hope) is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation: he is my defence; I shall not be moved (shaken). In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God. Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your hearts before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah.’ (Ps. 62:5-8) Now that’s something we ought never to forget, especially when the trials and tribulations of the world come upon us.
And we also need to vividly remember these two poignant and very reassuring verses from Jesus. The first says: ‘Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.’ (John 14:27) And the second verse strengthens the first. ‘These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33) Now, if those two verses from our Lord and Saviour don’t resonate strongly within us, then I don’t know what will.
But hopefully, may be these verses will. (smile) They are the ones listed as the Bible Promise for our reading today. So, please read with me: ‘The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.’ (Ps. 23:1-4)
And if we keep those scriptures at the forefront of our minds, then we won’t allow the world to drive us crazy with all the foolishness and the propaganda that it purports to be progress and wisdom. Now, let’s go home declaring our Tuesday Mantra, letting all the world know to whom we belong lock, stock and barrel.
As one strong and sincere voice: ‘In God’s eyes, 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 my immediate neighbours, as well as with the whole wide world! Glory be!’
And having said all of that, it now behooves us to go out and share the amazing LOVE and friendship of Christ with others, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!
…only as we rely upon God…will we be able to handle our problems properly…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
12 Jan 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a grain of mustard seed, accept calamity, all the days of my life, an encouragement to many people, bankrupt the business, Bible, blessed be God, bnelievers in Christ Jesus, burn out, Christian, christianity, comforts us in all tribulation, curse God and die, don't lose faith, eliminate debts, faith, fellowship, for being god in my valley, God on the Mountain, God will come through for you, have faith in God, He'll make them right, holy spirit, I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever, I will fear no evil, in God's name, in the presence of mine enemies, is still god in the bad times, is still god in the night, is the God in the valley, it's down in the valley, Jesus Christ, life is easy when you're on the mountain, loaded with debt, LOVE, make serious inroads into, mercy, mired in negative situations, my cup runneth over, not receive evil, O ye of little faith, our God is a good God, receive good at God's hand, retain your integrity, retake the world, reverence God, salvation, surely goodness and mercy shall follow me, sweet sacrifices of praise, swimming pools, talk a good talk of faith, talk comes easy, thank you locrd, the evil world system, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the gifts we're given to share with others, the God of Comfort, The God of the day, the God of the good times, the God on the mountain, the grace to comfort others, the valley of the sahdow of death, therapy, things change, thou anointest my head with oil, thou art with me, thou preparest a table before me, though I walk through, thy rod and thy staff they comfort me, Tracy Dartt, trials and temptations, truer words were never spoken, truth, up on the mountain, up our ante, wake up from slumber, we are comforted by God, we can comfort those in trouble, when life's at its best, when things go wrong, when you're down in the valley, where your faith is really tested, why are ye fearful, wisdom, worship, you have peace of mind, you're never alone
Psalm 23:4. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Now, the year 2025, and the month of January seem to be making a headlong dash for some unknown winner’s wire, because both of them started out so quickly. We just celebrated New Years, and the month is already half done. That means we believers in Christ Jesus have to up our ante right away, if we intend to make any serious inroads into the evil world system. And this Sunday, the second of the year gives us the opportunity to do just that, as we gather in the Lord’s sanctuary to fellowship, worship, give thanks and receive encouragement in our faith.
So let’s get to some worship right away, by singing that soulful, but oh so true song, written by Tracy Dart, in the mid 1970’s, so aptly titled ‘God On the Mountain.’ Yes, let’s offer up sweet sacrifices of praise in a soulful, heartfelt version, sincerely meaning all we say. Singing: ‘Life is easy, when you’re up on the mountain And you’ve got peace of mind, like you’ve never known. But things change, when you’re down in the valley. Don’t lose faith, for you’re never alone. For the God on the mountain, is the God in the valley. When things go wrong, He’ll make them right. And the God of the good times is still God in the bad times. The God of the day is still God in the night.
You talk of faith when you’re up on the mountain. But talk comes so easy when life’s at its best. But it’s down in the valley, of trials and temptations That’s where your faith, is really put to the test. For the God on the mountain is the God in the valley. When things go wrong, He’ll make them right. And the God of the good times is still God in the bad times. The God of the day, is still God in the night. The God of the day, is still God in the night.’
And isn’t that the living truth my fellow believers! Our God is the One and Only True God; meaning He’s there in the day and the night, in the tough times and the good ones, as well as up on the mountain top or down in the valley. He is omnipresent, all-pervasive, as no other supposed God is! That’s why we worship and LOVE and give Him the thanks and praise that we do!
And the story behind the birth of that song is really interesting. Apparently in 1974, Dartt and his wife were building swimming pools in the California desert, in partnership with a friend. Things were going well, and they even founded a country gospel group called the ‘Country Congregation’ that sounded pretty good, with Dart writing most of their music. However, as life unfurled, their business began to fail, and eventually his partner, who had suffered a severe case of burn out while trying to right the business, gave the business to him loaded with debt and no money to build the swimming pools they had on order.
But our God is a good God, and if you believe and have faith, even as much as grain of mustard seed, He will come through for you. Mr. Dart writes: ‘In the midst of the turmoil, I awakened from a troubled sleep one night. It was two o’clock in the morning. A tune was echoing in my troubled brain. I picked up a tablet and a pencil and began to write, “Life is easy when you’re up on the mountain, and you’ve got peace of mind like you’ve never known. But, when things change and you’re down in the valley, don’t lose faith, for you’re never alone.”
“Thank You, Lord,” I prayed, “for being God in my valley.” The chorus came, “The God on the mountain is still God in the valley. When things go wrong, He’ll make them right…” In all, it took about thirty minutes. I again prayed, “Thank You, Lord,” and then settled back down to sleep. Morning came, breakfast and prayer time. “Lord, show us Your will.” I went off to work.
Shortly after arriving at the office, the phone rang, “Mr. Dartt, could you please help us?” I grabbed my brief case and went to see the people who had called. Their son was a gifted athlete, but had been in a motorcycle accident and was paralyzed from the waist down. His doctor had recommended a swimming pool for the therapy the young man needed in order to walk again. I began the process of designing and building a pool for them.
A few days later, another call came, “Mr. Dartt could you come talk to me about a pool?” So, through the off-season, we ended up selling and building 12 pools in all, at a time when no one else was building pools. The building season came, and all of a sudden, we were able to finish all of our construction and eliminate our debts. We were free and clear, without having to bankrupt the business. God had taken us through the valley.’
What more can you say eh? And that’s precisely why we praise and worship and glorify the Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob! Now,the song has been recorded by numerous artists and translated into several languages. And as Dartt says: ‘This simple little song, comprised of 72 words and 4 chords, has been an encouragement to thousands of people. “Thank you, Lord, for the mountains and the valleys, and the gifts we are given to share with others.” And that’s exactly how our great God works; giving us gifts in times of need to share with others.
And what better scripture to reflect that, than these famous words of Bruh David from Psalm 23: ‘Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil: my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.’ (Ps. 23:4-6) Truer words were never spoken my people!
And another famous scripture on faith during adversity is this one from Job, when the Lord allowed Satan to bring him low. While Job was scraping the boils from his body in the ashes, his wife said to him: ‘Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die. But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive (accept) good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil (accept calamity)? In all this did not Job sin with his lips.’ (Job 2:9-10) I wonder how many of us could have lost all of our many material possessions and children through no fault of our own, and still retain our integrity like Job did? Not many.
And we’ll close with this all embracing and true scripture passage, titled the Comfort of God. Bruh Paul writes to the Corinthians: ‘Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble (tribulation), by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.’ (2 Cor. 1:3-4)
Yes friends, our God can comfort us in any situation, and that also gives us the grace to comfort others who are mired in negative situations. What a great and merciful God we serve! And if we truly reverence Him, then, please, let’s wake up from our slumber and retake the world in His awesome name nuh! Much LOVE!
…why are ye fearful…oh ye of little faith… (Matt. 8:26)
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
10 Jan 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a fool's voice is known by multitude of words, a man's word is his honour, all the days of his life, ambassadors for Christ, anxiety, ascended to high heaven, backsliders, barren woman, barter with God, be better witnesses for Christ, be not rash with thy mouth, be resposible, better is it that thou shouldest not vow, Bible, bitterness of soul, break our oaths, broken with impunity, burn out, character, chores, christianity, Christians, confusion, contracts, covenants, crying out for your help, deceitful, deceitful world, defer not to pay it, disciples of Jesus, discontent, dissatisfaction, divine aid, error of their ways, faith, fellowship, forget our part of the bargain, fraudulent, Friday chant, give me a man child, go our merry way rejoicing, God hath no pleasure in fools, God is in heaven, God pulls us out, Hannah, high esteem, holy, holy spirit, housework, I will give him unto the Lord, in olden times, integrity, Jesus Christ, lack of cooperation, let not thine heart be hasty, let thy words be few, LOVE, mercy, new flock of believers, no razor shall come upon his head, not held sacred, omnipotent help, our Number One Job, our sinful world, partying, pay that which thou hast vowed, prayed tearfully, problems are escalating, promises, promises are made to be broken, promises should be unbreakable, sacrosanct, salvation, Samuel's mother, simmering unrest, sindul behaviour, stand strong and steadfast, stay safe, sullies our reputation, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, than thou shouldest vow and not pay, the example we faithful believers set, the fiery furnace, the priest Eli, the throne of grace, thou upon the earth, to utter anything before God, took him under his wing, totally binding, truth, ungodly generation, ungodly times, vows, wake up and smell the coffee, wept in anguish, when thou vowest a vow unto God, wisdom, wise guidance
Ecclesiastes 5:5. Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than thou shouldest vow and not pay.
So friends, Friday’s here at last, and numerous shouts of ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ have already ascended to high heaven. And it’s good to have the weekend come around, but please, let’s remember to not use it just for partying and idle, sinful behaviour, but for the purposes that it was granted; that’s rest, relaxation and fellowship with other believers in Christ Jesus! And that’s because we need to have our minds, souls, bodies, and faith renewed and refreshed so that we can go back into the world the following week and once again work diligently for Christ.
Now, I know that many of us have lots of housework to do, chores that couldn’t be done during the work week, but please don’t let the weekend be all about housework, make time to get in a reasonable amount of those renewing and refreshing factors of life. (smile) That way, we will escape burn out from too much work and worry, and continue being useful ambassadors and disciples of Jesus, which is our Number One Job.
And today we’ll talk about vows, promises, covenants, contracts, things that today are not held sacred, but are broken with impunity, helped by the lax law of the land. In olden times a vow, promise, contract or covenant was totally binding, but in this deceitful, fraudulent and ungodly generation those things are not held in high esteem and agreements are disregarded without much thought or fear. A man’s word is no longer his honour. We seem to believe the saying; promises are made to be broken.
But friends, breaking a promise or contract is one of the worst things we can ever do, for it sullies our reputation, while damaging our integrity and our character. Our word will no longer be trusted by others, and we will suffer judgement and lack of cooperation by those we desire to work with. So, it’s not wise to break our oaths without very good cause, especially one made to God. Yuh know how we like to barter with God, especially when we find ourselves in tough situations, with words like: ‘Oh God, if you will only do this or that for me, I will do this or that in return.’ And when the Lord pulls us out of the fiery furnace, we forget all about our part of the bargain, and just go our merry way rejoicing.
Now that won’t wash with God, for He doesn’t like people who don’t keep their promises. We need to be people of integrity, especially with God. People like Hannah, the prophet Samuel’s mother. Remember how she was barren for a long time and prayed tearfully to the Lord to have a son. The scripture tells it thus: ‘And she (Hannah) was in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the Lord, and wept sore (in anguish). And she vowed a vow, and said, O Lord of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then will I give him unto the Lord all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head.’ (1 Sam. 1:10-11)
And we know that the Lord heard Hannah’s prayer, and did indeed bless her with a man child, whom she named Samuel (heard by God), and when he was probably about three years old she took him to the temple in Shiloh and presented him to the priest Eli, who took him under his wing and taught him about the Lord and the workings of His service. Now that’s what meant by keeping your word, your vow.
And, as the Preacher in Ecclesiastes, Cousin Sol issues a very strong warning on the subject. He writes: ‘Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter anything before God: for God is in heaven and thou upon the earth: therefore let thy words be few. For a dream cometh through the multitude of business (effort, activity); and a fool’s voice is known by multitude of words. When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer (delay) not to pay it: for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed. Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than thou shouldest vow and not pay.’ (Eccl. 5:2-5)
Oh my fellow believers we cannot get any better advice than that. And please, let’s also do it in all our communications with man, not just with God. That’s the only way we will bring some integrity back into our forlorn and deceitful world. And I like how the scholars explain it. ‘The emphasis of the passage is on the folly of an empty religious profession before a sovereign God: God is in heaven, and thou upon the earth. God expects sincerity and meaningfulness in worship; He is not impressed with foolish vows.’
Oh, how I wish that many of us could understand that and stop trying to barter with God. Cousin Sol tells it thus in Proverbs. ‘It is a snare to the man who devoureth that which is holy (to devote rashly something as holy, consecrated), and after vows to make enquiry (reconsiders his vows).’ (Prov. 20:25) Yes friends, let’s not speak too quickly, or too much, for it will only get us in serious trouble, both with God and man. So now, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Friday Chant, seeking divine aid to help in these troubled and trying times.
Altogether: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough… because our many serious problems are escalating instead of improving. And it’s obvious we can’t fix them on our own, so Lord, we’re desperately crying out for your help. Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat the simmering unrest in our land. We therefore ask you Lord to give our leaders the wise guidance to handle these unexpected storms properly. And please help the rest of us to be responsible and to stay safe amidst all the anxiety and confusion of these ungodly times.
We fervently pray too Lord that you’ll use the discontent and dissatisfaction in our land as a means of restoring faith in you. Return backsliders to your fold. Show them the error of their ways. And please introduce a new flock of believers, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example, we, your faithful believers set. So that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, wake up and smell it sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
Now, let’s not forget, that for divine aid to be doled out to us, we need to become better, more faithful witnesses for Christ! Much LOVE!
…promises…both to God and man…should be held inviolable…unbreakable…sacrosanct…holy…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
11 Aug 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a better tomorrow, a crying shame, a major role, a rewarder, a test of faith, Abel, Abraham, after God, an inheritance, Anselm, aspires to inspire, begins with the first step, being happy, being warned, bore a child, built an ark, burn out, conviction, cope, diligently seek him, disenchantment, faith, faith champions, feel like quitting, followers of Jesus, friend, get excited, hectic pace, hope, impossible to please God, Isaac, judged him faithful, laze-abouts, make yourself a priority, miserly wages, narcissistic, negative emotions, Noah, obeyed, of things hoped for, of things not seen, part-time jobs, past age, plaguing the land, positive superlatives, promised, realization, received strength, rest, sacrifice, Sarah, simply begin, slaves, strife, stronger than fear, talk faith, tension, the evidence, the Good Book, the have-nots, the haves, the key, the longest journey, the middle part, the outgrowth of hope, the power to choose, the springboard, the substance, things not yet seen, to look after us, top priority, without faith
Hebrews 11:1. Now faith is the substance (realization) of things hoped for, the evidence (conviction) of things not seen.
Alright you laze-abouts, it’s Saturday, so get in some much needed rest! (smile) Ah mih breddren, with the hectic pace our modern-day society is setting for us, we have to find… no make the time to rest, or else we’ll just burn out and disintegrate. It’s definitely not a healthy pace, especially when some of us are forced to work two or even three part time jobs at miserly wages just to make ends meet.
And it’s not getting better, but worse. The haves are getting greedier, always wanting more, unashamedly taking the little of the have-nots. What a crying shame! And then they wonder why there is so much tension, strife, disenchantment and all the other negative emotions and situations that are currently plaguing the land.
But as followers of Jesus Christ, we do not have to despair, because He has sincerely promised to look after us. And He does keep His promises! And since it’s Saturday, let’s look at some quotes we received from our friend Anselm, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow.
The first one says: ‘The key to being happy is knowing you have the power to choose what to accept and what to let go.’ I don’t know if it’s the key to being happy, but it certainly is a very important ingredient. Your being able to choose what to accept and not to accept, plays a major role in your overall life, and thus your happiness. Just think about how slaves must feel, when they have no say in what affects them.
Then there is this bit of advice: ‘The best way to get things done is to simply begin.’ And the old Chinese Proverb corroborates that. ‘The longest journey begins with the first step.’ Yeh friends, in everything we do, we have to make a start, so why not just go ahead and do it without any procrastination eh? But then that brings us to: ‘When you feel like quitting, think about why you started.’
Now that’s an interesting concept. It ought to remind you of all the positive superlatives (smile) with which you described the adventure in the first place, and why you thought it important enough to get excited and put it all together. The end and the beginning of a project are always exciting, but it’s the hard middle part that shows if we’re truly serious about it.
And what about this one: ‘Make yourself a priority. At the end of the day, you’re your longest commitment.’ There is mucho truth to that, we have ourselves forever, and if we don’t take good care of us, we won’t be of much or any use to others.
A lot of us in this fast paced society mistakenly believe that looking after ourselves is somewhat narcissistic, but how can you cope properly, if you aren’t able to handle the stuff that comes against you? We should be our top priority …after God!
And finally, we come to the last quote: ‘Hope is the only thing stronger than fear.’ Well not exactly; faith is the only thing stronger than fear. But hope is a part of faith, it’s the springboard of faith, so to speak, for we can’t have faith without first having hope. And we can plainly see that in our Bit. ‘Now faith is the substance (realization) of things hoped for, the evidence (conviction) of things not seen.’
Yeh friends, faith is the outgrowth of hope, where we believe that we will receive things that we haven’t yet seen. The world says you’ll believe it when you see it, but Christ says, believe it, then you’ll see it.That’s why the Good Book tells us of certain faith champions.
‘By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice… By faith, Enoch was translated (so) that he should not see death… By faith, Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark… By faith, Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed, and he went out not knowing whither he went (where he was going)….
Through faith also Sarah herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of (bore) a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised.’ All of that’s in Chapter 11. Look at that eh, Sarah was 90 and Abraham was 100 when they had a biological child, Isaac. As the scripture says, ‘because she judged him faithful who had promised.’
Ah mih people, faith is born of great hope! And the Good Book reminds us: ‘But without faith it is impossible to please him (God): for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.’ (Heb.11:6)
Oh my brethren, we certainly can’t approach God unless we believe that He exists, and then that He rewards those who seek Him with all their hearts, souls and minds! That’s an essential part of our faith.
And we’ll close with this classic situation on faith by Abraham. Now after waiting for about 25 years for the promise of Isaac to be actually fulfilled, then the Lord told him to go and sacrifice the child who was going to be the one to provide him with heirs more numerous than the grains of sand on the beach or stars in the heaven.
Now being an intelligent man, Abraham must have wondered how Isaac would perform that feat if he were dead. But deep down he knew that the Lord was faithful to His promises, and that somehow or the other something would happen to cause Isaac’s life to be spared.
So he followed God’s command, and we all know that as he raised his hand to kill Isaac, the Lord stopped him, it was merely a test of his faith, and provided instead a ram entangled in a nearby bush for the sacrifice. (Gen. 22:1-19)
Ah friends, ALL the champions of faith in the history of our church fervently believed and showed it in their lives, and if we want to also be champions of faith, then we too have to fervently believe and show it in our daily lives. Let’s hope that we all desire greatly to be champions of faith! Much LOVE!
…you can’t talk faith…you must walk it…
11 Aug 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: abideth forever, ambassadors, be not conformed to this world, be transformed, behave like the world, burn out, carefree, circumspection, commandment, disciples, dissolute, do a good job for Jesus, enjoy the weekend, enmity with God, enregy, enthusiasm, fellowship, followers of Christ, foolish thinking, free up yuhself, Friday chant, friendship with the world, fun, further God's glorious kingdom, generous help, glory to God, idolize, in Jesus' name, let it all hang out, licentious, limits, LOVE, love not the world, lust of the eyes, lust of the flesh, Mammon, mandate, material wealth, obedient children, our major calling, party hearty, pride, pride of life, relaxation, rest, resuscitation going downhill, righteousness, seek ye first the kingdom of God, TGIF! Thank God is Friday, the christian way, the love of the Father, the new man, the renewing of your mind, the things of God, the things of the world, the way of the world, the weekend, the will of God, value systems of the world, you cannot serve God and mammon, you may prove
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.
Oh friends, the week finally finish! Glory to God! And for us Canadians, after the Caribana weekend, it was indeed a short week. So now we have a li’l time to rest and recuperate from all that exhilarating action. (smile)
But for some really exuberant folks, the weekend will always be the time to totally celebrate the couple days off from work. Consequently they are now excitedly shouting: ‘TGIF! TGIF! Thank God is Friday oui! The Lord give us two days to party, so leh we party hearty nuh!
We can’t afford to waste the li’l time we have for weself in foolish thinking about work and all the other nonsense. Just let it all hang out, free up yuhself and doh worry about nothing till Monday! That’s why we have the weekend! Thank God for Fridays and the weekend yes!’
And I dare say that many of us believers would like to let it all hang out on the weekend, (smile) but we know that is not the Christian way; that is the way of the world. Now that doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy the weekend, but just that we need to put some limits on the ‘carefreeness.’
We definitely don’t want to be dissolute and licentious and give Lucifer any opening whatsoever to come against us. We need to think more like our Friday Chant says: ‘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.’
Yeh mih breddren, that’s the Christian way; we enjoy the time off, get some rest, relaxation and fellowship, so that we can handle the upcoming week with new energy and enthusiasm.
If we don’t apply some limits to our life with some resuscitation along the way, we’ll just keep going downhill until we burn out completely, and worst of all, won’t be able to do a good job on Christ’s behalf, which is our major calling.
So though we may feel to let it all hang out on the weekend, let’s hang in there, persevere with some circumspection, remembering that we are disciples of Christ, ambassadors for His kingdom and we can’t afford to behave like the world does.
That’s why Bruh Paul was so emphatic to the church at Rome as our Bit declares: ‘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.’
That’s only basic common sense friends, for the world does not recognize the things of God nor His kingdom. So if we want to be true followers of Christ we need to abstain from a lot of things which the world thinks is right, but which our heavenly Father totally abhors and detests.
And the scholars offer this explanation. ’12:2. Be not conformed (lit. “stop conforming yourselves”): They are to resist being poured into the mould of the present thinking, value systems, and conduct of this world. This term is used only here and in 1 Peter 1:14.’
And since most of us won’t go and read that verse, I will spoon-feed us. (smile) Peter in his call to Christian dedication, says: ‘As obedient children, not fashioning (conforming) yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance.’ Meaning we should not go back to being the old kind of persons we were before we found Christ and put on the ‘new man.’
Now let’s look at a couple of scriptures which also admonish us to stay away from the evil, ungodly world. Listen to James: ‘Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of (with) the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will (wants to) be a friend of the world is (makes himself) the enemy of God.’ (James 4:4)
It’s that simple friends. As Jesus said: ‘Ye cannot serve God and mammon (the world, material possessions).’ (Mat. 6:24) So you obviously can’t serve the One True God and also worship, or idolize, or run behind the material possessions of the world.
And we’ll conclude with some of the most authoritative words on the subject from 1 John. ‘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 forever.’(1 John 4:15-17)
Oh my fellow believers, it couldn’t be put any simpler and plainer than that. As Christians we ought to LOVE God and do His will first and foremost.
Remember Jesus’ words to the hypocrite Pharisee who asked Him. ‘Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus saith unto him, Thou shalt LOVE the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment.’ (Matt.22:36-38).
So friends, let’s go and do just that nuh, for it is the wisdom of heaven! Much LOVE!
…seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness…that’s the Christian’s mandate…
21 Oct 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a present help in trouble, a shield around me, a sincere heart, all or nothing at all, all them that love him, an integral part, balance, bet yuh bottom dollar, Bless His Holy Name, burn out, Creator, despair, direction, disgrace, fellowship, Friday chant, from one extreme, fulfill the desire, fun, furthering God's kingdom, generous help, give God the glory, glory hallelujah, God is our refuge and strength, help, illness, in black and white, in Jesus' name, in truth, Israel, judgements, live it up, LOVE, Moses, never to leave nor forsake us, no help in God, obedience, praise God, problems, provider, refreshed, refuge, relaxation, renewed, rest, righteous, Selah, shame, statutes, strength, stress, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, the affairs of men, the Lord sustained me, the right mix, the weekend, the workweek, trouble
Psalm 46:1. God is our refuge and strength, a very present (an abundantly available) help in trouble.
So how do we begin this morning eh friends? I don’t have a clue as to how to engage your attention on this cloudy Friday morning in the fall of 2016, except to say: ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday and the workweek is almost done! The weekend is here…
Give God the glory for that, because if the slave master had his way, we’d work seven days a week. Steups! The greedy fool! But thanks be to God for the weekend where we can do as we please… And am I going to live it up? You could bet yuh bottom dollar on that! Just watch me!’
Ah mih people, just like us eh? We go from one extreme to the other, from working too hard to partying too hard. But that only causes undue stress, burn out and eventually illness. What we need is some kind of balance in our lives, and our Friday Chant gives us direction on that.
So let’s chant it nuh. ‘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 friends, rest, relaxation, fellowship and play are all necessary for us to live full and godly lives, but we need to mix them in the right proportion, don’t over do any of them. And if we find it difficult to get the right mix, the right balance, there is always our great God to turn to for advice and help.
What does our Bit say: ‘God is our refuge and strength, a very present (an abundantly available) help in trouble.’ And that’s the living truth in a nutshell!
Our Creator and Provider is always there for us. In times of trouble we only need to call upon Him with a sincere heart and He will guide us to victory. Remember, He promises never to leave nor forsake us, and He stands by His promises.
And my brethren, we all have problems that we can’t solve, or handle, so there is no shame or disgrace in turning to the Lord for help. In fact, that’s what He wants us to do; come to Him for every purpose in life, be they big or small. The Lord wants to be an integral part of our lives, involved in EVERYTHING that we do.
But foolishly, we only want to allow Him to become involved in certain things, the others we want to deal with ourselves. Unfortunately though precious people, the Lord doesn’t work like that. He wants to be involved in ALL or NOTHING AT ALL!
So please, let’s check our lives and see if there are any areas that we are keeping God out of nuh, and then wisely invite Him to be a part of those areas. Yuh know that might be a part of our problem, why our lives aren’t going right at the moment; God isn’t totally involved in them.
Now let’s check out some scripture which reinforces our Bit. Hear Moses as he exhorts Israel to obedience. ‘For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh (a God so near) unto them, as the Lord our God is in all things that we call him for?
And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgements so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?’ (Deut.4:7-8)
And the answer to both questions friends is NONE! Truly, there is no other God who is so involved, who takes such great interest in the affairs of men! And that’s the way it ought to be. We don’t need a God who is far off, unconcerned about our trials and tribulations, but one who is around when we need help.
Listen to Bruh David from Psalm 3 – A prayer of confidence in God – as he cries out in despair. ‘Many there be which say of my soul, There is no help for him in God. Selah. But thou, O Lord, art a shield for (around) me; my glory, and the lifter up of (the one who lifts up) mine head.
I cried unto the Lord with my voice, and he heard me out of his holy hill (mountain). Selah. I laid down and slept; I awaked: for the Lord sustained me. I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people, that have set themselves against me round about.’ (Ps.3:2-6)
Oh what a glorious God we serve my people! That’s the kind of confidence He instills in us when we walk obedient to His will! So I really can’t understand why we refuse to walk steadfastly with Him. There is so much to be derived from a genuine walk with Christ, that it would take me a whole day to list them. (smile)
Now let’s go home with these wonderful words of Bruh David echoing in our minds, souls, bodies and hearts. From Psalm 145 – the Lord is gracious – he faithfully proclaims. ‘The Lord is righteous in all his ways, and holy (gracious) in all his works. The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.
He will fulfill the desire of them that fear him: he also will hear their cry, and will save them. The Lord preserveth all them that LOVE him: but all the wicked will he destroy. My mouth shall speak the praise of the Lord: and let all flesh bless his holy name for ever and ever.’ (Ps.145:17-21)
Wow! Oh my fellow believers right there we have the gospel truth in black and white! Please, please, I implore us, let’s take it heart nuh, so that our lives can be fulfilled! Let’s continually praise our wonderful God and bless His holy name at all times, for that is wisdom at its highest level! Much LOVE!
…praise Him, praise Him…Glory Hallelujah…He is LOVE…He is LOVE…
14 Oct 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a blanket promise, a double -minded man, a liar, a rewarder, a wave of the sea, abusing, advice, ask in faith, ask of God, ask permission, balance, burn out, Canada, Christ-like, commandmensts, consequences, cry, cutting off our nose, decisions, dissipate, do as I please, driven with the wind, earthly benefits, echo, fellowship, Friday chant, fun, generous help, gives to all men liberally, glorious kingdom, go to the loo, goal, God used wisdom, God's LOVE, he that comes to God, I love them that love me, I will love him, if ye love me, in Jesus' name, indwelling love of God, keep my commandments, kep his commandments, knowledge of God, life's trials, looking over mih shoulder, LOVE, loved of my father, must believe that he is, not doubting, obedience, obedient, on the right track, party, perspective, relaxation, rest, reveal myself, riotous, schoolboy, seeking wisdom, sitting on the fence, slave driver, steadfast, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, thanksgiving, the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, the weekend, those who seek me early will find me, to spite our face, ungodly living, walk as he walked, waste the weekend, wavering, wisdom, without reproach
Proverbs 8:17. I LOVE them that LOVE me; and those that seek me early (diligently) shall find me.
Well friends, it’s that day we all clamour for; Friday, because it means the end of the workweek and the start of the weekend. And for those of us living in this beautiful country of Canada it was a short week because of our Thanksgiving celebrations.
But yuh know what, whether we work five, four, or even three days a week, we’ll still cry out on a Friday: ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday! No more slave driver looking over mih shoulder. I can do as I please. Eat and drink what I want, when I want.
Don’t have to ask permission to go to the loo, or have anybody looking to see how often I go and how long I stay, as though I’m some little short pants schoolboy. Chuh!
The weekend is MINE! Mine to do as I please! And the wicked and greedy slave master and them be damned! Thank God for Fridays and the weekend! Let’s go and party now!’
And believe me friends, in this modern day and age, sadly, there are still work places that will cause that kind of cry to be echoed by the employees. But that still doesn’t give us the right to just dissipate and waste the weekend in riotous, ungodly living.
We need balance in our lives if we are to live them successfully. And that’s what our Friday Chant seeks to help us do. So let’s chant it with sincerity and truth now nuh.
All together: ‘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.’
Ah mih people, that is a much better perspective, because if we keep on abusing the weekends, then have to go to work tired and grumpy, we’ll soon burn out and get sick and won’t be able to enjoy the weekends again. We’ll end up cutting off our nose to spite our face.
That’s what happens when we overdo anything. Anyway, all I can do is give advice, we all have to make our own decisions as to how we live our lives, and remember we each have to bear the consequences too.
And our Bit gives us some of the best advice possible in this fallen world. ‘I LOVE them that LOVE me; and those that seek me early (diligently) shall find me.’
Cousin Sol is here talking about seeking wisdom, and we’ve seen in the past couple days the earthly benefits of seeking her, and also how God used her from the very beginning to create the universe.
And we all know the scripture where James declares: ‘If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not (without reproach); and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering (not doubting).
For he that wavereth (doubts) is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways.’ (James 1:5-8)
Yes my fellow believers, it’s important that when we come to God we’re not doubting, or sitting on the fence, ‘for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.’ (Heb.11:6b)
Now here’s an interesting note from the scholars on verse 5 above, James’ declaration about going to God for wisdom. ‘1.5: This verse is not a blanket promise of wisdom for any situation. In the context of life’s trials, it probably speaks of a believer being granted (1) wisdom as to the reason for his trials and (2) wisdom to endure them.’
So I guess we can’t use this verse as the basis for general but rather particular wisdom. However, there’s also another side to wisdom; the wisdom of seeking Almighty God!
When Jesus promised His disciples the coming of the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, He told them in no uncertain words. ‘If ye LOVE me, keep my commandments… He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that LOVETH me: and he that LOVETH me shall be LOVED of my Father, and I will LOVE him, and will manifest, (reveal, show) myself to him.’ (John 14:15,21)
Yeh friends, it’s all about LOVE! And LOVE means being obedient and steadfast. Hear how John puts it in his first epistle.
‘And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the LOVE of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also to walk, even as he walked.’(1 John 2:3-6) John spells it out loud and clear my people!
And the scholars offer these comments. ‘2:3. John writes so that his readers may not sin (v.1). Now he sets forth a characteristic of genuine knowledge of God: obedience to His commandments. This is a major teaching of Jesus.’
‘2:5. Perfected is in the perfect tense. John refers to the decisive and enduring effect of the indwelling LOVE of God. But the test of knowing God’s LOVE is keeping His Word.’
Therefore friends, it all comes down to one word ‘OBEDIENCE!’ We can talk all we want about LOVING God, etc. etc, but it means absolutely nothing, unless we are walking in obedience to His commandments.
So let’s seriously ponder all we’ve said today nuh, let’s search our hearts and see if we are truly walking in obedience to God’s Word. Obviously we won’t be perfect, but we can know if we’re on the right track. And if we’re not, then we certainly can ask the Lord for the strength and wisdom to get on the right track. Much LOVE!
…to be Christ-like…obedient as He was…should be each believer’s sincere goal…
SCRIP-BITS 