11 Jan 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a compassionate heart, common sense, curse, eternal life, faith, fear hath torment, forgiveness, God is LOVE, he who loveth God love his brother also, holy spirit, Jesus Christ, LOVE, LOVE is of God, love made perfect, Love makes the world go round, made perfect in love, material wealth, negative word, no man hath seen God, perfect love casteth out fear, reconciliation, sacrificed His sinless life, self-control, self-discipline, spread the good news of Christ's gospel, the light of the world, the propitiation for our sins, the salt of the earth, the year of the Love Revolution, Thursday Blessings, wisdom
1 John 4:21. And this commandment have we from him (Jesus), That he who LOVETH God LOVE his brother also.
Ah friends, I can’t believe that it’s already Thursday, and the eleventh day of this new month and year. But it does seem as though time intends to go just as quickly this year as it did in 2023, and we just have to be ready to go along with it as speedily as it does, else we’re going to miss out on a whole lot of important things, times and places. (smile) That means we need to get our acts together as soon as possible; quit all laziness and procrastination, while sincerely petitioning the Lord for wisdom and discernment to know His holy will, and the strength to action it in His perfect timing.
Remember, this is the year of the LOVE Revolution, where we Christians turn things around in a big way; where we truly become the light of the world and the salt of the earth, give up all the foolish dreams of material wealth and power and concentrate on spreading the good news gospel of Christ, who sacrificed His sinless life so that we could have forgiveness, reconciliation and eternal life with Him and the Father! Wow! What a titanic year this 2024 will be in the annals of Christianity! It will be like the awesome beginning of the church on Pentecost Day where the amazing power of the Holy Ghost was displayed and people flocked to become believers in Christ!
Yes, my fellow believers, that’s the kind of heroic year our Lord and Savour expects from us. And there really shouldn’t be any need for Jesus to expect big things from us this year nuh, because common sense alone ought to tell us that if we don’t make a big splash this year, then our world will most likely explode or implode with all the anger, hatred, violence and evildoing that’s currently cycloning in it! So, it’s also in our best interest to ramp up our efforts and make the LOVE Revolution a reality. For you know where true LOVE exists, hatred and violence and all the other negative attributes of the enemy cannot take root.
And as I was just considering where to go from here, I opened the Good Library, and lo and behold it opened on John’s first epistle where he admonishes us to LOVE one another. And I said ‘Yes!’ that’s perfect, because we cannot conduct a LOVE Revolution without having LOVE for ourselves and each other! However when I read it, I found it too long and worthwhile to paraphrase and cut up, so I decided we should simply read the whole thing. (smile) So please read with me.
‘Beloved, let us LOVE one another; for LOVE is of God; and every one that LOVETH is born of God, and knoweth God. He that LOVETH not knoweth not God; for God is LOVE, In this was manifested the LOVE of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world that we might live through him. Herein is LOVE, not that we LOVED God, but that he LOVED us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so LOVED us, we ought also to LOVE one another.’ (1 John 4:7-11)
Now friends, there is no refuting that solid logic! God LOVED us first and sent Christ to save us, so the expectation that we would LOVE Him in return, and also LOVE our fellow man, is very reasonable. Then John continues with his logical reasoning. ‘No man hath seen God at any time. If we LOVE one another, God dwelleth in us, and his LOVE is perfected in us. Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit.’ (1 John 4:12-13) And what a wonderful gift is the power of the Holy Spirit, which leads and guides us in the will of God! Second only to the gift of Jesus himself!
John then testifies: ‘And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world.’ (1 John 4:14) Oh my people, John wasn’t talking from hearsay, but from what he had actually seen and experienced. He had actually walked with Christ, the Son of God on this earth. That gives him good reason to expound on the subject. ‘Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God. And we have known and believed the LOVE that God hath to us: God is LOVE; and he that dwelleth in LOVE dwelleth (abides) in God, and God in him. Herein is our LOVE made perfect (is LOVE made perfect among us), that we may have the boldness in the day of judgement: because as he is, so are we in this world.’ (1 John 4:15-17)
Yes friends, LOVE is the greatest attribute there is, and therefore it ought to be a dominant characteristic of believer’s hearts. Then, if God dwells in us, and we in Him, we ought to have total assurance of our positive position, and not fear the upcoming day of judgement. That’s why John could therefore continue: ‘There is no fear in LOVE; but perfect LOVE casteth out fear: because fear hath (involves) torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in LOVE.’ (1 John 4:18)
Now here are some explanations from the scholars on that rather important verse. They say: re ‘fear hath torment: Abject fear of God is based on the dread of punishment. But God’s LOVE for us renders such dread obsolete. Fear is still a part of the Christian walk in the sense of profound reverence, the unwillingness to violate God’s trust in us. Believers need not fear eternal rejection as a result of God’s judgement (John 5:24), but this does not mean a Christian’s approach to God is to be casual and flippant.’ Of course not! But we don’t have to fear what happens in the end times.
John then reasons: ‘We LOVE him, because he first LOVED us. If a man say, I LOVE God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that LOVETH not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he LOVE God whom he hath not seen?’ (1 John 4:19-20) Now that’s a very good question my brethren! And if we follow John’s logic, then there are many liars among the believers. For many of us claim to LOVE God, but don’t have the time of day for our fellow believers, couldn’t give a hoot about them. Now that’s not the LOVE of God.
That’s why John ends with this verse. ‘And this commandment have we from him (Jesus), That he who LOVETH God LOVE his brother also.’ (1 John 4:21) That’s just how it ought to be my fellow saints. And if it isn’t, then we need to go to the Father and ask for help to fix it. Now, let’s go home declaring (yesss!!!) our Thursday Blessings, so that we can activate those undeserved blessings the Lord has so generously bestowed on us to do His earthly work! As one voice! ‘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 every day! Amen!’
And since we’ve activated those blessings, it’s now our duty to go out and use them to help others come to Christ! Much LOVE!
…LOVE is what makes the world go round…from God to us…and from us to our fellow man…
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ
12 May 2023
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a tidbit of wisdom, be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, blessed are the undefiled, blessed is everyone that feareth the Lord, bring backsliders back to your fold, bringeth forth his fruit in season, common sense, destroy both body and soul, disobedience, divine help, eat the labour of thine hands, fear the Lord, Friday chant, happy shalt thou be, herd mentality, his delight is in the law of the Lord, his leaf shall not wither, it shall be well with thee, it takes two to tango, it's either feast or famine, LOVE, new flock of believers, praying for a li'l rain, respect, reverence, rocket science, see thy children's children, seek him with his whole heart, seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, simmering discontent, sub-standard mediocre Christian lives, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, that walketh in his ways, the error of their ways, the fruit of thy labour, thy children like olive plants, thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine, wake up and smell the coffee, walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, whatsoever he doeth he shall prosper, wise guidance
Psalm 128:1. Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord; that walketh in his ways.
Oh friends, this Friday morning, as we declare (yesss!!!) ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ we also have to consider having five straight days of wonderful sunshine, because that seems like a distinct possibility! Wow! My trusty computer tells me it’s 23 and sunny. In that case, we might just need to think about praying for a li’l rain to cool things down if the weather keeps being so wonderful in my neck of the woods. (smile) As we would say, it’s either feast or famine.
But here’s an interesting angle on it all. I just opened the Good Library and it opened unto the Book of Psalms, and my eyes were led to this particular psalm, Psalm 128, one that I’ve never paid much attention to, but it does contribute a wise and wonderful message in its title which simply says: ‘Fear the Lord.’ Now that’s certainly a tidbit of wisdom if there ever was one!
And why is that you ask? Well, first off, the fear he’s referring to is not the emotion of fear or fright, but one of reverence, of respect, of worship, although we should also fear the Lord in the other respect, because the only thing as powerful as His LOVE is His wrath, and we certainly don’t want to feel the latter. Just look at what the Israelites suffered for their stubborn disobedience. And Jesus did say that we should fear the Lord and not man, because He is the only one who could destroy both soul and body in hell. (Matt. 10:28)
However, let’s listen to the psalmist as he declares: (wow!!!) ‘Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord; that walketh in his ways. For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands (the fruit of thy labour): happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee. Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of (in the heart of) thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table.’ (Ps. 128:1-3)
Mama oh Mama! Yuh hear that mih people? If we fear the Lord then our house will indeed be blessed, enjoying the fruits of our labour, with a fruitful wife and wonderful children! Now what more can a man ask of this life eh? Nothing really! But the important thing is that only happens when we reverence the Lord and walk in His ways. And that’s something so many of us in these evil and unfortunate times can’t seem to understand, otherwise we’d be doing just that.
But instead so many of us are turning away from the Lord to other insecure and worthless ventures, and many of us who claim to still believe are not truly walking in His fear and commandments, but have one foot in the world and one in the kingdom, trying to keep our chances alive by playing both sides against the middle. But friends, I ‘m here to tell you that doesn’t work. You must choose either one or the other and go after it wholeheartedly. And remember Jesus said it so plainly: ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt. 6:33)
And that’s no lie! When you seek God first and foremost, He will indeed give you all that you need. Why do you think Bruh David wrote: ‘The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want?’ Because he knew for a fact, from personal experience, that if he sincerely sought the Lord above all else, He would look after him, both physically and spiritually. And the Lord will do the same for anyone who sincerely seeks and reverences Him. He’s promised never to leave nor forsake us, and He is faithful to keep His promises.
And if you still don’t believe me, then listen as the psalmist continues: ‘Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed that feareth the Lord. The Lord shall bless thee out of Zion: and thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days of thy life. Yea, thou shalt see thy children’s children, and peace upon Israel.’ (Ps. 128:4-6) Oh my people, why are we so foolish and adamant about turning away from God eh, or not paying Him His proper respect and due, since in so many places of His Word it says that’s necessary to have a good life.
Look at Psalm 1, which pointedly tells us: ‘Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly (wicked), nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate (ponder by talking to himself) day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers (channels) of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.’ (Ps. 1:1-3)
Now that’s not rocket science my brethren, so why can’t we simply accept and live it eh? Where’s the faith in Jesus Christ we’re supposed to have? Obviously it’s sadly lacking, otherwise we wouldn’t be living the sub-standard and mediocre Christian lives we’re living. Now listen to these opening verses of Psalm 119: ‘Blessed are the undefiled (blameless) in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord. Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart. They also do no iniquity: they walk in his ways.’ (Ps. 119:1-3)
There again friends, it says we will be blessed if we walk in the way of the Lord. Simple common sense my brethren! But sorry, I forgot that common sense no longer exists in our society, we just have a herd mentality, and foolishly run with the foolish crowd. But there’s hope for us yet, because with the Lord, there’s always hope, so let’s go to Him now, through our Friday Chant and ask for His divine help with our problems.
Altogether now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough… what with all the confusion and anxiety caused by the pandemic and our many other serious problems. We can’t fix them on our own Lord, so we desperately need 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. So Lord, we sincerely ask you today to give those involved in the forefront of this serious and unexpected storm, the wise guidance to handle the situation properly, without further serious setbacks. And please help those of us who must go out to work amidst all the confusion, to be responsible and to stay safe.
And Lord, we fervently pray that You’ll use this situation to 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. Yes Lord, please use this pandemic, the bubbling discontent and dissatisfaction in our land, as a means of restoring faith in You, 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 wake up nuh friends, and do what we know we’re supposed to do, if we expect the Lord’s help. Much LOVE!
…it takes two to tango…the Lord won’t help…unless we’re obedient…
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ
06 Mar 2023
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a bottomless pit, a facade for the devil, alleviate our problems, cast into a lake of fire and brimstone, Christ's Millennial reign, common sense, divine guidance, don't learn from our mistakes, evildoers will pay for their wrongdoing, fire came down from heaven and devoured them, forgive us and heal our land, hanging like a dark cloud, have it more abundatly, he shall be my son, he that overcometh shall inherit all things, he who has ears to hear let him hear, humble servants, I am come that they might have life, I will be his God, it's all over bar the shouting, it's only a matter of time, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus has already given us the victory, LOVE, Monday Battle Hymn, nuff said, Satan can never best the Creator of the universe, sincerely seek your face, the BIBLE, the God who heals, the indisputable word of God, the thief cometh but to steal, to keep us in darkness and fear, to kill and destroy, trying to intimidate us, wisdom, wresting the keys of hell death and the grave from Satan
Revelation 21:7. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.
Awright friends, the work week is upon us again, and that opening day called Monday, is hanging like a dark cloud over many of us, trying to intimidate us, to raise up the dormant fear that lies deep inside our souls. But yuh know what, that apparent intimidation by Monday is only a façade, a front of the devil to keep us in darkness and fear, so we can’t rise up and conquer him and his evil cronies, like our Lord and Saviour Jesus expects.
Let’s remember though that Jesus has already given us the victory through His conquering Satan, wresting the keys of hell death and the grave from Him, with a triumphant resurrection on Easter Sunday, while the foolish devil wrongly thought that he had finally ensconced Him forever!
But Satan of all people should have known better, having spent so much time with Jesus in heaven as the ark angel Lucifer. Obviously his loss in the battle to overthrow the God of heaven didn’t teach him anything about the power and glory of our magnificent Trinity! However, unfortunately, it’s the same with many of us; we don’t learn from our mistakes.
One would have thought that Satan would have learned from His previous defeat that He could NEVER best the Creator and Controller of the universe, no matter the deceitful and evil means he uses. That’s why Jesus warned us of Satan’s propensity for evil and destruction. ‘The thief cometh not, but for to (except to) steal and to kill, and to destroy. I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.’ (John 10:10)
Now tell me who’s presence would you rather be in, the one who steals and kills, or the one who gives life? The people with common sense and or wisdom would obviously choose the latter. Sadly though, there are many in our world who lack both those attributes and therefore choose the former.
And I guess, for Satan to simply give up the fight, to suffer the terrible pangs of defeat and subjugate himself to Jesus would have meant a terrifying and humiliating end that he could not face. So, like an animal whose back is against the wall, with no apparent avenue of escape or victory in sight, its only resort is to brace itself and come out fighting, regardless of the possible consequences. And that’s how it is with Satan.
There was obviously no way for him to accept an honourable defeat at the hands of Jesus, so his only face-saving response was to come back out fighting to the death, with whatever dirty and evil means he has at his behest. But we believers all know that it’s all over bar the shouting for the devil and his evil cronies, because they will eventually end up in the lake of fire when Jesus gets around to dealing with them.
Yes friends, it’s only a matter of time, as the Bible, the Lord’s indisputable, unquestionable Word in Revelation 20 tells us that before Christ’s Millennial reign, the devil will be chained and locked up for those thousand years of peace and righteousness on earth in a bottomless pit, the abode of evil spirits (cf. 9:1-11; Luke 8:31).
Then after the expiration of those thousand years, he’ll be released to make strife and war with Gog and Magog on the earth again. But then what happens? After losing that final battle, when ‘fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever.’ (Rev. 20: 9b-10)
Now please note this other very important scripture about the end times, re the fountain of life. John writes: ‘And he (Jesus) said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. But the fearful (cowardly), and the unbelieving, and the abominable, and the murderers, and whoremongers (sexually immoral), and sorcerers, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.’ (Rev. 21:6-8)
Oh my people, if you truly believe the Bible, the Word of Almighty God, then there’s no more to say! It’s clear as day that evildoers will pay a very steep price for their unbelief and wrongdoing. It’s only a matter of time. And though our God is long-suffering, He will run out of patience at some stage of the game and pull the plug if we continue with our ungodly and evil shenanigans. So it’s totally up to each individual to choose how they will spend eternity. Nuff said.
But the wonderful thing about our God is that when we need help, we always have access to His throne room. So let’s go there right now nuh, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn and ask for His divine guidance. As one sincere voice: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. We desperately need Your divine help, for You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems.
Heavenly Father, we admit that we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but we know that You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. That’s why we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading with You to give us wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.
And Father, we pray that you will ease the pain of the many who are suffering from negative situations. Please show them Your awesome grace and mercy, and keep Your promise that You’ll hear our prayer, forgive us, and heal our land if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’
Now, if we’re serious about the sentiments and promises we made in the prayer, then we’ll need to go out and action them for divine help to come. Much LOVE!
…he who has ears to hear…let him hear…
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ
17 Nov 2022
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a compassionate heart, a crown of righteousness, a harbinger, bear thee up, by faith, by it the elders obtained a good report, cast thyself down, clear sailing, common sense, courage, creativity, curse, dash thy foot against a stone, endure to the end, faith in a nutshell, faith is the substance of things hoped for, give his angels charge over thee, God is faithful, he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him, he that cometh to God, in their hands, it is written, Jesus will always be with you, LOVE, must believe that he is, negative word, no temptation has overtaken you, prosper, rocket science, succeed, such as is common to man, surrender to God, the evidence of things not seen, the Son of God, thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God, Thursday Blessings, trust, without faith it is impossible to please God
Hebrews 11:6. 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.
It’s Thursday, the penultimate day of our work week, and possibly a harbinger of what our weekend will be like; snow filled! (smile) My computer tells me that snow is in the offing. And if that’s so, then the winter weather is here to stay, meaning we had better get used to it as soon as possible, for we might just be in for a long, cold season.
But as the familiar saying goes, ‘Who cares eh?’ Not us believers in Christ Jesus, for once you have Jesus in your life, it will be clear sailing. (smile) Well that’s not totally true, the sailing will not always be clear, but Jesus will ALWAYS be there to guide and protect you and bring you out safely from any tough times. That’s His promise!
Listen to Bruh Paul in his first missive to the church at Corinth. ‘There hath no temptation taken (overtaken) you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.’ (1 Cor. 10:13)
What a marvellous God we serve my people! He will allow temptations to come against us, to test our faith and our backbone, but He will always be there in the wings ready to help us if we falter, either finding a way for us to escape it, or by giving us His divine help to overcome it.
But, as with everything else in the Lord’s kingdom, that requires, belief, faith, trust, surrender and good communication with our God. And also remember what the psalmist said in Psalm 91, subtitled ‘God is a refuge and fortress,’ long before the coming of Jesus.
Read these words of glorious promise with me. ‘Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the Most High, thy habitation (dwelling place); There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in thy ways. They shall bear (lift) thee up in their hands, lest thou dash (strike) thy foot against a stone. Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder (cobra): the young lion and dragon (serpent) shalt thou trample under feet.’ (Ps. 91:9-13)
And if you don’t believe the psalmist, then check out Jesus’ conversation with Satan when He was tempted in the wilderness. That’s the scripture he used to inveigle Jesus to throw himself down from the pinnacle of the temple. ‘And (Satan) saith unto him (Jesus), If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge over thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.’ (Matt. 4:6)
Yes friends, Satan knows scripture, better than us to boot, for remember he was once the archangel Lucifer, and probably even had a hand in helping to write it. And that’s why He knows exactly where to strike to get us to do his evil bidding. But like Jesus we must refute his arguments with scriptural refutations. (smile) What was Jesus’ reply to Satan’s entreaty? ‘Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt (test) the Lord thy God.’ (Matt. 4:7)
Now Jesus refutation comes directly from Deuteronomy 6:16, where Moses lectured the Israelites on the sorrows of disobedience to God’s laws. And I like to add to it, ‘neither shall thou tempt (test) the children of God.’ (smile) Oh my people, living for Jesus in this evil, sin-filled world can be difficult, but if we hold strong to our faith, then He will enable us to come through with shining colours and eventually receive that crown of righteousness that Bruh Paul told Timothy awaits all those who endure to the end with Jesus. (2 Tim. 4:8)
And the author of Hebrews tells us thus about faith. ‘Now faith is the substance (realization) of things hoped for, the evidence (conviction) of things not seen.’ (Heb. 11:1) That simply means we hope for what we don’t see, but by faith, strong trust in God, believe that it will come to pass. And then the author of Hebrews goes on to tell us that it was by faith that the elders received a good report. (Heb. 11:2)
Yes, saints of Christ, it was indeed by faith, strong trust in Jehovah God, that all the forefathers of our faith did what they did, and that set the stage for us. Consequently, the writer of Hebrews can further tell 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)
And that my fellow believers is our faith in a nutshell. We must believe that Jehovah God exists, and that He rewards those who diligently seek Him and thus obey His laws. Matter fix! And it’s not rocket science, but simple common sense. Although common sense seems to have gone the way of the dodo bird in these current times. (smile)
Now, here is the continuation of that promise from Psalm 91, which ought to lift up our faith even more this Thursday morning at the beginning of winter. ‘Because he hath set his LOVE upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in time of trouble; I will deliver him and honor him. With long life will I satisfy him, and show him my salvation.’ (Ps. 91:14-16)
Wow mih bredrin! Yuh see what the Lord promises to do for those who believe that He exists and the rewards He will offer to those who faithfully serve and revere Him! And He’s doing it every day of our lives with the blessings, the mercies and the grace He bestows on us that we don’t deserve. And there’s this particular group of blessings that we call our Thursday Blessings, which we need to activate by declaring (awright!!!) them out loud.
So let’s do that right now nuh. As one strong and sincere voice: ‘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 every day! Amen!’
And having activated those blessings, it’s now our bounden duty to go out and use them for the betterment of our world and to bring others to Christ! Much LOVE!
…life is all about Almighty God…belief in…hope…faith…trust and total surrender to Him…
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ
30 Jan 2022
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a traditional gospel song, calamitous times, come alongside Christ in total faith, come out victorious, common sense, completely surrender to Jesus' will, draw nigh to God, for we walk by faith not by sight, for when I am weak then I am strong, give thanks and praise, God is our only hope, guide me gently to thy kingdom shore, he will draw nigh to you, I am the Almighty God, I am weak but thou art strong, if I falter Lord who cares, if ye forsake him he will forsake you, Jesus keep me from all wrong, Jesus-the only positive option, just a closer walk with thee, let me walk close to thee, LOVE, my grace is sufficient for thee, my strength is made perfect in weakness, none but thee dear Lord, our human inability to live righteously, receive rejuvenation and encouragement, righteous conquerors, spiritual strength, the father of our faith, the Lord is with you while ye be with Him, the Lord's Day, the prophet Azariah, this world of toil and snares, thrive in the midst of adversity, walk before me and be perfect, when my feeble life is over, who with me my burden shares
2 Corinthians 12:10b. …for when I am weak, then I am strong.
It’s the Lord’s Day friends – Sunday…with bright sunshine too! (smile) That means it’s time to gather for worship, to give thanks and praise and receive rejuvenation and encouragement for next week’s duties. And the days are not getting any easier, especially since we now have a new variant of the Omicron variant in the pandemic business. But, with God’s help and our wise and responsible behaviour, we will fight this virus right down to the end and come out victorious!
That’s our God’s promise, if we revere and stay close to Him. That’s why today’s song of praise is ever so important. You can tell that just from its title: ‘Just a Closer Walk with Thee.’ Oh friends, in these dark and dangerous times it’s ever so necessary to get as close to God as possible, because it’s only through Him that we can ever hope to be righteous conquerors.
‘Just a Closer Walk with Thee’ is a traditional gospel song, that most likely dates from way back when the African Americans were suffering significant adversity in the Southern States of the U.S.A. It’s been performed and recorded by numerous artists, and the fact that it’s stood the test of time, and is still very appropriate in our current adversity, says a great deal about its spiritual strength and reassurance.
So let’s sing a rich, up-tempo gospel version, with plenty background vocals, clapping and riddim instruments, like they possibly did down in those Southern African American churches, when times were really rough, and Jesus was the ONLY positive option they had.
Therefore, with that same assurance, let’s raise our voices in sweet and sincere sacrificial praise to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. ‘I am weak but Thou art strong; Jesus, keep me from all wrong; I’ll be satisfied as long As I walk, let me walk close to Thee. (Refrain: Just a closer walk with Thee, Grant it, Jesus, is my plea, Daily walking close to Thee, Let it be, dear Lord, let it be.) Thro’ this world of toil and snares, If I falter, Lord, who cares? Who with me my burden shares? None but Thee, dear Lord, none but Thee.
[Refrain]When my feeble life is o’er, Time for me will be no more; Guide me gently, safely o’er To Thy kingdom shore, to Thy shore. (Refrain: Just a closer walk with Thee, Grant it, Jesus, is my plea, Daily walking close to Thee, Let it be, dear Lord, let it be…One more time my people… Just a closer walk with Thee, Grant it, Jesus, is my plea, Daily walking close to Thee, Let it be, dear Lord, let it be…’
Now let’s hope that we were truly sincere in our praise, because, as I said earlier, we desperately need to walk with Jesus in these calamitous times, if we want to not only survive them, but even more importantly thrive in them. Yes, my brethren, Jesus can cause us to thrive even in the midst of serious adversity. But we have to come alongside Him in total faith and surrender ourselves completely to His will.
And on a point of interest, the website, Hymary.org informs us that, ‘In this song we acknowledge our human inability to live righteously, but we also express awareness of the grace and strength that God gives us in our daily walk. Even such an esteemed saint as the apostle Paul acknowledged his need for this grace:’
And when was that you ask? When he asked the Lord three times to remove the thorn from his side. ‘And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength (power) is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities (weaknesses), that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then I am strong.’ (2 Cor. 12:8-10)
Ah my fellow believers, the same thing applies to us; when we think we are weak, because we cannot do something in our own strength, that’s when we are really strong because the grace and power of God will step in in our weakness and anoint us to do His will. Glory be!
There’s also this most applicable verse: ‘And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the Lord appeared unto Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect (blameless).’ (Gen. 17:1) So friends, if the father of our faith was required to walk with the Lord, it’s obvious that we are also required to do the same, and in all seriousness too.
Then we are told that the title and lyrics of today’s song, ‘Just a Closer Walk with Thee,’ allude to the famous passage from 2 Corinthians 5:7, which reads: ‘For we walk by faith, not by sight.’ And that’s the gospel truth! Christians walk by faith, by what they see and believe in their hearts, not what they see with their eyes.
And Bruh Paul specified this more clearly when he said to the church at Rome. ‘For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience (perseverance) wait for it.’ (Rom. 8:24-25) More indisputable truth my fellow saints! And the title and lyrics of our song, also allude to this critical passage from James. ‘Draw nigh (near) to God, and he will draw nigh (near) to you…’ (James 4:8a).
Now that was nothing new, for long before that, there was this warning from the prophet Azariah: ‘And the Spirit of God came upon Azariah the son of Oded: And he went out to meet Asa, and said unto him, Hear ye me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin; The Lord is with you, while ye be with him: and if ye seek him, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you.’ (2 Chr. 15:1-2)
Oh my people, that’s the same message that’s been sent to us today, loud and clear! If we seek God, we will find Him. But if we don’t, He won’t bother with us, either and allow us to go our own foolish way, like we’re currently doing. I don’t know what it will take for us to wake up and realize that He is our only hope. But I sincerely hope and pray, that for our sake, and that of our children…and their children, that we wake up soon and sincerely seek Him, before it all falls apart!
So please, let’s go to God nuh, as we’ve been so wisely advised, walk with Him and cling to Him as closely as possible, because in Him lies all of our hope for a better tomorrow, as well as today! Much LOVE!
…clinging to our Creator for dear life…doesn’t require much wisdom…just basic common sense…
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ8
16 Oct 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a lazy rainy day, a short work week, all the turkey and stuffing, an abundance of sunshine, avoid serious setbacks, bare our hearts and souls to God, be responsible, be ye doers of the word, bring backsliders back to your fold, carest thou not that we perish, Christ's ability to handle all our problems, Christ's bride, clear blue skies, collapse of our society, common sense, consistently read the Good Book, Covid-19 virus, deceiving your own selves, faithful believers, feared exceedingly, Friday chant, give the Covid-19 more steam, godliness, handle the situation properly, how is it that ye have no faith, I must be getting old yes, inmates ruling the asylum, keep taking their toll, LOVE, monkey see monkey do, not hearers only, omnipotent help, on a smaller scale, peace be still, pray always, racial strife, rebuked the wind, restoring faith in you, scared and confused, stand strong, stay safe, stormy times, TGIF!, Thank God is Friday, Thanksgiving holiday, the church is divided, the negative problems, the ordinary workingman, the weekend's here, unprecedented times, vim and vigour, why are ye so fearful, widespread suffering, wise guidance, wishful thinking
Mark 4:40. And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is that ye have no faith?
And after yesterday’s constant drizzle and cold dreary weather, who wouldn’t be glad to see a dry morning with plenty of bright sunshine amidst clear blue skies eh? Yeh friends, it was just one of those days that shouted out: ‘Today is a rainy day, just right for lazing around. So stay inside; don’t go out unless it’s absolutely necessary!’ And that’s exactly what I did: I stayed inside and had a lazy, rainy day at home. Although the duchess might beg to differ, because that’s the kind of day she feels I usually have anyway. (smile)
But it’s Friday, amidst an abundance of sunshine in a short work week, so let’s hear what the ordinary workingman has to say today nuh. And as always, he declares (awright!) with some vim and vigour: ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday oui and the weekend is here! But brother, I must be getting old yes, because I’m never usually so tired, especially after a short work week like this one. It’s possibly all the turkey and stuffing and hops that I had over the Thanksgiving holiday last weekend.
Yeh, it was a quiet Thanksgiving with only the immediate family because of the ban on big and unprotected gatherings that just give the Covid-19 more steam. And although the lockdown was tightened in some places, the virus numbers still haven’t dropped appreciably, because people still not taking the bloody thing seriously. And to make matters worse, yuh know whatever goes on in the U.S. we always copy some up here. So with all the foolishness that going on down there, is obvious some of it happening up here too.
Yuh know the ole saying, ‘monkey see, monkey do.’ Well that is we up here in Canada. We like to say how we so different from the States, but it’s not as true as we claim nuh, because whatever they espouse down there, we seem to espouse up here too, just on a smaller scale. And things heating up down there with this election business, so expect it to heat up, up here too.
Ah Lord eh? What is the world coming to eh? Why li’l common sense and godliness can’t prevail eh? Everybody just seem to gone crazy all at once! And yuh know what happens when the inmates ruling the asylum… Steups! All I could hope for is that me and mine stay safe in we li’l corner yes, and keep on thanking God for Fridays and weekends yes!’
Ah mih people, these are indeed unprecedented times, and we are all searching for answers, but are we searching in the right places? Now that’s a contentious question, if there ever was one. (smile) Why you ask? Because there are too many differing opinions on our problems, people are too divided over the whys and the wherefores, and therefore no real improvement is possible. One side says this; the other says that; and the middle ground add their two cents worth. Meanwhile the negative problems keep steadily taking their toll.
Even in the church, the bride of Christ, there is no unity on the subject, so some ignore the dire warnings and continue as normal, while others take a middle ground, and the rest shut down completely. I guess unity in the church is just wishful thinking on my part, since even in the best of times, Christ’s bride is divided and disjoined just like the outside world. But what’s supposed to set us apart from the world eh? Basic faith in Christ and His ability to handle all our problems.
And that brings to mind the occasion when He and the disciples were crossing the sea of Galilee and a great storm arose that threatened their lives. So all the disciples were scared out of their wits. But where was Jesus eh? Comfortably asleep on a pillow in the stern of the boat. And the disciples in great fear ran and woke Him up, saying, ‘Master, carest thou not that we perish? And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is that ye have no faith? And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this (who can this be), that even the wind and the sea obey him.’ (Mark 4:38-41)
Oh my brethren, we are going through terribly stormy times right now, and unfortunately, too many of us are behaving just like the disciples behaved back then. We’re scared and confused, our faith and trust in Almighty God has sunk to a rather low level because of the widespread suffering and collapse of our society. But God has promised that He will never leave us nor forsake us, so we need to have faith, to stand strong against whatever storms of life come against us. That means we have to consistently read the Good Book and pray always, for we can only stand strong when the Lord’s Word is planted in our hearts and we are continually communicating with Him.
So let’s do that right now nuh, through our Friday Chant; let’s bare our hearts and souls to Him. All together now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. Yuh know it’s been rough… what with all the anxiety, the confusion and havoc that the Covid-19 virus and the racial strife causing. We not accustomed to that kind of life Lord, and it really telling on us. And we know we can’t handle it on our own, that we desperately need your help.
Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat both the virus and the unrest in our streets. So Lord, we sincerely ask you today to give the governments and those involved in the forefront of this serious and unexpected storm, the sure and wise guidance to handle the situation properly, with the least amount of loss to life and property as possible.
And please help those of us who must go out to work amidst all the confusion, to be responsible and to stay safe, so that we can avoid any more serious setbacks. And Lord, we fervently pray that You’ll use this situation to also bring a lot of backsliders back to your fold, show them the error of their ways. It’s also a good opportunity to introduce a whole new flock, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion because of the way we, your faithful believers, handle the situation. Yes Lord, please use this pandemic and the unrest in the streets as a means of restoring faith in You, so that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
Saying the prayer is all well and good my people, but now we have to action it and actually behave like the faithful believers we claim to be. Otherwise, our prayers are useless. Much LOVE!
…but be ye doers of the word…not hearers only…deceiving your own selves… (James 1:23)
10 Oct 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a grand opening planned, a law unto itself, a purpose for everyhting, a significant sign of decline, allow Him to lead the way, an unfortunate accident, be a bane or a blessing, be thankful, bite the bullet, bring unnecessary sorrow, Christian living, common sense, complacency, count it all joy, difficult lessons make you stronger, divine gifts, do it if and when you want it breed, do your best and be satisfied, don't compare yourself with others, enjoying everyday life, fear, fear can only be overcome, fear not, God can accomplish through testing, God uses trouble to mature us, godly wisdom, grow in godliness, have it more abundantly, holding our hands, keep on keeping on, laidback nature, lazy, level of complacency, life skills, living our fears, LOVE, mano a mano, moderation in all things, my brethren, negative experiences, never satisfied, never to leave nor forsake us, nor living our dreams, put our trust in Jesus, relax in His awesome presence, run behind the material things of life, send faith to answer it, standards are falling, the devil's work, the forerunner of mediocrity, the Lord knows your heart, the Lord's promised, the natural response to adversity, the positive work, the trials of life, to escape, trust and faith in Christ, various testings, when fear knocks, when is not thing is another, when ye fall into divers temptations, won't enjoy them, work everything out for our good
James 1:2. My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations (various trials);
Ah Lord eh people! Steups! The ole people was right yes: in this life, when is not one thing, is a blooming other yes! Chuh man! The devil get mih early this morning. I was coming downstairs a while ago, early to boot, (smile) to start writing the Bit when I had an unfortunate accident. Steups! So I had to waste valuable time, spend over half an hour cleaning up the spill and myself. Obviously I was annoyed, especially when I had argued in a lost cause for staying longer in bed. I guess the Lord really wanted to wake me up in a big way. (smile)
And I had such a grand opening planned for today: And then it was Saturday; a day unlike the other days! One that does not follow the rules and regulations like the others. It’s a law unto itself; of the lazy, laidback, do it if and when you want it breed. No stuffy rules and regulations for Saturday. And I should have taken advantage of that lazy, laidback nature and stayed in bed! (smile)
But we know that the Lord has a purpose for everything He allows to come our way, I just don’t know, or can’t see His purpose for allowing that accident this morning. But like the good believer I am, I’m just going to grin and bear it, and keep on keeping on. Someday I might know the reason…or I might just never. But that’s okay too, for the Lord is a good God and whatever He allows is always for my benefit, in my best interest. Sermon done!
Now let’s see what quotes our friend Anselm sent us this past week, as he aspired to inspire us for a better tomorrow. Listen to this first one, which is ever so appropriate for our world today. ‘Complacency is the forerunner of mediocrity. You can never work too hard on attitudes, effort and technique.’ And that’s the awesome truth. You can never work too hard on your life skills. But the most significant sign of a declining person and a society is its level of complacency, the level of its overall standards. When we stop building and just decide to relax on our fat fannies, dwell on our laurels or past achievements, that’s when our standards and everything else begin to fall.
Life is a constant cycle; it’s always moving, and if you’re not moving along with it, to a reasonable extent, you’ll get left in its dust. And that’s why our society is now in freefall mode; our complacency is dragging us down; our standards are falling lower and lower every day. And that’s not me speaking, that’s history. Just look at all the old, great societies. Once they got fat and prosperous, they laid down and became complacent, and it was only a matter of time before they died.
That’s why the next quote is important. ‘I don’t worry about maintaining the quality of my life, because every day I work on improving it.’ Yes friends, we need to constantly work on improving the quality of our lives, our standards. Now that doesn’t mean just running after material things and wealth of this world, but more about enjoying everyday life, having it more abundantly like what Jesus promised. (John 10:10) Please note one universal truth: if you run behind the material things of life, without judicial and godly wisdom, without common sense, then you’ll certainly pile them up, but you won’t be able to enjoy them, since you will always be too busy trying to attain more.
So what’s the point of piling them up if you can’t enjoy them eh? None whatsoever! No wonder Bruh Paul advised us to use moderation in all things. (Phil. 4:5) The scholars’ term it ‘graciousness’ or ‘sweet reasonableness.’ I term it simple common sense! (smile)
That brings us to this quote: ‘I’m never satisfied with what I do. I always think I can do a lot better.’ Now that can either be a bane or a blessing in our lives. We can either overdo it, by never being satisfied with what we’ve done, or we can be satisfied when we know we’ve done our best.
Oh, we must always try to be excellent in whatever we do, for that’s what Christ expects of His followers, but at the same time He doesn’t want us to go overboard and be overly fussy. None of us is perfect, and some are just better at certain things because of the divine gifts they’ve been given. So please don’t compare yourself with others, that’s the surest way to bring unnecessary sorrow to your life. Just do your best and be satisfied. The Lord knows and sees your heart.
Now there’s also the other side to that story, as this quote explains. ‘Too many of us are not living our dreams because we are living our fears.’ And that’s the living truth. Fear, or the devil’s work is too big a part in too many of our lives. So much so that we can’t get around to working on our dreams. Remember some of Jesus’ favourite words were:‘FEAR NOT!’
And that pertains to both the physical fear of danger and the spiritual and emotional fear of not being able to work on the dreams and desires of our hearts that the Lord bestowed on us. Again, that invokes godly wisdom and common sense, which can only be truly found when we put out trust in Jesus, read His Word and believe His promises. Remember, faith is the opposite of fear. And as they say, when fear knocks on your door, the best response is to send faith to answer that knock.
So finally, we come to this last quote, which sort of encapsulates them all. ‘Pause and remember – Every single event in your life, especially the difficult lessons, have made you smarter, stronger, and wiser than you were yesterday. Be thankful!’ And all of God’s people said a loud and proud: ‘Glory Hallelujah!’ Yes, I’m being a li’l facetious there, because most of us don’t want to experience difficult times. But the truth is they do make us wiser and stronger than before we experienced them.
For as James so wisely says, when talking about Christian living, faith and humility.‘My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations (various trials);Knowing this, that the trying (testing) of your faith, worketh (produces) patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire (complete), wanting (lacking) nothing,’ (James 1:2-4)
And the scholars offer this interesting explanation. ‘1:2-3.In this epistle on Christian living, James opens with a most crucial topic: the trials of life. These verses describe the various testings – whether from the world and Satan, or from God – into which godly Christians fall (Gr. peripipto). These “negative” experiences are to be accepted with great joy, not for the sake of the trial itself but because of the positive work God can accomplish through the testing…’
Yes, I know it sounds somewhat harsh and unreasonable, but the truth of the matter is that we don’t grow unless we go through adversity. It’s only in the rough times that we grow and mature, both spiritually and emotionally, so if we want to grow, we have to learn to face adversity mano a- mano. And the scholars wisely add: ‘1:4.The natural response to adversity is to escape it. But God uses trouble to mature His people.’
And that’s the honest truth! So if you really want to grow in godliness, you just have to bite the bullet and find joy in your trials. Remember though, that the Lord has promised never to leave nor forsake us, and that He’ll work everything out for our good. That means He will ALWAYS be beside us in whatever trial we’re going through, holding our hands to bring us out safely and stronger on the other side. But in those trying times, like now, we have to remember the immortal words of Jesus; ‘FEAR NOT!’ Just relax in His awesome presence and allow Him to lead the way! That’s true wisdom! Much LOVE!
…fear can only be overcome…through trust and faith in Jesus…
14 Aug 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: common sense, comparison with the Israelites, compassions, Covid-19, embrace your love, faithful believers, foolish people in the U.S.hoax, foolishness, forgiveness, Friday chant, give oue whole selves to God, go away by itself, handle the situation, he is a rewarder, he that cometh to God, in the name of Jesus, innate sense of wisdom, it is impossible to please God, know their A from their E, loss of life, LOVE, must believe that he is, ordinary workingman, pandemic, put it into action, raison d'eter, reason for being, serious setbacks, stage 3 opening, tender mercies, TGIF!, Thank God is Friday, the LOVE of God, the more chupid we get, the more we learn, them that diligently seek him, too hot to handle, true believers, turn back to God, unrest in the streets, wake up and smell the coffee, whim and fancy, without faith
Hebrews 11:6. But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
A good Friday morning to you my brethren! Hope the LOVE of God, His tender mercies, compassions and forgiveness have all been bestowed on you this wonderful day, and that you are already in the process of disseminating them to the hordes of those who are not so blessed. Yes my people, that’s our raison d’etre, our reason for being; to spread God’s goodness to those who don’t know Him…and even to those who know Him, but have not wholeheartedly surrendered their lives and placed their eternal trust in Him.
We need to remember the words of the Good Book: ‘But without faith it is impossible to please him: 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) Note the important words there; ‘must believe,’ and diligently seek.’ That means we need to give our whole heart, body and soul to God if we truly want to have good and serious communion with Him, not just a part of us, whenever our whim and fancy chooses. And that brings today’s sermon to an end! (smile)
Now let’s hear what the ordinary workingman has to say for himself. And he cries out in a much louder voice than he has for the last several months: ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday oui! Mama Yo, the weekend is here, and it don’t look like we done any setta foolishness with this stage three opening of the Covid-l9 lockdown! All praise to God yes! At least we seem to be taking the virus situation a li’l more seriously than them foolish people down in the U.S. Brother! Is what wrong with them though? They don’t have no common sense? If yuh see the thing causing so much deaths and so many problems, yuh not going to pay it serious attention? Steups!
But I guess they believing the foolish leaders and them who saying that the virus is a hoax, and even if it isn’t, that it going to go away by itself. But even chupid me know that no virus doh go away just so by itself! Ah Lord eh! What is wrong with we in this supposed modern world with so much supposed learning and wisdom eh?
The problem might be we have too much learning and wisdom, because it seems like the more we learn, the more chupid we get. But what I know eh? I’m just a poor working-class man, slaving for massa, trying mih best to provide for mih family and have a li’l good time mihself. I can’t afford to get tied up in them high class matters nuh. I just going to go about mih own business and keep on thanking God for Fridays and the weekends yes!’
Ah friends, the ordinary working man does have that innate sense of wisdom, common sense, with which God blessed all His creation. The problem is that too few, not enough of us choose to use it. We bow to the foolishness of the world, instead of the common sense of God. and once we turn away from God, we get in trouble!
And I can’t help making the comparison with the Israelites of old. Remember how many times they turned away from the God of their forefathers and ended up in so much hot water they didn’t know their A from their E? And what did they do when the fire got too hot for them to handle eh? They turned back to the God of their fathers in sincere repentance, and He took them back and forgave them like the wonderful, forgiving Father that He is.
So why we can’t take a page from their book eh? We’ve been trying to force God out of our society, and it obviously not working, (smile) so why not try the opposite approach eh, invite Him wholeheartedly back in, especially since the Covid-19 pandemic and the strife and racial protests and all the other stuff we can’t handle, killing we? Now that to me sounds like common sense; if one way doh work, try the other. So come with me nuh, leh we go to the Lord in prayer and ask for His help…we doh have nothing to lose, and so much to gain.
In humble, but confident voice, let us chant our Friday Chant then nuh. All together now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. It’s been pretty rough…some of it from work, as many of us are now back to work in varied ways, but most of our anxiety still comes from all the confusion and havoc that the Covid-19 virus still causing. We not accustomed to that Lord, and it really telling on us. And now, on top of all that, we have racial riots and protests to put up with.
Oh Lord, yuh know we can’t handle it on our own and desperately need Your help. Yes, heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat both the virus and the unrest in our streets. So Lord, we sincerely ask you today to give the governments and those involved in the forefront of this serious and unexpected storm, the sure and wise guidance to handle the situation properly, with the least amount of loss to life and property as possible. And please help those of us who must go out to work amidst all the confusion, to be responsible and to stay safe, so that we can avoid any more serious setbacks.
And Lord, we fervently pray that You’ll use this situation to also bring a lot of backsliders back to your fold, show them the error of their ways. It’s also a good opportunity to introduce a whole new flock, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion because of the way we, your faithful believers, handle the situation. Yes Lord, please use this pandemic and the unrest in the streets as a means of restoring faith in You, so that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
And as always, the corollary to what we say, is to go out and put it into action. So let’s go out now and behave like the faithful believers we claim to be nuh! Much LOVE!
…if we truly behave like true believers…then the rest of the world will follow…
07 Aug 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: an invitation to listen, anxiety of lockdown, at the foot of Christ's cross, atrocious happenings, be glad and rejoice in this day, be responsible, book learning, bring backsliders back, calls on all men, Christ is the answer, common sense, compassion, costly, Covid-19, defeat the virus and the unrest, embrace your love, enjoy god's generosity, faithful believers, fear mongering, fight against God's will, Friday chant, frustration, give to God a ransom, God's awesome wisdom, I am the way the truth and the life, in the name of Jesus, Jesus paid the price for our redemption, leave their wealth to others, like the beasts that perish, loss of life, man that is in honour, material wealth, no man can redeem our souls, no man comes to the Father, none can redeem his brother, not see corruption, omnipotent help, our Lord and Saviour, our sinful world, painful consequences, pandemic, prosperity of the wicked, restoring faith in you, riches are woefully inadequate, rise above the ungodly drive for riches, serious setbacks, slave labour, stage 3, stand strong and steadfast, stay safe, street wisdom, superior technolofy, TGIF!, Thank God is Friday, the error of their ways, the fruits of our labour, the ordinary workingman, the pit, the power of free will, the redemption of their soul, the weekend, understands not, universal application, wake up and smell the coffee, wise guidance
Psalm 49:20. Man that is in honour, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish.
Prologue! I didn’t mean or expect it to be so long, but I needed to get in all that info, to be able to truly make the point that Christ and not material wealth is the answer. I’m naturally long-winded. (smile) So please ignore the length, just read quietly and let it seep into your souls and release your innate wisdom. Much LOVE!
Embrace it friends, embrace it! Embrace the beautiful day that God has made, be glad and rejoice in it! That’s why He made us and has us here on earth at this appointed time; to enjoy His generosity and the fruits of our labour, as we joyfully do His will! Glory be! I don’t know why we fight against God’s will nuh, since it’s so much easier and much more productive to give into it. But they say to each his own… and I guess that’s why in His awesome wisdom He gave us the power of free will, so we can do as we like.
But friends, that’s a rather important and possibly dangerous undertaking, (smile) for if we don’t use that free will right, very serious and painful consequences will eventually befall us. Anyway, it’s Friday, the much looked forward to end of the work week, so let’s not get into fear mongering nuh. (smile) Instead, let’s hear the wisdom of the ordinary workingman, as he goes about his ordinary working life. And he is indeed very appreciative of this being Friday, for he joyfully declares: (yeahhh!)
‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday oui and the blooming slave labour done for another couple of days! Wow! And is it ever good to have a holiday to start the work week, so that the aging body can rest a li’l more, since it doesn’t handle the physical labour as good, or as effortlessly as it used to. And even more thankfully, I haven’t heard of any atrocious happenings as we finally got into stage 3 of this Covid-19 reopening! Thank the Lord for that yes!
Hn! Because if we ever have to go back into serious lockdown again, a lotta people going to lose their minds…and even their lives this time, just from the awful frustration and anxiety it brings. So let’s hope people truly wake up and realize the enormity and seriousness of the situation and behave themselves responsibly. Else we could really be in for a rough, rough time. But in the meanwhile, we going to thank God for the weekend and enjoy it as best and as safely as we can!’
And who says the ordinary workingman doesn’t have wisdom eh? It might not be book wisdom, but he does have street wisdom, what we call common sense, something that unfortunately is not so prevalent in these modern times of superior technology and far-reaching book knowledge. And ah laughing mih heart out here mih people, because I just glanced at the open Bible next to me and what do you think I espied? This most appropriate and telling bit of scripture, from Psalm 49 – Trust in God, not wealth. The sons of Korah end the psalm thus: ‘Man that is in honour, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish.’ (Ps. 49:20)
Oh my people those few simple words are chocked full of awesome truth! If we don’t have the understanding that God exists and that He is sovereign and supreme and act accordingly, we’re just like the wild beasts who have no understanding whatsoever. As the psalm says earlier on: ‘They that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches; None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him.’ (Ps. 49:6-7)
Yes friends, unfortunately, no man can redeem our souls! (‘For the redemption of their soul is precious (costly), and it ceaseth for ever;) That he should still live for ever, and not see corruption (the pit). For he seeth that wise men die, likewise the fool and the brutish (senseless) person perish, and leave their wealth to others. Their inward thought is, that their houses shall continue for ever, and their dwelling places to all generations; they call their lands after their own names. Nevertheless man being in honour abideth not (does not endure): he is like the beasts that perish. This their way (the way of those who are foolish) is their folly: yet their posterity approve their sayings. Selah.’ (Ps. 49:8-13)
It’s all truth friends, gospel truth, which we should heed if we’re wise. Hear these explanations from the scholars nuh. ‘Psalm 49. This psalm reads almost like a passage from the Book of Proverbs, (it certainly does) with its bold contrast between the destinies of wicked and righteous. It addresses an age-old question: the prosperity of the wicked. The psalmist lived in a day when many evil men were boasting of their wealth (vs. 5-6). The psalm was therefore written to enable God’s people to rise above the ungodly drive (desire) for riches.
There is first an invitation to listen (vs. 1-4): the poet calls on all men because the psalm has a universal application. Second, he demonstrates how woefully inadequate riches are (vs. 5-12): in the day of one’s death they cannot redeem (vs. 6-7). Finally, the divergent destinies of the wicked and the righteous are vividly stated (vs. 13-20): the wicked man has no hope beyond this life (vs. 14), but the righteous man will be resurrected to eternal life (vs.15).’
Now that is more awesome truth, but the problem is that we need to use our free will wisely if we want to be righteous and live eternally. And that means ONE thing; accepting Christ Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, because He is the ONLY ONE, who can pay the costly price for our redemption! In fact, He has already done that by the sacrificial shedding of His precious, holy and sinless blood on the cross of Calvary!
And thus receiving Him into our hearts and souls and living for Him, is the ONLY way a man can see eternal life. As He so truthfully declares (steups!) ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.’ (John 14:6) And I’m definitely not going to take the chance and doubt Him. For then we’re just like the beasts, who have no wisdom, and thus we will perish in the pit.
And no, I have not forgotten our Friday Chant (smile). So let’s declare (awright!) it now nuh in all sincerity. ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. It’s been pretty rough…some of it from work, as many of us are now back to work in varied ways, but most of our anxiety still comes from all the confusion and havoc that the Covid-19 virus still causing. We not accustomed to that Lord, and it really telling on us. And now, on top of all that, we have racial riots and protests to put up with. Oh Lord, yuh know we can’t handle it on our own and desperately need Your help.
Yes, heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat both the virus and the unrest in our streets. So Lord, we sincerely ask you today to give the governments and those involved in the forefront of this serious and unexpected storm, the sure and wise guidance to handle the situation properly, with the least amount of loss to life and property as possible. And please help those of us who must go out to work amidst all the confusion, to be responsible and to stay safe, so that we can avoid any more serious setbacks.
And Lord, we fervently pray that You’ll use this situation to also bring a lot of backsliders back to your fold, show them the error of their ways. It’s also a good opportunity to introduce a whole new flock, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion because of the way we, your faithful believers, handle the situation. Yes Lord, please use this pandemic and the unrest in the streets as a means of restoring faith in You, so that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
And it now behooves us to go out and behave like faithful believers of Christ Jesus! Much LOVE!
…redemption begins and ends…at the foot of Christ’s cross…
03 Jul 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: 4th July weekend, agree to disagree, anxiety, bacchanal, being responisble, bring backsliders back, brought to desolation, Canada Day holiday, citizenship responsibility, common sense, confusion, contemplate the situation, divided against itself, division, embrace your love and compassion, every city or house, every kingdom, fear not, fervently pray, Friday chant, heavenly Father, in a positive manner, in the name of Jesus, introduce a whole new flock, let's not disappoint Him, light of the world, loss to life and property, LOVE, no weapon formed against us will prosper, omnipotent help, only God alone knows, positive results, riot, rocket science, salt of the earth, serious setbacks, shall not stand, sinful world, stand strong and steadfast, stay safe, street protests, strife, summertime, systemic racism, TGIF! Thank God is Friday, Thank God is Friday, unexpected storm, virus pandemic, wake up and smell the coffee, win this thing for Jesus, wise guidance
Matthew 12:25. Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand.
It’s late, it’s late, it’s late! But, with the Lord’s help, it’ll be great, it’ll be great, it’ll be great! (smile) Morning mih bredrin! How goes it this Friday morning in early July eh? I know some people are singing: ‘Summertime, summertime, summertime!’ enjoying the constant warm weather at last. However, many others are more concerned about all the unprecedented problems that have recently raised up their ugly heads in our society.
But not to worry, our great God is still in control, and He has promised that no weapon formed against His children will prosper. And Jesus’ two most famous words were: ‘FEAR NOT!’ So let’s do just that nuh; don’t be afraid, but work within the parameters of which we are capable and do our li’l part to help remedy the situation, if it’s only being responsible in a positive manner. And the sermon done right there! (smile)
Now let’s hear what the ordinary workingman has to say. ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday! Yeah! And the Canada Day holiday broke up the work week nicely! That day of rest in between was wonderful! This is the best I’ve felt after the few weeks that we’ve gone back to work! Glory be! But the sad part is that the same problems we had last weekend, we still have them! Nothing seems to be getting better in either the virus pandemic or the strife and protests!
And with the 4th of July celebrations this weekend down in the U.S, yuh could imagine the bacchanal that going to happen down there with all the confusion that already taking place! Ah Lord eh! Good thing ah living in Canada yes, where we a li’l more law abiding and responsible. But when will we ever get back to normal eh, and when this systemic racism thing going to get fixed eh? Only God alone seems to know yes!
But ah certainly hope we see some positive results in either case sometime soon oui. Ah tired with it now. Ah can’t go out as ah want to, and when I do go out, is always somebody marching in the streets or causing some riot somewhere! Steups! Yes, ah know people have problems, and have rights and want rights and all that, but what about my rights eh? Nobody not concerned about them! Nobody concerned that their rights impinging on mine!
What a world we live in eh Dr. Jack! Ah only hope mih children don’t have to grow up in that sorta mishmash, unruly, divided and irresponsible world nuh! But all I could do right now yes is simply shake mih head and say thank the Lord is Friday, and ah have some time to sit down and contemplate the situation!’
Yes friends, we all need to take some time and contemplate the situation; both as individuals, as well as members of the overall society, and see how we can best put our gifts and talents to work to help improve it. It’s our citizenship responsibility. We won’t always agree, but as they say, we can agree to disagree, and thus get rid of the many small, petty and unimportant things that cause the division amongst us. Jesus said it very clearly: ‘Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand.’
That’s not rocket science my people, but simple common sense. I’m forgetting though, that common sense is in very short supply these days. (smile) And we’re so foolish, that we seem to prefer to destroy our society, rather than come to some workable agreement. Anyway, as saints of Christ, the first thing we ought to do in any given situation is turn to our heavenly Father and pray, ask for wisdom and guidance to handle the prevailing situation. So let’s do that right now nuh; let’s cry out to Him in humble confidence through our Friday Chant, our prayer for mercy and grace, wisdom and understanding.
As one loud and sincere voice: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. It’s been pretty rough…some of it from work, as many of us are now back to work in varied ways, but most of our anxiety still comes from all the confusion and havoc that the Covid-19 virus still causing. We not accustomed to that Lord, and it really telling on us. And now, on top of all that, we have racial riots and protests to put up with. Oh Lord, yuh know we can’t handle it on our own and desperately need Your help.
Yes, heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat both the virus and the unrest in our streets. So Lord, we sincerely ask you today to give the governments and those involved in the forefront of this serious and unexpected storm, the sure and wise guidance to handle the situation properly, with the least amount of loss to life and property as possible. And please help those of us who must go out to work amidst all the confusion, to be responsible and to stay safe, so that we can avoid any more serious setbacks.
And Lord, we fervently pray that You’ll use this situation to also bring a lot of backsliders back to your fold, show them the error of their ways. It’s also a good opportunity to introduce a whole new flock, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion because of the way we, your faithful believers, handle the situation. Yes Lord, please use this pandemic and the unrest in the streets as a means of restoring faith in You, so that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
Yes friends, the Lord heard our prayer, and as we spoke, He was already putting His plans into action to help us. Now it’s our turn to satisfy our part of the covenant, the partnership we have with Him, time to be responsible and show the true colours of Christianity with which we will conquer this evil world! The Lord is counting on us friends, so please, let’s not disappoint Him nuh! Much LOVE!
…as true salt of the earth…and lights of the world…we can win this thing for Jesus…
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