20 May 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a mighty wind, abound to every good work., an undeniable fact, baptized with the Holy ghost, call on the name of the Lord, cataclysmic, cloven tongues, confidence, Day of Pentecost, defeated the grave, disbelievers, dream dreams, drunk, fellowship, filled with the Holy Ghost, fire, foreign born, Galileans, God goes before us, God is able, God spoke the world into existence, gospel truth, He will make a way, hear the Word, in His name we overcome, Jerusalem, lifted up, lifting up our voices, make all grace abound, mockers, never fail, never leave us, new wine, open arms, Peter, pour out of my Spirit, praise, prophesy, raised to life, saved, see visions, songs of worship, sound from heaven, speak with other tongues, strength, sufficiency in all things, the Lord's Day, the uttermost part of the earth, upon all flesh, witnesses, worship
2 Corinthians 9:8. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work.
It’s Sunday once again friends, the Lord’s Day, and all roads lead to His sanctuary, to praise, worship, fellowship, hear His word and receive strength and confidence to go out and do His work with diligence and excellence in the upcoming week!
And that’s partly why the Bit is this late; the ole fella finally darkened the church’s door after about three or four weeks of absence. Hn! I can’t remember being that long away from church for several years now. Anyway, we’re back, and did enjoy the fellowship and the reading of the word.
And as always, on Sundays we begin by opening our mouths, and lifting up our voices in songs of worship and praise. It helps to soften our hearts for the word that comes later. (smile) And today’s song of praise is simply titled ‘Our God is able.’ And that’s an undeniable fact. So let’s belt it out with sincere hearts and strong voices.
‘Our God is able. He will never fail. He is Almighty God. Greater than all we seek. Greater than all we ask. (Chorus: He has done great things. Lifted up. He defeated the grave. Raised to life. Our God is able. In His name we overcome. For the Lord, Our God is able.)
God is with us. God is on our side. He will make a way. Far above all we know. Far above all we hope. (Chorus) God is with us. He will go before us. He will never leave us. He will never leave us. God is for us. He has open arms. He will never fail us. He will never fail us. (Chorus -repeat).’
Oh friends, every word we sang there is indeed gospel truth, for our God is indeed able, as Bruh Paul declared to the Corinthians in his second missive to them. ‘And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work.’ What an awesome God we serve and worship my brethren!
And if you don’t believe, just look at what happened on the Day of Pentecost, which the church is celebrating today. Before Jesus ascended to heaven, He told the disciples to remain in Jerusalem: ‘For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.’ (Acts 1:5)
…But ye shall receive power, after that (when) the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.’ (Acts 1:8)
Yeh friends, who could make such a remarkable promise and keep it eh? ONLY our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! And we read it every year at Pentecost time, but it still boggles our imagination.
The Good Book says that on the Day of Pentecost, ‘they were all with one accord (purpose or mind) in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven (divided) tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.’ (Acts 2:1-4)
Wow, mih people! Can you imagine that scene back in ole Jerusalem on that first day of Pentecost? It must have been really wild, since there were oodles of people in Jerusalem at that time, many of them foreign born, and when the disciples emerged from their house and began to speak in several languages, so that those foreign born could understand in their own languages. Mama Yo! It must have been almost cataclysmic! (smile)
‘Now when this was noised abroad (the sound of the wind occurred) the multitude came together and were confounded (confused), because every man heard them speak in his own language. And they were all amazed and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galileans?
And how hear we every man in our own tongue (language or dialect) wherein we were born? …And they were all amazed and, and were in doubt (perplexed), saying one to another, What meaneth this?’ (Acts 2:6-8, 12-13)
Oh fellow believers, ONLY our God is great enough to turn things on their head like that! But as always there are disbelievers and mockers, who said that the men were drunk. But Peter got up and preached his finest sermon that day, informing them that it was the coming to pass of an old promise of our God, from the days of the prophet Joel:
‘And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God. I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams… And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.’ Acts 2:17,21)
Yeh mih people, the Lord promised many other signs and wonders within that passage, but the most important was the last one; that whosoever should call on His name will be saved. Glory Hallelujah! The most glorious promise in the Good Book!
And that also marked the beginning of the Holy Spirit coming to dwell within every believer to lead and guide them in the ways of the Lord. So it’s obvious that our God is able my brethren…able to do all that’s necessary to keep us going. Please don’t ever doubt God’s ability, and give Him plenty thanks and praise, for that is wisdom at its highest. Much LOVE!
…if God could speak the world into existence…what other mighty works can’t He do eh…
09 Mar 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: all the way, be disciplined, benefit of Christ's death, boundaries, by faith, call upon, calls to heaven, carnal song, chant up a storm, Christians, Day of Pentecost, deliverance, doing absolutely nothing, drinking, easy, eating, endanger our salvation, enjoy days off, evil enemy, expensively bought, fellowship, free, Friday chant, Fridays, fun, furthering God's kingdom, generous help, God's saving grace, great sermon, guilt, healing, heaven's golden gates, heavenly advocate, higher spiritual level, illicit stuff, in Jesus name, infiltrate our souls, Joel, keep our wits about us, lash we, lessen our Love, let it all hang out, live out God's word, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, lustful, momentous day, never refused, no more slaving, Old Testament, on a different plane, outpouring of God's Spirit, partying, penalty of sin, Peter, preservation, proverbial whip, refreshed, relaxation, renewed, rest, restraints, resurrection, ruin our witness, sacrificed, safety, salvation, shall be saved, sinless life, so great salvation, soundness, step out of bounds, subjective changes, suffer, surrender, tearing up the place, TGIF! Thank God is Friday, the Holy Ghost, the name of the Lord, to dwell in believers, trust, turned away, vernacular, week of work, weekends, whosoever, workingman, workweek
Romans 10:13. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
Well dear friends, family and fellow believers, we’ve come to the end of another work week. Another enticing and heartily looked forward to Friday is upon us. And with it also comes the workingman’s enthusiastic though somewhat carnal song.
‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday oui! No more slaving for an evil and greedy massa for a couple of days. Wow! And are we ever going to enjoy them days off; eating, drinking, partying, relaxing, doing absolutely nothing if we want to, and also tearing up the place if we so desire.
Is our time to do whatever we want, however we want with no overseer holding the proverbial whip above we heads, ready to lash we, if we step out of bounds! Thank God for Fridays and weekends yes, otherwise I don’t what we’d do nuh!’
Ah friends, how good it would be, if as Christians, we could sometimes just let it all hang out on the weekends, without any restraints or boundaries, do whatever we want, however and whenever we so desire.
But our Lord and Saviour, Leader and King, Friend and Heavenly Advocate desires us to be on a different plane to the ordinary workingman. He wants us to concentrate on rising up to a higher spiritual level, that’s why our Friday Chant is so much different to his Friday song.
And why is that you ask? Because He doesn’t want the evil enemy to infiltrate our souls and spirits and thereby lessen our LOVE for, and trust in Him. That would just ruin our witness and endanger our salvation, which He so expensively bought, sacrificed with His sinless life. So let’s chant up a storm now nuh, declaring our weekend duties and festivities. (smile)
Altogether now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through. Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’
Ah mih people, that doesn’t mean we don’t get to have fun, but just not the carnal, lustful, going all the way, illicit stuff that the world classifies as fun. We need to keep our wits about us, be disciplined, so that we can live out God’s word in the best possible manner. And anything that’s going to prevent us from doing it, is definitely not welcome in our lives.
Oh by the way, let me clarify something I said in yesterday’s Bit. A friend challenged me about the validity of calling the storm in the U.S. ‘a wicked storm.’ He thought I meant the storm was evil, but that wasn’t so at all. In the vernacular, it just meant that it was a strong, terrible, severe, or bad storm. There was no intent whatsoever to classify it as evil. I just wanted to clarify that, in case any other of you readers felt the same way.
Now here is today’s Bit. ‘For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’ Simple but strong and truthful words my brethren! Whoever calls upon the Lord’s name and asked to be saved SHALL BE SAVED! No ifs ands or buts about it!
Bruh Paul is here quoting the words of the prophet Joel from the Old Testament, when he talks about the outpouring of God’s spirit; namely the Holy Ghost coming to dwell in believers one day. (Joel 2:28-32) And we know that happened on the Day of Pentecost. (Acts 2:4) And on that momentous day, in his great sermon, Peter also quoted the words of Joel above. (Acts 2:17-21)
Yeh friends, salvation is fairly easy, and free too. You just have to believe that Jesus died on the cross to pay for your sin, and then surrender your life and entrust it to Him to lead and guide you as He desires. But unfortunately for some, that’s too easy. Unless they have to suffer and sacrifice they figure they can’t attain heaven’s golden gates.
But then you ask what exactly is salvation? Listen to the scholars. ‘10:13. Salvation is the most common biblical expression used to identify the subjective changes in people’s lives, when by faith they have received the benefit of the Christ’s death and resurrection. The term implies deliverance, safety, preservation, healing, and soundness.
It occurs in Scripture in three phases. First, the Christian has been saved from the guilt and penalty of sin (Eph.2: 5,8). Second, the Christian is being saved from the habit and dominion of sin in this life (Gal.2:19-20). Finally, when the Lord returns, the Christian will be saved from all the physical results of sin and of God’s curse on the world (8:18-23).
Illustration: Although Jesus used this word only once (Luke 19:9), He used many other expressions to describe salvation. The dramatic change in Zaccheus was proof of his salvation. Application: The Christian today should also demonstrate a change in his life to confirm this “so great salvation.” (First Ref. Gen.3:15; Primary Ref. Romans; cf. 2 Cor.5:19).’
Ah mih breddren, I do hope that explanation gives us a better understanding of what salvation is all about. And to reinforce it, one should take a moment and read the scripture references given there. I just did, and they do enlighten you as to our situation under God’s saving grace. Much LOVE!
…no sincere calls to heaven are ever refused…or turned away…
17 Feb 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a better tomorrow, abject failure, admonitions, anger, Anselm, ascended Israel's throne, aspires, baptized with water, be of good courage, carnal, cease from anger, cyclone Gita, Day of Pentecost, different roads, disaster recovery, dispensation of the gospel, eagles, earthly lifetime, earthquake, evil system, FBI, Florida, forever, forsake wrath, friend, fulfill your dream, fulfillment, go haywire, God's realm, God's timing, Hades, Holy Ghost, hope, housework, Isaiah, joy, lazy time, life is too short to wait, limitations, lost, Lucifer, Mexico City, mount up with wings, not be weary, not faint, on the right track, quietly wait, reach the top, realm of the world, recompense evil, rejoice in his salvation, renew their strength, Rest in the Lord, revenge, run, Saturday, seeking happiness, sensible, set the table, Sheriff's Department, shooting rampage, song of the redeemed, strengthen thine heart, the promise of the Father, to inspire, Tonga, tongues of fire, trials, tribulations, wait on the Lord, waiting is everything, walk, walking the road to happiness, wicked schemes, wise, with Jesus
Psalm 27:14. Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.
Awright friends, it’s Saturday…lazy time for some, but lots of housework for others… and then there’s disaster recovery for others.
Yes, our good friend, natural disaster has reared it’s ugly head again, at least twice this week; earlier on when cyclone Gita, a category 4 storm, tore through the Polynesian island nation of Tonga, and yesterday when another major earthquake of some 7.2 magnitude and an aftershock of 5 point something, hit the area around Mexico City. Luckily the damages weren’t nearly as bad as the one they experienced last year.
They say disaster usually comes in threes; and of course we had the shooting rampage at the High School in Florida earlier on this week too. And what’s heightened the anger down there is that the Sheriff’s Dept. reportedly had numerous calls about the shooter over the last few months.
The FBI also apparently had a tip on their Hot Line about him recently, and yet nothing was done by either agency to both remove and help him. And then we wonder why these things happen. Ah Lord eh! But ours is not to wonder why, but to do and hope not to die!
Now since it’s Saturday, let’s take a look at the quotes our friend Anselm graced us with this week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And the first one says: ‘The most successful people reach the top not because they are free of limitations, but because they act in spite of their limitations.’
And there’s a lot of truth to that, for if you look at many successful people, they overcame a whole lot of limitations to make it to the top. And if you truly want to be successful, you can’t afford to let limitations stop you, otherwise you’ll never fulfill your dream.
And the next one says: ‘People take different roads seeking fulfillment and happiness. Just because they’re not on your road doesn’t mean they’ve gotten lost.’ Now that can be a bit contentious, because if you’re talking about fulfillment and happiness through the world’s carnal and evil system, then your are definitely lost!
However, if you’re walking on the road to happiness and fulfillment with Jesus…oh my brethren, then you’re definitely on the right track! Because only through Jesus can we ever find the joy and fulfillment that lasts and earthly lifetime…and then forever…
And the last quote is also one that provides room for some contention. All it says is: ‘Life is too short to wait.’ Well to a certain extent that’s true, but more so in the physical realm of the world, where haste and speed is everything. But in the spiritual realm of God’s world, waiting is everything my people!
It’s essential that we wait on God’s timing, for if we don’t, our whole life can go haywire in no time at all. That’s why there are so many admonitions in the Lord’s word about waiting on Him, one of the most famous being our Bit. ‘Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.’
Oh friends, what marvellous advice from Bruh David! And nobody knew better than him, about waiting on the Lord. Look at how long after he was anointed to be king, and the number of trials and tribulations he went through before he finally ascended to Israel’s throne.
He could have tried to make it happen in his own schedule, but I assure you, it would either have never come true, or been and abject failure, but definitely not the glorious reign he enjoyed under God’s timing.
And today, I just want to remind us of a few of the many scriptures that advocate waiting on God. Let’s begin with this one from Cousin Sol, on the matter of revenge. ‘Say not thou, I will recompense (repay) evil; but wait on the Lord, and he shall save thee.’ (Prov.20:22) In the first place we should not be seeking revenge, for the Lord has said that’s His job.
Now hear Isaiah in his song of the redeemed. ‘And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us: this is the Lord; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation.’ (Is.25:9)
And we all know the famous scripture from Isaiah 40. ‘But they that wait upon the Lord, shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.’ (Is.40:31) Plenty of us quote it, but not enough live by it.
And then there is this astute reminder from Jeremiah in his Lamentations: ‘The Lord is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him. It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord.’ (Lam.3:25-26)
And we have this command from Jesus to the disciples re waiting in Jerusalem. ‘And being assembled together with them (Jesus) commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.’ (Acts.1:4-5)
And some fifty days later the Holy Ghost baptized them with tongues of fire on the Day of Pentecost. Yuh think if they had disobeyed Jesus and moved on they would have received the Holy Ghost and been able to set the table for the dispensation of the gospel all over the world?
Not on your life. If they hadn’t obeyed, we would probably never have heard of Christ and His wonderful, free offer of salvation and eternal life, and thus been forced to associate with Lucifer and his evil cohorts in Hades. What an awful and frightening thought!
And though it’s getting pretty long, (smile) I still want to throw in this gem from Bruh David, because it covers all bases. ‘Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices (schemes) to pass.
Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil (it only causes harm). For evil doers shall be cut off (destroyed): but those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.’ (Ps.37:7-9)
Yeh friends, it’s not always easy to wait on the Lord, but it is the wise and sensible thing to do. Much LOVE!
…the Lord is NEVER late…His timing is always…PERFECT…
14 Aug 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a dispensary, admonition, baptism, breaking of bread, charles stanley, communal sharing, Day of Pentecost, edification, encouragement, enthusiasm, entire worship of christ, erratic attendance, fellowship, fellowshipping, from the Pastor's Heart, God is exalted, golden dreams, golden fancies, gospel truth, He is faithful that promised, hold fast, hope, I love to tell the story, inner condition, it satisfies my longings, Jesus and his glory, Jesus and his love, Jesus Christ, LOVE, message of salvation, my theme in glory, no man is an island, our bond of love, our hearts are encouraged, our minds are renewed, outward indication, praise and worship, prayers, reassurance, refill our tanks of faith, salvation, scenes of glory, service, signs, simplicity, sing the new song, singleness of heart, spiritual food, spiritual gifts, steadfast, stir up unto love, strength in numbers, Sunday, the assembly of God, the profession of our faith, the sanctuary of God, the Word of god, times of trouble, Togetherness, unseen things above, wavering, wonderfully sweet, wonders
Hebrews 10:25. Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.
Well friends, it’s Sunday, so let’s begin the day in a most appropriate fashion nuh, in praise and worship! Please sing with me: ‘I LOVE to tell the story of unseen things above, of Jesus and his glory, of Jesus and his LOVE. I LOVE to tell the story, because I know ’tis true; it satisfies my longings as nothing else can do. (Refrain): I LOVE to tell the story, ’twill be my theme in glory, to tell the old, old story of Jesus and his LOVE.
I LOVE to tell the story; more wonderful it seems than all the golden fancies of all our golden dreams. I LOVE to tell the story, it did so much for me; and that is just the reason I tell it now to thee. (Refrain)
I LOVE to tell the story; ’tis pleasant to repeat what seems, each time I tell it, more wonderfully sweet. I LOVE to tell the story, for some have never heard the message of salvation from God’s own holy Word. (Refrain)
I LOVE to tell the story, for those who know it best seem hungering and thirsting to hear it like the rest. And when, in scenes of glory, I sing the new, new song, ’twill be the old, old story that I have LOVED so long. (Refrain).’
Oh my people, what a beautiful hymn! And the story it desires to tell is also a beautiful one; a story of Jesus and His LOVE, of the message of salvation; a story that’s more wonderful ‘than all our golden fancies of all our golden dreams!’
Wow! It’s certainly the best story that’s ever been told! And I do hope that all of us just LOVE to tell it, and will keep on LOVING to tell it, because it’s ever so important to mankind; in fact, it’s the most important message ever delivered to the world!
Now since it’s Sunday, it’s also fitting that we should get us hither to the sanctuary of God to praise and worship with other believers. Please friends, no flimsy excuses. Remember we’re not going to church so much to please God but to derive great benefit from it for ourselves. Here’s how Uncle Charles (Charles Stanley) puts in his August letter –From the Pastor’s Heart.
‘Something special happens when believers gather to worship the Lord together: God is exalted, our hearts are encouraged, our minds are renewed with the Word, and our bond of LOVE is strengthened. That’s why it’s so important to make time in our schedule for worship and service in a local church. If we isolate ourselves, we’ll have no one to help us in times of trouble and no one to serve with our spiritual gifts.’
Oh my fellow believers, that’s gospel truth! I couldn’t put it any better. So again, I’m encouraging us to get out and worship with other believers, because it’s to our great benefit.
And on the subject, the Good Book proclaims unto us: ‘Let us hold fast the profession (confession) of our faith (hope) without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) And let us consider one another to provoke (stir up) unto LOVE and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.’ (Heb.10:23-25)
Yuh see friends, it’s the wise advice from the Word of God! How can you exhort one another and stir them up to do good works and show LOVE if you’re not fellowshipping with them on a regular basis eh? Remember that no man is an island, and we all need encouragement and reassurance when times of trouble rear their ugly heads.
And also remember that there is strength in numbers, which means when we gather in numbers to fellowship and praise our awesome and most wonderful God, then we are made truly strong! The enthusiasm and LOVE and fellowship and togetherness just raise our level of faith! And the way the Lord has planned it, is that every seven days we need to refill our tanks of faith.
It’s just like our cars; every so often the gas tanks need to be refilled with the fuel that provides the energy for them to work. Likewise, after a hard and frustrating week of being out and about in this mish-mash world, we use up our faith fuel and thus need to replenish it. And the best way to do so is to fellowship with other believers in the Lord’s sanctuary. End of sermon! (smile)
Now here is the scholars take on our Bit. ’10:25. Not forsaking the assembling: This admonition involves far more than erratic attendance. It involves the entire worship of Christ, and is an outward indication of an inner condition. The assembling of God’s people provides opportunity for reciprocal encouragement, strengthening, and the stirring up that can be gained from one another (cf. Col.3:12-16). It consists of participation in worship and fellowship. The church is a body interacting (1 Cor.12:14-27); it is not merely a dispensary of spiritual food and medicine.’
And that’s certainly telling us friends! Now let’s close with an appropriate example from the early days of the church. It comes after Peter’s bold proclamation on the day of Pentecost. ‘Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls. And they continued steadfast in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.
And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by (through) the apostles. And all that believed were together, and had all things common (communal sharing). And sold their possessions and goods, and parted (distributed) them to all men, as every man (anyone) had need.
And they, continuing daily with one accord (mind) in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat (food) with gladness and singleness of heart (simplicity) Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.’ (Acts 2:41-47)
Yes friends, the early church stood together, even having communal sharing for a while. It was the only way they could grow and do God’s work. Now let’s end with some words from the scholars. ‘2:41-42. The pattern here for new believers is normative throughout this age. They publicly profess their faith through baptism and join in fellowship, edification, and service within the assembly of God’s people.’
Now where does it say that any of those actions should change or have changed eh? NOWHERE! They still are necessary in today’s world if we want to function as a strong, unified body in Christ. So in wisdom, please let’s keep on practicing them! Much LOVE!
…the church will only be as strong as the faith and fellowship of those within it…
19 May 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a compassionate heart, a grand human hope, a positive outlook, a strong will, abundance, all things in common, an opportunity, annals, apostles, blessed, breaking bread, broken right now, change, change for change sake, cheerfully, Christ-like, Christian, christianity, communal sharing, communism, confuse the situation, courage, creativity, Creator, curse, Day of Pentecost, destiny, direction for my life, distributed, divine protection, don't fear change, Dr. Robert H. Schuler, dream dreams, earthly journey, embracing change, faith, family, favour, fear, forgiveness, frame of mind, friends, fulfillment, gladness, God's universe, God's will, good stewards, granite, health, hope, Hour of Power Devotional, I will pour out my spirit, in the name of Jesus, it shall come to pass, Jesus Christ, joy, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, marble, maturity, mercy, negative word, old men, on all flesh, one accord, one idea, particular purpose, Peter, possessions, praising God, promotion, prophesy, prosper, return of Christ, rigid, see visions, self-control, self-discipline, share willingly, signs, simplicity, sincerity, singleness of heart, steel, succeed, success, supernatural strength, surrender, talent, this is the day the Lord has made, Thursday's Blessings, together, trust, walk with Christ, we will rejoice and be glad in it, welcome, wisdom, wise and sensible way, without fear, wonders, young men, your sons and daughters
Joel 2:28. And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.
Welcome friends, welcome! Welcome to another marvellous day in the annals of God’s great universe! We have all been specifically chosen by our wonderful Creator to meet and greet this new day for a particular purpose that He has planned.
So please let’s embrace it with the faith and joy and trust and surrender that it deserves, by sincerely declaring, as the psalmist did so long ago: ‘This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.’ (Ps.118:24)
Yes my Christian brethren, that is the only wise and sensible way to greet any new day to which we blessedly awaken. Anything less will only darken and confuse the situation unnecessarily and make our lives even more difficult than they already are.
And today I want to share a li’l something from Gramps Schuller’s (Dr. Robert H Schuller) Hour of Power Devotional, where he talks about embracing change.
He wisely advises: ‘Don’t fear change. Welcome it as an opportunity! If change is a great problem, it is also a grand human hope. One word, one illustration, one idea can transform the whole complexion and the destiny of our life.
I see this happening constantly. Some positive idea falls unexpectedly on the mind and changes forever the destiny of the entire family. Thank God we are not created to be rigid, nonchanging objects of marble, granite, or steel.’
Yes friends, not all change is good, neither should we just change for change sake, but we have to be able to decipher it properly and where necessary embrace it without fear. The important aspect here is being able to accept it ‘without fear.’
Now since this is Thursday, it’s only fitting and proper that we declare our Thursday’s Blessings with much verve, sincerity and faith.
As one now: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment!
I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and everyday! Amen!’
Awright mih people! Let’s go forth now in that positive and blessed frame of mind and do God’s will!
And today is the last day for this particular Bit. ‘And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.’
Yeh friends, we’ve seen over the last few days how this prophecy was partially fulfilled on that great and powerful day of Pentecost. We’ve also heard the great sermon Peter preached on that day, and the immediate reaction of repentance and baptism to some three thousand previously lost souls. Today I just want to share what happens after the dust has settled.
The Good Book tells us thus about life amongst the believers thereafter. ‘And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles. And all that believed were together, and had all things in common; And sold their possessions and goods, and parted (distributed, shared) them to all men, as every man (anyone) had need.
And they, continuing daily with one accord (mind) in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat (food) with gladness and singleness of heart (simplicity). Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be (were being) saved.’ (Acts 2:43-47)
Ah my fellow believers, what a simpler time that was! We certainly couldn’t live like that in this most complex and diverse society of ours. However, please pay close attention to this info from the scholars.
‘2:44-45. Communal sharing was practiced for a brief time by the early church but not throughout Acts. These believers were expecting the very soon return of Christ (as Peter demonstrates in his sermons of chs. 2 and 3), and they therefore sold their possessions. This did not last. Such communal life is not taught by the apostles.
Rather we are taught to be good stewards of that with which God has entrusted us, and to share willingly and cheerfully (2 Cor.8, 9). Further, this does not correspond to communism, because this resulted from a spiritual unity among the people and was a voluntary act. (cf.5: 4).’
And that ends today’s Bit. I do hope it is beneficial to all who read it, re maturity and understanding of true Christianity. And also that it encourages them to get into the Word more themselves, as well as live a more Christ-like life, as desired by our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
Now may the Lord of all mercy and forgiveness, bless and keep us safely, as we journey along this day on the path that He has chosen for our individual lives. Much LOVE!
…the only way to have a successful earthly journey…is to walk it closely with Christ…
18 May 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a feast of souls, ascension, be baptized, be obedient, blessings, Christians, crooked generation, crucifixion, Day of Pentecost, do good, doctrine, dream dreams, earthly pilgrimage, extraordinary, fellowship, finite minds, forgiveness, glad to be alive, glory hallelujah, glory to God, God's will, goodness, I am halfway home, I will pour out my spirit, I'm not turning back, it shall come to pass, Jesus Christ, Joel, liars, LOVE, loving kindness, mercies, messengers of Satan, my eyes are fixed straight ahead, my hands are on the plough, old men, on the outside looking in, pick sense from nonsense, pricked in their heart, prophesy, Redeemer, repnet, resurrection, see visions, separated from God, sons and daughters, thanks and praise, the apostles' doctrine, the Bereans, the breaking of bread, the breath of life, the church at Ephesus, the day of judgement, the Good Book, the Holy Spirit, the New testament, the promise, the remission of sins, the Scriptures, the Word of god, to a glorious future with Jesus, upon all flesh, Wednesday Wail, when the roll is called up yonder, young men
Joel 2:28. And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.
Oh my, my, friends, another glorious day is in the offing, and we’re alive to tell the tale! Mama Mia!
How blessed we are, that our great God chose us to see another day of earthly pilgrimage! Give Him plenty thanks and praise for His goodness and LOVING-kindness to us nuh, for He certainly deserves it.
I don’t know about you all, but I certainly look forward to each new day, that I know will be brim full of wonderful mercies, blessings and oodles of unimaginable opportunities to LOVE others, to do good, and to be obedient to His holy will. Glory to God!
Ohhh, what a magnificent God we serve and worship my people!
And since today is Wednesday, let’s wail our grateful and sincere Wednesday Wail. As one wailer now (smile): ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday!
I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’
And as fine, upstanding Christians, that is exactly what we are expected to do my brethren; be glad to be alive, have our hands strong and steadfast on the plough, looking straight ahead to the glorious future that’s promised with Christ!
And what a future that is going to be my fellow believers! I don’t think we can really imagine or contemplate it nuh with our small, finite minds. But believe me, it’s going to be extraordinary, just like everything with our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ is extraordinary!
All praise and glory be to our wonderful Redeemer!
Now let’s continue with our Bit, which was prophesied by the prophet Joel long before that momentous day of Pentecost. ‘And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.’
And with the universal launching of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost Day, that aspect of Joel’s prophecy was fulfilled. And we’ll also continue looking at Simon Peter’s great sermon on that fateful day of Pentecost. We stopped yesterday where he had explained to his listeners about the crucifixion, resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ.
And after that, the Good Book declares thus: ‘Now when they had heard this, they were pricked in (cut to) their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren what shall we do?
Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission (forgiveness) of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord shall call.
And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward (crooked) generation.’ (Acts 2:37-40)
Wow mih people! Peter certainly had the Holy Spirit moving and a grooving in him that day!
And oh so many of us today deserve to hear that sermon, because too many of us have been separated from God, and will be left on the outside looking in when the day of judgement is fulfilled, unless we repent and accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour.
And as I keep reminding us, the worse thing that can ever happen to a human being is to be eternally separated from Almighty God when the roll is called up yonder!
Now some of us might wonder what happened on that Day of Pentecost after Peter gave his great speech. Listen to the Good Book tell it: ‘Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added about three thousand souls. And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.’ (Acts 2:41-42)
Ah friends, what a feast of souls was laid out before God that day!
Hn! Just wish nowadays that we can get three hundred, or even thirty, or some days even three. But getting people to turn to God in these sad times, when they truly need Hi most, is becoming more difficult every day because of the enemy’s stranglehold on the world, and our less than satisfactory behaviour as true Christians.
Now here is some info from the scholars re the Apostles’ doctrine. ‘2:42. The word doctrine derives from the Latin term for teaching and refers to the content that was taught in the New Testament. The proper teaching of Scripture was called “the apostles’ doctrine,” meaning that which the apostles’ taught.
This contrasted with erroneous teaching called “doctrines of devils” (1 Tim.4:1), meaning that teaching whose source is not God but the messengers of Satan, whose desire is to substitute false religion for Christianity (2 Cor.11:13-15).
Illustration: The apostles’ doctrine was true, not because an apostle taught it, but because it was consistent with the Scriptures. The Bereans examined the teaching of Paul in light of the Scriptures before accepting it (17:11). Also, the church at Ephesus examined some who called themselves apostles and found them liars (Rev.2:2).
Application: A Christian should attempt to understand and believe true doctrine, while rejecting all that disagrees with the Word of God (1 John 4:1). (First Ref. Acts 2:42: cf. Titus 3:10).’
Now friends, those are very important distinctions, that’s why I am always admonishing us to read the scriptures for ourselves, because that’s the only way we can know if what is being preached or taught to us is truly God’s Word.
So please, please try and read even a little of the Word each and every day, so that your knowledge of it can be steadily improved and you will better know how to pick sense from nonsense. (smile)
So until tomorrow, God in favour, let’s get with the Word nuh friends. And may the Good Lord bless and keep us and help us to walk safely and kindly on this our earthly pilgrimage! Much LOVE!
…if you’re not aware of what the Word says…then you’ll fall for any and every thing…
16 May 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: And it shall come to pass, aura of love, cataclysm, complaining, confidence, conquerors, Day of Pentecost, drem dreams, earning a paycheque, enthusiasm, evil, faith, fellowship, friends, glorious kingdom, God's will, good works, guides us, holy spirit, I will pour out my spirit, inconvenience, invincible, Jerusalem, jobs, kindness, lies, LOVE, makes our day, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, obedience, old men, peace, prophesy, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, short attention spans, Simon Peter, socialize, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, supporting our families, teaches us, the last days, ungodly world, wiles, wisdom, wishy-washy, working, young men see visions, your sons and daughters
Joel 2:28. And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.
Monday, oh Monday! What a wonderful day thou art! No friends, the ole fella isn’t losing his marbles – at least not just yet.
Monday is a great day. It gets us back into the normal running of our lives and reintroduces us to the outside world, refreshed and renewed. It allows us to socialize with a wide group of people, meet and greet all our friends and fellow workers – those we like and those we’re not so thrilled about. (smile) And above all, it means that we’re working, earning a pay cheque, and supporting our families.
Now doesn’t that make Monday a great day? I think so. But too many of us look at Monday as a day of inconvenience; meaning we have to get up and go out to work, with all that that entails. But whatever day you have to begin work after a period of rest will pose the same problems.
If Tuesday was the first day of the work week, we’d still be miserable and complaining. Just look at how we behave when we’re gifted with a long weekend. So, I’d suggest the sooner we begin to like Mondays, or at least not despise them as much, the sooner our lives will improve. End of sermon! (smile)
Now to tie all of that up and give us the wherewithal we need to get up and get going, let’s sing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn with plenty gusto and lots of enthusiasm. Hn, hn!
As one majestic choir now: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Now that sounded real good friends! So good that our choirmaster, Jesus, gave us a big smile and a clenched right fist salute in acknowledgement. Glory Be!
Now all that’s left for us to do is to get ourselves involved in the ongoing battle and give the enemy heck! Kill them with LOVE and kindness! Oh, I know that is very difficult to do with some folks, but that’s what our Leader desires of us. And what our Leader wants, our Leader gets!
And having only celebrated the day of Pentecost yesterday, when the Holy Spirit was universally introduced, it is indeed important that today we be filled with it and let it control and guide our lives as our Lord and Saviour expects. That means we can’t be wishy washy today my people.
We have to stand up and be counted in true Christian fashion, like ole Simon Peter stood up on that first day of Pentecost and preached a marvellous sermon, based on our Bit. ‘And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.’
Now let’s hear some of what Peter said. ‘But Peter standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words: For these are not drunken, as ye suppose , seeing as it is but the third hour of the day. But this is that day which was spoken by the prophet Joel…’ (Acts 2:14-16) And then he went on to quote Joel 2:28-32, which includes our Bit. (Acts 2:17-21)
And the scholars offer this important warning re Peter’s sermon. ‘2:16-21. Peter does not say that Pentecost is the fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy concerning the last days (Rev.6:12). Peter does not see a celestial cataclysm (vv.19-20). Yet it is that of which Joel speaks, because it is the beginning of that fulfillment.
Peter did not see the Spirit coming upon all people, but he did see Him coming upon 120 (those in the room with him). It was the beginning, but surely not the complete fulfillment. Peter understood, as we should, that the last days had already begun, even with the birth of Christ (Heb.1:2; 1 Pet.1:20).’
Yes friends, we are indeed in the last days, but the last days as God sees them; meaning that they are stretched out over a long period of time in our reckoning, but in His it’s not that long. And we’ll end there for today, because the rest of stuff I have to share will make it much too long. And I always have our short attention spans in mind. (smile)
So my brethren, until tomorrow, God willing, may He bless and keep us all, grant us His peace that passes all understanding, and help us to stand strong in faith and do good works in obedience to His will. Much LOVE!
…who is the one that teaches us what to say…the Holy Spirit…who is the one that guides our way…the Holy Spirit…He is the one that makes our day…
15 May 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a one way street, a permanent manner, accepted Jesus Christ, adoration, an integral part of God's will, And it shall come to pass, assurance, awe, baptism, baptized with the Holy ghost, baptized with water, Christian, cloven tongues, confidence, Day of Pentecost, dream dreams, encouragement, evangelism, filling of the Holy Spirit, Galileans, glory hallelujah, God's enablement, God's peace, God-fix, I will pour out my spirit, Jerusalem, new wine, old men, power from on high, prophesy, raise the roof, reverence, see visions, songs of praise and worship, sons and daughters, source of strength, speak in their own language, speak with other tongues, steadfastness, the epitome of wisdom, the Lord's Day, the promise of my Father, the reception of God's guidance, the Spirit gave them utterance, the Spirit of God, wisdom, workday world, young men
Joel 2:28. And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.
And then it was the first day of the week – Sunday – the Lord’s Day…Glory Hallelujah! That means it’s time to get our weekly God-fix! And that’s meant in a positive manner. It’s time to hie thee to the Lord’s sanctuary and raise the roof, or if it’s outdoors raise heaven’s roof, with songs of praise and worship, of adoration and awe and reverence to our wonderful Creator!
And the good thing about all that is that it’s not a one way street. In return we will receive God’s peace and confidence, His encouragement and assurance, His strength and steadfastness so that we can successfully face the workday world for another week.
And all God’s children gave out a delightful and grateful shout of ‘All praise and thanks be to our awesome God, who was, who is, and who always will be! Bless His holy name! Amen.’
And friends, today is a special day in the life of believers; it spells the formal beginning of Christ’s church; it’s the day of Pentecost, when the beginning of God’s promise in our Bit was fulfilled. ‘And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.’
Before this, the Spirit of God worked from the outside, came upon believers individually, temporarily, often to perform some special work. But after that, the Lord’s Spirit was going to work internally, in a permanent manner. It would come upon each and every believer and dwell within them as soon as they believed; accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour.
And that promise from Joel was also renewed by Jesus just before His ascension, when He told the disciples: ‘And, behold I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry (stay) ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.’ (Luke 24:49)
And the scholars explain that verse thus: ‘24:49. Here is the source of strength for effective evangelism. The promise of my Father stresses that the Spirit’s coming is not an afterthought, but an integral part of God’s eternal will. Endued conveys the picture of one being clothed with God’s enablement. Waiting is part of necessary preparation for the reception of God’s guidance and sanction.’
And that is exactly what the disciples did; they waited in Jerusalem until they were clothed with God’s Holy Spirit, His enablement!
Now listen to Luke describe the Day of Pentecost: ‘And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord (purpose or mind) in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.
And there appeared unto them cloven (divided) tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.’ (Acts 2:1-4)
Oh how great is our God, my brethren! For as Jesus also told the disciples before His ascension: ‘For John truly baptized with water, but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.’ (Acts 1:5) And so said, so done!
Now let me see if I can paraphrase an important distinction made here by the scholars. ‘2:4. Though verse 4 mentions only the filling with the Spirit, both the filling and the baptism occurred. Christ promised that the baptism would occur (1:4-5) and Peter later affirms that it did happen at Pentecost (11:15-16).
The filling and the baptism are two different works performed by the Holy Spirit. Note their contrasts: (1) Following Pentecost every believer receives the baptism of the Spirit (1 Cor.12:13); hence the New Testament never commands the Christian to receive it. But the filling of the Spirit is not experienced by all believers, and so is commanded (Eph.5:18).
(2) The baptism is permanent, happening but once and for all. The filling is ongoing, occurring continuously as seen in the present tense imperative of Ephesians 5:18, that is, “Keep on being filled.” The verse commands: “And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess (riotousness): but be filled with the Spirit.”
The filling of the Spirit is the controlling influence of the Spirit within the believer. Such control is neither universal or unending, thus it must be commanded and does recur within the believers (cf.4:8,31) The baptism is the act by which Jesus, through the Spirit, at conversion brings the believer into relation with Himself and makes the believer part of God’s people, the church. The filling is the continuous experience within the Christian whereby the Spirit, who already indwells him, keeps control over his life.’
Ah mih people, I know that sounds somewhat confusing, but if you take your time and read it, you will eventually understand what it’s all about. (smile)
And we’ll conclude with some of what happened after the Holy Spirit came upon the early church. ‘And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven. Now when this was noised abroad (this sound occurred), the multitude came together and were confounded (confused) because every man heard them speak in his own language. And they were all amazed and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galileans?
And how hear we every man in our own tongue (language or dialect), wherein we were born… Cretes and Arabians, we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God. And they were all amazed, and were in doubt (perplexed), saying one to another, What meaneth this? Others mocking said, These men are full of new wine.’ (Acts 2:5-8, 11-12)
Oh my fellow believers, that must have been a rather tumultuous day in ole Jerusalem! When you hear a bunch of uneducated Galileans speaking about God in your own language, it must give you pause for wonder. And you can’t blame those who thought that the Christians were somewhat inebriated either.
So today, please, let’s sit and ponder what the Holy Spirit has done, is doing and has promised to do in our lives. And above all let’s try and keep our souls continually filled with Him, and thus let Him control us, for that is the epitome of wisdom! Have a blessed day of Pentecost! Much LOVE!
…what’s there to control and baptize us and keep us filled with Christ…the Holy Spirit…
01 Nov 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: almighty god, an abomination to the Lord, be about God's business, be gracious to me, Bruh David, Bruh Paul, collection of flesh and bones, complaining, Day of Pentecost, deception, flaws of Western society, foolish reasoning, God answers prayer, God is alive and in control, God's goodness, God's rewards, gospel truth, greatest example of the need for prayer, have mercy on me, hear me when I call, hear my prayer, heavenly Father, holy spirit, impatience, impatient, keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus, Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, mere mortals, moderation, need for speed, O God of my righteousness, pampered, petty stuff, prayer, rejoice, sacrifice of the wicked, Saturday, sincere motives, sleeping in late, spoiled, spoiled brats, the Lord is at hand, the peace of God which passeth all understading, thou relieved me when I was in distress, wisdom, zealous fervour
Psalm 4:1. Hear me when I call , O God of my righteousness: thou hast enlarged (relieved) me when I was in distress; have mercy upon me (be gracious to me), and hear my prayer.
And then it was Saturday…time for sleeping in late and all that good stuff! Chuh! Some of us just don’t have time for such luxuries nuh, we have to be up and about God’s business. (smile) But our wonderful God rewards us in other ways, so we really can’t complain.
And talking about complaining, I believe that’s one of the serious problems in our society. We have been so spoiled by God’s goodness and mercy over the years, that now things have become somewhat rough, our pampered bodies and souls can’t handle it, and we end up complaining about small, petty things which makes us sound like spoiled brats.
The petty things that we complain about, 80 % of the world would gladly take, as opposed to the real serious problems they have. The technological and communications revolutions haven’t helped matters either, making us ever more in need for speed and dependent on them, so that when they fail, or break down, as man made things are wont to do, we get very testy and impatient.
Impatience is another one of the great flaws of our Western society, and we exemplify it even in our prayers to Almighty God. But God knows what we need and what we want, and gives it to us at the right time, if He sees fit.
But many of us turn away from God because of the foolish reasoning that we prayed, waited – possibly for a couple of hours or days – and didn’t receive what we prayed for, be it legitimate or fanciful, and then decide that God either doesn’t exist or doesn’t truly answer prayer.
But Friends, I’m here to tell us that that’s just another one of the enemy’s cruel deceptions. Our God is alive and on His throne, in control of everything! And He does hear and answer prayer – sincere ones that is, those which come from a heart with pure and sincere motives.
And our Bit aptly demonstrates that, as Bruh David cries out to the God of his fathers. ‘Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness: thou hast enlarged (relieved) me when I was in distress; have mercy upon me (be gracious to me), and hear my prayer.’
Obviously the Lord had heard his prayer of distress sometime before and had helped him out of it. That only boosted Bruh David’s faith, as it should ours, when God faithfully answers our sincere prayers.
And once again we’ll proclaim that the greatest example of the need for prayer comes from our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Yesterday we highlighted a scripture passage which showed His prayerfulness (Luke 6:12).
Today we’ll highlight another one. The Good Book tells us: ‘And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary (deserted) place, and there prayed.’ (Mark 1:35)
And since that comes from God’s Word, my brethren, that means it’s gospel truth! So, as we also said yesterday, if Jesus felt the need for prayer, why should we, mere mortals, not feel it too eh? We’re just too full of foolish pride and stubborn, rebellious ego, thinking that we’re so great, when all we are is a collection of fallible flesh and bones, which eventually returns to the dust from which it was formed.
Anyway, let’s look at some more scriptures which highlight the importance of prayer. Listen to the wisdom of Cousin Sol. ‘The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord: but the prayer of the upright is his delight.’ (Prov.15:8)
And the scholars say of that: ’15:8. The best that the wicked can offer God religiously is completely rejected.’ For good reason too!
Meanwhile, in Acts, after the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit descended on ALL believers, and the Christian communal community was growing at a fast rate, the apostles decided that they had more important things to do than running around doing pantry duty. (smile)
‘It is not reason (desirable) that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables. Wherefore brethren, look (seek) ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word.’ (Acts 6:2-4) And that’s when Stephen was chosen.
And then, as today’s last example, there’s Bruh Paul, who, in his usual zealous fervour, tells the Philippians: ‘Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice. Let your moderation (graciousness, reasonableness) be known to all men. The Lord is at hand (His coming is imminent).
Be careful (anxious) for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your request be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep (guard) your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.’ (Phil.4:4-7)
Yes my people, there’s no greater service that we can perform than prayer…with some thanksgiving too!
So let’s take that wonderful advice of Bruh Paul’s to heart nuh, and thus reform and/or reinvigorate our prayer lives, and consequently the lives of all those around us. That’s the wisdom of God, my fellow believers! Much LOVE!
…when we pray…we communicate with our heavenly Father…the One who created us…and who controls our life strings…and without whom we can’t do anything substantial…
07 Sep 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: Adam's fall from grace, all the days of my appointed time, almighty god, an appointed time, an emergency to meet God, art of waiting, baptized with the Holy ghost, beehive-like activity, Bruh Paul, Day of Pentecost, Emergency, expectant faith, faith, family, father of patience, fellowship, first day of the week, first fruits of the Spirit, focus on God, get our priorities in order, give thanks, go go mentality, God's omnipotence, God's promises will be faithfully fulfilled, habakkuk, Holy Ghost, holy spirit, hope, hungry hope, if a man die, jehovah god, Jesus, Job, keep the Sabbath holy, light, LOVE Revolution, my refuge is in God, patience, patience is a virtue, persevarance, refresh our attitudes, regain physical and spiritual strength, rest, righteousness., salt, salvation, Selah, shall he live again, sing praises, suffers birth pangs, Sunday, the Good Book, the Sabbath Day, the vision, to everything there is a season, trust, truth, waiting, waiting on god, will I wait till my change has come, wisdom, worship
Job 14:14. If a man die, shall he live again? All the days of my appointed time (hard service) will I wait, till my change come.
Okay mih people, we’ve come full circle, it’s Sunday, the first day of the new week! Time to fellowship, worship, sing praises and give plenty thanks to our wonderful God!
Remember Friends, that the way we treat today, the way we prepare, will have an immense impact on the other six days of the week. If we prepare well, then the rest of the week will flow smoothly. So let’s be sensible and get our priorities in order today nuh.
As the Good Book proudly proclaims: ‘Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.’ (Ex.20:8) That means focusing on God, family, worship and rest, as much as possible today, given the 24/7 beehive-like activity of our current society.
Much as we would like to, we simply can’t shut down everything like the old days, but that doesn’t mean we can’t lay aside many of our supposedly oh so important activities. We like to claim that everything needs doing today, right now, but in reality that isn’t true. It’s just the natural go, go, go mentality of modern society that has us trained that way.
Just look at how we react when an emergency crops up; we immediately drop everything else and concentrate on that, leaving the supposedly so very important activities untended for hours, sometimes even days. Then when the emergency is over, we come back and pick up those activities where we left them off.
I guess then the best way to handle the Sabbath in the right way, is to consider it an emergency; an emergency to meet and greet our great Creator, so that we can refresh our attitudes, regain both our physical and spiritual strength to face the world without fear and trepidation for the following six days.
If God, in His omnipotence, could rest from His labour for one day after creating the universe, why can’t we feeble, finite humans do the same eh? And that’s all I have to say on the subject! (smile)
So let’s now turn to our Bit: ‘If a man die, shall he live again? All the days of my appointed time (hard service) will I wait, till my change come.’
Waiting, my Friends, waiting on Jehovah God is everything! As Bruh Paul said to the Galatians: ‘For we through the Spirit wait (eagerly wait) for the hope of righteousness by faith.’ (Gal.5:5)
And the scholars’ explain that verse thus: ‘5:5. Through the Spirit means that by the Holy Spirit’s help, which is obtained by faith, believers wait for the hope of righteousness, that is, live the Christian life awaiting the consummation of their salvation.’
No doubt about it my brethren; if we believe in God, then we will wait on Him and His perfect timing. And as Bruh Paul also informed the church at Rome: ‘For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain (suffers birth pangs) together until now.
And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for (eagerly awaiting) the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. 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 (eagerly await) it.’ (Rom.8:22-25)
What Bruh Paul is basically talking about here is the senseless pain we’ve been made to suffer through Adam’s fall from grace, and the waiting we’re doing for us to be redeemed in body.
And not only on heavenly things must we learn to wait, but also on earthly things. It takes time to build, to grow, to put together anything at all, and in the process there’s always a period of waiting, which this current society doesn’t do well at all, with its gung ho, always on the go, now for now approach. But that’s why patience, the art of waiting, is called a virtue, and why Job is called the Father of patience.
Now hear these wise and wonderful words of Bruh David from Psalm 62: God only is my rock and my salvation. ‘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 defense; 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 heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah.’ (Ps.62:5-8)
Words of absolute truth and wisdom my people! Now listen to how the Lord instructed the prophet Habakkuk, when He told him to write the vision of his prophecy on stone tablets. ‘For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie; though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.’ (Hab.2:3)
Yes my fellow believers, all things promised by Almighty God WILL come, when He considers the time to be right! Our part is to do our best and hang in with hungry hope and expectant faith till the God appointed time.
And we’ll close with one of the most direct and important instructions of waiting in the Good Book; that from Jesus to the apostles before He ascended into heaven.
‘And being assembled with them (the apostles), commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.’ (Acts 1:4-5)
And we all know that some forty days later, at the feast of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit descended ‘from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven (divided) tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance (Acts 2:2-4)
And from that time on Friends, the Holy Ghost has indwelt EVERYONE who believes, who puts their trust and faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour. What more can I say eh my people?
It’s now up to us to follow through with a strong passion and focus on the things of God, led by the Holy Spirit, be the figurative salt and light of this ungodly and evil world, so that Jesus’ LOVE Revolution will prevail, and God’s great wish will come true – that ALL will come to salvation. Much LOVE!
…to every thing…there is a season…and a time…to every purpose under heaven… (Eccl.3:1)
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