17 Oct 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a means of restoring faith in you, amidst all the anxiety and confusion, as sheep going astray, bare our sins in his own body, be responsible, being dead to sins, bring us back to his fold, by the example we faithful believers set, by whose stripes ye were healed, carry them in his bosom, cast into hell fire, discontent, dissatisfaction, distorted concept, divine aid, even my servant David, faith, feed his flock like a shepherd, find pasture, for His name's sake, Friday chant, gather the lambs with his arm, gently lead those that are with young, go in and out, God is good all the time, God's loving kindness, have it more abundantly, he maketh me to lie down in green pastures, he restores my soul, his arm shall rule for him, his reward is with him, his work before him, holy spirit, how foolish it is, I am come that they might have life, I am the door of the sheep, I am the good shepherd, I the Lord will be their God, I will fear no evil, I would not be searching for you, if any man enter in he shall be saved, if you were not first wanting me, improved Christian witness, introduce a new flock of believers, Jesus Christ, Jesus walked his talk, keep us safe from harm, leadeth me beside the still waters, leads me in the paths of righteousness, let me remember always, live unto righteousness, lost sheep, Lost Shepherd, lost souls, LOVE, major deterrent, marvellous reassurance, mercy, my servant David a prince among them, now returned unto the shepherd, on the late bus, One Year Book of Bible promises, our sinful world can wake up, problems escalating, prone to forget, rebellion against God, rebellious and disobedient sheep, return backsliders to your fold, reversed the parable of the Shepherd and the sheep, Ruth Harms Calkin, salvation, searching for you, set up one shepherd over them, show them the error of their ways, smell the coffee, stay safe, surrender to your search for me, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, the bishop of your souls, the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep, the Lord God will come with strong hand, the Lord is my shepherd I shall not want, the shepherd has been lost, the thief cometh not but to steal, the weekend, these ungodly times, thieves and robbers, thou art with me, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, thy rod and thy staff they comfort me, to stumble through darkness, trudged down dangerous mountain cliffs, truth, unexpected storms, who his own self, wisdom, wise guidance
John 10::11. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.
Oh my people, it’s Friday, a damp and cloudy one, with showers promised for the weekend. But I know that we’ve all offered up our ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ jubilation, because the weekend is here. And unfortunately, today we’re on the late, late bus because I had to go out early this morning and do some stuff, and by the time I returned, a li’l rest was needed, but unfortunately that li’l rest turned into a much longer one than expected. (smile) And thus we’ll get right into it, with an interesting poem from our One Year Book of Bible Promises, with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin. Most likely I’ve shared it before, but in these lost and scary times, it’s certainly worth sharing again.
The title is simply ‘Lost Shepherd.’ Please read with me. ‘Sometimes, Lord In my groping effort to find You I have reversed the parable Of the Shepherd and the sheep. In my distorted concept The Shepherd has been lost And the sheep have trudged down Dangerous mountain cliffs to find him. How sadly prone I am to forget That I would not be searching for You If You were not first wanting me. Let me remember always, Lord How foolish it is To stumble through darkness Searching for You When I need only to surrender To Your search for me.’
And all God’s children said a loud and grateful shout of ‘Amen! God is good all of the time!’ And that He is my fellow believers! There’s absolutely no doubt about it, otherwise we would have all been cast in to hell fire long ago for our disobedience and proud, arrogant rebellion against His Sovereign Majesty! But in His awesome LOVING-KINDNESS, He set out to find us, like lost sheep, so that He could bring us back to his fold and keep us safe from harm. Now the Bible tells us that we should seek Him with all that we have, but it’s also worthy to note, as our poem above says, we would not be seeking Him, unless He was first wanting us.
And isn’t it so good, so encouraging and reassuring that our Creator LOVES us so much that He would send out someone special to look for us and bring us back home. It’s like Isaiah said so long ago: ‘Behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand (in strength), and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work (wage) before him. He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.’ (Is. 40:10-11)
Yes friends, that’s the picture of a God that’s been painted throughout the Bible; that of a Good Shepherd. Ezekiel also said it of the Lord. ‘And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. And I the Lord will be their God, and my servant David a prince among them; I the Lord have spoken it.’ (Ezek. 34:23-24)
Therefore, it’s no surprise that Bruh David could write in that most popular Psalm 23: ‘The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters, he restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.’ (Ps. 23:1-4) Oh yes my brethren! For that’s what a good shepherd does; provides food, safety, warmth and comfort for his sheep!
And no one has done that more for us lost souls than our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. He said it Himself, then went and proved it on the cross of Calvary. Listen to this last part of his discourse on the sheep and shepherd. ‘Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. The thief cometh not, but for (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. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.’ (John 10:7-11)
Wow! What marvellous reassurance! And that last verse is the Bible Promise for our poem today. And as we said earlier, Jesus did walk His talk; He went out and died for us lost, unworthy, sinful, disobedient sheep! He certainly did all he could to salvage the situation for us. Now the onus lies in our hands, on our shoulders. There’s no Lost Shepherd, but plenty lost sheep! And hopefully, we can end up as Peter says: ‘Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes (wounds) ye were healed. For ye were as sheep going astray; but now are returned unto the Shepherd and the Bishop (Overseer) of your souls.’ (1 Pet. 2:24-25)
Yes my people, that’s where we belong, and hopefully that’s where we’re all headed, but it’s not an easy row to hoe, therefore, we need to go to the throne of grace, through our Friday Chant, to get divine help. Altogether: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough… because our many serious problems are escalating instead of improving. And it’s obvious we can’t fix them on our own, so Lord, we’re desperately crying out for your help.
Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat the simmering unrest in our land. We therefore ask you Lord to give our leaders the wise guidance to handle these unexpected storms properly. And please help the rest of us to be responsible and to stay safe amidst all the anxiety and confusion of these ungodly times.
We fervently pray too Lord that you’ll use the discontent and dissatisfaction in our land as a means of restoring faith in you. Return backsliders to your fold. Show them the error of their ways. And please introduce a new flock of believers, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example, we, your faithful believers set. So that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, wake up and smell it sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
And having said all of that my fellow believers, we need to follow it up with improved Christian witness, for it’s the major deterrent to us not receiving more divine aid! Much LOVE!
…Jesus first came looking for us…we now need to go looking for Him…and if we are sincere…He isn’t hard to find…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
13 Oct 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a heart full of thankfulness, a modicum of circumspection, a perpetual reason for gratitude, a personal attitude, a powerful expression of faith, an act of worship that glorifies God, be careful for nothing, be ye thankful, before taking action, called in one body, cautious and prudent, celebrate God's goodness, communal worship, considering all circumstances and consequences, divine aid, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, encouraging gratitude in all circumstances, enjoy the celebrations, enjoy the festivities, excellent weather, faith, firewaorks, food, for all the wonderful things He's done for us, give thanks, give thanks to God with sincere hearts, give thanks to our heavenly Father, giving thanks to God and the Father by Him, God's enduring love and faithfulness, God's gooness is constant, God's marvellous grace and mercy, Gratitude as a way of life, Happy Thanksgiving Day, his mercy endures forever, holy spirit, humble ourselves, humble servants, in all wisdom, in every situation, in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, in every thing give thanks, in psalms hymns and spiritual songs, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus Christ, keep your promise to prosper us, let the peace of God rule in your hearts, let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, let your requests be made known unto God, LOVE, mass confusion in our world, mercy, music as a powerful expression of our thankful hearts, negative situations, O give thanks unto the Lord for he is good, permeate every aspect of a believer's life, pray, prayers, public gatherings, reckless escapades, regardless of our circumstances, reinforcing trust in God, salvation, see god's hand and goodness, shifts our focus from our worries to God's provision, sincere repentance, sincerely seek your face, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord, song and dance, songs, strong faith in Christ, teaching each other, testimonies of God's wonderful deeds, thanksgiving, thanksgiving as worship, thanksgiving is a crucial element of prayer, the ball is in our court, the foundation for our gratitude, the God who heals, the power to solve our many problems, the recognition of God's unchanging love, the weekend, the will of God in Christ concerning you, this blessed land of Canada, ties thankfulness to the peace of Christ, times of abundance, times of trials, tis evil world, to alleviate our problems, truth, turn from our evil ways, two warnings, whatsoever ye do in word or deed, wisdom, wise guidance
1 Thessalonians 5:18. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
HAPPY THANKSGIVING DAY CANADA!
Oh friends, it’s good to be alive on this Thanksgiving Monday and be able to give thanks to our heavenly Father for all the wonderful things He’s done for us down through the years, and for what He’s promised to do in the future! What would we do or be without His marvellous grace and mercy eh? Certainly not as much as we are today. And although today looks somewhat cloudy, we also need to give thanks for the excellent weather we’ve experienced so far this important weekend, so that families could get together without too many problems and celebrate God’s goodness to this blessed land called Canada!
I certainly saw that in my area yesterday, where the roads and driveways were lined with more parked cars than normal. Today will also be the same, as the weekend culminates in public gatherings featuring fireworks, food, song and dance and whatever other pastime we choose to occupy the rest of the day. But this thanksgiving rhetoric would not be complete without two warnings; the first is to remember to actually give thanks to God, with sincere hearts, and not only enjoy the festivities like we often do.
And secondly, let’s not overdo the partying and the reckless escapades we tend to get into on these occasions, for remember tomorrow is a workday and we cannot book of sick, or go to work all dragged out and tired. In other words, as that wise man Jeeves would say, let’s totally enjoy the celebrations, but with a modicum of circumspection, that’s being somewhat cautious and prudent, carefully considering all circumstances and potential consequences before taking action. End of the sermon! (smile)
Now, today, we’ll look at some scripture verses that speak of thanksgiving. But before we do that here is some commentary on the matter from the Christianpure website. They break it down into three specific aspects: (1) ‘Gratitude as a Way of Life: The Bible teaches that thanksgiving should permeate every aspect of a believer’s life, encouraging gratitude in all circumstances, not just in times of abundance but also in trials. This perspective transforms how we view our experiences, prompting us to see God’s hand and goodness in every situation.
(2) God’s Enduring LOVE and Faithfulness: Central to the theme of thanksgiving in the Bible is the recognition of God’s unchanging LOVE and faithfulness as the foundation for our gratitude. The verses highlight God’s goodness and mercy as constant reasons for thanksgiving, inviting believers to respond to His LOVE with a heart full of thankfulness.
(3) Thanksgiving as Worship: The act of giving thanks is depicted not only as a personal attitude but also as an act of worship that glorifies God. Through prayers, songs, and testimonies of God’s wonderful deeds, thanksgiving becomes a powerful expression of faith and adoration, drawing believers closer to God and reinforcing their trust in Him.’
And now, having a more in-depth idea of thanksgiving, let’s look at a few verses that fit the bill, beginning with this verse from Bruh Paul to the Thessalonians, which sets the stage for all the others. ‘In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.’ (1 Thess. 5:18) Now that could not be any more specific; in everything we are to give thanks, be grateful regardless of our circumstances, because that’s what the Lord desires of us through Christ Jesus.
Then we have the opening verse of Psalm 107, which is repeated several times throughout the Bible. ‘O give thanks unto the Lord for he is good: for his mercy (LOVING-KINDNESS) endureth for ever.’ (Ps. 107:1) And as the commentary from the Christianpure website tells us: ‘This Psalm highlights God’s enduring LOVE as the foundation for thanksgiving. It reminds us that God’s goodness is constant, providing a perpetual reason for gratitude, reflecting on His unchanging nature and faithful LOVE.’
And what about these verses from Colossians? ‘And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.’ (Col. 3:15-17)
And the commentary reasons that ‘This passage ties thankfulness to the peace of Christ and communal worship. It suggests that gratitude is both a personal attitude and a communal practice, enriched through sharing and teaching, with music as a powerful expression of our thankful hearts.’
Unfortunately though, we have time for just one more verse, another one we ought to know quite well. This from Philippians: ‘Be careful (anxious) for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.’ (Phil. 3:6) And per the commentary: ‘This verse teaches that thanksgiving is a crucial element of prayer, transforming anxiety into peace. It implies that gratitude shifts our focus from our worries to God’s provision, encouraging a trustful surrender to His care.’
Now hopefully we have a somewhat deeper and richer understanding of thanksgiving, (smile) so let’s go to the throne of grace through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn seeking divine aid for our strife-filled world. Altogether: ‘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. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems.
Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but 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. So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.
Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us 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!’
And as our prayer indicates, now that we’ve prayed, we must begin turning from our evil ways, and sincerely seek God’s face, if we desire to receive divine aid. That means the ball is now in our court. So please, let’s do something productive and worthwhile with it! Much LOVE!
…giving thanks is what God expects from us…in every circumstance…so why are we so reluctant to do it eh…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
06 Oct 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a deep longing for God, a disciplined mind, a man of God, a pilgrim feast, a shattering of my bones, a sword in my bones, an attitude change, as the hart panteth after the water brooks, but of power love and a sound mind, Christian witness, come to faith in Christ, day and night, deep calleth unto deep, despite all of our hardships, divine aid, do a good job for Jesus, doing the right things, don't know which way to turn, faith, for my name's sake, frustration is our lot, getting the wrong results, God has not given us the spirit of fear, gone with the multitude, good for a man, hated by all men, he that endureth to the end shall be saved, hell in a handbasket, his song shall be with me, holy spirit, hope and wait quietly for the Lord's salvation, hope thou in God, humble servants, I remember these things, in the night, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus Christ, kept a holyday, LOVE, mercy, my enemies reproach me all the day, my prayer, my soul is cast down within me, my tears have been my meat, never give up, not making any headway, pour out my soul, praise God for His presence, praise him for the help of his countenance, praise Your Holy Name, profess our faith, promise to prosper us, reassuring words, remember all the Lord's done for us, remember thee from the land of Jordan, salvation, say unto my rock, show this evil world, sincere repentance, sincerely seek your face, so panteth my soul after thee O God, standing strong and steadfast, strong faith in Christ, summer in October, the God of my life, the God who heals, the health of my countenance, the hill Mizar, the house of God, the Lamentations of Jeremiah, the Lord is good unto them that wait for him, the Lord is my portion, the Lord will command his loving-kindness in the daytime, the mass confusion in our world, the noise of thy waterspouts, the noise of waterfalls, the oppression of the enemy, the power to solve our many problems, the situation is in our hands, the sons of Korah, the voice of joy, therefore will I hope in him, thirsting for God, to the soul that seeketh him, truth, trying times, turn from our evil ways, unbelievers are laughing at us, uncertain times, waves and billows, we're lost, what are we going to do about it, When shall I come and appear before God, where is thy God, Why art thou cast down o my soul, why art thou disquieted within me, why go I mourning, why hast thou forgotten me, wisdom, work everything out for our good
Psalm 42:1. As the hart (deer) panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.
And even if you don’t like Mondays, you must admit that this is certainly a beautiful one; summer in October, and that alone should boost your spirits and encourage you to do a good job for Jesus today, this first day of our work week. (smile) In fact, we ought to be reminded of these marvellous words from Psalm 42, as the Sons of Korah sincerely declare: ‘As the hart (deer) panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God?’ (Ps. 42:1-2)
Yes my faithful brethren, in these terrible and uncertain times, many of us are thirsting for God, we have a deep longing for Him, because we’re lost and don’t know which way to turn. Frustration is our lot, regardless of what we do. We confess like the psalmists: ‘My tears have been my meat (food) day and night, while they continually say unto me, Where is thy God?’ (Ps. 42:3)
And sadly my people, many of us are facing such trying times as our world goes to hell in a handbasket. The unbelievers are indeed laughing at us, when we profess our faith and yet are not making any or much headway in this life. They mock us by asking where is the great God we talk about; the One who is supposed to help us make it successfully through this earthly life?
But like the Sons of Korah further declare: ‘When I remember these things, I pour out my soul in me: for I had gone with the multitude, I went with them into the house of God, with the voice of joy and praise, with a multitude that kept holyday (a pilgrim feast).’ (Ps. 42:4) And it can indeed be tough when we believe we’re doing all the right things, but are getting the wrong results. Thus, we question: ‘Why art thou cast down (bowed down), O my soul? and why art thou disquieted in me? Hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him for the help of his countenance (presence).’ (Ps. 42:5)
Now that last half of the verse is how we should be standing strong and steadfast despite all our hardships and difficulties. Why? Because the Lord did not promise that we would not see tough times, but that in the long run He would work everything out for our good. (Rom. 8:28) Therefore, despite circumstances that cause our souls to be cast down and disquieted, we need to still praise the Lord, while remembering all that He’s done for us in the past.
And though the psalmist continues his lament, he nonetheless does just that. ‘O my God, my soul is cast down within me: therefore will I remember thee from the land of Jordan, and of the Hermonites from the hill (mount) Mizar. Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of thy waterspouts (waterfalls): all thy waves and thy billows are gone over me. Yet the Lord will command his LOVING-KINDNESS in the daytime, and in the night his song shall be with me, and my prayer unto the God of my life.’ (Ps. 42:6-8)
And will we ever be surprised at how our attitude changes when we remember all the things that God has done in our lives. So, though we still sadly lament: ‘I will say unto my rock, Why hast thou forgotten me? Why go I mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?
As with a sword in my bones (a shattering of my bones), mine enemies’ reproach (revile) me; while they say daily (all day long) unto me, Where is thy God? Why art thou cast down (bowed down), O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance (my salvation).’ (Ps. 42:9-11)
Yes my fellow believers, once we come to faith in Christ, we will possibly find more problems simply because of that fact. For as Jesus said: ‘And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.’ (Matt. 10:22) So the important thing is never to give up, regardless of how tough times and things might get.
Now, here are the encouraging and reassuring words of another man of God who had a hard life, lamented much, but never gave up. We’re talking about the prophet Jeremiah, who wrote in his Lamentations: ‘The Lord is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him. 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. 3:24-26)
And there’s no better advice that that in the Bible. But it’s also hard to take it when things are tough. So, let’s go to the throne of grace, through Our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, seeking divine aid with our many problems. Altogether: ‘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. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems.
Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but 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. So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.
Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us 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!’
And as our prayer indicates, to receive that divine aid, we need to improve our Christian witness with acts like sincere repentance, turning from our evil ways, and seeking God more than ever! That means the situation is in our hands…So what are going to do about it eh? Much LOVE!
…God has not given us the spirit of fear…but of power…and of LOVE…and of a sound (disciplined) mind… (2 Tim. 1:7)
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
29 Sep 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: accompanying this ignorance, all things that are reproved, arise from the dead, awake thou that sleepest, begin on a good footing, bring sins to light, but rather reprove them, Christ shall give thee light, Christian witness, constant temptations, darkness encompassed people, discerning what is acceptable to the Lord, divine aid, ease the pain, expose them, exposed sins, faith, fellowship, fooling ourselves, guilt and misery, happiness, have no fellowship, hear and answer our prayers, hideous nature, holy spirit, humble ourselves, humble servants, immorality, in all goodness righteousness and truth, indulge in the sins of the unsaved, it is a shame, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus Christ, keep the enemy at bay, keep your promise to prosper us, knowledge of the truth, light in the Lord, LOVE, made manifest by the light, made visible by the gospel, mass confusion, mercy, moral purity, now ye are light in the Lord, pleading for wise guidance, pray, pretend we're walking in the light, proving what is acceptable unto the Lord, religiously informed, rousing unbelievers, salt and light, salvation, show them your awesome grace and mercy, sincere repentance, sincerely seek God's face, solicitations to evil, spiritual darkness, spiritually unenlightened, stop committing those sins, strong faith in Christ, terrible consequences, the error of their ways, the everlasting light of Christ, the first day of the week, the first day of the workweek, the fruit of the spirit, the fruitful works of darkness, the God who heals, the light of Christ, the many suffering from negative situations, the power to solve our problems, the unfruitful works of darkness, to alleviate our problems, to speak of those things done in secret, truth, turn away from hideous sins, turn from our evil ways, unadvisable sleep, walk as children of light, walk in darkness, whatsoever doth make manifest is light, wisdom, ye were sometimes darkness
Ephesians 5:8. For ye were sometimes (once) darkness, but now ye are light in the Lord: walk as children of light:
And after Sunday, the first day of the week, comes Monday, the first day of the work week. Now, let’s hope that we are all ready for it, because if we’re not, then things can definitely go downhill for the remainder of the week, since the strongly held belief by some that a bad beginning makes for a good ending is not always true, for sometimes a bad beginning just makes for a worse ending. So, it’s always best to try and begin on a good footing rather than a bad one. (smile)
And today, I want to continue with a passage that we did not get to put into the Bit yesterday, since it would have made it much too long and complicated. It’s about the light of Christ that Christians ought to be avidly and vividly proclaiming, walking as children of light, as written by Bruh Paul to the Ephesians.
He compassionately informs them: ‘For ye were sometimes (once) darkness, but now ye are light in the Lord: walk as children of light: (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;) Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord. And have no fellowship with the fruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove (expose) them.
For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret. But all things that are reproved (exposed) are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light. Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.’ (Eph. 5:8-14)
Yes friends, once upon a time we lived in spiritual darkness, or as the scholars’ state, ‘spiritually unenlightened, and accompanying this ignorance was immorality with its resultant guilt and misery.’ However, since we’ve received Jesus, who is the Light, the scholars say ‘that denotes that the recipients are now to be religiously informed. Their knowledge of the truth is attended by moral purity and happiness. And because of constant temptations and solicitations to evil, believers must always be proving or discerning what is and what is not acceptable unto the Lord.’
Furthermore, ‘the believer’s duty is expressed here in two ways. Negatively, he is not to have any fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, that is not to indulge in the sins of the unsaved. Positively, he is to “expose” (reprove) these sins, that is, bring them to light and show them for what they really are, so that the unbeliever may see their hideous nature and their terrible consequences.’
Yes my brethren, it’s always best to uncover and expose those terrible sins of darkness that are constantly taking place in our rather evil world, so that those who are lost can see and understand the error of their ways and the terrible consequences that they will incur if they stay in that state of sinful darkness. And as the scholars point out, if it’s indecent or ‘shameful to even speak of those iniquities in decent company (vs. 3), then how much worse is the committing of these sins. Hence the need to bring them to the light.’
Now that’s what we’re here for, to stop committing those sins, and instead expose them to the light. And per vs. 13, the scholars have an interesting explanation of it. They say: ‘This verse may be paraphrased: All sins that are exposed are made visible by the gospel, for whatever sin is made visible becomes light.’ And that’s understandable, because the gospel allows us to expose those sins, not only by bringing them to light, but also making them light so that they can inform others.
Then re vs.14, they tell us: ‘Since exposing sin is beneficial, God invites the unbeliever (thou that sleepest) to turn from his sin (arise from the dead), with the promise that he will be granted the spiritual enlightenment and help needed (Christ shall give thee light).’ Ah my people, I do hope that we see how important it is for us to both live in the light and help others to do the same, because that’s the only way we will first, keep the enemy at bay, and then eventually win his darkness encompassed people to the bright, enlightening and everlasting light of Christ.
That means it’s imperative we get out into the world this Monday, the second to last day of September and begin rousing the unbelievers from their inadvisable sleep, so that they can start turning away from their hideous sins. Oh, by the way, many of us supposed believers also have secretly hidden hideous sins, which we are also expected to give up. (smile) Now, for help in all that we are meant to do, let’s go to the throne of grace through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, seeking powerful divine aid.
Altogether: ‘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. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems.
Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but 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. So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.
Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us 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!’
And my fellow believers, let’s not kid ourselves, for we know that we’re not as salt and light as we ought to be, that’s why our Christian witness is sadly lacking, so if we truly want to fulfill our mandate as disciples of Christ, let’s sincerely begin humbling ourselves, praying, seeking His face, and turning from our evil ways. That’s the only way we will ever get true divine aid! Much LOVE!
…how can so many of us believers…walk in darkness…and yet pretend we’re walking in the light…we’re only fooling ourselves…not God…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
26 Sep 2025
by randyobrien50
in Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a new flock of believers, Abraham prayed for Ahimelech, Abraham wavered not from God's command, Abram did not learn his lesson, Abram twice claimed Sarai was his sister, Abram's behaviour, be not afraid of them that kill the body, because of the Pharisees, by the example we faithful believers set, can do no more after that, Christians often live by fear not faith, crying out for God's help, defeat the simmering unrest in our land, discontent, dissatisfaction, divine aid, embrace your love and compassion, escalating problems, faith, favourite day of our work week, fear God who can kill both body and soul, fear him who after killing, Friday chant, give our leaders wise guidance, God commanded Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, God made the women of Ahimelech's household barren, God's omnipotent help, God's amazing grace, hath power to cast into hell, him will I also deny before my Father in heaven, him will I confess before my Father in heaven, holy spirit, improved witness for Christ, in the name of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, lest they be put out of the synagogue, LOVE, many believed on Jesus, mercy, more than the praise of God, our sinful world, refused to publicly acknowledge Jesus, restoring faith in you, return backsliders to your fold, safe in the protection of God, salvation, show them the error of their ways, slay me for my wife's sake, stand strong and steadfast, standard of witness for Christ, stop fearing man, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, the anxiety and confusion, the fear of God is not in this place, the fear of man bringeth a snare, the last weekend of September, the Lord healed the women's barrenness, the Lord plagued Pharaoh, the Lord provided a ram for the sacrifice, the promised child Isaac, the throne of grace, these ungodly times, they loved the praise of men, trusting faith, truth, unexpected storms, wake up and smell the coffee, we of little faith, whoso puts their trust in the Lord shall be safe, whosoever shall confess me before men, wisdom, wise guidance
Proverbs 29:25. The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe (secure).
And then, it was that favourite day of our work week, Friday! And all kinds of shouts of ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ obviously rose to high heaven, especially since Friday has turned out to be bright and sunny, not cloudy and damp like the last few days have been. Now, would you believe that we’re also getting into the last weekend of September and we haven’t seen one truly chilly day as yet. That’s certainly unusual, but we’ll take it, and say the Lord be praised. (smile)
Now today, we want to continue along the same path as yesterday, talking about being safe in the protection of Almighty God. And once more, we want to put forward this marvellous advice from Cousin Sol. ‘The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe (secure).’ (Prov. 29:25) And we see the truth of that statement right from the very beginning, when Abram went down to Egypt due to a famine in his land, and feared for his life because his wife Sarai was beautiful, and convinced her to say that she was his sister.
And so it was. The Egyptians indeed saw her as beautiful and Pharaoh took her into his house and paid Abram well for the privilege. (Gen. 12:10-16) But soon thereafter, the Bible tells us: ‘Then the Lord plagued Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai Abram’s wife.’ (Gen. 12:17) When Pharaoh realized what had happened, he called Abram, upbraided him, and sent him away with Sarai and all his possessions.
But he still did not learn his lesson, for later on when he became Abraham and sojourned in Gerar, he again said that Sarah was his sister. This time to king Abimelech, who obviously took her into his household. But thankfully, the Lord appeared to the king and threatened him to give Sarah back to her husband. (Gen. 20:1-10) And when Abimelech rebuked Abraham, his excuse was: ‘Because I thought, Surely the fear of God is not in this place; and they will slay me for my wife’s sake (on account of my wife).’ (Gen. 20:11)
And thus again, through God’s amazing grace, he was sent away with more riches. But the interesting scenario is that God had closed up all the wombs of the women in Ahimelech’s household because he took Sarah into his house. However, when all was said and done, Abraham prayed for Ahimelech and his household, and the Lord healed the women’s barrenness. Obviously friends, up to that time, our patriarch, both as Abram and Abraham, did not truly put his complete trust in the God whom he claimed to believe in.
But all of that was greatly improved by the time that Abraham received the promised child of Isaac and then the Lord told him to go and sacrifice the child. Abraham did not waiver, but went and did as the Lord commanded,. And we all know that the Lord provided a ram for the sacrifice instead of Issac. (Gen. 22:1-14) Now that’s the level of trust and faith to which we should all aspire, simply doing whatever God tells us to do, without querying it, knowing that He will eventually work it all out for our good.
Oh my brethren, it’s like Jesus warns in the gospel of Luke: ‘And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kil the body, and after that have no more that they can do. But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea,, I say unto you, Fear him.’ (Luke 12:4-5) And that’s the best advice we can ever receive; stop fearing man, who can only kill the body, but fear God, who can kill both the body and soul.
And we see that fear of man persisting even amongst the Jewish rulers of Jesus’ time. As John writes about people refusing to believe in Jesus despite all that he had done. ‘Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess (publicly acknowledge) him, lest they be put out of the synagogue. For they LOVED the praise of men more than the praise of God.’ (John 12:42-43)
And to this day, nothing much has changed in that respect. Many of us still refuse to confess Jesus publicly because we’re afraid of what mankind would do. Ah we of little faith! But let’s go home remembering these most important words of Jesus on the subject. ‘Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.’ (Matt. 10:32-33) Yes friends, those are good words for us to ponder on today, as we go to the throne of grace through our Friday Chant, seeking divine aid in these terrible times.
Altogether: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough… because our many serious problems are escalating instead of improving. And it’s obvious we can’t fix them on our own, so Lord, we’re desperately crying out for your help. Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat the simmering unrest in our land. We therefore ask you Lord to give our leaders the wise guidance to handle these unexpected storms properly. And please help the rest of us to be responsible and to stay safe amidst all the anxiety and confusion of these ungodly times.
We fervently pray too Lord that you’ll use the discontent and dissatisfaction in our land as a means of restoring faith in you. Return backsliders to your fold. Show them the error of their ways. And please introduce a new flock of believers, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example, we, your faithful believers set. So that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, wake up and smell it sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
Oh my people, we pray good prayers, but unfortunately our Christian witness is not up to standard, so our prayers are not answered. Therefore, let’s concentrate on lifting the standard of witness for Christ nuh, for then, and only then will we receive divine aid! Much LOVE!
…many Christians claim to have faith…but too often it’s fear they live by…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
22 Sep 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a city that is set on a hill cannot be hid, a merciful forgiving and gracious God, acts as a preservative, by what shall it be salted, Christians have lost our salty flavour, clean our lampshades, constantly sprinkling our salty flavour, darkness is the absence of light, divine aid, faith, faith is being besieged by evil, faithfully promised to hear our prayers, find life and light in Christ, good for nothing, grow in spiritual maturity, helping the lost and blind, holy spirit, humble ourselves and pray, humble servants, if the salt has lost it s flavour, in our dysfunctional world, it cannot happen overnight, it gives light to all in the house, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus Christ, keep the fires of Christ burning, keep your promise to prosper us, lackadaisical discipleship, light up the world's darkness, LOVE, make a positive difference, making a difference, mass confusion in our world, meet the needs of the world, melts coldness, men light a candle, mercy, not doing a commendable job for Jesus, our great God Jehovah, our lights constantly shining, our saltshakers, persistence and perseverance, put it under a bushel, room for improvement, salt adds flavouring, salt heals wounds, salvation, shining lights of Christianity, showers of heavenly blessings, sincere repentance, sincerely seek your face, sinned and seriously disobeyed your word, strife-filled times, the God who heals, the keys to unlocking the closed doors, the responsibilities of Christians, the smallest light can dispel the greatest darkness, the throne of grace, to be cast out, to hear and answer our prayers, trodden under foot of men, truth, turn from our evil ways, uncertain and ungodly times, where evil and darkness lurk, wisdom, Ye are the light of the world, ye are the salt of the earth
Matthew 5:13a, 14a. Ye are the salt of the earth: Ye are the light of the world.
Another Monday…another new work week friends, and everything should be nice and clean after the thunder, lightning, and showers of heavenly blessings we received during the night. And did we ever need the rain, for it’s something we haven’t seen for almost a couple of weeks, what with all the unaccustomed warm, sunshiny weather we’ve been having in this month of September 2025. But I do have the feeling that things will soon return to normal, and the customary cooler and wetter weather at this time of year, will shortly assert itself.
However, be that as it may, even in the cold, wet, cloudy weather, we are still required to keep the fires of Christ burning hot and bright, and make a proactive, positive and productive difference in these uncertain and ungodly times. And right now, when faith is being besieged by evil, and many of us are having a hard time to simply hold on, much less to grow in spiritual maturity, we do need a reminder of that most salient fact.
It’s like Christ said in the Sermon on the Mount. ‘Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt has lost its savour (flavour), wherewith (by what) shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.’ (Matt. 5:13) And sadly friends, in these disastrous and strife-filled times, it would certainly seem that Christ’s people have lost their salt, their salty flavour, since we’re not making much of a positive difference in the world today.
And I like how the scholars explain that verse. They say: ‘Again the phrase “ye are” indicates that only the genuinely born-again person is salt and can help meet the needs of the world. Salt adds flavouring, acts as a preservative, melts coldness, and heals wounds. Thus, it is a very appropriate description of the believer in his relationship to the world in which he lives.’
The question now is whether we can genuinely say that we are living up to those important responsibilities of helping our world, of helping the lost and blind find life and light in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ? And if we are truthful, we would have to say that we are indeed NOT living up to our responsibilities, that’s why so many still don’t know about Christ, and many who do know about Him, refuse to accept Him.
And if being the salty, mouthwatering, wanting more flavour of the world wasn’t enough, then listen to what Jesus also says of His loyal followers. ‘Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle (a lamp), and put it under a bushel (basket), but on a candlestick (lampstand); and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.’ (Matt. 5:14-16)
Now that’s another aspect of our discipleship of Christ; letting our lights shine brightly so that others can see it and come to know, understand and worship our great God Jehovah! That makes it necessary for us to again ask the question, are we shining our lights sufficiently to make, not even a big difference, but simply a recognizable one, in our needy and dysfunctional world? And sadly, again, if we are truthful, we would have to say NO, we are not making a worthwhile difference in the world, otherwise it would not be currently overrun with evil and evildoers!
And what do the scholars say about those verses? ‘Ye are the light of the world describes the essential mission of the Christian to the world. He is the condition (salt) to meet the world’s needs, and he has a mission (light) to the world. His light is to clearly shine forth into the darkness of human depravity. He is to set his light upon a candlestick, not hide it under a bushel, that is, a basket. Darkness is the absence of light; and darkness alone cannot dispel the light, but the smallest light can dispel the greatest darkness.’
That means we don’t have to go overboard with either our salt or light, but simply have our saltshakers constantly sprinkling our salty flavour, and our lights also constantly shining to light up the world’s darkness. It cannot happen overnight, but persistence and perseverance are the keys to unlocking those closed doors behind which all kinds of evil and darkness lurk. So please, let’s try and do better nuh. We all know that we have much room for improvement, and right now we are not doing a commendable job as followers of Jesus.
And to help us get things turned around, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, seeking divine aid for our lackadaisical discipleship! Altogether: ‘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. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems.
Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but 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. So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.
Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us 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!’
And our prayer shows us some important aspects that need improving before we can receive divine aid; like praying, humbling ourselves, sincerely seeking God’s face and turning from our evil ways. Those are only some of the things we need to do friends to recover our salty flavour, and clean our lampshades, so that bright light can emanate from them again! Much LOVE!
…Jesus’ followers…must take discipleship much more seriously…than they are currently doing…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
19 Sep 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a means of restoring faith in you, a new flock of believers, all for our benefit, amidst all the anxiety and confusion, as the shining light, be responible, brighten our lives with God's Word, by the example your faithful believers set, cause someone to fall, centres us out for destruction, confusion of these ungodly times, criminals, crying out for your help, defeat the simmering unrest in our land, discontent, dissatisfaction, divine aid, do something about our very evil society, drink the wine of violence, eat the bread of wickedness, embrace your love and compassion, enter not into the path of the wicked, faith, fight valiantly against demonic desires, fill our houses with spoil, find precious substance, find wealth, Friday chant, go not in the way of evil men, God's omnipotent help, holy spirit, if sinners entice thee consent not, improve our Christian witness, Jesus Christ, lack of responsibility, lay wait for blood, live righteously, LOVE, lurk privily for the innocent, make haste to shed blood, making a mockery of Christ, mercy, not live the lives of unbelievers, our sinful world, our trusting faith, plunder, problems are escalating, propagate violence, refrain thy foot from their path, return backsliders to your fold, robbed of sleep, robbery with violence, salvation, show them the error of their ways, smell it sweet and strong, stand strong and steadfast, stand up and live the righteous life, stay safe, swallow them up alive, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, that shineth more and more, the blessings of the righteous, the enemy tries to dim our light, the first step is always prayer, the job of Christians, the latest rage, the lawlessness of our society, the path of the just, the perishing of the unrighteous, the throne of grace, the weekend is here at last, the young taking advantage of the old, their feet run to evil, their sleep is taken away, they sleep not unless they've done evil, to live lives others desire, toothless and worthless laws, truth, turbulent times, unexpected storms, unto the perfect day, victims of crime, wake up and smell the coffee, walk not in the way with them, wisdom, wise guidance
Proverbs 4:18. But the path of the just is as the shining (bright) light, that shineth more and more (ever brighter) unto the perfect day.
And then it was finally Friday, and thus all the voices rose to heaven saying: ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday, and the weekend is here at last!’ Yes friends the weekend is indeed on the horizon and we just can’t wait for this day to be over, so we don’t have to worry about getting up early and rushing out to work. And thankfully too, today is another wonderful summer’s day, with the sun valiantly fighting off the bit of cloud cover that is trying to hide its light. It’s like the enemy tries to dim our lights when we try to brighten them with the Word of God and live righteously. But like the sun, we also need to fight valiantly against that demonic desire. (smile)
Now, yesterday we looked at Psalm 1, which explained very simply and precisely about the blessings of the righteous and the perishing of the unrighteous. Today, I want to continue looking at some other scriptures that admonish us with the same words of wisdom. And who better to get them from than Cousin Sol, the wisest man ever. Right in the beginning of Proverbs, he issues this warning.
‘My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not. If they say, Come with us, let us lay wait for (to shed) blood, let us lurk privily (secretly) for the innocent without cause: Let us swallow them up alive as the grave; and whole, as those that go down into the pit: We shall all find precious substance (wealth), we shall fill our houses with spoil (plunder): My son, walk not in the way with them; refrain (keep) thy foot from their path: For their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood.’ (Prov. 1:10:16)
Oh my people, it sems as though Cousin Sol is speaking of one of today’s major problems; robbery with great violence. Every day we hear of some other violent robbery in the news media, and it’s certainly getting out of hand. And the sad part is that many of the crimes are being committed by young people on elderly folk. The young taking advantage of the old. That’s not the way it’s supposed to be. The young are supposed to help and look after the old, not rob them of their livelihood and/or lives. But with lawlessness of our society and the lack of responsibility of the young, that’s the latest rage.
When will the government wake up and do something concrete about the situation eh, for many of these criminals are either out on bail, parole, or already have long criminal records, while many of them are being encouraged by older criminals because they know the current Young Offender Laws are toothless and worthless. When you can violently kill other humans and only receive a three year sentence because you’re under the age of 17 or 18, and neither your name or picture can be mentioned in the news, as well as your criminal file is closed forever, but the victim’s name and picture can be spread all over the news, why won’t the young be enticed to commit violent crimes eh?
The problem with those who make these laws and thus propagate the violence, is that they don’t actually feel the hurt and grief because none of their LOVED ones are usually victims of these terrible situations. And it’s only when they actually feel the hurt and grief that they ever tend to do something serious about it. But that’s a sad way for a society to conduct its business. Anyhow, enough of my admonishment, let’s get back to some more scripture on the blessedness of righteousness, and the destruction of the unrighteous.
Listen to Cousin Sol one more time. ‘Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. Avoid it, pass not by it (do not travel on it), turn from it, and pass away. For they sleep not, except (unless) they have done mischief (evil); and their sleep is taken away (they are robbed of sleep) unless they cause some to fall. For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence. But the path of the just is as the shining (bright) light, that shineth more and more (ever brighter) unto the perfect day.’ (Prov. 4:14-18)
Oh my fellow believers, I could not have put it any better than Cousin Sol has. So please, let’s wake up and do something serious about our less than righteous or rather very evil society nuh! It’s our job, that of Christians, to live the kind of life that will cause others to desire what we have, but unfortunately it seems that we are living the lives that the unbelievers desire. And that’s simply not kosher! No mih bredrin, it’s certainly not acceptable, for in doing so we’re just making a mockery of Christ and our Christian faith, which makes us unrighteous just like the unbelievers and therefore, like them, also centres us out for destruction.
Ah Lord eh! I don’t know what it will take for us supposed believers in Jesus Christ to really stand up and live the righteous life that He desires of us nuh, but I do know that our first step is always prayer. So let’s do that by going to the throne of grace through our Friday Chant, seeking divine aid in these turbulent times.
Altogether: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough… because our many serious problems are escalating instead of improving. And it’s obvious we can’t fix them on our own, so Lord, we’re desperately crying out for your help. Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat the simmering unrest in our land. We therefore ask you Lord to give our leaders the wise guidance to handle these unexpected storms properly. And please help the rest of us to be responsible and to stay safe amidst all the anxiety and confusion of these ungodly times.
We fervently pray too Lord that you’ll use the discontent and dissatisfaction in our land as a means of restoring faith in you. Return backsliders to your fold. Show them the error of their ways. And please introduce a new flock of believers, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example, we, your faithful believers set. So that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, wake up and smell it sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
Unfortunately though friends, it’s nothing but a joke when we talk about the new believers following our example, because our current example is certainly not good enough. That means we have to improve our Christian witness before we can receive any divine aid. It’s as simple as that! So please, let’s get to seriously working on it nuh, for it’s all for our benefit! Much LOVE!
…Christians know what we ought to do…so why aren’t we doing it eh…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
15 Sep 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a daily choice for believers, a merciful God, a repeated experience for believers, be filled with the Holy Spirit, be grateful for all things, be not drunk with wine wherein is excess, be used for good, being refilled with the Holy Spirit, Christians be filled with the Holy Spirit, continually yielded to God's control and power, contrary to God's will, control one's passions and lusts, dependability, disobeyed God's word, dissipation, divine aid, divinely allowed to enter one's life, do the Lord's work, don't get drunk on alcoholic beverages, drunkenness, exhort and instruct each other, faith, faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers, generosity, gentleness, giving thanks always for all things, gladness of heart, God's will, goodness, grow spiritually in Christ, holy spirit, humble servants, in psalms hymns and spiritual songs, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, individual song and praise for the Lord, it's all for our benefit, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus Christ, joy, kindness, longsuffering, LOVE, making melody in your heart to the Lord, mass confusion in our world, mercy, moral intemperance, negative situations, not a one time thing, obedience to God's will, ongoing submission to God's will, patience with others, peace, practical advice for living the Christian life, sacrificial giving of oneself, salvation, seed planted and nourished by the Holy spirit, self-control, show them your awesome grace and mercy, sincerely seek your face, singing, speaking to yourselves, submitting yourselves one to another, temperance, thank you for life and strong faith in Christ, the believer is expected to bear much fruit, the fear of God, the fruit of the spirit, the gifts of the Spirit, the God who heals, the Holy Spirit gets more of the believer, the only one to solve our problems, the throne of grace, to alleviate our problems, tranquility of mind, truth, turn from our evil ways, under the influence of wine, unto god and the Father, wisdom, wise guidance
Ephesians 5:18. And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess (dissipation); but be filled with the Holy Spirit.
It’s Monday once again my people, time to get up and get going out into the world to do the Lord’s work! Let’s hope that we’re all refreshed and renewed with His Holy Spirit so that we can do good, efficient, excellent work on this sunshiny summer’s day. It’s like Bruh Paul wrote to the Ephesians: ‘And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess (dissipation); but be filled with the Holy Spirit.’ (Eph. 5:18).
And what does that mean? According to the scholars, ‘that basically means we’re not to get drunk on alcoholic beverages, because it leads to drunkenness and excessive behaviour causing moral intemperance, which is clearly contrary to God’s will. God’s will is that Christians be filled with (by) the Holy Spirit; that is, they are to allow Him to fill them with God’s own life, character and virtues. The analogy between these two moral states is this: a person filled with wine is under its influence; similarly, a Christian is filled with the Spirit when He (the Spirit) controls his thoughts.’
And I like how this commentary explains the situation. It says: ‘To be refilled with the Holy Spirit means to be continually yielded to God’s control and power, a state of ongoing submission and obedience to His will, rather than a one-time event. It is an intentional, active, and daily choice by believers to allow the Holy Spirit to empower them to live a victorious and fruitful Christian life by obeying God’s Word, committing to prayer and fellowship, and trusting in God’s sovereignty.’
Yes friends, being refilled with the Holy Spirit is not a one-time thing, but a continual filling, a repeated experience for believers. Where we actively submit our will to God’s control, thus ‘making a conscious decision to live under His constant direction and power, leading to a transformed character and priorities.’ And Bruh Paul, as is his wont, goes on to give us some practical advice on how to achieve those desires in real life.
He writes: ‘Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.’ (Eph. 5:19-21) What a great passage of scripture that is my brethren!
And the scholars break it down thus: ‘There are four results of being Spirit-filled. (1) believers speak to one another with psalms, and hymns, and spiritual songs; that is, they exhort and instruct each other; (2) there is singing and the making of melody, of individual song and praise for the Lord; (3) there is giving thanks always – the Spirit enables the Christian to be grateful for all things divinely allowed to enter his life since they will be used for good; (4) there is mutual submission, that is, showing deference to the wishes of one another, as long as that to which the believer submits is in the fear of God, which is to say, in accord with what pleases Him.’
Then there’s an interesting addendum that the scholars add to their explanation, which says: ‘Because people are indwelt by the Holy Spirit at salvation, they do not need to get more of the Holy Spirit, but the filling of the Spirit occurs when the Holy Spirit gets more of the believer.’ Wow! That sounds right. Technically speaking, we already have the Holy Spirit dwelling with us, so we can’t get any more of it in the sense of receiving it, but instead we need to give more of ourselves to the Holy Spirit, that’s listening to Him more, so that He can lead, guide and comfort us in the manner our heavenly Father desires.
And all that practical advice that Bruh Paul gives back there can only be successfully accomplished if we have the fruit of the Spirit flourishing in us. And what’s the fruit of the Spirit? Bruh Paul explained it thus to the Galatians. ‘But the fruit of the Spirit is LOVE (the willing sacrificial giving of oneself for the benefit of another without thought of return), joy (gladness of heart), peace (tranquility of mind, freeing one from worry and fear), longsuffering (patience with others).
Gentleness is kindness. Goodness is generosity. Faith here is dependability. Meekness is gentleness, that is, courtesy and consideration in one’s relations with others. Temperance is self-control, that is the ability to harness and control one’s passions and lusts. (Gal. 5:22-23) And that’s the nine fruit of the Spirit (singular), unlike the gifts of the Spirit (plural). And for this fruit to develop, all nine aspects must mature. In other words, we won’t grow spiritually unless all the fruit is maturing and growing.
And having said all those things, it’s time now to go to the throne of grace, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn seeking divine aid to put them into effect. (smile) Altogether: ‘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. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems.
Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but 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. So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.
Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us 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!’
And as we can see from our prayer certain things are necessary before we can receive divine aid; like humbling ourselves, praying, sincerely seeking God’s face and turning from our evil ways. So please, let’s concentrate on improving in those areas nuh, so that divine aid can begin flowing down to us. Remember, it’s all for our benefit!! Much LOVE!
…the Christian believer…is expected to bear much fruit…from seed planted and nourished by the Holy Spirit…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
08 Sep 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a doer of the work, a hearer of the word and not a doer, a joyful day, all sinned and disobeyed your word, alleviate our problems, altruistic service, balance in our christian walk, be ye doers of the word and not hearers only, beholds himself, blame everyone else for our problems, blame ourselves, breathe the breath of life, bridleth not his tongue, Christians talk a good talk, clean outside but dirty inside, compromises, controlled speech, deceiveth his own heart, deceiving yourselves, divine aid, don't walk the talk, don't walk the walk, faith, forgets what kind of man he was, frees from the principles of sin and death, God's unadulterated Word, holy spirit, humble servants, hypocrites, if any be a hearer of the word, if you think you're religious, ill prepared, in their affliction, increasing our knowledge of God's Word, inefficiency, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus Christ, keep himself unspotted from the world, lack of responsibility, lack of true Christian attitudes, like unto a man that beholdeth his face in a glass, look in the mirror, LOVE, mass confusion, mercy, negative situations, not a forgetful hearer, pray, problems are escalating, promise to prosper us, protect the victory that Jesus won, pure religion, rebukes mere doing, rebukes mere listening, salvation, separation from the world, sincerely seek God's face, spiritual metaphor, stress, taken advantage of it, the death and resurrection Of Jesus, the God who heals, the Mosaic Law, the perfect law of liberty, the royal law, the stress of our busy society, the teachings of Christ, the throne of grace, this is the day which the Lord hath made, this man shall be blessed, this man's religion is vain, to visit the fatherless and widows, too much leeway, truth, turn from our evil ways, undefiled before God, we will rejoice and be glad in it, whited sepulchres, whitewashed tombs, whoso looketh into, wisdom, wise guidance
James 1:22. But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
Monday, oh Monday! What a joyful day it is! And some people will begin thinking that I’m crazy for exalting Monday. And they might just be right, who knows. (smile) But every day aren’t we supposed to mouth the encouraging scripture which says; ‘This is the day which the Lord hath made, we will rejoice and be glad in it?’ (Ps. 118:24) Of course! So then, why isn’t Monday a joyful day, and one in which we ought to rejoice eh?
Because we are often so ill prepared to meet it, and we try to take it out on the day, rather than our own inefficiency and lack of responsibility. And yes, it’s often tough getting up and going back to work on a Monday morning after sleeping in for a couple of days, to once again face all the stress and frustration inherent in our busy society. But that’s what life is all about, and we’ve been doing it for donkeys’ years now, so why does the problem of rejoicing and being glad in Monday still exist eh?
Because we like to blame everyone and everything else for our problems, rather than look in the mirror and blame the one who’s staring back at us. That’s certainly reminiscent of the way James uses it as a spiritual metaphor, when he talks about hearers and doers of the word. ‘But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding (observing) his natural face in a glass (mirror): For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what kind of man he was.’ (James 1:22-24)
Ah friends, far too many of us supposed believers fall into that category, where we talk a good talk but don’t walk the relevant walk. That’s why the world considers us to be nothing but a bunch of religious hypocrites or as Jesus called the Pharisees ‘whited sepulchres (whitewashed tombs), clean outside, but dirty inside. (Matt. 23:27) And they’re quite right, considering the compromises and lack of true Christian attitudes we so regularly display.
However, according to James, this is the attitude that the true Christian ought to be displaying. ‘But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed (what he does).’ (James 1:25)
And the scholars offer these explanations on that verse. ‘The perfect law of liberty probably refers to the teachings of Christ and His apostles. This law is perfect, since Christ brought to completion the teachings and work of the Mosaic Law (cf. Matt. 5:17-20; Rom. 10:4). It is a law of liberty because it frees from the principles of sin and death (Rom. 8:2-3; Gal. 5:1, 13). James also describes it as the royal law (2:8) for it is the law of the messianic King (cf. Gal. 6:2)
Now there are plenty of references for you to look up, so please check them out, because they greatly benefit us by increasing our knowledge and understanding of God’s Word. And James isn’t finished with his admonition. He continues: ‘If any man among you seem to be (thinks he’s) religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion is vain (useless). Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.’ (James 1:26-27)
And the scholars explain those verses thus: ‘In verses 22-25 James has rebuked mere listening – by the hearer who does not do. In verses 26-27 he rebukes mere doing – by the doer who leaves his inner life unchanged. James offers not a formal definition but three key aspects of pure religion: controlled speech, altruistic service, and separation from the world.’
Again, if we use those explanations as a sounding board, too many supposed believers are guilty of those unchristian attitudes. We talk but we don’t do; we do, but our lives stay the same and our motives are often wrong! And yes, it’s hard to find a good balance in our Christian Walk, with all the evil and ungodly things going on around us, but that’s why we have the Bible, God’s unadulterated, infallible and ever wise Word to read, meditate upon and put into action, as well as His Holy Spirit to lead and guide us in making wise decisions.
Unfortunately though, we don’t utilize all the tools we have at our disposal, therefore the enemy has gained a large foothold in the world, and we now must come from behind, in second place, to recover what we’ve lost and thus protect the victory that Jesus so sacrificially won through His death, resurrection and ascension. But we can do it, if we put our whole hearts, souls, bodies and minds to the grindstone, for the enemy is not more powerful than us, we’ve just given him too much leeway, which he’s taken advantage of.
And the first move for retaking our heritage is going to the throne of grace through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn seeking divine guidance. Altogether: ‘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. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems.
Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but 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. So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.
Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us 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!’
And the answer to our problems lies right within our prayer: humble ourselves, pray, sincerely seek God’s face, and turn from our evil ways. Then and only then will divine aid be forthcoming! Much LOVE!
…every day the Lord allows us to breathe His breath of life…is one He expects us to enjoy…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
01 Sep 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a better place for our children, a bunch of ungrateful sinners, a modicum of circumspection, both morning and evening, breaking his own heart, Christ died for us, divine aid, ease the pain, faith, fight valiantly to retain our benefits, God commendeth his own love toward us, God so loved the world, God's compassionate heart, God's unfailing love, goodness and mercy, grateful praise, Happy Labour Day, have everlasting life, he gave his only begotten son, heartfelt appreciation, hellfire and damnation, holy spirit, humble servants, I will triumph, in the works of thy hands, it is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus Christ, labour benefits, license to go overboard, LOVE, made me glad, mercy, negative situations, obeisance, paid the price for sin, repentance, rising up to God, sacrifice His sinless Son, salvation, show our gratitude, sincerely seek your face, the depth of feeling, the gift of salvation, the God who heals, the Lord's faithfulness, the Lord's love for us, the throne of grace, this evil world, through thy work, thy faithfulness every night, to alleviate our problems, to shew forth thy loving kindness in the morning, to sing praises unto thy name, truth, turn from our evil ways, upon an instrument of ten strongs, upon the harp, while we were yet sinners, whosoever believeth in hims should not perish, wisdom, wise guidance, with a solemn sound, you have made me gald through your work
Romans 5:8. But God commendeth (demonstrated) his LOVE toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
HAPPY LABOUR DAY!
Well, it’s September first, meaning the summer vacation season is over. And since this is the first Monday in September, we’re also celebrating Labour Day in honour of all those who put up a strenuous fight over the last century, for us to get the labour benefits many of us now currently enjoy. It was not an easy fight, and many died and suffered so we could enjoy these gains. So please, as we enjoy the holiday, let’s not forget those who made it happen, and promise to fight valiantly not to allow the labour situation to revert to anything like it was back then.
Labour Day also means that the CNE Exhibition down by the lakeshore ends today, and schools reopen tomorrow. So this is the last big party of the summer, but that doesn’t give us license to go overboard with celebrations, for tomorrow is also work for most of us and we cannot afford to book off sick or go to work obviously suffering from the effects of too much partying. Consequently, we need to apply a modicum of circumspection to the celebrations. (smile) End of sermon.
Ah friends, as I was just browsing through the Good Library for an interesting topic to expatiate on (smile), I came across these wise and marvellous words of Psalm 92. ‘It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High: To shew forth (declare) thy LOVING-KINDNESS in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night. Upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery (lute, lyre); upon the harp with a solemn (harmonious, melodic) sound. For thou, Lord, hast made me glad through thy work: I will triumph in the work of thy hands.’ (Ps. 92:1-4)
Now that’s how it ought to be all over the Christian world! As we enjoy triumph through the marvellous work of the Lord’s mighty hands, our grateful praise and thanksgiving should be rising up to Him, both morning and evening…and even during other times of the day! Yes, my people, because of the Lord’s innate faithfulness and LOVE for us, He’s gone out of His way to do a lot of stuff on our behalf, stuff we certainly don’t deserve.
And though we can never truly repay Him for His goodness and mercy towards us, we can certainly attempt to show our gratitude and heartfelt appreciation by genuinely returning His LOVE and offering up much praise and thanksgiving! And that’s all the Lord really desires of us, because He created us and knows that we don’t have the wherewithal to do better.
And for those who would dispute the Lord’s goodness, His unconditional LOVE and compassion for man, we simply need to look at the great gifts of salvation and eternal life He’s bestowed on us, through the sacrificial death and resurrection of His Son, Jesus Christ. And why did He do it? As Bruh Paul writes to the Romans: ‘But God commendeth (demonstrated) his LOVE toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.’ (Rom. 5:8)
Now that’s one of my favourite scriptures, and it tells me that unlike most rulers who would call and/or wait for us to change before giving us the gift of salvation, the Lord God Jehovah LOVED us so much that He gave us the gift before requiring our obeisance. And Jesus Himself spoke of God’s great LOVE for humanity, when He poignantly informed Nicodemus, the Jewish Leader: ‘For God so LOVED the world, that He gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.’ (John 3:16)
Oh my people, those two verses of scripture are possibly the most important in the Bible, because it shows why the Lord sacrificed His Son for a bunch of ungrateful sinners; the word is simply a deep and satisfying LOVE for His human creation. After we had become so steeped in sin, disobedience and rebellion, God could have just given up on us and allowed us all to head to hellfire and damnation with Satan, whom we seem to admire much more than Him.
But His compassionate heart, His unfailing LOVE would not allow Him to be so callous. So He had to find a way to remedy the situation. And believe me, because of His sense of righteousness and justice, the proper price for sin had to be paid, and the only choice available was to sacrifice His sinless Son. Obviously, it was not an easy choice, for it meant breaking His own heart, but He did it, thus showing the depth of feeling He had for us. And we’d be truly a sad bunch of sinful ingrates, if we did not attempt to be grateful and thankful for all God’s done for us.
And one of the things that we get to do through His work, is go to the throne of grace to receive grace and mercy in time of need. And are ever in a time of need right now! So, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, let’s confidently, but humbly approach the throne of grace for divine aid.
Altogether: ‘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. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems.
Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but 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. So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.
Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us 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!’
And, from our prayer, it’s very easy to see what we need to do to get divine aid – turn from our evil ways, with sincere repentance in our hearts. So please, I plead with us, let’s get up and do it nuh, right now, so that we can make this evil and ungodly world a better place for our children and grandchildren! Much LOVE!
…God has been so good to us…that His praise should come naturally from our lips and hearts…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
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