09 Feb 2021
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a comparative scenario, a teacher of the Gentiles, against that day, and now abideth faith hope love, are freely - inseparably mine, artificial intelligence, become lazy and standards fall, disobedient degenerates, earthly life, eternal salvation, for I know whom I have believed, God won't allow any interlopers, he is able to keep, His thoughts toward me, I am persuaded, I do know, in god's eyes, in that critical stage right now, inscribed me. in the palms of your hands, lazy and pampered, lose our minds bodies and souls, love your God with all you have, Love your neighbour as yourself, now and throughout all eternity, One Year Book of Bible promises, our relationship with God, our robot friends, pandemic difficulties, prosperous and successful, Ruth Harms Calkin, share His love with the world, start manipulating us, technological society, that which I have committed unto him, the beloved of God, the greatest of these is love, the history of mankind, the life of the Son, the love of the Father, the object of His lavish love, the power of the Holy spirit, thoughts of kindness and mercy, trust my friend Jesus, Tuesday Mantra
2 Timothy 1:12a. for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against (until) that day.
Well a good Tuesday morning to you my Scrip-Bit friends and family. It’s a tad snowy, but not too bad. And we need to remember that it’s winter in my neighbourhood and that’s what happens in winter; it gets cold and it snows. (smile) And I’m happy to say that after a couple of weeks and much dinero, I’m back on my desktop in my basement office again. But chuh! It’s taken a long while to set it back up. Ah, this technological society eh? It will be the ruin of us, in more ways than one, especially when our A.I. (Artificial Intelligence) gets so good that our robot friends start manipulating us, instead of the other way around.
Yes friends, at some stage of the game, we’re going to get so lazy and pampered by all the stuff that A.I does for us that we’ll completely lose our minds, bodies and souls to it. It’s already happening. I see it when I send messages on What’s App, I don’t have to type in everything, like they read my mind, and on some things they are even more accurate than me. (smile)
Now there is a comparative scenario, our relationship with our God, our Creator. The big difference here is that God is very vigilant and protective of His realm and won’t allow any interlopers whatsoever. So though we try, like Satan did, to use Him for our own ends, it won’t work. He might allow us some leeway, but take over, NO WAY Jose!
We, on the other hand, want to just relax and enjoy life as easily as possible, so every day we are turning over some of our power to other sources. This in no way augurs good for the future, for as the ole people would say, when you don’t use it, you lose it. And that’s gospel truth my people. When we don’t use our faculties we lose them, they keep diminishing until they atrophy completely.
But that’s the history of mankind, of the many powerful and wise societies that have inhabited our planet. Once they get prosperous and successful, they become lazy and their standards fall…and keep falling until the society is no longer a powerhouse or of any international importance. And we are in that critical stage right now, the only difference being that we are inventing machines, not people, to take over. And with the pandemic difficulties and the host of other problems in our world, I don’t know what the eventual outcome will be.
But friends, there is some stuff ‘I Do Know.’ And that’s the title of the poem from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin. I know that you also know these things, so please declare them with me. ‘There is much I cannot begin to fathom concerning the vast, indescribable universe created by our majestic God. There is much I will never comprehend. I want to sing and shout, so utterly overwhelmed I am with the magnitude of God.
But I do know with confident certainty that I belong to the God of the universe – the Creator of all that exists. I know that I, a mere mortal, am forever linked to divine destiny. I know that my life has purpose and dignity. I know that God has chosen me as the object of His lavish LOVE; that His thoughts toward me are thoughts of kindness and mercy; that He has inscribed me in the palms of His hands. I know that all the LOVE of the Father, and the life of the Son, and the power of the Holy Spirit are freely, inseparably mine – now and throughout all eternity. This I do know.’
Oh my people, I do hope that we know that we know those things yes, else we’re completely lost, now and forever! If we don’t know the Father’s wonderful and unconditional LOVE, not confidently or consistently steeped in it, then we can’t be a part of the Son’s awesome life, or experience the amazing power of the Holy Spirit. Yes friends, it all begins with the LOVE of the Father, Him wanting to justly reclaim and reconcile us to Himself, then flows through to the other two aspects of our triune Deity.
And we see that so plainly in the words of Bruh Paul to the church at Rome. ‘But God commendeth (demonstrates) his LOVE toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.’ (Rom. 5:8) That’s oh so important to know and believe my friends, for it truly shows the extent of God’s LOVE for His disobedient creation. And I don’t know why it’s so hard for some of us to believe in God’s mighty LOVE nuh, for why else would He send His Son to die on the cross for a bunch of disobedient degenerates eh? It had to be LOVE, the greatest emotion in His arsenal.
How did Bruh Paul put it to the church at Corinth? ‘And now abideth faith, hope, LOVE, these three; but the greatest of these is LOVE.’ (1 Cor. 13:13) And so it is my brethren. That’s why Jesus said the two greatest commandments are to LOVE your God with all you have, and to LOVE your neighbour as yourself. (Matt. 22:37-40)
But coming back to the poem above and what we do know, Bruh Paul says it quite assuredly in the Bible Promise that’s associated with the poem. This is his assurance to Timothy. ‘Whereunto I am appointed a preacher, and an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles. For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against (until) that day.’ (2 Tim. 1:11-12)
Oh my fellow believers, we too need to be that assured, not ashamed and very persuaded (smile) that whatever we’ve committed to Jesus, our earthly life, as well as our eternal salvation, that He can keep and guard them to the day when we stand before Him in judgment. That’s the great difference between believers and unbelievers; we are assured that Christ can do all that He says!
And Peter tells us thus: ‘Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator.’ (1 Pet. 4:19) Wow, mih bredrin! If our Creator isn’t LOVING and faithful, who is then eh? And because we know whom we have believed and are not ashamed of, we can go home declaring (aw shucks) who and whose we are through our Tuesday Mantra.
Altogether now: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
So let’s go and do just that nuh! Much LOVE!
…if you are ashamed…and not assured…then you don’t truly believe…
P.S. Not all my fault that it’s late. I also had a doctor’s telephone consultation thrown into the mix. And as wonderful believers, I know you all understand. (smile) Much LOVE!
29 Aug 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: an adventure of choices, an ordeal, be of good cheer, believe also in me, Christians, compassionate heart, conquering, curse, David Rudder, death, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, eager to arise, earthly life, eternal optimists, eternal truth, faith, favour, fear not, for himself, give thanks, glorify God, have life abundantly, heavenly future, hell, hoard, I go to prepare a place for you, i have overcome the world, I will come again, In my Father's house, Islands in the Sun, it enables a man, joy, let not your heart be troubled, let our light shine before men, life, live the happiness of the day, LOVE, many mansions, negative word, not abandon it, not as the world gives, optimism, peace, Peace i leave with you, prosper, receive you unto myself, regardless of personal problems, sacrificial death, Satan, see our good works, self-control, self-discipline, share them generously, strong will, succeed, the essence of optimism, the grave, the Holy Spirit, the SON, their joy shines, there ye may be also, Thursday Blessings, to claim the future, to his enemy, to hold his head high, tribulation, victory, where I am, ye believe in God
John 14:1. Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.
Ah friends, the sun is out, but even more importantly, the Son is out in the ole fella’s soul, body and spirit! Wow! And do I ever need Him this morning as the aches and pains are running somewhat rampant from all the physical activity involved in going down to the Ex last night to check out the David Rudder show.
And it was a grand show; beautiful lighting and wonderful music from an excellent band composed of mostly local musicians! David is also an excellent performer. He went on at 8.30, and with the obvious encore didn’t finish until 10:15. And the fans LOVED him, because he is a personable and engaging raconteur, does a lot of talking and encouraging in his songs. And though the rain began drizzling around 9:15, it never stopped the Madness of the party!
And you can imagine the crowd response when he sang some of his many hits like, Hammer, Bahia Girl, Calypso Music, This is Madness, Islands in the Sun, and ended with his anthem, Give Thanks! I never got home until around midnight, and after doing the usual bedtime routing didn’t get to bed until after one. Thus the tardy awakening and consequently the lateness of the Bit. (smile)
But here is an interesting quote that we can all use, from Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906 – 1945) a Protestant Lutheran Pastor, and theologian, who was active in the German resistance to the policies of Hitler and Nazism. ‘The essence of optimism is that it…enables a man to hold his head high, to claim the future for himself and not abandon it to his enemy.’
What an eternal truth that is my people! And more so for Christians than anybody else because we have the best earthly life and eternal heavenly future planned out by our wonderful God for us! Jesus died partly so that we could have life here on earth, and have it abundantly (John 10:10), then He promised that he was going back to heaven to prepare a home for us and would eventually come back and take us with him there.
And if you don’t believe me, then listen to Jesus Himself. ‘Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions (dwellings): if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.’ (John 14:1-3)
Oh my faithful brethren, what an awesome promise! And we all know that our Godhead ALWAYS keep their promises! So why are so many of us so negative and unoptimistic eh? Being a follower of Jesus is the best cause for optimism in this evil and ungodly world. Too many of us are fearful, anxious and unsure about our lives and earthly situations, but Jesus has on several occasions told us to be otherwise.
Remember two of His favourite words were ‘FEAR NOT!’ And in our Bit He tells us quite plainly: ‘Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.’ How much more can He say eh? But He does say more. (smile) Hear Him when He promises the disciples the Holy Spirit. ‘Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.’ (John 14:27)
That’s why Christians should always be the eternal optimists! And this definition of an optimist is both excellent and true. ‘An optimist, regardless of personal problems, is eager to arise in the morning – to get to work, to be with friends or family, to live the happiness of the day. People are drawn toward optimists, for their joy shines on everyone around them.’
And that’s exactly how we believers ought to be! But in actual fact, would that be a good description of our current lives? That’s for each of us to know and work out with God. But please remember Jesus said that we should let our light shine before men, so that they could see our good works, and thus glorify our heavenly Father. (Matt.5:16) Well friends, we can’t do that unless we truly believe in Him and are joyfully optimistic about our future.
And I’ll quote us one more encouraging scripture from Jesus: ‘These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33) Oh mih breddren, mih breddren, how else and how often must Jesus say it for us to believe it eh?
He has already given us the victory by conquering hell, death, the grave and Satan through His sacrificial death and awesome resurrection, we just have to keep the victory going now, and we can only do so by resisting the wiles and taunts of the evil one and being strong and optimistic in Jesus!
And I certainly hope that what we’ve said today has raised all our optimism levels, and set us on a path where our lights can shine brightly and we can make a true and useful difference in the world as Jesus so greatly desires. And He has shown us His own optimism by not only dying for us, but also by giving us His wonderful Thursday Blessings so that we can do His earthly work.
And since they don’t work unless we invoke them, let’s declare them all now, in loud, clear, sincere and optimistic voices. 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!’
Yeh mih people, that’s the way Jesus wants us to declare His word and blessings. Now let’s go out and do the most important part; share them with the less fortunate…Remember now, don’t hoard them, share them as generously as He has shared them with us. Much LOVE!
…‘life is an adventure of choices to be lived…not an ordeal to be survived…I choose…optimism…and joy…’
23 Nov 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a sad world, a tad grouchy, all the nice things, an easy mark, another week of work, be in the world, Black Friday, black up, body soul and mind, boundaries, brought nothing, Bruh Paul, Canada, carry nothing, Christians, clothing, confession, contemplating life, contentment, coveted after, crooked, deceitful self, destruction, disrupt our souls, drown men, earthly life, economic czars, enthusiasm, erred from the faith, essentials, eternal life, every step, fellowship, fend him off, fight the good fight, food, foolish public, frantic attempts, Friday chant, full mih belly, full mih eyes, fun, furthering God's kingdom, generous help, godliness, great gain, I will rejoice and be glad in it, idols, in Jesus name, LOVE, lying awake, many arrows, meekness, money, never gives up, not of the world, on sale, on the lookout, patience, pierced themselves, raiment, refreshed, relaxation, renewed, rest, righteousness, ruin, rush to shop, seek first, slave work, sober, TGIF!, Thank God is Friday, Thanksgiving Day, the devil, the folly, the kingdom of God, the LOVE of money, the root of all evil, the trend, the workingman's song, this is the day the Lord has made, Timothy, witnesses
1 Timothy 6:6. But godliness with contentment is great gain.
Well friends, it’s that big day, Friday…but unfortunately the ole fella’s not in great shape. I went to bed late last night and my sleep was disturbed so many time by getting up to go to the bathroom and just getting up and lying there awake so many times that I eventually lost count. Chuh! I was even up for about half an hour contemplating life before I finally got out of bed.
So you must know that I was a tad grouchy, and to make matters worse that slimy crook, the devil, who’s always on the lookout for an easy mark, was there on my shoulder whispering all sorts of nonsense to me, until I shut him up by telling him: ‘Listen here nuh devil, I might be feeling somewhat low this morning but I’m not the easy mark you think I am eh. I still know that this is the day the Lord God of Israel has made, and yuh know what…I will rejoice and be glad in it, despite how I feel, so be gone with yuh ole lying, crooked deceitful self!’
Wow! And he was gone! Sometimes friends we just have to tell the ole deceiver where to get off. But he’ll be back later to try again. We constantly have to fend him off, because he NEVER stops trying to get into our souls and disrupt them! And I’m saddened not only by lack of proper rest but also because today is what has become known as ‘Black Friday.’
Steups! The day after Thanksgiving Day in the U.S has now become the biggest shopping day of the year in North America, overshadowing even the Boxing Day charade! Hn! Hordes of unruly human animals line up at all ungodly hours of the morning to rush and push and run over each other in their frantic attempts to get into stores that advertise a few things on sale; things that most of them don’t really need, neither can afford, but because it’s on sale…Ah Lord eh!
The economic czars are lowering everything to their lowest denominator, so they can catch the foolish public into making their cash registers go kaching…kaching! And the saddest part is that Thanksgiving is no longer about really giving thanks, but much more about Black Friday. Everything seems to be rushed so that we can get ready for it. Even in Canada now the trend has caught on, because if the shopkeepers here don’t adapt, our foolish citizens will head to the U.S. to participate in the folly.
And I really heard more about Black Friday than Thanksgiving in the last week or so, on the t.v and in the newspapers. Everybody had an ad out for it. Truthfully, if a friend hadn’t written me yesterday morning and reminded me, I would probably not have mentioned Thanksgiving at all in the Bit. What a sad world we’re living in eh mih breddren, where the LOVE of money and useless stuff is all the rage.
And the workingman doesn’t do us any favours in his song either: ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday yes! Black Friday to boot! Where we shopping to kill! Buying up all the nice things in the stores and dem! Brother! Look at that nice big t.v on sale for only three hundred dollars nuh! And that tablet computer for only a hundred! Ah mih people, ah full mih belly yesterday, Thanksgiving Day, now today ah going to full mih eyes and dem. And no slave work until Monday morning, if ah not black up still… Who say ah not thankful for Black Friday and weekends eh?’
Ah friends, what a sad tale. And people have indeed been killed in the rush to shop…but it continues nonstop. Thankfully though, as believers in Jesus Christ, we’re not allowed to go so far out on the limb. We’re restrained by more sober boundaries. So let’s chant our Friday Chant with just as much, if not more enthusiasm than the workingman did in his song nuh. (smile)
‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through. Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’
Yes my people, there’s something to be said for being sober! (smile) And we’ll end today with a sermon from way back when, from Bruh Paul to Timothy that addresses the problem they faced two thousand years ago, and which we still face today. He’s been talking about all the strife and evil that’s been happening in Timothy’s surroundings, and finally declares:
‘But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment (clothing) let us be therewith content. But they that will (desire to) be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful (harmful) lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition (ruin and destruction). For the LOVE of money is the root of (all kinds of) evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many arrows.’ (1 Tim.6:6-10)
Ah friends, food and clothing and money are essentials in this earthly life, but it’s when we go overboard and let them become our gods, our idols, that we fall into trouble. There’s nothing wrong in wanting to be rich, but it’s the path we take to fulfilling that dream that causes problems. Jesus says that we should seek God’s kingdom and His righteousness first, then we’ll get all the earthly things we need. (Matt.6:33)
And Bruh Paul tells Timothy: ‘But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, LOVE, patience and meekness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art called, and hast professed (confessed) a good profession (confession) before many witnesses.’ (1 Tim.6:11-12)
Yes my fellow believers, we too have confessed a good confession before many witnesses as to our trust and fellowship in the body of Christ, so please, let’s do as Bruh Paul says nuh, and stop behaving like the rest of the world! That’s our bounden duty as followers of Christ! Much LOVE!
…Christians…be in the world…but not of the world…
29 Dec 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a chance to inveigle himself, a joy to behold, Abide in me, as a branch, Beelzebub, biggest drinking bash, burned in the fire, cast forth, change in that one day, cheap bubbly, christmas celebrations, consequences. Lucifer, disciples, do nonsense, drink up the waters, drunk or sober, earthly life, enough waters, everlasting truth, except it abide in the vine, except ye abide in me, fellowship, flows like water, Friday chant, fun, furthering God's glorious kingdom, get the ball rolling, good food, Granny's warning, Happy New Year, hugging and kissing, I am the vine, I in you, in his glee, in Jesus' name, jeopardize our relationship, Jesus, keep our wits about us, keeping god first place, life-giving power, long weekend, mash up the place, massa face, mind yuh business, nasty, New Year's Eve, nice women, no more can ye, party, produce good fruit, refreshed, relationship with Jesus, relaxation, renewed, resolutions, rest, room for improvement, run our race properly, sinful ways, sober up, spiritual armour, stay sober, suffered for a lifetime, sustenance, the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, the bubbly, the devil, the enemy, the Father glorified, the Holy Trinity, to drown a herd of elephants, walking hand in hand with Jesus, we turn stupid, wears his passion on his sleeve, wise way, witness, workingman, ye are the branches
John 15:4. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.
Well friends, Friday is here, and another long weekend is in the offing! Glory Be! I think we should have Christmas and New Year’s falling on a Monday every year yes, that would give us two long weekends back to back. (smile) But we all know it’s not going to happen, so let’s just enjoy it while we have it.
And meanwhile some of us are still tired after the Christmas celebrations, and the three days of work, but now we have to get ready for the big New Year’s Eve bash, where the bubbly flows like water and people don’t know their A from their E and are hugging and kissing everyone in sight, crying out ‘Happy New Year’ as though everything will change in that one day.
But no such luck, because as soon as we sober up, we’ll go right back to our old, nasty, sinful ways, forgetting whatever resolutions we might have made. And there’s no better time to introduce Granny’s warning, because New Years is the time of the biggest drinking bash.
So friends, please remember ‘Drunk or sober, please mind yuh business,’ because when we overdo it, that’s when we get into serious trouble with Lucifer and subsequently our God, and sometimes the consequences of such error can be suffered for a lifetime. So please be careful, don’t give the devil any chance to break into our spiritual armour.
And as always, the ordinary workingman is wearing his passion on his sleeve, as he declares: ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday oui! We only work three days this week, and if yuh see the massa face when he have to pay us for the whole week…that was such a joy to behold… and next week going to be the same thing because New Year’s falling on the Monday. And is the party ever going to be rocking this New Year’s Eve? It surely is!
Plenty nice women, good food in abundance, good music and enough waters to drown a heard of elephants. Mama Yo! And is not the cheap bubbly we drinking nuh, but the expensive one. Yuh have to go first class at New Year’s! So let’s get ball rolling from now nuh…Party! Party! Party! We going to mash up the place this New Year’s Eve! Thank God for Fridays and them long weekends yes!’
And believe me friends, a lot of what the workingman is saying there will unfortunately come to pass this New Year’s weekend and Beelzebub will be in his glee, since when we drink up the waters, too many of us turn stupid and do nonsense. But please, this weekend I implore us to stay sober and run our race properly, don’t give the enemy a chance to inveigle himself into our affairs.
Anyway, let’s chant our Friday Chant, which gives us a better perspective on how to spend the weekend. All together now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through.
Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’
Yeh mih breddren, whatever the celebration, we followers of Christ still have to keep our wits about us, keeping God first place in our hearts and souls. For if we don’t, we can seriously jeopardize our relationship with the Holy Trinity, and that’s not a very wise move.
No wonder Jesus warned the disciples in our Bit: ‘Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.’
And those are words of everlasting truth friends. Without Jesus we can do nothing! He is the one from whom we draw all our sustenance. Therefore, if we are not in Him and He in us, then we’re nowhere. Like the branches of a vine draw their power to produce fruit from the main vine, so do we draw our power to produce good fruit from our close and wonderful relationship with Jesus.
And Jesus continues His analogy of the vine. ‘I am the vine, ye are the branches: he that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto (for) you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.’ (John 15:5-8)
There we have it friends, plain, simple and straightforward as Jesus is wont to put it. The only way to bear good fruit and glorify God is by being a disciple of Jesus. And that means letting Him live and work in you, so you can draw His life-giving power and carry out His wishes and duties. There’s no other way my brethren.
So at the end of this tumultuous year of 2017, let’s sit down and ponder our relationship with Jesus nuh, see if He is truly in us, and we in Him, and if we’re bearing any good fruit. And whatever the answer might be, let’s turn to our heavenly Father and ask for His help to improve our witness, because we all have room for improvement. Much LOVE!
…walking hand in hand with Jesus…is the only wise way to do this earthly life…
20 Nov 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a believer in Christ, an expected end, assurance, aura of love, Babylon, boost spirits, breath of life, bring to fruition, calamity, concrete jungle, confidence, conquerors, curtains for us, earthly life, enthusiasm, eternal life, eternal separation, everlasting life, excuses, families, foolish, friends, fruitful vine, future, glorious kingdom, God's plans, hard worker, he who has ears to hear, hope, human being, humble servants, hunker down, I think toward you, in His own image, invincible, Israelites, Jerusalem, Jesus Christ, joy, joyless enormous price, laziness, lies, lose nothing, LOVE, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, negative effects, not of evil, peace, privilege, procrastination, raise it up again, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, rest, reverse, salvation, sins, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, the last day, the will of God, the worst thing, thoughts, to die for us, trust, truth, undisciplined, ungodly world, weary souls, week of work, welcomed in heaven, wiles, will not cast out, wisdom, worthwhile intentions
Jeremiah 29:11. For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith, the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil (calamity), to give you an expected end (a future and a hope).
Ah friends, the days are rolling by quickly and who knows how much time we have left to successfully perform any tasks, or bring to fruition whatever plans God has in store for us. That means we’ve got to get with the program right away; no excuses, laziness or procrastination, but be a diligent, hard worker and fruitful vine bearer for Christ. So that at the end of our days, He’ll greet us with that wonderful, big smile, a tantalizing bear hug, and the overwhelming invitation: ‘Welcome! Welcome home, thou good and faithful servant!’
Wow mih breddren, there can’t be any better welcoming words than those anywhere in the universe! But for our lives to play out that way, means we have to begin by being fired up this Monday morning; no whining and complaining; just seriously, sincerely and conscientiously going about the Lord’s business. Oh, I know some Monday mornings it’s difficult to roll out of the warm and comfortable bed to face our cruel and evil world, especially as the chills of winter descend upon us, in the northern climes.
But that’s why we have our Monday Morning Battle Hymn; to boost our spirits, reverse all the negative effects of an undisciplined weekend (smile) and get us ready to face whatever comes against us with the energy, assurance, joy and peace that come from being a believer in, and a follower of our wonderful Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. So let’s blast it out as passionately as we can nuh.
‘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!’
Awright mih people, yuh see how our Battle Hymn changes our entire perspective, how our passion rises as we trill it to the high heavens? So let’s keep that adrenaline flowing nuh, as we get out onto the highways and byways and make our way to the concrete jungles and hunker down to labour for another day. But all the while keeping the unbreakable promise of our Bit solidly grounded in our hearts, bodies, minds and souls. ‘For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith, the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil (calamity), to give you an expected end (a future and a hope).’
Yeh friends, even when God punished the Israelites by having Babylon take them captive, He promised to bring them back to Jerusalem after seventy years. Hopefully, they would have learned their lesson by then. And it’s the same way my faithful brethren that the Lord has good plans for us, plans to give us hope, joy and peace. Why would He create us in His own image, give us His breath of life and then, when we screw up, send His Son Jesus to die for us, if He didn’t have good and worthwhile intentions towards us eh?
Listen to Jesus tell it like it is: ‘All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise (certainly not) cast out. For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.’ (John 6:37-40)
Oh my people, does that sound like a God who has bad intentions towards us? Certainly not! He wants only the best for us, that’s why He sent Jesus to die for our abominable sins; to give us a hope and a future; otherwise it would have been curtains for us, certain calamity through eternal separation from Him. And believe me, eternal separation from Almighty God is the WORST thing that can ever happen to a human being!
So friends, please let’s take this earthly life seriously, let’s take Jesus seriously, because if we don’t, we’ll end up paying an enormous price for the dubious privilege of being foolish. We don’t have to be miserable and joyless, because Jesus came to give us joy, but we do have to be sensible, thoughtful and wise if we want to be welcomed in heaven. Much LOVE!
…he who has ears to hear…let him hear…else he will certainly feel…
03 Nov 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a drunken sailor, a word of warning, acloholic beverages, balanced, be not proud, Bible, blessed day, blow yuh mind, bring an offering, come into his courts, cotton to sin, crapaud smoke we pipe, dark mountains, darkness, disasters, earthly life, fear, fellowship, fight the good fight, flow like water, food plentiful, Friday chant, fun, furthering your glorious kingdom, generous help, Gentiles, give ear, give glory to the Lord, give unto the Lord, glory and strength, glory due his name, go overboard, God is faithful, God's generosity, God's sensibilities, guidance, guide book, hear ye, holiness, immortal words, in Jesus' name, Israel, Jeremiah, judge the people, licentious, look for light, move away from sin, on the serious side, partying, praise God, ready for the weekend, realistic, refreshed, relaxation, renewed, repent, rest, resting, righteously, sensible, shadow of death, sin, sinful, soul body and mind, sufficent to the wise, TGIF! Thank God is Friday, thankful, the bass line, the Good Book, the heathen, the Lord hath spoken, the Lord reigns, the music loud and heavy, the waters, the workingman, there comes a time, thumping through yuh heart, to heel, tremble, tribute, ungodliness, ungodly, vices, warning signs, warnings, week of work, weekends, well-balanced lives, worship the Lord, wrath, your feet stumble
Jeremiah 13:15. Hear ye, and give ear; be not proud: for the Lord hath spoken.
Add another one friends! Yes, add another blessed day to your earthy life. The Lord’s just overwhelming in His generosity towards us, for which we ought to be thankful. And it’s Friday too, thus the workingman is singing his song.
‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday… And am I ever ready for the weekend! The waters (alcoholic beverages) going to flow like water…the food’s going to be so plentiful that it’ll just blow yuh mind… and the music loud and heavy, with the bass line just thumping through yuh heart… Bredder! It going to be a great weekend of simply partying….party, party, party! Thank God for Fridays and weekends oui!’
Ah mih people, I don’t know about you all nuh, but I simply cannot handle that much partying…and I definitely don’t want that bass line thumping through my chest. I’ve felt it already, and it’s not a pleasant sensation.
On the serious side though, all of that is just too much. Where is our Maker in all of it eh? Shouldn’t we find some time for Him in all the ‘kerfuffle’ of the weekend? Surely we should!
What about resting and getting ourselves ready to go back out next week and fight the good fight eh? None of that is contained in the workingman’s song, but there certainly is need for it, if we are to live well-balanced, godly lives.
That’s why our Friday Chant is a much better tribute to the weekend. So let’s sing it with much gusto now nuh. ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through.
Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’
That’s much more realistic and sensible and doesn’t go overboard in any one direction, but keeps us balanced in God’s sensibilities. And it brings us to our Bit for today: ‘Hear ye, and give ear; be not proud: for the Lord hath spoken.’
And yuh know what friends, until just now, I had no idea what the Bit would be. But as usual, I asked for guidance and then opened the Good Book… And lo and behold it opened unto the book of Jeremiah, and those were the first words that caught my eye.
Yuh see how our God is faithful! And today He didn’t even have me searching for long. (smile) Some days He does though. So, as I keep saying, He won’t ask you to do something without giving you the wherewithal to do it.
And in this particular case, though Jeremiah was having problems communicating with his people Israel, the Lord was still putting immortal words in his mouth. This section deals with Israel being like a drunken sailor come ashore; like the workingman above, with sin and virulent vice and ungodliness rampant in the nation.
Therefore Jeremiah is crying out to his people, the warning words of their God. ‘Give glory to the Lord your God, before he cause darkness, and before your feet stumble upon the dark mountains, and while ye look for light, he turn it into the shadow of death, and make it gross darkness.’ (Jer.13:16)
Oh my people, I believe the Lord is giving us the same warning today, because there’s no doubt that our world is as sinful, ungodly and licentious as that of Israel back then. I’ll even wager that we are worse than them. And if the Bible is our Guide Book for earthly living, then we ought to pay careful attention to such words of warning anytime our world parallels those gone before.
And moreover, I believe that all the natural and man-made disasters that have been recently befalling our world are also warning signs from God. We can sit down and debate and contemplate all we want, but the truth of the matter is that Almighty God exists, and He does not cotton to sin in any society in His universe.
And eventually, there comes a time, after giving that society time to repent and move away from their sinfulness, that He unleashes His awesome wrath on selfsame society, and either brings them to heel, or wipes them out completely.
We just have to go back through history to see the many societies which became powerful and sinful, and not worshipping Holy God, that eventually became extinct. Some of them were so violently and rapidly wiped off the map, that we have very little information or artifacts from their ascendancy here on earth.
Oh my people, all I’m saying is that it’s better to be safe than sorry. Let’s take in front before in front takes us nuh. Let’s take God’s warnings seriously and change our sinful ways, before He obliterates us in His anger.
As the psalmist recommends in Psalm 96 – A call to praise God: Let’s ‘Give (ascribe) unto the Lord, O ye kindreds of the people, give unto the Lord glory and strength. Give (ascribe) unto the Lord the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come into his courts.
O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness: fear (tremble) before him, all the earth. Say among the heathen (gentiles) that the Lord reigneth: the world also shall be (is firmly) established that it shall not be moved (shaken): he shall judge the people righteously.’ (Ps.96.7-10)
All I can say friends, is that for our own sakes, we had better take that wise advice, otherwise…crapaud will eventually smoke we pipe! Much LOVE!
…a word of warning to the wise…is sufficient…
11 Jul 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a fool's wisdom, aura of love, beast of the field, bright and bubbly, bright and early, chirpy, complaining, confidence, conquerors, Creator of the universe, disobedient, do unto Jesus, earthly life, endureth through all generations, enthusiasm. joy, everlasting kingdom, evil, faith, fellowship, fools, friends, give drink, glorious kingdom, goodness, groaning, holy spirit, invincible, Jesus Christ, jobs, kudos, lethargic, lies, LOVE, love that day, loving kindness, make his face shine, makes glad, meat in due season, meet the enemy, method to my madness, miserable complaining, moaning, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, Moses, oil, open thine hand, peace, prosperity, quench their thirst, reap corn, rebellious, reconciliation, rejuvenation of spirit, renewed vitality, repentance, rest, salvation, satisfies the desires, sour, sow peas, springs, steadfast faith, surrender, tailspin, taunts, TGIM! Thank God it's Monday!, the eyes of all, the heart of man, the Promised Land, tired, truth, ungodly world, ungrateful, valleys, victory, wait upon thee, wake up and smell the coffee, weary souls, week of work, weekend, wiles, wine and roses, wisdom
Psalm 145:15. The eyes of all wait upon thee (look expectantly to you); and thou givest them their meat (food) in due season.
‘Monday, Monday! Oh how I just LOVE that day! Monday, Monday! Don’t you ever go away! TGIM! Thank God it’s Monday!’
Yes friends, there is method to my madness. (smile) I’m figuring that if we hear that often enough, Monday’s might just grow on us like Friday did. So in future, when Mondays roll around, as indeed they will, we won’t’ be so sour and miserable and complaining, but greet it with great enthusiasm and a sincere joy to get out there and do whatever we have to do unto Jesus, and not unto man!
Ah mih people, the ole fella has to keep on trying to get us out bright and early and chirpy and chippy, so we can truly enjoy this earthly life, while diligently working on Jesus’ behalf.
Now I know some of you are tired and lethargic, moaning and groaning and complaining about my li’l chat because you did not do as you should have over the weekend. But not to worry, we have something that will brighten your spirit and raise your adrenalin level so that you can go out bright and bubbly, expecting victory. It’s called our Monday Morning Battle Hymn. Let’s sing it as thought we truly mean it nuh.
As one harmonious 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!’
Good going friends, good going! Our choirmaster Jesus was pleased! Yuh see what happens when you put your all into something! So now with our motors up and running, let’s go out into the crazy, wicked world and do whatever Jesus has called us to do nuh.
That brings us to our Bit which verily supports all of our contentions above. (smile) But before we get to it, let’s check out the two verses before it.
‘Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and thy dominion endureth throughout all generations. The Lord upholdeth all that fall, and raiseth up all those that be bowed down. The eyes of all wait upon thee (look expectantly to you); and thou givest them their meat (food) in due season. Thou openest thine hand, and satisfies the desire of every living thing.’ (Psalm 145:13-16)
Yes my brethren, Bruh David said it, so there must be a whole lot of truth to it! He extols the Lord’s graciousness in this most excellent psalm of praise! And if you don’t believe that, then listen to this from Psalm 104 – God’s preservation of nature.
The psalmist unequivocally declares: ‘He sendeth the springs into the valleys, which run among the hills. They give drink to every beast of the field: the wild asses (donkeys) quench their thirst. By them shall the fowls of the heaven have their habitation, which sing among the branches.
He watereth the hills from his (upper) chambers: the earth is satisfied with the fruit of thy works, He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle, and herb (vegetation) for the service of man: that he may bring forth food out of the earth; and wine that maketh glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face to shine, and bread which strengtheneth man’s heart. ‘ (Ps.104: 10-15)
Oh my brethren, with all of that – and there’s much more if you want to read all of Psalm 104 – how can we ever doubt the goodness, the LOVING-kindness, the wisdom of our wonderful God eh? Only a fool would dare to do that!
Unfortunately though, currently there are way too many fools in the Lord’s great universe. We’re trying our very best to take him out of our society, which is a fool’s wisdom, and then when our world goes into a serious tailspin, with disasters, wars and all kinds of negative happenings across the globe, we sit back and foolishly wonder why.
Steups! Oh friends, if we insist on removing the Creator of the universe and all therein from His universe, which is really impossible, what do we expect eh? Do we expect to get wine and roses and song and heartwarming kudos for removing Him from our society?
Not on your life! We’ll get what we justly deserve, what He’s promised from day one to those who are disobedient to His Word and Will; negative happenings! Yuh see what He did to the rebellious, ungrateful Jews in the wilderness; earthquakes, snakebites and wandering around for forty years, till all of those who had come out of Egypt had died.
Not even Moses made it over to the Promised Land because he angered the Lord. So friends how can we expect anything else but negative consequences for our foolish rebellion eh? We might get away with it for a while, but eventually it’s all going to catch up to us. Remember our God is patient and longsuffering, but He’s not a patsy, a walkover.
Please, let’s wake up and smell the coffee nuh, and realize the error of our ways and wisely return to His fold through repentance and reconciliation based on Jesus’ work at the cross. For that is indeed wisdom of the highest order! Much LOVE!
…you can’t sow peas…and expect to reap corn…likewise you can’t be blatantly disobedient…and expect to receive prosperity…
21 Jun 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: actions, anger, attitude, backbiting, behaviour, character, Christendom, christianity, cooperation, Corinth, disharmony, disrupt harmony, diversity, division, earthly life, embrace Jesus, encourages, exciting, extraordinary, glory, good cheer, greed, harmonious spirit, harmony, hatred, human nature, hurry, hypocritical, I am the beloved of god, in Jesus' name, individually, inner presence, Jesus, let God be God, lifts us up, Love for Jesus, LOVE Jesus, members, mind-boggling, my friend Jesus, New Testament, peace, philosophy, planet earth, Praise the Lord, privately live, problems, publicly show, pull together, reflect Christ's character, religious teaching, reproach, resentment, running things, Scrip-Bit family, serve, share His love, sincerity, souls, spiritual organism, the body of Christ, the church, the Holy Spirit, the Light, the Lord's on His throne, throne, trust, truth, Tuesday Mantra, unity, warms the cockles of my heart, what people say about me, wisdom, wonder, worry, worship
1 Corinthians 12:27. Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular (individually).
Aye mih friends and family – Scrip-Bit family included of course – welcome to another wonderful Tuesday on planet earth! The Lord’s on His heavenly throne running things, and Jesus is with us through the inner presence of the Holy Spirit! So what can be better than that eh? Absolutely nothing!
Ah mih people, Jesus is so beautiful, I don’t see how people can not LOVE Him, and want to serve and worship Him in all sincerity and truth!
Yeh friends, I truly don’t understand how people can dislike Jesus and abuse and blaspheme Him. He has the best religious teaching going, even the best philosophy for living this earthly life; one of peace and LOVE and good cheer! One couldn’t ask for more!
But such is the fallen and dark nature of our human souls that we refuse to see the light even when it’s shining all around us. But thankfully, we smart humans will embrace Jesus in all His glory and wonder and live to serve Him now and forever!
And all God’s children declared a loud and proud ‘Praise the Lord in Jesus’ name! Amen.’
And to support all of what we’ve just said, let’s declare our Tuesday Mantra with a strong sense of purpose and true belief. As one now: ‘I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen.’
Oh friends, oh friends, that li’l mantra so warms the cockles of my heart when I declare it, that…that I don’t know what to say afterwards! Hn!
To know that I am indeed a beloved child of God and a friend of Jesus…and can simply live this life and share His awesome LOVE with the world…well that is just so mind boggling and extraordinary!
I do hope that you, my fellow believers feel the same way, because if you don’t you are missing out on the most exciting and transformational part of your lives, since true LOVE for Jesus just lifts us up and encourages us so much!
And we’ll continue with our theme from yesterday; members of the body of Christ, of His church, because it is very important for each believer to know and understand His place and role in that most august organization.
Our Bit tells us quite plainly: ‘Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular (individually).’
Yes my brethren, we are all a part of Christ’s great organization called the church, with all that’s needed to make it great, but it’s oh so necessary for the members of that organization to pull together to do that. Listen to the scholars’ input on that verse.
’12:27. In one succinct statement, the apostle expresses both the unity and the diversity of the body of Christ. The absence of the definite article in Greek (ho, “the”) before the expression ‘body of Christ’ emphasizes character: since they are Christ’s body, their actions and attitudes toward one another should reflect His character.’
Oh my fellow believers, that last line there says it all; since we belong to Christ’s organization, our attitude and character ought to reflect that of Jesus! But does it? That’s the million-dollar question.
Unfortunately, I don’t believe that it does, or at least not to the extent that it should. If we were truly reflecting the character and attitude of Jesus as an organization, there wouldn’t be so much division and disharmony within it, none of the greed, the backbiting, the resentment, and pure hatred that exists in some parts of it.
As we said earlier, Christ’s character is one of peace, LOVE and good cheer, and that in no way represents the present day church of Christ!
And before we go any further, listen to the scholars’ description re the Body of Christ. ‘12:27. The church in the New Testament is called the “body of Christ,” and reflects the spiritual organism of the whole church on earth. When the local church is called the body of Christ, the spiritual aspect is emphasized.
Illustration: As the church is considered to be the body, so individual members are seen as parts of the body. For any church to function properly, every member must do his or her part in a harmonious spirit of cooperation with the other members. Had the church at Corinth learned this lesson, many of their problems would have been solved.
Application: When Christians disrupt the harmony of a church, they bring reproach on the body of Christ. (First ref. Matt.16:18; Primary Ref. I Cor. 12:27).’
Oh friends, that’s the problem of today’s church right there! The spirit of harmonious cooperation is sadly lacking in many of the local churches and also in the entire body of Christendom!
No wonder we’re bringing such reproach on Christ and His body, and people are leaving His organization as well as crying it down and calling it totally hypocritical!
And there is a lot of truth there, since the heathen doesn’t see or perceive us as good and kindly and LOVING people from the attitude, behaviour and character we publicly display. We behave just as badly, and sometimes even worse than them! That obviously gives Jesus a bad name and turns off the unbelievers, thus making of no effect our trying to bring them to Him.
Ah mih people, there’s a simple solution to all of that yes, all the confusion and disharmony, the resentment, anger and hatred, backbiting and hypocrisy can be avoided if we’d just implement the words of the song: ‘Let God be God! Let God be God in your life!’
Yes friends, if we’d just allow the Lord to work in our lives as He desires, most of our problems would vanish, and we’d become much more like the harmonious body of Christ that we’re meant to be.
So, starting today, right now, let’s let go and allow God to truly work in us nuh, for that is indeed the highest level of wisdom! Much LOVE!
…for Christianity to be successful…Christians must privately live…and publicly show…the true character and attitude of Jesus Christ…
25 Jun 2015
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: ability, be glad and rejoice, be strong and of a good courage, become proud, blessings, Bruh David, common sense, courage, dedication, depart from evil and do good, DETERMINATION, earthly life, faith, fount of blessings, give it all they've got, give thanks, glory to God, his seed begging bread, hope, I have not seen the righteous forsaken, intelligence, Israel, Jesus, Joshua, Lucifer, magnanimous god, material things of the world, meditiate on God's word, opportunty, pillars of our faith, prolong his days, prosperous, righteousness., seek ye first the kingdom of God, Sermon on the Mount, stand in awe of God, strength, success, take no thought for your life, testimony, the breath of life, the Good Book, the Great Provider, the Holy One of Israel, the living God, the only true God, the wisdom of the age, then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, thou shalt have good success, wolf in sheep's clothing
Joshua 1:8b. …for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.
Oh Friends, it’s Thursday! Wow! Another terrific day in the history of civilization is on the way! Glory to God!
So please, let’s give thanks, be glad and rejoice in this day, because it is the wisdom of the age. It just had to be since the Holy One of Israel has a specially prepared fount of blessings on tap for us today. We just have to be obedient to His will and He will shower us with bountiful blessings, show us an awesome time.
And all God’s children declared a loud, proud and grateful ‘Glory Hallelujah! All praise and thanks and honour to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords who sits upon His throne in the high heavens running things according to His wise and holy will!’
Yes my people, our God is indeed a great and magnanimous God! In fact, He is the ONLY TRUE God! And He’s also a LIVING God, which none of the other supposed gods are! It is His wonderful breath of life that courses through our bodies. That’s something we ought always to remember because it’s one of the foundation pillars of our faith.
Now here is an interesting quote on expecting success from Norman Vincent Peale (1898-1993), the famous American minister, author and champion of the ‘Power of Positive Thinking.’
‘Hope is the great power that can move you to success. Why? Because when a man expects to win, he does not hold anything back, but gives his project all that he’s got. Most people fail not because they lack ability, intelligence or opportunity, but they fail because they don’t give it all they’ve got.’
And isn’t that the absolute truth! For when we expect success we put all that we have into it; time, energy and money. It’s the very dedication to our project and the determination to succeed that leads us to success!
So for all of us who have projects on the go, and that includes the living of this earthly life, let’s be dedicated and determined to succeed nuh, obviously with the help of Jesus. And how do we enlist the aid of Jesus? Simply by turning to Him, putting all out trust and faith in Him.
As the Lord told Joshua several times when He anointed him to lead Israel after the death of Moses. ‘Be strong and of a good courage… Only be thou strong and very courageous… Have I not commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee withersoever thou goest.’ (Josh.1: 6, 7, 9)
So in the space of four verses, God warns Joshua three times to be strong and courageous and not afraid. Oh Friends, it’s the same thing that our great unchangeable God is saying to us today; ‘Be strong and of a good courage, and be not afraid.’ For we can’t do His bidding if we’re weak and fearful.
However my brethren, the clincher in the whole story is this verse, verse 8, from which our Bit comes. ‘This book of the law shall not depart out of (shall be constantly in) thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.’ (Josh.1:8)
Yeh Friends, you see the true and real way to be prosperous and have success: be strong and courageous, but even more importantly, meditate on the Lord’s Word day and night. It calls for manly strength and courage, as well as a strong and courageous faith centered in the Word of God. That is the ONLY way to have lasting prosperity and success!
Moses had already warned the Israelites re the choice of a king, and what His most important role was: ‘And it shall be, when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book out of that which is before the priests the Levites:
And it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life: that he may learn to fear (stand in awe of) the Lord his God; to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them.
That his heart be not lifted up above his brethren (become proud), and that he turn not aside from the commandment, to the right hand, or to the left: to the end that he may prolong his days (continue long) in his kingdom, he, and his children, in the midst of Israel.’ (Deut.17:18-20)
One simply cannot rule or live justly without the guidance of the Good Book!
And Jesus reiterated that command in the Sermon on the Mount when He told us in no uncertain terms. ‘Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for (do not worry about) your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat (food), and the body more than raiment (clothes)? … But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt.6:25, 33)
Oh my people, how many times must we be reminded that the ultimate in wisdom and common sense decrees that we place our trust in our heavenly Father if we want to be successful in this world eh?
But in spite of it all, we still listen to Lucifer, the ole deceitful wolf in sheep’s clothing and believe, or act on the premise that you have to concentrate on the things of the world and the way the world thinks and acts, to make it. That’s a total lie my brethren!
The necessary material things will be provided for us by God, the Great Provider, if we concentrate on seeking and doing His will. And we won’t have to be fearful and anxious about our needs because the Father knows we need those things to survive, and He has promised that HE WILL provide them if we are true and faithful to His Word.
And what better way to end than with this powerful testimony from Bruh David from Psalm 37 – The true state of the wicked. ‘I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed (descendants) begging bread. He is ever merciful (merciful all the day), and lendeth, and his seed (descendants) is blessed. Depart from evil, and do good; and dwell for evermore.’ (Ps.37:25-27)
Oh Friends, all I can do now is to implore us to follow the wonderful advice we have received from several ever-faithful and reliable sources, if we truly desire to be prosperous and successful in this world. Much LOVE!
…true strength and power and prosperity…in other words earthly success…comes only from Almighty God…through obedience to His Word and Will…
23 Apr 2015
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a feel good feeling, abnormal weather, all at once, assimilate, assurance, balmy times, bestowed, bounden duty, Bruh Paul, by the grace of God, climate change, constant level, cousin to happiness, dreaded white stuff, earthly life, ephemeral, essentail aspect, eternal life, faithful promise, fleeting feeling, fortuitous circumstances, friends, Glory be to God, grin and bear it, happiness, hard and trying times, harvester of souls, I am what I am, I can do all things through Christ, in all the wrong places, in Jesus' name, in our time of need, Jesus Christ, joy, live our faith, looking for the wrong thing, LOVE, magnificent and magnanimous God, once in a while, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, people seeking happiness, ponder on, praye ye therefore, promise, proselytizing, readily access it, reap the harvest, revs up and down, send forth labourers into his harvest, set our hearts minds and souls to the task, shirt attention spans, smile, snow, Spread God's Word, sternity, summerish weather, the Corinthians, the harvest truly is plenteous, the labourers are few, the Lord of the harvest, the lost and unsaved, through God's grace, too much food to digest, truly love God, upper echelon, was not in vain, which strengtheneth me, write it indelibly, yo-yo
Philippians 4:13. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.
Aye Friends, can you believe that on this Thursday morning, the 23rd day of April, that there is a sprinkling of that much detested and dreaded white stuff on the cars and lawns outside? Mama Mia!
Snow at the end of April! Now it’s not much, but just the very idea that snow can be had in late April is ridiculous…and distressing too, especially after the beautiful summerish weather we had just over a week ago, with everybody gearing up for the continuance of such balmy times.
But the reality is that this past week has been cold and blowsy, with daytime temps not even reaching double digits. And in these days of climate change; of abnormal weather and temps at abnormal times, anything is possible. And like all the other stuff that we can’t change, we just have to grin and bear it bravely. (smile)
But on a more serious note Friends, last night on the late edition of the news, they featured a story that intrigued me; ironically, it both saddened and uplifted me, gave me hope. The story was about people seeking happiness. Hn!
Apparently there are now many groups of people around the world getting together to seek ways to be happy. That news saddened me because they are looking for the wrong thing in all the wrong places!
And what I mean by that is people are seeking happiness, which is merely a fleeting, ephemeral feeling that comes around once in a while through fortuitous circumstances, but it never lasts long. Happiness is an up and down situation, like a yo-yo, it revs up, then it revs down.
What they should actually be seeking is JOY, the long term, constant level, always present, upper echelon cousin of happiness. (smile) And sadly, not once did I hear any of those interviewed, or one supposed expert, talk about finding happiness where it is truly to be found, that’s in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
To be technical though, Jesus doesn’t simply provide happiness, a feel good feeling, but He brings JOY, or a constant well-being to His followers.
So in the first place, those seekers of happiness ought to be searching for joy, not happiness. And in the second, they ought to be seeking it in, from and through Jesus Christ, the ONLY person who can truly provide that essential aspect of earthly life.
And the story brought hope to my heart because it showed another avenue, another field that’s open, one that’s just ripe for proselytizing by us faithful Christians. What a wonderful opportunity it gives us my brethren for talking about Jesus and showing those misguided folks the right way and place to find true JOY!
And as Jesus so rightly said a long time ago: ‘The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.’ (Matt.9:37-38)
Oh Friends, we are the labourers of our time, and it is thus our bounden duty to get out there and gladly and joyfully reap the harvest of the lost and unsaved in Jesus’ name!
And we know we can do it, if we set our hearts, minds and souls to the task, because of our Bit, which assures, which guarantees that: ‘I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.’
Glory be to our wonderful God my brethren for that assurance, that faithful promise! Yes my people, anything that falls under God’s will, He will enable us to do, if we so desire.
And as Bruh Paul wisely said in his first letter to the church at Corinth. ‘But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.’ (1 Cor.15:10)
Yes Friends, though Bruh Paul was possibly the hardest working missionary, harvester of souls, it was still only through God’s grace that he was successful. Let’s not forget that in our own labours, for whatever we do, regardless of how hard and diligent we work, true success will only come from God’s grace bestowed on us.
And on that poignant note we’ll end today’s message my people. There’s enough in there for us to ponder on, and I certainly don’t want to abuse our short attention spans by giving us too much food to assimilate and digest all at once. (smile)
Ah mih people, in these hard and trying times I know that it is difficult to keep our focus on Jesus and His kingdom, but if we truly want to see eternity, to spend eternal life with Him, we have to make the effort to live the way He desires.
And the wonderful thing about it all is that if our hearts and motives are true and pure, our magnificent and magnanimous God WILL enable us to do it. Let’s NEVER forget that promise! Let’s write it indelibly in our hearts and souls so that we can readily access it in our time of need! Much LOVE!
…what does our God desire of us…to truly LOVE Him…sincerely LIVE our Faith…and to diligently SPREAD His Word…
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