30 Apr 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a pardon receives, atonement for our sins, bacteria, benefits, bitter waters, bless the Lord oh my soul, bondage, borne our griefs, breath of life, by his stripes, chastisement, Christian lives, commandments, confidence, diseases, Easter, Egypt, exodus, Fanny Crosby, forget not his benefits, give ear, give him the glory, God's will, grateful people, gratitude, great things he hath done, hearken to God's voice, iniquities, Israelites, Jesus the Son, let the earth hear his voice, Marah, medical science, Moses, pains, Pharaoh, plagues, Praise the Lord, rebel, redemption, renewal, resurrection, right in his sight, sacrifice of praise, sacrificial offering, saints in Christ, sicknesses, sincerity, sins, smitten, sorrows, statutes, stricken, suffering servant, sweeten the waters, the Great healer, the Great Physician, the life-gate, the people rejoice, the promise of God, the purchase of blood, the suffering of Jesus, the vilest offender, To God be the glory, trust, weather forecasters, who healeth all thy diseases
Psalm 103:2. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.
Aye friends, it’s a wet morning, as promised by the weather forecasters, so please get your hats, brollies and raincoats out for your trip to church today.
And to open our section on praise and worship, we couldn’t do any better than this old Fanny Crosby hymn; ‘To God be the Glory.’ So let’s belt it out with sure confidence and trust, offering up the sacrifice of praise to heaven with our earthly voices.
‘To God be the glory, great things He hath done, So loved He the world that He gave us His Son, Who yielded His life our redemption to win, And opened the life-gate that all may go in.
(Refrain: Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, Let the earth hear His voice; Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, Let the people rejoice; Oh, come to the Father, through Jesus the Son, And give Him the glory; great things He hath done.)
Oh, perfect redemption, the purchase of blood, To every believer the promise of God; The vilest offender who truly believes, That moment from Jesus a pardon receives. (Refrain)
Great things He hath taught us, great things He hath done, And great our rejoicing through Jesus the Son; But purer, and higher, and greater will be Our wonder, our transport when Jesus we see.
(Refrain: Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, Let the earth hear His voice; Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, Let the people rejoice; Oh, come to the Father, through Jesus the Son, And give Him the glory; great things He hath done.’
Oh my beautiful saints in Christ, our great God has certainly done great things, both in our individual lives and in the world! None greater though than the sacrificial offering of His sinless Son, Jesus Christ for the atonement of our abominable sins!
Consequently, as grateful people, we ought to praise and thank Him with the very deepest of gratitude and sincerity, each and every moment that we breathe His wonderful and enabling breath of life!
That’s why our Bit is ever so applicable, especially at this Easter Season of renewal and resurrection. ‘Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.’
Now, if we are true believers, then I don’t see how we could ever do that. But unfortunately, there are many, Christians included, who do it. But I won’t get on that horse today, (smile) I’ll just continue to point out scripture that validate our Bit and the benefits proclaimed by Bruh David.
And today we’ll look at the second part of verse 3: ‘who healeth all thy diseases.’ Now isn’t that something else! For our God is known as the Great Physician, the Great Healer! And that, He has certainly proven numerous times down during the ages.
And if you don’t believe me, listen to Moses at the bitter waters of Marah, where the Israelites on their exodus from Egypt, threatened to rebel, until the Lord caused Moses to sweeten the waters.
Then Moses made this rule for the people to test them. ‘If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the Lord that healeth thee.’ (Ex.15:26).
Yeh mih people, remember the many plagues that the Lord brought down on Egypt when Pharaoh refused to let them go out of his bondage? Well the Lord promised then, and that promise still stands to this day, that if we are obedient to His will and law, that we won’t be plagued by sickness.
But have you noticed that recently, despite our great advancements in medical science, that we are seeing the comeback of certain diseases that we thought we’d already conquered?
And that there is also a big scare that the current strains of bacteria in our society are getting so powerful that our medicines can no longer kill them?
I wonder why that is eh my people? Can it have something to do with our not following God’s will and law? Selah. Yeh friends, think on that for a moment or two nuh.
And we’ll close today with these immortal verses form Isaiah, re the suffering servant, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. ‘Surely he hath borne our griefs (sicknesses), and carried our sorrows (pains): yet we did esteem (reckon) him stricken, smitten of (struck down by) God, and afflicted.
But he was wounded (pierced through) for our transgressions, he was bruised (crushed) for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes (terrible blows that cut into him) we are healed.’ (Is.53:4-5)
Yeh mih breddren, plenty of us like to rhyme of that last verse without much thought of its true meaning, but today let’s sit down and ponder what it truly means nuh. Let’s consider its real purpose in our Christian lives, and how it is especially important in this Easter Season. Much LOVE!
…ALL healing comes from Almighty God…our Maker and Healer…through the suffering of Jesus…
29 Apr 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a better tomorrow, aspiring to inspire, Assad, assignment, authority, benefits, bless the Lord oh my soul, Christians, cohorts, corrupt, deceptions, decisions, do nothing, earthly wealth, Easter, Edison, egotist, Erdogan, eternal value, exercise influence, facade, fleshly lusts, forget not all his benefits, glamour, glitz, gospel truth, happiness, hell, Henry Ford, household words, iniquities, lair, lay about, lazy, let Israel hope in the Lord, lies, life, light, lite, Lord Acton, loving-kindness, Lucifer, negative, power, power corrupts, precious jewels, Putin, quit, redemption, Saturday, shine of gold, showing us the way, spring season, taunts, teaching us, test cahracter, the Holy Spirit, the king's pajamas, Trump, understand life, Walt Disney, way, wickedly, wiles, with the Lord there is mercy
Psalm 103:2. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.
So friends, once more it is Saturday, when we have to make our own decisions as to what to do with our day; to just lay about and do basically nothing, or get up and get done the million and one things that need doing, especially in this emerging spring season. The choice is yours. (smile)
But whatever you choose to do, right now, let’s contemplate some of our friend, Anselm’s quotes of this past week. You know he is always aspiring to inspire us for a better tomorrow.
And this first one is a blast: ‘When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down “happy.” They told me I didn’t understand the assignment, and I told them they didn’t understand life.’ Now who’s right or wrong there eh?
This second quote is a little more serious. ‘Surround yourself with only people who are going to lift you higher.’ That’s gospel truth if you want to succeed in this life. Eschew the lite and the lazy, the egotist and the negative, for they will only pull you down.
But remember this one, even when you’re down. ‘A man is not finished when he is defeated. He is finished when he quits.’ And that goes for everything, in all walks of life, especially Christianity, for in Jesus’ vocabulary there is no such word as ‘quit’! So remember, NEVER QUIT! When you fall, get back up, dust yourself off and keep going, because success might just be around the corner.
And if you check out a lot of the successful people in this world, you’ll find that many of them failed many times before they succeeded. People like Walt Disney, Edison, Henry Ford, didn’t succeed on their first try, but they never gave up, and now their names are household words.
This last quote though is somewhat scary, as it says: ‘If you want to test the character of a person, give them power.’ Now it might be true, but I certainly don’t want to try it, for I’ve seen too many people go mad with a little power. What did the British Lord Acton say about power? “Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men, even when they exercise influence and not authority.’’
Yes friends, power corrupts. And all of us have seen how a little power corrupts. And right now, we have several examples of big power going to people’s heads in Russia’s Putin, Syria’s Assad, Turkey’s Erdogan and Mr. Trump in the U.S, just to name a few of the more prominent ones. They all think that they are the king’s pajamas and know best how to run things.
But one thing’s for certain sure, all these power hungry people, fall at some time or another, and usually great is their fall. And one of the reasons is that they don’t pay serious attention to the words of our Bit. ‘Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.’
Yes friends, these cohorts of the evil one, Lucifer, pay no attention to the Lord God Almighty. Some might mention His name conveniently, but He is really nowhere in their hearts, otherwise they wouldn’t be behaving as wickedly and horrendously as they are doing. They don’t seem to realize that ALL there is on the earth and in heaven above belongs to Him. But thankfully we Christian believers know better and behave more sensibly, at least some of us. (smile)
Now yesterday we enumerated some of the benefits (verses 3-5) and were looking at scriptures which corroborated the first part of verse 3; ‘Who forgiveth all thine iniquities…’ And I have one more piece of scripture to add to it, before we move on to the second half of that verse.
Hear the psalmist: ‘Let Israel hope in the Lord: for with the Lord there is mercy (LOVING-kindness), and with him is plenteous redemption. And he shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities.’ (Ps.130:7-8)
Oh friends, is there hope in Lucifer, or mercy, or LOVING-kindness, or redemption from our iniquities? Absolutely not! All he seeks to do is to add to our iniquities and thus get us to accompany him to his rotten lair in hell. So why would I want to follow him eh? In fact, why are so many of us falling for his lies, his taunts, his wiles and deceptions eh? It just doesn’t make sense my people.
Since Jesus defeated Lucifer at the Easter season two thousand years ago, he has no hold whatsoever over us, except what we allow him to have. But yet we fall for his story about earthly wealth and fleshly lusts and the shine of gold and other precious jewels, the supposed appeal of glamour and glitz, full well knowing that it’s all a façade, just a glittering front, like movie sets that look so wonderful on camera but have nothing behind the outer shell.
Ah friends, our world is bursting with all sorts of things that are trying to turn us away from God, but we’re supposed to have His Holy Spirit dwelling within us, teaching us and showing us the way. So why are falling for all the nonsense that has no eternal value eh?
I implore us, please, please, let’s be wiser than that nuh. Christ is the ONLY TRUE LIGHT, LIFE and WAY! Let’s remember that and act accordingly nuh! Much LOVE!
…ALL benefits in this life…come from Almighty God…and from no one else…
18 Apr 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a rejuvenated mind set, alive, ambassadors, baptizing, bring glad tidings of good things, bubbling, buoyed our spirits, calling upon the Lord, captivity, celebrations, Christ's Resurrection, cleansing, communication tools, crucial times, Easter, eternal life, expectant faith, feasts, followers of Jesus, forgiveness, friend jesus, from glory to glory, God reigns, God's majesty, good news, gospel truth, harvest, healing, hear without a preacher, how beautiful are the feet, hungry hope, in the name of the Father, Isaiah, labouring, make disciples of all nations, maturity, mercy, Nahum, observe all things, Old Testament, on the cross, peace, put our best foot forward, reapers, reconciliation, reignited the flame of love, salvation, saving grace, selflessly sacrificed, service, share His love, share it, sinless life, spiritual witness, spiritual work, teach, the beloved of God, the Easter season, the end times, the glory ladder, the gospel of peace, the Holy Ghost, the SON, the stairway of maturity, them who preach, Tuesday Mantra, unbelievers, vows, worker bees, worldly occupations, Zion
Romans 10:15b. How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!
And then it was Tuesday; Easter Tuesday, a day of work for most! Yeh friends, the over the top celebrations finish now, and it’s time to get back to some serious labouring, both in our worldly occupations and also our spiritual work for Jesus.
Hopefully the Easter festivities, especially Christ’s resurrection, has buoyed our spirits, reignited the flame of LOVE and service in our hearts, thus giving us a rejuvenated mind set, moving us up a notch on the stairway of maturity.
Oh my people, my people, it’s at crucial times like these where we need to improve our spiritual witness, and move up the glory ladder; from glory to glory, where we’re once more alive and bubbling with hungry hope and expectant faith in Jesus!
The end times are drawing ever closer my brethren, but the harvest is still plentiful, there’s yet much to be reaped, and since we are the reapers, we need to be strong and enthusiastic so that we can put our best foot forward for Christ.
Remember we are Christ’s ambassadors, His worker bees here on earth, and He’s expecting us to bring as many people as possible – in fact ALL people to His saving grace.
That’s what the Easter season is about; why He selflessly sacrificed His sinless life on the cross; so that whosoever will may come and receive His cleansing and healing and new way of life, which includes salvation, reconciliation and eternal life with the Father and Himself.
Now how precious is that eh? But friends, how can the unbelievers get this wonderful news unless someone shares it with them eh?
And we are that someone! It’s our responsibility to share the wonderful and free saving grace, mercy, and forgiveness of Christ to all and sundry. ‘So that whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’ (Rom.10:13)
Yes my fellow believers, as Bruh Paul reminds the Romans, using the words found in Joel 2:32, salvation comes from calling upon the Lord for His saving grace.
But then, as he further queries the Romans: ‘How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent?’ (Rom.10:14-15a)
And that’s all very pertinent stuff my people. How can unbelievers be saved if they don’t hear the gospel? And they can only hear it if someone shares it with them.
That brings us to our Bit. ‘How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!’
Oh friends that’s such a touching bit of scripture! And it’s also indisputable, gospel truth!
For there is nothing as wonderful as believers obeying Jesus’ last command to His disciples: ‘Go ye therefore, and teach (make disciples) of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always(s), even unto the end of the world.’ (Matt.28:19-20)
Now that’s our basic job as followers of Jesus. And you’ll notice at the end that Jesus even assured us that He’d be always with us wherever and whenever we’re spreading His word.
Unfortunately though my faithful brethren, we’re not doing it as well, as purposefully and diligently as we ought to. Why, I really can’t say. It might be through fear of repercussions from this evil world in which we dwell. Or it might just be simple laziness and sloth, or us being more concerned about living a comfortable earthly life than laying up rewards in heaven.
But friends, whatever the reason or reasons might be, if we aren’t helping to spread the good news of Jesus gospel in some form and fashion, then we’re not being good ambassadors of His.
It’s as plain and simple as that. And in these times of quick and far reaching communication tools, there is really no good excuse for any of us to not participate in the spreading of the gospel.
Now let’s look at the two Old Testament Scriptures from which Bruh Paul fashioned our Bit. The first comes from Isaiah, as he promises that the Lord will deliver His people Zion from captivity.
‘How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings (good news), that publisheth (proclaims) peace; that bringeth good tidings (good news) of good (good things), that publisheth (proclaims) salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!’ (Is.52:7)
And the second piece of scripture comes from the prophet Nahum, as he proclaims God’s majesty in mercy and judgement. ‘Behold upon the mountains the feet of him that bringeth good tidings (news), that publisheth (proclaims) peace!
Oh Judah, keep thy solemn (sacred, appointed) feasts, perform thy vows: for the wicked (one of Belial, or worthless one) shall no more pass through thee; he is utterly cut off.’ (Nah.1:15)
And there you have it friends, the sources of our Bit. (smile) Now let’s go home sincerely declaring our Tuesday Mantra.
‘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 if we believe it, then let’s go out and do it as we ought to nuh! Much LOVE!
…only as we spread the gospel of Jesus…will the world be saved…
15 Apr 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: Abide in me, all things are possible, battle armour, beliefs, Christian faith, Drunk or sober mind yuh business, Easter, events, faith in Jesus Christ, glory hallelujah, glory to God, God's LOVE, Good Friday, gospel truth, grace, hope, human trait, I am the vine, I can do all things through Christ, Lent, lifting our spirits, look on the bright side, LOVE, Lucifer, negative manner, nomadic life, not in vain, not sufficient in ourselves, optimism, our sufficiency is in God, Paul, persecuted the church of God, positive, preaching Christ crucified, reconciliation with the Father, Resurrection Sunday, thanks and praise, the Corinthians, the grace of God, the moral of the story, the Philippians, the power to make me happy, this is the day the Lord has made, true potential, trust, without me ye can do nothing, ye are the branches, yesterday is dead
Philippians 4:13. I can do ALL THINGS through Christ which strengtheneth me!
Well friends, it’s Easter Saturday; another season of Lent is over with the passing of Good Friday and Jesus is resting quietly in His tomb. Glory to God! We’re only waiting for the big day now; Resurrection Sunday, possibly the greatest day in the history of the Christian faith.
I know many people prefer Christmas to Easter, but without Easter there could be no death, thus no payment for sins, no Resurrection and consequently no reconciliation with the Father, salvation and eternal life. We’d be left forever wallowing in the deep and deadly mire of sin.
So Easter is indeed a most important time in our faith, that’s why we ought to celebrate it with joy and gladness, offering up songs of thanks and praise to our heavenly Father who made it all possible through His awesome, amazing, undaunted, unconditional LOVE for us.
But please remember, that though Lent is over and the celebrations will begin today, we must not overdo it, and give occasion to Lucifer to penetrate our spiritual battle armour. So let’s take Granny’s advice to heart, one more time; ‘Sonny boy, drunk or sober, please mind yuh business!’ (smile) And that truly is some of the best advice we can ever receive my brethren.
Now since today is Saturday, I guess we ought to take a look at some other advice, this from our friend Anselm, who aspires to inspire us in our daily living. He had some interesting advice this week. Listen to this one. ‘Each morning when I open my eyes I say to myself: I, not events, have the power to make me happy or unhappy today. I can choose which it shall be. Yesterday is dead, tomorrow hasn’t arrived yet. I have just one day, today, and I’m going to be happy in it.’
And that’s certainly an option that’s open to us all. It’s like the verse from Psalm 118 that we often declare: ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it.’ It’s our choice how we view and then spend the day; it can either be in a positive or negative manner.
That brings us to this next quote: ‘Optimism is the most important human trait, because it allows us to evolve our ideas, to improve our situation, and to hope for a better tomorrow.’
Now I don’t know if optimism is indeed the most important human trait, but it surely is a very important one, because it allows us to look on the bright side of every situation and gives us hope that things can get better, thereby lifting our troubled and worried spirits..
And this last quote reinforces all the others. ‘Beliefs have the power to create and the power to destroy. Human beings have the awesome ability to take any experience of their lives and create a meaning that disempowers them or one that can literally save their lives.’
And nobody knows that better than we Christian believers! Our faith in Jesus Christ can cause us to move mountains, as we believe that with our great God ALL THINGS are possible!
And that brings us to our Bit: ‘I can do ALL THINGS through Christ which strengtheneth me!’ Glory Hallelujah my believing brethren!
Like in Bruh Paul’s life, when he made that statement to the Philippians, our God places us in certain situations, and then gives us the enabling power to handle them. Whether we be rich or poor, abounding or abased, weak or strong, God gives us the strength, the power to be content in them all, regardless of their complexity and/or painfulness.
And we see this attitude and belief in all of Bruh Paul’s teachings, though how else could it be eh, seeing the rough, dangerous, nomadic life he led once he began preaching Christ crucified?
Listen to him in the first epistle to the Corinthians. ‘ For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet (worthy) to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 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.15:9-10)
Yeh friends, it’s only through God’s saving grace that Bruh Paul could have survived all the dangers and rough times he encountered during his missionary journeys. And the same thing goes for us; only through God’s grace are we able to bear the trials and tribulations of this earthly life.
Now hear him in the second epistle to the Corinthians, as he talks about ministers in the New Testament. ‘And such trust have we through Christ to God-ward: Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think anything as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God:’ (2 Cor,3:4-5) Yes friends, we are indeed nothing without God!
Now let’s end with the immortal and authoritative words on the subject, from the mouth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ Himself. ‘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. 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.’ (John 15:4-5)
And if there ever was real gospel truth, that’s it! Without an association with Christ we are powerless to do anything, much less to bear much good fruit in this life. So the moral of the story is to get in good with Christ, and stay attuned to Him all the days of our lives. And there’s no better time to do so than right now at Easter; the time of His awesome, world changing Resurrection! Much LOVE!
…only in and through Christ…do our lives live up to their true potential…
01 Apr 2015
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a Father who cares, a pillar of cloud by day, a pillar of fire by night, alive and kicking, almighty god, ambassadors for Christ, And the Lord he goes before thee, April Fool, as I was with Moses, bondage, christ is alive, comfort, crumbling state of mind, discontent, doomed to death, Easter, encouraging, eternal life, eternal separation, eternity, evil minions, faith, fear, fear not neither be dismayed, freedom from sin, friends, gladness, glory to God, go astray, God's grace, gospel truth, grace, greatest gift ever offered to man, He will not fail thee neither forsake thee, heartache, heartbreak, holy spirit, Holy Week, Jesus Christ, Jesus is for real, Joshua, lie down in green pastures, LOVE, merciful and gracious God, mercy, Moses, negative emotions, on the cross at Calvary, paths of righteousness, physical action, power, precautions, promises, reconciliation to God, reignite God's image in our hearts, rekindle God's fire in our souls, righteousness., sacrifical death, salvation, solace, stand on His ever-faithful promises, strife, the Lord's work, the most important person in the universe, the worst fate, transforming peace, truth, turn to God, unconditional LOVE, ungodly world, uplifting words, Wednesday, wisdom
Deuteronomy 31:8. And the Lord, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.
Well Friends, it’s a beautiful Wednesday morning in Holy Week! The sun’s shining, the birds are a singing, but sadly, all’s not right with our world. It is filled with too many negative emotions and the strife and discontent that they bring. But it’s important to realize that our great God is still on His throne watching over things, in full control of it all.
We might not understand why He’s allowing all the negativity to continue, but rest assured that He, with His higher wisdom and understanding, knows what He’s doing. That’s the only way we can endure the evil and ungodliness that’s currently festering the soul of our world.
I guess the ole fella’s a bit tardy this morning too. But there’s good reason for my tardiness. I was about the Lord’s work, at a meeting in the church last night, which finished later than I expected, and by the time I got home and did my own thing, it was minutes to two in the morning.
And that’s no April Fool’s joke, it’s the gospel truth. (smile) And the ole bod refused to get up until it was well rested and refreshed, able to take on the rigours of writing the Bit. So what can I say eh? (smile)
But Friends, can you imagine that’s it’s already April? The year of 2015 is surely winging its merry way along without any thought to whom or what it leaves behind. Therefore, I beseech us to take the necessary precautions not to be caught up in that situation.
We have to be aware of what’s going on around us and play our part, which is an ambassadorial role for Jesus Christ. We have to get out there and let the world know that He’s alive; alive and kicking, kicking very hard too.
And especially at this most important time in our Christian Calendar, Easter, we’ve got to shout it out, let the world know that Jesus is still the most important person in the universe, and without Him in our lives, we are doomed to death and eternal separation from God Almighty!
And as I keep reminding us, that’s the worst fate that can ever befall a human being. So please, let’s get a move on in our personal lives nuh, let’s rise to the glorious occasion and show the unbelieving world that Jesus is for real, that what He stands for is of much more benefit than what the ungodly world and its evil minions have to offer.
Jesus‘ free gift of salvation through His sacrificial death on the cross at Calvary, engendered by God’s grace and unconditional LOVE, beats anything that this sinful world has to offer. It’s the greatest gift ever offered to man; freedom from sin, reconciliation to God, and eternal life with Him.
What could be sweeter and more fulfilling than that eh mih people? NOTHING! ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!
So let’s not forget that and allow the world to fool us into thinking that its earthly benefits are better than the heavenly ones. Our salvation and where we spend eternity depends on it.
Enough with the preaching though, (smile) let’s hear this most appropriate plaintive cry from the One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin. It’s titled ‘At Such Times,’ and says: ‘God, there are times In the midst of heartache and heartbreak When there is no comfort, no solace Anywhere at all.
There are times When in my crumbling state of mind I feel I can no longer endure – Not for a day, not even an hour. It is at such times, O God That I draw heavily Upon your unfathomable LOVE. At such times I explore Your transforming peace.
At such times I live By the power and promises Of a Father who cares infinitely more Than I can begin to grasp or comprehend. Today, dear God, is a “such time.”
Oh my fellow believers, isn’t that beautiful? It shows us exactly where we need to turn and what we have to do when times get rough, as they so often are in our present age. Turn to God and stand on His ever-faithful promise! It has worked for numerous believers for eons, and will continue to work until time everlasting!
And the promise for that poem is our Bit for today: ‘And the Lord, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.’
Oh my brethren, what encouraging and uplifting words! Only a powerful Deity, One who is confident and comfortable in His own figurative skin, can make such a bold and forthright promise! And it sets the tone for all our endeavours even up to this day, centuries after it was made.
And our God not only talks, but takes firm action on behalf of His people, as He did with the Israelites when he brought them out of bondage in Egypt, by putting the words of our Bit into physical action.
Hear these words from the Good Book. ‘And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light to go by day and night. He took not away the pillar of the cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the people.’ (Ex.13:21-22)
What a merciful and gracious God we worship my Friends! And the good thing about all that is that He is till leading us today, not necessarily by pillars of clouds and fire, but in so many different ways, individually and collectively. The problem though is that we are often too busy or lazy to hear and see His leadership in our lives.
But Friends, I want to tell us that that is an integral part of our earthly lives, and until, and unless we embrace His grace and mercy and listen to His direction and plan for our lives, we will most definitely go astray and not live the life that He had planned for us.
Now let’s end with another scripture verse of enormous proportions, of wonderful encouragement and promise. This is when the Lord promoted Joshua to the Israelite leadership after the death of Moses. The Lord told him, man to man: ‘There shall not be any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so will I be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.’ (Josh.1: 5)
Oh my people, my people, what a glorious promise, one that the Lord fulfilled in spades. Once Joshua stayed faithful and followed His lead, all things worked together for his good. The same still goes for us today, my brethren.
Once we walk faithfully with the Lord, He will be faithful to us and lead us in the paths of righteousness, making us to lie down in green pastures, beside restful waters, and restore our souls, all for His name’s sake. Glory to God my brethren!
So please, let’s take firm hold of the promise in our Bit today and go out and be the best we can be for Jesus. I pray this in His holy name. Amen! Much LOVE!
…Oh Lord…please reignite your image in our hearts…rekindle your fire in our souls…so that we can LOVE You as we ought to…and do Your bidding without fear…but with gladness and joy…
02 Mar 2015
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: adrenaline rush, almighty god, anxieties, as far as the east is from the west, battle hymn, be strong and of a good courage, blessings, conquerors, demise, Easter, enthusiasm, eternal life, eternal separation from God, faith, faithful, fear, fears, fellowship, forsaking, friends, get our house in order, glorious kingdom, harmonious voice, holy spirit, humble servants, invincible, Isaiah, Jesus Christ, Joshua, leaving, Lent, LOVE, magnanimous god, mas in yuh mas, Monday Morniing Battle Hymn, Monday Morning, Moses, Old Lang Syne, parents, promise, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, seldom ready for Monday mornings, sinners, spirituality, steadfast faith, the Lord will take care of me, the lord will take me up, ungodly world, when my father and mother forsake me, wisdom
Psalm 27:10. When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up (take care of me).
Well Friends, it certainly seems as though the days, weeks and months of this year are in a real hurry to get somewhere, or simply to go by as quickly as they can. Chuh! It was just Saturday… and already it’s Monday!
Can you imagine too that we’re already into March, and it seems like only yesterday we were singing Old Lang Syne, and wishing each other a Happy New Year. It’s already been a couple of weeks too since we were singing: ‘Mas in yuh mas! Play mas!’ (smile)
And Lent will soon be over and then we’ll be lustily singing ‘He is risen! Jesus Christ has risen from the grave.’ Most appropriate sentiments for the Easter season.
And all of that was just to say my people that time is swiftly moving by and who knows what will happen, or when, so it is essential that we get our house in order, just in case…just in case Jesus returns unexpectedly and we’re not ready. The same way we’re seldom ready for Monday mornings. The big difference though is that we have something to counteract our Monday morning blues – our Monday Morning Battle Hymn.
However, if Jesus returns and we’re not ready, there will be nothing to counteract our sad, unfortunate demise; our eternal separation from the Father, because we never truly embraced the Son. And as I keep saying Friends, that’s the worst fate that could ever befall a human being.
Anyway, let’s get our Monday morning adrenaline rush from singing our Battle Hymn with much fervour, in loud, harmonious voice. ‘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!’ Not bad, not bad at all my people, though heaven didn’t clap and clamour for an encore! (smile)
But please don’t let that get us down, for we have an even more important promise to concern ourselves with in our Bit. ‘When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up (take care of me.’
What a wonderfully refreshing and encouraging statement my brethren! Though our earthly parents might forsake us the Lord won’t ever do such a heartless and unthinking thing. Bless His holy name! And in Isaiah 49 – in the section which assures that Israel will be restored to Zion- the Lord binds that promise on His heart by pronouncing it publicly through His mouthpiece Isaiah.
‘But Zion said, the Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me. Can a woman forget her suckling (nursing, breastfeeding) child, that she should not (and not have) compassion on the son of her womb? Yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven (inscribed) thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continuously before me.’ (Is.49:14-16) What a marvellous promise from a most faithful and magnanimous God!
And now listen to Bruh David from Psalm 103 – Thanksgiving for God’s mercy. ‘As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us. Like as a father pitieth his children: so the Lord pitieth them that fear him. For he knoweth our frame (understands our constitution); he remembereth that we are dust.’ (Ps.103:12-14)
Yes Friends, the mercy of our God is ever working on our behalf. He knows from whence we came and what we really are because He made us and thus knows what we can and cannot bear. And from way back when, the Lord through Moses, promised the Israelites: ‘Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee, he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.’ (Deut.31:6)
And when not talking to the band of Israelites, the Lord was assuring His men of faith individually. We all know the famous words He spoke to Joshua after Moses died and Joshua took over leadership of the band of intransigent Israelites. ‘There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so will I be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.’(Josh.1:5)
So Friends, please don’t worry or be afraid, for the Lord will LOVE and protect His children from anything or anybody that comes against them. That He has promised, and we know that our wonderful God is very faithful to His promises.
So my brethren, let’s take a little time from our busy worldly lives nuh and confront any fears or anxieties we may have, and get rid of them, for our omnipotent God has promised that He will never leave nor forsake us, and He who has promised is ever-faithful. Much LOVE!
…God specializes in LOVING and caring for sinners…not leaving or forsaking them…
28 Dec 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: almighty god, an understanding heart, and all these things shall be added unto you, blessings, Bruh Paul, Christmas, common sense, Cousin Sol, darken the church doors, discern between good and bad, doing God a favour by going to church, Easter, encouragement, evil and ungodly world, faith is the substance of things hoped for, godliness, gospel truth, idolatry, judgement, justice, keep my statutes and commandments, live in the present, LOVE, material things, persecution, physical exercise, pledged allegiance to the King, praise and worship God, promises of God, remember the Sabbath day, riches and honour, righteousness., seek ye first the kingdom of God, Sermon on the Mount, six days shalt thou labour, sound wisdom, spiritual exercise, spiritual things, stand strong, step up to the plate, sufficent unto the day is the evil thereof, Sunday, the blessed day of the Lord, the body of Christ, the evidence of things not seen, the lusts of the world, the Sabbath Day, the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God, through the eyes of faith, Timothy, understanding, unfairness, uplifting of our faith, walk in my ways, where God guides He provides, wisdom, work is not a panacea for our ills
Matthew 6:33. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
Aye mih breddren, it’s the blessed day of the Lord; Sunday, the Sabbath Day! The day on which our great God rested, took a break from His labour of creating the universe and all therein. And in His Word, He specifically advises us to do the same.
‘Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maid servant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the Lord made the heaven and earth, the sea and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.’ (Ex.20:8-11)
Now that ought to wake some of us up, because we feel that we should be working all the time, everyday of the week. That’s obviously wrong, for work is not the panacea for our ills; Almighty God is! So today let’s put that idolatry behind us and get some rest, as well as darken the church doors, especially for those of you who seldom darken them. It never ceases to amaze me when I hear or read about those folks who only go to church at high times like Easter and Christmas.
Steups! Hope if any of you are reading this, that you went to church and fellowshipped with other believers this Christmas season. And from here on in, you will go to church regularly.
Remember Friends, we’re not doing God a favour by going to church, but ourselves, because church is where we’re supposed to come together as one in the body of Christ, to praise and worship Him and receive encouragement and uplifting of our faith, so that we can stand strong and face the persecution and unfairness of the evil and ungodly world in which we currently live.
That brings us to our Bit: ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ And as with most things that have to do with faith and God, my people, we have to step up to the plate first, before the promises of God are fulfilled.
We have to first see the promises through the eyes of faith, believe that they will come, before they come. Otherwise faith would not be necessary for ‘faith is the substance (realization) of things hoped for, the evidence (conviction) of things not seen.’ (Heb.11:1) So if we see something, then there’s no need to hope for it, as Bruh Paul told the Roman church. (Rom.8:24-25)
Now hear are some timely and important explanations from the scholars, re our Bit. ‘6:33-34. This portion of the Sermon on the Mount is summarized by the statement seek ye first the kingdom of God. The disciples who have pledged their allegiance to the King must continue seeking the kingdom and its righteousness. The present imperative form of the verb (Gr. zeto) indicates a continual or constant seeking.
The contrast between the spiritual and material is again emphasized. The believer is to seek first the righteousness that is characteristic of God’s kingdom and then all these things (material things) shall be added to him. When our priority is spiritual, God will take care of the material, for where God guides, He provides.
We need not even worry about tomorrow, for sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof (v.34) This means that each day has its own troubles and challenges to be responsibly handled, without worrying about the hypothetical problems that could arise tomorrow.’
Yes Friends, glimpses into the past and the future are indeed necessary at times, but generally speaking we need to live in the present, seeking the righteousness that is found in the kingdom of God, and if we do so, the Lord will fulfill all our material needs. That’s a promise of Jesus, and we all know that Jesus doesn’t lie, cannot lie, therefore doing as He advises is common sense and sound wisdom.
And we have one of the best examples of the promise being fulfilled when upon ascension to his father, Bruh David’s throne, the Lord asked Cousin Sol what he desired. And Cousin Sol, instead of asking for wealth and power, wisely asked for wisdom and understanding. ‘Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?
And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing. And God said unto him, Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life; neither hast asked riches for thyself, nor hast asked the life of thine enemies; but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern judgement (justice); Behold, I have done according to thy words: lo, I have given thee a wise and understanding heart; so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee.
And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches and honour: so that there shall not be any (anyone) among the kings like unto thee all thy days. And if thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days.’ (1 Kin.3:9-14)
Oh Friends, yuh see how our God keeps His word! And He even goes overboard too, giving Cousin Sol the wealth and power that he had not asked for. He will act in the same manner towards us, if we sincerely seek the things of His kingdom and His righteousness.
And we’ll close with a word on the subject from Bruh Paul to Timothy. ‘For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.’ (1 Tim.4:8)
And the scholars explain that thus: ‘4:8. That verse may be paraphrased, “For physical exercise is of limited value, but godliness, the result of spiritual exercise, has unlimited values, since it brings blessings for both now and eternity.’And that’s the gospel truth my people! So please, let’s go out today and start seeking the righteousness of God and not the unrighteous things of the world. For that’s wisdom of the highest order. Much LOVE!
…true wisdom comes from sincerely seeking God…not from dallying in the lusts of the world…
18 Apr 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: Adam and Eve, adopted children of God, agony, All praise honour and glory to Jesus, auspicious, bend our knees, Bless His Holy Name, bow our heads, Christian, cringe with fear, day of judgement, death, depths of our souls, dwell in harmony, Easter, everlasting thanks, exorbitant price, extraordinary thing, faithful, fear, fellowship, footsteps of love, for they know not what they do, forbidden fruit, forgive them, forgiving Deity, freedom, Friday chant, fun, furthering God's glorious kingdom, Garden of Eden, generous help, give Jesus everlasting thanks, glory, Good Friday, good news, goodness, graciousness, greatest gift ever bestowed on man, heartfelt prayer, heirs with Jesus, high price of justice, holy spirit, honour, human-rights, intercession, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Jesus is worthy, joy, justice, justified, King of Kings, lead and guide, light of Jesus Christ, loathing, Lord and Saviour, Lord jesus, lord jesus christ, Lord of Lords, LOVE, loving, magnanimity, magnify Your Holy Name, marvellous works, memorable Friday, no bounds, no more tears sorrow pain, obedience, patience, pay for our ghastly sins, pay our sin debt, payment for all of mankind's sins, peace, perseverance, praise, reconciled, refreshed, relaxation, renewed, rescue, rest, resurrection, right fellowship with God, righteous, rivers of blood, sacrificial deed, selfless, sincere gratitude and thanks, sinners, sins, Son of Jehovah God, stripes, terrible ordeal, TGIF! Thank God is Friday, TGIGF! Thank God it's Good Friday, Thank you Jesus, tragedy, trials, tribulation, truth, unblemished lamb to the slaughter, unconditional LOVE, unity, worship and praise Jesus, worthless sinners, worthy enough
Luke 23:34a.Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.
GOOD FRIDAY !
Oh Friends, that fateful day called Friday has rolled around once again! However, today is not only a Friday, but an extraordinary one that we term GOOD FRIDAY! Today we remember and celebrate the most auspicious and memorable Friday that has ever occurred in man’s history!
And though the event that occurred two thousand years ago today was a horrific tragedy; the stuff that took place on the surface was certainly bad, but its outcome was the greatest gift ever bestowed on mankind, that’s why it can be called good!
So today instead of just singing ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ We need to sing ‘TGIGF! Thank God it’s Good Friday!’
And you know that we’re referring to that memorable day when our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ sacrificed His sinless life, went like an unblemished lamb to the slaughter, to pay for our ghastly sins, so that we could once again have right fellowship with our heavenly Father.
And all of God’s people, feeling the trembling and gratitude boiling in their hearts, spontaneously sang out: ‘All praise, honour and glory be to our Lord Jesus Christ, Son of Jehovah God! Bless His Holy Name! Worship and praise Him and give Him everlasting thanks, for He is indeed worthy of it all!’
Yes my people, Jesus Christ is certainly worthy of more praise and thanks and honour and glory than we can ever give Him! For there is nothing or no one else who could have satisfied the Father’s high price of justice to pay our sin debt in full.
And that’s payment for ALL of mankind’s sins, from day one in the Garden of Eden, when Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden fruit, right down to the day of judgement, and that promised time when sin shall be no more. When there shall be no more tears, no more pain and sorrow, but we shall all dwell in harmony and unity under the everlasting light of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. (Rev.21:3-4)
Oh what a wonderful person is our Jesus! Let’s give Him some more thanks and praise nuh mih breddren. ‘Oh Lord Jesus Christ, there are not enough powerful and thankful words in our vocabulary to truly praise and thank You for Your selfless, sacrificial deed on our behalf. But with whatever we have, we’re pouring out our most sincere gratitude and thanks this Good Friday morn, hoping that You accept it with Your usual graciousness.
We know that it was a terrible ordeal You underwent for us worthless sinners, though You and the Father thought us worthy enough to pay such an exorbitant price to save us. We know You didn’t have to do it, but Your obedience to the Father knew no bounds, so you bore with great patience, perseverance and magnanimity the trials and tribulations the Father decreed as the price of our freedom.
In Your most horrible moments of agony, You were even gracious enough to cry out the words of our Bit: ‘Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.’ Only a truly LOVING and forgiving Deity could do such an extraordinary thing! Thank You Lord Jesus, thank You, thank You, thank You!
Unfortunately, that’s the best we can say. But for that awesome sacrifice, we promise to bow our heads, bend our knees and acknowledge You as Lord of Lords and King of Kings. We will give You all the praise and thanks we can muster, and walk obediently in Your footsteps of LOVE, peace, joy, goodness, human rights and justice, from this day forth and forever more!
Please accept our heartfelt prayer, and let Your Holy Spirit lead and guide us into all truth, so that we can magnify Your Holy Name and spread the good news of Your Story, all over planet Earth! This we pray in Your Holy Name, on the rivers of blood that flowed from the stripes inflicted on Your broken and abused body on that horrible day, two thousand years ago! Amen! And again we say, Amen!’
Thank You Lord Jesus Christ for coming to our rescue! Just the thought of where we would have been, where we would have ended up, without your faithful and LOVING intercession, makes us cringe with fear and loathing!
But thankfully, through the amazing and unconditional LOVE of the Father, we now have nothing to fear, and instead are now gloriously declared righteous, reconciled, justified, adopted children of God, heirs to His kingdom with You, and so many other wonderful things that it would take us all day to name them!
Father in heaven… Lord Jesus… all we can say again is THANKS! Thanks from the innermost recesses of our hearts, and the very depths of our souls! We LOVE You, and will try our very best to walk obedient to Your dictates. In Jesus Name we pray all of this. Amen!’
Oh Friends, this is what I was guided to write this Good Friday morning. I do hope that the sentiments expressed therein will touch your hearts, minds, bodies and souls like it touched mine.
Over the last couple of years I’ve been guided to a greater appreciation of the suffering that Jesus underwent on our behalf, and now the Easter season has truly become the best part of the Christian calendar for me, for that’s where Jesus wrought His most marvellous works.
Please let us mourn the death of our Saviour today, while remembering the awesome good that came out of it. And as we close, let’s chant our Friday Chant with much enthusiasm! Thought I’d forgotten eh? (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.’
Now Friends, and fellow believers, let’s just remember that after the death, comes the glorious RESURRECTION! Much LOVE!
…the price of reconciliation can never be repaid…because it was born out of such unbelievable LOVE…
26 Dec 2013
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: alive and kicking, almighty god, Amen, beatiful soul, believe in God, believers, birth, Boxing Day, business owners, caring, celebrate God's Love, Christmas, Christmas tree, cold, colt, Creator, cross, dark, daughter, depressing news, disatrous situations, earthly pilgrimage, Easter, Emergency, eternal life, evergreen, exalted position, faith, faithfully fulfilled, forgiveness, G.T.A, God will stop at nothing, God-given ability, grace, guide and leader, hands that reach to touch, hanging on a tree, hearts that hurt, help, Holy Name, holy spirit, humble, inspiring and encouraging words, Jerusalem, Jesus Christ, judge, just, king, lack of access, lack of power, lawgiver, life-giving, lift us up, Lord, lose one's mind, LOVE, lowly, manger, merchants, mercy, Ms. Wynne, negative, omnipotent force, outstrecthed arms, Palm Sunday, physical damage, pointing, praying, Premier, province wide, pushing on, quiet rest, reaching, rejoice, riding an ass, righteous, road-weary, rough time, sacrificial work, sales, salvation, saviour, Scarborough area, scriptures, setbacks, sharing, shoppers, significant difference, solid, sparkling, strong rooted in god's love, sturdy, suffering, The Christmas season, thoughts of God, three days, to save my soul, travel-worn, treasures, tree branches, trust, twinkling Christmas tree, two thousand years, wayfarers, whole world, young man, Zechariah, Zion
Isaiah 33:22. For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; he shall save us.
And then it was Boxing Day! Yes Friends, most of the Christmas hoopla has died down now. Thank the Lord! The Christmas season itself is wonderful, but all the unnecessary fuss can get to be a bit much.
Unfortunately though, some 60-70 thousand people, primarily in the Scarborough area of the G.T.A, are still without power, and many trees and other impediments are still to be removed from the roads to provide access.
It’s certainly been a very rough time for those people, and though some are still complaining about the refusal to declare a state of Emergency, the Premier of the Province, Ms. Wynne, says that isn’t necessary because all the people who would have been called in province wide, are already here helping out.
But that’s cold comfort for those who still don’t have power. I spoke to a friend last night, she and her husband, both in their 70’s were without power for almost 72 hours over the weekend. At one point she thought she was about to lose her mind. Imagine two people in their 70’s in a cold, dark house for almost three days nuh!
Ah mih people, it’s truly been a harrowing Christmas for many people in the province. And sadly, on top of the ice, there’s been some snowfall over the last couple days, not a great deal, but enough to make matters worse. Please continue praying for us and helping in whatever way you can.
And another group that has certainly suffered is the business owners and merchants, since many of them couldn’t open because of lack of power and possibly physical damage to their properties. And even for those who were able to open, the number of shoppers must have been seriously curtailed due to the latter’s disastrous situations.
To spoil their Christmas even further, today, Boxing Day, usually Canada’s biggest sales and shopping day, has seen its importance steadily eroded as we try to compete with the U.S. Thanksgiving Black Friday sales pitch. So the merchants are seriously suffering, any which way you take it.
However my brethren, here’s something to lift us up after all that negative and depressing news. It’s a Christmas Prayer, from the Robert H. Schuller Hour of Power Devotional. I only read it after I wrote the Bit yesterday, otherwise I would have included it. But it’s still the Christmas season, so it’s still very appropriate.
And again I have to wonder how this prayer seems so new and unfamiliar to me, although I’ve been reading this devotional for a number of years.
Anyway, it inspirationally says: ‘You lead me, Jesus Christ, to thoughts of God. I see you in a manger carved from a tree. I see you as a young man with hands that reach to touch hearts that hurt. Your caring reaches out like the strong and kind branches of a gentle tree reach out to invite road-weary and travel-worn wayfarers to quiet rest.
I see you again hanging on a tree with outstretched arms taking in the whole world. From your cross, you show me that God will stop at nothing to save my soul. So, I celebrate God’s LOVE today as I celebrate your birth around a twinkling Christmas tree.
I pray my life, like yours, O Lord, may be tall and upright as a pine tree pointing, reaching, sharing, sparkling, life-giving; solid, sturdy, strong-rooted in God’s LOVE, a beautiful soul, evergreen forever: Amen.’
What inspiring and encouraging words my people! Though I had to chuckle at the end, because a lot of pines and other trees around the Province, certainly aren’t standing tall and sturdy today.
But the significant difference is that we believers, despite any setbacks, still have the God-given ability to stand sturdy, strong and deeply rooted in God’s amazing LOVE, becoming truly beautiful souls.
And we find that possible because of scriptures like our Bit. ‘For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; he shall save us.’
Yes my brethren, since Almighty God, the Creator and most omnipotent force in the universe is our guide and leader, we can stand strong in the power of His Holy Name, through the current working of His Holy Spirit, and the sacrificial work His Son, Jesus, our Lord and Saviour, did for us two thousand years ago!
That just goes to show how strong and powerful is our God! Two thousand years later, He’s still alive and kicking, and pushing on as strong as ever. Wow!
In fact He’s becoming stronger every day, as more and more people come to recognize His tremendous power, LOVE, mercy, grace and forgiveness, and thus believe in Him, put their trust and faith in Him, for help in their earthly pilgrimage.
Ah Friends, it’s time to close. I had envisioned getting to the ‘lawgiver’ aspect of our Bit, but that obviously wasn’t meant to be today. However, I’ll leave us with a wonderful scripture on the ‘king and saving’ aspect that I could not include yesterday.
Listen to these beautiful and encouraging words from the prophet Zechariah, as he prophesies about Zion’s future king. ‘Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just (righteous), and having salvation; lowly (humble), and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.’ (Zech. 9:9)
And we all know that scripture was faithfully fulfilled on Palm Sunday!
So fellow believers, we’ve celebrated, sorry, we’re still celebrating the birth of our Saviour Jesus Christ, but we indeed have the next big occasion to look forward to, Easter, when He truly did His saving work and definitely earned His exalted position as our Lord and King. Much LOVE!
…to whom do we owe the treasures of salvation and eternal life…JESUS CHRIST…what a wonderful SAVIOUR…!
02 Apr 2013
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: Abram, Bethel, blessed, correct ritual, deadliness of winter, depth of emotion, divine call, Easter, food, god, gospel truth, happiness, high priest, Jacob, Melchizedek, my heart, newness of life, poet emily dickinson, religion, renewal, resurrection, Sodom & Gomorrah, spring, storehouses, tithes, unique, windows of heaven
Malachi 3:10. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
Oh Friends, on this Resurrection Tuesday morning, the ole fella’s coming out shouting: ‘I, I am blessed. I want to tell the world, that I, I am blessed!’
The man Melo G sings that song, and says that if you have a roof over your head, shoes on your feet, clothes on your back and food on your table, then you’re indeed blessed. And mih people, I have all those things, therefore I must be blessed! Most of us also have them all, that means you too are blessed! So we can all sing: ‘We, we are blessed. Let’s tell the world that we, we are blessed!’ And that’s the gospel truth Friends! So please don’t forget it. When things aren’t looking so good, remember that we’re more blessed than 90 percent of the world, and that 90 percent will very gladly take what we have and be exceedingly grateful. Now here’s a most pertinent quote for this time of year, attributed to the famous American Poet, Emily Dickinson (1830-1886). It says: ‘Spring is a happiness so beautiful, so unique, so unexpected, that I don’t know what to do with my heart.’ And that’s oh so true! Those of you who have never experienced the deadness and deadliness of winter, won’t be able to understand the depth of emotion that spring brings. It’s such a refreshing joy, such newness of life, with everything growing, just springing up, being alive again, the air filled with all the beautiful sights, sounds and smells of a renewed, resurrected Mother Nature. It’s just like this season of Easter, with Jesus rising triumphantly from the grave after a winter in Hades. (smile) Now let’s turn to our Bit: ‘Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat (food) in mine house, and prove (test) me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.’ Ah Friends, though our Bit has been in existence for donkey’s years (smile), it still causes serious contention even to this day. The first mention of tithes is when Melchizedek the king of Salem blessed Abraham, when he was still Abram, after he’d fought off the heathen kings who had besieged Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding area. (Gen.14:1-16) ‘And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God. And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth. And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes (a tenth) of all.’ (Gen.14:18-20) And since this is such a misunderstood subject, I guess we should include some explanation on that scripture from the scholars. ‘Melchizedek king of Salem probably was not a theophany (a visible manifestation to human kind of God or a god, or simply the appearance of God) but an actual king of Jerusalem or Salem (cf.Ps.76:2). He typifies Christ and His priesthood according to Psalm 110:4 and Hebrews 7. He is a priest of the most high God. It is interesting to note believers besides Abram and his descendants in this limited account (chs.12-50). He gave him tithes of all: Abram paid tithes to Melchizedek, indicating Melchizedek’s superior priesthood, since Levi (Israel’s high priest) was considered to be in the body (seminally) of Abram when he paid tithes to Melchizedek (Heb.7:9-10).’ But the whole tithe scene seems to have really unfolded when the Lord appeared to Jacob at Bethel and blessed him, and he in return promised: ‘And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, So that I come again to my father’s house in peace; then shall the Lord be my God: And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God’s house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth (a tithe) unto thee.’ (Gen.28:20-22) And we all know how the Lord blessed Jacob after that, with much goods and many offspring and changed his name to Israel, from whom the many (12) tribes of Israel were descended. Later on, for those same 12 tribes of Israel, it became an unchangeable edict in the laws Moses gave to the Israelites from God. ‘And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord’s: it is holy unto the Lord. And if a man will at all redeem aught of his tithes, he shall add thereto the fifth part thereof. And concerning the tithe of the herd, or of the flock, even of whatsoever passeth under the rod, the tenth shall be holy unto the Lord. He shall not search whether it be good or bad, neither shall he change it: and if he change it at all, then both it and the change thereof shall be holy: it shall not be redeemed.’ (Lev.27:30-33) Oh fellow believers in Christ, yuh see how adamant the Lord was about the givings of His people! And the scholars’ have a good explanation to all of that. ‘The tithe, comprising 10 percent of all the produce, is regarded as the offering due from the people to the true owner of the land (God) (25:23). If the tithe were to be redeemed, the normal 20 percent premium was to be paid to the priests. This chapter points out that holiness is more than a matter of divine call and correct ritual. It actually requires the total consecration of a man’s life to God’s service. It involves giving oneself, one’s family and all of one’s possessions to God.’ And isn’t that the living truth my brethren? It sure is! It’s also interesting that the law dictated if you try to redeem your tithe, you have to pay a 20 percent premium. It’s just like our mortgages or most contracts we sign today; (smile) we have to pay extra to get out of them early, or just to get out of them period. Oh my people, our God doesn’t want merely a part of us, the part that we find it most convenient to give, but He wants ALL of us! And so it should rightfully be, because He’s our Creator, our Provider, our Protector and our Saviour. In fact He determines EVERYTHING about our lives! That means we can’t just be part-time believers and followers as so many of us seem to think and try to be. Anyway Friends, time and space are upon us, so we’ll end here for today, and continue tomorrow with this most interesting and very controversial topic, with the Lord’s consent of course. But believe me, it’s a tried and true formula! Till tomorrow then. In the meantime, please, let’s ponder our personal situation re tithes, and see how we match up to it, and try to match up as best we can. Remember we can’t fool our omnipotent, omniscient, omni-present God. Much LOVE!…the Lord knows our substance…and blesses us in proportion to our giving to His holy church… P.S. Oh Friends, please excuse the lateness of the Bit. It’s long but very informative and I spent more time editing it than I’d intended to. Plus I had to run outside just now and put out the garbage, since I heard the garbage truck tooling around in the neighbourhood. But lo and behold, what do you think greeted me out there; snow flurries. Hn! And this is supposed to be the third week of spring. But them’s the breaks! We just have to grin and bear it, while rolling with the punches. (smile) Much LOVE!
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