25 May 2015
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a fool's wisdom, a mirror image, abundantly pardon, arrogance, brimstone and fire, celebrate, confidence, deceiver, Drunk or sober mind yuh business, enemies, enthusiasm, eternal life, evil, for free, forgive their sin, forgiveness, friends, glorious kingdom, God is faithful, gospel truth, gracious, heal their land, holy spirit, humble servants, I am the way, invitation, Jeremiah, Jesus Christ, jobs, joy, lies, like pulling teeth, long-suffering, LOVE, Lucifer, Memorial Day, merciful God, mercy, Monday Morniing Battle Hymn, my people which are called by my name, no man comes to the Father but by me, Noah, Oh Lord God Almighty, patient, plenty rope, pray, pride, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, repentance, rest, righteousness., sacrifice, salvation, save his soul, seek my face, seek ye the Lord, serve a useful purpose, shall humble themselves, spiritual armour, spunk, steadfast faith, taunts, the earth was corrupt, the Great Flood, the table's turned, then will I hear from heaven, transgressions, truth, turn away from their wicked ways, turnabout is fair play, ungodly world, victory, violence, when a man's ways please the Lord, wicked nature, wiles, wisdom, worship our Creator
2 Chronicles 7:14. If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn away from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
Come on people, it’s Monday; time to rise and shine and get with the programme!
But some of our Friends in the U.S. laugh and declare: ‘Not today my brother! Today is our Memorial Day holiday, and that means no work today, period! Just like you had your Victoria Day holiday last weekend and laughed at us lowly plebs who had to go to work down here, well the table’s turned now.
It’s time for us to celebrate while you go out and labour. As they say, turnabout is fair play, or something to that effect. Hn, hn! But we do wish you the best in all your labouring today. (smile)
Yes Friends, our U.S. brethren are putting it to us today. But we can handle it. So to show that there are no hard feelings, and to help all those who have to go out and labour, let’s sing our Monday Morning Battle hymn with spunk and powerful, positive thoughts of victory.
All together now: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Now that was spunky enough, but obviously the loudest voices were those of our U.S. brethren. They could afford to sing loud and lustily because they have a whole day of celebration in front of them. But as I said last week, let’s remember to keep Granny’s advice front and centre in our hearts and minds; ‘drunk or sober, mind yuh business.’ For the ole deceiver, Lucifer is out there just prowling for anyone he can latch on to. And we certainly don’t want that to be any of us.
Now let’s turn to our oh so important Bit, one that can make the difference between eternal live in heaven, or everlasting death and damnation in Hades. ‘If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn away from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.’
Oh Friends, what a wonderful invitation from a gracious and merciful God! But from day one, our wicked nature, pride and arrogance seems to have been our downfall, as we’ll see when we deal with the last of the four things we need to do for God to hear from heaven and forgive our sin and heal our land, which we desperately need.
Way back when, in the time of Noah, the Bible declares: ‘The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. And God looked upon the earth, and behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way on earth.’ (Gen.6:11-12)
Ah mih people, it was just a mirror image of today’s world! And what did God do? He caused the great flood and destroyed all the inhabitants, beside Noah and his family. Now doesn’t that say something to us; that it’s possible for Him to wipe out everybody again? Obviously we don’t seem to think so. But remember our God is a faithful God, who keeps His promises, and He promised that the next time would be with brimstone and fire, not water.
Meanwhile Cousin Sol says in Proverbs: ‘When a man’s ways please the Lord, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.’ (Prov.16:7)
Oh Friends, that ought to have us just crawling over each other to make our ways please the Lord. But that’s certainly not happening. In these supposedly modern times, it’s like pulling teeth to get people to truly worship our Creator. But our God is so patient and long-suffering that He gives us plenty of rope, hoping against hope that we will not hang ourselves.
Hear His free offer of mercy to all, through the prophet Isaiah. ‘Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.’ (Is.55:6-7)
And again in Jeremiah, the Lord offers mercy and forgiveness for repentance. ‘Again, when the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness that he hath committed, and doeth that which is lawful and right, he shall save his soul alive (preserve himself). Because he considereth, and turneth away from all his transgressions that he hath committed, he shall surely live, he shall not die.’ (Ezek. 18:27-28)
Ah mih breddren, what else do we want the Lord to do eh? How often must He offer the same thing and we refuse His wonderful offer? All down through the ages He’s offered us forgiveness for repentance, but we’re too stubborn and proud to accept it. He even gave us His Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ as a sacrifice for our sins, and yet we still don’t think it wise to be obedient to His dictates. That’s a fool’s wisdom my Friends.
Anyway people, we’re running out of space and time, so we’ll continue this dialogue tomorrow, the Lord in favour. In the meanwhile, let’s end with these words of absolute truth from Jesus, which says it all. ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me.’ (John 14:6)
Now my wise Friends, (smile) let’s go and ponder that statement, and with Jesus’ help, bring our lives into line with it, for that is the wisdom of all wisdom. Much LOVE!
…evil and sin should never be so rampant in our world…when genuine forgiveness, mercy and salvation… are so readily available…for free to boot…
23 May 2015
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a fool's wisdom, a friend of Jesus, a rewarder of them that diligently seek him, a slave to Lucifer, Amos, and all these things shall be added unto you, Beelzebub, blessings, bondage of darkness, damnation, death, divine judgement, eternal life, eternally separated from God, follower of Jesus Christ, forgive their sin, forgiveness, freedom of light, friendship with Jesus, glory hallelujah, going to hell in a hand-basket, gospel truth, grace, guiding light, heal their land, hellfire, humility, hunger and thirst for Christ, joy, kowtowing, LOVE, lusts of our nature, meekness, mercy, minion of Lucifer, my people which are called by my name, my soul thirsteth for god, Orion, passion, peace, pray, promise, prosperity, provision, salvation, seek my face, seek ye first the kingdom of God, seek ye the Lord, sensible, shall humble themselves, the day of the Lord's anger, the Life, the Light, the Lord is my light and salvation, the Pleiades, the Prince of Peace, the Sermon on the Mount, the shadow of death, the things of the world, the Truth, the Way, then will I hear from heaven, to be or not to be, true believers, turn away from their wicked ways, understanding, wisdom, wise, without faith it is impossible to please God, worshipping Jesus, Zephaniah
2 Chronicles 7:14. If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn away from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
Aye Friends, to be or not to be is the question? Whether it is better to be a follower of Jesus Christ, than to be a minion of Lucifer?
And a mighty shout of unanimous, universal approval rose up to high heaven: ‘It is far far better to be a follower of the Prince of Peace, the One who is the Way, the Truth, the Life and the Light than a to be a minion of the prince of darkness! Glory to God Almighty, who sent His Son Jesus to bring us out of the bondage of darkness into the freedom of the Light!’
Yes my people, it is indeed much better, from all points of view, to be a Friend of Jesus than a slave to the evil Lucifer! For Lucifer has nothing worthwhile to really offer us. All the things of the world and the fleshly lusts of our nature will eventually rot and be destroyed.
But when you have friendship with Jesus… Oh fellow followers, you have peace and LOVE, joy, wisdom and understanding, forgiveness, mercy and grace, and are assured of salvation, which leads to eternal life in heaven with Jesus as our guiding light. What can be better than that eh? NOTHING really my brethren! Being a slave to Beelzebub will only cause us to be separated from our Creator for eternity; the worst thing that can ever happen to a human soul.
So having said all of that, can someone explain to me why so many of us are still minions and slaves to Lucifer? I guess we’re just bedazzled by the bright and gaudy wares that he has to offer and the lusts that he promotes. And that is exactly why our world is going to hell in a hand basket! Too many of us are kowtowing to Lucifer rather than worshipping Jesus.
But that’s a fool’s wisdom my brethren! For there’s nothing substantial or long lasting that Lucifer has to offer… except death, hellfire and damnation! And I don’t think any of us really want to experience that, so why not do the right and wise and sensible thing RIGHT NOW eh? Turn to Jesus while there is still time, for once He comes back in all His majestic glory, all bets will be over.
And it’s not like our wonderful God didn’t make provision for just such occasions. Our Bit spells it out loud and clear. ‘If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn away from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.’
Ah Friends, I don’t understand when we have such a glorious opportunity for all around improvement and prosperity, we choose to ignore it. I guess the problem is just too big for my small mind to comprehend. (smile)
Anyway, let’s continue looking at scriptures that involve ‘seek my face.’ But my people, there are so many, I don’t know where to begin. But as they say, when in doubt, begin with Jesus. So here goes.
Remember Jesus’ famous admonition in the Sermon on the Mount? ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt.6:33) That’s the gospel truth Friends, but so far, not too many of us seem to be seriously interested in doing it. It’s the same idea as our Bit, just said in a different manner.
Meanwhile the prophet Zephaniah told the Israelites, re the scope of divine judgement: ‘Seek ye the Lord, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgement (upheld his justice); seek righteousness, seek meekness (humility): it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the Lord’s anger.’ (Zeph.2:3) Again my people, it’s the same idea as our Bit.
And Amos, in his call to repentance, informed the children of Israel. ‘For thus saith the Lord unto the house of Israel, Seek ye me, and ye shall live… Seek him that maketh the seven stars (the Pleiades) and Orion, and turneth the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh the day dark with (as) night: that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: The Lord is his name:’ (Amos 5:4; 8) More wisdom and gospel truth my brethren!
And no discourse on seeking God could ever be complete without the sentiments of Bruh David. Hear him proclaim from Psalm 27 – the Lord is my light and my salvation. ‘One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty (delightfulness) of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple…
Hear, O Lord, when I cry with my voice: have mercy also upon me, and answer me. When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, Lord, will I seek.’ (Ps.27:4, 7-8) Glory Hallelujah!
Now here is a favourite from Hebrews. ‘But without faith it is impossible to please him (God): for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that seek him diligently.’ (Heb.11:6)
Oh Friends, I can personally vouch for that, because the Lord has rewarded me with untold blessings for having faith in Him and diligently seeking Him. And He will do the same for you if you seek him with all your heart, mind, body and soul! That’s His faithful promise.
And we’ll end with another gem from Bruh David; this one from Psalm 63 – God satisfies the thirsting soul – when he was in hiding from his enemies in the wilderness of Judah. ‘O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry land, where no water is.’ (Ps.63:1)
Oh my people, do we feel that way; that hunger and thirst for our magnificent and magnanimous God? Well we ought to…that is if we’re true believers. So today, please let each of us seriously ponder our individual hunger and thirst for Christ , so that we might attain unto true righteousness. For that’s the wisdom of the ages! Much LOVE!
…to truly LOVE Christ…is to show a burning passion …for all things and people associated with him…
19 May 2015
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a beacon, a feeling of peace, a relationship with Christ, almighty god, Anselm, background noise, behave godly, bounden duty, called by God's name, celebration, Christ-lie, Christians, come up higher, communing with nature, desires, disastrous state of our world, downfalls, duty, eternal life, evil, evil cohorts, fear not, forgive their sin, free gift of grace, friends, gentle breezes, give men for thee, God's chosen people, God's people, gospel truth, grace, guide others to Christ, heal their land, honoured, humble themselves, I am the Lord thy God, I will be with thee, individual hurts, ingrained in our nature, insincere pleas, Inspire us for a better tomorrow, irresponsibly, Isaiah's declaration, Israelites, Jesus Christ, light of the world, LOVE, low over me, Lucifer, mesh with God's will, more beautiful than silence, Moses, motives, my neck of the woods, negative actions, negativity, night insects, peace, people for thy life, people which are called by my name, ponder, pray, precious in my sight, Queen Victoria, quick communication, quiet of the morning, ransom, refresh our memories, rejuvenating the spirits, responsibility, responsible society, right conclusion, rocket science, rustle the leaves of the trees, sacrificing, salt of the earth, salvation, scans our hearts, seek God, seek my face, silence is golden, silence., sinful nature, sing songs of praise, social media, sounds of the highway, spread Christ's gospel, strife, talking nonsense, the blessings of obedience, the children of Israel, the flame scorch thee, the heathen, the Holy One of Israel, the lust of the flesh, the only redeemer, the rivers shall not overflow thee, the things of the world, the unbeliever, think before we talk, thou shalt not be burned, trillion dollar question, turn away from their wicked ways, turn back to God, ungodly society, when thou passest through the waters, when thou walkest through the fire, will I hear from heaven
2 Chronicles 7:14. If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn away from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
Aye Friends, please blame the lateness of this Tuesday morning Bit at the feet of Queen Victoria, as I was up till late last night, early this morning, celebrating her day. (smile) But not to worry, it was celebration of the good kind.
And then, before I went to bed, I obviously had to spend some time sitting out on my front porch enjoying the peace and quiet of the morning, communing with nature and my most wonderful God.
Oh my people, you wouldn’t understand how peaceful and quiet it is in my neck of the woods at that time! I sit out there and just let the gentle breezes blow over me, as they rustle the leaves of the trees, and the night insects sing their songs of praise to their Creator, with the sounds of the highway acting as background noise in the distance.
Such a feeling of peace washes over me, that this morning I had to force myself to get up and go to bed, the atmosphere was so amenable to sitting out there for much longer. (smile)
Ah Friends, what’s the point of God giving us these natural amenities for rejuvenating our spirits, if we don’t make use of them eh? None whatsoever!
Anyway, here’s an interesting piece of advice from my Friend Anselm, as he attempts to inspire us for a better tomorrow. He says: ‘Open your mouth only if what you are going to say is more beautiful than silence.’
What a wonderful bit of advice that is my brethren! It brings to mind the saying that ‘silence is golden.’ And it surely is, especially when what we’re planning to say is just going to provoke strife and negativity.
Oh, the many negative actions we can avoid if we’ll only think before we talk! But that seems to be one of our big downfalls, especially in this age of quick communication and social media.
Instead of cutting back on our talking, we seem to be talking even more than usual, and consequently talking more nonsense than usual too. The amount of confusion this social media is causing it’s not funny, yet we still insist on using it irresponsibly.
Ah mih people, until we put the words of our Bit into serious action, we’ll never become a responsible society. ‘If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn away from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.’
As we said yesterday, there are four areas we need to deal with if we are called by God’s name, and we are, as Christians. The first is to humble ourselves before Almighty God, then pray to Him, sincerely seeking His face, while turning away from our evil ways.
Oh Friends, it’s right there in black and white! And it’s not rocket science either. But the evil is so ingrained in our nature, and the lust of the flesh and our LOVE for the things of the world are so great that we don’t seem to want to turn back to God, or we find it difficult to do so.
But Friends, please be assured of one thing; if we truly want to seek God, we’ll find Him, because the Lord will certainly enable us to do it. The problem is that when He scans our hearts, He discovers that our motives and desires are wrong, they do not mesh with His will and desire, so He ignores our insincere pleas.
Now I had planned to share some scriptures that deal with the four areas in which we need to come up higher, so that God can hear us and heal our individual hurts, as well as our ungodly society. But before we can do that, we need to refresh our memories that we are indeed God’s people, called by His name.
Yesterday we saw one example of that through Moses laying out the blessings of obedience to the Israelites. Now listen to Isaiah’s declaration to the children of Israel, as he details to them the gospel truth that God is the only redeemer of mankind.
‘But now thus saith the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel. Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine.
When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon (scorch) thee.
For I am the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour: I gave Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Sheba for thee (in thy place). Since thou wast precious in my sight, thou hast been honourable (honoured), and I have LOVED thee: therefore will I give men for thee, and people for thy life.’ (Is.43:1-4)
Yes my brethren, the bunch of modern day people called Christians, belong to the Lord! We are called by His name, He has saved and redeemed us through the sacrificing of His Son Jesus Christ!
That means we have a responsibility, a serious duty to behave and act according to His desires and commands. But obviously we’re not doing that on a wide or strong enough scale, which results in our even more sinful nature and the disastrous state of our world.
Ah Friends, we are God’s chosen people, let’s behave like it nuh, and not like Lucifer’s evil cohorts. Our bounden duty is to behave godly, and spread Christ’s gospel, so that the heathen, the unbeliever, will have a chance to turn to God, to accept His free gift of grace that leads to salvation and eternal life.
Now, if we, God’s people, called by His name, don’t do it, then please tell me who will eh?
And we’ll end with that trillion dollar question. Friends, please, let’s seriously and sincerely ponder it today nuh, and with God’s help, come to the right conclusion. Much LOVE!
…Christians are meant to be Christ-like…the salt of the earth…and the light of the world…a beacon to guide others to a wonderful relationship with Christ…
05 May 2015
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a fool's wisdom, a stronghold in the day of trouble, abundant life, aches and pains, adversity, all that glitters is not gold, allergies, arthritis, at thy right hand, awesome power, baubles and bangles, bright lights, broad is the way that leads to destruction, child-like desire, Christ is the gate and the way, contrasts, dangerous, death, defeating hell, deliverance, encouragement, enter in at the strait gate, eternal life, eternity, evil, facades, faith, false conclusions, false fronts, few there be that find it, fleshly pleasures, gang up on me, glorify our heavenly Father, glory hallelujah, glory to God, God will never leave nor forsake us, golden curtain, grin and bear it, harbinger of rain, hell, humble apologies, in thy presence is fullness of joy, jehovah god, Jesus, joy, live righteously, living for Christ, LOVE, loving kindness, Lucifer, material things, merciful God, method of teaching, Most High God, my fortress, my god, my high tower, My Redeemer lives, my strength, O Lord my strength, One Year Book of Bible promises, personal experience, pleasures, pleasures for evermore, prisoners of hope, promises, promises of God, rain, reinforce, Ruth Harms Calkin, saved from mine enemies, sensible way, separation from God, Sermon on the Mount, sinful nature, surrender, the grave, the horn of my salvation, The Lord is my rock, the Promise of Abundant Life, the spirit is well, the things of the world, thou wilt show me the path of life, trials, truth, trying times, two man-rat can't live in the same hole, waiting arms, walking away from God, what a wonderful God we serve and worship, wide is the gate, wisdom, wisdom in a nutshell, wise, worthy to be praised
Psalm 16:11. Thou wilt show me the path of life: in thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.
Aye Friends, my most humble apologies for the Bit being this late. But it was just one of those mornings: I couldn’t roll out of bed as early as I wanted, and when I did roll out, all the aches and pains seemed to gang up on me, so I was moving around like a real old man for a while. Hn, Hn!
Don’t know if that’s the harbinger of rain or what, as some people seem to think, though we could certainly use some and it’s a tad cloudy outside. But that’s just the way it goes sometimes in the later days of one’s life, especially when you’re beset by the wonderful disease called arthritis.
And my lovely allergies have also decided to act up this morning. Chuh Steups! But realistically you’ve just got to grin and bear the adversity and trials, because you can’t do anything much about them.
However Friends, the important thing in all of that is that I know that my Redeemer lives! Glory to God! He died, was buried, then rose again from the grave, in the process defeating hell, Lucifer, death and the grave. Glory Hallelujah!
So though the body is aching and getting on in years, the spirit is well, it’s beautiful, and remains ever- young, and I can comfortably abide in all the great promises of Jehovah God, for I know from personal experience that He will faithfully keep them and never leave nor forsake me.
Wow mih breddren! As I keep saying, what a wonderful God we serve and worship! There’s none other like Him in the universe. And how could there ever be eh? No two beings could have such awesome power and exist together. As the old people would say, ‘two man-rat can’t live in the same hole!’
Hn, hn! Haven’t heard that one in some time, but it’s the absolute truth! And just to show what I’m talking about, check out this scene for May, from the One Year Book of Bible Promises, with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin.
It’s titled ‘The Promise of Abundant Life.’ And it says: ‘Lord, you always bring ultimate good to those who LOVE you. May I never surrender to the false conclusion that you have no more for me than what I already have.’
Oh Friends, it’s ever so important that we keep our hopes up, be prisoners of hope always and forever, and never give up on the awesome potential and LOVING-kindness of our great and most merciful God!
For as the promise on which that poem is based, which is also our Bit, taken from a contemplation of Bruh David, where he wisely proclaims: ‘Thou wilt show me the path of life: in thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.’
Mama Mia! Now why would I want to walk away from such a Deity eh? One who shows me the way to live righteously, in whose presence I find everlasting joy, and who has innumerable pleasures for me to enjoy from now until eternity?
Steups! I would be real foolish my brethren to walk away from such a wonderful God, especially when I know that He always keeps His promises.
But sadly, a lot of mankind are doing just that; walking away from Jehovah God right into the waiting arms of an evil and dangerous Lucifer. That’s a fool’s wisdom, my people. For what can Lucifer do for us that the Most High God can’t do eh? NOTHING! ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!
Nothing but fool us with some material things that don’t last and a few earthly and fleshly pleasures that will only have us end up in hell, and thus endure everlasting separation from Almighty God. Steups! And that’s the WORST thing that can ever happen to a human soul.
So why do we still insist on fooling around with the things of the world, of the prince of darkness eh my people? I really don’t know nuh. I guess it’s partly because of our innate sinful nature and our child-like desire for bright lights and flashy baubles and bangles, none of which really have any substance, but are simply false fronts, facades to hide the evil and non- substantive stuff that lies behind the bright golden curtain.
Remember Friends, all that glitters is not truly gold!
Now let’s check out some scriptures that reinforce the wisdom of our Bit. And we don’t have to go far, just a couple Psalms over to 18, where Bruh David is giving thanks for deliverance from his enemies. Listen to these wonderful words of faith and encouragement my brethren!
‘I will LOVE thee, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength. In whom I will trust; my buckler (shield), and the horn (strength) of my salvation, and my high tower (stronghold). I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies.’ (Ps.18:1-3)
Oh Friends, that’s the only wise way to live this earthly life! And if you don’t believe Bruh David, then listen to Jesus, as He delivers His teachings in the Sermon on the Mount.
‘Enter ye in at the strait (narrow) gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat. Because strait (how narrow) is the gate, and narrow (difficult or confined) is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.’ (Matt.7:13-14)
Oh my people, what more can I say eh? Not much, except to give us some thoughts on the subject from the scholars. ‘7:13-14. The closing section of the Sermon on the Mount presents two choices to the listener. These are presented in a series of contrasts: two ways (vs.13-14); two trees (vs.15-20); two professions (vs.21-23); and two foundations (vs.24-29). This was a common method of teaching in both Jewish and Greco-Roman thought.
Enter ye in at the strait gate (narrow) means that one must come through the narrow gate in order to reach the path that leads to eternal life. Though many are on the broad…way, that leadeth to destruction (eternal separation from God), the gate that leads to life is so narrow that few there be that find it. Christ Himself is both the gate and the way (cf. John 14:6), and God enables men to find that gate (John 6:44).’
Oh Friends, that’s heavenly wisdom in a nutshell! Please, pretty please, let’s go out and practice it nuh, let’s put it into action in this ungodly world, so that we can glorify our heavenly Father, and ensure that we won’t be separated from Him eternally. Much LOVE!
…sincerely living for Christ in these trying times…is the only wise and sensible way to go…
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…
15 Apr 2015
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a blessed day, admonishment, all-knowing, all-powerful, alleviate, as sheep having no shepherd, because they fainted, bounden duty, Christ has no hands feet or tongues but ours, Christ's work, compassion, courage, diligent, diligent workers, dissatisfaction, eat corn dogs, eternal life, eternally separated from God, ever-present, forgiveness, friends, glory hallelujah, God is good, good news, good to the last drop, Gramps Schuller, great abundance, halfway home, harvesters, He was moved with compassion, heart-broken, heathens, His church, His earthly body, Jesus, Jesus is depending on us, Jesus' sacrificial death, joyful, keep on ploughing straight ahead, King of the universe, life isn't fair, LOVE, loving kindness, Mama Mia, mercies, missionaries, monetary contributions, no turning back, onerous, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, pain, persevering, prayer, reapers, reconciliation, resurrection, ride the Ferris wheel, ripe to hear the Word, saviour jesus christ, scattered abroad, sorrow, soul-satisfying, spiritual harvest, spring like day, strong foundation, sunshine everlasting, the Creator and Controller of the universe, the Great Commission, the harvest truly is plenteous, the judgement day, the labourers are few, the Love Revolution, the lustful things of the world, the middle of the workweek, the unsaved, the wonderful sunshine of Jesus, they were weary, truth, unconditional LOVE, Wednesday, wisdom
Matthew 9:36. But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted (were weary), and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.
Ah Friends, it’s Wednesday, the middle of the workweek, we’re halfway home, so no turning or looking back now, just keep on ploughing straight ahead! And it’s also supposed to be a beautiful, spring like day, with temps in the mid teens and sunshine everlasting. Wow!
And for us believers it’s going to be an even brighter day, because along with the physical sunshine we’ll also have the wonderful sunshine of Jesus shining forth from our lives. Glory Hallelujah!
That means it’s going to be a real blessed day my people, for when you add all of God’s mercies, forgiveness and LOVING-kindness that He’s prepared especially to shower down on us today… MamaMia! I don’t know if we can handle it nuh. (smile)
And today we’re going to get going with an interesting, humorous but also true quote of a couple days ago from my friend Anselm. And it says: ‘Life isn’t fair. A fair’s a place where you eat corn dogs and ride the Ferris wheel.’
Now that’s absolutely true my brethren. But the wonderful thing about it all, is that our GOD IS GOOD… GOOD TO THE VERY LAST DROP! And there’s no denying it. So the world not being fair doesn’t cause us much anxiety, since our Good God is the Creator and the Controller of the universe.
We are the children of the all-powerful, ever-present, all-knowing King of the universe. And all God’s people said a most grateful, ‘Praise the Lord!’
And yuh know what too Friends, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ needs us to do His earthly work, to spread the good news message of His sacrificial death and wonderful resurrection that now allows reconciliation with the Father and eternal life for all who believe on Him. Wow! What an awesome job my people.
But as Gramps Schuller (Robert H. Schuller) says in His Hour of Power Devotional: ‘Christ has no hands but our hands to do His work today. He has no feet but our feet to lead us on the way. He has no tongues but our tongues to tell us how He died. He has no help but our help to bring us to His side.’
Oh Friends, that’s absolute truth! So you see how important we are to Christ’s work here on earth? It all depends on us. And after He’s done so much for us, how can we justify not being diligent and persevering in our work efforts on His behalf eh? We simply can’t!
And I’ve shared that message before, but it’s ever so important that I thought it worth sharing again, since we’re not doing Christ’s work as diligently, enthusiastically and truthfully as we should.
Ah mih people, Jesus is depending on us, His earthly body, His church with strong foundation, built on the rock of His powerful Word, to stir up the LOVE Revolution that will unite the entire world in His everlasting, unfathomable and unconditional LOVE! That’s why he gave the Great Commission (Matt.28:19-20) to the disciples, and consequently to us.
That brings us to our rather appropriate Bit: ‘But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted (were weary), and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.’
Yes Friends, our Lord and Saviour was heart broken when He saw so many people going astray; like lost sheep, with no shepherd to guide them. ‘Then saith he unto his disciples, 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, that’s another admonishment for us to go out and reap a plentiful harvest, because the unsaved are still out their in great abundance, possibly more so today than in Jesus’ time. That means He’s still heartbroken to day, and only we, His true and faithful followers can alleviate His pain and sorrow.
And as the scholars tell us: ‘Verses 37 and 38 constitute one of the great missionary passages of the New Testament. Jesus pictures the world as a great spiritual harvest in need of labourers to gather it into the storehouse.’
Yes my brethren, there are many heathens to be harvested, and there’s lots of space in the storehouses of heaven, but sadly, there are not enough reapers, harvesters and diligent workers to do the job satisfactorily. And if you read between the lines, that’s a slight on us, a mark of dissatisfaction with way we’re doing, or rather not doing, our bounden duty here on earth.
Oh Friends, I know that we can’t all be missionaries to the far-flung parts of the globe, but we can help send some there through monetary contributions and sincere prayers. But we can also do the same job, the job we are called to do, right in our own homes and neighbourhoods, where there are oodles of people who still have never heard of Jesus, and thus have never had the opportunity to accept Him as their Lord and Saviour.
Remember Friends, we will all have to stand before Christ, come the judgement day. And when He asks why we didn’t talk to this one, or that one, right in our area, who was ripe to hear the Word, and unfortunately has since been eternally separated from God, what are we going to answer eh? The truth hopefully; that we were too busy with the lustful things of the world? Steups!
That’s certainly not going to cut it my people. So please, let’s get serious nuh, right in our own areas, let’s be diligent and persevering about reaping the plentiful harvest that’s out there to put in Jesus’ storehouse, so that none will be lost, and thus suffer the worst fate a human being can – that of eternal separation from Almighty God!
Remember too Friends, that Jesus has nobody else but us to do it. So let’s show some wisdom and courage, and just do it nuh. Much LOVE!
…after all Jesus has selflessly done for us…His earthly work should not be perceived as being onerous…but rather…joyful and soul satisfying…
13 Apr 2015
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a call to arms, a shout of praise, almighty god, aura of love, Christian walk, confidence, enthusiasm, eternal life, eternity, faith, fear, fellowship, forefront of battle, friends, furtherance of our faith, glorious kingdom, glory, glory hallelujah, glory to God, Greater than Great, Higher than High, holy spirit, honour, hope, humble servants, I have not refrained my lips, I have preached righteousness, in the great congregation, invincible, Jesus Christ, John Hagee, King of Kings, lamb of god, lies, Lord of Lords, LOVE, loving kindness, Monday Morniing Battle Hymn, Praise the Lord, proclaimed the good news of righteousness, rejuvenation of spirit, righteousness., selfless sacrifice, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, thanks, the army of Jesus, the one and only superstar, the sacrificial Lamb, the Word of god, truth, ungodly world, wisdom, worthy is the lamb that was slain
Psalm 40:9. I have preached righteousness (proclaimed the good news of righteousness) in the great congregation: lo, I have not refrained (restrained) my lips, O Lord, thou knowest.
Spanah na na na nah! Spanah na na na nah! Hear the early morning bugle blowing mih Friends! Sorta late now though. (smile) It’s a time of call to arms for the mighty army of Jesus, one more Monday morning.
And the great thing with this army Friends, is that our wonderful Leader, our Supreme Commander, Jesus Christ, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords; He is ALWAYS in the forefront of the battle! No other supposed deity does that. They are always safe from harm, cloistered in their big and fancy palaces. Steups!
But out Saviour, our Lord and leader, Jesus Christ is ALWAYS in the trenches with us, His obedient and ever faithful foot soldiers! Glory to God! Oh give our Lord and God a shout of praise my people!
And all God’s people uttered a loud, proud and heaven directed shout of: ‘Oh Jesus Christ, Lamb of God, we LOVE and honour You and give You all the glory! For worthy is the Lamb that was slain on our behalf!
Thank You for saving us. Life would truly be unbearable without Your selfless sacrifice. Please help us to praise and glorify You all our days! This we pray in Your name. Amen!’
Oh Friends, it hurts me deeply when I consider the horrendous time and things Jesus went through for our ungrateful sakes. But I also LOVE and adore Him for doing it – without complaining too. Hn! Only wish we, His earthly followers nowadays could be so obedient and non-complaining too.
But that selfless sacrifice means that we can now look forward to spending eternity with Him in the many mansions of the Father, which he has gone to prepare for us. And that my fellow believers, we all know is the not only the BEST, but also the BESTEST thing that has ever happened in this whole wide world! Glory Hallelujah!
So after all that build up, (smile) let’s now sing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn with plenty feeling, with plenty verve and gumption, as we get ready to go out into the evil world and fight the heathen with the sword of LOVE; the LOVE of Jesus Christ.
Now let’s sing a real good rendition here mih breddren, As one big, sweet, harmonious and heavenly choir, let’s light up God’s universe.
‘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!’
Oh mih people, mih people, that was wonderful, marvellous, the mostest! Wow! I don’t think we’ve ever sung any louder, sweeter and in greater harmony!
And yuh know why that is? It’s simply because this is the first time that we’ve ever truly followed the leading and direction of our most awesome and revered Choirmaster, the ONE and ONLY Superstar, Jesus Christ! Mama Mia!
And as Uncle John (John Hagee) would say: ‘Give the Lord a shout of praise in the house of God!’
And all God’s people responded with a loud and vibrant cheer of ‘Praise the Lord! Give Him thanks, honor and glory, because he is most deserving of them! All praise to the sacrificial Lamb, who is Higher than High, and Greater than Great!’
And now Friends, having sung the praises of our great God so much, it is essential, of the utmost importance that we go out and follow the words of our Bit. Words that Bruh David proclaimed eons ago, but which today are still applicable, appropriate and relevant to the continuation and furtherance of our wonderful faith.
‘I have preached righteousness (proclaimed the good news of righteousness) in the great congregation: lo, I have not refrained (restrained) my lips, O Lord, thou knowest.’
Yes my people, we need to go out and let the heathen and the heretic hear the Word of God! That’s our Great Commission! (Matt.28:19-20) It’s also the only way they will hear the Word. Remember too that faith is born, can only come by hearing the Word of God. (Rom.10:17)
Oh yes my people, we not only have to say like Bruh David says in Psalm 22 – A cry of anguish and song of praise – but also do it. ‘I will declare thy name unto my brethren: in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee.’ (Ps.22:22)
We can’t afford to be afraid, and/or bashful and shy about proclaiming the Lord’s Word, for that’s our bounden duty, what’s totally expected of us!
Oh Friends, I had some other stuff to add, but we’ll leave that for tomorrow, the Lord willing, because I don’t want to stretch our short attention span too much (smile)
But let’s get real nuh, it’s high time we not only talk, but also truly walk the Christian walk, for it’s only by us doing so, will the Word of God flourish and last till time everlasting. Much LOVE!
…for the children’s sake…let’s shout the Word of God…from every rooftop…to every living creature…
12 Apr 2015
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a travesty of justice, afraid, also to the Greek, and of the Holy Spirit, awe, believers in Jesus Christ, blessens, bonds in christ, bounden duty, Bruh David, Bruh Paul, Christians, comfort, dynamite, dynamo, edify, encourage, enthusiasm, eternal life, ever-faithful God, faith, faith comes by hearing, fellowship, filter into your hearts, forgiveness, gather to worship, go to church, God's gracious provision, hearing by the word of God, hidden under a bushel, I have not refrained my lips, I have preached righteousness, in sincerity, in the great congregation, in the name of the Father, Jesus Christ, listen more than we talk, make disciples of all nations, mercy, no man is an island, number one priority, of the Son, oral communication, personal relationship with Jesus, pilgrim's journey, powerful word of God, praise and worship God, preach Christ, reconciliation, righteousness., sacrifical death, salvation, saving faith, secret, the body of Christ, the good news, the gopsel is the power of God unto salvation, the Great Commission, the most powerful force in the universe, the word of Christ, to the Jew first, truth, zeal, zenith of wisdom
Psalm 40:9. I have preached righteousness (proclaimed the good news of righteousness) in the great congregation: lo, I have not refrained (restrained) my lips, O Lord, thou knowest.
Well hello there you beautiful believers in Jesus Christ! How goes it this Sunday morning in mid-April eh? I hope that it meets you all safe and sound, and also up and about, preparing to go to church and praise and worship our wonderful God with other believers. For you know that’s the number one priority of a Christian on a Sunday morning.
Our God both desires and expects it of us, because He is always there ready to shower down blessings, mercy and forgiveness on us, whenever we gather to worship Him in sincerity and truth. That means that though you may have a personal relationship with Christ, that is not sufficient, you still need to meet with other believers in fellowship, to strengthen your bonds in Christ and to encourage, comfort and edify each other.
That’s why Jesus and Bruh Paul talk about His body, the church. It resembles the human body because it is made up of different parts, but all come together to form one body. No one part can’t do it all by itself. Just like no man is an island, likewise, no Christian is capable of doing it all himself.
And if by chance you’re physically unable to get to a sanctuary, then turn on your radio or your TV, find a church program and let the powerful and ever-faithful Word of God filter into your heart through your ears. That’s why He gave us two ears and only one mouth; so that we can listen more than we talk. (smile)
Remember too the fateful words of Bruh Paul to the Romans: ‘So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.’ (Rom.10:17)
And the scholars offer this important explanation. ’10:17. The word of God: Better, “the word of Christ.” The reference here is to the oral communication of the gospel. Note that it is not faith in what is heard, but faith that comes about by what is heard. This is what Paul meant in 1:16 when he said the gospel “is the power of God unto salvation.”
Saving faith is not man doing his part in response to God’s having done His part (synergism). Saving faith can come about only through the gospel. Salvation is God’s work alone (monergism). This also shows that there is no other way to be saved but by the explicit gospel of Christ.’
Yes Friends, faith is born, and then grows in us when we hear the word communicated orally. And I guess I’ll have to spoon feed you all here because very few, if any of you will condescend to check out Romans 1:16, so you can better understand the scripture. So here it is. ‘For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth: to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.’ (Rom.1:16)
Please remember my people that the Word of God is the most powerful force in the universe! For as the scholars tell us: ‘1:16. The power of God: The English words dynamite and dynamo are derived from the word “power.” If Paul were writing today he would probably speak of atomic power. The gospel is so powerful that it takes people all the way into heaven.
Every one that believeth: The basis of salvation is God’s gracious provision. (Rom.3:23-26) But the only means by which the sinner can appropriate this gift is faith (10:9-17) The gospel is the essential content of that faith. This is why Paul is so burdened to preach Christ to the world.’
Ah mih people, the power of the gospel of Christ is truly marvellous and miraculous! Without it, our faith would not exist; neither would we enjoy salvation, reconciliation and eternal life! Please keep that front and centre in our lives, as we make our pilgrim’s journey here on earth.
That bring us to our Bit, where Bruh David declares: ‘I have preached righteousness (proclaimed the good news of righteousness) in the great congregation: lo, I have not refrained (restrained) my lips, O Lord, thou knowest.’
Yes my brethren, the same way Bruh Paul was enthused to preach the gospel of Christ, that’s exactly how Bruh David felt about God’s Word, and proclaimed it loudly to all and sundry! That job has now fallen to us Friends, but are we expressing it with the great awe, zeal and enthusiasm like we ought to? I doubt it very much. A lot of us are ashamed of Christ, are afraid to talk about Him openly, even to our friends and neighbours, but yet consider ourselves Christians, His followers.
But that’s not good enough my people. Hear how Bruh David continues after our Bit. ‘I have not hid thy righteousness within my heart; I have declared thy faithfulness and thy salvation: I have not concealed thy LOVING-kindness and thy truth from the great congregation.’ (Ps.40:10)
Now that is what all believers ought to be able to say, and until we each can say that truthfully, then we’re not doing God’s will as we ought! Many of us instead of broadcasting the gospel and salvation boldly and diligently, we selfishly hide it in our hearts. But Friends, that good news was not meant to be kept a secret; it was meant to be broadcast to all the world.
Remember Jesus Great Commission to the 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 to the end of the world.’ (Matt.28:19-20).
Yes my brethren, that is what all faithful believers in Christ ought to be doing; telling others about His sacrificial death on the cross at Calvary; which paid for our sins from now until eternity, plus the free gift of salvation offered to us through God’s grace, and the wonderful promise of eternal life!
Wow! Oh my people, if you believe that you have all of that, how can you keep it to yourselves eh? It’s a travesty of justice! So please, starting today, right now, let’s up the ante nuh, let’s get more interested and zealous about the cause of Christ, and go out and gladly broadcast it to all the world, for that’s our bounden duty, as well as the zenith of wisdom! Much LOVE!
…the good news of Jesus’ gospel …should not be hidden under a bushel…but brightly exposed for all to see and hear…
06 Apr 2015
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a great King above all Gods, almighty god, atone for our sins, aura of love, blessings, Christ's Resurrection, compassionate, confidence, day of temptation, Easter Monday, eternal life, evil powers, faith, fellowship, For he is our god, forgiveness, friends, glorious kingdom, glory hallelujah, gospel truth, Hades, harden not your heart, holy spirit, hope, humble servants, invincible, Jesus Christ, joy, joyful noise, kneel beofre the Lord our maker, let us make a joyful noise, lies, lord god almighty, LOVE, mercy, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, O come let us sing unto the lord, o come let us worship and bow down, provocation, rebellion in the wilderness, reconcile, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, shout joyfully, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, the Lord is a great God, the sheep of his hand, to the rock of our salvation, today if ye will hear his voice, trust, ungodly world, we are the people of his pasture
Psalm 95:1. O Come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise (shout joyfully) to the rock of our salvation.
And then it was Monday Friends – Easter Monday with the joyful celebrations of Christ’s resurrection and victory over the dark and evil powers of Hades and the world still in full cry! Glory Hallelujah!
That’s only for some of us blessed ones though, unfortunately the remainder have to go back out to work today and won’t be able to participate in the Easter Monday frivolities. Oh don’t you feel so sorry for them? For sure we do, but that’s just the luck of the draw, whether where you work recognizes Easter Monday as a holiday or not.
However to show our solidarity with them, let’s sing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn with much zeal and fervour. As one marvellous 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!’
Oh Friends, that was pretty good, though there were a few hoarse and out of tune voices, obviously from the hard and heavy partiers. (smile) Jesus just chuckled and shook His head knowingly when He heard them.
Now that ought to get us revved up and just rearing to get out into the world and show the unbelieving hordes exactly what true Christians are like, and have them panting with longing to come to Jesus and get what we have, salvation and eternal life. That’s why my people, Psalm 95 – A psalm of praise to the great God – is so appropriate at this Easter time.
And our Bit leads it off: ‘O Come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise (shout joyfully) to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise (shout joyfully) unto Him with psalms (songs) (Ps.95:1-2)
And that is very meet and right my people, since the Lord went to such great trouble to have His Son sacrifice Himself to atone for our sins. It’s a no-brainer that we should be everlastingly grateful for that wonderful action on His part. He didn’t have to do it, but He LOVED us so much that He just couldn’t live with Himself and see us simply go down to the pits and dungeons of hell with the evil Lucifer without giving us a fighting chance to do better.
And as the psalmist continues: ‘For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods.’ (Ps.95:3) And isn’t that the indisputable truth my brethren? It certainly is! Who else, other than a great and compassionate God and King would have put Himself to so much trouble and heartache to give us an opportunity to atone for our sins and reconcile us to Himself eh? Definitely not some small time god and/or king, who was only interested in their own welfare.
The palmist then reminds us that: ‘In his hand (In his possession) are the deep places of the earth: the strength (heights) of the hills is his also. The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land.’ (Ps.95:4-5) More gospel truth my brethren, since the Lord made the universe and all therein and still controls it with His mighty right hand!
Therefore the psalmist next words are quite in order. ‘O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our maker. For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. Today if ye will hear his voice, Harden not your heart, as in the provocation (rebellion), and as in the day of temptation (trial or testing) in the wilderness: When your fathers proved me, and saw my work. (Ps.95:6-9)
Oh Friends, that would be so foolish on our part, especially since we now know about Jesus and all the wonderful things He has to offer.
Now listen to what happened to those foolish forefathers of ours. ‘Forty years long was I grieved (was I disgusted) with this generation, and said, It is a people that do err (go astray) in their heart, and they have not known my ways: Unto whom I sware in my wrath that they should not enter my rest.’ (Ps.95:10-11)
And my people, our God wasn’t joking nuh, for none of those who left Egypt ever entered the Promised Land besides Joshua and Caleb. Even the great messenger of God, Moses, only saw the Promised Land in the distance from a hill top.
So my people, please don’t be taken in by the false and deceitful promises of the evil world, for our God might be very LOVING and generous and magnanimous, but He values obedience to His will above everything else, and His wrath is not something we ever want to feel.
And also, if you should hear Him knocking on the door of your heart today, be wise, please open it with a big, glorious and welcoming smile, for He is the only One who can give us all that we need, both down here on earth, and in heaven above. Much LOVE!
…when you open your heart to Jesus…all heaven shouts for joy…for one more is added to the godly flock…
05 Apr 2015
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: adoptees, atonement, became as dead men, blessings, Christ is risen from the grave, Christendom, come see the place where the Lord lay, compassion, countenance like lightning, cramp your style, death, Drunk or sober mind yuh business, earthquake, Easter Sunday, eternal life, evil cohorts, fear not ye, for he is risen, forgivenss, Galilee, glory to God, grace, Hallelujah, Happy Easter, He is not here, hell, idle tales, Jesus, Jesus Christ, linen clothes, LOVE, loving kindness, Lucifer, Mary Magdalene, mercy, overstanding, Peter, reconciliation, resurrection, rise again from the dead, sepulchre, Simon Peter, sinless life, they believed them not, tomb, touch me not, understanding, wicked minions, wisdom, ye seek Jesus which was crucified
Matthew 28:6. He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.
HAPPY EASTER !
Oh Friends, it’s Easter Sunday… and the promise has come! Yes my people, the promise has come! It certainly didn’t tarry long; for Jesus Christ is risen…He is risen… Jesus Christ is risen indeed my faithful brethren!
And all God’s children burst out in joyful song: ‘He is risen, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Christ is risen! Let the whole world sing, Christ is risen, Christ is risen from the grave! He is risen, He is risen! Oh Christ is risen from the grave! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Let the whole world sing, Christ is risen from the grave!’
Oh what a joyful day in Christendom my people, for Christ’s resurrection means that He has conquered, He has mightily defeated once and for all time hell, death and the grave! He has put Lucifer and all his evil cohorts to flight, has them running for their very lives! Oh what a wonderful Lord and Saviour is our Jesus! He sacrificed His sinless life for us unworthy humans…Glory to God!
That means a whole lot of wonderful things are now open and readily available to us. We’re talking about blessings like atonement, reconciliation, grace, mercy, compassion, forgiveness, LOVING-kindness, eternal life, wisdom and understanding – or as the Rasta breddren say, ‘overstanding.’ For how can it be good if it’s under eh? Hn, hn! It has to be over to be better than average.
Yes Friends, however you want to put it, this Easter Sunday morn is a most beautiful, exciting, wonderful and promising time in the life of mankind! Even the Father is flashing a big happy smile, because He now has His BELOVED Son back, and a whole new set of adoptees because of it. Wow! The world is now a much better place!
Oh my people, let’s certainly enjoy the time, but please don’t get too carried away, because Lucifer and his wicked minions are still around, hungry and looking for any available soft spot to invade our spiritual lives. So during this weekend’s celebrations, let’s once more invoke Granny’s words of wisdom: ‘Sonny boy, please, please remember that drunk or sober, to mind yuh business!’
Oh Friends, I’m not trying to cramp your style, or restrict your celebrations, but it’s just that when we get to celebrating, especially such a joyful occasion as Jesus’ resurrection, we tend to go overboard, and that’s when Lucifer is going to trip us up and make us fall. And we definitely don’t want that at any time at all. So please be careful, do observe a modicum of circumspection in your celebrations. (smile)
Now let’s hear what the Good Book has to say about this joyous, most auspicious occasion. I’m going to try and combine the gospels so that they read sequentially. And as the scholars note: ‘All four Gospels essentially agree in reporting the facts of the Resurrection. The variety of details in each account supplement rather than contradict one another.’
Sometime during the early morning hours of the Resurrection day things got moving, as Matthew tells us: ‘And behold there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door (of Jesus’ tomb), and sat upon it. His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment (clothing) white like snow. And for fear of him, the keepers (guards) did shake, and became as dead men.’ (Matt.28:2-4)
The scholars inform us that ‘The earthquake and the angel who rolled away the stone, did not come to let Jesus out of the tomb, but to reveal that it was empty and that He was already gone.’
Now Mark joins the story: ‘And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary, the mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him. And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came upon the sepulchre (tomb) at the rising of the sun. And they said among themselves, Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulchre? And when they looked they saw that the stone was rolled away: for it was very great (large). (Mark16:1-4)
‘And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come see the place where the Lord lay.’ (Matt.28:5-6) ‘But go your way, tell his disciples and Peter that he goeth before you into Galilee, as he said unto you. And they went out quickly, and fled from the sepulchre; for they trembled and were amazed:’ (Mark 16:7-8)
‘And they returned from the sepulchre, and told all these things unto the eleven, and to all the rest… And their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they believed them not.’ (Luke 24:9,11) But ‘Peter therefore went forth, and that other disciple (whom Jesus LOVED), and came to the sepulchre (were going to the tomb). So they ran both together: and the other disciple did outrun Peter, and came first to the sepulchre.
And he stooping down, and looking in, saw the linen clothes lying; yet went he not in. Then cometh Simon Peter following him, and went into the sepulchre, and seeth the linen clothes lie, And the napkin (face cloth) that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together (folded) in a place by itself. Then went in also that other disciple, which came first to the sepulchre, and he saw, and he believed. For as yet they knew not (understood) the scripture, that he must rise again from the dead. Then the disciples went away again unto their own home.’ (John 20:3-10)
The scholars explain: 20:8-9. Believed. For as yet they knew not: They believed Jesus was alive, not yet knowing the details of His resurrection.’
‘But Mary stood without at (outside of) the sepulchre weeping: and as she wept , she stooped down , and looked into the sepulchre. (This was Mary’s second visit) and seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain. And they say unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? She saith unto them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid him.
And when she had thus said, she turned herself back (around), and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus. Jesus saith unto her, woman, why weepest thou? Whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence (carried him away), tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away.
Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself and said unto him, Rabboni, which is to say Master (Teacher). Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not: for I am not yet ascended unto my Father, and your Father, and to my God, and your God. Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that he had spoken these things to her.’ (John 20:11-18)
The scholars explain: 20:17. Touch me not is a present imperative, forbidding the continuation of an action already begun. “Stop clinging to me” is a helpful paraphrase. Compare with verse 27, where one week later, we are told He encouraged Thomas to touch Him. I am not yet ascended: “Do not worry, I am not leaving immediately.”
Oh Friends, I know that that was not perfect, but I do hope that it gives you some continuity in your reading of Jesus’ Resurrection. Now get thee out to church and celebrate, worship, and praise our wonderful God and Saviour, for the great gifts of salvation and eternal life that came our way on this special day. Enjoy yourselves with your friends and family too, but remember don’t overdo it. Happy Easter! Much LOVE!
…the greatest words ever spoken…He is risen…Jesus Christ is risen indeed…
Previous Older Entries Next Newer Entries
SCRIP-BITS 