12 Aug 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a good and godly attitude, a powerful tool, a righteous man, agree in prayer, ask, ask in prayer, at noon, availeth much, Ayphia, belieiving, cast thy burden upon the Lord, confess your faults to each other, Covid-19, cry aloud, engage in sincere prayer, evening, eyes fixed straight ahead, give ear to my words, giving thanks, God searches our hearts, grace, great expectations, guidance, halfway home, hands on the plough, he shall hear my voice, he shall sustain thee, He will never allow his children, healing balm, heaven is our home, I will call upon god, in the name of Jesus, it shall be given you, it shall be opened, keep looking up, knock, magnificent and magnanimous God, morning, my god, my King, never ceasing prayer, not turning back, peace, pray always, pray everywhere, pray for one another, prayer, prayer meister, saints in Christ, seek, strength, the assurance, the breath of life, the effective fervent prayer, the Good Book, the great and awesome friend, the Lord shall save me, the surety in his voice, the voice of my cry, those who love and trust you, timely guidance, to a glorious future with Jesus, to be taken, true motives, unto thee will I pray, Wednesday Wail, will I pray, will look up, wisdom, work everything out for good, ye may be healed, ye shall find, ye shall receive
Psalm 55:17. Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice.
Well a good morning to you my fellow saints in Christ! I do hope we’re all prepared to receive and enjoy all the new mercies, grace, forgiveness and unconditional LOVE that our wonderful God has to offer today! There will be a surfeit of blessings; an abundance, such excess like we’ve never seen before, and much much more than we can ever use! Wow! What a magnificent and magnanimous God we serve!
Anyhow, on to more serious matters. One of our Scrip-Bit family members wrote me yesterday asking for prayer for her 2 ½ year old granddaughter Ayphia, who was born with several medical complications. This morning she’s going from Atlanta to Philadelphia to see a specialist about her blood sugar situation, which is always low. The grandma says that Ayphia has come a long way and she knows that it’s because of prayers offered on her behalf. But she is very nervous this time because of the Covid-19 situation, thus she is asking for our prayers to be sent up to heaven on Ayphia’s behalf.
Now, prayer is that marvellous action in which the saints of Christ ought to be rather adept at, since it’s the way we communicate with our Creator and heavenly Father and it is also a very powerful tool. As James, Christ’s brother so powerfully puts it: ‘Confess your faults (trespasses) one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual (effective) fervent prayer (supplication) of a righteous man availeth much.’ (James 5:16) And since we’re all righteous in the eyes of the Lord, it means that our prayers can be very effective. Thus, I’m asking all of us to pray privately for Ayphia, but also to join me in corporate prayer here.
Please pray with me. ‘Dear Father in heaven, you’ve said in your Word that when your children come to you agreed in prayer, that you will hear and grant their request. So right now we come in agreement, with concerned hearts and minds for your daughter Ayphia, asking that You heal her, apply your healing balm to her sick and hurting body and soul. And if that healing is not in your plans for her young life, then please give her and her family the strength, wisdom, grace and peace to handle the situation with a good and godly attitude, knowing that you’ve faithfully promised to eventually work everything out for the good of those who LOVE, trust and surrender their all to you. We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour, your wonderful Son, Jesus Christ!’
Ah friends, there’s nothing else on earth as powerful and soul building as prayer! That’s why the Good Book entreats us so much to engage in sincere prayer as often as possible…. Bruh Paul says to pray always (Eph. 6:18); without ceasing, (1 Thess. 5:17); pray everywhere (1 Tim. 2:8) So, in other words, prayer ought to be a constant in our lives. As we go about our daily tasks, our communication with our heavenly Father should not be neglected, but rather, we should involve Him in all that we do; asking for timely guidance and wisdom, giving thanks, and just talking to Him like the great and awesome friend that He is.
Remember what Jesus said: ‘Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.’ (Matt. 7:7) And He further stated: ‘And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.’ (Matt. 21:22) So I don’t know why so many of us forsake the wonderful opportunity to pray always, everywhere, and sincerely. (smile) And that’s why Bruh David, despite all his faults and foibles could still be known as a friend of God and a man after His own heart. He never stopped calling on the Almighty, regardless of time and/or circumstance.
Hear that great prayer meister. (smile) ‘Give ear to my words, O Lord; Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God: for unto thee will I pray. My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.’ (Ps. 5:1-3) Now how can a good and LOVING God refuse or refute such prayers eh?
And hear Bruh David again in Psalm 55, his cry against deceitful friends. ‘Let death seize upon them, and let them go down quick (alive) into hell: for wickedness is in their dwellings, and among them. As for me, I will call upon God; and the Lord shall save me. Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice.’ (Ps. 55:15-17)
Oh mih people, that’s why Bruh David prospered! As I keep saying, he knew on which side his bread was buttered! And did you notice the surety in His voice, like Jesus said, the belief that God would hear his cry? Now do we come to God with such assurance? I don’t think so. That’s possibly why many of our prayers are not answered. Remember too that God searches our hearts for our true motives before He answers our prayers, so if our motives aren’t right and our belief isn’t strong then our prayers are likely to go unanswered.
But listen to these oh so true words of Bruh David that brings the full picture to life. ‘Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer (permit) the righteous to be moved (shaken).’ (Ps. 55:22) Now that encapsulates the whole thing; just cast your care on God, believing that He will never allow His children to be taken! And with that divine assurance, we can therefore go home now declaring (yeahhh!) our Wednesday Wail, letting all and sundry know of our wonderful position in Christ Jesus.
So in strong voice, with sincere hearts: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday! I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’
Now let’s hold on strong and steadfast to the plough, keep focusing on the future, and we’ll be more than pleasantly surprised at the eventual outcome. Much LOVE!
…heaven is our home…so let’s keep looking up…with great expectations…
P.S. Please remember Ayphia in your prayers. Much LOVE!
06 Aug 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: and not faint, at noon, aura of love, blessings, Caribana Monday, cast thy burden upon the Lord, Christians, come together, confidence, cry aloud, disobedience, Drunk or sober mind yuh business, enthusiasm, evening, faith, fears, foolishness, give up on prayer, glorious kingdom, grace, Granny's warning, holy spirit, hope, humble servants, ill-will, in every thing give thanks, invincible, Jesus Christ, Jesus spake a parabble, joy, keep God close, lies, lose heart, LOVE, marrow to our bones, mature believers, men ought always to pray, mercy, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, morning, negative consequences, parable, peace, petty differences, pray without ceasing, put aside, raising our song to heaven, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, rest, righteousness., salvation, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, take them to heart, the Father's listening ears, the will of God, trust, ungodly world, victories, will I pray, wisdom
Luke 18:1. And he (Jesus) spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint (lose heart).
And then it was Caribana Monday… Oh I’ve been calling it Caribana all weekend, but that’s no longer the official title nuh since the original committee was stripped of the authority to put on the festival a few years ago, and they ended up in court over the name.
Don’t ask me what the official name is nuh, because I don’t know, and don’t particularly want to know either. (smile) History will always call this weekend, what it’s supposed to be called: Caribana! End of story.
And by the way it’s not a Federally instigated holiday, but a local government proclamation, so it’s mostly the banks and government offices that are closed, meaning that a lot of folks still have to get up and go out to work, while a blessed few are able to stay home or go out to the numerous parties around the place.
That means there will obviously be some ill will between the two groups, but as mature believers I’m sure we can put our petty differences aside and come together to sing out our Monday Morning Battle Hymn which will energize and refresh all of us, because we’re all tired from participating in the weekend’s festivities So whether you’re going to work or have the day off, let’s concentrate on raising our song to heaven and the Father’s listening ears.
Altogether 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!’
And now we’re all ready and rearing to go out and do Jesus’ work! Wow! How invigorating and refreshing is sincere prayer! You just can’t beat it for restoring the doldrums in our souls. That’s why Jesus gave this strong advice in our Bit. ‘And he (Jesus) spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint (lose heart).
Yes my breddren, we ought never to lose heart, to give up on prayer and our faithful, omnipotent and gracious God! That’s because prayer lends sustenance to our souls and our spirits. No wonder Bruh Paul also told us to ‘pray without ceasing.’ (1 Thess.5:17) That means to lend ourselves continually to prayer.
And it’s not like we’re supposed to walk around praying audibly every minute of every day, but we ought to be in a godly space most of the time. That’s a place where God is more on our minds than He is not. Where we don’t do stuff, or make decisions without consulting Him. Where we share our fears and hopes, and thank Him for even the small victories that we have as we journey through each day.
Bruh Paul said that too: ‘In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.’ (1 Thess.5:18) So whether the times are good or the times are rough, we need to keep a good prayerful, thankful attitude. The important thing is to keep God close at hand, let Him be an integral part of our everyday lives, the way He desires to be.
Oh, and for those of you who will be in the party scene today, please remember Granny’s wise words: ‘Sonny boy, drunk or sober mind yuh business.’ And I know some of you think it’s foolishness, but if we’re truthful, we can all look back at some particular time(s) and genuinely wish that we had followed it, because of the negative consequences we’ve suffered, or might still be suffering for our disobedience.
And we’ll close this Caribana Monday morning with some appropriate words from Bruh David. ‘As for me, I will call upon God; and the Lord shall save me. Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice…. Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer (permit) the righteous to be moved (shaken).’ (Ps.55:16-17,22)
Truer words were never spoken friends. So let’s be wise and take them to heart nuh, they will be marrow to our bones (strength to our souls). Much LOVE!
…as believers…we ought to spend more time in simple prayer…and the giving of thanks for small mercies…
04 Jul 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: 4th July, at noon, aura of love, be about Christ's business, be prepared, Beelzebub, believers in Jesus Christ, calls us home, Canada Day, Chicago, Christ's Church, Christians, come up higher, complaining, confidence, cry aloud, dangerous, deceitful, dissension, divisions, does anybody care, Does anybody know what time it is, double heart, Drunk or sober mind yuh business, enemy, enthusiasm, eternal life, evening, ever-faithful God, evil, evil minions, faith, falsely, fellowship, fervent followers, flattering lips, friends, get our houses in order, God's flock, good neighbourly relations, Granny's advice, honesty, hope, humble servants, in splendour and power, inconsistent mind, inner sanctum, invincible, Jesus Christ, Jesus returns, joy, joyful band of Christians, last bastion, lies, lollygagging, LOVE, Lucifer, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, morning, neighbour, peace, planet earth, pray, rejuvenation of spirit, renewed vitality, resting on their laurels, salvation, sense of right and wrong, spiritual armour, stand up strong, steadfast faith, stick together, strife filled, the clock's ticking, the end times, the last days, the Lord shall save me, tragic, Trojan horse, trust, truth, unfair, ungodly world, unkind place, vanity, victory, wary, weary souls, wiles, wisdom
Psalm 12:2. They speak vanity (idly, falsely) every one with his neighbour: with flattering lips and with double heart (an inconsistent mind) do they speak.
HAPPY 4TH OF JULY U. S. OF A!
21 May 2015
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a better tomorrow, a man of understanding, almighty god, an attitude of prayer, Anselm, at noon, awesome truth, be vigilant in prayer, Bruh David, Bruh Paul, calamity, called by Christ's name, change of behaviour, children of Almighty God, Christian faith, come to terms with, common sense, crucifixion, cry aloud, dare to believe, dare to comfort, dare to dream, dare to hope, decisive, devotion, divine aid, eliminate God, evening, faith, filled with anger, filled with despair, filled with distrust, filled with hate, forgive their sin, friends, glory to God, groanings, he shall hear my voice, He will never leave nor forsake us, heal their land, Higher Power, humble themselves, I will call upon god, I will hear from heaven, I will look up, indecisive, indispensable, infirmities, Jesus, Jesus Christ, keeps us on an even keel, lasting improvement, lifting up holy hands, lose heart, made it a habit to pray, man's survival, men ought always to pray, morning, my people which are called by my name, not faint, perseverance, positive, pray, pray everywhere, pray without ceasing, prayer, praying, praying always, presence of sin, promises of Jesus, return to God's fold, seek my face, spiritual armour, spiritual combat, supplication, tempted to give up, the Comforter, the evil one, the Garden of Gethsemane, the greatest force in this world, the Holy One of Israel, the Holy Spirit, the Lord's prayer, the Son of God, the Spirit makes intercession, thou shalt hear my voice in the morning, trust, turn away from their wicked ways, unfaltering faith, when it's not one thing it's another, will I pray, wisdom, wish-washy, without wrath and doubting
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.
Well Friends, a good Thursday morning to you! And it does look bright and sunny outside, but it is still a little chilly, chillier than usual at this time of year. The weather certainly doesn’t seem to know what it wants to do. We’ll have some bright and warm days, then some bright, chilly and windy ones.
But thankfully as children of Almighty God and believers in Jesus Christ we don’t have to be so indecisive, for our faith keeps us on an even keel. Glory to God!
That doesn’t mean that some of us still aren’t wishy-washy and indecisive, too many too, but overall we are generally a decisive group. And we should be, since Jesus our Leader is a positive and decisive person.
Now here is an interesting message from my friend Anselm, who aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. (smile) He says: ‘In a world filled with hate, we must still dare to hope. In a world filled with anger, we must still dare to comfort. In a world filled with despair, we must still dare to dream. And in a world filled with distrust, we must still dare to believe.’
And isn’t all of that awesome truth Friends? It sure is! Our world’s a mess, but that doesn’t mean we have to give up on it or ourselves, for we have the certain sure promises of Jesus that He will never leave nor forsake us, and in any matter we bring before Him He will hear and help us. And that’s the basics of our Christian faith; a Higher Power to place our undivided trust in.
But as we’ve been talking about in our Bit, the last couple decades or so, we’ve been come up much too short in our trust and devotion to Almighty God, and we desperately need a change of behaviour to make matters right with Him. That means a change in the way our hearts, minds and souls operate.
We seriously need to come to terms with the advice of our Bit. ‘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 mih people, it’s about time we sincerely and seriously begin to put that heavenly wisdom into our individual lives and our society in general, instead of unwisely and foolishly trying to eliminate Jehovah God from both places.
We can see from the disastrous state of our world that removing God from our world doesn’t work; it’s a certain platform for calamity.
So please, let’s refrain from following the evil one, his many minions, and their evil ways, and being a group of people called by Christ’s name, humble ourselves, pray, seek His face, and turn away from our wicked ways, so that He can hear from heaven, forgive our sins, and heal our land, which so badly needs healing.
That is the only way our world, and subsequently our individual lives will really have lasting improvement.
And we’ll continue looking at scriptures that highlight the things we need to do to successfully return to God’s fold. Today’s word is simply ‘PRAY.’ But Friends, though it sounds simple, ‘pray, prayer and praying’ however you term it, is the greatest force in this world! It’s found as being essential to man’s survival throughout the entire Bible.
And prayer and praying are so important in the Christian’s life that Jesus once told a parable ‘to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not faint (lose heart).’ (Luke 18:1) So when we’re tempted to give up, that’s when we most need to be strong and pray.
Earlier on too, the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray, and He taught them what is now universally known as ‘The Lord’s Prayer.’ Then in John, we see Jesus offering to pray to the Father for the disciples, for the Holy Spirit, the Comforter to dwell within them forever. (Jon 14:16)
And even more importantly my brethren, Jesus made it a habit to pray Himself to His heavenly Father, rising up early and going out to a quiet place to pray. (Mark 1:35) We also see Him praying diligently in the Garden of Gethsemane the night before His crucifixion. (Matt.26:36-46)
So Friends, if Jesus, the Son of God, found it necessary to pray to the Holy One of Israel, how and why, shouldn’t we mere mortals do the same eh?
Then you have great men of faith like Bruh David solemnly declaring: ‘My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.’ (Ps.5:3)
And also in Psalm 55 – a cry against deceitful friends – he steadfastly proclaims: ‘As for me, I will call upon God; and the Lord shall save me. Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice.’ (Ps.55:16-17) What unfaltering faith my people!
Then Bruh Paul tells the Romans. ‘Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities (weaknesses): for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.’ (Rom.8:26)
The scholars explain that thus: ‘8:26. Our infirmities may refer to the presence of sin (cf. 7:14). Groanings: The Spirit also groans along with creation and the believer. The reference is to the Spirit’s interpretation of the believer’s uttermost feelings which cannot be put into words.’
Then to the Ephesians, Bruh Paul says: ‘Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints.’ (Eph.6:18) This is all linked to the putting on of God’s protective spiritual armour. (vs.10-17)
And as the scholar’s say: ‘6:18. Without prayer, God’s armour is inadequate to achieve victory. Prayer is indispensable. Always means ‘on every occasion,” that is, when Satan attacks. In the Spirit signifies that with the Spirit’s help such prayer for divine aid is to be made.
Watching thereunto means “being vigilant in this very matter” of prayer. They are to pray not just for themselves, but also for all saints; spiritual combat is both an individual and corporate matter.’
And to Timothy, Bruh Paul declares: ‘I will therefore that men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting.’ (1 Tim.2:8) Yes Friends, men are to pray everywhere, regardless of where they are, with a pure life, no anger and disputes.
And finally, to the Thessalonians, Bruh Paul simply advises: ‘Pray without ceasing.’ (1 Thess.5:17) Yes my people, we ought to always have an attitude of prayer, even though we’re not praying audibly.’
And that Friends, is wisdom, common sense and understanding at their highest levels. Please, let’s try and attain to those levels nuh, for it will do us the world of good. Much LOVE!
…prayer is the life force which keeps this world still humming along…though it’s in such a sad state…
P.S. Friends, it’s long and late, but that’s just the way it worked out. Then just as I was about to send it, my trusty computer froze on me, so I had to reboot it. And now the technician is here to fix my alarm system which the phone company screwed up! Ah Lord, when is not one thing is certainly another. But it’s all good in the end. (smile) Much LOVE!
14 Jan 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: begin each day with prayer, best example, big part of our lives, bye-gone days, call upon God, calm, ceasing to pray, cheaply made gadgets, Christian manner, commanding voice, contention, conveniences, cry aloud, Daniel, deceitful friends, dedicated button, dim his perspective, direct my prayer, distractions, divine duty, dutiful husband, enrich our lives, evening, exorbitant service charge, fix the problem, flying colours, gave thanks, God forbid, good old days, guidance, hear my voice, help, I will pray, ice maker, ice storm, imperative call, importance of prayer, in love, in the morning, Israel, Jerusalem, Jesus, kneeled, longwinded, look up, LOVE, malfunction, maturity, Maytag appliance, morning, motto, my voice, new fangled technology, noon, one function, open windows, our leader, out of the blue, plot to kill, practice what you preach, prayed, prayer quotient, problems, raises my hackles, right or wrong, righteousness., service man, sin against the Lord, sinfulness, smile, soulful lament, speaking the truth, test, Thank the Lord, the Lord's standards, three times a day, undesirable situation, wasp nest
Psalm 5:3. My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.
Oh For the good old days eh! And you’re no doubt wondering what caused that soulful lament for those bye-gone days?
Well, it’s because yesterday afternoon, while I was trying to catch up on some rest, for I’m not over whatever bug’s been bugging me for the last ten days. But I am getting better… Thank the Lord I’m getting better! Though not as quickly as I’d like.
Anyway, out of the blue, I head this imperative call: ‘Randolph, come here!’ Chuh! I sighed at being disturbed, while wondering what was wrong now. The Duchess is one of the few people who call me Randolph, and anytime I hear that commanding voice, it automatically raises my hackles. (smile)
But as a dutiful husband, I got up and went downstairs, only to find the Duchess standing in front of the opened freezer door of the fridge, watching water come pouring out.
Oh, she’d already done what she could; put some towels on the ground to sop up the water, taken out the ice-maker, and turned off the water. But the residue in there kept coming out for a couple more minutes.
She was obviously not thrilled, because as usual, she was trying to do several things at the same time. It appears that she had just come from outside talking to the man who was cleaning up the trees from the ice storm damage, and found the undesirable situation.
By the way, she had him cut down the wasp (jack spaniard) nest that had been hanging so blithely from the tree limb outside my kitchen window. Aww! Now I don’t have anything to look at and chuckle about when I look out there.
But my brethren, you would certainly have been proud of the ole fella, for I responded in a very calm and Christian manner. Wow! What maturity! (smile) I allowed her to go and continue her other chores, while I simply did what I could to clean up the resultant mess.
To tell the truth, I was even surprised at how calmly I handled the situation. I guess the Holy Spirit did a magnificent job in me. And who says He doesn’t work hard eh!
The long and short of the story is that the freezer section contains an automatic icemaker that provides either crushed or cubed ice, along with a waterspout. However the icemaker is always causing problems, either not making ice or making too much ice.
Just a couple weeks ago, it malfunctioned again, that time causing a terrible ice build up in the freezer. Everything in there was so caked with ice that we had problems taking them out. A service man came, obviously at an exorbitant service charge, but apparently all he did was de-ice the freezer, not fix the problem that had caused it in the first place.
Now yesterday the water section acted up. My contention is that the older fridges with just a small freezer section, where you put your ice trays to make ice, never caused those problems. But these fanciful, cheaply made gadgets with so many features constantly cause problems.
And this is supposed to be a top of the line Maytag appliance, whose advertisement wrongly boasted about the Maytag repairman never having anything to do because their products were so good. Hogwash! I won’t even get into the problems we’ve had with a Maytag stove.
Hn! The amount of times we’ve had service people out to fix one thing or another, and the cheap knobs that keep falling off. I would certainly think twice about buying another Maytag appliance.
But coming back to my original contention, I don’t use much ice, especially in the winter, and I never drink from the waterspout, because I find it tastes terrible. What did we do before we had fridges that automatically gave ice and water eh? We got along quite fine!
And besides there were less possibilities of a number of things going wrong, as now happens with all the supposed conveniences on them. And I was made to understand that’s how all the fridges are now made. The Lord help us! And another service man is supposed to come today, of course at some ridiculous service charge.
But that’s one of the reasons why I don’t like all this new fangled technology; they try to put too many features into a single item, and they never seem to work properly, plus when one breaks down, it causes eternal problems. And don’t even talk about the one button that does several different things, as they have in all these new gadgets. Steups! It’s just a bit much for my mentality. I like my one button dedicated to one function.
And having ‘preambled’ at length on my opening sentence, (smile) you all know that the ole fella’s longwinded, let’s turn to our Bit, which conveys such a powerful and important directive.
‘My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.’
Yes Friends, the best way to begin each and every day is with prayer! Remember Jesus did it, (Mark 1:35) so why should we not follow our leader, the best example of righteousness that we have. And today we’re going to highlight some scriptures that show the importance of prayer, and which also encourage us to make prayer a big part of our lives.
And we’ll start with an interesting, but little talked about scripture. It comes from 1 Samuel. ‘Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you: but I will teach you the good and right way.’ (1 Sam.12:23) That was Samuel’s promise when he addressed Israel re their high level of sinfulness.
And the scholars have an interesting note on that verse. ’12:23. Despite Israel’s sin, Samuel LOVED Israel and Saul (cf.16:1) and pledged his continued help, especially in praying for them and teaching them the Lord’s standards. His LOVE for them however, would not dim his perspective as to what ways were right or wrong in Israel. He would do his divine duty of speaking the truth in LOVE (cf. Eph.4:15).’
And I’ll spoil us by quoting that last verse, since I know that very few are going to look it up. Bruh Paul is talking about the new life in Christ. ‘But speaking the truth in LOVE, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ.’ (Eph.4:15)
Meanwhile, in Psalm 55, a cry against deceitful friends, Bruh David boldly declares: ‘As for me, I will call upon God; and the Lord shall save me. Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice.’ (Ps.55:16-17)
Bruh David says that he will pray at least three times a day. That brings us to Daniel who apparently did the same thing.
‘Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being opened in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a (that) day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime (had been doing before this).’ (Dan.6:10)
So although he knew that there was a plot afoot to kill him because of his praying to the God of his forefathers, he continued doing as he had always done. And the scholars point out: ‘6:10-11. Daniel was past 80 years of age at this time, yet he was still on his knees thanking God and asking for His guidance and help.’
Oh what a wonderful example for us to follow my people. Please let’s up our prayer quotient nuh. It will certainly enrich our lives. Much LOVE!
…to pray…and yet to pray again…should be the motto of ALL believers…
P.S. The Bit’s late because I didn’t get up early enough to start my day with prayer, and still have enough time to send it our early, plus I had a couple of unavoidable distractions in between.
Ah Friends, it’s not easy, that was a test to see if I was practicing what I preach. Don’t worry, I get tested on most of the stuff I write about, sometimes even before I’m even finished writing about it.
Obviously I don’t pass them all, or not as well as I should, but I’m happy to say that I passed this one today with flying colours! Wow! Aren’t you proud of me? (smile) Much LOVE!
19 Dec 2013
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a part of the world, actions, almighty god, Amen, ask for, behold the sun, best interest, blessings, calamitous days, cautionary note, comparison, condemned, consciousness, constancy in prayer, constancy of weather, corrupt, cursed, day of judgement, days of darkness, deceitful world, decision, desired reults, divine guidance, doing godly stuff, embracing ungodly activities, encouraged, enemy, engulfed, enjoyment of life, enlist, enthused, evening, every work, evil, evil stuff, evil world, eyes, faithful, feeding connection, friends, futile life, futility, give account, gladness, good, good fruit, heavenly Father, hold out our hands, hopeful, Hour of Power, idle word, immortal words, insights, Jesus Christ, Jesus' desires, joy of the lord, joyful fellowship, joys, judged, judgement, judgement day, justified, lead us away, lifeblood, light, light is sweet, live for Jesus, living truth, LOVE, machinations, mistakes, moment of prayer, morning, mysterious ways, new day, new week, omnipotent god, pleasant thing, possibilities, prayer, prosper, puzzling, receive, rejoice, righteous, robert h schuller, sap our strength, secret thing, share, sink deeply, solve problems, sow seed, sown, stand the test, strong sensation, succeed, sunlight, sure of success, testing flames, the help of God, things of God, thwart, treasure of the heart, true believers, trust God, umbilical cord, upright in heart, vanity, wicked designs, wisdom, word of warning, workings, wrested
Ecclesiastes 12:14. For God shall bring every work into judgement, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.
Oh Friends, wonder of wonders! It’s supposed to go up to 4 degrees above freezing with sunshine in my area today! Bubba! From minus temps during the last few days to plus temps today, then back to minus tonight. That’s going to cause much icing up, then freezing rain and possibly snow on the weekend.
What a mish mash of weather conditions! There’s just no constancy to it these days. But my people, there is constancy in prayer; the lifeblood of the faithful, of the true believers in Jesus Christ!
And here is a prayer I’ve been trying to include since the day we spoke of prayer being the umbilical cord, our feeding connection to Almighty God. It comes from Dr. Robert H. Schuller’s Hour of Power Devotional, and says.
‘Father, I have a strong sensation that you brought me to this moment of prayer because you plan to share with me insights to solve my problems. So I will go out and face the sunlight of a new day and a new week crammed with undiscovered possibilities. I am encouraged! I am enthused! I am more hopeful than I have been in a long time! Amen.’
Yes Friends, I do hope that encouraged us some this morning, because in this cursed and evil world, we desperately need to build hope, encouragement and enthusiasm, if we’re going to live sincerely for Jesus. The world tries to sap our strength, energy and enthusiasm and lead us away from the things of God.
But we need to enlist the help of our God through prayer to thwart the evil stuff that comes against us. And right now, too many of us are still being a part of the world, involved in, and embracing its ungodly activities, instead of just being in it, doing godly stuff, as Jesus desires. And that is definitely not in our best interest. Why?
Because as our Bit so plainly states: ‘For God shall bring every work into judgement, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.’
Yes my brethren, all our work will be judged by the Almighty at some stage, and it won’t go down well with the judge if our works were evil, were too tied up with the ungodly machinations of this ungodly world. So what are we to do then?
The Preacher wisely declares: ‘In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper (which will succeed), either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good. Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold the sun.’ (Eccl.11:6-7)
Yes Friends, since we don’t understand the mysterious ways and workings of our omnipotent God, and are never totally sure of success, we need to get involved in the good and godly things that life has to offer, and trust God to produce the desired results.
However, the preacher includes a word of warning here. ‘But if a man live many years, and rejoice in them all; yet let him remember the days of darkness; for they shall be many. All that cometh is vanity (futility).’ (Eccl.11:8)
And isn’t that the living truth! Now here some notes from the scholars. ‘The comparison with light (v.7) speaks of the enjoyment of life (cf. Ps. 97:11).’
Ah mih people, I’m going to spoil us here by quoting that referenced scripture, since I know that very few of us will take the time to look it up. (smile) “Light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart.” (Ps.97:11)
Now getting back to the scholars’ notes. ‘Verse 8 adds a cautionary note to enjoyment that may be summarized in two ideas: (1) There will be many days of darkness, calamitous days. (2) All that cometh is vanity: That is, joys will not come easily, they must be wrested from a puzzling and futile life.’
And don’t we all know that my fellow believers! Real joy in this unstable and deceitful world is hard to come by, unless we are tied by that umbilical cord of prayer to our heavenly Father, and ask for and receive His divine guidance and blessings.
That’s why the Good Book so staunchly advises us that the joy of the Lord is our strength. (Neh.8:10) For only when we have a joyful fellowship with the Creator and Controller of the universe, can we really be strong and thus resist the wicked designs of the enemy.
Oh Friends, I wish I could impart the true importance of all that we do on this pilgrimage down here on earth, because it’s going to make a substantial difference in our after-lives. And if you don’t believe me, listen to Jesus, as He talks about good and corrupt fruit.
‘A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things. But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgement. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.’ (Matt.12:35-37)
Now those aren’t my words Friends, but the Master’s, the Son of God, our Lord and Saviour, so it is certainly reasonable to expect that He knows what He’s speaking about.
Oh my people, we can’t do much about what’s already passed, but we surely can do something about the days to come. Therefore my fellow believers, from today, RIGHT NOW, let’s try to get those immortal words of Jesus to sink deeply into our consciousness nuh, so that we can more closely watch our words and actions, thereby cutting down the mistakes we make, and consequently the judgement we’ll face, come that judgement day.
That’s wisdom at it’s highest and very best my brethren! Much LOVE!
…on that fateful day…our words and actions…will either stand the test…or they will be engulfed by the testing flames…the decision is ours to make…NOW…
SCRIP-BITS 