03 Nov 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a better tomorrow, a journey, a plan of God, a ray of sunshine, a waste down, a wet morning, action them, against such, an extra day, Anselm, aspires to inspire, attributes of God, be wise, beat us down, biggest adventure, carnal, Christ's sacrifice, Christ's teaching, Christian believer, conceited, consideration, control one's passions, courtesy, death, desirous of vain glory, empathy, envying one another, eternal life, faith, faithfulness, fleshly matters, focus on the positive, forgiveness, friend, from one realm to another, fruitful lives, gentleness, gladness of heart, goodness, grow good fruit, have it more abundantly, hope, I am come, joy, kindness, leading and guiding, live in the Spirit, live life to the fullest, live obediently for Christ, live the life, long-suffering, LOVE, meekness, mercy, motto, negative aspects of the world, of your dreams, patience, peace, provoking one another, self-control, sow good seed, spiritual life, temperance, the ability to harness, the fruit of the spirit, the gifts of the Spirit, the greatest loss, the Holy Spirit, the Spirit's direction, there is no law, they might have life, this is the day the Lord has made, unreasonable dreams, ups and downs, vie-kie-vie, virtues, walk in the Spirit, we will rejoice and be glad in it, what dies inside us, while we live
Galatians 5:22-23. But the fruit of the Spirit is LOVE, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness (kindness), goodness, faith (faithfulness), Meekness, temperance (self-control): against such there is no law.
Another wet morning, without even a hopeful ray of sunshine! Steups! But thankfully, there’s no precipitation currently descending from on high! (smile) Ah friends, the gloom persists, but as believers and followers of Jesus Christ, we have all we need to handle it. And to boot, we can also truthfully declare: ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we WILL rejoice and be glad in it!’ (Ps.118:24)
And we would indeed be foolish if we did not enjoy this extra day the Lord has granted us on His great earth. And yes, every day we’re here is an extra day, so be wise and enjoy it and live obediently for Christ, do the work God has entrusted to you!
For we each have a purpose and a plan of God for this earthly life. Our God doesn’t move vie-ke-vie; in a careless, unplanned manner, so each day we’re down here means we still have work to do under His awesome, gracious, merciful and LOVING plan. So let’s get to it nuh!
And it being Saturday, we will take a look at some of the quotes our friend Anselm sent us this week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And the first quote says: ‘The biggest adventure you can take is to live the life of your dreams.’
And that’s oh so true! But unfortunately very few of us ever get to truly live the life of our dreams, because life is such a series of ups and downs, and none of us ever experience any downs in our dream life. (smile)
The fact is that most of us have unreasonable dreams, and even with the reasonable ones, we’re not willing to work towards them. Now dreams are important in this life, but until we’re willing to action them, they will always remain dreams.
And the next quote tells us: ‘Live life to the fullest, and focus on the positive.’ Now that ought to be motto of the Christian believer! Christ said: ‘I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.’ (John 10:10b) What’s the point of having abundant life and not enjoying it to the fullest eh? It would only make Christ’s sacrifice a waste down.
But to enjoy our lives, we also have to focus on the positive aspects, especially of Christ’s teaching, because the negative aspects of the world only beat and break us down.
And the last quote says: ‘Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies inside us while we live.’ Now that is gospel truth my brethren! In fact, death is not a loss of life at all, for believers it’s only a journey from one realm to the other, and even more importantly it’s from a short, finite and rough earthly life, to a long and glorious infinite eternal life. So we don’t suffer a loss of life at all, but move up to a higher, spiritual one.
The problem is the stuff that dies inside of us while we’re living this earthly life. We’re talking about stuff like, hope, faith, joy, LOVE, mercy, forgiveness, empathy, self-control and self-discipline; the attributes of God we need to live a faithful and fruitful life; things we call the fruit of the Spirit.
Thus our Bit: ‘But the fruit of the Spirit is LOVE, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness (kindness), goodness, faith (faithfulness), Meekness, temperance (self-control): against such there is no law.’
Yes my believing brethren, those are the things we want alive and well in all of us, so that we can live the life Jesus died for us to have, and to do His work. Unless those things are reigning in our lives we’ll be unable to live good, Christian, fruitful lives like Jesus desires of us.
The Holy Spirit of God dwells in each believer, and is there for the express purpose of leading and guiding us in God-filled lives. That means we have to follow the Spirit’s direction if we want to live successful Christian lives.
As Bruh Paul so astutely continues: ‘And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts (its passions). If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.’ (Gal.5:24-25)
Now here are a few explanations from the scholars: ‘5:22-23. The word fruit is significant for three reasons (1) It means the result, product, outcome or effect produced by the Spirit in the believer’s life. (2) Unlike “the gifts of the Spirit” (plural), only some of which are given to a Christian, each believer is to have all nine virtues composing “the fruit of the Spirit” (singular). (3) As fruit on a tree takes time to grow and mature, so the spirit does not cultivate these virtues in the believer’s life overnight.
LOVE is the willing, sacrificial giving of oneself for the benefit of another without thought of return. Joy is gladness of heart. Peace is tranquility of mind, freeing one from worry and fear. Long-suffering is patience with others, the opposite of a short temper, a disposition quietly bearing injury.
Gentleness is kindness. Goodness is generosity. Faith here is dependability. Meekness is gentleness, that is, courtesy and consideration in one’s relations with others. Temperance is self-control, that is, the ability to harness and control one’s passions and lusts.’
And there you have it friends, ‘the Fruit of the Spirit Lecture 101!’ (smile) Yes, I know it’s not easy to cultivate all those wonderful attributes, especially with the world on our back to do differently, but with the help of the Holy Spirit we can certainly work towards them and be fairly successful if we set our minds to it.
Remember, as believers in Christ, we are done with carnal fleshly matters, and are supposed to live by the Spirit of Christ imbued in us. So let’s do that nuh, and consequently fulfill Bruh Paul’s desire: ‘Let us not be desirous of vain glory (conceited), provoking one another, envying one another.’ (Gal.5:26). Much LOVE!
…to grow good fruit…we have to sow good seed…
30 Oct 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: amazing feat, appearing, aquamarine surf, barbecue, begun a good work, beloved of God, Blue Hole Waterfall, blue skies, bright sunshine, brokenness, cloudy skies, coconut trees, colourful fall season, compassion, confident, count it all joy, dead brown leaves, divers temptations, Don't stop Lord, Dunns River falls, faith, flambeaus, flaming torches, found unto praise, friend of Christ, genuine, glory, gold that perishes, grace, honour, hurry, in god's eyes, island talk, Jesus Chirst, joy, life unfair, living for Jesus, LOVE, magnificent shoulders, make me whole, maturity, more precious than gold, multihued trees, my weakness, nature trail, North East Trades, not easy, nothing left, of this very thing, of your faith, One Year Book of Bible promises, patience, perseverance, poster tree, Praise the Lord, rafting, ransacked me, redeeming feature, refurbishment, renovations, Revelation of Christ, rewarding, Ruth Harms Calkin, share His love, strength, testing, thanksgiving, the credit, the fire, the flood, the Lord carried me, the product, the White river, till the coming of Jesus, tough times, trial, tried with fire, Tuesday Mantra, various trials, wasted, what I do, what I have, will complete it, worry, worth the process, yellow leaves
1 Peter 1:7. That the (genine) trial (testing) of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried (tested) with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing (revelation) of Jesus Christ.
Ah friends, life can be so unfair at times eh! Chuh! For the past two weeks I was waking up to bright sunshine, blue skies, aquamarine surf rolling up on the shores, and tall coconut tress swaying gently in the cool North East Trade Winds, with refreshing island talk drifting up to my room.
But all of a sudden, I got up this morning and looking out my bedroom window, somewhat cloudy skies, multihued trees and a set of dead brown leaves on the cold looking grass shockingly greeted my sleepy eyes. It certainly brought my system to a standstill. (smile)
But there was one redeeming feature; my neighbour has a tall tree in his backyard, don’t ask me what kind, and it is covered in golden yellow leaves from head to foot! It looks real beautiful, could be a wonderful poster tree for the colourful fall season.
Yeh mih people, the ole fella is back home, dressed in his old red spring jacket, sitting in his old chair before his aged desktop, and writing much more comfortably than I did for the last two weeks on my laptop in J.A. But that vacation has been enshrined in the top ones that the duchess and I have taken.
It definitely is not number one. That place of honour permanently resides in one we took some fifteen to twenty years ago, in the same Jamaica, but we stayed in a town house somewhere down in the Parish of Trelawney. And brother, the things we did; climbing Dunns River falls, rafting down the White River and numerous other tours.
But I guess the highlight was boating up some river in the night with flambeaus, flaming torches all around, and drums beating in the distance, going to a night time barbecue somewhere along the river bank. Sorry, don’t ask me any more, because it seems I was totally wasted that night. (smile) The things we do when we are young eh!
But in my maturity and brokenness, I was still able to do one amazing feat; walk up the winding, dangerous nature trail to the Blue Hole Waterfall, and then walk back down in my flip-flops. And I would indeed be foolish to take all the credit, or rather any of it, because it was the Lord who carried me back and forth on His strong, massive, magnificent shoulders.
If I had known what it was like before attempting it, I doubt I would have done so. So please give the Lord all the glory, because in my weakness, His grace and strength were more than enough to see me through. Glory to the wonderful Deity we serve!
And on that note of thanksgiving, here is something from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin that certainly describes my life in the past couple of years. It’s titled ‘Don’t Stop Lord.’ Please pray with me. ‘Lord In asking You to make me whole I certainly didn’t know What I was in for. You have ransacked me Until I sometimes feel There is nothing left. But don’t stop Lord Please don’t stop! I’m trusting that the product Will be worth the process.’
Yes mih breddren, when I asked the Lord for healing, I surely didn’t know the paces He would put me through. And if I had known, I can’t say for sure that I would have asked for it. But since we’ve come so far, it’s too late to turn back now. And even if I don’t feel like crying out to Him to continue, the wise and sensible thing to do is let Him finish the renovations and refurbishment, because as Bruh Paul confidently told the Philippians:
‘Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you, will perform (complete) it until the day of Jesus Christ.’ (Phil.1:6) Yes my brethren, once the Lord begins working in us, He never stops until the job is done, even if it takes till Jesus’ Second Coming. So please don’t ever give up on Him!
And the Bible Promise for the poem above is also our Bit. ‘That the (genuine) trial (testing) of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried (tested) with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing (revelation) of Jesus Christ.’
Oh friends, the Lord puts us through some tough trials to simply test our faith, to see how committed we truly are to Him. But He only does it for a ‘season,’ a short time. And if we stand strong and steadfast, He will bring us out of the testing fire, stronger, purer and more mature, like when gold and silver are burnished.
As James says: ‘My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations (various trials); Knowing this, that the trying (testing) of your faith worketh (produces) patience.’ (James 1:2-3) And patience, re perseverance, is something ALL believers need to acquire, and sadly, it cannot be acquired without going through tough times.
So please friends, let’s all try and bear up under whatever adversity comes against us, knowing that our ever-faithful God will not give us more than we can handle, and in any case will help us through the fire and the flood. And it’s going home time, so let’s declare our Tuesday Mantra with much sincerity, in loud voice and strong sense of purpose, proudly letting the world know who and whose we are.
In unison now: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
And to be true to our word, let’s go out now and share the wonderful LOVE and compassion of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ! Much LOVE!
…truly living for Jesus is not easy…but praise the Lord…it is certainly very rewarding…
29 Oct 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a spring in your step, argue with the boss, aura of love, awesome power, complete in him, distresses, evil, faith, glory to God, I can do all things through Christ, infirmities, jobs, labouring, meet the enemy in battle, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, necessities, overcome, persecution, power, power of Christ, powerful medium, principality, reality, reassuring scripture, reproaches, responsibility, spiritual armour, sufficiency in Christ, taunts, the head, vacation, we are strong, weakness, when we wre weak, wiles
Colossians 2:10. And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power (rule and authority).
And just like that this great vacation is over! Chuh! Unfortunately, all good things do come to an end at some time. That’s the unbreakable law of nature. I tried to get an extension, but the boss lady said a stern ‘NO!’ It was extended once before and there’d be no more. It’s time to return to reality and responsibility, we’ve had enough of this fairy tale life. And I’ve learned over the years, never to argue with the boss. (smile) So I’m getting myself together to go back to the reality of the cold and responsibility.
But for most of us, Monday means the first day of labouring for the week, and try as we can, we just don’t seem to make the transition from rest to work very well. So please join us in this most powerful medium, that of prayer, our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, as we petition our heavenly Father for His strength, goodness, grace, mercy and guidance to help us get through this day successfully.
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!’
Yes friends, the antidote for all your Monday ills; crying out to our heavenly Father in sincere heart and reverence! And you know it worked, because you’ve felt the power of the Holy Spirit moving in you, lifting you up and putting a spring in your step! Glory to God my people!
And that’s exactly why we declare that there is all sufficiency in Christ! He is enough to take care of EVERYTHING in our lives! I don’t know why we don’t realize and recognize that awesome power for what it truly is nuh. And it’s so important that we’ll continue with our Bit from yesterday ‘And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power (rule and authority).’
Why? Because there are some more important scriptures to recognise on that subject. The first being one we like to quote, but don’t truly acknowledge in our everyday lives. ‘I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.’ (Phil.4:13) And why do you think that is so my brethren? Simply because Christ is strong and powerful and sufficient to fulfill all our needs, and we don’t need anything or anybody else to help Him do it!
Whatever situations we might find ourselves in, Christ is powerful enough to get us out of them. Please remember that it’s our complete faith in Him that enables us to overcome the enemy. Now hear this other magnificent and reassuring scripture. Remember when Bruh Paul had some bodily issue troubling him and he prayed to the Lord three times to remove it?
Remember the answer he received? The Lord said a polite but certain ‘NO!’ Just like the duchess did to me when I asked for another extension of our vacation. (smile) But the Lord’s reason was different. ‘And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength (power) is made perfect in weakness.’ (2 Cor.12:9a)
Yes my people, it’s in our weak times that the Lord’s power really shows up. When we are strong, there is no real need for Him to do much of anything. But when we are down in the dumps, feeble and powerless…brother! That’s when His awesome might and power shows up. And Bruh Paul being the man he was, therefore declared: ‘Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities (weaknesses), that the power of Christ may rest upon me.’ (2 Cor.9b)
Yeh, he decided that he would extol his weaknesses so that God’s power would work wonders in him. ‘Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecution, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.’ (2 Cor.12:10) Oh friends, I know that most of us don’t hold with Bruh Paul’s logic, we want to be always strong and in command, but the fact is that we see and need God’s hand in our affairs when we are weak, much more than when we are strong.
Now just a couple more scriptures. In Hebrews, the author tells us: ‘For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.’ (Heb.10:14) Ah mih people, everything’s been made perfect for those who believe by Christ’s sacrifice, showing that He was more than sufficient to atone for all our sins.
And finally, Bruh Paul tells the Ephesians, and by extension, we modern day believers: ‘Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ.’ (Eph.1:3) Yes friends, the Lord is worthy of praise because He has prepared and bestowed spiritual blessings on His people through the ministry of Christ, our Lord and Saviour! Please give Him much thanks and praise for His enduring goodness to us, by providing all that we need through Christ Jesus.
And all God’s people declared a loud and grateful: ‘Praise the Lord! Amen!’ Much LOVE!
…in only the risen Christ…can we find everything we need…to live this earthly life…
25 Oct 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a good time, All State, be not afraid, be strng, be thou dismayed, Blue Hole, bus depot, commanded thee, compassionate heart, concrete steps, courage, cow foot soup, creativity, curse, Dunns' River, encouragement, faith, family gatherings, fast flowing steams, favour, guides, half century, hiking, in good hands, insomnia, is with thee, Joshua, leap over mountains, LOVE, mannish water, massive shoulders, Mo Bay, negative word, of good courage, ole coot, professionalism, prosper, reassurance, resisting help, rough tracks, self-control, self-discipline, senior citizens, succeed, the Lord carried me, the Lord thy God, the nature trail, Thursday's Blessings, traffic, trust in jesus, wherever you go, wisdom, young men
Joshua 1:9. Have I not commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.
Ah mih people, instead of getting later, the Bits seem to be getting earlier! (smile) And today’s reason is not a bout of insomnia, but because I have to catch and early bus to Kingston. Oh yes, I am going back to the big city! I discovered a big sister from another branch of the family and we’re going to hold another gathering! Wow! Don’t I just LOVE the family gatherings, although this one will be mostly of old friends whom I have not seen since I left the university almost fifty years ago.
Yes, I know, when you start bandying around terms like a half century, you must be getting on in age. But chuh! Age is simply how you feel, and believe me the ole fella is young. Hn! After the work out they put me through yesterday, I must be a young pup! Brother! They took me out of here about ten thirty in the morning and didn’t bring me back until seven in the evening…but it was an exceedingly good time.
Hn, hn! I can say that now, but when I was hiking through the nature trail, through brush and bramble, across a fast-flowing stream on rocks, or makeshift boardwalks, holding on to a rope, climbing the high hills, on narrow, rough tracks, swimming in the cold, deep pools, feeling the hips and back resisting the inconvenience, I didn’t think it was so great. And at one time we just kept going up higher and higher, ostensibly towards the waterfall, and I kept asking ‘when are we going to reach it eh?’
But we had two wonderful young men as guides, who looked after us admirably. One looked after me in particular because all the others (three women) were more mobile than me, and he kept telling me that my safety was his only concern, and if anything happened to me, he would put me on his back and carry me back. But being a stubborn ole coot, I tried resisting his help in some difficult places. Thanks Mikey! Your professionalism and encouragement played and enormous part in me making it all the way up.
However, I did not climb the waterfall, I know my limitations. (smile) I just stopped and swam in the pool at the bottom and watched other younger and more mobile specimens clamber up its rocky walls. Twenty years ago, that would be a no brainer, as I did at Dunns’ River Falls. But age does take its toll on the body.
And after reaching the top, and being promised and easier path back, we discovered that they were repairing that path, so we had to come back the same way we went. But as always, the trip back never seems as laborious as the trip out and we made some good time back. Had a coconut water along the way, as well as being offered some samples of herb, which I refused, but it did smell rich and mouthwatering! (smile) What a way times have changed eh! (smile).
And if yuh think that once we got back down things were easy, think again! We then had to climb some fifty something concrete steps to get back to the car and the main road. And yuh know what? The duchess took it all in stride, looking out for her husband’s safety all the way. ‘Be careful here dear, Watch your step, it’s steep here. Hold on to this railing, Yuh okay? Yuh think you can make it. Yuh not tired’ and on and on. But though I pretended umbrage, I appreciated the concern.
Oh they even bought me a ‘Blue Hole’ T-Shirt. That’s the name of the place, located on the northern outskirts of the tourist mecca of Ocho Rios. It was advertised as a warm mineral spring, but it turned out to be a cold river bath. But not to worry, a fine time was had by all, The Lord carried me on His strong, massive shoulders most of the way, so I was definitely in good hands, better than All State! (smile)
And as we began our journey back, I began asking for mannish water. After asking a couple of people, we finally found a restaurant that had cow-foot soup. Praise the Lord! And brother, was it ever good! I couldn’t even finish the bowl, had to carry back some. Hope I can have it for breakfast this morning. As I keep saying, I’m here to recuperate, to get stronger, and those kinds of foods are what I need to strengthen the innards. (smile)
Then the traffic back was disgusting, especially in Mo Bay, where we had to go down to the Bus Depot and pay the fare so we could get a decent discount. And would you believe it, the lady at the Bus Depot didn’t believe that the duchess and I were seniors, had to see our I.D. to believe it.
And most important of all my people, is that I’m not feeling any real repercussions from the extreme exertion. As they, what doesn’t kill you, will strengthen you. It hasn’t killed me, so let’s hope it will do the latter. And what better scripture to be our Bit today, than the Lord’s eternal words of assurance to Joshua. ‘Have I not commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.’
With such powerful assurance friends, how could I be anything but strong and courageous yesterday eh? And as always, our great and faithful God kept His promise and looked after me…admirably too. So let’s go home now loudly and sincerely declaring our Thursday Blessings, being truly thankful for them as we ought to.
Altogether now. ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment!
I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and everyday! Amen!’
And if we’re faithful followers, we’ll now go out and share those amazing and awesome blessings with others, as Jesus so greatly desires. Much LOVE!
…true trust and faith in Jesus…can truly lead one to leap over one’s mountains…
15 Oct 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a heart, abide satisfied, according to his riches in glory, all of your needs, almighty god, aura of love, bodily exercise, bright countenances, Christians, confidence, contented with our lot, dependable, depressed, do excellent work, don't give up hope, enthusiasm, eternal life, everlasting life, evil, exercise spiritually, fairy tale, faith, friends, fringe group, future dream, generous help, getting it together, glorious kingdom, Glory be, good moods, gospel truth, grace, holy spirit, hope, humble servants, in attitude, in the living God, inquisitive frown, invincible, Jesus Christ, jobs, joy, joyful spirits, lies, LOVE, make a conscious decision, Messiah, miserable, Monday blues, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, my god shall supply, on a Monday morning, once there is life, overflowing with LOVE, perfect elixir, physical exercise, positive improvement, prayer, profiteth nothing, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, rest, reverence our Creator, righteousness., rush of adrenaline, salvation, salvation for all men, sick calls, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, sulking, taunts, tendeth to life, the fear of the Lord, the most powerful tool, the Saviour of all men, there is hope, those principles, trust, ungodly world, visited with evil, wiles, wisdom
Proverbs 19:23. The fear of the Lord tendeth to life: and he that hath it shall abide satisfied; he shall not be visited with evil.
Now if I didn’t already know it, I wouldn’t believe it! And what’s that, you ask with an inquisitive frown? If I didn’t know that it was Monday, I wouldn’t believe it, because everybody is so busy and diligently going about their first day of the workweek tasks in such good moods! Nobody’s sulking, miserable or seems depressed; no Monday blues whatsoever! No setta sick calls either!
And then you’d tell me: Oh, they’re all following the example of that fringe group called Christians; the group that believes in what they call the Messiah, or Saviour, His name is Jesus Christ! Yes, they are very dependable, and do excellent work too! And all I’d be able to says, is ‘Glory be!’ (smile)
What a great day that will be eh friends, when we have the whole world following our example of diligent and excellent work in Jesus name! Right now it’s still somewhat of a fairy tale, or massive future dream, but if we keep working away at it, in all diligence and excellence, and with Jesus’ help, that day will eventually come. So let’s not give up hope and stop trying, for once there is life, there is hope!
However, for the many of us who still struggle with getting it together on a Monday morning, we have the perfect elixir to fix whatever ails you. We call it our Monday Morning Battle Hymn. It’s simply prayer, but then again, please remember that prayer is the most powerful tool and/or weapon in God’s great universe! So let’s not waste any more time in putting it to work nuh.
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!’
Oh my people, it’s working already! I know you can feel it; feel the positive improvement in your attitude, and the excitement that’s being generated by the rush of adrenaline that’s suddenly flowing through your veins!
Wow! Prayer Power is fantastic! It works miracles! Now let’s be on our way about Jesus business, with bright countenances, joyful spirits, and a heart overflowing with LOVE, as He so dearly desires of us.
But before we jump into the fray, let’s take a moment and set the thoughts engendered by these wise words of Cousin Sol firmly in our hearts and minds. ‘The fear of the Lord tendeth to life: and he that hath it shall abide satisfied; he shall not be visited with evil.’
That’s for certain sure my fellow believers! When we reverence our Creator, it means that we do our best to exalt Him and do His will. And since He faithfully takes care of those who uphold His name and His commandments, then there’s no need to worry, He will ensure that we’re contented with our lot. And Bruh Paul has also assured us: ‘But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.’ (Phil.4:19)
We do have to stand strong, steadfast and wise in the faith though for it to happen. And on writing to young Timothy, as per being a good minister of Jesus Christ, amongst other things, Bruh Paul warned: ‘For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come. This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation.’ (1 Tim.4:8-9)
And the scholars explain. ‘4:8: The verse may be paraphrased, “For physical exercise is of limited value, but godliness, the result of spiritual exercise, has unlimited value, since it brings blessings for both now and eternity.”
That’s indisputable truth my brethren! ‘For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially (especially) of those that believe.’ (1 Tim.4:10)
Yes friends, we definitely need to exercise spiritually, so that we live godly and thus attain the wonderful promise of many blessings and abundant life, down here on earth and through eternity.
Please note though, that although God has provided salvation for ALL men, only those who sincerely believe in His Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ WILL be saved. So, I implore us to live our lives in accordance with those principles, otherwise…crapaud smoke we pipe! Much LOVE!
…salvation is available to all…but you must make a conscious decision to accept it…
08 Oct 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a formidable task, a land that flows with milk and honey, all Christians hands on deck, aura of love, blessings, brought us into this place, Canadian, Christ's love Revolution, confidence, drunk or sober, enthusiasm, evil, faith, fellowship, fomenting, forgiveness, friends, generous help, given us this land, glorious kingdom, glory to God, Granny's warning, hope, Jesus Christ, joy, keep God first place, lies, LOVE, loving kindness, mercy, mind yuh business, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, Moses, offering succour to the stranger, peace, pushed God out, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, righteousness., salvation, sending portions to the poor, society runs 24/7, spiritual armour, staying on the straight and narrow path, sunk as deep in the mire, thanksgiving, the fruits of our labour, the fruits of our prosperity, the Holy Spirit, The Israelites, the Worker Bee, this is the day the Lord has made, trust, truth, ungodly world, we will rejoice and be glad in it, wide and destructive path, wisdom
Deuteronomy 26:9. And he hath brought us into this place, and hath given us this land, even a land that floweth with milk and honey.
HAPPY THANKSGIVING DAY CANADA!
Yes my people, it’s Thanksgiving Day in Canada! Glory to God! As the psalmist says: ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it.’ (Ps.118:24) In fact, all weekend we’ve been celebrating and doubly rejoicing. Why? Because we have been obeying the Lord’s ordinance, as delivered to the Israelites by Moses, bringing the fruits of our prosperity to offer it before the Lord, sending portions to the poor and offering succour to the stranger!
And why wouldn’t we eh my brethren when ‘He hath brought us into this place, and hath given us this land, even a land that floweth with milk and honey.’ And does this great land of Canada ever flow with milk and honey? It surely does, because we are living so much better than most of the world. Oh, like everyone else, we have our problems, but thankfully we have not sunk as deep in the mire as some of the other countries around.
We have not pushed God out of our society as much as they have. But if we continue on the wide and destructive path we’re currently on, we will eventually get like them. And the only thing that will stop us is by concentrating on staying on the straight and narrow path of Jesus; fomenting His LOVE Revolution, and thus keeping God first place in our society. And to do that successfully, we need all Christian hands on deck because it’s a formidable task, and no one else can do it, or is even interested in doing so.
Hn! Looks like I’ve preached the Sermon before the preamble. (smile) Anyway, the Holy Spirit knows where it’s leading me. And let’s not forget that today is Monday; the day so many of us LOVE to hate. And Glory be! It’s a holiday in this great land, therefore many of us won’t be going out to labour today…
And I hear a great groan from those who have to go to work because our modern society runs 24/7. But as always, we do have the cure for your Monday Blues. We call it our Monday Morning Battle Hymn! And it does work. So let’s get to it nuh…with whatever enthusiasm you can muster.
‘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 all God’s people continued with a loud, hearty and grateful: ‘Praise the Lord!’ as they feel their spirits miraculously lifted and their minds and bodies become more alert. Oh friends, that’s the power of the Holy Spirit; the worker bee of the Holy Trinity! And if we’re wise, we’ll pay more attention to Him as He tries to guide us in godly fashion, moment by moment.
And as always, the loudest and most raucous voices belong to those not going to work and have been deeply involved in the celebrations. And before I forget, for all you celebrators, Granny’s warning is a must this weekend. Don’t care if yuh tired hearing it, but it will protect your soul! Sonny Boy; drunk or sober, please mind your business!
Now getting back to the Thanksgiving story, here is some interesting scripture the Israelites were told by Moses to say and do after they had presented their offering of first fruits. ‘And now, behold I have brought the first fruits of the land, which thou, O Lord, hast given me. And thou shalt set it before the Lord thy God, and worship before the Lord thy God: And thou shalt rejoice in every good thing which the Lord thy God hath given unto thee, and unto thine house, thou, and the Levite, and the stranger that is among you.’ (Deut.26:10-11)
Yes friends, it’s our God-given right to enjoy the fruits of our labour with the poor and the stranger in our midst, but only after we have given the Lord His share first. Remember, EVERYTHING belongs to the Lord, and it’s only through His grace and LOVING-kindness that we are able to get wealth and become prosperous. So for those of us not going to work today, let’s rejoice and celebrate in the gifts God has blessed us with, but also remember to share our blessings with the less fortunate. Much LOVE!
…give thanks to the Lord…for His goodness endures forever…
03 Oct 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a glorious future with Jesus, a roof over our heads, accept Christ as Lord and Saviour, acclamations, aches and pains, agree with God, arrogant, attitudes, bears all things, believes all things, born of God, building blocks, common sense, communication, conquer the world, constant level, cover the multitude of sins, covers all sins, direct your paths, Dr. Charles Stanley, eternal life, faith, faith walk, food on our tables, forsake sin, get sufficient rest, goes against the grain, good and bad, halfway home, hatred, hit our full stride, hope, hopes all things, in full swing, Jesus' programme, kind, knows God, lean not on your own understanding, leave all the consequences to Him, listen to God, LOVE, Love God, Love suffers long, middle of the workweek, never fails, obedience, obey God, of God, prayer, precarious predicament, puffed up, rejoices in truth, rejoices not in iniquity, rude, salvation, seeks not her own, stirs up strife, Thank the Lord, the Boss, the breath of life, the greatest of these, the only way to the Father, the straight and narrow path, trust God, unseemly, waiver, walk in the same direction, Wednesday Wail, wisdom, wishful thinking, with all thine heart, with the Lord's help, without Jesus
Proverbs 10:12. Hatred stirreth up strifes: but LOVE covereth ALL sins.
And then it was Wednesday, the middle of the workweek…and we in full swing now. We’ve hit our full stride and feel like we can conquer the world, even without the help of Jesus…wishful thinking though. (smile)
But that just shows the difference in our attitudes between Monday, the start of the work week and today, when we’ve gotten accustomed once again to getting up and getting out to labour for a penny to keep food on our tables and a roof over our heads.
Yeh friends, it’s all in our attitude, our state of mind, and we can’t afford to let it waiver between good and bad, because then our lives also waiver between good and bad. It’s in our best interest to keep our attitude at a constant positive level, in tune with Jesus’ programme for His followers.
And before I forget, let me thank the Lord for a much better beginning to today, than I had yesterday, the aches and pains are nowhere near as bad. Brother, yesterday was truly a rough day! But with the Lord’s help I weathered it…Praise His holy name!
And I believe the aches and pains are directly related to how much time I spend in bed. I’ll be fine with three or four hours at a time…But Chuh! Once we hit the five or six hour mark, like the body begins to stiffen up. And I won’t even mention seven or eight hours… (smile) So it seems like my best bet is to sleep in four hour spurts.
But that’s not always practical, and it goes against the very grain of one of my most important acclamations; that I will get sufficient rest each and every day. But if I want to avoid the worse of the aches and pains, with the Lord’s help, I will find a way to do it. Amen!
Now let me share some stuff from Uncle Charles (Dr. Charles Stanley) that I just glimpsed on one of the many bits of paper on my desk. I believe it deals with walking and having a full life with God. (1) Accept the Lord Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour. Now that should be obvious because we can’t walk with God unless we go through Jesus, since He is the only way to the Father.
(2) Listen to God. That’s through prayer; the method of communication He made for us to get to know each other. And we can’t listen alone, we also need to talk to Him.
(3) Trust God. And here Uncle Charles points us to his favourite scriptures; the immortal words of Cousin Sol: ‘Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct (make smooth or straight) thy paths.’ (Prov.3:5-6) Yes friends, those verses should be the foundational building blocks of our faith walk!
(4) Agree with God. That’s wisdom in spades, for He is the Boss! And you know what happens when you don’t agree with the Boss; you’re liable to get fired. (smile) (5) Obey God. And that brings us to Uncle Charles’ favourite statement: ‘Obey God and leave all the consequences to Him!’ Sure words of wisdom my people, because obedience is one of the few things that the Lord totally demands of us.
(6) Walk in the same direction. Now that’s simple common sense. You can’t be a true and sincere member of an organization and not walk the path the leader proscribes. And with Jesus, it’s the straight and narrow one; the hard to find and difficult to navigate path, but the oh so rewarding one, leading to salvation and eternal life.
(7) Stay in step with God. Now that’s also basic common sense. If God is leading the way – as He most definitely is – then you can’t go ahead of Him, else you’ll get lost in the dark and tumble over an unseen cliff, since you don’t know where you are going. And for our purposes here, I’ll change Uncle Charles’ line up. I’ll put as number (8) Forsake sin. And that’s oh so important my brethren, because it’s sin that has us in the precarious predicament we’re currently in.
But this last point is the most important because it covers everything. (9) LOVE God! Wow mih people! When we do that sincerely, we don’t have to worry about anything else. And here is some scripture that proves it. First off is our Bit, the treasured words of Cousin Sol: ‘Hatred stirreth up strifes: but LOVE covereth ALL sins.’ And isn’t that the glorious truth my people? It surely is! And Peter corroborates it. ‘And above all things have fervent charity (LOVE) among yourselves: for charity (LOVE) shall cover the multitude of sins.’ (1 Pet.4:8)
But here now is the piece de resistance on the subject from Bruh Paul from the famous Way of LOVE Chapter. ‘Charity (LOVE) suffereth long, and is kind; charity (LOVE) envieth not…vaunteth not (does not brag on) itself, is not puffed up (arrogant), Doth not behave itself unseemly (rudely), seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, (keeps no records); Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in truth. Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Charity (LOVE) NEVER FAILETH…’ (1 Cor.13:4-8a)
And that my fellow believers is the gospel truth! For if we have sincere LOVE, then we’ll be like John says: ‘Beloved, let us LOVE one another: for LOVE is of God; and every one that LOVETH is born of God, and knoweth God.’ (1 John 4:7) Now with all that LOVE just percolating madly through our hearts, minds, bodies and souls, let’s go home sincerely declaring (wow! spelled it right) our Wednesday Wail, letting the whole world know our position in Christ.
As one now: ‘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!’
And it’s indeed going to be more glorious than we can ask or imagine! Our finite minds can’t comprehend it! Much LOVE!
…and now abideth…faith…hope…LOVE…these three…but the greatest of these is…LOVE… (1 Cor.13:13)
02 Oct 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a clean heart, a fair try, a right spirit, abnormal situation, acceptable excuse, alacrity, be not ashamed, beloved of God, blameless, choice to obey, command me to do, create n me, cry out for mercy, diligence, distresses, doddering old man, ease the pain, expect me to do, faith, faithfully promised, fickle, fool myself, for Christ's sake, friend of Jesus, generosity, give grace, give light, glory in my infirmities, gospel truth, great reward, grin and bear the apin, have faith, hawing, hemming, holy spirit, humanly possible, hurry, indisputably true, infirmities, intimating, keep, keep thy heart, let my heart be sound, light, LOVE, magnanimity, make all things right, maturity, mind, mind-boggling situation, motives, my grace is sufficient, my strength, natural weakness, necessities, obey me, One Year Book of Bible promises, outward actions, perfect, perfection, power made perfect in weakness, power to obey, principles, racked with pain, ramifications, reproaches, rest upon me, Ruth Harms Calkin, salt, seat of the intellect, seductive rain, seek, share with the world, smiling, statutes, take pleasure, the issues of life, the keeping of my word, the power of christ, the soul of man, the thorn in his side, then I am strong, true colours, Tuesday Mantra, unalterable truths, unreachable standards, walking hand in hand, when I am weak, wisdom, worry
Psalm 119:80. Let my heart be sound (blameless) in thy statutes; that I be not ashamed.
Oh mih people, would somebody please explain it to me, because I obviously have not been granted the heavenly wisdom to understand the ramifications of this mind-boggling situation! And I’m talking about how a body can go to bed feeling perfectly fine – well not perfect perfect, but fairly decent – then some five or six hours later wake up racked with pain in body and soul, reduced to moving around like a doddering old man?
Oh, I know some of you will say than I am old, so that’s no surprise… But please, I beg to differ. I’ll grant that I’m somewhat aged, (smile) but nowhere enough yet to be doddering! And to make matters worse, while lying there contemplating the pain and getting up, I was seduced to stay in bed for another forty five minutes by a couple showers of seductive rain. Yes, it looks like it’s going to be a ‘riney’ day. But how fickle is the soul of man eh! (smile)
And though I’ve asked the Lord a couple of times about this abnormal situation, I’ve gotten no answer, which leads me to thinking that He’s intimating to me, the same thing that He said to Bruh Paul, when he asked for relief from the thorn in his side. ‘My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength (power) is made perfect in weakness.’ (2 Cor.12:9a)
And though I know that, and gratefully acknowledge it, it still doesn’t ease the pain. (smile) I guess the Lord’s waiting for me to say like Bruh Paul did after receiving that Bit of info. ‘Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then I am strong.’ (2 Cor.12:9b-10)
Oh my brethren, I’m trying, but I’m nowhere close to Bruh Paul’s maturity nuh, and the Lord knows it. So I’m not going to fool myself by saying all those things that he says above. I’m just going to move around as best as I can, grin and bear the pain, and/or cry out for mercy, (smile) and have faith for the Lord to make ALL things right as He’s faithfully promised.
Now let’s hope that I have enough space to write what I really intended to write, before the Holy Spirit led me to write what I’ve actually written. (smile) And it’s a most appropriate poem from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin, titled, ‘Three Unalterable Truths.’
Please pray with me: ‘Lord, through the years Of walking hand-in-hand with You I have learned three unalterable truths: First, what you command me to do You consistently expect me to do. Never do you say, “Give the command a fair try.” Nor do You say, “Consider and then decide.” My natural weakness is never An acceptable excuse. Nor is my inability To reach unreachable standards. Rather, You tell me to seek And then to keep your commands.
Second, all of Your commands Are always for my ultimate good. “Obey me,” Your Word says “So that I can do for you All the wonderful things I promised…” “In the keeping of My Word There is great reward.” Third, whatever You command me to do You fully enable me to do. As You give light to reveal a command So you give grace to fulfill it. Your divine energy is always at my disposal. The choice to obey is always mine. The power to obey is always Yours.’
And the sad, humorous and glorious fact friends, is ALL of that is indisputably true! When the Lord gives us a command, He expects us to obey without a lot of hemming and hawing, as we so often tend to do. And that’s simply because He never asks us to do something without giving us His powerful grace to enable us to do it.
And the best part of it all my brethren is when we obey with alacrity and faith, there are innumerable rewards to be reaped from His magnanimity and outrageous generosity! Give Him His much deserved glory my people! And the Bible Promise associated with that poem is also our Bit for today: ‘Let my heart be sound (blameless) in thy statutes; that I be not ashamed.’
Yes my brethren, being blameless in keeping the Lord’s principles is something we should all aspire to. And don’t worry, He knows that we’re not perfect, because He didn’t make us perfect, but He does expect us to try and get as close to perfection as is humanly possible. It’s all in the state of our hearts friends. As Cousin Sol warns: ‘Keep (look after) thy heart (and mind) with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.’ (Prov.4:23)
And the scholars explain: ‘4:23. Heart could often be translated “mind” in the book. Since the Hebrews had no separate word for “mind,” the word “heart” often served to represent the seat of the intellect. The key to the whole man is his mind. Whatever captures the mind captures the man.’ Gospel truth that my fellow believers!
And remember the Lord doesn’t go by our outward actions, He searches our hearts and minds to discover our true motives. That’s why we have to cry out like Bruh David did in his prayer for cleansing: ‘Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right (steadfast) spirit within me.’ (Ps.51:10)
And having taken all of that to heart (smile), let’s go home declaring (Steups! Spelt it wrong again) our Tuesday Mantra, letting the whole world know who and whose we are. In loud voice and strong sense of purpose: ‘I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
And the obvious corollary to that is for us to now go out and share Jesus’ amazing LOVE with the rest of the world, as He so greatly desires of us. Much LOVE!
…Jesus is still waiting for us to show our true colours…to be the salt…and the light of the world…as He asked us to be…
P.S. It’s certainly been a smiley day! But why not eh? That’s why the Lord gave us the wonderful ability of smiling…to smile! Much LOVE!
01 Oct 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a lifetime of Mondays, above every other name, acclamation, antidote, ask the father, at the name of Jesus, aura of love, confidence, crapaud smoke yuh pipe, do battle, enthusiasm, eternal damnation, eternal life, every knee should bow, every tongue confess, evil, evil minions, faith, fellowshipping, for my name's sake, forgiveness, friends, fun, given him a name, glorious kingdom, glory to God, God hath highly exalted him, gospel truth, grace, holy spirit, hope, humble servants, humility, in Jesus name, in my name, inherit eternal life, invincible, Jesus Christ, Jesus christ is Lord, joy, learn to live with it, look to Jesus, LOVE, Lucifer, mercy, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, none other name under heaven', obedience, on the right path, prepare on sundays, raise our levels of peace, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, rest, righteousness., salvation, saving grace, selfless sacrifice, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, that can ever befall a human soul, the joy of the Lord is your strength, the Life, the Truth, the Way, this is the day the Lord has made, trust, ungodly world, we will be glad and rejoice in it, whatever ails you, where two or three are gathered together, wisdom, worst fate, your joy may be full
Philippians 2:9. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every other name.
Aye mih breddren, is Monday, that great day of the week that causes us so many problems. But since we can’t get rid of it or get around it, we need to learn to live with it. And we better had learn to do that early in life because we’re going to be bombarded by a whole lifetime of Mondays. (smile)
And one of the best ways to do that is to prepare for it by fellowshipping with other believers on Sundays to raise our level of peace and joy, for remember the joy of the Lord is our strength. (Neh.8:10) And then on Monday, begin the day by acclaiming this wonderful acclamation: ‘This is the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it.’ (Ps.118:24) That ought to set you on the right path.
But just in case it doesn’t, then you can join with us in singing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, which I’m sure will get you going, because it’s the antidote for whatever ails you on Monday mornings. (smile) So without further ado, let’s get with the programme and sing; sing in unison with whatever enthusiasm you can muster.
‘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!’
Yes, fellow children of God, yuh see how that has brought a whole different outlook to the Monday morning! I told you it would. Now you’re feeling ready and able to go out and do battle with entire world with Jesus as your Field General! All glory to His holy name! For that’s how His Holy Spirit works wonders in our lives!
Remember too that there is awesome power in the awesome name of Jesus as Bruh Paul informs us in our Bit. ‘Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name. That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of (those) things in heaven, and (those) things in earth, and (those) things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.’ (Phil.2:9-11)
Ah mih people, you couldn’t get any better than that! What an honour the Father bestowed on Him for His obedience and humility and selfless sacrifice for going to the cross on our behalf! Yes friends, the name that is above all others is ‘JESUS!’ Please remember that, for your eternal life depends on it! Because if you don’t call out to Him for help, for mercy, forgiveness and saving grace before you depart this earthly life, then sorry…crapaud smoke yuh pipe!
You’ll be sadly headed for eternal damnation with Lucifer and his evil minions. And as I keep saying, that’s the worst fate than can ever befall a human soul! So please look to Jesus. I plead with you to get truly acquainted with Him so that you can call on Him in times of trouble and need, because His name is definitely the most powerful in God’s magnificent universe!
And if you don’t believe Bruh Paul or me, then listen to what Jesus says about His name. ‘For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.’ (Matt.18:20) Who else can make such a statement and live up to it eh? NOBODY!
Now hear this: ‘And everyone that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name’s sake, shall receive a hundred fold, and shall inherit everlasting life.’ (Matt.19:29)Again, who can make such dazzling and daring promises and keep them eh? ONLY JESUS!
For as Peter said before the High Priest: ‘Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.’ (Acts 4:12) And that’s the gospel truth!
And if you still don’t believe (smile), then check out this statement of Jesus. ‘And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.’ (John 16:23-24)
There you have it friends, right from Jesus’ mouth, and He does not lie. So it’s all up to you now, to seek earthly joy and eternal life by calling on the most powerful name in the universe. But as for me and mine, we will be calling on Him in true faith. Please let wisdom be your guide, and do the same. Much LOVE!
…I am the WAY…the TRUTH…and the LIFE…no man comes to the Father but by ME… (John 14:6)
27 Sep 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a lazy, a man to rejoice, a time for every thing, an invitation, an open invitation, anything that frightens us, blessed, check the Good Book, Christ-like, courage, creativity, curse, Daily Bread Devotional, delicious, divine protection, do good in his life, eat and drink, Ecclesiastes, embrace sin, endeavour, endure suffering, enjoy the good, eternity, faith, faithfulness, father in heaven, favour, find out God's work, finite limitations, foolish, frustrated, fulsomeness, glory to God, God anointed Jesus, God is ever-faithful, God was with him, good doings, have it more abudantly, have joyful lives, hazy fall day, I am come, in his time, in the name of Jesus, in their heart, knowing and trusting you, made every thing beautiful, man's quest, mundane, natural desire, negative word, no good in them, nothing better, of all his labour, our well-being, perpetuity, promotion, prosper, routine, run to our father, security, set the world, sheen, succeed, success, talent, task, testing, the fruit of our labour, the gift of God, the Holy Spirit, the Preacher, the sons of men, they might have life, Thursday Blessings, to be occupied, to build our faith, to find the strength, travail, use the amenities, waxing philosophical, went about doing good, when in doubt, wisdom dictates, wonderful communication, words of wisdom
Ecclesiastes 3:12. I know that there is no good in them (nothing better for them), but for a man to rejoice, and to do good in his life.
Whoever said that yesterday was going to be a ‘riney’ day eh? What a joke! By mid-morning the sun had come out, not in all its glory, but strong enough to make it a sunny day, all day. Luckily too, or rather blessedly, before going for those tests yesterday, I realized that I had done something which would have negated them, so I had to cancel them, and just spent a lazy, hazy fall day at home. (smile)
Wow! Aren’t those types of days delicious? They surely are. But like everything else in life, we can’t have them too often else the sheen, the ‘delicioso’ will wear off and they’ll become routine and mundane. What words of wisdom my brethren! The ole fella’s waxing philosophical this morning. Hn!
And here is an interesting li’l prayer I recently got from a Daily Bread Devotional. ‘Please pray with me: ‘Father in heaven, please help us to remember that anything that frightens us comes with an invitation to find the strength of knowing and trusting you.’ Now that’s a most important fact to remember friends! Whenever we’re afraid, we have an open invitation to run to our Father and cling to Him and thereby receive the strength and trust inherent in His awesome power! Glory to God!
It’s just like when a young child is walking with his or her parents and anything along the way frightens them, they quickly run and grab on to one of their parents because they know that there is strength and security to be found in them. Our situation with our heavenly Father is no different. And we’d be extremely foolish not to use the amenities He’s provided for our well-being.
So having said all of that, what’s next eh? I really don’t know. (smile) But as always, wisdom dictates; when in doubt, check the Good Book. Give me a minute to do that and see where the Lord leads us…
And talk about faithfulness! Our God is truly ever-faithful! I randomly opened the Good Book a minute ago, and lo and behold it opened unto Ecclesiastes 3, the famous chapter where Cousin Sol, writing as the Preacher, talks about a time for everything.
And there I saw this most inspiring and reassuring declaration. ‘I have seen the travail (task or endeavour) which God hath given to the sons of men to be exercised in it (with which to be occupied). He hath made every thing beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world (eternity) in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh (does) from the beginning to the end.’ (Eccl.3:10-11)
And the scholars explain that last verse thus: ‘3:11: The world is better translated “eternity.” God has given man a desire for eternity and perpetuity; therefore man cannot be satisfied with what is merely temporal. Man’s quest for the eternal, however, is frustrated by his finite limitations.’
And that might very well be so my brethren, but nonetheless, as Cousin Sol acknowledges in our Bit: ‘I know that there is no good in them (nothing better for them), but for a man to rejoice, and to do good in his life.’
Yes friends, our God made us to enjoy the beauty and fulsomeness of his universe, not to suffer incessantly in an evil world. We do have to endure some suffering and some testing to build our faith, but overall the Lord wants His people to have joyful lives and earnest and wonderful communication with Him, else why would He make all that beautiful stuff in the universe eh?
And Cousin Sol continues: ‘And also that every man should eat and drink, and enjoy the good of all his labour, it is the gift of God.’ (Eccl.3:13) And indeed enjoying the fruit of our labour is God’s gift to us. Note though, he said, ‘our labour,’ not someone else’s! (smile)
That reminds us of Jesus statement that ‘I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.’ (John 10:10b) Yes my brethren, throughout the Good Book we see that the Lord fully intended for us to enjoy His universe, it’s just that our natural desire to embrace sin and its evil ways that has derailed us.
And I want to point out an important point in our Bit; we are not only called to rejoice, but even more importantly to do good! It’s all a part of enjoying the fruit of our labour, and generally speaking, our labour won’t bear much good fruit if we don’t sprinkle it with good doings.
Listen to this heartwarming story the apostles tell about Jesus. ‘How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power, who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.’ (Acts 10:38)
Yes my faithful followers of Christ, God is also with us: we have His Holy Spirit dwelling within us, and also the power that Christ had, thus to be truly Christ-like, we also have to go out and do good. And why do you think we’ve been as extremely blessed as we are eh? It’s so that we can do good by sharing them. Now let’s go home declaring (spelled it right, glory to God!) our Thursday Blessings, showing the world what can also be theirs if they embrace Jesus.
All together in strong voice, with sincere hearts: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment!
I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and everyday! Amen!’
What a blessed life we live my brethren! Now let’s go out and share it with the less fortunate, as Jesus desires of us. Much LOVE!
…half the joy in having blessings…lies in sharing them…
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