21 Jul 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a compassionate heart, a great family, a positive effect, a positive outlook on life, a smile costs nothing, abundance, as a man chastens his son, blessed day, blessings, bound, brighten someone's day, broken, chastening, clear direction, commandments, consequences, consequences of disobedience, corporal punishment, courage, creativity, crying, curse, discipline, disobedience, divine protection, enjoy a day, everyone smiles in the same language, face muscles, faith, faithfulness, favour, fearful, foolishness, for the present, frown, fruit, fulfillment, full moon, get us down, glory hallelujah, gnarled branches, God's development programme, God's supernatural wisdom, good friends, good health, grace, grievous, grin and bear it, hope, I am blessed, in the heart of a child, in the name of Jesus, Israelites, joyous, loving kindness, magnanimous, magnificent, mercy, Moses, nature, negative stuff, negative word, our heavenly Father, peace, peaceful fruit of righteousness, problems, promotion, prosper, put my hands to, quiet, righteouness, self-control, self-discipline, selfish, smile, spare for his crying, strong will, succeed, success, supernatural strength, talent, the Lord thy god chastens you, the Old Testament, this is the day the Lord has made, Thursday's Blessings, truth, unfriendly, walk in his ways, we will be glad and rejoice in it, wisdom
Hebrews 12:11. Now no chastening (discipline) for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised (trained) thereby.
Ah mih people, another beautiful day has begun! The Lord in His awesome grace and mercy has decreed that His servants will enjoy another blessed day! Glory Hallelujah!
And in spite of any negative stuff that’s coming against us, God’s children are able to proudly, truthfully and enthusiastically declare: ‘This is the day which the Lord hath made; we WILL rejoice and be glad in it!’
Yes friends, it doesn’t make any sense to let our problems get us so down that we can’t enjoy a day in the mercy and LOVING-kindness of our heavenly Father, for He will give us the wherewithal to do it if we sincerely ask Him.
And please don’t think that only the days are beautiful, because the nights are too. This morning at 3.30 I was sitting on my porch enjoying the peace and quiet of nature. I was most surprised when I first sat down, raised my head and saw a big, bright, beautiful full moon shining down on me, through an open space between two gnarled branches of the dying ash tree in my front yard. That’s one of the reasons for my late start this morning. (smile)
Anyhow, here’s a li’l something from a plaque I have in my office. It says: ‘Everyone smiles in the same language.’ And isn’t that the glorious and indisputable truth! It certainly is!
That’s why it’s so hard to understand why we don’t smile at each other more often. In fact we smile at each other much less than we previously did. Today’s world has become so selfish, fearful and unfriendly that we find it difficult to share even a simple, easy thing like a smile, which could brighten someone’s day, and have a positive effect on him or her.
A smile costs nothing my people; just the moving of a few face muscles, and less than a frown to boot. So let’s promises ourselves to do some more smiling at each other nuh, cause it’s a language we all understand and appreciate.
And to help us keep that promise let’s lift up our spirits by declaring our Thursday Blessings, for remember, a blessing’s not a blessing until it’s declared. So as one now: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance!
I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life!
I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and everyday! Amen!’
Awright mih breddren, let’s go out and enjoy those blessings now, doing God’s work, smiling and sharing with those less fortunate than us, for that’s what our magnanimous and magnificent God desires of us. But remember also to keep the possible consequences of disobedience in the back of one’s mind, as our Bit informs us.
‘Now no chastening (discipline) for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised (trained) thereby.’
Ah friends, none of us like to hear those words, chastening, and discipline, much less experience them. (smile) But the fact is they are a big part of our everyday lives; a major aspect of God’s development program. (smile)
‘Hn!’ many of us sadly mutter as we contemplate that statement and some of the chastening that we’ve recently been through, or are currently going through. Unfortunately though my people that’s God’s way, and there’s not much we can do about it, except try to have as few reasons as possible for Him to chasten us.
Now let’s delve into some scriptures that show how important chastening is in God’s world. And we’ll go all the way back to the Old Testament for our first scripture. Here Moses is warning the Israelites about their future behaviour.
‘Thou shalt also consider (know) in thine heart, that as a man chasteneth his son, so the Lord thy God chasteneth thee. Therefore thou shalt keep the commandments of the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, and to fear him.’ (Deut.8:5-6) It couldn’t be any plainer than that friends.
Now listen to Cousin Sol, who had a lot to say on the subject. ‘Chasten thy son while there is hope, and let not thy soul spare for his crying (don’t allow yourself to be distracted by his crying).’ (Prov.19:18) Yes my people, too many of us allow our children’s crying to dissuade us when we are chastening them.
More Cousin Sol: ‘Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him.’ (Prov.22:15) Hn! And the scholars explain that verse thus: ’22:15. Corporal punishment is necessary for children due to inherent foolishness.’
Now we won’t get into any arguments about that particular scripture here. We’ll close with some words from Ethan the Ezrahite from Psalm 89 – God’s sure promises to David.
‘If his children forsake my law, and walk not in my judgements; If they break (profane) my statutes, and keep not (obey) my commandments; Then will I visit (attend to) their transgression with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes. Nevertheless my LOVING-kindness will I not utterly take from him, nor suffer my faithfulness to fail (to be false).’ (Ps.89:30-33)
That’s the way it is my people, we just have to learn to grin and bear it. So let’s go out today and smile and be obedient to God’s word, for that is the ultimate test of wisdom. Much LOVE!
… three ways to avoid chastening…obedience…obedience…obedience…
P.S. I want to apologize for a typo I made yesterday. I gave the scripture reference for a Proverb as 13:12; it ought to have been 3:12. Now let’s go and see what games Outlook has to play with me today. They played some yesterday, but not as much as the day before. Ah Lord eh! Much LOVE!
14 Jul 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a bruised and broken world, a compassionate heart, a fruitful vine, a positive outlook, a strong will, abundance, believes on me, blessed, blessed the Egyptian's house, broken, capacity, Christians, clarion call, clear direction, come unto me and drink, count our blessings, courage, creativity, curse, divine protection, encourages us, exhilarating refreshment, expectant faith, faith, faithfulness, family, favour, fears the Lord, Fill Me, for Joseph's sake, frineds, fulfillment, glory to God, grace, happy, health, hungry hope, in the city, in the field, in the name of Jesus, Joseph, lifts our spirits, lightning, my heart longs for you, neck of the woods, negative circumstance, negative word, not sufficient, obedience, obedient to God's Word, olive plants, out of his belly, overflow, overflowing, overseer, Potiphar, promotion, prosper, prosperous man, rain, release, relief, rewards of faithfulness, Rivers, rivers of living water, Ruth Harms Calkin, self-control, self-discipline, succeed, success, supernatural strength, supernatural wisdom, talent, the fruit of thy labour, the Lord was with Joseph, the One Day Book of Bible Promises, the straight and narrow path, thirst, thunder, thunderstorm, Thursday Blessings, walk in his ways, well with thee
Deuteronomy 28:3. Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field.
Oh friends, it seems like it’s going to be a wet day in my neck of the woods. At least that’s how it’s begun. We had a wicked thunderstorm this morning around one o’clock. Brother! The thunder and lightning and the lashing rain were certainly out for a good run. (smile)
I was sitting down in the family room watching the tube at the time and all I could see were the bright flashes of lightning behind the blinds, as the thunder rolled and the rain beat down.
But it’s a good thing that we Christians are associated with the ONE who has control of the weather, Almighty God. He blesses us, so we don’t have to worry about it affecting us, unless we unwisely do something to cause a negative circumstance.
Oh, and by the way, did we count our many blessings as we awoke this morning, to remind us of what blessed lives we live? I certainly hope so, because that lifts our spirits, encourages us to stay on the straight and narrow path that leads to the Father by way of Jesus!
Anyway, here is a poem from our One Day Book of Bible verses with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin. It’s titled ‘Rivers and Rivers.’
And it says: ‘O my Father My heart longs for you! Fill me to capacity with your spirit…No, Father, I’m sorry – That’s not sufficient. Fill me to overflowing with your Spirit And then increase my capacity That there might still be more overflow.
Out of my life May there flow rivers And rivers Of Living Water Bringing relief, release And exhilarating refreshment To a bruised and broken world Where thirst can never be quenched Apart from you.’
What a noble prayer my people! Do we ever pray along those lines, asking to be vessels of Living Water to a broken world? It would definitely be a nice gesture.
And the scripture passage on which that poem is based is Christ’s clarion call: ‘In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly (heart) shall flow rivers of living water.’ (John 7:37-38)
And that’s where we’re supposed to be at my brethren; the stage of belief where rivers of the living water is jut pouring out of us on to the broken and needy around us. So let’s ponder some on that today nuh, see how we’re doing along those lines and with God’s help try and improve it. End of sermon! (smile)
Now let’s do something else that ought also to raise our spirits and encourage us to keep on keeping on with Christ. Today’s Thursday – as least I believe so – (smile) that means we need to declare our Thursday Blessing over our lives.
So with expectant belief and hungry hope let’s declare them in strong voice. ‘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!’
Ah friends, please remember that a blessing is not a blessing until it has been vocalized over someone, and we must also bless our friends and families and those around us, so that their spirits can be lifted and encouraged.
And our rather appropriate Bit just strengthens our argument. ‘Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field.’
Yes friends, if we are obedient to God’s Word, then the blessings of obedience will flow down on us, run us down and overtake us! Glory to God! But we have to first get the ball rolling for that to happen.
Now let’s look at a couple of scriptures that enhance our position. And the first one deals with Bruh Joseph when he was sold into slavery and bought by the Egyptian army officer Potiphar.
The Good Book tells us: ‘And the Lord was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous (successful) man: and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian. And his master saw that the Lord was with him, and that the Lord made all he did to prosper in his hand. And Joseph found grace (favour) in his sight, and he served him: and he made him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put in his hand.
And it came to pass from the time that he made him overseer in his house, and over all that he had, that the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; and the blessing of the Lord was upon all that he had in the house, and in the field.’ (Gen.39:2-5)
Yes my fellow believers, the Lord blessed Joseph wherever he went, into what ever negative situation he found himself, because he never complained, just tried his best to be obedient to God’s word. Now can that be said of us? It would certainly help us all.
And we’ll conclude with these words from Psalm 128 – The rewards of faithfulness. ‘Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord; that walketh in his ways. For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands (fruit of thy labour): happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee.
Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of (in the heart of) thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table. Behold that thus shall the man be blessed that feareth the Lord.’ (Ps.128:1-4)
Friends, I can’t say it any better than that. I can only encourage us to do as it says, if we want to be blessed. Much LOVE!
…obedience brings blessings…it’s as simple as that…
02 Jul 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a mustard seed, affection mind, Anselm, aspires to inspire, attributes of God, believe, bread, brethren, cast out a demon, character, christ lives in me, Christian, circumstances, Colossians, crucified, depressed, desires, disarray, doubts, downcast, earthly things, faith, faithfulness, fellowship, fine spirits, forefathers, forgiveness, freed, Galatians, God's Word, grace, heavenly things, hid in Christ, holy spirit, hope, impossible, inaudible, incredible, intimate with God, invisible, Jews, justification, knowledge, live by faith, live in the flesh, magnanimous, magnificent, majestic, medicine, meditating, mercy, miracles, move mountains, nothing shall be impossible, pandemic, power, prayer, reading, Redeemer, signs, sin, sinful life, son of god, spiritual realm, starve to death, strife, Supreme Being, taking care of, the bread of life, the law, truth, unbelief, unbelievers, unconditional LOVE, virtues, watching over, wilderness, wisdom, wonders, work wonders
John 6:48. I am that bread of life.
Welcome to another Saturday morning on God’s great earth my friends! Hope it finds us all in fine spirits, and if not, by the time we are finished here, I know those spirits will have miraculously been lifted by the Holy Spirit that indwells us, as we talk about God; His holy word, His unconditional LOVE, His freely offered grace, His undeserved mercy, His never-ending forgiveness, and His eternal faithfulness!
Now that alone should lift our spirits this Saturday morning my people! Wow! What a majestic, magnificent and magnanimous God we serve my fellow believers! I don’t see how any of us can stay depressed and downcast for very long with such a Supreme Being watching over and taking care of us.
It’s just not possible if we concentrate on all the wonderful attributes of our God, instead of the prevailing unfortunate or uncomfortable circumstances surrounding us.
And my Christian brethren, I have the right medicine for what we’re talking about. It’s contained in a recent quote from our friend Anselm, who always aspires to inspire us. And this time I think he’s done a heck of a job.
Listen to this quote. ‘When we do what we can, the LORD will do what we can’t. FAITH hears the inaudible, sees the invisible, believes the incredible, and receives the impossible!!! Feed your FAITH, and your doubts will starve to death.’
Oh my people, my people, what glorious, indisputable, gospel truth! Faith is that good my brethren. That’s why they say it can move mountains and work wonders. What did Jesus say to His disciples when they asked why they were unable to cast out a demon?
‘Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove (move); and nothing shall be impossible unto you.’ (Matt.17:20)
Yes friends, it only takes a little faith to do plenty things, and just as that little mustard seed grows into a big tree, so can our faith, if we’ll allow it do so by reading and meditating on God’s word, through fellowship with other believers and personal prayer…but first we have to believe.
Without belief nothing happens in the spiritual realm of Jesus. And that is borne out by our Bit. ‘I am that bread of life.’
It’s a simple, but true statement, but Jesus had a most difficult time getting His people to believe Him. In spite of all the signs and wonders and miracles He did, they still refused to believe. But they certainly wanted the physical bread they thought He was offering them.
Steups! Those long ago Jews, especially the leaders, were certainly a hard-headed, stubborn bunch of people. Just look at how their forefathers behaved in the wilderness although the Lord was looking after them.
Sadly though, we have a lot of unbelievers around today too. In fact too many of the world’s population are unbelievers, that’s partly why our world is in such complete disarray and strife is pandemic.
Anyway, let’s look at a couple of scriptures that corroborate our Bit. First up is this verse from Bruh Paul’s epistle to the Galatians, where he is saying that justification is not of the law.
He solemnly declares: ‘I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of (by faith in) the Son of God, who LOVED me, and gave himself for me.’ (Gal.2:20) Yes friends, Bruh Paul was not living by the law again, but through faith in Christ.
Listen to this explanation from the scholars’. ‘2:20. To be crucified with Christ means the believer has been freed from the law and from the ruling power of sin that was aroused by the law. Nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me is interpreted: “And I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.” Since the believer has been freed from the law and sin, the old sinful life no longer asserts itself as formerly.
Instead, “Christ liveth in me,” that is, Jesus cultivates within the believer (Paul) His own desires, virtues, character, and power, thus morally transforming him and working through him in others. Paul lives his current Christian life by the faith of (in) the Son of God, that is, by depending on Him for strength and all necessities.’
And so should we my people, if we are true believers in Christ. Now hear how Bruh Paul tells it to the Colossians. ‘Set your affection (mind) on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.’ (Col.3:2-4)
Ah my fellow believers, it’s truly time to stop concentrating on, and being preoccupied with earthly things and look to things in heaven instead, since we have been reborn in Christ, who now sits in heavenly places.
And the scholars’ explain. ‘3:3. Your life is hid with Christ in God (or, “Your life is deposited with Christ, who is in intimate relation with God.”) As all wisdom and knowledge reside in Christ (2:3), so the believer’s new life is stored up in Him.
This means that the Christian life belongs to the spiritual or heavenly real. Jesus is in intimate relation with God; so are His followers. Since the Colossians now belong to the heavenly realm and are intimate with God, they should seek those matters and interests pertaining to heaven and not to earth.’
So friends, what’s it to be eh? Are we going to live our lives in and for Christ, as a new creation, or are we going to let the law and its sinful attributes turn us back to our former ways?
I do hope that we’ll ponder all that we’ve said and then make the wise decision to live in and for Christ! Much LOVE!
…glory be…our Redeemer lives…and we live in Him…and through Him…and for Him…
11 May 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a glorious future with Jesus, a marvellous God, abundance, alive and kicking, an easy row to hoe, appreciation, awesome God, blessings, buy, buy wine, call upon him, come ye to the waters, comfort, communicate through prayer, confidence, covenant, deceit, desire to do God's will, disappointments, eat, eternal life, excited, faith, faithfulness, fatness, followers of Jesus, free offer of mercy, Glory be, glory hallelujah, goodness, he that hath no money, hear, heartfelt call, heavenly downpour, help, honour, I am halfway home, I'm not looking back, I'm so glad to be alive, Isaiah, leading and guiding, let your sould delight itself, lies, LOVE, mercies, milk, my eyes are fixed straight ahead, my hands are on the plough, opportunity, prayer, problems, read God's word, salvation, seek ye the Lord, spend money, spiritually hungry, steadfast, thank God, the breath of life, the enemy, the Gentiles, the good shepherd, the obits, to live and work for Christ, trust, undying LOVE, Wednesday Wail, wisdom, without money, without price, worship, your soul shall live
Isaiah 55:6. Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near.
Yo mih Scrip-Bit breddren! What’s up with us this glorious Wednesday morning on God’s great earth eh? I do hope that we are all excited about the day that’s going to be filled with an awesome downpour of heavenly blessings and mercies from our awesome God!
Isn’t he something else my people? He surely is! Wonderful is His name! Providing such good stuff for us each and every day, walking with us along our way, leading and guiding us safely with comfort and undying LOVE, like the Good Shepherd that He is…
Oh it just makes me want to cry out with joy, and shout ‘Glory Hallelujah!’ every time I think about His unfailing goodness and mercy towards me! And I know you all feel the same way too, otherwise you wouldn’t be the true and ardent followers of Jesus Christ that you are!
Glory be, mih people! We have such a marvellous God, please, let’s do our very best to worship and honour Him with all our hearts, souls, mind and bodies nuh, for that is what He so rightly deserves. And to help us do that, let’s declare our Wednesday Wail with great gusto, enthusiasm and sincerity of heart.
As one wailer 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!’
Oh friends, oh friends, I don’t know about you all nuh, but I for one am exceedingly glad to be alive and kicking today! I haven’t seen my name in the obits, so it just means that I’ve been granted another glorious opportunity to live and work for Christ!
And I know you’ll agree that there’s nothing better than that in this earthly life my brethren! He’s been so good to us that the least we can do to show our sincere appreciation is to live our lives on His behalf, spread the good news of His gospel, His great LOVE and faithfulness to all and sundry, His heartfelt call to each and everyone to come to Him and receive salvation and eternal life!
Oh what could be better than that eh folks? Nothing really! But just remember that living for Jesus is not an easy row to hoe; it’s fraught with disappointments and problems, but if we stick with Him, keep our hands steadfast on the plough, always looking forward, He WILL enable us to do what is necessary.
Our faith though, our desire to do His will must be real strong in order to overcome the lies and deceit the enemy will throw at us every living day. And that can only happen when we consistently read his Word, communicate with Him through prayer and be obedient to His will. That’s what strengthens our faith and trust.
And for those of us who are struggling with our faith, possibly filled with some doubt and anxiety, here’s some interesting advice from our friend Anselm, who is always aspiring to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And Anselm tells us that ‘ Getting over a painful experience is much like crossing monkey bars. You have to let go at some point in order to move forward.’
And that’s gospel truth friends! We can never move forward unless we let go of something behind us, of whatever is holding us back. Remember Jesus and all the prophets kept reminding us not to fear, for we are in the BEST of hands.
And though we all know that that is easier said than done, it is possible if we confidently call on our great God for His awesome, never denied help. That’s why our Bit so wisely advises us to: ‘Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near.’ And that is such an awesome piece of wisdom my people!
Now listen to how Isaiah begins that chapter of a free offer of mercy to all. ‘Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.
Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? And your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness (abundance). Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live, and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.’ (Is.55:1-3)
Oh friends, where can we ever get a better offer than that eh? NOWHERE!
And we’ll end with this explanation from the scholars. ’55:1-7. God’s free gift of salvation is offered to all who will receive it. Those who are spiritually hungry and thirsty may come to eat and drink without money (or freely). He promises an everlasting covenant to the Gentiles like the one He established with Israel. His invitation to all men is clearly stated by the appeal, Seek ye the Lord and call ye upon him.’
Oh my people, my people, the Lord kept His promise and established a covenant wit us Gentiles through His wonderful Son Jesus Christ! Now it’s our turn to do our part in keeping that covenant.
Please, let’s allow wisdom to abound in our souls nuh, whereby we diligently and sincerely seek our wonderful God and call upon Him in confidence and trust, for that’s what He desires of us. Much LOVE!
…in all circumstances…whom shall we call first…Almighty God…
10 May 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a drunken man, at the foot of the cross, at their wit's end, believers in Jesus Christ, burdens, calm, calm the storms, children, come unto me, comfort, congregation, cry unto the Lord, distinction, distresses, exalt him, faithfulness, fear, find rest for your souls, forbidding alley, fruit of the Spirit, gentle, gentleness, give thanks to the Lord, goodness, He maketh the storm a calm, heavy laden, hidden lairs, hoodlums, humble, I am meek, I am the beloved of god, I can trust my friend Jesus, I don't have to hurry, I don't have to worry, I will give you rest, I'm not what I do, I'm not what I have, I'm not what people say about me, impotent man, joy, kindness, labour, laugh, learn of me, long-suffering, LOVE, loving kindness, lowly in heart, meekness, merciful God, mount up to heaven, my burden is light, my yoke is easy, no need to fear, omnipotent god, peace, peace instilling presence, Praise the Lord, reel to and fro, responsibility, rest, robert h schuller, safe haven, safe streets, self-control, serene, share His love with the world, sheltered, silent skies, stagger, stars, storm, stormy times, surpasses all understanding, take it to Jesus, take my yoke upon you, temperance, Thank You Lord, the great invitation, the heathen, the sun will outlast the storms, the waves are still, the works of the Lord, their soul is melted, troubled mind, Tuesday Mantra, vicissitudes of life, When I face a storm, wonders, worried, yellow moon, yoke
Psalm 107:29. He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still.
So how goes it this beautiful morning eh, my fellow believers in Jesus Christ? I do hope that it is going well, but as usual, if it isn’t, then let me remind us that there’s no need to fear or be worried.
We just have to take it all to Jesus, lay it at the foot of the cross, and He will take our burdens and instead offer us His comfort and His wonderful peace that surpasses all understanding.
Remember His Great Invitation: ‘Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of (from) me; for I am meek (gentle and humble) and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’ (Matt.11:28-30)
Yes friends, there’s no better invitation than that in the entire world! And if we’re wise, we’ll gladly take it whenever times become overwhelming.
And if you’re in a full-blown storm this morning, then here is some more good advice from Gramps Schuller (Robert H Schuller) from our Hour of Power Devotional, to help you weather it. It’s titled ‘When I Face a Storm.’ I believe I’ve shared it before, but when it’s good, it’s always best to wheel and come again. (smile)
So please pray with me. ‘You never promised, Lord, that I would be forever sheltered from stormy times in my life. You have promised that the sun will outlast the storms. You issue the grand command from outer space and the renegade storm clouds break up, scatter, and flee like hoodlums furtively racing from the streets, back to their hidden lairs in some forbidding alley.
The bright stars come out to laugh again, like little children returning once more to safe streets for happy play. The sky clears. A huge, yellow moon sails once more calm and serene through the silent skies.
Even as you restore peace after the storm, so will you bestow a renewed calm to my troubled mind through your peace-instilling presence that is surrounding me now. Your quiet and calming spirit is flowing within me now. My fear is gone! Thank you, Lord! Amen.’
Ah mih people, let’s hope that whatever fear we were holding is now gone and the calm and peace of Jesus is now controlling our hearts, minds, bodies and souls, like He promised.
And since today is Tuesday, let’s further bolster our faith by declaring our Tuesday Mantra with lots of hope, vision and sense of purpose.
As one now: ‘I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen’
Yes friends, that’s such an important declaration and distinction, one we need to carry with us at all times. For we are indeed God’s children, and no one can take that away from us.
But on the other hand, we also have a responsibility to behave like children of God, so that the world can see what He’s like, through the living examples of our lives. We need to have the fruit of God’s Spirit showing brightly through our godly behaviour.
And just in case we’ve forgotten what’s the fruit of the Spirit, let’s refresh our minds. ‘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.’ (Gal.5:22-23)
Oh my brethren, those are the things the heathen ought to see in our lives! That’s the only way we can ever make a good and fruitful impact on them. All our words are meaningless unless and until we back them up with true action!
That brings us to our Bit, taken from Psalm 107 – God’s wonderful works to the children of men. But first let’s set the scene. ‘They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters; These see the works of the Lord, and his wonders in the deep.
For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof. They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble. They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wit’s end (all their wisdom is swallowed up).
Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses. He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still. Then they are glad because they be quiet; so he bringeth them unto their desired haven.’ (Ps.107:23-30).
Yes my precious people, the same way the seafarers cry out to God in times of storms on the sea, the same way we ought to cry out to our heavenly Father when the vicissitudes of life, our ever-changing circumstances, overwhelm us. And as promised, He will calm the storms and bring us safely to the haven of His LOVE.
Oh friends, there’s none other like our great God! That’s why the psalmist so wisely advises: ‘Oh that men would praise (give thanks to) the Lord for his goodness (LOVING-kindness), and for his wonderful works to the children of men! Let them exalt him also in the congregation of the people, and praise him in the assembly of the elders.’ (Ps.107:31-32)
There’s nothing more I can say friends, except to implore us to do as the psalmist and Jesus wisely advise: before anything or anyone else, turn to your omnipotent and merciful God in times of trouble. Much LOVE!
…why turn to impotent man in times of trouble…when we have an omnipotent God to turn to…
09 May 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: almighty god, as for me and mine, as fruitful as a vine, aura of love, blessed, Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, children, common sense, compassion, confidence, countenance, Creator of the universe, darkness, delights in His commandments, enthusiasm, eternal life, evil, faith, faithful, faithfulness, friends, fruit of thy labour, glorious kingdom, gospel truth, grace, Hallelujah, happy, holy spirit, humble servants, impregnable fortress, invincible, iron sharpens iron, Jesus Christ, jobs, joy, lies, light, LOVE, mighty upon the earth, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, New Testament, obedient, Old Testament, olive plants, our Lord and Saviour, pass the test, peace, Praise ye the Lord, priority, proud, rejuvenation of spirit, renewed vitality, rest, rest my case, rewards, righteousness., salvation, seek ye first the kingdom of God, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, test our faith, test our mettle, the church of jesus, treasure trove, true believers, trust, ungodly world, useful purpose, we will follow the Lord, wiles, wisdom
Psalm 112:1. Praise ye the Lord (Hallelujah). Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord, that delighteth greatly in his commandments.
Ah mih people, once again the big day called Monday has come around … It’s come once more to test our mettle, our faith, to see if we have what it takes to successfully make it through this earthly pilgrimage!
But yuh know what friends? As true believers in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, we do have the necessary parts, and we WILL pass that test of faith with flying colours! For our mettle is strong an impregnable as a fortress manned by God!
As the Good Book declares, in the wise words of Cousin Sol: ‘Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.’ (Prov.27:17) Yes my brethren, that’s how the body, the church of Jesus Christ operates!
And the scholars offer this explanation. ’27:17. As the proper tool shapes and sharpens iron for its desired use, so a man sharpens his friend morally and intellectually by their personal friendship.’
Now I do hope we are all doing that, today and every day, and you’re not making me a liar when I proclaim it. (smile) But nonetheless, it’s Monday, meaning it’s time to rise and shine and make our way to our places of labour, wherever it may be.
And I know we’re only human, so we’re not always up to scratch on this the first day of the new work week, that’s why we have our Monday Morning Battle Hymn to wake us up, to raise our adrenalin levels and get us going to face the world with faith and courage. So let’s put down a good rendition today, make our choirmaster, Jesus, and all the hosts of heaven proud of us.
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!’
Glory be, mih breddren, that was magnificent! As Jesus enthusiastically twirled His baton, He looked back at the Father with a big smile on His handsome face and winked. As if to say: ‘That’s my people, and I’m oh so proud of them!’
Now friends, let’s go out into the evil and ungodly world that surrounds us and make Jesus really proud of us by being obedient to His will, being living examples of His gospel, salt and light to the world, so that others will see our joy and prosperity and come to Him for salvation and eternal life!
And today we have a wonderful Bit that holds awesome promises from our awesome God. ‘Praise ye the Lord (Hallelujah). Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord, that delighteth greatly in his commandments.’
And those words are ever so true my fellow believers! The righteous person; the one who holds our God in great awe and reverence and delights in His commandments will be truly blessed! Glory to God!
And the psalmist continues: ‘His seed shall be mighty upon earth: the generation of the upright shall be blessed. Wealth and riches shall be in his house: and his righteousness endureth (stands, lasts) for ever. Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness: he is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous.’ (Ps.112:2-4)
Oh my precious people, you see what is in store for the righteous person and for his descendants? Wealth and power, as well as the godly attributes of grace and compassion. Brother, what a treasure trove a man can reap by being obedient and faithful to our ever-faithful God!
And if you think that that isn’t true because it comes from the Old Testament, then listen to Jesus declare the very same thing in the New Testament. ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt.6:33) Yes people, when we make God and His kingdom our first priority in this life, then we’ll want for nothing!
Now that doesn’t necessarily mean that life will be all wine and roses, but it will be certainly better, with true peace and joy in our hearts and souls than if we were to follow the foolish fallen angel Beelzebub!
Now listen to a couple of other scriptures which declare the same thing, starting with the longest chapter in the Bible, Psalm 119. ‘Blessed are the undefiled in the way (the blameless), who walk in the law of the Lord. Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart. They also do no iniquity: they walk in his ways.’ (Ps.119:1-3) More gospel truth friends!
And we’ll end with these awesome words from Psalm 128 – The rewards of faithfulness. ‘Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord; that walketh in his ways. For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands (fruit of thy labour): happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee.
Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides (in the heart) of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table. Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed that feareth the Lord.’ (Ps.128:1-4)
I rest my case people! Much LOVE!
…but as for me and mine…hn!…we will definitely follow the Lord…for that’s not only common sense…but wisdom from on high…
04 May 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a fool, a hundred stripes, a victorious life, a waste of time, a wise man, alive and kicking, believe, benefits, better late than never, blessings, compassions, condition of the soul, consumed, correction, Cousin Sol, covenant relationship, doubts, dwells within us, everlasting kindness, faith, faithfulness, genuine faith, get rid of Almighty God, glorify God, glory hallelujah, God's LOVE, holding our hands, hope, I am halfway home, I recall to mind, I'm not looking back, in the mansions of heaven, Jeremiah, Jesus Christ, Lamentations, lapses in faith, leading and guiding, LOVE, mercies, misguided, morning praises, moseying along with Jesus, my eyes are fixed straight ahead, my hands are on the plough, our Lord and Saviour, quietly wait, reliable, reproof, responsible service, salvation, second wind, secure, service to God, small-minded, so glad to be alive, stable character, steadfast, strong, the birds singing, the breath of life, the enemy, the error of their ways, the Holy Spirit, the light of Jesus, the Lord is my portion, the Lord's mercies, the right paths, to a glorious future with Jesus, total trust, true believers, trust, truth, walks beside us, watches our back, Wednesday Wail, when you don't hear you feel, wisdom, wise judgement, wondrous time
Proverbs 17:10. A reproof entereth more into (is more effective) to a wise man than a hundred stripes (blows) into a fool.
And then it was Wednesday – that good, old, solid and steady day in the middle of our workweek, where we catch our second wind and continue joyously moseying along with Jesus beside us.
But friends, have you ever really considered how close our Lord and Saviour is to us? First of all, He dwells within us as the Holy Spirit, but then He also watches our back to ensure that the enemy doesn’t come upon us unknowingly.
Then as we said earlier, He walks beside us, holding our hands so that we don’t trip and fall along the way. And finally He walks in front of us, leading and guiding us on the right paths on the way to a victorious life here on earth, then in the mansions of heaven with Him forever. Glory Hallelujah!
Oh bless His holy name my people! Bless the wonderful name of Jesus Christ, to whom all knees shall bow, and all tongues declare Him Lord and King. Yes friends, our Saviour is indeed worthy and deserving of all the praise, honour, glory and thanksgiving that we can bestow on Him!
Oh my people, Jesus is indeed a safe harbour for our souls! Praise him my brethren, praise him for there is NO ONE as great and wonderful as Him!
And to show and solidify our strong and special attachment to Him let’s declare our Wednesday Wail with much enthusiasm, conviction and truth.
Wailing 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!’
Oh precious people, true believers in Christ, it sure is wonderful to be alive and kicking this Wednesday morning! There’s no better feeling than awaking to a brand new day, filled with sunshine and the light that’s Jesus.
But to fully enjoy the blessings and benefits of our covenant relationship with Him, we need to be strong, steadfast and looking straight ahead to the glorious future that He promises. We can’t afford to have too many lapses in faith and unfounded doubts about His everlasting kindness and LOVE for us, otherwise we will miss the most wondrous time of our lives.
Now let’s turn to our Bit which highlights the wisdom of Cousin Sol from Proverbs. ‘A reproof entereth more into (is more effective) to a wise man than a hundred stripes (blows) into a fool.’
And that is an awesome truth my brethren! When the wise person is corrected, they acknowledge the truth of the situation and do whatever is necessary to right it. They can see the error of their ways and use wise judgement to rectify it.
However, to the unwise, to the fool, correction is a waste of time. According to Cousin Sol you can give him a hundred lashes and he still will not learn the error of his ways.
Now how many of us are like that today eh my people? I can’t say for sure how many, but I do know that there are too many fools walking around God’s great world today and not enough wise ones. If there were a greater amount of wise men and women than foolish ones, our world would not be in such a mess.
We would not be trying to overthrow, to get rid of Almighty God, our Creator and Provider, from our society and lives as desperately as we are doing. That just goes to show that unchristian fools rule the world.
And as Cousin Sol so wisely says earlier on in Proverbs: ‘He is in the way of life that keepeth instruction: but he that refuseth reproof erreth (goes astray).’ (Prov.10:17)
And that’s no lie my fellow believers! When we don’t listen to wise advice we go astray. As the old people use to say; when you don’t hear, you going to feel. But some of us are so foolish and stubborn that despite all signs to the contrary, we persist in going about life in our own small-minded, misguided way.
And we’ll end today with some wise words from the Lamentations of Jeremiah, words that direct us to true and wholesome behaviour. Even in his sorrow, Jeremiah is able to wisely discern: ’This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.
The Lord is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him. The Lord is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him. It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord.’ (Lam.3:21-26)
Oh friends, those are indeed words of great wisdom! And I’ll paraphrase some explanations from the scholars on those verses.
‘3:22-23. These verses embody the central thesis of the book. When God dealt with His sinful people He exhibited His compassions. The word translated mercies conveys God’s LOVE for His covenant people. The word faithfulness comes from a root meaning “be permanent, secure, reliable.”
From this comes the associated idea of genuine faith; hence the verb can be translated “believe” (Gen.15:6) The word here is often translated “faith” but literally means “firmness” or “faithfulness.” Thus, it is used of the faithfulness of God Himself (Ps.36:5; 40:10; Lam 3:23), and of the need for the believer likewise to be faithful in his life and in his service to God (2 Chr.19:9; Ps.119:30; Prov.12:22).
The word root stresses that real faith is more than inner belief, even more than whole-souled committal. It is a condition of the soul marked by such a stable character and an attitude of total trust that the believer’s whole life is imbued with consistent, responsible service to God. (cf. 1 Sam.26:23; Ps.37:3-6). From the biblical standpoint, true faith results in faithfulness in one’s life.’
More words of awesome truth my people! And please check out the scripture passages that the scholars referenced, I just did, and they are truly interesting and uplifting.
Now let’s go out and put all that we have learned today into action, so that we can glorify and be faithful to our wonderful God, for that is wisdom of the most immense proportions! Much LOVE!
…lying lips are an abomination to the Lord…but they that deal truly (truthfully)…are his delight… (Prov.12:22)
P.S. Please excuse the Bit’s lateness, but some unexpected stuff intervened last evening, and by the time I got to bed, the birds had already begun singing their morning praises. (smile) But as always, better late than never. Much LOVE!
24 Apr 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a doer of the work, a forgetful hearer, a party, an inspiration, believers in Christ, believing in jesus, celebrate, Christians, coiffured, dancing, energy, faithfulness, force ourselves, free from bondage, giving thanks, glorify God, glory hallelujah, go to church, God's mercy, happy, joy, joyous, led astray, Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, LOVE, loving kindness, magnificent and magnanimous God, man-made rules, meet in secret, One Year Book of Bible promises, outward show, peace, persecuted, pick sense from nonsense, pinned their hopes, praise, praising, radiance, reading the Word, redemption, religiosity, religious achievement, revelation of God, righteousness, Ruth Harms Calkin, shall be blessed in his deed, singing, spiritual acumen, talking to God, the Alpha and the Omega, the be all and end all, the First and the Last, the goodness, the perfect law of liberty, the Secret, time, to know Jesus, traditional church law, union with Christ, wisdom, worship
James 1:25. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed (in what he does).
Oh my fellow believers in Christ, it’s Sunday! Glory Hallelujah! What a joy it is to be able to get up and go out to church and worship with other believers!
How awesome it is to get together and praise and celebrate the goodness and LOVING-kindness of our wonderful Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Receiving in return His unbeatable strength, unsurpassed wisdom, unconditional LOVE, ever-faithful care and heart-felt compassion! Glory Be!
Oh friends, how I wish the majority of us would feel like that on Sunday mornings. Hn! The sad reality though is that too many of us force ourselves to get up and go to church because it’s expected of us; just like work on a Monday morning. There’s no joy in our spirits like if we were going to a party.
But friends, it is a party we’re going to! Isn’t there singing and dancing, and praising and giving thanks? There surely is! It’s not just a mournful, dirge-like experience that we’re forced to live through. So why, for so many of us, going to church is like pulling teeth eh?
We ought to be happy and joyous, celebrating the occasion to be able to get together freely in public to glorify our Creator. Many of our fellow believers around the world don’t have that privilege. They have to hide and meet in secret, in out of the way places to have church. And in many places they are persecuted for simply believing in Jesus! That means we have the best of all worlds, but simply don’t appreciate it.
Anyway, enough of my ranting, (smile) listen to this excerpt from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin. As soon as I read it, I knew that it would be most appropriate for this glorious Sunday morning.
It’s titled ‘The Secret,’ and it says: ‘I couldn’t help but watch her As we sat in the service together Last Sunday morning… Her white hair so neatly coiffured Her hands resting on her open Bible Her smile so beautifully tranquil. When the hymn was announced She sang with a glowing smile. Occasionally during the message She nodded her head in assent.
(O Lord, what peace she portrays.) After the service I spoke to her: “You are an inspiration, my dear. I hope I may sit with you again.” She thanked me profusely. Then she added with shining joy “Isn’t it wonderful to know Jesus? I mean – really KNOW Him!” In that instant, dear God I knew the secret of her radiance.’
Oh precious people of Jesus, that is how we ought to be, and can be if we’d only invest some more time and energy in truly getting to KNOW our amazing, magnificent and magnanimous God! And we can only do that by seriously reading His Word, sincerely talking to Him in prayer and joyfully fellowshipping with other believers.
And by the way, the promise attached to that poem is ‘Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the priceless gain of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.’ (Phil. 3:8 NL.V)
Oh what indisputable truth that is my brethren! There is nothing that’s worth more in this mish-mash world than truly KNOWING Jesus! For He is indeed the Be All and the End All of our world; the First and the Last; the Alpha and Omega! Oh praise His Holy Name my people!
That brings us to our Bit: ‘But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed (in what he does).’ More truth of enormous proportions my brethren!
And we’ll continue looking at the references that the scholars gave re ‘the perfect law of liberty.’ We saw what Jesus had to say about His coming to fulfill the law not destroy it. (Matt.5:17) Now listen to Bruh Paul, as he talks about zeal but no righteousness.
‘Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved. For I bear them record (witness) that they have a zeal of (for) God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.’ (Acts 10:1-4)
And the scholars explain that last verse thus: ‘10:4. Christ is the end of the law: Israel mistook the purpose of the law. The law pointed to the righteousness that is attainable only by belief in Christ. Israel also mistook the scope of the law. The righteousness to which it pointed was universally available to all who responded to God’s revelation of Himself through the law.
But by Paul’s time many had substituted works for faith. Rather than seeking redemption in God’s mercy, they pinned their hopes on their own religious achievement.’
And unfortunately many of us are doing the same thing today my people. We are concentrating too much on our religious works and achievements, and not enough on the righteousness that is necessary, and can be attained from a sincere and purposeful union with Christ.
Ah friends, many of us are being led astray by the religiosity of the church; the concentration on man-made rules and regulations, the many do’s and don’ts that have become institutionalized down through the ages. It’s time for us to be free from the bondage of traditional church law and return to what is truly important, the spiritual acumen that Jesus died for us to have; the true inner faithfulness and righteousness, not merely the outward show to look good in public.
Now I hope that this message makes sense, but as I always say, we Christians are bright enough to pick sense from nonsense. (smile) And if the message does nothing else, I hope that it puts a joy in our hearts, minds, bodies and spirits to get up and go to church this Sunday morning, for that is indeed the wisdom of the ages my fellow believers! Much LOVE!
…oh the true joy of really knowing Jesus…nothing to it can compare…
22 Apr 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a doer of the work, a forgetful hearer, authority, blessed in his work, blessings, burden, Christian, Christians, commandments, contentment, Corville Peters, difficult circumstances, earth, faith, faithfulness, fellowship, fete, Friday chant, friends, fun, generous help, glorious kingdom, hate, hate met love, heaven, heaven met earth, Jesus' work, kingdom of heaven, labour, Law, Live at the Cross, LOVE, moderation, one jot, one tittle, plan of God, practice what you preach, principles of the law, refreshed, relaxation, renewed, rest, revitalization, reward, slaving, sweat, TGIF! Thank God is Friday, the perfect law of liberty, the souls of men, the weekend, time to party, true believers, truth, verily, vocation, week of work, wisdom, worship
James 1:25. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed (in what he does.
Well mih people, the day that we all seem to crave has finally come around again – it’s Friday!
And you know that means joyful shouts of ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday! The weekend’s here! No more labour, no more sweat! Time to party, time to fete! Thank you God for Fridays and the two days off from slaving for massa! Only wish everyday was Friday!’
Yeh friends, don’t we all wish that everyday was Friday. Only thing about that is if we didn’t work, we wouldn’t eat nor have a roof over our heads. So though it sounds real good, it’s not practical in the real world. Neither is too much partying and feting. Moderation and contentment should be our motto, not extremes.
Anyway, since today is Friday, let’s chant our Friday Chant, which gives us a much better perspective on the use of the weekend. As one chanter now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through.
Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’
Yes my brethren, the weekend ought to be one of rest and revitalization and worship, with elements of partying so that we can have the necessary wherewithal to go back out next week, strong and ready to do Jesus’ work.
And here I want to mention a little thing I heard brother Corville (Corville Peters) from the Christian call in t.v. show ‘Live At the Cross,’ say recently. He said: ‘At the cross, where heaven met earth, and hate met LOVE, and LOVE overcame.’
Oh friends, how true that all is! Whenever hate meets LOVE, LOVE will ALWAYS prevail, because LOVE is by far the stronger of the two emotions. To LOVE under difficult and unfair circumstances as we Christians are supposed to do, is not easy.
And that’s why for some of us, LOVING is more difficult to do than hating. But LOVE is what we should be all about, because that’s our vocation as true believers in Jesus Christ.
And with those awesome words of wisdom, (smile) let’s turn to out Bit. ‘But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed (in what he does.’ More words of indisputable truth my friends!
And we’ll continue where we left off yesterday with Christ talking about the law, that He didn’t come to destroy it but to fulfill it. ‘For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot (Gr. iota) or one tittle (smallest stroke in a Hebrew word) shall in no wise (by no means) pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.’ (Matt.5:18)
And the scholars explain that thus: ‘5:18. Verily I say is a unique form used by Jesus throughout His preaching to draw attention to the authority of His message.
Verily (Gr. amen) means “truly” or “certainly.” It is used as a designation of authoritative teaching. One jot or one tittle refers to the most minute letter and marks of the Hebrew alphabet.
He explained that even the smallest statement in the law must be fulfilled. A “jot” (yodh) is the smallest letter of the Hebrew alphabet. It functions as a Y in English and looks similar to an apostrophe. A tittle is a small projection on the edge of certain Hebrew letters to distinguish them from one another.’
So we see friends, that the law is still, and will always be of supreme importance in our lives. And Jesus continues: ‘Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.’ (Matt.5:19)
And here’s what the scholars have to say about that. ‘5:19. Because of the seriousness of the law, Jesus emphasizes the importance of keeping even its smallest details. However, in the ultimate plan of God, the law was not to become an extra burden on the souls of men.
Rather than pointing the way to salvation, the law convinced men of the need of the Saviour. Therefore, whoever shall teach men so but shall not live what he teaches, he shall be made least in the kingdom of heaven. But whosoever shall do and teach the principles and precepts of the law shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
This simply means that God will reward the faithfulness and effectiveness of our lives, and there will be varying degrees of blessing and reward in heaven.’
Ah mih breddren, yuh see it all comes right back to the old saying, about practicing what we preach. In our Christian faith, it’s not right or lawful to say one thing and then do another.
And in closing today, I want us to ponder our individual lives and see to what extent that is a factor in them, because we all do some of it, at various times, to a certain degree.
And as always, with God’s help, let’s try and banish that sort of behaviour from our lives, for as we can see from Jesus’ teaching, it is a critical aspect in our heavenly rewards and blessings. Much LOVE!
…a practicing Christian…must always try to practice…whatever he or she preaches…
18 Apr 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: adrenalin, aura of love, blessings, captives, challenging circumstances, chutzpah, complain, confidence, Creator, don't worry, enthusiasm, eternal life, ever-LOVING God, evil, faith, faithful, faithfulness, for He is good, friendly, friends, generous, generous help, Gentiles, get angry, glorious kingdom, Glory be, his mercy endureth for ever, holy spirit, invincible, Jeremiah, Jesus Christ, jobs, joy, lies, LOVE, loving kindness, magnificent and magnanimous God, mammoth undertaking, mercies, mercy, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, negative emotions, never leave nor forsake us, O Give thanks unto the Lord, Old Testament, positive, proactive, provider, Psalm 117, rejuvenation of spirit, renewed vitality, rest, sacrifice, sacrifice of praise, salvation, serve a useful purpose, sincerity, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, straight and narrow path, surrender, the Lord of hosts, the voice of the bridegroom, this is the day the Lord has made, trust, truth, ungodly world, we shall rejoice and be glad in it, whine, wisdom, zest
1 Chronicles 16:34. O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever.
Oh friends, it’s a new day, filled with the many new mercies and blessings showered down on us by our magnanimous, magnificent, ever-faithful, ever-LOVING God! Oh glory be!
And since that’s so, it’s only common sense that we declare with sincerity and enthusiasm, like the psalmist of old: ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we SHALL rejoice and be glad in it!’
Yes precious people, that’s the only reaction that makes any sense. For if we whine and complain and get angry and let all the negative emotions control our lives, we definitely will not rejoice. However, if we are positive, proactive, generous, friendly and faithful, we stand a much better chance of truly enjoying our day.
Oh, I know that is difficult for some of us to do because of the difficult and challenging circumstances we are currently facing, but not to worry, our awesome God says that if we trust Him, He will never leave nor forsake us, and He has His Holy Spirit living within us to help and guide and comfort us, which proves His faithfulness.
Anyway, it’s Monday, and like it or not, we have to go back out to work and face the heathen horde. So to help us to handle that mammoth undertaking, (smile) let’s sing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn with much zest and plenty chutzpah.
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 mih breddren, that ought to get our motors cranked up and the adrenalin flowing freely. And it wasn’t a bad rendition either, as the smile on our choirmaster, Jesus’ face acknowledged. So let’s get out there and do whatever is necessary to win lives, or cause others to come to Him for salvation and eternal life nuh, because that’s our bounden duty.
Now let’s turn to our Bit. ‘O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever.’
And all of you, my fellow believers know that that is the endearing, everlasting truth! That means we can trust our God with our lives, surrender them to Him, because He is exceedingly good and merciful, and will not lead us astray, but through His Holy Spirit, will keep us focused on the straight and narrow path that leads to Him.
And we’ll conclude this series of messages on the goodness and mercy of our wonderful Creator, God and sure Provider by checking out some more of the instances where our Bit is used. We find it used a lot especially in the Psalms. Yes friends, those words, or some variation thereof, begin Psalms 106, 107, 118, and 136.
Meanwhile Psalm 117 – The truth of the Lord endureth forever – in its two verses simply says: ‘O praise the Lord, all ye nations (Gentiles): praise (glorify) him, all ye people. For his merciful (LOVING) kindness is great toward us: and the truth of the Lord endureth for ever.’ (Ps.117:1-2)
And the scholars have an interesting note on it. ‘Psalm 117. Well known as the shortest chapter in the Bible, this little psalm contains a great message. Though some have denied it an independent existence, attaching it to Psalm 116, Psalm 117 has all three elements of the hymn of praise: a call to praise (v.1), a cause for praise (v.2a,b), and a conclusion , which, in this case, is a simple praise ye the Lord (v.2c).
The fact that the nations and people (lit. “peoples”) are addressed in verse 1 makes this psalm the only one in the Psalter addressed in its entirety to the Gentile world. Its evangelical mood was still baffling to some of Paul’s readers. This is one of the four passages that Paul quotes from the Old Testament, in Romans 15, to prove that God is interested in saving the Gentiles.’
And now you know it friends! (smile) And the last instance of the use of our Bit for today comes from the prophet Jeremiah. He is here promising a glorious return to the captives when Judah will be revived.
‘The voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the voice of them that shall say, Praise the Lord of hosts: for the Lord is good; for his mercy endureth for ever: and of them that shall bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the Lord. For I will cause to return the captivity of the land (the captives of the land to return), as at the first, saith the Lord.’ (Jer.33:11)
Ah friends, I do hope that we took the sacrifice of praise into the Lord’s house yesterday and faithfully worshipped and fellowshipped with others of our faith, so that we could be renewed and fully equipped to go out and face the dark, evil and lustful world today and all week. Anything other than that, simply makes no sense at all. Much LOVE!
…if we don’t get our batteries of faith and trust recharged on Sundays…then we won’t have the necessary energy and power to withstand the enemy during the week…
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