04 Jun 2026
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a burr in our sides, a compassionate heart, a positive outlook on life, abundance, an attitude of prayer, as the heavens are higher than the earth, carrying your loved ones as you go, christianity, clear direction for my life, come to know and love christ like we do, courage, creativity, curse, die an eteral death, divine protection, even in the midst of trials, every day, every hour, faith, favour, fulfilment, glorious and incomparable, God is still on the throne, God never reneges on His promises, God's supernatural wisdom, God's unfailing faithfulness, God's unwavering faithfulness, good familygood friends, good health, have I not seen the righteous forsaken, his seed begging bread, holding them in prayer, holy spirit, honouring this life, how do you show up, how to keep on in our faithful journey with Christ, how you move forward in faith, I have been young and now am old, if any man will come after me, in the name of Jesus, In Touch Devotional, Jesus Christ, Jesus is all about sacrificing, knowing that God is carrying you through, let him deny himself, live for earthly pleasure, live for Jesus, live forever, live the abundant life, living for Christ is the ultimate decision, LOVE, loving sacrifically, lustful pleasures, men ought always to pray and not faint, mercy, move beyond what's comfortable, move forward with faith, moved you from glory to glory, my thoughts are not your thoughts, my thoughts higher than your thoughts, negative word, offer short lived thrills, only two choices, penultimate day of our workweek, pray without ceasing, promotion, prosper and succeed, put our utmost trust in God, remaining steadfast with those around you, remember all God has done for you in the past, remembering where God has brought you from, sacrificial living, sacrificing is against man's basic human nature, salvation, share our undeserved blessings, so are my ways higher than your ways, staying open to where god will lead you, success, take up his cross daily and follow me, talent, the best way to build faith, the BIBLE, the children go without provision, the rewards from living for christ, the righteous are not forsaken by God, to pay for our sins, truth, undeserved blessings, we're here for all of the journey, wisdom, your ways are not my ways
Today’s Scrip-Bit 4 June 2026 Luke 9:23.
Luke 9:23. ‘If any man will (desires to) come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.’
And so we’ve moved on to Thursday, the hot, sunny penultimate day of our work week – rather quickly in my humble opinion. (smile) But then, the way the Lord runs His universe is too big for us small-minded folks to understand. And He states that quite plainly through the prophet Isaiah. ‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.’ (Is. 55:8-9)
That means we will not be able to understand a lot of things that happen both in our lives and in the world, because God is still on the throne and still ruling the universe He created in the fashion He desires. Consequently, we need to put our utmost trust in Him, and rely on His unmatched, unfailing faithfulness, if we desire to live the good and abundant life here on earth.
And today we’re going to look at some tips from the May In Touch Devotional that shows us how to keep on keeping on in our faithful journey with Christ. They advise: ‘This is how you move forward in faith: by remembering where God has taken you so far and staying open to where He’ll take you tomorrow.’
Yes my brethren, the best way to build faith is to remember all that God has dome for us in the past, how He moved us forward from one point of glory to another, and therefore He will be there to look after us in the future. It’s like Bruh David says in Psalm 37 – titled ‘Trust in the Lord.’ ‘I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed (descendants) begging bread,’ (Ps. 37:25).
One commentary explains it thus: ‘In that verse David is reflecting on God’s unwavering faithfulness throughout his lifetime. He shares his observation that, even in the midst of trials, those who walk in righteousness are never abandoned by God, nor do their children go without provision.’ So let’s move forward in faith.
The next bit of advice the Devotional offers is: ‘This is how you show up: by carrying your LOVED ones as you go, every hour, every day – not perfectly but faithfully, holding them in prayer.’ I guess that’s like Jesus said in the parable of the persevering widow and unjust judge: ‘men ought always to pray, and not to faint (lose heart).’ (Luke 18:1) Or like Bruh Paul advises in 1 Thessalonians: ‘Pray without ceasing.’ (1 Thess. 5:17) In other words, as the scholars declare: ‘a believer ought to remain in the attitude of prayer though not always praying audibly.’
Then the Devotional continues by saying: ‘This is how you move beyond what’s comfortable: by LOVING sacrificially, doing right by everyone, honouring this life you’ve been entrusted with.’ And you know the sacrificial living thing is always a burr in our sides, because sacrificing is against our basic human nature. But that’s what Jesus is all about. That’s why He came to earth; to sacrifice His sinless life to pay for our abominable sins.
And when you signed up to be His follower you also signed up for sacrificial living. Remember what discipleship is all about? As Jesus defined it: ‘If any man will (desires to) come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.’ (Luke 9:23) Yes my people, as followers of Christ, we are called to be sacrificial whenever necessary.
And that’s how we need to live for Jesus, as the Devotional continues: ‘Even on the long days, the boring days, the wish-it-were-already-tomorrow days. Remaining steady, present with the people around you. Knowing that God is carrying you through.’ Oh my fellow believers those are ever so true and faithful words! We need to remain strong and steadfast in LOVE and compassionate caring, knowing without a doubt that God’s faithfulness will carry us through, because He’s promised that if we’re faithful to Him, He will be faithful to us. And He never reneges on any of His promises.
And the concluding, crowning statement of the Devotional is this: ‘We’re here for that journey. All of it.’ And so we are my fellow believers in Christ! It’s a journey we have signed up for, knowing that it would not be an easy one, but that the rewards from undertaking it successfully will be glorious and incomparable; salvation and eternal life with Christ!
There’s nothing in this world to truly beat that. Lustful pleasures might thrill us for a while, but what happens when this comparatively short life is over, as it will certainly be? What’s going to happen for the rest of that never-ending period called eternity? There are only two choices friends; live for earthly pleasure and die an eternal death, or live for Jesus and live forever. The choice is the individual’s!
And to show how good God is, and how much He wants you to spend eternity with Him, He’s generously bestowed undeserved blessings on us, to enable us to do His earthly work. We call them our Thursday Blessings. So, let’s declare and thus activate them right now nuh. As one strong and sincere 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 every day! Amen!’
And having accepted those undeserved blessings, it now behooves us to go out and use them to help others, just as generously as the Lord shared them with us, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!
…living for Christ…that’s the decision of all decisions…the ultimate decision…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
28 May 2026
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a compassionate heart, a positive outlook on life, a theological basis for holy living, abundance, adulterating the word of God, all around the globe, as we have received mercy, blinded the minds of them which believe not, broadcast the good news of Christ's coming, by manifestation of the truth, clear direction for my life, clever intellect, cloud cover, come to know and love christ like we do, commending ourselves to every man's conscience, curse, divine protection, dwell in the land of the shadow of death, ensure that whatever we do Christ gets the glory, every one has a ministry, faith, favour, God dwells today in the believer's heart, God who commanded the light to shine out of the darkness, guard against straying from God's word, hath shined in our hearts, have seen a great light, holy spirit, humanity in its strength, if our gospel be hid, in the sight of God, it is hid to them that are lost, it resides in men of clay, Jesus Christ, keep working for Jesus, kept in the chains of darkness, lest the light of the glorious gospel of christ, living under the shadow of death, LOVE, make known all the wonderful things Jesus has done for us, men of clay, mercy, negative word, not handling the word of God deceitfully, not walking in craftiness, now ye are light in the Lord, of the glory of God in the face of Jesus christ, our earthly purpose, perishing, promotion, proper doctrine, prosper and succeed, renounce the ways of the world, renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, salvation, Satan, seeing we have this ministry, self-control, self-discipline, shame, share our blessings generously with others, shining our lights like bright beacons, should shine on them, speak thou the things which become sound doctrine, spread the message of the gospel of Christ, spreading our flavourful salt, talent, teaching what others want to hear, the excellency of the power may be of God, the god of this world, the gospel is not a product of human genius, the gospel of the glory of Christ, the image of God, the light of Christ brings freedom to the enslaved, the light of Jesus breaks chains, the people that walked in darkness, the unspeakable truth, to give the light of the knowledge, too many are adulterating God 's word, treasure in earthen vessels, truth, upon them hath the light shined, walk as children of light., we do not lose heart, we faint not, we preach not ourselves but Christ Jesus the Lord, wisdom, ye were sometimes darkness, your servants for Jesus' sake
Today’s Scrip-Bit 28 May 2026 2 Corinthians 4:1.
2 Corinthians 4:1. Therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not (do not lose heart);
So we’ve come to Thursday, the second to last day of our work week, and though it seems windy like yesterday, it’s definitely not as warm and sunshiny. There’s a tad of cloud cover and temps only in the high teens. But we’ll take it, as though we have a choice, (smile) and keep working for Jesus, shining our lights like bright beacons, and spreading our flavourful salt all around the globe, so that people in the darkness can come to know and LOVE Him like we do, for that’s our earthly purpose.
How did Isaiah put it: ‘The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.’ (Is. 9:2) Yes friends, that’s our duty; to shine the light of Jesus on those who don’t know him, because they’ve been kept in the chains of darkness, living under the shadow of death. But the light of Jesus breaks chains and brings freedom to the enslaved. And brother are there still many enslaved in our world! So let’s get out there and do what we do best; spread the message of the gospel of Christ; broadcast the good news of His coming and all the wonderful things He’s done for us!
And Bruh Paul explained it to the Corinthians in greater depth., as he talks about preaching Christ Jesus the Lord. ‘Therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not (do not lose heart); But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty (shame), not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully (adulterating the word of God); but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.’ (2 Cor. 4:1-2)
Now that’s something we must all understand; that every one of us has a ministry; have been appointed to preach, teach or in some way declare the word of God. The Lord has given us sufficient grace and mercy to do it, so there’s no need for us to become discouraged if things don’t seem to be going as we expected. The first thing we need to do though is renounce the ways of the world, then not adulterate the Word of the Lord, which unfortunately too many of us are currently doing.
That means they are using the Word in the wrong manner; teaching what people want to hear, or what they think they should hear, not doing as Bruh Paul admonishes Titus: ‘But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine (are proper doctrine).’ (Tit. 2:1) And we hear improper doctrine being advanced all over the globe today, possibly more so than at any other time. However, we cannot reach others properly for Jesus unless our consciences are clear and pure and we tell the truth as dictated by the Word.
And Bruh Paul continues: ‘But if our gospel be hid (veiled), it is hid to them that are lost (perishing): In whom the god of this world (Satan) hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ (the gospel of the glory of Christ), who is the image of God, should shine unto them.’ (2 Cor. 4:3-4)
Yes my brethren, as the scholars tell us, ‘those who don’t believe are so controlled by Satan, (the god of this evil world) that he effectively shields them from the light of the glorious gospel of Christ. The apostle thus categorizes those who find his message difficult to accept.’ And I guess the same thing goes for our ministry in this modern world; Satan has so many people so controlled that it’s difficult for the light of Jesus to shine into the darkness of their souls and spirits.
Then Bruh Paul announces: ‘For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus’ sake.’ (2 Cor. 4:5) Now that’s a most important scripture my fellow believers. We must ensure that when we preach Christ or do anything in His name that it’s He who gets the glory and not us, for there are many who are using Christ’s gospel today to aggrandize themselves and not Him.
As Bruh Paul further declares: ‘For God, who commanded the light to shine out of the darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.’ (2 Cor. 4: 6-7) Oh my people, God caused the light to shine in our hearts so that we can talk about the glory of Jesus to others not through our power, but God’s.
And here’s how the scholars explain that last verse.: ‘Earthen vessels: In the wilderness under the old covenant, God’s presence dwelt in a tent. Today he dwells in the believer’s heart. This is unspeakable truth and forms a theological basis for holy living (c.f. 1 Cor. 6:10-20). But the stress here is on the earthen. An earthenware jar is brittle. It depicts humanity in its weakness. The gospel is not a product of human genius or clever intellect (humanity in its strength). Yet it resides in men of clay, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.’
Now that’s something we need to seriously guard against. Our fragility and fickleness can ofttimes cause us to stray, but let’s do our best not to, remembering that all that we are, all we have, and all that we do is through the strength of God. And it’s all for Him and His glory through Christ Jesus our Lord and Saviour! Now let’s declare, and thus activate our Thursday Blessings; undeserved blessings generously bestowed by Almighty God to help us do our earthly work.
As one strong and sincere 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 every day! Amen!’
And my faithful brethren, that declaration now behooves us to go out and share those blessings with others, just as generously as the Lord shared them with us, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!
…for ye were sometimes (once) darkness…but now are ye light in the Lord…therefore walk as children of light… (Eph. 5:8)
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
21 May 2026
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a great family, a strong will, abundance, christianity, Christians, come to know and love God like we do, courage, creativity, David behaved himself wisely, David his ten thousands, dying for Friday to come, end of sermon, faith, favour, God's awesome wisdom, good friends, good health, holy spirit, if God spares life, in a more refined manner, jealousy, Jesus Christ, Jonathan stripped himself, Jonathanand David made a covenant, LOVE, loved him as his own soul, make a mess of today, mercy, negative word, one of the devil's most successful tools is jealousy, promotion, prosper and succeed, receive clear direction for my life, rise to today's challenges, salvation, Saul eyed David from that day forward, Saul hath slain his thousands, Saul was very wroth, self-control, self-discipline, share those undeserved blessings, small things can easily stir up jealousy, still warlike and bloodthirsty today, success, supernatural strength, talent, the BIBLE, the green eyed monster, the head of the Philistine in his hand, the interesting relationship between Saul David and Jonathan, the long and short of the story, the love that's possible despite tough circumstances, the son of thy servant Jesse, the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, the women came out singing and dancing, their blood took to one another, truth, undeserved blessings, viewed him suspiciously, what can he have more than the kingdom, what jealousy can wreak in our lives, wisdom, with tabrets with joy and with instruments of musick
Today’s Scrip-Bit 21 May 2026 1 Samuel 18:9.
1 Samuel 18:9. And Saul eyed David (viewed him suspiciously) from that day and forward.
And it seems that this Thursday will be another bright and sunshiny but mid-teens temperature day. But we’ll take it any day over the cold and miserable winter weather! (smile) And many of us are just dying for Friday to come so that we can rest up after our hectic Victoria Day weekend. However, remember that we’ve still got to rise to whatever challenges today will bring, so please don’t think too much about tomorrow and the rest period following it, or else you might just make a mess of today. End of Sermon!
And today we’re going to take a look at the violence and damage the green eyed monster, jealousy, can wreak in our lives, as portrayed by the relationships between King Saul and Bruh David, as well as the LOVE that’s possible, in spite of tough circumstances, as portrayed by Bruh David and Jonathan, Saul’s son and heir. We see the relationships begin with Bruh David’s victory Goliath. King Saul enquired whose son Bruh David was, but his captain Abner had no idea. So Saul told him to find out.
The Bible then tells us: ‘And as David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand. And Saul said to him, Whose son art thou, thou young man? And David answered, I am the son of thy servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.’ (1 Sam. 17:57-58) Imagine that nuh, a young boy, only in his teen age years, walking around with the head of a man he’d slaughtered held in his hands! But we’re no different today, still warlike and blood thirsty, just in a supposedly more refined manner.
But the Bible continues: ‘And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking unto Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David (the life of Jonathan was bound up with the life of David), and Jonathan LOVED him as his own soul.’ (1 Sam. 18:1) I guess Jonathan was hanging around his father when he spoke to Bruh David, and possibly after some conversation, the souls of the two young boys just took to each other. Or as the old people would say, their blood just took to one another. But however it happened, that day, saw the beginning of a very strong relationship develop between the two youngsters.
And per the Good Book: ‘And Saul took him (Bruh David) that day, and would let him go no more home to his father’s house.’ (1 Sam.18:2) Such was the power of the king, and his apparent liking for Bruh David. ‘Then Jonathan and David made a covenant, because he LOVED him as his own soul. And Jonathan stripped himself of (took off) the robe that was upon him, and gave it to David, and his garments, even to his sword, and to his bow, and to his girdle.’ (1 Sam. 18:3-4)
The scholars speculate that ‘Jonathan’s transfer of his royal attire to David may indicate his covenantal pledge to transfer his privileged position as heir to the throne.’ Who knows? Jonathan most likely knew that Bruh David had already been anointed as the next king of Israel, and with a strong religious background felt it the right thing to do under those circumstances. The long and short of the story though is that Bruh David ended up working for Saul, both as a warrior and as a harp player to pacify Saul’s soul with the music when the evil spirit took it over.
The Bible states: ‘And David went out whithersoever Saul sent him, and behaved himself wisely (prospered): and Saul set him over the men of war, and he was accepted in the sight of all the people, and also in the sight of Saul’s servants. And it came to pass as they came, when David was returned from the slaughter of the Philistine(s), that the women came out of the cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet King Saul, with tabrets (small drums), with joy, and with instruments of musick (three stringed instruments).
And the women answered one another as they played, and said, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands. And Saul was very wroth (angry), and the saying displeased him; and he said, They have ascribed unto David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed but thousands: and what can he have more but the kingdom? And Saul eyed David (viewed him suspiciously) from that day and forward.’ (1 Sam. 18:5-9)
Ah friends, how these little things can stir up jealously and cause us to do crazy and evil things. So what if Saul only slew thousands and David slew ten thousands? Saul was still the king, and David his servant. But no, we always want to be doing better than anyone who is supposedly below us in social status. Unfortunately though, time and space have run out on us, so tomorrow, if God spares life, we’ll continue with this most insightful story, between Saul, Jonathan and Bruh David.
Now let’s declare our undeserved Thursday Blessings, which the Lord in His awesome wisdom and generosity had seen fit to nonetheless bestow on us to help us do His earthly work. As one strong and sincere 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 every day! Amen!’
And having made that declaration, it now behooves us to go out and use those undeserved blessings to help others, just as generously as the Lord bestowed them on us, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him, like we do! Much LOVE!
…jealousy…one of the devil’s most successful tools…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
14 May 2026
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a compassionate heart, a strong will, abundance, access by faith into grace, being justified by faith, belief, by the Holy Ghost which is given to us, character, Christians, clear direction for my life, courage, creativity, culminates in eternal life, curse, divine protection, even the youths shall faint and be weary, experienced, faith, favour, for what a man sees why does he yet hope for ir, fulfillment, glory in tribulations, God's faithfulness, God's supernatural wisdom, have peace with God through Christ, He gives power to the faint, holy spirit, hope does not disappoint, hope for what we don't see, hope in God, hope is the basis of faith, hope keeps us holding on to our dreams, hope keps us going, hope maketh not ashamed, hope of a good futre, hope that is seen is not hope, hope that things will turn out alright, I know the thoughts I think toward you, I wait for God my Saviour, I watch in hope for the Lord, I will look unto the Lord, I will wait for the God of my salvation, Jesus Christ, LOVE, mercy, my God will hear me, negative word, patience, penultimate day of our workweek, plans to give us a future and a hope, promotion, rejoice in hope of the glory of God, run and not be weary, salvation, self-control, self-disicpline, self-sacrifice, shall mount up with wings like eagles, talent, the basic catalyst, the BIBLE, the gospel truth, the groundwork called for in God's word, the level of our belief based on our hope, the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts, the young men shall utterly fall, they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you an expected end, to them that have no might he increaseth strength, tribulation worketh patience, truth, undeniable truth, walk and not faint, we are saved by hope, wisdom, with patience we wait for it, without hope you cannot have faith
Today’s Scrip-Bit 14 May 2026 Jeremiah 29:11.
Jeremiah 29:11. ‘For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil (calamity), to give you an expected end (a future and a hope).’
Ah friends, the penultimate day of our work week, Thursday, has opened somewhat cloudy and chilly, but let’s not lose hope, for yesterday afternoon turned out to be quite nice, despite the poor early morning weather. And if it’s one thing we Christians have is hope. Hope in God, and hope that things will turn out all right in the end. For without hope, what’s the purpose of living? None whatsoever! Since hope is the basic catalyst that keeps us going; keeps us holding on to our dreams and desires, whatever they may be. With hope we expect things to get better and those dreams to materialize at some point in time.
And that’s why the Bible, God’s Word is filled with so many wonderful verses on hope. So let’s look at some of them, and see how they boost our faith. for remember without hope, you cannot have faith, as hope is the basis of faith. And possibly the most well known and favourite verse of hope in the Bible is this one from Jeremiah. ‘For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil (calamity), to give you an expected end (a future and a hope).’ (Jer. 29:11) Yes my fellow believers, that’s what the Lord has in mind for us; hope of a good future, that culminates with Him in eternal life. And there’s nothing better to look forward to than that!
Then there’s this other amazing promise from the prophet Isaiah, that we all know and mouth, but don’t always believe, otherwise we would not be so often lacking in hope. ‘He giveth power to the faint (weak); and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.’ (Is. 40:29-31)
What a marvellous promise! But if we don’t truly believe it, then it will not happen for us, for that’s the groundwork called for in God’s Word; belief, which is born of hope and topped by faith. As Bruh Paul says in Romans. ‘For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience (perseverance) wait (eagerly wait) for it.’ (Rom. 8:24-25) And that’s the gospel truth! For hope is looking and waiting for something we don’t see. If we see it, then there’s no point in hoping for it.
Then there’s this interesting verse from the prophet Micah, where he declares: ‘Therefore I will look unto the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me.’ (Mic. 7:7) Now that’s a tremendous statement of hope and faith. As this translation puts it: ‘But as for me, I watch in hope for the LORD, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.’ And that’s more undeniable truth my brethren. If we wait and hope in our God, He will hear us and provide salvation. But then again, that all depends on the level of our belief that’s based on the amount of our hope. (smile)
Now these are also important verses on belief and hope, but I don’t think we appreciate them as much as some of the others. Why? Just listen. ‘Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. and not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh (produces) patience; And patience, experience (character); and experience, hope: and hope maketh not ashamed (does not disappoint); because the LOVE of God is shed abroad (poured out) in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.’ (Rom. 5:1-5)
Ah mih people, we all like the end product, but none of us like to go through the middle section that talks of tribulations and perseverance. However, that is a most basic and foundational aspect of truly living for Jesus. It’s the calling of self-sacrifice that all followers of Jesus are expected to engage in, following His glorious example. And there are several more interesting scriptures on hope, but since time and space have runout on us, we’ll look at those tomorrow, if God spares life obviously. (smile)
And to help us find and keep that hope, the Lord has also most generously bestowed on us undeserved blessings, we call our Thursday Blessings. So let’s declare and activate them right now! In one strong and sincere 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 every day! Amen!’
And having made that declaration, it now behooves us to go out and use those blessings to help others, just as generously as the Lord shared them with us, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!
…there are too many examples of God’s faithfulness…to ever lose hope in Him…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
07 May 2026
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a peaceful sense of comfort and safety, a positive outlook on life, a rainbow in the sky, a sign of God's covenant, abundance, appointed the moon for seasons, at the voice of thy thunder, at thy rebuke they fled, bless the Lord oh my soul, bread which strengthens man's heart, bring forth food out of the earth, Christians, clothed with honour and majesty, come to know and love jesus like we do, compassion, courage, covered it with the deep as a garment, coverest thyself with light as with a gartment, curse, divine protection, faith, favour, from the depths of God's heart, from the very beginning of creation, give them their meat in due season, God only has our best interest at heart, God set a bounday for the water, God waters the hills from his upper chambers, God's promise to never flood the earth again, he causes the grass to grow for the cattle, he touches the hills and they smoke, herb for the service of man, his servants a flaming fire, holy spirit, I will be glad in the Lord, in wisdom hast thou made them all, Jesus Christ, laid the foundations of the earth that it should not be removed, lay down in their dens, let the sinners be consumed out of the earth, let the wicked be no more, LOVE, makes his angels spirits, makes the clouds his chariot, man goes forth unto his work, mercy, my meditation of him shall be sweet, negative word, Noah and the ark, O Lord how manifold are thy works, O Lord my God thou art very great, oil to make his face shine, promotion, return to their dust, salvation, sing praise to my God, sing unto the Lord as long as I live, stretchest out the heavens like a curtain, success, supernatural wisdom, talnet, the arises, the BIBLE, the cedars of Lebanon, the glory of the Lord shall endure for ever, the high hills are refuge for the wild goats, the Lord looks on the earth and it trembles, the rays of the sun, the rays of the sun lift our spirits, the sun knoweth his going downthe young lions roar after their prey, the threes of the Lord are full of sap, the waters stood above the mountains, the waters turn not again to cover the earth, the young lions roar after their prey, thou hidest thy face they are troubled, thou openest thine hand they are filled with good, thou renewest the face of the earth, thou sendest forth thy spirit they are created, thou takest away their breath they die, to his labout until evening, truth, walk without fear of darkness, walks upon the winds of the wind, while I have my being, wine that makes glad the heart of man, wisdom
Psalm 104:33. I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live: I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.
Well, thankfully, unlike Wednesday, Thursday has opened bright and sunshiny, though somewhat cool. For the sparkling rays of the sun always tend to lift our spirits even in the most difficult of times. That’s because they are the miraculous rays of LOVE, grace, mercy and compassion emanating from the depths of our heavenly Father’s heart, who created it to shine down on us and provide light during the day time so that we could walk without fear of the darkness. It’s the same way He created the moon and the stars to watch over us with a quiet and peaceful sense of comfort and safety when we’re at rest during the night.
That’s the kind of wonderful God we serve my people! One who’s only had our best interests at heart, right from the very beginning of creation. Just look at all the great things He’s created in His universe basically for our use and enjoyment. It’s like the palmist explains in Psalm 104 – God’s Marvellous Creation. ‘Bless the Lord, O my soul. O Lord my God, thou art very great; thou art clothed with honour and majesty. Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment: who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain: Who layeth the beams of his (upper) chambers in the waters: who maketh the clouds his chariot: who walketh upon the wings of the wind:
Who maketh his angels spirits; his ministers (servants) a flaming fire: Who laid the foundations of the earth, that it should not be removed for ever. Thou coveredst it with the deep as with a garment: the waters stood above the mountains. At thy rebuke they fled; at the voice of thy thunder they hasted away. They go up by the mountains; they go down by the valleys (the mountains rise up; the valleys sink down) unto the place which thou hast founded for them. Thou hast set a bound (boundary) that they may not pass over; that they turn not again to cover the earth.’ (Ps. 104:1-9)
Oh, what wonderful things our God has created my people! And I like that last comment about putting up a boundary for the waters so that they would not overrun the earth. That reminds us of God’s promise never to overrun the earth again with water (Gen. 9:11) like He’d done through the flood that destroyed mankind because of his abominable and overbearing iniquity, with only Noah and his family surviving in the Ark to populate the earth afterwards. (Gen. 6-9) At that time, God also made a sign of His covenant with all flesh of the earth; that’s the presence of the rainbow in the sky. (Gen. 9:12-17)
And the wisdom and compassion of our God shows up further in how He arranges for everything to enjoy the blessedness of His creation. Listen to the psalmist explain: ‘He sendeth the springs into the valleys, which run among the hills. They give drink to every beast of the field: the wild asses (donkeys) quench their thirst. By them shall the fowls of the heaven have their habitation, which sing among the branches. He watereth the hills from his (upper) chambers: the earth is satisfied with the fruit of thy works.
He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle, and herb (vegetation) for the service of man: that he may bring forth food out of the earth. And wine that maketh glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face to shine, and bread which strengtheneth man’s heart. The trees of the Lord are full of sap; the cedars of Lebanon, which he hath planted; Where the birds make their nests: as for the stork, the fir trees are her house. The high hills are refuge for the wild goats; and the rocks (cliffs) for the conies (rock badgers).’ (Ps. 104:10-18)
Wow friends! Everything God made, He provided for! And we spoke about the sun, moon and stars earlier on, now hear what the psalmist says about them. ‘He appointed the moon for seasons: the sun knoweth his going down. Thou makest darkness, and it is night: wherein all the beasts of the forest do creep forth. The young lions roar after their prey, and seek their meat from God. The sun ariseth, they gather themselves together, and lay them down in their dens. Man goeth forth unto his work and to his labour until evening.’ (Ps. 104:19-23)
Yes mih bredrin; everything has it’s place and purpose. No wonder the psalmist could declare: ‘O Lord, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches (possessions). So is this great and wise sea, wherein are things creeping innumerable (teeming things), both small and great beasts (living creatures). There go the ships: there is that leviathan (a large sea creature of unknown identity, but usually refers to whales) whom thou hast made (formed) to play therein. These wait all upon thee; that thou mayest give them their meat in due season. That (what) thou givest them they gather: thou openest thine hand, they are filled with good. Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled: thou takest away their breath, they die, and return to their dust. Thou sendest forth thy spirit, they are created: and thou renewest the face of the earth.’ (Ps. 104:24-30)
The Lord has it all planned out, from birth to death and then renewal of His universe. Consequently the psalmist concludes: ‘The glory of the Lord shall endure for ever: the Lord shall rejoice in his works. He looketh on the earth, and it trembleth: he toucheth the hills, and they smoke.’ (Ps. 104:31-32) And we see that in the earthquakes and volcano activity. However, despite all of that, he still assures: ‘I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live: I will sing praise to my God while I have my being. My meditation of him shall be sweet: I will be glad in the Lord. Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth, and let the wicked be no more. Bless the Lord, O my soul. Praise ye the Lord (shout Hallelujah).’ (Ps. 104:33-35)
And that’s exactly how it ought to be with us my fellow believers; words of praise and blessings are what ought to emanate from our hearts and mouths. And to encourage us even further in that direction, let’s declare our Thursday Blessings, undeserved, but nonetheless generously bestowed upon us by the Lord so that we can do His earthly work. As one strong and sincere 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 every day! Amen!’
And having made that declaration, it now behooves us to go out and use those blessings to help others, just as generously as the Lord bestowed them on us, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Hin like we do! Much LOVE!
…only Jehovah God…could build such a magnificent, interwoven universe…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
30 Apr 2026
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a complete satisfaction, a genreal designation of the dwelling place of the saved, a proof of spiritual rebirth, a strong will, abundance, acknolwedges their sin, be as a tree planted by the waters, behooves us to go out and share those blessings, being fortunate, blessed a certain characterisitic of someone who want to serve God, blessed are the meek, blessed are the poor in spirit, blessed are they that mourn, blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness, blessed is the man tha trusteth in the Lord, children of the Most High God Jehovah, christianity, Christians, clear direction for my life, come to know and love him like we do, comforted by the compassion of God, comforted in confession, courage, creativity, curse, delay the greenery of spring, divine grace, divine protection, experience a deep desire for personal rightousness, experience profound inner joy and spiritual well being, faith, favour, favoured by God, frost avisory warning, future possessors of earth, good freinds, good health, got a zeppo, gratitude for life's gifts, he filleth the hungry soul with goodness, he satisfieth the longing soul, her leaf shall be green, holy spirit, how prideful foolish and unwise nakind can be, humbled by the grace og God, hunger and thirst for what only God can give, if God spares life, independent of circumstances, inherit the kingdom of heaven, Jesus Christ, just as generously as the Lord shared them with us, LOVE, mercy, mourn for human anguish, mourn for sin, negative word, neither shall cease from yielding fruit, promotion, salvation, shall not be careful in the year of drought, shall not see when heat comes, spiritual poverty, spreadeth out her roots by the river, supernatural wisdom, talent, the Beatitudes, the BIBLE, the kingdom Jesus preached is both in you and yet to moe, the opposite of the proud and haughty in spirit, the penultimate day of our work week, the presently installed rightful heirs, the Sermon on the Mount, their dependence on God to save them, theirs is the kingdom of heaven, they shall be comforted, they shall be filled, they shall inherit the earth, those who mourn for sin cahll be cmforted in, to possess divine favour, true blessings only come from sincere association with God, truth, ultimately share in the kingdom of God on earth, wanting something but not willing to pay the price, whose hope the Lord is, wisdom
Jeremiah 17:7. Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is.
And then it was Thursday, the penultimate day of our work week, and are we ever looking forward to Friday and the weekend. But wait, am I seeing correctly? The computer is giving me a Frost advisory warning. Between the last day of April and the first day of May, we should expect frost… Let’s hope that isn’t true, for the young buds are just beginning to appear on the trees, and a frost cover would only inhibit their growth and thus further delay the greenery of spring that we’re all just dying to see, after a tough winter.
But yuh know what, we can handle anything that comes against us because we are children of the Most High God Jehovah and thus are blessed. And talking about being blessed, I read a scripture earlier this morning that talked about it, and afterward got a zeppo that we should check out some scriptures that deal with the subject. (smile) And there are several interesting ones in the Bible. But before we begin looking at scriptures about being blessed, it might be useful to first have a definition of what we mean by being blessed.
And this overview explains it thus: ‘”Be blessed” generally means to be favored by God, to possess divine favor, or to experience profound inner joy, peace, and spiritual well-being independent of circumstances. It signifies being fortunate, consecrated, or fortunate to have something. The term is used in both spiritual contexts (divine grace) and secular, everyday language (gratitude for life’s gifts).’
So, however we take it, blessed means to be rich or well-off in certain aspects of life. And the scripture I read earlier on certainly displays those sentiments. And it’s a scripture that we all know from the prophet Jeremiah, speaking on the Lord’s behalf ‘Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see (fear) when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful (anxious) in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.’ (Jer. 17:7-8)
Wow! What a marvellous blessing! You’d think that all of us would then be running down such an awesome blessing by totally putting our trust in the Lord God Jehovah. But we’re not. However, we all want to be blessed like that tree. That just goes to show how prideful, foolish and unwise mankind can be; desperately wanting something but not willing to pay the price to get it. Yes friends, we all want to be blessed by the Lord, but we don’t want to live the way He desires, so foolishly we forego His many blessings.
And Jesus brought the message of blessing to the forefront by giving us the Beatitudes in the Sermon on the Mount. Each of the Beatitudes begins with the word ‘Blessed’ and talks about a certain characteristic of a person who wants to serve God, or who has been saved. Jesus begins with ‘Blessed are the poor in Spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.’ (Matt. 5:3) And the scholars explain that by saying: ‘The poor in spirit are the opposite of the proud or haughty in spirit. They have been humbled by the grace of God and have acknowledged their sin and therefore their dependence on God to save them. They will inherit the kingdom of heaven; is a general designation of the dwelling place of the saved.’
Then the next Beatitude says: ‘Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.’ (Matt. 5:4) And the scholars offer this explanation of that verse. ‘Those that mourn … shall be comforted. The depth of the promise of these statements is almost inexhaustible. Those who mourn for sin shall be comforted in confession. Those who mourn for the human anguish of the lost shall be comforted by the compassion of God.’
Now here’s the next Beatitude: ‘Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth (land).’ (Matt, 5:5) Which the scholars say refers again to those who have been humbled before God and will not only inherit the blessedness of heaven, but also will ultimately share in the kingdom of God on earth. Here in the opening statements of the Sermon on the Mount, is the balance between the physical and spiritual promise of the kingdom. The kingdom of which Jesus preached is both “in you” and is yet “to come.”
We then hear this awesome promise from our Lord and Saviour: ‘Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.’ (Matt. 5:6) And the scholars say that ‘These future possessors of the earth are its presently installed rightful heirs, and even now they hunger and thirst after righteousness. They experience a deep desire for personal righteousness, which in itself is a proof of their spiritual rebirth. Those who are poor and empty in their own spiritual poverty recognize the depth of their need, and they hunger and thirst for that which only God can give them. They shall be filled refers to a complete satisfaction. The psalmist proclaimed: “He satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness.’ (Ps. 107:9)
Ah friends, I do hope we’ve gotten an understanding of the Beatitudes that we’ve covered so far, only halfway, because time and space are forcing us to stop for today. So tomorrow, if God spares life, then we’ll continue looking at the Beatitudes and some other scriptures that talk about being blessed. Now, let’s turn and declare our Thursday Blessings; undeserved blessings which the Lord has so generously bestowed on us to help us do His earthly work.
As one strong and sincere 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 every day! Amen!’
And having made that declaration, it now behooves us to go out and use those blessings to help others, just as generously as the Lord bestowed them on us, so that they can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!
…true blessings…only come from…sincere association with God…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
23 Apr 2026
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a compassionate heart, a sense of humour, a serpent of brass, a source of spiritual confusion, a strong will, a symbol of deliverance, above all things have fervent charity among yourselves, abundance, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord, brake in pieces the brasen serpent, Caleb and Joshua said they were well able, charity shall cover a multitude of sins, christianity, Christians, come to know and love God like we do, complaining, concentrate on the challenges of today, courage, curse, cut down the groves, did what was right in the sight of the Lord, duty bound, everyone that is bitten, faith, favour, forgiving iniquity and transgression, God's supernatural wisdom, good freinds, good health, great family, holy spirit, I have pardoned according to thy word, idolatrous worship, Israel burned incense unto the brass serpent, Jesus Christ, king Hezekiah, lack of faith in God and His promises, looking forward to tomorrow, LOVE, love shall cover a multitude of sins, make thee a fiery serpent and set it upon a pole, mercy, Moses spoke God's own words back to him, Moses talks the Lord into not totally destroying Israel, negative word, removed the high places of pagan worship, salvation, self-control, self-disicpline, shall live when he looks at it, smite them with the pestilence, success, supernatural strenght, talent, ten spies said they could not take the land, the bearer of life, the BIBLE, the dire consequences that can result from complaining, the Israelites reluctance to enter the Promised Land, the Israelites wandered in the wilderness for forty years., the Lord is longsuffering and of great mercy, the Lord said unto Moses, the Lord's wrath is stirred up when we refuse to believe His signs and wonders, the negative image of the devil incarnate, the second to last day of our work week, the solution to the Israelites snake bite problem, truth, use hospitality to one another without grudging, wisdom, wooden images, worshipping the bronze serpent
1 Peter 4:9. Use hospitality one to another without grudging (grumbling).
And so we come to Thursday, the second to last day of our work week. It’s a nice, warm sunshiny day, but I believe too many of us are looking forward to tomorrow, Friday, the end of the work week, instead of concentrating on the challenges of today. And we need to be very careful with those kinds of situations, for we can cause ourselves serious problems if our minds are not focused on what’s happening in front of us right now. Remember, Jesus warned us to concentrate on today’s problems, rather than what might happen on the morrow. (Matt. 6:34)
Anyway, as promised yesterday, if God spared life today, which He’s most generously done, (smile) then we would continue looking at some of the scriptures that deal with complaining and the dire consequences that can result from it. Now, yesterday we stopped where, after the Israelites complained, the Lord had sent fiery serpents into the camp to bite them and many of them died. Then they repented of their complaining and asked Moses to pray to God for them, and Moses did as asked.
And anyone who thinks the Lord doesn’t have a sense of humour or of the unexpected and unconventional, had better think again, for here’s His solution to the Israelites snake bite problem. ‘And the Lord said unto Moses, make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, he shall live. And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld (looked at) the serpent of brass, he lived.’ (Num. 21:8-9)
Now, only our mysterious and unconventional God would choose to have us look on the same thing that caused our problem to be saved from it, especially when it was a snake that held the negative image of the devil incarnate. But it worked then, and according to the scholars the bronze snake played a large role in Israel’s life, and remained a symbol of deliverance, but unfortunately by Hezekiah’s time it had become a source of spiritual confusion and idolatrous worship, and they fell back into the ancient pagan way of thinking and worshipping the bronze snake as the bearer of life.
It was not until Hezikiah, who developed a great trust in the Lord and did what was right in His sight, that the idol worship was destroyed. The Bible tells us that Hezekiah, ‘Removed the high places (places for pagan worship), and brake the images (sacred pillars), and cut down the groves (wooden images), and brake in pieces the brazen serpent that Moses had made: for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it, and he called it Nehushtan (a bronze thing).’ (2 Kin, 18:4) So, we can see how easy it is for something man made to be turned into idolatry if it lasts long enough in our societies.
Meanwhile, the second incident of complaining that Bruh Paul spoke about in his letter to the Corinthians stems from the Israelites lack of faith and reluctance to enter the Promised Land, after the 12 spies came back from checking it out. They foolishly believed the ten who said it was indeed filled with milk and honey, but there were giants whom they could not defeat. And summarily refused to countenance Joshua and Caleb’s contention that they were strong enough, especially with the Lord’s help to go in and take it.
And they murmured and grumbled and complained so much that the Lord said unto Moses. ‘How long will this people provoke (despise) me? and how long will it be ere they believe me, for all the (miraculous) signs which I have shewed among them? I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of thee a greater nation and mightier than they.’ (Num. 14:11-12) Yes friends, that’s how the Lord’s wrath can be stirred up when we refuse to believe his signs and wonders and complain about our situations.
However, the Israelites were lucky that Moses intervened on their behalf and reasoned with the Lord that if He destroyed them all, then the other nations would hear about it and claim that ‘Because the Lord was not able to bring this people into the land which he sware unto them, therefore he had slain them in the wilderness. And now I beseech thee, let the power of my Lord be great, according as thou hast spoken, saying, The Lord is longsuffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation, Pardon I beseech thee, the iniquity of these people according unto the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even unto now.’ (Num. 14:16-19)
Moses certainly knew how to get God’s attention, basically with God’s own words and His merciful behaviour so far to the Israelites. ‘And the Lord said, I have pardoned according to thy word: But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord. because all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted (tested) me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice; surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked me see it.’ (Num. 14:20-23)
And to make a long story short, the Israelites wandered in the wilderness for forty years until all those who had come out of Egypt died and only Joshua and Caleb, because of their strong faith, entered the Promised Land with the new generation of the Israelites. And it all came from their complaining and the lack of faith in the God of their forefathers, even after all the miraculous signs He had showed them. And sadly, many of us today feel and behave the same way, and eventually we will pay for our lack of faith and belief.
That’s why this scripture from Peter is so important. ‘And above all things have fervent charity (LOVE) among yourselves: for charity (LOVE) shall cover a multitude of sins. Use hospitality one to another without grudging (grumbling).’ (1 Pet. 4:8-9) And our God is so wonderful and generous that He has further bestowed on us undeserved blessings to do His earthly work. We call them our Thursday Blessings, so let’s declare and thus activate them right now nuh.
As one strong and sincere 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 every day! Amen!’
And having made that declaration, we’re now duty bound to go out and use those blessings to help others, just as generously as the Lord shared them with us, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!
…grumbling and complaining…in spite of God’s goodness and mercy…only raises God’s wrath…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
1 Peter 4:9. Use hospitality one to another without grudging (grumbling).
And so we come to Thursday, the second to last day of our work week. It’s a nice, warm sunshiny day, but I believe too many of us are looking forward to tomorrow, Friday, the end of the work week, instead of concentrating on the challenges of today. And we need to be very careful with those kinds of situations, for we can cause ourselves serious problems if our minds are not focused on what’s happening in front of us right now. Remember, Jesus warned us to concentrate on today’s problems, rather than what might happen on the morrow. (Matt. 6:34)
Anyway, as promised yesterday, if God spared life today, which He’s most generously done, (smile) then we would continue looking at some of the scriptures that deal with complaining and the dire consequences that can result from it. Now, yesterday we stopped where, after the Israelites complained, the Lord had sent fiery serpents into the camp to bite them and many of them died. Then they repented of their complaining and asked Moses to pray to God for them, and Moses did as asked.
And anyone who thinks the Lord doesn’t have a sense of humour or of the unexpected and unconventional, had better think again, for here’s His solution to the Israelites snake bite problem. ‘And the Lord said unto Moses, make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, he shall live. And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld (looked at) the serpent of brass, he lived.’ (Num. 21:8-9)
Now, only our mysterious and unconventional God would choose to have us look on the same thing that caused our problem to be saved from it, especially when it was a snake that held the negative image of the devil incarnate. But it worked then, and according to the scholars the bronze snake played a large role in Israel’s life, and remained a symbol of deliverance, but unfortunately by Hezekiah’s time it had become a source of spiritual confusion and idolatrous worship, and they fell back into the ancient pagan way of thinking and worshipping the bronze snake as the bearer of life.
It was not until Hezikiah, who developed a great trust in the Lord and did what was right in His sight, that the idol worship was destroyed. The Bible tells us that Hezekiah, ‘Removed the high places (places for pagan worship), and brake the images (sacred pillars), and cut down the groves (wooden images), and brake in pieces the brazen serpent that Moses had made: for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it, and he called it Nehushtan (a bronze thing).’ (2 Kin, 18:4) So, we can see how easy it is for something man made to be turned into idolatry if it lasts long enough in our societies.
Meanwhile, the second incident of complaining that Bruh Paul spoke about in his letter to the Corinthians stems from the Israelites lack of faith and reluctance to enter the Promised Land, after the 12 spies came back from checking it out. They foolishly believed the ten who said it was indeed filled with milk and honey, but there were giants whom they could not defeat. And summarily refused to countenance Joshua and Caleb’s contention that they were strong enough, especially with the Lord’s help to go in and take it.
And they murmured and grumbled and complained so much that the Lord said unto Moses. ‘How long will this people provoke (despise) me? and how long will it be ere they believe me, for all the (miraculous) signs which I have shewed among them? I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of thee a greater nation and mightier than they.’ (Num. 14:11-12) Yes friends, that’s how the Lord’s wrath can be stirred up when we refuse to believe his signs and wonders and complain about our situations.
However, the Israelites were lucky that Moses intervened on their behalf and reasoned with the Lord that if He destroyed them all, then the other nations would hear about it and claim that ‘Because the Lord was not able to bring this people into the land which he sware unto them, therefore he had slain them in the wilderness. And now I beseech thee, let the power of my Lord be great, according as thou hast spoken, saying, The Lord is longsuffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation, Pardon I beseech thee, the iniquity of these people according unto the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even unto now.’ (Num. 14:16-19)
Moses certainly knew how to get God’s attention, basically with God’s own words and His merciful behaviour so far to the Israelites. ‘And the Lord said, I have pardoned according to thy word: But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord. because all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted (tested) me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice; surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked me see it.’ (Num. 14:20-23)
And to make a long story short, the Israelites wandered in the wilderness for forty years until all those who had come out of Egypt died and only Joshua and Caleb, because of their strong faith, entered the Promised Land with the new generation of the Israelites. And it all came from their complaining and the lack of faith in the God of their forefathers, even after all the miraculous signs He had showed them. And sadly, many of us today feel and behave the same way, and eventually we will pay for our lack of faith and belief.
That’s why this scripture from Peter is so important. ‘And above all things have fervent charity (LOVE) among yourselves: for charity (LOVE) shall cover a multitude of sins. Use hospitality one to another without grudging (grumbling).’ (1 Pet. 4:8-9) And our God is so wonderful and generous that He has further bestowed on us undeserved blessings to do His earthly work. We call them our Thursday Blessings, so let’s declare and thus activate them right now nuh.
As one strong and sincere 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 every day! Amen!’
And having made that declaration, we’re now duty bound to go out and use those blessings to help others, just as generously as the Lord shared them with us, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!
…grumbling and complaining…in spite of God’s goodness and mercy…only raises God’s wrath…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
16 Apr 2026
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a bribe, a great family, a lack of passion, a spirit of power love and a sound mind, a time of dictatorship, abhor justice, baptizing them, bloodshed, both shall fall into the ditch, bounden duty, broken in the name of Jesus, buildwith bllod up Zion, cause calamity, Christ has led us out of darkness into the light, christianity, Christians, Christians have the tools and the numbers to make changes, Christians need to throw off their differences, christians willing to walk the christian talk, clear direction for my life, come to know and love christ like we do, confused and conflicted, continue in this godless race of evil doing, courage, curse, destruction is sure if we keep being ungodly, disturbed the tne natural elements of the weather, divine protection, even unto the end of the world, faith, fallen out of its natural rhythm, favour, fear holds us back, find destruction at the hands of an angry God, For God hath not given us a spirit of fear, go ye therefore and teach all nations, good freinds, good health, greedy power hungry inept evil doing leaders, heaps of ruins, holy spirit, I am with you always, if the blind lead the blind, in the name of the Father Son and Holy Ghost, is not the Lord among us, it behooves Christians to rise up and hange the story, it's not too late to turn things around, Jesus Christ, led of them that are destroyed, living in fear of total destruction, LOVE, make disciples of all nations, mercy, negative word, no evil can come upon us, no sense of God in the hearts of our leaders, no sense of true purpose, pervert all equity, promotion, prosper and succeed, resolve power into their own hands, riddim and rhyme, roiling around in uncahrted waters, salvation, self-control, self-disicipline, supernatural wisdom, take the bull by the horns, teaching them to observe all things, the BIBLE, the Great Commission, the heads thereof judge for a reward, the leaders of this people cause them to err, the priests teach for hire, the prohets divine thereof for money, the same quandary our world is in, the strength of heart, they be blind leaders of the blind, through our own foolish and evil desires, total corruption, truth, uncharted waters, wake up, wandering around lost and unguuided, wisdom
Matthew 28:19. Go ye therefore, and teach (make disciples of) all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
And then it was Thursday; our penultimate day of the work week, but yet another rainy and foggy morning, which eventually turned into a cloud covered somewhat sunshiny day. (smile) Ah mih people, the weather these days is like us, confused and conflicted, don’t know whether it’s coming or going. Why? Because we have played with and disturbed the natural elements so much that God’s set weather pattern has been thrown completely out of whack. Consequently, it has fallen out of its natural rhythm and is just roiling around in uncharted waters, with no sense of true purpose, no sense of riddim or rime, just like so may of us human beings today are wandering around lost and unguided.
It’s like the prophet Isaiah declared so long ago about the nation of Israel: ‘For the leaders of this people cause them to err; and they are led of them that are destroyed.’ (Is. 9:16) And it’s the same sort of quandary our world is in today, with some of the most inept, greedy, power hungry, evil doing leaders that that world has seen in a long while. It seems like we are returning to a time of dictatorship, as so many current leaders are trying to resolve power into their own hands, so they can do as they please.
And it hearkens back to the cry of the prophet Micah on the Lord’s behalf. ‘Hear this, I pray you, ye heads of the house of Jacob, and princes (rulers) of the house of Israel, that abhor judgement (justice), and pervert all equity. They build up Zion with blood (bloodshed), and Jerusalem with iniquity. The heads thereof judge for reward (a bribe), and the priests thereof teach for hire (pay), and the prophets thereof divine for money: yet will they lean upon the Lord, and say (saying), Is not the Lord among us? none evil (no harm) can come upon us.’ (Mic. 3:9-11)
Yes my fellow believers, that’s exactly the kind of world we’re faced with today; one of total corruption, greed, evil doing and no sense of God in the hearts of our leaders. It’s like Jesus said of the Pharisees: ‘Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.’ (Matt. 15:14) But friends, we’re not supposed to be blind because Jesus has come and led us out of darkness into the light, and if we have blind, godless leaders then we have to get up and do something about it.
For if we continue in this godless race of devilry, of evil doing, we will most likely end up just like the prophet Micah promised the Israelites, either by the hands of an angry and fed up God, or through our own foolish and evil desires. Listen up to Micah’s promise: ‘Therefore shall Zion for your sake be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps (heaps of ruins), and the mountains of the house (the temple) as the high places (bare hills) of the forest.’ (Mic. 3:12)
Oh my people, if we keep on in the ungodly and evil way in which we’re going, destruction, in one way or another is certain to come upon us at some stage of the game. Now, is that what we truly desire for ourselves and our descendants? I doubt it very much. Therefore it behooves us Christians to rise up and change the story as much as we can, because none of the evil doers are going to do it. And it’s not like we don’t have the tools to do it, for we do, and we also have the numbers to do it too.
But what seems to be holding us back are things like fear, a lack of the necessary passion, and the strength of heart to even broach such a project, because we’re fearful that it will probably cause us much calamity. However, it will probably cause us even more calamity if we don’t get up and fight the good fight. And we cannot deny that’s already happening in this war torn, strife filled, selfish and greedy world of ours. But please, let’s remember these most important words of Bruh Paul to Timothy: ‘For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of LOVE, and of a sound (disciplined) mind.’ (2 Tim. 1:7)
So the only answer to the problem is for believers in Christ Jesus to first get together, throw off our differences and divisions, then stand up strong and do what Jesus desires of us; spread His gospel of peace and LOVE, of forgiveness and salvation, to all parts of the world, like He says in the Great Commission. ‘All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach (make disciples of) all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.’ (Matt. 28:18-20)
That’s our purpose right there my fellow believers. It’s loud and clear, nothing to misunderstand. However, because of our refusal to do like we were expected, our world has fallen even further in to the quicksand of godlessness and evil doing. And you cannot deny that if more of us supposed Christians had only risen up and lived like true Christians, our world would not be in the disastrous and chaotic state it’s currently in. But it’s not too late to turn things around. So please, for Christ’s sake, as well as our children’s, let’s wake up and take the bull by the horns and turn things around nuh! Aren’t you tired of living in fear of total destruction with the ungodly, evil, power hungry leaders we now have?
And our God is so good and generous that besides all the other stuff, He’s further bestowed on us undeserved blessings to help do His earthly work. We call them our Thursday Blessings. So let’s declare and thus activate them right now nuh! As one strong and sincere 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 every day! Amen!’
And having made that declaration, it’s now our bounden duty to go out and use those blessings, just as generously as the Lord shared them with us, to help others, so that they too can come to know and LOVE him like we do! Much LOVE!
…only as Christians are willing to walk the Christian talk…will our world ever improve…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
09 Apr 2026
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: abundance, accosted by the devil, all destinies lead to God, as a roaring lion, avenge not yourselves, be not overcome of evil, be sober be vigilant, be ye angry and sin not, bless them that curse you, cease from anger, christianity, Christians, clear direction for my life, come to know and love christ like we do, commune seriously with God, curse, determine what's right for us, divine protection, do good to them that hate you, don't change for change sake, don't go overboard when you're angry, don't go to bed angry, duty bound, etenal life, face the battle mano a mano, favour, forsake wrath, fret not thyself in any wise to do evil, generously share our blessings, get left behind, heap coals of fire on his head, heed its warning, holy spirit, I shall repay, if he thirst give him drink, if it's not broken don't fix it, if thine enemy hunger feed him, it only causes harm, Jesus Christ, let not the sun go down upon your wrath, looking for an opportunity to disrupt our lives, lots of bark but no bite, LOVE, Love your enemies, make you immune from eivl, mercy, negative word, neither give place to the devil, not all walk the same path to get to God, overcome evil with good, pray for them which spitefully use you, promotion, prosper and succeed, salvation, self-control, self-didcipline, shaming our enemy with good treatement, success, supernatural wisdom, talent, the BIBLE, the Bible is our everyday guide to life, the devil is powerless if we stand strong in the Lord, the devil's a toothless lion, the indisputable truth, the joy of the Lord is our strength, time's moving forward very quickly, truth, undeserved blessings, vengeance is mine saith the Lord, walketh about seeking whom he may devour, wisdom, with God's help, your adversary the devil
Romans 12:21. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.
Oh brother! It couldn’t be Thursday already, the second to last day of our work week? But it surely is! That just goes to show how time is moving forward very quickly, and if we don’t heed its warning, we will get left behind, which is not a good feeling. But that doesn’t mean we have to change for the sake of change. The old cliché that if it isn’t broken don’t fix it, still stands as a reminder that a lot of things that are happening now are not really necessary and some of them can be bypassed. The difficult question though, is which ones should we bypass and which shouldn’t we?
I only wish I knew the answer. And unless you’re clairvoyant, the only way to find out is by each one of us facing the battle, mano a mano, and determining for ourselves, with God’s help, what is right for us. For although our destinies lead us all to the same place; salvation and eternal life with Jesus, not all of us walk the same path to get there. That’s why the Lord made us as individuals, with no two of us fully resembling each other in all aspects. He has a different path for each one of us to walk to get to Him, and only as we commune seriously with Him, will we find out the path He desires us to tread.
Consequently, that’s why He gave us His Word in the Bible as a guidebook for living this earthly life. And that’s why the psalmist so wisely declares: ‘Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and light unto my path.’ (Ps. 119:105) And Cousin Sol elaborates on that in Proverbs by warning: ‘My son, keep thy father’s commandment, and forsake not the law of thy mother: Bind them continually upon thine heart, and tie them about thy neck. When thou goest, it shall lead thee; when thou sleepest, it shall keep thee; and when thou awakest, it shall talk with thee. For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life.’ (Prov. 6:20-23)
Yes my brethren, God’s Word is there to guide us and keep us safe, but we have to read and study it, then put it into action before it can do that. Just becoming a Christian doesn’t make you immune from the evil and ungodliness of this world. In fact, that will make the enemy try even harder to tempt you and make you miserable, because he doesn’t want you to enjoy the strength of the Lord which is our joy. (Neh. 8:10) Yuh see, even Jesus was tempted, and it was the Holy Spirit that led Him into the wilderness to be thus accosted by the devil. That means we will also have the wily snake hanging around us all the time, looking for an opportunity to disrupt our lives.
And as Peter warns: ‘Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.’ (1 Pet. 5:8) But he’s a toothless lion, lots of bark, but no bite. However, if we allow him, he can wreak much havoc in our lives. That’s why Bruh Paul wrote these words to the Ephesians. ‘Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: Neither give place (an opportunity) to the devil.’ (Eph. 4:26:-27)
Yes, when we get angry, we’re liable do foolish and ungodly stuff, that just gives the devil and opportunity to get into our lives. So, we must be careful when we get angry not to go overboard and react foolishly. Neither should we go to bed angry, because that just disturbs our sleep, and most likely we’ll wake up angry also, which is not a nice or sensible way to start our day.
Bruh David also warned about anger in Psalm 37, when he writes: ‘Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil (for it only causes harm).’ (Ps. 37:8) And that’s the indisputable truth! For evil does nothing good for mankind, only brings pain, suffering, death and sorrow. And Bruh Paul said it thus to the Romans. ‘Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.’ (Rom. 12:19-21)
Yes friends, we can become angry, but must be careful what we do in those times, don’t repay evil for evil, neither seek revenge, for that right belongs to the Lord. We’re suppose to treat our enemy with graciousness, feed and give him drink if necessary, thereby sought of shaming him. (smile) It’s as Jesus declared: ‘But I say unto you, LOVE your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully (spitefully) use you, and persecute you.’ (Matt. 5:44)
Now, although that command is often difficult to put into action, we must do our best to follow our Saviour’s directives, and our God is such a wonderful God that in His goodness and wisdom He’s bestowed several undeserved blessings on us to do His earthly work. We call them our Thursday Blessings. So let’s declare and thus activate them right now nuh.
As one strong and sincere 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 every day! Amen!’
And having made that declaration, we are now duty bound to go out and generously use those blessings to help others, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!
…the devil is powerless…if we stand strong in the Lord…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
26 Mar 2026
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a by product of our addiction to speed, abundance, addiction to speed, be of good courage, blessed are all they that wait for him, both hope and wait quietly, christianity, Christians, clear direction for my life, come to know and love christ like we do, courage, creativity, curse, delight thyself also in the Lord, divine protection, duty bound, even the youths shall faint and be weary, excessive reliance on speed, eyes blazing, faith, favour, focus on today's tasks, fulfillment, give thee the desires of thine heart, good friends, good health, He giveth power to the faint, he may be gracious unto you, he may have mercy on you, he shall exalt thee to inherit the land, he shall strengthen thine heart, holy spirit, hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord, I had fainted, I wait for the Lord, in his word do I hope, in the Lord's kingdom timing is everything, it is good that a man, it's hard to wait on the Lord's timing, Jesus Christ, let Israel hope in the Lord, LOVE, mercy, more than they that watch for the morning, mount up with wings as eagles, mouths salivating, my soul doth wait, my soul waiteth for the Lord, negative word, offering their morning sacrifices of praise, personal experience, promotion, prosper and succeed, run and not be weary, salvation, self-control, serenade the one who provides for them, talent, the BIBLE, the Lord has me in waiting mode, the Lord is a God of justice, the Lord is good unto them that wait for him, the young men shall utterly fall, therefore will he be exalted, therefore will the Lord wait, they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength, thou shalt see it, times of total impatience, to see the goodness of God in the land of the living, to the soul that seeketh him, to them that have no might he increaseth strength, truth, undeserved blessings, unless I had believed, uplifting to hear them, use those blessings to help others, wait in faith I say on the Lord, wait in faith on the Lord, wait on the Lord and keep his way, waiting on God and His timing, wake up to the sweet singing of birds, walk and not faint, when the time is right things will happen, when the wicked are cut off, wisdom, with him is plenteous redemption, with the Lord there is mercy
Psalm 37:34. ‘Wait on the Lord, and keep his way, and he shall exalt thee to inherit the land: when the wicked are cut off thou shalt see it.’
Oh friends, how wonderful it is to awaken to the sweet singing of the birds on a spring Thursday morning, or any morning for that matter! It’s certainly uplifting to hear them offering their morning sacrifices of praise to their Maker and Provider, in such a natural manner. They can’t think like we do, but they know that they must serenade the one who provides for them. Only wish that more of us would do like them.
And on this fairly warm but cloudy and drizzly penultimate day of our work week, instead of wishing that tomorrow and the weekend would hurry up and come, let’s focus instead on the many tasks we need to perform today, for some of us might not even be around to see tomorrow. That’s why I believe the Lord guided me to these scriptures for today on waiting on Him and His timing.
Listen to these wise words of Jeremiah from his Lamentations. ‘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. 3:25-26) Yes my people, waiting on our God is most important, but sometimes extremely difficult to do especially in these times of total impatience and the excessive reliance on speed.
And waiting on God is so important that there are many scriptures that call for it. So let’s look at a few of them, so that we can renew our minds and spirits on the subject. (smile) Hear, as the prophet Isaiah, talks about God’s graciousness and mercy. ‘And therefore will the Lord wait. That he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the Lord is a God of judgement (justice): blessed are all they that wait for him.’ (Is. 30:18)
And we all know this next popular scripture from Isaiah. ‘He giveth power to the faint (weak); and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk and not faint. ‘ (Is. 40:29-31)
Now all of us want to ‘mount up with wings as eagles,’ but we don’t want to do the waiting on the Lord. And not wanting to wait is a sad byproduct of this society’s addiction to speed, to have everything move faster and done more quickly. We’re regularly offered new devices, and in many cases they’re not really much better than the last one, but they are always faster, and that gets our eyes blazing and our mouths salivating for them.
Meanwhile in Psalm 130 – Hoping and Waiting for the Lord – the psalmist declares: ‘I wait for the Lord, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope. My soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning: I say, more than they that watch for the morning Let Israel hope in the Lord: for with the Lord there is mercy (LOVING-KINDNESS), And with him is plenteous (abundant) redemption.’ (Ps. 130: 5-7) Wow! What great reasons to wait on the Lord: abundant redemption and plenty mercy!
Then there are a couple of scriptures from Bruh David that we all know, but don’t necessarily action them. (smile) The first comes from Psalm 127 – My Heart Shall Not Fear. he writes: ‘I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait (in faith) on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait (in faith), I say, on the Lord.’ (Ps. 27:13 -14) Bruh David could not have put it any clearer or stronger than that my faithful brethren. And we all know his story, where although he made some bad mistakes, he waited on the Lord for most of his life, and he was successful as a king, a warrior, a poet and a musician.
And yes, it is hard to wait on the Lord’s timing. I can tell you that from personal experience, because I’ve been through it earlier on in life. When I didn’t wait, my projects were unsuccessful, but when I waited, they bore good fruit. Right now, I have several projects waiting in the wings, but not doing anything about them, either because I’m too lazy to jump start them, (smile) or the Lord has me in waiting mode. I’d like to think it’s the latter, but who knows,?
Anyway, I’ve learned from hard experience that when the time is right, things will happen. Therefore I’m doing as Bruh David says in Psalm 37 – Trust in the Lord – ‘Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.’ (Ps. 37:4) And do I ever have several desires of mine heart still left to be manifested, in the short time I have left! (smile)
And lastly, there’s this verse also from Psalm 37, where Bruh David advises us to: ‘Wait on the Lord, and keep his way, and he shall exalt thee to inherit the land: when the wicked are cut off thou shalt see it.’ (Ps. 37:34) Yes my people, if we want to see the goodness and mercy of God, then we have to wait on His timing. That’s the living truth. Now, let’s declare and thus activate our undeserved Thursday Blessings, which the Lord has so generously bestowed on us to do His earthly work.
As one strong and sincere 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 every day! Amen!’
And having made that declaration we’re now duty bound to go out and use those blessings to help others, just as generously as the Lord bestowed them on us, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!
…in the Lord’s kingdom…timing is everything…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
Previous Older Entries
SCRIP-BITS 