23 Jan 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a precious message, act of Love, believe, beloved of God, blessed, cast not away your confidence, Christ-like, come to our rescue, confidence, Controller, courage fails, delay, doing right, done the will of god, draw back, exceeding glad, fears, fears become overwhelming, feeling, for my sake, friend of Jesus, God is never late, God's economy, God's promises, God's timing, growing in faith, habakkuk, have no pleasure, His own sweet time, in the dark, in the light, increasing joy, late, listen, lost faith, mature Christians, need of patience, negative circumstances, One Year Book of Bible promises, Oswald Chambers, palavering, persecute, persecuted, perseverance, personal testimony, promise, prove our faith, receive the promise, recompense, rejoice, rely on God's immutable Word, revile, reward, reward in heaven, right on time, Ruth Harms Calkin, saving of the soul, sees the big picture, Sermon on the Mount, share jesus' love, stands firm, stood the test of time, the Beatitudes, the Creator, the LOVE of Jesus, the prophets, times of questioning, trial, trust, trusting, truth, Tuesday Mantra, wait on God., waiting patiently, will not tarry, wisdom, wrongs things, yet a little while
Hebrews 10:35. Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompense of reward.
Oh friends, we late! Yuh like how I included you all in that, even though you all are not to blame? (smile) That’s what they call ‘author’s convenience.’ I guess the ole bod was just more tired than I realized, and when I did open my eyes it was already minutes to nine.
Well no palavering, let’s get right down to business, which begins with something from our One Year Book of Bible Promises, with writings By Ruth Harms Calkin. This one’s titled ‘God’s Promises.’
Please read with me. ‘With increasing joy I am discovering that God’s promises do not suddenly disappear when our courage fails and our fears become overwhelming. Feeling or no feeling, when God gives a promise that speaks directly to our need, it stands firm regardless of negative circumstances.
There may be times of questioning, and we may not understand God’s timing, but His promise remains certain through our deepest trial. If we consistently rely on His immutable Word, we can disregard the darkness.
Oswald Chambers says, “Are you in the dark right now regarding your circumstances? Then listen, and God will give you a very precious message for someone else when you are in the light.” God waits for us to trust Him when trusting seems the most difficult thing of all.’
And isn’t that the awesome truth my people? For sure! When times are good, it’s easy to trust God, but it’s in those dark and difficult times that God wants to see us sincerely trusting Him and waiting patiently for His timing, because that’s when He knows that we are growing in faith, we are becoming more Christ-like, mature Christians.
Yeh friends, trusting God when the circumstances are negative and you don’t understand what’s happening; you’re doing right, but wrong things proliferate, is indeed difficult. But we have to learn that with God, a promise is a promise, regardless of the circumstances that surround it.
And it’s only by undergoing such tests that we will ever be truly able to trust God and wait on His impeccable timing. One thing’s for sure; He is NEVER late! We might think so, but if you check out the facts of the situation, you’ll discover that He is ALWAYS right on time. I can tell you that from personal testimony.
Anyway, the Bible Promise for the story above is also our Bit for today. ‘Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompense of reward.’ And that is more awesome truth my fellow believers! Too many of us have lost faith in the Almighty because it seems like He was taking His own sweet time to come to our rescue.
But He is the Creator and the Controller, He sees the big picture and knows what He is doing. That’s why the verse after our Bit explains: ‘For ye have need of patience (endurance), that after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.’ (Heb.10:36)
Yeh friends, it’s usually after we’ve done God’s will, that we receive the promise, and nowhere does He say that it comes immediately after. In God’s economy, we usually have to wait for things to prove our faith. And furthermore, as the author paraphrases what the Lord told Habakkuk in Hab.2:3-4.
‘For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry (delay). Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. But ye are not of them who draw back unto perdition (destruction); but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.’ (Heb.10:37-39)
Oh my people, let’s hope that that is true of all of us! Let’s hope that we learn to wait on God to fulfill the promises He’s made us, in spite of how long it takes, or how dark and dangerous it might seem. And what did Jesus say about all that in the Beatitudes, in the famous Sermon on the Mount?
‘Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.’ (Matt.5:11-12)
Ah mih breddren, Jesus never promised that it would be easy, but He did promise that those who faithfully stood the test of time would be faithfully rewarded. Now would you like to be amongst that lot or not? I’d suggest that that’s where we should all be actively heading for, since that’s wisdom personified.
Now let’s go home declaring our Tuesday Mantra, letting the whole world know without a doubt, just who and whose we are. In loud voice and strong conviction now: ‘I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
And, if that’s true, then let’s go out and share our friend Jesus and His awesome LOVE with the world, for there’s nothing He desires more than that! Much LOVE!
…there’s no bigger act of LOVE…than sharing the LOVE of JESUS…
20 Jan 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a muscle, a sound mind, adding value, admonition, Anselm, astound ourselves, average results, be not afraid, be not dismayed, be strong, buckled down, business people, busyness, capable of, celebrity culture, conquered, conquering fear, deliverance, earn a living, Egyptians, exercise, faith, fear, fear thou not, fearful spirit, fearlessness, fears, first-world economy, forgiveness, formal education, foundation, friend, get a job, give you the kingdom, good pleasure, gospel truth, grace, grateful, greedy desire, help thee, hold your peace, I am thy God, I am with thee, I will strengthen thee, insane world, Joshua, little flock, LOVE, make a living, make you a fortune, mercy, minimum wage, Moses, not challenged, of a good courage, Ontario, our full capability, our welfare, power, profit margins, quality of work, right hand, righteousness, run ragged, secreted in our hearts, self-education, separate us from God, set our minds, slept in, stand still the salvation of the Lord, standard of education, strive, succes, thankful, the enemy, the Red Sea, the spirit of fear, threatening retribution, Timothy, Tin Horton's, up in arms, uphold thee, value, walk arm in arm with God, \
2 Timothy 1:7. For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of LOVE, and of a sound mind.
And then it was Saturday…somewhat late in the day though, and many of you won’t notice, because like the ole fella you also slept in some. (smile) But what’s life eh, if once in a while you can’t sleep in and not be run ragged by the busyness of this insane world? The Lord’s LOVE, mercy, grace and forgiveness will still be there when we get up.
Oh how wonderful is the God we serve and worship my brethren! He is always thinking about our welfare, so we need to be very thankful and grateful as we walk arm in arm with Him. And remember too, that NO ONE can separate us from Him, but us. And such a move on our part would be rather foolish. Nuff said.
Let’s see what our friend Anselm has to say on this bleak and gloomy Saturday morning. First off, he tells us that ‘Formal education will make you a living; self-education will make you a fortune.’
I have serious doubts about that yes, because in this society there are oodles of people right now with lots of formal education, who can’t even get a job, much less earn a living. And if and when they do get one, the wage is definitely not in line with their standard of education. It’s surprising that in this supposed first-world economy, the number of university grads who are making minimum wage.
And in my province of Ontario, at the beginning of the year, the government raised the minimum wage from eleven something to fourteen something, and as expected all the business people are up in arms, threatening all sorts of retribution.
Some Tim Horton’s franchises have already cut back paid breaks, tips and stuff, taking away what little the employees already had, in their greedy desire to keep their profit margins high. So who knows, self-education might just be the answer.
And I like this next quote. ‘If we did all the things we are capable of, we would literally astound ourselves.’ That’s oh so true my fellow believers. I’m sure most of us have had that experience at some time(s) in our lives.
Times when we actually buckled down and did stuff we had to do, and was surprised at the quality and quantity of work we accomplished because we had set our minds to it. Many of us never reach our full capability, because we’re either not challenged to, or we just settle for average results.
That leads us to this quote. ‘Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value.’ And there’s much truth in that advice, especially in these modern times, where a lot of supposed successful people add li’l or no value to the society. Check out the celebrity culture that currently rules the world.
How many of them add anything worthwhile to the society eh? Not many. That’s a big reason why the world is in such a mess. So friends, in our lives, please let’s concentrate on adding value to our lives and our society. Value usually means success in the real world, but not necessarily the other way around.
And finally Anselm tells us that ‘Fearlessness is like a muscle. I know from my own life that the more I exercise it, the more natural it becomes to not let my fears run me.’ There is indeed substance to that remark, because the more we practice not being afraid, the more we will learn to conquer fear.
But the basic foundation for conquering fear comes from our association with Jesus Christ. That’s who gives us the strength and wisdom to conquer fear. Oh friends, throughout the Good Book there are numerous warnings about fear. And one of the most powerful is that found in our Bit; Bruh Paul’s admonition to Timothy. ‘For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of LOVE, and of a sound mind.’
And that’s gospel truth friends! Our wonderful God has not given us a fearful spirit, we allow the enemy to put fear into our hearts. And all I want to do today is highlight a few scriptures where God warned us not to be afraid. And one of my favourites is the one He commanded Joshua, when He made him leader of the Israelites after Moses’ death.
‘Have I not commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.’ (Josh.1:9) Ah mih people, the Lord could not have been more explicit.
Then in Isaiah, re the final restoration of Israel, He warns His people the same way. ‘Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be thou not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.’ (Is.41:10)
Now hear one of the first ‘fear not’ instructions; that from Moses when the Israelites were preparing to leave Egypt. ‘And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation (deliverance) of the Lord, which he will show to you today: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen today, ye shall see them again no more for ever. The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace (be quiet).’ (Ex.14:13-14)
And so said, so was it done. The Lord drowned the Egyptians in the closing of the Red sea. And we’ll end with these words of Jesus as He talked about care and anxiety and seeking God’s kingdom above all else. ‘Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.’ (Luke 12:32)
And it is indeed the Lord’s desire to give us the kingdom, if we seek Him above all else. So friends, there is no need to fear man nor beast once we are walking hand in hand with our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
Please, let’s therefore rid ourselves of all the unwanted and unnecessary fear that is secreted in our hearts, by giving it to God. That’s wisdom of untold proportions! Much LOVE!
…fear can only be conquered by faith…
27 Aug 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a grain of mustard seed, according to your faith, adversity, all my life, anxieties, assured, be it unto you, believers in Jesus Christ, canaanite woman, children, common sense, confident, crumbs from the master's table, do your work in me, dogs, exalt, faith, faithfulness, fears, festivities, forgiveness, Gentiles, glorify the Lord, hope, I will trust in you, in the palms of his hands, infinite power, integral parts of life, jehovah god, joy, LOVE, Lucifer, our be all and end all, pain, qualms, re-energizedm, sacrifice of praise, sincere hearts, strengthened, surrender, the Lord's Day, the Most High God, the wide and winding road, trials, tribulations, trust, trusting obedience, when I am afraid, worries fill my heart, worship
Matthew 9:29b. According to your faith be it unto you.
Welcome once more to the Lord’s Day my fellow believers in Jesus Christ! It’s another wonderful opportunity to gather in the Lord’s house with other believers and praise and worship, exalt and glorify Him, hear His Word and leave strengthened and confident, assured and re-energized, able to face the upcoming week without any qualms, fears or anxieties.
Wow! We serve such a mighty and LOVING God my brethren that we can’t help but place our complete and total trust and surrender in Him. That’s why to open the festivities, we will sing this song of faith and trust based on Psalm 56.3 – ‘What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.’ So let’s raise our voices to heaven, offer the sacrifice of praise from lips and hearts sincere and true in the statements we sing.
As one now: ‘When I am afraid, I will trust in You. Worries fill my heart; I will trust in You. O God my Father, Come do Your work in me. When I am afraid; I will trust in You. When my life is pain, I will look to You. Darkness all around; I will look to You. O God my Father, Come do Your work in me. When my life is pain, I will look to You. God of all my life, I will trust in You. Always, only LOVE, I will trust in You. Through joy and pain, Lord, You form Yourself in me. God of all my life, I will trust in You. God of all my life, I will trust in You.’
Yes friends, that last line is the most important and heart stopping: ‘God of all my life, I will trust in you.’ It says it ALL my people. I will indeed trust in the God who holds my life in the palms of His hands and LOVES me like no other of His wonderful creations! Glory to the Most High God! I would indeed be foolish to do otherwise. And so would any of you who claim to believe in Him, because He is our BE ALL and our END ALL! He made us, and has infinite power over all aspects of our lives, so why wouldn’t we bow to Him and worship and trust and have faith in Him eh?
That’s only basic common sense. (smile) The unfortunate thing is that nowadays common sense seems to be sadly lacking in our society, as more people are turning away from God than are turning to Him. And no doubt that’s partly because they can’t handle His ways, which are higher and wiser than ours. So foolishly, they choose to go their own way, down the wide and winding path that leads directly to Lucifer. They fail to realize that interacting with Jehovah God is not a now for now thing, but a gradual process based on our faith.
As Jesus says in the words of our Bit: ‘According to your faith be it unto you.’ It’s simple and straightforward my people, as most of Jesus’ statements are. The more you believe, the greater your faith, the more you will see Him work in your life. But faith doesn’t happen overnight and also involves ‘sufferation’ and adversity, which too many of us try to run from. As the old people would say, ‘yuh could run, but yuh can’t hide;’ neither from God or trials and tribulations, because they are all integral parts of earthly life.
And since Lucifer can’t help you when things get rough, our heavenly Father is the only logical person to turn to. But as a friend of mine would say, ‘enough palavering,’ let’s get some biblical info on faith. First up is the story of the Canaanite woman, a Gentile, who beseeched Jesus to heal her daughter, possessed by a devil. The disciples urged Him to send her away.
But Jesus said: ‘I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel (to the Jews). Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me. But he answered and said, It is not meet (right, good) to take the children’s bread, and to cast it to the dogs. And she said, Truth, Lord; yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table. Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt (you desire). And her daughter was made whole (well) from that very hour.’ (Matt.15:24-28)
Ah friends, faith is a helluva thing yes! It can certainly work wonders when used right. Listen though to this explanation of that passage by the scholars. ‘15:26-28. By children the Lord means Jews, and by dogs, Gentiles. His attitude was intended to test the woman’s faith, which was rewarded by a miraculous healing.
The term used for dogs (Gr. kuhariois) means little dogs (pets) not wild, scavenging beasts. She replied that such dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their master’s table. She knew what could be hers, even as a Gentile, and thus became an illustration of millions of Gentiles who would later be blessed by Israel’s messiah. Great is thy faith: Jesus again commends Gentile belief (cf. 8:10).’
Ah mih people, it certainly seemed that the Gentiles were somewhat wiser than the Jews, when it came to acknowledging Jesus’ power. And we’ll close with these stellar words of Jesus on faith. After telling the disciples that they should forgive as often as a trespasser repents; ‘And the apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our faith. And the Lord said, If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamine (mulberry) tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you.’ (Luke 17:5-5)
What a bam bam mih people! Even as much faith as can hold in a li’l mustard seed can work mighty miracles. Unfortunately, a lot of us don’t even have that much faith.
But hear the scholars. ’17:5-6. The magnitude of the command in verse 4 (re forgiveness) leads to a plea for assistance. Faith, understood here not merely in a mental sense, but also in the sense of active “faithfulness,” is the key. One’s faith often increases as one steps out in trusting obedience.’
So friends, let’s try growing our faith by stepping out in trusting obedience today nuh, for that’s the wisdom of heaven. Much LOVE!
…without faith…there is no hope…and without hope…there is no faith…
29 Jul 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a beautiful day, a beautiful morning, a better tomorrow, a fleeting thought, a sense of humour, Amen and Amen, Anselm, aspire to inspire, barbecue, blessed be the Lord God of Israel, block, bounden duty, constructive, doubling up work, downsizing, everything's going my way, fabulously made, fears, filled with God's glory, football, free medicine, from everlasting to everlasting, frustration, get to work, good management, gospel truth, heaven is excited, heavenly Father, housework, jungle-like atmosphere, Labour Day, laugh at yourself, laughter, lazing around, let everything that has breath, LOVE, opportunity, persistence, picnic, pilgrim's journey, Praise the Lord, problems, proud like a peacock, resilience, saints of God, score points, shopping, shout Hallelujah, solutions, sourpusses, stand strong, tackle, tension, the cold white stuff, the firmament of his power, the game of life, the loud cymbals, the sun and Son are shining, two out of three ain't bad, Winston Churchill, wondrous things
Psalm 41:13. Blessed be the Lord God of Israel from everlasting, and to everlasting. Amen, and Amen.
‘Oh what a beautiful morning…Oh what a beautiful day! Oh what a beautiful morning…Everything’s going my way!’
Yes friends, it is indeed a glorious morning in my neighbourhood! Both the Sun and the Son are shining brightly. And you know when that happens all of heaven is excited.
I just wish I could get my body to respond with the same level of excitement that my soul and spirit currently enjoy. (smile) And I know a lot of you feel the same way.
But as the song says,’ two out of three ain’t bad.’ Let’s be thankful, for many others are batting zero for three…if you get my drift. (smile)
But it’s Saturday, and we’re either doing housework or shopping, or simply lazing around the house, if we’re lucky, or getting ready for a picnic or barbecue or some such outside entertainment.
And we had better get in as much as we can because this is the last Saturday in July, which means the summer is almost done; just August to go now…then it’s September – Labour Day, the cooler weather, and back to school!
Wow! Can you believe that the summer’s just whisked by like a fleeting thought? And we haven’t even had any real hot days…Even today is cooler than it usually is. But yuh know what, most of us will take this kind of weather over the cold, white stuff any day! Glory be!
Now let’s see what our friend Anselm had to say this week, as he aspired to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And here is the first one: ‘Persistence and resilience only come from having been given the chance to work through difficult problems.’
And isn’t that the gospel truth friends? We only learn persistence and resilience when we’re confronted by tough problems, then we stand strong, work persistently on them, and finally conquer them.
And this next quote, though it might be the proverbial truth, it surely isn’t widespread in practice today. ‘Good management is the art of making problems so interesting and their solutions so constructive that everyone wants to get to work and deal with them.’
Hn, hn! In which companies today do we see people excited to deal with problems eh, especially with all the downsizing and doubling up of work on those left behind?
Then we have: ‘The game of life is a lot like football. You have to tackle your problems, block your fears, and score your points when you get the opportunity.’
That surely is in the realm of truth in this crazy, strife filled world. Life is certainly full of blocks and tackles and attempting to score points, as we try to manoeuvre through its wild and jungle-like atmosphere on a daily basis.
But I’ve left the best for last. ‘It’s good to be able to laugh at yourself and the problems you face in life. A sense of humour can save you.’ Now that has oodles of truth percolating through it.
Without a sense of humour we’re just sad, sourpusses, painstakingly trudging along on our pilgrim’s journey. But a sense of humour relieves the tension and frustration and helps us bear the burdens much better. Remember laughter is the best free medicine one can buy.
And I believe it’s Winston Churchill himself who said that the best ability one could have was the ability to laugh at oneself, for it keeps us solidly grounded and not overly proud like a peacock. (smile) By the way, that last part was mine, not Winston’s.
And since today is such a glorious day, and we’re so joyful, I’ve been led to keep it simple and thankful, thus our Bit; words of Bruh David from Psalm 41 – Abuse and assurance. ‘Blessed be the Lord God of Israel from everlasting, and to everlasting. Amen, and Amen.’
Oh precious saints of Jehovah God, we couldn’t do any better than to praise His holy name, for that’s why we were so fabulously made. And in a Bit earlier on in the week, we saw how the living creatures and elders in heaven continually praised and worshipped their Creator. So how could we do any less eh?
Now we’re just going to wind down by checking out some joyful scripture along the lines of our Bit. Hear the psalmist from Psalm 106 – Israel sins against God’s LOVE. ‘Blessed be the Lord God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting: and let all the people say, Amen. (Hallelujah) Praise ye the Lord.’ (Ps.106:48)
And Listen to Cousin Sol from the first of the only two psalms he authored. The other is Psalm 127. ‘Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, who only doeth wondrous things. And blessed be his glorious name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with his glory. Amen, and Amen. The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.’ (Ps.72:18-20)
And according to the scholars that psalm closes the Second Book of the Psalter – The Exodus Book – Concerning Israel as a Nation. And we’ll end appropriately with these glorious words of Psalm 150 – Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord.
‘Praise ye the Lord (shout Hallelujah). Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power. Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness… Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high-sounding cymbals. Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord (Hallelujah). (Ps.150:1-2, 5-6)
And that’s how it ought to be my fellow believers! So please let’s go out and do that nuh, let’s do our bounden duty; praise the Lord, shout ‘Hallelujah!’ Much LOVE!
…giving much deserved thanks and praise to our heavenly Father…is one of the best things a believer can do…
27 May 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a proverb, a taste for the things of God, a war of attrition, Anselm's quotes, antsy rain clouds, Calvin Coolidge, commandments, courage, DETERMINATION, diligent teaching, educated derelicts, education, fearful bunnies, fears, found wanting, genius, gets the people to do, godless, godlessness, godly behaviour, good teacher, great teacher, human frailties, inspire their followers, Jesus, keep the charge, keep your fears to yourself, LOVE, mediocre teacher, omnipotent, parental guidance, passion, pesistence, prosper, put their best foot forward, reap peas, share your courage with others, show thyself a man, sow corn, statutes, stick around long enough, success, superior teacher, superman, take heed to their way, talent, teach them diligently, testimonies, the law of Moses, the Love Revolution, the way of all earth, to thy children, train up a child, true believers, unconditional LOVE, undying, unrewarded genius, unsuccessful men, walk before me in truth, walk in his ways, worldly
Deuteronomy 6:7. And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children…
Ah friends, thank the Lord that there was no rain yesterday, giving my basement some time to dry out. But I was a li’l antsy all day because there were dark rain clouds constantly hovering around. Anyhow, someone is coming to check on the situation for me today, and we’ll see what they have to say on the matter.
Meanwhile, it’s Saturday, which means we have to check out some of our friend Anselm’s quotes for this week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. Listen to this first one: ‘Keep your fears to yourself, but share your courage with others.’
Now I don’t think we should do that all of the time, because some of the people around us need to know that we too have fears, we’re not always superman, and they are not always fearful bunnies. In general yes, we should try and show a courageous front, but there are certainly times when we need to show our human frailties too.
And this second quote is certainly interesting. ‘Success is just a war of attrition. Sure, there’s an element of talent you should probably possess. But if you just stick around long enough, eventually something is going to happen.’
I guess that holds to the adage attributed to U.S. President Calvin Coolidge: ‘Nothing in this world can take the place of Persistence. Talent will not: nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not: the world the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.’
And there is a lot of truth to that, for if you don’t try, and try, and try again, you usually will not succeed. But it is nonetheless useful to have at least some, if not all of the other attributes.
And I just LOVE these last two quotes. ‘The greatest leader is not necessarily the one who does the greatest things. He is the one that gets the people to do the greatest things.’ Now that’s certainly true! Great leaders are ones who inspire their followers to put their best foot forward, brings out the passion in them, like Jesus does in the souls of believers.
And this last quote says it all. ‘The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires.’ That’s self-explanatory friends! Let’s hope that the ole fella falls in the category of great teacher, as I try to inspire us each and every day. (smile)
That brings us to our Bit. ‘And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children…’ Oh friends, our God desires that we teach our children diligently about Him; His ways, His attributes, especially His undying and unconditional LOVE for us, as well as the requited LOVE we should have for Him.
Unfortunately, down through the ages that LOVE has not always been requited and thus we have suffered serious consequences. But yet we still have not learned and continue to play foot loose and fancy free with God’s LOVE for us, and our LOVE for Him.
Remember the Great Commandment says that we should LOVE Him with all our heart, soul, body and mind, and teach our children to do the same. In both aspects this generation has sadly been found wanting, leading to a godlessness in our society that has not been seen in ages.
Now I won’t harp on what we should and should not do, because if we are true believers in Jesus Christ, then we already know that. I will just end by giving us an example of diligent teaching of children. Hear Bruh David to Cousin Sol, as he gets ready to meet his Maker.
‘I go the way of all the earth, be thou strong therefore, and show thyself a man; And keep the charge of the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his testimonies, as it is written in the law of Moses, that thou mayest prosper in all that thou doest, and whithersoever thou turnest thyself (wherever you turn):
That the Lord may continue his word which he spake concerning me, saying, If thy children take heed to their way, to walk before me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall not fail thee (said he) a man on the throne of Israel.’ (1 Kin.2:2-4)
Oh friends, how many of us have ever said anything like that our children eh? Obviously not enough of us. And for those of us who have said it, we obviously haven’t said it enough, else our children today would not be as godless and worldly as they are.
How did Cousin Sol put it: ‘Train up a child in the way he should go: and (even) when he is old, he will not depart from it.’ (Prov.22:6) Yes my fellow believers, we ought to be putting the thoughts and words and LOVE of God very early in a child’s life and doing it consistently. We should be moulding into them from early on a taste for the things of God.
Good parental guidance is essential in each child’s life, and as they are moulded so will they turn out. Remember you can’t sow corn and expect to reap peas. Similarly, you can’t not sow godly behaviour and attitudes and expect your children to turn out godly. But as I said yesterday, it’s not too late for us to start bringing our children back to God, if we sincerely desire to do so, and work diligently to do it.
So let’s get to it nuh mih people! With the help of Jesus we can certainly win them back for the LOVE Revolution! Much LOVE!
…persistence and determination will usually win out…
24 May 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a glorious future with Jesus, a true believer, assurance, belief, calm, Christ, confidence, courage, Creator of the universe, daily work, delivered my soul, dr robert h schuller, emotion, eternal life, faith, faithful brethren, favour, fear, fears, foolish to reject, forgiveness, give thanks and praise, glad to be alive, going going gone, guiding light, hell, Hour of Power Devotional, indisputable truth, invigorating, jehovah god, LOVE, marvellous blessing, mercy, miracle of courage, newfound power, of whom shall I be afraid, overpowering, overwhelming, passion, peace, quiet, reverential awe, salvation, sincerity, singleness of heart, special favour, spirit of courage, spiritual battle, the breath of life, the core of my soul, the Good Book, the heat of battle, the Lord God of Abraham Isaac and jacob, the Lord is my light and salvation, the Lord is the strength of my life, the presence of God, the shield of courage, there is only one God, treading this earth, true relationship, trust, uplifting words, vistory, wake up alive, what a relief, whom shall I fear, working peace, works
Psalm 27:1. The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
Oh people, oh people, we’re alive on this blessed Wednesday morning! Wow! Give thanks and praise to our wonderful God for that marvellous blessing!
And if you’re wondering why, just think about the many people who went to bed alive last night but did not wake up alive this morning!
Oh glory to God my faithful brethren! The Lord looked down on us with special favour because He has great plans for our lives today and everyday He keeps us treading this bountiful earth, therefore much praise and thanks ought to be going up to high heaven from us, His blessed people!
And in keeping with our theme of courage from yesterday, we’ll continue with the second part of Gramps Schuller’s (Dr. Robert H. Schuller) ‘Courage Is a Decision,’ talk from his Hour of Power Devotional.
And he emphatically declares in the second half: ‘I have it! My fears are going, going, gone! I feel a mysterious calm, quiet, tranquil assurance rising deep within my being. This remarkable spirit of courage is overpowering me.
It is the very presence of God working peace at the core of my invisible soul. Thank You Lord. All my fears are gone. What a relief! Amen.’
Glory Hallelujah my people! For that’s exactly how we feel when Almighty God works His miracle of courage and peace in our souls! It’s invigorating, overwhelming, surprising, but oh so real! And we rise up with a newfound power, anxious to do His daily work.
And remember, ONLY belief, trust, surrender and faith in the Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob can bring that kind of feeling and emotion to our beings! So we’d be rather foolish to reject His awesome LOVE and thus deny ourselves the wonderful opportunity to enjoy His heavenly favour.
And ONLY if you are a true believer, can you proclaim with genuine passion and sincerity, the uplifting words of our Bit, like Bruh David so long ago. ‘The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?’
Yes friends, ONLY when Jehovah God is our guiding light, can we utter such confident words. And we see this overwhelming confidence in God throughout the Good Book. Hear Bruh David expound from Psalm 86 – Teach me thy way, O Lord.
‘Among the gods there is none like unto thee, O Lord; neither are there any works like unto thy works. All nations whom thou hast made shall come and worship before thee, O Lord; and shall glorify thy name. For thou art great, and doest wondrous things: thou art God alone.’ (Ps.86:8-10)
Oh friends, what a marvellous declaration; one of indisputable truth, as the last four words remind us! ‘Thou art God alone!’ That is the basic foundation of our faith! There’s ONLY ONE God; the One we serve and worship!
And until we get that straight and clear in our hearts, minds, bodies and souls, we’ll never be able to truly enjoy the peace, LOVE, forgiveness, mercy, salvation and eternal life that proceeds from His magnificent and magnanimous Being.
Bruh David was so assured of this, that he continues in Psalm 86: ‘Teach me thy way, O Lord; I will walk in thy truth: unite my heart (give me singleness of heart) to fear (have reverential awe for) thy name.
I will praise thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart: and I will glorify thy name for evermore. For great is thy mercy toward me: and thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest (depths of) hell.’ (Ps.86:11-13)
Mama Mia! Oh friends, that’s the kind of confidence we develop when we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour! We know His awesome power and relinquish our all to it. Fear and all its negative associates cannot pierce the shield of courage and faith that we derive from a true relationship with the Creator of the universe and all therein.
Now listen to Moses as he counselled the Israelites on the law concerning war. ‘And it shall be, when ye are come nigh unto the battle, that the priest shall approach and speak unto the people, And shall say unto them,
Hear, O Israel, ye approach this day unto battle against your enemies: let not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tremble, neither be ye terrified because of them; for the Lord your God is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.’ (Deut.30:2-4)
Yuh see friends, even in the heat of battle, our God is working on our behalf. Yes, He certainly is in the spiritual warfare that we’re currently fighting, so please don’t lose heart, don’t fear or be terrified, because the victory is ours, it has been guaranteed by our great God.
Consequently, we can afford to go home in peace, with courage, declaring these truths from our Wednesday Wail. All together now: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday!
I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’
Have a most blessed day my fellow believers in Christ! Much LOVE!
…ONLY when we know Christ…can we be strong and courageous in this evil world…
18 Feb 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: accomplish nothing in life, adultery, and know my heart, Anselm's quotes, any wicked way, aspire to inspire, authority, Bathsheba, believe, Christ's Church, Christian faith, climate change, come boldly to the throne of grace, courageous, earthly body, excellence, expand your consciousness, expectations, faith, family, fears, friends, get away scotch free, go out on a limb, great invitation, high priest, Jesus Christ, know my anxious thoughts, lead me in the way everlasting, life's circumstances, murder, omnipotent god, our earthly walk with Jesus, outside your comfort zone, presence and power of God, provision, rest, Scrip-Bit, search me O God, secrets, shirt-sleeves, succour, take risks, the bane of our language, the end from the beginning, the wrong side of the fence, tired, trust, try me, Uriah, watchword, weary, wisdom
Psalm 139:23. Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my (anxious) thoughts.
Welcome to another beautiful day in God’s wonderful universe, my Scrip-Bit family and friends! The day is indeed unfurling as it should, as our omnipotent God planned it. But I beg to wonder why our temperature today is supposed to go up to around ten degrees Celsius, from a low of around minus 7, or thereabouts, and then fall back to below freezing temps by Sunday night? They say it’s climate change.
Ah Lord eh! That’s why so many people get sick in these volatile temperature changes! Today a whole lot of people will be out in shirt sleeves, declaring what beautiful spring-like weather it is. Then they’ll get caught without proper protection from the elements later on. But that’s the nature of the beast in these parts. (smile)
Anyway, let’s take a look at a few of our friend Anselm’s quotes for this past week. Remember, his aspiration is to inspire us with his thoughtful words. The first one says: ‘He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life.’ And that’s quite true!
But there are sensible risks and not so sensible ones. So we still have to consider whether the risks are worthwhile or not. It’s brave to go out on limb that seems able to stand your weight, but foolish to go out on one that is obviously too small. The same goes for risks.
That brings us to this quote: ‘If you put yourself in a position where you have to stretch outside your comfort zone, then you are forced to expand your consciousness.’ That’s also true, but then again how far outside of your comfort zone do you want to go, or is it wise for you to go? It’s all a matter of your comfort level.
And this next one declares: ‘The only limits to the possibilities in your life tomorrow are the buts you use today.’ More truth friends! You know how we always like to say marvelous things, then affix them with ‘a but.’ That’s the bane of our modern day language; everything, everything – but.
And the last one tells us. ‘No one rises to low expectations.’ Yes my people, we cannot rise high unless our expectations are high. That’s just the normal workings of the universe. And our Christian faith expects us to keep on rising higher and higher, making excellence the watchword of our earthly walk with Jesus. For if we do not aspire to excellence, the church will simply become stagnant and eventually fall apart.
And I believe that is what’s happening right now. Christ’s church, His earthly body is not growing as it should, for numerous reasons. But we’re not here to talk about that today, we’re here to discuss the motives of our heart, of our spiritual being, as expressed by Bruh David in his grand Psalm 139 – The everlasting presence and power of God.
He boldly, but contritely states in the last two verses – the first one our Bit. ‘Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my (anxious) thoughts. And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.’ (Ps. 39:23-24)
Ah mih people, the overriding question now is, whether we as Christians, are willing, and or able to declare such a brave statement to our Maker? The truth of the matter is that we ought to be. We ought to be so open and be so close to our God, that we shouldn’t fear to go to Him in any situation at all, even though we know we are on the wrong side of the fence.
For as the author of Hebrews reminds us: ‘Let us therefore come boldly (confidently) unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.’ (Heb.4:16)
And I like the explanation the scholars put forward. ‘4:16. Only Christianity provides such boldness for sinful men before a holy God, and that boldness is possible only because of our High Priest (Jesus Christ). The figure of a throne suggests a place of authority and provision. It is the place to obtain God’s grace when it is especially needed.’
Yeh friends, only our wonderful faith exhibits such a confidence in being able to go to God in any and every circumstance. He welcomes us, invites us in the Great Invitation (Matt.11:28-30) to come to Him when we‘re tired and weary and beset by life’s circumstances, and He will give us rest.
No other faith offers such succour my brethren. So I don’t understand why so many of us are afraid to bare our hearts to the Lord. Remember though that’s He’s our Creator, and already knows what’s happening with us, even more than we know. He knows and sees the beginning to the end.
Consequently friends, please let’s stop trying to hide our innermost secrets and fears from Him, because it’s foolish to do so. He wants us to come to Him and let it all out, to show that you truly believe in and trust Him.
Yuh notice how Bruh David went to God without fear on everything – even eventually His adultery with Bathsheba and His murder of Uriah, her husband, after the prophet Nathan berated him about it.
Now we won’t always get away scotch free with our wicked deeds – Bruh David paid a hefty price with strife in his house – but we’ll always get forgiveness and mercy if we sincerely repent of them. That’s wisdom for the ages my people. Please ponder on that today. Much LOVE!
…fear should never override faith…especially in dealing with God…
24 Sep 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: acknowledge him, advice, Anselm, arthritis, aspires to inspire, be of good courage, better advice ever given, bless, Christians, cold weather, courage, delight thyself in the Lord, depart from evil, depend on, devotion, do good, energy, entourages, faithful, fall season, fear the Lord, fears, fellowship, follow Jesus, frustrations, give thanks, godless, gospel truth, hangers ons, health to thy body, hopes dreams, impatience, in all thy ways, in the limo, intimacy, intimacy with god, keep us safely, lead a horse to water, lean not, leeches, long johns, LOVE, macho image, marrow to thy bones, native instincts, negatives, northern climes, now for now, obedient to god, omni-present, omnipotent, omniscient, parasites, patience, pay a hefty price, peace, perseverance, potential, rely on, ride with you, sinful times, sucker, surapsses all understanding, take the bus, the desires of thine heart, time, to each his own, tried and failed, tropical climate, truer words were never spoken, trust, trust in the Lord, trustworthy, unto thine own understanding, wait on the Lord, with all thine heart, zero, zilch
Proverbs 3:5-6. Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct (make smooth or straight) thy paths.
Well friends, it’s the first Saturday in the northern climes fall season. So what is it to you eh, you ask? Well if you’re living in a tropical climate, then it means zero, zilch (smile). But if your abode is in the north country, then you have to start taking out jackets, sweaters, long pants, and long johns for some, and put away the skimpy tops and shorts till next summer.
The thing that annoys me about autumn though is that sometimes the days look so bright and warm and sunny, and you go out dressed for such, but as soon as the sun begins to set, the cold weather creeps in, and you find yourself not suitably dressed for it. And yet, many of us still flaunt the macho image by being not properly dressed in those in-between times.
That’s why so many people get sick around this time. Anyway, to each his own, and as the man said, if you don’t pay me now, you’re going to pay me much more later on, when things like arthritis begin to take their toll. It’s just like Christians who don’t do what they are supposed to, and pay a hefty price later on. (smile)
Now since it’s Saturday, let’s turn to a couple of quotes from our friend Anselm, who always aspires to inspire us. And the first one is certainly good advice. ‘Consult not your fears but your hopes and your dreams. Think not about your frustrations, but about your unfulfilled potential. Concern yourself not with what you tried and failed in, but with what it is still possible for you to do.’
Yes friends, we should not dwell on the negatives in our lives, but we must learn from them and then move on to the bright future that lies ahead, gloriously waiting for us, as we follow Jesus.
And the second one is ever so true. ‘Lots of people want to ride with you in the limo, but what you want is someone who will take the bus with you when the limo breaks down.’
Gospel truth mih people, and I can testify to that on a small level. But you’ll notice the numerous hangers’ ons, the large entourages that travel around with the reigning celebrities in good times. However, when the rough times come, a lot of it from spending lavishly on those same leeches and parasites, they simply disappear and look for another sucker.
And the best way to prevent such shenanigans is by paying heed to our Bit. ‘Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct (make smooth or straight) thy paths.’
Ah friends, truer words were never spoken, or better advice ever given!
Hear how the scholars explain it nuh. ‘3:5-6. Three commands are given: trust, meaning “rely on, depend on”; lean not, meaning do not depend on your own native instincts; and acknowledge him, meaning have fellowship and intimacy with God in all of life. The result of such devotion is that God will make the paths straight before you.’
It makes perfect sense my brethren! God is the omnipotent, omniscient, omni-present Creator of the universe and He controls every aspect of it, so He is obviously the best person to get into partnership and fellowship with, if we truly want to be successful.
Now one thing is for sure, He will not forsake you when times get rough and you have to ride the bus rather than preen in the limousine. He will be right there riding the bus beside you. That’s the kind of God we worship my people; faithful and trustworthy to the very end!
And listen to how Cousin Sol continues after our Bit. ‘Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel (body), and marrow (strength) to thy bones.’ (Prov.3:7-8)
More wonderful words of wisdom my fellow believers! Unfortunately though, we can give others the best advice possible, but it’s still their decision to act on it or not. As they say, you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink. The same goes for human beings, especially in these godless and ever so lustful and sinful times!
And then again, sometimes we try it, but don’t get the results we want, or they don’t come as quickly as we desire, so we lose faith. But if we pay serious attention to Bruh David’s words from Psalm 37 – The true state of the wicked – we’ll see that after he says: ‘Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed (feed on his faithfulness).’ He then specifies: ‘Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.’ (Ps.37:3-4)
Yuh see friends, we need to take pleasure in being obedient to God, before we can get the desires of our hearts. The Lord doesn’t just give out desires for no good reason; we first have to invest time, energy, trust and faithfulness in the relationship. Another thing we need is patience, here considered perseverance.
Bruh David ends Psalm 27 – The Lord is my light and my salvation thus: ‘Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.’ (Ps.27:14) Notice how he emphasizes waiting, both at the beginning and at the end of that wonderful encouraging and uplifting verse.
Ah friends, impatience is one of the serious mistakes we make as Christians. We want to apply the now for now system of the world, but that is not God’s way. He will give us all we desire, but in His own time and in His own way. And until we learn to wait patiently on Him, while keeping a good attitude and being obedient, we’ll never fully attain the great plans He has for our lives.
More on this tomorrow, the Lord willing. Till then, may He bless and keep us safely, and cause His wonderful countenance to shine upon us, and give us His peace which surpasses all understanding. That’s my prayer for us this day. Much LOVE!
…only as we obey…trust in…give thanks…delight in…and are faithful to Almighty God…will our lives be truly blessed…
20 Sep 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a life of sin, a Prayer fo Confidence, almighty god, blessed, bountiful, calmly, Christ-like behaviour, Christian character, common sense, confidence, conversion, crucified the flesh, difficult times, dr robert h schuller, earthly pilgrimage, face problems, faithful walk with God, fears, forget who brought us to the dance, friend of Jesus, frustrations, fulfill the lust of the flesh, glad, God is behind me, God will help me, God will rescue me, gospel truth, Hour of Power Devotional, if god is for me, leading, live by the Spirit, mu conscience is clear, new life, not afraid of problems, passions, problems, promptings, rejoice, renounced, self-assurance, serenely, share His love, share it twice, spirit of confidence, sunshiny morn, surging in my heart, Thank You God, the beloved of God, the right decision, the Son shining, this is the day the Lord has made, trip us up, trust, Tuesday Mantra, uncertainty, vices, virtues, walk in the Spirit, walk of faith, we will rejoice and be glad in it, who can be against me
Galatians 5:16. This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.
Oh my beautiful Scrip-Bit friends and families, how goes it this bright and sunshiny morn eh? We’ve gotten through Monday, despite our fears and frustrations, and Tuesday has dawned blessed and bountiful, with both the sun and the Son shining out in all their wonderful splendour!
It’s a new day, so let’s treat it like such nuh, and deliriously declare: ‘This is the day which the Lord hath made, we WILL rejoice and be glad in it!’ (Ps.118:24) Yes friends, it’s the only sensible way to face each and every new day that we’re blessed to see!
But we can’t do that successfully without the supreme trust and confidence in Almighty God, so here is something that will help us build that confidence. Quite appropriately it’s called ‘A Prayer for Confidence,’ and it comes from Gramps Schuller’s (Dr. Robert H. Schuller) Hour of Power Devotional. I’m sure I’ve shared it before, but as we say, when it’s nice, we can share it twice, and even thrice. (smile)
So please pray with me. ‘It is flowing into me now, for my conscience is clear: I have made the right decision. I am not afraid of problems. I will face challenges calmly and serenely for God is behind me. He will help me. If I must go through difficult times, He will rescue me.
I feel His spirit of confidence surging in my heart now. With Him I cannot possibly fail. “If God is for me who can be against me?” I have a strong feeling that everything is going to work out just beautifully. Thank you, God. Amen.’
Ah mih people, I do hope that prayer of confidence truly brought a surge of confidence into our hearts, bodies, souls and minds this Tuesday morning, and will enable us to go out and do a fine job for Jesus today, because it’s usually self-assurance and uncertainty that trip us up in our walk of faith.
Now let’s turn to our Bit. ‘This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.’
Oh I know some of you might be tired of it, but it’s one of those scriptures that are rather essential to our successful and faithful walk with God. We can’t do it without the successful guidance of the Holy Spirit that’s sent to dwell within us for that specific purpose, so please open your hearts wisely to it.
Now we’ve already seen what the lusts of the flesh and fruit of the Spirit are, today we’ll check out the last part of Bruh Paul’s exhortation on the subject. Yes, today’s the last day for this Bit. (smile)
After detailing the fruit of the Spirit, Bruh Paul continues thus: ‘And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections (its passions) and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not be desirous of vain glory (conceited), provoking one another, envying one another.’ (Gal.5:24-26)
Yes mih breddren, that’s how we ought to live if we’re a new creation in Christ!
Now listen to some explanations from the scholars. ‘5:24. At conversion every believer crucified the flesh, that is, in repentance he turned from and renounced his life of sin and all its wicked passions. This verse then implies that the virtues of verses of 22-23, rather than the vices of verses 19-21, should characterize them that are Christ’s.’ And that’s gospel truth!
‘5:25. This verse means “Since we live by the Spirit, let us also follow the Spirit.” That is, since the Spirit gave us new life at conversion, we then should stay in step with His leading and promptings throughout life.’ Now that’s simple common sense my people; we shouldn’t forget who brought us to the dance.
Oh, I’ve just noticed another scholarly exposition on the Fruit of the Spirit, which I don’t want to deprive you of, so here it is. ‘5:22-23. In contrast to the works (plural) of the flesh, which any individual is capable of performing, the fruit (singular) of the Holy Spirit can be produced only by God. Christian character thus results from “Christ living in me (2:20). For this fruit to develop, all nine aspects of the fruit of the spirit must mature.
Illustration: The character of Christ is the fullest manifestation of this fruit in the New Testament. Though Jesus did not recognize the traditions of men, His enemies were unable to prove any charge against Him.
Application: So today, Christians should allow the Holy Spirit to develop this character within them, so they might be blameless before others and not hinder the testimony of Christ. (First Ref. Ex.35:31; 36:2; Primary Ref. Gal.5:22-23; cf. Phil.1:6).’
Now I won’t spoon feed you all today, (smile) so please look up those reference scriptures, they are very interesting and will help you better understand the topic.
And my people, having been through all the aspects of the fruit of the Spirit; a Christian’s character traits, over the last few days, let’s hope that it refreshes and renews our inner man, and brings out more Christ-like behaviour in us as we walk this earthly life, because this is the undoubted will of our heavenly Father.
Now let’s go home with great confidence and trust, loudly and soulfully declaring our Tuesday Mantra. ‘I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
Yes friends, that’s indeed who we are! Let’s never forget it! Much LOVE!
…as a true believer…our earthly pilgrimage …should constantly exude Christ-like traits…fruit of the Spirit…
01 Aug 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: 1 August 1838, a roaring lion, a stepping stone, an excuse, anger, anxieties, aura of love, bask in God's sunshine, behave negatively, blanket of god's love, care, Caribbean people, celebrations, compassion, confidence, conquerors, doubts, Drunk or sober mind yuh business, Emancipation Day, enslavement, enthusiasm, evil, faith, faithfulness of God, fatness, fears, forgiveness, fountain of life., friends, glorious kingdom, Glory be, glory hallelujah, grace, Granny's advice, holy spirit, humble servants, indentured labour, invincible, Jesus Christ, joy, lies, light, light of jesus, LOVE, LOVE of God, loving kindness, mercy, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, negative emotions, peace, positive things, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, rest, righteousness., salvation, spiritual armour, spunk, steadfast faith, succour, the children of men, the infinite power, the Lord will not cast off, the shadow of thy wings, trust, truth, understanding, ungodly world, weary souls, whm he may devour, wisdom
Lamentations 3:31. For the Lord will not cast off for ever.
Oh friends, its Emancipation Day in the Caribbean! Mama Mia! Who would have thought it some years back eh? We’re celebrating that most wonderful, joyous and auspicious occasion of 178 years ago on August 1st 1838, when the slaves in the British Caribbean Colonies were finally set free! Glory Hallelujah!
It is certainly a red letter day in the History of Caribbean people, and it’s wonderful that we have finally come to celebrate it every year. However, please let’s not use the enslavement and indentured labour of our forefathers as an excuse to behave negatively. But rather let’s use it as a stepping stone to positive things. We must not ever forget it, but we must let go of the negative emotions it raises up, else we will never be free of enslavement, that of the mental kind.
On the Other hand, it’s also a Civic Holiday in most parts of Canada, which means a lot of people aren’t going to work today… and I hear shouts of ‘Glory Be!’ in the background. Now that’s good for us, but there are many not so blessed workers who have to get out and face the music this Monday morning, so let’s join with them and sing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn with as much spunk and enthusiasm as we can muster.
Altogether now: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Ah mih people, that was loud but somewhat raucous and not very harmonious! Our choirmaster, Jesus could only shake His head and sigh, because He knows what’s happening. As usual, those with the day off were the loudest and most out of tune.
And before we go any further, let’s declare Granny’s advice which is so important for us believers in times of celebration. ‘Sonny boy, please, please, ah begging yuh, drunk or sober, please mind yuh business out there today!’
Yes friends, we do need to mind our business as we get into the celebrations since our enemy the devil, ‘as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.’ (1 Pet.5:8).
Oh, and by the way, the ole fella testified in church yesterday! It wasn’t anything spectacular, just about ten minutes sharing the wonderful faithfulness of our God, as it related to my writing the Bit over a period of nine years. Hn! I certainly could not have done it without His magnificent, constant and consistent help. And I ended with our Tuesday Mantra. Hopefully that will get a few of the congregation thinking in better terms of whom and whose they are.
That brings us to our Bit, which is rather appropriate: ‘For the Lord will not cast off for ever.’ And that’s the awesome truth my brethren. Regardless of our behaviour, our God will not cast us off for ever. Oh yes, He will chasten and discipline us, but NEVER will He boot us out of His ever-LOVING kingdom.
The psalmist Asaph, in Psalm 77 – Who is so great a God as our God – queried God’s faithfulness. ‘Will the Lord cast off for ever? And will he be favourable no more? Is his mercy clean gone for ever (ceased completely)? Doth his promise fail for evermore (for all generations)? Hath God forgotten to be gracious? Hath he in anger shut up his tender mercies? Selah.’ (Ps.77:7-9)
Yes friends, many believers in times of trouble and testing ask those questions since they can’t seem to find any help from God. But listen to Bruh David as he provides a positive answer in Psalm 36 – The steadfast LOVE of God.
‘Thy mercy (LOVING-kindness) O Lord, is in the heavens; and thy faithfulness reacheth unto the clouds. Thy righteousness is like the great mountains; thy judgements are a great deep (ocean): O Lord, thou preservest man and beast. How excellent (precious) is thy LOVING-kindness, O God!
Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings. They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness (fullness) of thy house; and thou shalt make them drink of the river of thy pleasures. For with thee is the fountain of life: in thy light shall we see light.’ (Ps.37:5-9)
There we have it precious people of God! Our Creator will always look after us once we come to Him for succour. So please, let’s put away all doubts, fears and anxieties and instead wrap ourselves in the wonderful blanket of His LOVE, care, compassion, understanding, wisdom, grace, mercy, forgiveness and faithfulness!
Wow! Now tell me which other supposed God has all those attributes eh? None whatsoever! So let’s be wise and just bask in His sunshine nuh, for that’s wisdom to the infinite power! Much LOVE!
…when the bright and beautiful light of Jesus shines on us…there’s no option but to be engulfed in it…
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