09 Feb 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a command, a measly pittance, believers, bleak and cloudy day, boundaries, carnal attitude, Christians, common sense, confidence, depart from evil, direct thy paths, do our own thing, enjoy yourself, epitome, fellowship, finite minds, Friday chant, fun, generous help, glory, glory in God, glory in wisdom, guidelines, health to thy navel, hear attentively, Jeremiah, Jesus authority, justice, knowledge of God, lean not unto, lives of His followers, LOVE, loving-kindness, massa work, might, milk the juice, no sun, omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient, on fire, party time, physical aspects, refreshed, rejoicing, relaxation, renewed, responsibility, rest, riches, right living, righteousness, shining brightly, sincerity, stale drunk, strength to thy bones, subservient, surroundings, TGIF! Thank God is Friday, the ends of the earth, the SON, the weekend, the workingman, this is the day the Lord has made, tired, trust, trust in the Lord, truth, we will rejoice and be glad in it, week of work, wherewithal, wisdom, with all thine heart, worry, your own understanding
Proverbs 3:5. Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
Ah friends, it looks like it’s going to be a bleak and cloudy day in my neighbourhood, with very little, or no sun at all… But thank the Lord, the SON is always on fire, always shining brightly in the lives of His followers, so we don’t have to worry about the physical aspects of our surroundings.
That’s why, like the psalmist of old, we can confidently proclaim: ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we WILL rejoice and be glad in it!’
And not only believers are rejoicing in the day, but also the ordinary workingman, as he sings his Friday song: ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday! Wow! The weekend’s here at last, and party time has begun! It’s going to be party time right through until Monday morning…Who cares if we go to massa work tired and stale drunk eh?
Massa doh really care about we, he just wants to milk the juice out of our bodies, in return for a measly pittance, so why should we care about him and his work eh? Look nuh man…just thank God for Fridays and weekends yes, and enjoy yuh blooming self, because nobody else is going to do it for you!’
And my people, there is a whole lot of truth to that last statement. Nobody is going to enjoy yourself for you. That is your responsibility. However, we Christians differ to the workingman in how we enjoy ourselves. They go to the fleshly extreme, but we do not. Under Jesus authority, we have guidelines and boundaries to respect. That’s why when we chant our Friday Chant, it sounds so much different to the workingman’s song.
So let’s sing it now nuh, in all sincerity and truth. ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through. Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’
Now it’s obviously more difficult to adhere to that state of affairs than the workingman’s easy, carnal attitude, but with God’s help we can certainly do it. Remember, our wonderful God does not ask us to do anything that He does not give us the wherewithal to do it. So though it might seem difficult, and indeed be difficult, under His auspices we will certainly be able to perform any task that He asks of us.
That’s why our Bit, in the words of Cousin Sol, so strongly advises us to: ‘Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.’ And if you are a serious and sincere believer in Jesus Christ, then that is indeed the epitome of wisdom and common sense! No matter what organization you belong to, you must exhibit confidence and trust in your leader, otherwise you’re wasting your time in being a member of that organization.
No wonder the psalmist also tells us in Psalm 37 – God’s works and wisdom: ‘Hear attentively the noise of his voice (thunder), and the sound that goeth out of (the rumbling that comes) out of his mouth. He directeth it under the whole heaven, and his lightning (light) unto the ends of the earth.
After it a voice roareth; He thundereth with the voice of his excellency (his majestic voice); and he will not stay (restrain) them when his voice is heard. God thundereth marvellously with his voice; great things doeth he, which we cannot comprehend.’ (Ps.37:2-5)
And isn’t that the gospel truth my people! Our omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent God does numerous things that our puny, finite minds cannot dream to understand. That’s because His ways and thoughts are higher than ours. That’s why He is God and we are mere mortals. Therefore we’re not to get presumptuous and try to do our own thing if we claim to be subservient to Him.
And after our Bit, Cousin Sol continues his wise advice. ‘In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct (make smooth, straight) thy paths. 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.3:6-8)
Oh friends, there isn’t a wiser piece of scripture in the entire Bible. If we simply follow those four verses (Prov.3:5-8) we will never go wrong. But let’s end with these words from the prophet Jeremiah as he talks about the knowledge of God being man’s glory.
‘Thus saith the Lord, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches: But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the Lord which exercise LOVING-kindness, judgement (justice), and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the Lord.’ (Jer. 9:23-24)
Ah mih people, words straight from the Lord’s mouth to us. So please, in our wisdom, let’s try and live the way He desires of us nuh. Much LOVE!
…to live a godly life…LOVING-kindness…justice…and right living…must be essential aspects of our lives…
02 Feb 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a beautiful morning, a hard spell, a letdown in behaviour, a new creature, all things are become new, ambassadors, an heir with Christ, be in christ, be reconciled to God, be sin for us, behalf, believers, beseech, boundaries, cause havoc, come to Jesus, daily bread, disobedient, drive us hard, earthly purpose, enjoy the fruits of his labour, eternal life, extremes, fellowship, forgave us our sins, free offer of grace, Friday chant, fun, furthering God's kingdom, generous help, glory to God, God was in Christ, good and faithful servant, good examples, grace, implore, imputing, in Christ's stead, in Jesus' name, Jesus Christ, King Solomon, lay down their burdens, living for Christ, made righteous in Christ, magnificent and magnanimous God, massa, mercy, my neck of the woods, old things are passed away, on the lookout, our Lord and Saviour, raison d'etre, real devil, reason for living, rebellious children, reconciled, reconciliation, reconciling the world, refreshed, relaxation, renewed, rest, salvation, serve, sins, song of freedom, speak well of christ, standards of Jesus, take up their cross, TGIF! Thank God is Friday, the enemy, the ministry of reconciliation, the SON, the sun is shining, the weekend, the working man, to show us the way, trespasses, walk worthy of Christ, we time, week of work, well done, who knew no sin, worship, worthwhile witnesses
2 Corinthians 5:20. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray (implore) you in Christ’s stead (behalf), be ye reconciled to God.
Oh friends, it’s a beautiful morning in my neck of the woods! Oh the snow is still on the ground, and it’s cold, but at least the Sun is shining brightly, and we know that the SON is always out there in all of His splendour, burning brightly to show us the way! Wow! That makes it a beautiful day indeed!
And the workingman is also out there singing his song of freedom: ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday yes! The massa really drive we hard this week boy! Don’t know what got in his craw nuh, but he was a real devil, more so than usual. But is one thing he can’t stop is it being Friday and therefore the weekend…and we free!
Mama Mia! Is we time to do whatever we want with it now. And yuh better believe we going to do just that; whatever, whenever and however for the two lousy days we have off. What did the wise King Solomon say? Something about a man have a right to enjoy the fruits of his hard labour…Well we certainly going to enjoy them fruits this weekend! Thank the Lord for Fridays and weekends oui!’
Yeh mih people, I know that many of us are also thanking the Lord for Fridays and weekends after a hard spell at work this week. But as believers we have a different take on it; we don’t go to extremes, as the workingman likes to do. We have some boundaries set by our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ as reflected in our Friday Chant.
Let’s declare it now in strong voice with sincere conviction nuh. ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through.
Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen!’
Ah mih breddren, that’s more like it! We need to keep the work and excellent standards of Jesus uppermost in our minds at all times, for the enemy is always on the lookout for a letdown in our behaviour, so he can slip in and cause havoc. That coincides very well with the Daily Bread Thought for the Day, which says: ‘When others see us, may what they see, speak well of the Saviour.’
Oh friends, that’s our raison d’etre; our earthly purpose, our reason for living; to be worthwhile witnesses, ambassadors of Jesus, so that others will want to come to Him to lay down their heavy burdens and receive His free offer of grace, which then translates into salvation and eternal life!
That brings us to our Bit: ‘Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray (implore) you in Christ’s stead (behalf), be ye reconciled to God.’ Yeh friends, Bruh Paul is imploring the Corinthians to stick with the reconciliation they had recently received, and be good witnesses to others for Christ.
Why? ‘Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature (creation): old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given us the ministry of reconciliation;
To wit (that is), that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation…For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.’ (2 Cor.5:17-19; 21)
Ah mih people, what a magnificent and magnanimous God we serve and worship! Just think about it nuh! The Lord, while we were yet sinners, sent His son to die on the cross for us, so that He could justify bringing us back into His fold, reconciling us to Himself. He forgave us of our sins, putting them all on His sinless Son, so He could make us righteous. Wow! Glory to God!
Would any of us do that, take our righteous son and make Him a scapegoat, a sacrifice for a bunch of worthless, ungrateful sinners? Very unlikely! But that’s what God did for us, and it just shows the great and undying affection He has for us, His disobedient, rebellious children.
So therefore, in light of all that; being a new creation, having our sins forgiven, being made righteous in Christ and reconciled to God, having a new status as a child of God and an heir with Christ, why is it so difficult for us to walk worthy of Christ eh?
That should be a no-brainer friends! We ought to be so grateful for all He’s done for us, that being a good witness and ambassador for Him should just come naturally.
So today, my believing brethren, like Bruh Paul implored the Corinthians, likewise, I am imploring us to come up strong for Christ, let people see His reflection in our everyday lives, be good examples of His grace and mercy.
Yuh know we can talk a whole lotta talk, but it’s only through our life example that others will want to rush to His always open and ever-welcoming arms to lay down their burdens and take up their cross and follow Him.
If we want Jesus to welcome us to heaven with a ‘well done, good and faithful servant,’ then that’s how we need to live our earthly lives. Much LOVE!
…truly living for Christ…means truly trying to be a good example to others…
26 Jan 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a servant, Abba, believe, carous, carousing, carry on, catering to carnal will, Christ-like, Christians, depend on the Spirit, do Jesus' will, dogs, employee satisfaction, enjoying the weekend, enslave our mind, escape, Father, fellowship, Friday chant, fun, furthering God's kingdom, generous help, guns, hard work, heirs of God, help me, iron shackles, labouring finish, layabouts, live by the Spirit, long time now, lust, massa, mental chains, modern amenities, more attention, over indulgent society, party, physical shackles, raising a finger, rejuvenate, relaxation, rest, seven days straight, sincerity, sinful nature, slave work, slavery, sons, sons of God, spiritual confrontation, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, the Garden of Eden, the lust of the flesh, the wrong road, truth, turn to Jesus, walk in the Spirit, whip, work, working man, wouldn't eat, yield to the Spirit
Galatians 5:16. This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.
Well friends, at last it’s Friday! Glory be! Now what it is about that work that we dislike so much eh, even when we have so many modern amenities that makes it so much easier? (smile) Our forefathers couldn’t even imagine or dream about the stuff we have now, and they willingly went to work.
That’s possibly because they knew for sure that if they didn’t work, they wouldn’t eat. But nowadays we have so many layabouts who eat and live well without even raising a finger. Could it be that’s the fault of our over indulgent society? Well that’s something to ponder on later. (smile)
But right now the ordinary but ever so proud workingman is singing his Friday song. ‘TGIF! Thank God it is Friday and labouring finish for another week. And yuh know, I thought hard work was done with long time now. But apparently I was wrong, for all that missing from slavery time is the whip and the dogs, they still have the guns and them!
Everything else is still the same. Deh trying to enslave we mind now though, rather than we body with iron shackles. But tell them for me, that that won’t work either. The same way we escape from the physical shackles, we going to escape from the mental chains. And we going to start doing that right now, by enjoying the weekend as if there was no tomorrow!
Brother, come what may, we going to party and carouse, and carry on fuh so. And if we too sick and tired to go to work on Monday, then let massa fire we nuh. He still ain’t going to get he slave work done! Thank God for Fridays and weekends yes! Because if the massa had he way, we’d work seven days straight every week without a break!’
Ah mih people, it’s always sad to realize that a lot of what the ordinary workingman says is so true. Our modern day economies are going backwards rather than forwards in terms of employee satisfaction, employees are not being treated as well as they should be.
The problem though is that the ordinary workingman is taking the wrong road in trying to solve the problem. Instead of carousing and catering to his carnal will, he ought to turn to Jesus and do His will, like we try to do. It’s all about purpose and the right way my brethren.
So let’s chant our Friday Chant, which shows a marked difference from the workingman’s song. In sincerity and truth now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through.
Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen!’
Yeh friends, the big difference is that we don’t go overboard in our carnality, and thus lose control of our senses. Instead, we turn to Jesus to rejuvenate us, so we can continue doing good work in His name, for that’s what this life is all about.
Ah mih people, it’s good to enjoy some aspects of fleshly living, that’s why God gave them to us, but we have to know where and when to draw the line, so that we don’t allow the enemy to encroach on Jesus’ territory in our hearts and souls. That’s why Bruh Paul admonished the Galatians so strongly, when he said in our Bit. ‘This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.’
And what does that mean? Hear the scholars: ‘5:16. Walk in the Spirit (i.e.; “live by the Spirit”): Christians are to live with the Spirit’s help. How does one “live by the Spirit”? (1) The Christian must believe that the Spirit is with him, having been sent by God into his heart (4:6). (2) In every spiritual confrontation the believer must yield to the Spirit, that is, submit his own desires to those of the Spirit.
(3) One must depend on the Spirit for help, enabling him to live a God-pleasing life (v.5). (4) The believer should anticipate the effects of the Spirit’s help in his daily life. The believer who “lives by the Spirit” will not fulfill (accomplish, carry out) the lust (strong desires) of the flesh (sinful nature).’
There you have it friends, a general explanation of how to walk in the Spirit. The Holy Spirit that dwells within us is supposed to lead and guide us in ALL of our activities. That’s why the Lord gave Him to us. As Bruh Paul says earlier on: ‘And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.’ (Gal. 4:6-7)
Yeh mih people, as soon as God adopts us, He sends the Holy Spirit into our hearts, to give us an awareness of Himself. And having been granted such a wonderful station in life, sons of God, heir of God, through Christ, it now behooves us to behave in a son-like and heir-like manner.
So please let’s take a minute today and ponder if we are indeed behaving son-like, heir-like and Christ-like, as we should, then ask the Lord to help us improve in whatever area(s) we need improvement. He will NEVER turn down such a request. Much LOVE!
…walking in the Spirit…is like walking in the Garden of Eden…just demanding more attention…
19 Jan 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: admire, allow life to run you, Aloha, ancient times, be different, beat down, brethren in christ, bully boy, by the scruff of the neck, carnal desires, carry his armour, chickens, Christians, compel forced service, compel thee, dive through it, do time with Christ, double duty, dragging, drunk and disorderly, each step, earthly journey, enjoy, enjoy the good life, enthusiasm, eyes and ears open, faithful followers, faithfully serving Jesus, Friday chant, from eternal damnation, furthering God's glorious kingdom, gave his sinless life, generous help, glorifies our heavenly Father, glory to God, go the extra mile, go with him twain, gossip, government agents, heads cut off, heavenly advocate, high priest, in concert with Jesus, in Jesus' name, Jewish native, Kyle Crichton, lap around you, lead and guide, life, life of ease, live with Him for ever, meeting all their needs, misguided, modicum of circumspection, more than is asked, normal duties, on the cross, one life to live, one mile, plunge into it, pretty precious, prince of peace, recipe, renew our minds, responsibility, right with Jesus, Roman soldier, run around aimlessly, safe from harm, safely, saved, service of our Lord and Saviour, shepherd, single duty, slave labour, slave master, sloth, spending eternity with Jesus, subjugated peoples, surrender, take advantage, TGIF! Thank God is Friday, time is short, to go a mile, to the last drop, too tired, truth, week of work, weekends, wisdom, wonderful thing, workingman
Matthew 5:41. And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain (two).
Aloha my beautiful brethren in Christ Jesus! Welcome to another day in the awesome service of our Lord and Saviour! The One who gave His sinless life on the cross so that we could be saved from eternal damnation! How good it is to do time with Him; to have Him lead and guide us on this confusing earthly journey.
Remember, He is the Way, the Truth and the Life, so He must know more than us re handling life’s problems. (smile) And for those of us who wisely surrender our lives to Him, He tends us like a kind and LOVING shepherd does his sheep; meeting all their needs, keeping them safe from harm, then taking them home to live with Him for ever.
Oh glory to God my people for the Prince of Peace, our High Priest and heavenly Advocate, Jesus Christ!
And since we’re talking about life, let me share a quote on the subject, attributed to one Kyle Crichton. There are several Kyle Crichton’s around, but I believe this came from the one who lived between 1896 and 1960, a playwright, author and screenwriter in the U.S.
And he said: ‘Life’s a pretty precious and wonderful thing. You can’t sit down and let it lap around you…you have to plunge into it, you have to dive through it.’ And that’s the awesome truth friends! We only have one life to live, and wisdom dictates that we enjoy it, even though it might be difficult.
One thing is for sure, you can’t allow life to run you, otherwise it will take serious advantage of you. You have to run life, in concert with Jesus Christ of course! Life is a bully boy, and you know how bully boys behave if you allow them to control you.
That’s why you have to admire the ordinary workingman when he declares his Friday song. ‘TGIF Thank God is Friday oui! Another week of slave labour done! And now the weekend is mine to do exactly as I please; behave drunk and disorderly or not, give way to my carnal desires or not.
But it all depends on me, not on any chupid slave master. Granted the time short, but Glory to God, my time is mih own! Thank Him everlasting for the li’l weekends and them yes! Otherwise I don’t know how I’d manage nuh. The weekend’s here people, enjoy it to the last drop!’
There is definitely enthusiasm for life in the workingman’s song! Although he is somewhat misguided, he doesn’t allow life to beat him down, he rises up against it, takes it by the scruff of the neck and uses it for his own purposes. That’s what we Christians are also called to do, but within certain boundaries laid down by our leader, Jesus Christ.
So let’s sing our rebuttal song nuh, our Friday Chant, with much feeling and true sincerity. ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through.
Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen!’
Yeh friends, we are also to enjoy our weekend, but with a modicum of circumspection, renew our minds, bodies and souls, not give in to even more carnal living, so that come Monday, we’re just dragging and are too tired to perform our normal duties. For if we are too tired to do what we’re supposed to do, then how can we fulfill Jesus’ desire in our Bit eh? ‘And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain (two).’
Ah mih people, that’s just like our Jesus; always giving or doing more than is asked. And that’s how He wants us, His faithful followers to also behave.
And the scholars explain thus: ‘5:41. In ancient times government agents were in a position to compel forced service upon a subjugated people. A Roman soldier, for example, could compel a Jewish native to carry his armour or materials for one mile. Jesus now states that if someone compels you to walk a mile, go with him twain.
The believer is to be willing to “go the extra mile.” Doing double our duty not only proves our loyalty to human authority, but likewise proves the spiritual intention of our heart.’
Ah mih breddren, I have to laugh yes! Do double duty in our society? Hn! We don’t even want to do single duty, much less double. This is an age where the word ‘responsibility’ has apparently been removed from our vocabulary. No one wants to do anything much, except enjoy the good life; a life of ease and sloth and gossip and run around aimlessly, like chickens with our heads cut off.
But as Christians, we are supposed to be different my fellow believers. We have to take our responsibility seriously, which doesn’t mean not enjoying our everyday lives, but simply keeping our eyes and ears open and doing what needs to be done in Jesus’ name.
When we do that, it makes us right with Him, and glorifies our heavenly Father. That’s the ultimate in wisdom and common sense my brethren! Much LOVE!
…faithfully serving Jesus in this life…is the wonderful recipe for spending eternity with Him…
12 Jan 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a high priest, another week of work, any believing individual, ashes of a heifer, at the very heart, atoning sacrifice, blemish, blood, but by me, can't take it with me, carnal desires, cleanse, come again, come into the presence of God, conscience, dead works, destroying the temple veil, do it all over again, doubter, doubting Thomases, drink, earned the right, eat, enjoy the good life, enjoying my time off, enthusiasm, Equator, eternal Spirit, evil demon, faze, freezing temperature, Friday chant, furthering your glorious kingdom, generous help, get a toehold, good things, grin and bear it, hasn't been easy, heat, I am the way, ice, in Jesus' name, include Christ, lost, LOVE, massa, more dangerous than snow, moving out of the country, no holds barred, no man comes to the Father, not made with hands, one way to heaven, party, plummets, prepare a place, purge, redeeming, redemption, refreshed, remission of sins, renewed, revolves around Jesus, rising from the dead, sacrifice of animals, sanctifieth, serve the living God, sets apart, sincerity, sinless life, slave labour, sleet, slippery, snow, snow melted, sprinkling the unclean, temps dropped, TGIF! Thank God is Friday, the blood of goats, the enemy, the forgiveness of sins, the good life, the Life, the ordinary workingman, the purifying of flesh, the rains came, the Truth, the weekend, Thomas, to celebrate, to the limit, unpleasant state of affairs, what a bam bam, without spot, work five days
John 14:6. I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
And as the freezing temperature rose, the pervasive snow melted. But then the rains came, and the temps dropped somewhat again, causing the evil demon called ice to form.
Yeh friends, the last couple of days have been somewhat icy, causing numerous accidents, both on the roads and n the sidewalks. Ice is way more dangerous than snow, because it’s ever so slippery, and oftimes you can’t even see it.
Now today we are expected to get more snow, as the temperature plummets below freezing again. What a bam bam eh! But short of moving out of the country, to somewhere around the equator, there’s not much we can do but grin and bear it and handle it the best we can.
And what amazes me is that this unpleasant state of affairs doesn’t faze the ordinary workingman one bit. He is intent on enjoying his weekend despite any weather setbacks, as he so vociferously declares: ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday oui! And the weekend is here at last, especially since I had to work five, hard, long days this week.
But neither snow, nor ice, nor sleet, nor heat is going to keep me from fully enjoying mih time off from massa slave labour! I’ve earned the right to celebrate, and that’s exactly what I’m going to do! Eat, drink and party fuh so! No holds barred baby! What else am I living for eh? Can’t take it with me when I go! So let’s thank God for Fridays and weekends, as we enjoy the good life!’
And what’s the good life eh friends? Feeding our carnal desires to the limit, with no real or sincere thoughts of Christ? I don’t think so. The good life must include Christ, otherwise it’s not good! Nothing’s wrong with eating, drinking and partying, but within decent limits: limits that don’t allow the enemy to get a toehold in our lives.
That’s why our Friday Chant is a better gauge of what our weekends should be like. Let’s chant it now nuh, with sincerity and enthusiasm. ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through.
Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’
Now that takes Christ into account, in fact, places Him at the very heart of the matter. It all revolves around Him. And as true believers, that’s how our lives ought to be set up; around Jesus! And why is that you ask? It’s obvious, from the proclamation Jesus makes in our Bit. ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.’
Jesus had just told the disciples that He had to go away to prepare a place for them, and that He would come again to receive them unto Himself. ‘And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.’ (John 14: 4) But Thomas, ever the doubter declared: ‘Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?’ (John 14:5) That’s when Jesus made the foundational proclamation in our Bit.
Oh friends, are we amongst the doubting Thomases in these modern times? I certainly hope not. For if we are, we are lost before we’ve even begun. And the scholars’ offer and interesting statement here on our Bit. ’14:6. Jesus does not tell them about the way, nor does He show them the way. He does not even guide them along the way. He says He IS the way!’
And He showed that in spades by destroying the veil in the temple when He died, then rising from the dead, thus allowing any believing individual to come into the presence of God at any time, not only the High Priest once a year. And by shedding His blood on the cross, Jesus consequently made the sacrifice of animals for the forgiveness of sins of no more necessity. His blood was now the ONE and ONLY redeeming and atoning sacrifice!
Oh glory to God my brethren! Listen to this scripture from Hebrews: ‘But Christ being come a high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building (creation).
Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered once into the holy place (Most Holy Place), having obtained eternal redemption for us. For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth (sets apart, cleanses) to the purifying of the flesh.
How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot (blemish) to God, purge (cleanse) your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?’ (Heb.9:11-14)
Yeh friends, Jesus offered His sinless life to the Father so that we could receive remission of sins, and the Father accepted His sacrifice. That’s why He is the ONLY way to the Father! Much LOVE!
…there’s only ONE way to get to heaven…through Jesus…
P.S. Please excuse the lateness of the Bit. I was somewhat tardy myself this morning. (smile) Much LOVE!
05 Jan 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: 2018, a bomb Cyclone, anchored in the word, angel of the Lord, be not afraid, beady eyes, blessed be the Lord, buckler, carnal appetites, Christians, cold and snowy, consequences, contrary to, deep freeze, deliverer, enemies, faithful promise, fiery furnace, fires, fortress, Friday chant, fun, furthering God's kingdom, generous help, go overboard, goal, good cheer, heard my supplications, heartache, hell no, horn, hot toddies, I am helped, I will trust, in Jesus' name, in the world, Jesus Christ, like a lion, Lord and Saviour, my god, my heart greatly rejoices, my heart trusted in him, my shield, overcome the world, partying, peace, play, play in the snow, prayer for deliverance, preincarnate Christ, refreshed, relaxation, renewed, resilience, rest, roaring, rough times, salvation, saved, Shadrach Meshach Abednego, shield, slave labour, snowbirds, strength, surging sea tides, TGIF! Thank God is Friday, the East Coast of N. America, The Lord is my rock, The Lord is my strength, the North Country, the spirit of the Lord, the weekend, the workingman's song, times of need, trials, tribulations, trouble, truth, twinkle, unscathed, weather, week of work, will I praise him, winter in Florida, winter storm, with my song, working for Jesus, workingman, worthy to be praised
Psalm 28:7. The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him.
Ah mih people, 2018 has certainly come roaring in like a ravaging lion with a wicked winter storm mashing up the East coast of North America, after we’ve already been in a deep freeze for the past two weeks.
Boston is apparently a mess from snow and flooding caused by surging sea tides. Places in Florida that have not seen snow in decades have certainly seen it now. All the snowbirds that left Canada to winter in Florida must be pretty annoyed.
They’re calling this extraordinary winter storm a ‘Bomb Cyclone!’ Why I don’t know, but it’s certainly living up to its name. Let’s hope that my li’l area doesn’t get any of it, because all we’ve been seeing and feeling recently is white and cold! Hn!
But I must say that the ordinary workingman does have an extraordinary resilience to this type of weather, for it has not stopped him from boldly declaring his song: ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday and the weekend reach at last! So it cold and snowy, so what? Is winter in the north country, that’s what it’s all about!
We not going to let a li’l bit of snow and cold stop our partying, stop us from enjoying we two days off from slave labour! Hell no! We going to go outside and play in the snow, then come inside and warm up with some hot toddies! (And his beady eyes twinkle at the thought) What a wonderful weekend it’s going to be! Thank God for Fridays and weekends yes!’
Ah Lord eh! I daresay that not all of us are feeling that way. Definitely no playing in the snow…but the hot toddies…well…maybe… (smile) Now let’s chant our Friday Chant, which runs somewhat contrary to the workingman’s song, because our emphasis is not on play and our carnal appetites.
‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through. Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’
Oh friends, it’s not that we Christians don’t or can’t have fun, but fun is not our goal; working and living for Jesus is. And though that includes having fun, it also means being more focused and cautious about overstepping certain boundaries that can get us in serious trouble. And some of that trouble can have serious lifetime consequences. So it’s not advisable for believers to just go overboard in their leisure time.
Anyway, enough preaching; (smile) here is our Bit: ‘The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him.’ And that’s the awesome truth my brethren, as Bruh David found out during his rough times. Who else are we going to turn to in our time of need and trouble eh? Obviously the One who made us and still cares for us!
Bruh David said before our Bit: ‘Blessed be the Lord, because he hath heard the voice of my supplications.’ (Ps.28:6) And it only makes sense to turn to someone who hears your cry for help. And we’ve seen throughout the Good Book that it was to the God of his forefathers that Bruh David turned when the enemy came a calling.
Hear him from Psalm 18 – A prayer for deliverance. ‘I will LOVE thee, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength (rock), in whom I will trust; my buckler (shield), and the horn (strength) of my salvation, and my high tower (stronghold). I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies.’ (Ps.18:1:3)
What powerful sentiments my people! But that’s because Bruh David didn’t only turn to God in times of need, he kept Him in his heart ALL the time! And that’s why the Lord saved him from his enemies. Oh friends, it’s the same thing the Lord desires of us; to be with Him all the time, not just when life gets rough to remember Him and cry out for help and expect it to come right away.
Please note that Bruh David was not exempt from trials and tribulations, he had more than his fair share, but the Lord made sure that he came through them safely. Likewise friends, we will experience trouble and heartaches in our lives, but if like Bruh David, we stay anchored in the Word and faith of our great God, then He will also bring us through the fires of our lives unscathed.
Remember how he brought out the three Jewish boys, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego from the fiery furnace, without them even smelling of smoke. And more importantly, while they were in the furnace, king Nebuchadnezzar saw four people in there. Obviously the fourth was either the preincarnate Christ who often appeared in the Old Testament, or an angel of the Lord sent to protect them. (Daniel 3)
So my faithful brethren, it only makes good sense, it’s eternal wisdom to place our trust in the One who created us and still cares for us. And there’s no better way to end today than with the ever-faithful promise of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
‘These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33) Words to live by my people! Much LOVE!
…with the Spirit of the Lord dwelling in us…there’s absolutely no need to be afraid…
22 Dec 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a blast, a human being, a long weekend, adversary, afflictions, assert His claim, babe in swaddling clothes, be very careful, Beelzebub, big fashion, boundaries, brighten it up, called us, carnally, carousing, celebrate, celebrations, chomping at the bit, christ jesus, Christ's first Coming, Christians, Christmas Season, confirm, conqueror, destroy, dominion, drinking, drunk or sober, earthly sojourn, eating, enjoying, eternal darkness, eternal glory, evil face, family, fellowship, first coming, for all the ages, free time, Friday chant, friends, fun, further God's kingdom, generous help, glory, glory to God, grace, Granny's warning, I made it through, in Jesus' name, in the offing, left out in the cold, let our hair down, limits, LOVE, lowly, Lucifer, meaning of Christmas, mighty King, mind yuh business, modicum of circumspection, obnoxiously, one to remember, open season, over-the -top, peace, perfect, poor, prone to mistakes, refreshed, relaxation, renewed, resist, rest, right now, roaring lion, Second Coming, seeking, settle, sinful world, slave work, snow, sober, soul body mind, spiritually, stablish, steadfast, strengthen, suffered, temptaions, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, the Birth of Christ, the devil, the evil one, the God of all grace, the Lord's work, the second time around, the SON, the Spirit of Jesus, the throne of David, the worst thing, thief in the night, time off, vigilant, visiting, vulnerable, walks about, week of work, weekend, white stuff, whom he may destroy, win believers, workingman, wrongdoing
1 Peter 5:8. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.
Oh my people, would you believe that that white stuff has come back again? Chuh! Thought we had gotten rid of it for a longer while with the warm temps of the last few days. But no, it’s back again, and this time it’s not as beautiful as the first.
The idea of the second time around being better than the first is definitely not true here, because it’s a dark, cloudy day, there’s no sun to physically brighten it up.
However, there is the Son! Glory to God! He’s always around to brighten up our lives, especially in this Christmas Season as we prepare to celebrate His first coming! And yuh better believe His Second Coming will be even bigger and better than the First!
For then He won’t be coming as a mere babe in swaddling clothes, poor and lowly, but as a mighty King and Conqueror, coming to assert His claim to the throne of His Father, Bruh David and finally bring some true peace and LOVE to our miserable, sinful world!
But it’s obvious you can’t have the Second without the First, and you won’t be with Him in the Second if you’re not with Him in the First! So please get with Him RIGHT NOW, otherwise it just might be too late, for He can come back at any time, like the proverbial thief in the night, and then you’ll be left out in the cold, in eternal darkness, and that’s the worst thing that can ever happen to a human being. Nuff said! (smile)
Now let’s hear what the workingman has to say on this snowy morning. As usual he loudly declares: ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday! And though it snow, that won’t keep me back from enjoying mih free time this weekend. No mih son, not at all! And yuh better believe is a real long weekend too, no more slave work until Tuesday, and is Christmas weekend to boot.
Thank God for being born on the weekend oui, so that we have more time off, more time away from the slave labour, more time with we friends and family so that we could celebrate in real big fashion; plenty eating and drinking, carousing and visiting friends and neighbours. This long Christmas weekend definitely going to be a blast! One to remember for all the ages! Thank God for it yes, mih brethren!’
Yes friends, let’s hope that this Christmas will be one we long remember, but not just for the over-the-top celebrations, but because we truly had the Spirit of Jesus in our hearts and sincerely contemplated, really pondered, the true meaning of Christ’s First Coming.
Now let’s declare our Friday Chant, which is much more circumspect than that of the ordinary workingman. As though we really mean it now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through.
Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’
Oh my people, limits and boundaries, and still putting the Lord’s work first is a condition of our earthly sojourn, which in no way detracts from our celebrations; we just celebrate a li’l more spiritually than carnally. (smile) And I’d be very amiss from my duties if I didn’t invoke Granny’s warning at this awesome time of celebration. ‘Sonny boy, drunk or sober, please mind yuh business!’
Yes my fellow believers, Beelzebub will be all about in full deceptive fashion this long Christmas weekend! You can bet yuh bottom dollar on that! What sweeter time to catch us in wrongdoing than when we’re celebrating the birth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ?
You can see him in the background now, with a big smile all over his evil face, just chomping at the bit, knowing that it will be open season on many of us supposed Christians. We going to let our hair down and he’s going to jump quickly into the space we afford him.
So let’s be very careful friends. Let’s celebrate, but with a modicum of circumspection. Let’s do as our Bit so wisely advises: ’Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.’
Ah mih people, there could be no wiser advice to us all this Christmas weekend, for the evil one will definitely be out on the prowl, knowing that at this particular time of year we are very prone to mistakes, very vulnerable to his temptations.
But as Peter further cautions: ‘Whom resist steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in (are being experienced by) your brethren that are in the world.’ (1 Pet.5:9) So we are all subject to like temptations and afflictions.
‘But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish (confirm), strengthen, settle you.’ (1 Pet.5:10) Yeh friends, the same Christ Jesus that we’re celebrating will help us resist the constant temptations of the evil one. Therefore, ‘To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.’ (1 Pet.5:11)
Now brethren, let’s go out and celebrate Christ like we’ve never celebrated Him before, not obnoxiously, but with circumspection and common sense! Let’s win believers for Him, instead of loosing believers to the evil one. That’s the best way to celebrate Christ’s birth! Much LOVE!
…oh…what wonderful…but circumspect celebrations…are in the offing…this Christmas season…
15 Dec 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a discerner, a thief in the night, able to judge, all things, all-powerful, almighty god, archaic, be ready, believers, best gift, Bethlehem, boundaries, breath of life, Christians, Christmas, closest friend, discern his thoughts, drink up deh liquor, dust of the earth, eath up deh food, enthusiasm, erupt, eternal damnation, excuse, fellowship, fight God's word, Friday chant, friend, fun, furthering your glorious kingdom, gain a foothold, generous help, God's eyes, going by everybody, in Jesus' name, inactive, inept, inner secrets, Jesus Christ, joints and marrow, limits, living, loving god, merciful, miraculous birth, naked, of man's mind, of the heart, old, opened to His eyes, party hearty, partying, piercing, powerful, pretense, quick, redeeming saviour, relationship with Jesus, relaxation, rest, safely through, save mankind, scrutiny, Second Coming of Jesus, sharper than any twoedged sword, sin, sincerity, song of freedom, soul and spirit, takes your breath away, TGIF! Thank God is Friday, thanks and praise, the dividing asunder, the enemy, the lime buss, the weekend, the Word of god, thoughts and intentions, too much leeway, volcanic fashion, week of work, workingman, you can run, you can't hide
Hebrews 4:12. For the word of God is quick (living), and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of (is able to judge) the thoughts and intents (intentions) of the heart.
Ten more days friends, ten more days to the Big Day of Christmas! Then the celebrations will erupt in volcanic fashion, as in all parts of the world we give thanks and praise to Almighty God for the miraculous birth of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, born two thousand years ago on a wintry night in Bethlehem of Judea, to grow to manhood, and eventually save mankind from sin and eternal damnation.
Exalt His holy name my people, for it’s the best gift mankind has ever received! And on this chilly Friday morning, the ordinary workingman is also out there singing his song of freedom. ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday! The weekend here! At long last mih li’l time of freedom come! And as is Christmas time to boot, the partying going to be even greater than usual.
We going by everybody to eat up deh food and drink up deh liquor! When the lime buss so, people wouldn’t know what hit them! And please, doh tell me nothing about partying too much nuh, because if I could work for five days straight, then I could at least party hearty for two. So just leh we thank the Lord for Fridays and weekends yes!’
And believe me friends, that is exactly what’s happening in some parts of our world. (smile) But as Christians, as believers in Jesus Christ, that is just simply too much leeway for us, as it gives the enemy too many opportunities to get a foothold in our lives and thus mess with our relationship with Jesus.
And we certainly don’t want anything to mess with that, the most important and wonderful relationship ever! That’s why we have certain boundaries and limits that we try not to cross over, and why our Friday Chant is so different to that of the ordinary workingman. So let’s declare it now nuh, with suitable enthusiasm and sincerity.
‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through. Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’
Yes my people, it doesn’t prohibit us from having fun, but it also emphasizes the necessity to get ready for next week. And, as believers, we should always be ready: readiness should be a constant state of our lives, especially being ready for the Second Coming of Jesus, which can occur at any time, like the proverbial thief in the night.
Now it’s time to check out our Bit; such a mighty piece of scripture, than when you read it, it just takes your breath away. ‘For the word of God is quick (living), and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of (is able to judge) the thoughts and intents (intentions) of the heart.’
Ah mih bredden, that just shows that we cannot fool with the Word of God, for it’s all-seeing and knowing and more powerful than any man-made instrument! And Bruh Paul adds this addendum after our Bit which corroborates our statement. ‘Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in (hidden from) his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do (must give account).’(Heb.4:13)
Yeh friends, you can run, but you certainly can’t hide from your Creator! So those of us who are trying to get away from Him, please, let’s stop the foolishness nuh, for He knows your every move before you even think them. It’s so much easier, and wiser, to just give in to Him and say, ‘Lord, here I am, take me, I’m yours, now and forever more! Amen!’
Now here is some info from the scholars re our Bit and the succeeding verse. ‘4:12-13. For the word of God: The reason given for one’s careful scrutiny of his life involves the reality that God is intently scrutinizing it. His word is quick (living). This word is first in the Greek and is the emphasis. God’s word is not old or archaic; it is alive.
It is not inept or inactive; it is powerful (active). It reaches into the inner secrets of man’s mind to discern even his thoughts and intents. Likewise, God’s eyes sees man as though he were naked, unable to hide behind excuse or pretense.’
What more can I say eh friends? Not a whole lot. Our whole lives are open unto the One who created us from the dust of the earth, then breathed His breath of life into our frail and fragile bodies, so trying to hide anything from Him is a total waste of time.
What’s much better is going to Him with EVERYTHING! That’s what He wants and desires, so He can be an integral, or rather the most important part, closest friend, redeeming Saviour, merciful and LOVING God in our lives. That’s who He is friends! And the sooner we realize it and accept Him, the better off we shall be. Much LOVE!
…you can’t fight God’s word…because it’s All-Powerful…
11 Dec 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a bad name, a new creature, adrenaline, agreement, all things are new, any man be in Christ, at hand, aura of love, bad habits, Belial, brand new day, cast off, celebrate, Christians, Christmas Season, chummy, confidence, contaminate, Corinthians, courageous, creation, darkness of unbelievers, diligently rise and shine, draw them to Christ, drive our engine, ebb of our spirits, enthusiasm, evil, evil times, faith, far spent, fellowship, fires us up, friends, generous help, glorious kingdom, greet the day, holy spirit, hope, humble servants, hypocrites, improvement, in common, infidel, insight, invincible, Jesus Christ, joy in our hearts, lawlessness, lies, light, light of Jesus followers, LOVE, make preparations, massive explosion, mercy, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, old things, overpower, passed away, peace, people of Christ, punctuality, put on, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, rest, righteousness., room for improvement, salvation, Satan, sincerity, sinful ways, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, strong, the armour of light, the Birth of Christ, the church of Christ, the day, the LOVE of God, the nature of Christ, the night, the temple of God, the works of darkness, trust, truth, unbelievers, unequally yoked, ungodly world, unrighteousness, wisdom, work, work our fannies off
Romans 13:12. The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.
Arise friends, arise and greet this brand new day, filled with both mercy and work. The Lord is granting us new mercy so that we can be strong and courageous and go out and diligently do His work this Monday morning. So let’s rise and shine and greet the day with joy in our hearts and the LOVE of God in our souls!
Remember it’s the Christmas season, one of the most important times of the year, when we celebrate the miraculous birth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! That alone should be enough to drive our engine this morning. But just in case it isn’t we have our favourite stand by, our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, which fires us up, even when we are at the ebb of our spirits. So without further ado, let’s sing it out with some enthusiasm and sincerity.
As one 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!’
Yuh see friends, when we put some zest in it, it just raises our spirits, gets our adrenaline flowing and make us just want to get out there and work our fannies off for Jesus. (smile) So having said all of that, let’s get a move on nuh, for as our Bit so rightly says: ‘The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.’
And just for this moment we’re going to take our Bit at face value; the night is almost done and day is dawning, so we desperately need to get up and make preparations for going to work, and getting there on time too, for punctuality is one of the strong points of the followers of Jesus.
Turning now to the philosophical side of our Bit, let’s see if we can get some more serious insight into what Bruh Paul is talking about. Now yesterday we saw it basically meant to give up the sinful ways in which we knowingly are involved; ways that don’t suit a follower of Christ. For as Bruh Paul tells the Corinthians: ‘Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature (creation): old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.’ (2 Cor.5:17)
Yes my people, when we become people of Christ, we are to shuck the old sinful habits we had, and pick up the new ones which reflect the nature of Christ. But a lot of us are still doing the old stuff and it’s giving both Christ and us a bad name. The unbelievers keep shouting ‘Hypocrites!’ And more often than not they are right.
As Bruh Paul puts it later on to the Corinthians: ‘Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness (in common) with unrighteousness (lawlessness)? and what communion (fellowship) hath light with darkness? And what concord (accord) hath Christ with Belial (Satan)? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel (unbeliever). And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? For ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.’ (2 Cor.6:14-16)
Yes friends, individually and collectively we are the temple of God, the church of Christ, and as such we need to live a life that reflects the nature of Christ, and obviously the unbeliever’s life doesn’t reflect that, so we shouldn’t be too chummy chummy with them and pick up their bad habits.
Now that doesn’t mean we can’t associate or work with them, because how else would we show and teach them about Jesus eh? However we have to make sure that their unbelief doesn’t contaminate us, and that our belief is the more powerful nature of the relationship so that we can eventually draw them to Christ.
But seriously though my believing brethren, in these troubled and evil times, we desperately need to come up higher. There is way too much strife and evil happening in our world, not enough LOVE, joy peace and goodwill, and if it continues in the current vein, it will only lead to a massive explosion, which I’m sure none of us want. So please, please, in Jesus’ name, I implore us, let’s do better nuh, for all of us have room for improvement. If not for our sakes, then for our children’s. Much LOVE!
…the light of Jesus’ followers…ought ALWAYS to overpower…the darkness of the unbelievers…
01 Dec 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: add insult to injury, all knees bow, all things consist, angelic beings, authorities, awesome glory, before all things, believing, black up, boundaries, by himself, Christian faith, Colossian heresy, control, dominions, drink up mih liquor, each step, eat down the place, exaltation, fellowship, first-born, Friday chant, fun, furthering your glorious kingdom, generous help, greed, incompetence, inhumane behaviour, injustice, invisible, Jesus Christ, make a decent living, overboard, party like no tomorrow, pay homage to angels, pittance for pay, powers, pre-eminent Christ, principalities, prosperous world, purged our sins, ranks of angels, refreshed, relaxation, renewed, rest, rulers, sat down, sins, slave labour, slaving finish, song of freedom, strife, studying the Word, TGIF! Thank God is Friday, the brightness of his glory, the enemy, the express image of his person, the means of livelihood, the right hand of the majesty, the tempter's grasp, the weekend situation, the word of his power, thrones, thumb mih nose, upholding all things, visible, week of work, workingman, worship
Hebrews 1:3. Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged (cleansed) our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.
Ah yes friends, we’ve finally progressed to the magical day called Friday… And the workingman will most definitely remind us of that fact as he vociferously declares his song of freedom. ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday, and slaving finish for this week! The next couple days is mih own to do with exactly as I please. And brother, yuh better believe I’m going to do just that!
Wow! I’m going to eat down the place, if I want to; drink up mih liquor until ah black up and tumbling down; party like there was no tomorrow, and just thumb mih nose at the massa till Monday morning roll around again. Whew! Thank God for Fridays and the weekends yes, otherwise I’d just go crazy with this slave labour and a pittance for pay!’
Unfortunately my brethren, the ordinary workingman is finding it increasingly difficult to make a decent living in this prosperous world through the greed, incompetence and inhumane behaviour of those who own and control the means of livelihood. And sometimes you can’t really blame him when he goes overboard because the rampant injustice and strife in our society is more than enough to drive a body crazy.
Luckily for us, we belong to the Christian faith, where our Leader Jesus Christ applies boundaries to our behaviour, so we don’t go overboard and fall into the tempter’s grasp. That’s why our Friday Chant is so different to the workingman’s song. So let’s chant it out now nuh, and thus give us the better picture of how believers ought to handle the weekend situation.
In chorus now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through. Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’
Yes my fellow believers, we ought to put Christ first and get ourselves ready for another week of work, rather than add insult to injury by beating down our bodies even further and giving the enemy control of our lives. And for all of our blessings and good tidings, we have to thank our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, as our Bit says:
‘Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged (cleansed) our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.’
And today we are going to delve a li’l deeper into verses 16-17 of Col.1, where Bruh Paul talks about the pre-eminence of Christ, to help us understand the full significance of our Bit. ‘For by him were all things created that are in heaven, and that are in (on) earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities (rulers), or powers (authorities): all things are created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by (in) him all things consist.’ (Col.1:16-17)
The scholars then explain thus: ‘1:16. This verse provides the reason Christ is called the “first-born” in verse 15. Paul’s rationale is this: Since by him were all things created, then, (1) Christ must have existed before the universe, and (2) He must be greater than all He made. Thrones…dominions…principalities…powers all refer to angelic beings (cf. Eph.1:21; 3:10).
“Thrones” refer to angels who sit on thrones as rulers; “dominions” refer to domains or kingdoms over which these heavenly beings reign; “principalities” refer to rulers, and “powers” refer to angelic monarchs who wield regal power. Since Christ created these various ranks of angels, He is supreme over them.
Striking a blow at the Colossian heresy advocating angel worship (2:18), this text forbids Christians to pay homage to angels or other heavenly beings created by God.’ And re ‘1:17. By him all things consist: That is by Him all things are held together; Christ now preserves all that He made in Creation.’
Yeh friends, Christ made it all, and now holds His creation together, as He sits at the Father’s right hand advocating on our behalf. So let’s remember that and thus keep everything in its proper perspective: Christ is Creator, Lord and Saviour, and the ONLY ONE deserving of worship and exaltation, not angels or any other beings He has made.
Tomorrow we will touch some more on the angel situation, but for today, let’s ponder what we’ve said and keep believing, keep studying the Word and living it out successfully in this evil world, in Jesus name, I pray. Much LOVE!
…to whom eventually shall all knees bow…and all lips declare His awesome glory…JESUS…
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