Contemplating the Awesome Benefits of Close Communion with God! Part 2.

01 Feb 2025 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Psalm 103:2.        Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.

Awright friends, it’s our lazy-day Saturday, and a bright and sunshiny though pretty cold one; something like minus 13. Nevertheless, it’s so good to see some sunshine after such a long period of damp, cloudy and dreary winter days. The sun almost blinded me when I opened the blinds a short while ago, and I said to myself, that can’t be true, sunshine after all this time? But it is true, and we thank the Lord, for His goodness to us undeserving children of men! (smile) Anyway, enough prattle, let’s turn to our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer and offer it up with all sincerity and truth. 

As one voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’ 

Oh my people, that prayer is so sweet and compelling that if our voices came from a sincere heart with right motives, the Lord cannot help but answer it with a rush of peace, calm and contentment to our needy souls. Did you feel it? I certainly did. I felt that calm and peaceful feeling just washing over me, helping me to let go of any anxieties and fears that I hitherto had. Hope the same thing happened to you, for our God is a God of comfort and peace. As Bruh Paul calls Him: ‘the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort.’ (2 Cor. 1:3) And so He is! 

Now, yesterday we began looking at some of the many benefits to be had in God’s kingdom, taking our cue from Bruh David’s words in Psalm 103: ‘Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.’ (Ps. 103:2) But unfortunately, we ran out of time after talking about two of the biggest benefits, forgiveness of sins, and healing of our diseases. So, let’s continue now with the list of benefits that Bruh David identifies. ‘Who redeemeth thy life from destruction…’ 

Now what does that mean? Well, basically “Redeeming” signifies God’s act of rescuing or saving someone from a perilous situation, in this case, from destruction. And we see it all throughout the Bible where God rescues His people from destruction. It’s a sacred promise found in Psalm 5: ‘But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest (protects, covers) them: let them also that LOVE thy name be joyful in thee. For thou, Lord, wilt bless the righteous; with favour wilt thou compass (surround) him as with a shield.’ (Ps. 5:11-12) 

And nowhere do we see that better than in Psalm 107, titled ‘God’s Redemptive Power.’ It reads: ‘O Give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy (LOVING-KINDNESS) endureth forever. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy; And gathered them out of the lands, from the east, and from the west, from the north, and from the south. 

They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary (desolate) way, they found no city to dwell in. Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them. Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distresses. And he led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city of habitation. Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness (LOVING-KINDNESS), and for his wonderful works to the children of men!’ (Ps. 107:1-8) 

Oh friends, in times of distress, when we cry out to God for help, He hears and answers. Meanwhile, ‘In the New Testament, “redemption” refers to the act of being saved from sin and its consequences through the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ, essentially “buying back” humanity from the bondage of sin by paying the price through his blood on the cross, allowing reconciliation with God and the possibility of eternal life; this is considered the central act of salvation in Christianity.’  And Bruh Paul puts it thus to the church at Ephesus: ‘In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace.’ (Eph. 1:7) 

And when we come to the next benefit; ‘who crowneth thee with (LOVING-KINDESS) and tender mercies;’ (Ps. 103:4b) it all dovetails very nicely, because when the Lord redeems us from our distresses, be they sins or physical disasters, He also crowns us with His awesome grace, favour and mercy. One is a natural part of the other. He won’t simply redeem us then leave us to our own designs. No way! Our God does everything in totality. And this next benefit tells it exactly like it is: ‘Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.’ (Ps. 103:5) 

The Lord gives us good food to eat, when we’re hungry, like He gave the Israelites manna in the wilderness for forty years, and also puts good words in our mouths, from His Word. The two of them combine to renew both our physical and spiritual selves. As Isaiah says in these well-known verses: ‘Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding. 

He giveth power to the faint (weak); and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk and not faint.’ (Is. 40:28-31) 

Oh my fellow saints, on this lazy-day Saturday, the first day of February 2025, let’s take time to ponder all that we’ve said and allow it to renew both our faith and our physical energy, so that we can mount up with wings as eagles, and not grow weary in doing the Lord’s work! Much LOVE!

…Almighty God is a total God…in Him… EVERYTHING can be found for living life…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

Thanksgiving: A time for celebration and honouring God for His goodness and mercy!

14 Oct 2024 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Psalm 107:1.        O Give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.

HAPPY  THANKSGIVING  DAY  CANADA!

And then it was another Monday…but this time, a special one in this great country of Canada! It’s Thanksgiving Day my people! The special day, when, all over the land, we take our normal celebrations of thanks and praise to our great God to a higher level, truly acknowledging His awesome presence in our lives and the numerous blessings He’s bestowed on us in this past year. And yuh better believe that we have a whole lot to be thankful for, especially life and breath to see another new day and experience His new mercies and compassions. 

And it’s obviously a holiday, meaning no work for most of us, but plenty celebrations. However, as always, we implore us to have a modicum of circumspection in our celebrations and don’t let them go overboard, because far too often in our festive times we overdo it, and unnecessary tragedy follows.  Please, let’s not allow that to happen today. And remember we’re going back to work tomorrow, which means don’t celebrate too intensely, too far into the night. (smile) 

Ah friends, despite our many problems, our country is so blessed, that we need to truly appreciate it! Why do you think so many people are trying to flee from other countries to come here? Because we have a standard of living and a peace and serenity that they cannot find in their own countries. That’s something we ought to cherish and try to maintain, by not allowing the old animosities from the old countries to take root here, and thus continue the same old patterns from which we’re trying to flee. 

We’re trying to build a new and better life, and that can only be done when we live in unity and not disharmony. As these oh so appropriate words of Bruh David from Psalm 133 stipulate: ‘Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!’ (Ps. 133:1) Yes, my fellow Canadians, if we don’t put aside our old animosities, we’ll never move forward as a nation. Or as Cousin Sol puts it in Proverbs. ‘Where there is no vision (prophetic or divine revelation), the people perish (cast off restraint): but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.’ (Prov. 29:18) 

And that’s oh so true! Where we don’t follow God’s law, or moral compass, we will suffer moral and spiritual decline, which will only lead to chaos, as we’re seeing happening in so many countries of the world right now. And before we run out of time and space, let’s have a look at some scriptures that encourage thanksgiving, beginning with these wonderful verses from Psalm 103: 

‘Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with LOVING-KINDESS and tender mercies; Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.’ (Ps. 103:1-5) Now, what better circumstances do we need to give thanks to our great God eh? 

Then Bruh Paul, writing to the Philippians strongly advises us to: ‘Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say rejoice. Let your moderation (gentleness, graciousness) be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. Be careful (anxious) for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your request be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.’ (Phil. 4:4-7) Yes friends, everything we do unto God, should be with thanksgiving. 

Now, listen to these marvellous words from Psalm 107.  ‘O Give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy; And gathered them out of the lands, from the east, and from the west, from the north, and from the south. They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary (desolate) way; they found no city to dwell in. Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them. 

Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them out of their distresses. And he led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city of habitation. Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men! For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness.’ (Ps. 107:1-9) Now, those are all wonderful reasons for thanksgiving my people! 

And we’ll close with these awe-inspiring words from words from Isaiah: ‘And in that day thou shalt say, O Lord, I will praise thee: though thou wast angry with me, thine anger is turned away, and thou comfortedst me. Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the Lord JEHOVAH is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation. 

Therefore with joy shall we draw water out of the wells of salvation. And in that day shall ye say, Praise the Lord, call upon his name, declare his doings (deeds) among the people, make mention that his name is exalted. Sing unto the Lord; for he hath done excellent things: this is known in all the earth.’ (Is. 12:1-5) 

And that’s no lie my fellow believers, our God has done great things in the earth, the greatest possibly being giving us salvation and eternal life through Jesus Christ! So on this special day of Thanksgiving, let’s go confidently to the throne of grace, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, seeking divine aid in these turbulent and strife-filled times. 

Altogether: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems. Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. 

So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems. Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’ 

And to get divine aid, we must do exactly what our prayer says: pray and sincerely seek God’s face, while turning from our evil ways. There’s no other way! Much LOVE!

…the giving of thanks…should be a continuous…everyday occurrence…for believers…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

The Importance of Giving God Thanks for His Awesome Goodness and Mercy!

15 Jul 2024 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Psalm 107:1.        Oh give thanks unto the Lord for he is good: for his mercy (LOVING-kindness) endureth for ever. 

Another Monday…another day of work, bordered by morning and evening traffic jams! Yes, unfortunately that’s the sad reality in many big cities nowadays; not enough roads to handle the large volume of vehicular traffic. And don’t talk about that concrete jungle called Toronto! Right now, it’s even worse than normal with the daytime repairing of two lanes of the Gardener Expressway which leads into the heart of the city. Then to make matters worse, almost every street is barricaded due to building construction or street repairs. 

Sometimes the confusion of construction and repairs in the summer months, makes you long for the relative peace of winter. (smile) But that’s how our world is set up; cram vehicles and people into the cities in the morning for work, then watch them try to rush out in the evening, without much success. And sadly the process contributes to the loss of a great number of man hours, severe frustration, physical and emotional strain. 

One would have thought that with the magnitude of wisdom supposedly entrenched in our society, a more efficient, less stressful system would be employed. However, that’s the way it currently is, and it won’t change for the foreseeable future, so let’s just say thank you we have a job to go to, despite all the frustration involved, for many of our fellow humans don’t have jobs and are facing much more severe hardship than us. 

That brings us to these most encouraging words from Psalm 107: ‘Oh give thanks unto the Lord for he is good: for his mercy (LOVING-kindness) endureth for ever.’ (Ps. 107:1) And that’s as it should be my fellow believers! For although we will encounter unforeseen negative circumstances in this rough and tumble life, our faith in Christ Jesus will enable us to face them from a position of strength rather than one of weakness. 

As Moses said to the Israelites: ‘And the Lord shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if that thou hearken (heed) unto the commandments of the Lord thy God which I command thee this day, to observe and to do them (be careful to observe them).’ (Deut, 28:13) And what does that mean? Exactly what it says. If you obey the Lord’s commands you will never be inferior or the tail, but always superior or the head. 

And that leads us to this prayer based on Deuteronomy 28:3-14. ‘In the Name of Jesus, I declare…. I am blessed in the city and blessed in the country. I am the head and not the tail in my finances, my family, my health, my job and my ministry—not just sometimes, but all the time. Every day, in every way, I am the head and not the tail.’ Now that’s an interesting prayer we should offer up everyday. 

Then let us not forget these marvellously encouraging words of Bruh Paul to the church at Rome. ‘What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spareth not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?…Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that LOVED us.’ (Rom. 8:31-32, 37) 

Yes friends, if our great God, who willingly broke His own heart, gave up His most treasured relationship by crucifying His Son Jesus Christ for our benefit, why wouldn’t He give us lesser things than that eh? No reason whatsoever! 

And as this commentary further explains: ‘Nothing that enters our life is able or sufficient to separate us from God’s LOVE demonstrated at the cross. God’s LOVE allows the believer to be a conqueror in adversity. God walks with us through every adversity and hardship. We do not merely survive or squeak by. We do not just succeed.’ 

No my brethren, with God in our corner, we don’t just succeed, we overcome with flying colours.  As Jesus says: ‘These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33) And if we are His true disciples, then we too can overcome the world. 

Friends, it’s all a matter of faith, of belief. For as Jesus also says: ‘If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove (move); and nothing shall be impossible to you.’ (Matt. 17:20) Oh my people, Jesus was just highlighting that it doesn’t take much faith for God to work in a person, but the disciples needed to believe it, and so do we. 

Yes, we can know the Bible verbatim from cover to cover and don’t believe what it says, and then put it into action, then all our effort to learn it was a waste of time. The Bible is only useful when we believe it, then action it. Now let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, seeking help with out many earthly problems. 

Altogether: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems. Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. 

So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems. Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’ 

And if we truly desire divine aid, then we need to turn from our evil ways and sincerely seeks God’s face. Much LOVE!

…head knowledge is of no use…unless it’s accompanied by heart action

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

Today’s Scrip-Bit   8 March 2023 Psalm 106:3.

08 Mar 2023 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Psalm 106:3. Blessed are they that keep judgement (justice), and he that doeth righteousness at all times.

Oh boy, it’s another brand new sunshiny day, filled with all the many mercies and compassion of our great God. And isn’t it wonderful to know that every day, regardless of the weather or our circumstances, has them brand new, newly made. Yes friends, no left-over mercies or compassions for our God! He cares for His children too much to allow them to have leftovers. (smile) That means on this middle of the week Wednesday, we can truly rise up and declare (yesss!!!): ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we WILL rejoice and be glad in it.’ (Ps. 118:24) 

Why? Because our God is good, and He’s good to us all of the time. The psalmist said it so perfectly in Psalm 107. ‘O Give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy (LOVING-kindness) endureth for ever.’ (Ps. 107:1) Wow! What a statement! But what does it mean eh? One commentary explains it thus: ‘This means that as long as He exists, He will be good. No factor controls His goodness, God is good all the time. In fact, ‘good’ began with God. We associate the word “good” with people but forget that God made people in His own image.’ 

Wow! I just had to say it again, (smile) because it is a wow moment to realize that we’re made in the beautiful image of Almighty God! And are we ever privileged to declare (yesss!!!) that we are the only one of His many creations that have that marvellous, miraculous and momentous honour! And Psalm 106, after opening with the same basic statement as Psalm 107, continues: ‘Who can utter (express) the mighty acts of the Lord? who can shew forth all his praise? Blessed are they that keep judgement (justice), and he that doeth righteousness at all times.’ (Ps. 106:2-3) 

Yes my faithful brethren, that’s what is expected of us in return for God’s continued goodness. That led the psalmist to plead: ‘Remember me, O Lord, with the favour that thou bearest unto thy people: O visit me with thy salvation; That I may see the good of thy chosen, that I may rejoice in the gladness of thy nation, that I may glory with thine inheritance (the people of thine inheritance).’ (Ps. 106:4-5) 

Now that’s a prayer, a sentiment that we should all be sincerely floating up to heaven, because like the psalmist says: ‘We have sinned with our fathers, we have committed iniquity, we have done wickedly.’ (Ps. 106:6) And indeed we have. For as the psalm continues: ‘Our fathers understood not thy wonders in Egypt; they remembered not the multitude of they mercies (LOVING -kindness); but provoked him at the sea, even at the Red sea. Nevertheless he saved them for his name’s sake, that he might make his mighty power to be known…Then believed they his words; they sang his praises.’ (Ps. 106: 7-8, 12) 

Ah friends, like the people of Israel, we have forgotten the Lord’s kindness. Though He parted the Red Sea for them to escape the Egyptian army, and did so many other wonders on their behalf in the wilderness, they still rebelled and followed their own lustful and sinful ways. Oh, they sang the Lord’s praise after He parted the Red Sea for them to cross over, then drowned the Egyptian army. But ‘They soon forgat his works; they waited not for his counsel: But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness, and tempted God in the desert. And he gave them their request; but sent leanness into their soul.’ (Ps. 106:13-15) 

Yes, the Lord gave the Israelites what they desired, but they suffered mightily for their rebellion, with all kinds of natural disasters,; fires, earthquakes, physical sickness, snakebites, etc. etc. And likewise, are we currently suffering for our rebellion, after the Lord gave His Only Son, Jesus Christ as our Saviour and Redeemer, showed His redemptive powers and heart, but we continue in our evil deeds and ungodliness. No wonder we’re experincing so many unaccustomed natural disasters; snow in places that haven’t seen it in generations, volcanoes erupting that haven’t done so for ages, worldwide famine, drought, strife, greed, envy, poverty, economic frustration and pandemics like the world has never seen all at one time together! 

Please don’t tell me that the hand of God is not somewhere in all of that natural as well as manmade disaster. And even if He’s not causing it, He’s certainly not preventing it. That ought to tell us something. But, like the Israelites of old, we’re so taken up with our own petty, prideful selves, that we’re too busy to notice what God’s doing. We’ve become so enamoured of ourselves and the amazing society we’ve developed that we’ve forgotten where it all comes from, and who gave us the ability to do it; Almighty God. 

Our egos are now so big, that we believe we don’t even need God any longer in our lives, so we’re trying to remove Him from our society. And by the way, that word EGO, is an acronym for ‘Edging God Out.’ But that’s a dream that will NEVER come to pass. For though the Lord might allow us to fool ourselves into thinking we’re removing Him, the earth and all therein is His creation and He WILLNEVER give up His possession. God said it quite clearly a long time ago through the prophet Isaiah. ‘I am the Lord: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images.’ (Is. 42:8) 

Just ask the foolish, power-hungry once upon a-time archangel Lucifer, now renamed Satan about that. And the Israelites also found that out the hard way, like we are currently doing. But unlike them, we don’t have the wisdom or humility to turn back to God when we find our lives falling apart and there’s nothing we can do, or will do to stop it. Down deep, the Israelites knew where their bread was buttered, and after every rebellious period, when their lives were becoming extremely difficult, they repented and returned to the God of their Fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. 

And being the ever-LOVING, forgiving, gracious and merciful God He is, He took them back and restored their worthless lives. But no, our generation is so pompous and foolish, despite all our own insufficent efforts to right our societal woes, we refuse to even consider a return to godly ways as a means of solving our many problems. End of sermon!

 Now, for those of us who are trying to live right, to live for Christ, let’s go home declaring (awright!!!) our Wednesday Wail, letting the whole word know of our wonderful position in Christ Jesus, so that hopefully some of them will joyfully come to know Him. Altogether now: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday! I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’ 

And for those of us wise enough to endure to the very end with Jesus, then that future will be even more glorious than we can ever ask or imagine! So please, let’s use that to encourage us to endure to the end nuh. Much LOVE!

…the earth is the Lord’s…and the fulness thereof…the world…and they that dwell therein… (Ps. 24:1)  

 Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ   

Today’s Scrip-Bit   27 November 2022 Exodus 34:6.

27 Nov 2022 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Exodus 34:6.        The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth.

Sunday, oh Sunday! Time for God’s people to gather in praise and worship, to honour His day with thanksgiving for all that He’s done, is currently doing, and has promised to do for us! And all, with one accord said: ‘Praise the Lord for His goodness to the children of men.’ 

And that segues us right into our song of worship today, titled ‘The Goodness of God.’ It’s a song of praise to our good and faithful God, written by Jenn Johnson, one half of the worship duo Brian and Jenn Johnson. She claims that ‘the song was inspired by the process of adopting her fourth child, as she had been singing impromptu into her phone while driving on a long country road about the faithfulness and kindness of God. The song was then developed from the impromptu recording.’  

Now there have been many renditions of the song down through the years, most of them slow and soulful, but today we’re going to do a soulful but lively version a la Jenn Johnson and the Bethel Church, with plenty sincere exuberance and enthusiasm, as if we truly mean what we’re singing. So, lets’ get with the sacrificial praise to high heaven.  

‘I love You Lord Oh Your mercy never fails me And all my days I’ve been held in Your hands From the moment that I wake up Until I lay my head down, Oh I will sing of the goodness of God (Chorus: All my life You have been faithful And All my life You have been so, so good. With every breath that I am able, Oh I will sing of the goodness of God.) I LOVE your voice. You have led me through the fire. In my darkest night, you were close like no other. I’ve known you as a Father, I’ve known you as a friend, Oh I have lived, in the goodness of God. 

(Chorus: Yeahhh! And all my life You have been faithful…I will sing of the goodness of God) Yeah, yeah, it’s so good! Your goodness is running after, It’s running after me. Your goodness is running after, it’s running after me. With my life laid down, I’m surrendered now, I give you everything, cause your goodness is running after, It’s running after me. Oh cause Your goodness is running after, it’s running after me. With my life laid down, I’m surrendered now, I give you everything, cause your goodness is running after, It’s running after me. Your goodness is running after, it keeps running after me. 

And All my life You have been faithful And All my life You have been so, so good With every breath that I am able, Oh I’m going to sing, Oh I’m going to sing of the goodness of God. For all my life you have been faithful, all my life you have been so good. Oh you lead me in glory…ever-faithful, you are my anchor in the wind and the waves… you are my provider…Oh yeah…and you lead me in glory by your spirit…you are my joy…my joy…every day…Oh shepherd of my soul…what a joy to know you…Oh, the joy of knowing you God…you’re everything to me…so wonderful…so wonderful in all your ways…in all your ways. That’s why I will always sing of your goodness Lord…always sing of your goodness Lord.’  

And that’s exactly the way it ought to be my faithful brethren; be grateful for God’s amazing goodness, and continually let Him know it! And what’s this goodness, what’s it’s spiritual meaning? They say that ‘Goodness is action; it’s not something we do only for the sake of being virtuous. When we strive to be “good” only for our own benefit, it is not truly goodness that we possess. In Greek, the word goodness, “agathosune,” means “an uprightness of heart and life” And that’s the gospel truth! Jesus desires us to show goodness, or kindness to all we meet, ‘to be compassionate, understanding;  to care for others with a pure spirit; and to realize that true life only comes through Christ.’ 

That’s His basic agenda. And how do we experience the goodness of God? One commentary says: ‘It’s through the promises of God’s Word that we partake of His nature—a nature that is peace, abundance, healing, victory, guidance and protection. His promises are a pipeline that connects us with His nature. And His promises are exceedingly great and precious’ 

And that commentator referenced (2 Peter 1:3-4), which tells us: ‘According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.’ Yes friends, we experience God’s goodness through the many wonderful promises found in His Word. 

And James further tells us that ‘Every good gift and perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness (variation), neither shadow of turning.’ (James 1:17) Oh my people, ALL the good things we have in this life comes from and unchanging and ever-generous God! I like How Bruh David says it in Psalm 27: ‘I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.’ (Ps. 27:13) Can you imagine the terrible state we’d be in if the goodness of God wasn’t available in these turbulent and dangerous times? Hn! I don’t even want to think about it. 

That’s why the psalmist so avidly declares (yesss!!!) in Psalm 107: ‘Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness (LOVING-kindness), and for his wonderful works to the children of men! For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness.’ (Ps. 107:8-9) And the Lord Himself spoke of His goodness when Moses went back up Mt. Sinai the second time to receive the Ten Commandants. He descended in a cloud and passed before Moses and proclaimed: ‘The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth.’ (Ex, 34:6) 

And we know our God does not lie, neither does Jesus Christ, thus His reply to the rich, young ruler who called Him ‘Good Master (Teacher)’ when enquiring how to obtain eternal life. Jesus said to him, ‘Why callest thou me good? There is none good but one, that is God.’ (Mark 10:18) Now that’s something for us to chew on, to ponder this Sunday as we sincerely contemplate our relationship to our good God. Much LOVE!

…oh…give thanks unto the Lord…for he is good…for his mercy endureth for ever… (1 Chr. 16:34)  

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Today’s Scrip-Bit 6 May 2021 Psalm 107:6.

06 May 2021 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Psalm 107:6.     Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them out of their distresses.

Give it up for Thursday friends! Give thanks for the renewed breath of life flowing through us, with the Lord’s new mercies and compassions, fresh off the line, made especially for today! It is certainly an immense pleasure and privilege to do life with Jesus on another new day! Oh, glory be my people! Therefore, like the psalmist of old, we can most definitely declare (steups!) in grateful appreciation: ‘O Give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy (LOVING-kindness) endureth for ever.’ (Ps. 107:1) 

Yes, my faithful brethren, we ought to be continually pouring out our thanks to the Lord God for His unending goodness to the children of men! I hate to think what would become of us if His mercies and compassions were not always available to us, despite the inherent sinfulness in our souls. And Psalm 107 is such a magnificent acknowledgement of God’s goodness to mankind that we going to look through it and cull some wonderful scriptures from it. 

Here is the first one: ‘Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy.’ (Ps. 107:2) And yuh better believe that is what we ought to be crying out in loud voice and sincere appreciation my brethren, because the Lord went out of His way to redeem us from eternal separation and destruction by sending His sinless Son to die on the cross to atone for our abominable sins! Now isn’t that something to be proud of and everlastingly grateful? It surely is! So why aren’t we proud of Him, and shouting out to all and sundry His wonderful mercies eh? 

Because we are a bunch of proud and arrogant ingrates! And why do I say so? Just listen as the psalmist continues. ‘And gathered them out of the lands, from the east, and from the west, from the north, and from the south. They wandered in the wilderness is a solitary (desolate) way; they found no city to dwell in. Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them. Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them out of their distresses. And he led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city of habitation.’ (Ps. 107:3-7) 

Yuh see that mih people, when Israel found themselves in difficulty from their gross disobedience, they cried out to the Lord and He saved them from their problems. And I like how Asaph puts it in Psalm 50 – God is the judge. Talking about sacrificial offerings of animals, he speaks on God’s behalf. ‘If I were hungry, I would not tell thee: for the world is mine, and the fullness thereof. Will I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats? Offer up unto God thanksgiving; and pay thy vows unto the Most High: And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.’ (Ps. 50:12-15) 

Yeh friends, that’s how the redeemed of the Lord ought to behave! No wonder the author of Psalm 107, takes issue with us and sadly declares (spelled it wrong there too): ‘Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness (LOVING-kindness), and for his wonderful works to the children of men.’ (Ps. 107:8) We should have no problem in doing that nuh mih bredrin. But unfortunately, we seem to have just such a problem. 

And here’s why the psalmist tell us to give thanks and praises to our great and wonderful God. ‘For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness. Such as sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, being bound in affliction and iron (prisoners). Because they rebelled against the words of God, and contemned (despised) the counsel of the Most High:’ (Ps. 107:9-11) 

Oh precious people, those words speak directly to our situation right now. We stubbornly and arrogantly rebelled against God, trying to kick Him out of our society! And what happened? ‘Therefore he brought down their heart with labour; they fell down, and there was none to help.’ (Ps. 107:12) Any fool can see the obvious resemblance there to our current society, where we are suffering all kinds of problems and the more we try to solve them in our own strength, the greater the mess and confusion we’re making. 

So what’s the answer eh? It’s obvious friends: ‘Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and brake their bands in sunder (broke their chains in pieces).’ (Ps. 107:13-14) Yuh know, it still boggles my puny mind, that in all the troubles that we currently facing in this sick and strife filled world, very few of us, and none of the powers that be, are even considering calling unto the Most High God Jehovah for help. We’re only concerned about doing it in our own strength. 

But what about the God of our fathers eh? Have we forgotten so quickly how good He was to them when they called out to Him in troubled times? It certainly seems so. But friends, please believe, that our problems will not be solved until we turn back to the God of our fathers, and do like the psalmist says: ‘Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness (LOVING-kindness), and for his wonderful works to the children of men!’ (Ps. 107:15) 

And now that we have set us straight on that matter, (smile) let’s go home declaring (oh yeah!!!) our Thursday Blessings, which our magnificent and magnanimous God has seen fit to bless us most generously with to do His earthly work. In one loud and sincere voice: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment!  

I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that has ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’ 

Oh my faithful believers, we are ever so blessed, that we can’t truly appreciate it! However, let’s go out now and generously share all those wonderful blessings with others who so desperately need them nuh, for that’s what Jesus desires of us! Much LOVE!

…man’s first responsibility…is to praise God… to give Him thanks…to glorify His holy name…                                  

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