12 Jun 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a deficiency in faith, a glorious future with Christ, belief, believe that ye receive them, cancer cells, come to himself, face the unpalatable situation, for gladness, glory hallelujah, hath delivered me, Herod, I know of a surety, I me myself, in the world, it is his angel, James, keep praying, looking forward to, medical people aggressive, miraculous way, mother of John Mark, not looking back, O ye of little faith, of the church unto God, of the world, outside the Lord's will, Peter, Peter kept in prison, prayer was made, radiation treatment, renovations, simple minds, stand strong, the angel of the Lord, the breath of life, the church community, the expectation of the Jews, the hand of Herod, the house of Mary, thou art mad, ungodly times, Wednesday Wail, when ye pray, with God's help, without ceasing
Acts 12:5. Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him.
Oh friends, 11 of them down, ONLY 22 more to go! Wow! And I’m not talking about friends passing on, (smile) I’m talking about visits to the hospital for them to zap some cancer cells they claim are existing and thriving where my prostate once lay. You could have knocked me over with a feather when the doctor told me I needed 33 sessions!
And no, it’s not a difficult situation, because the radiation only takes about 15 minutes per session, but is it ever inconvenient; five days a week, Monday to Friday, with a full bladder and empty bowels. That is where the difficulty comes in. And the cut-tail part for me is that the heart people don’t want me to have too much fluid in my body, so they give me stuff to get it out, but these radiation people want me to full up my poor soul and body with water.
I’ve already begun drinking water for today’s session. (smile) So for one part of the day I’m piling in the water, then the next part I’m letting it back out. Brother, can it ever be a pain…in the you know where! (smile) It even interferes with my sleep! But if they say it’s all for my good, then I can’t really complain. And I was able to get the treatments transferred to a cancer hospital close to me, because no way was I going into the big city five days a week for almost 7 weeks.
And now you’re up to date on all the renovations the Lord’s putting me through… And to be truthful, I wasn’t really expecting this one nuh. I thought we were all done with renovations. It’s going on two and half years of steady renovations now. And the medical people were so aggressive! I was willing to put it off for a while, but they wanted it done now! Ah Lord eh! Sometimes I think they just take pleasure in zapping people. (smile) And are there ever a lot of people coming to get zapped!
But let’s hope it’s all because the Lord intends for me to live a much longer life than I would have without those renovations …otherwise it doesn’t make sense. (smile) So what else is new eh? Not much nuh… Oh you know that Alyssa has come home from the hospital and is recuperating slowly but surely. She still needs our prayers though to help her stand strong and face the unpalatable situation. So please keep praying for her.
And for your info, she’s a lay-reader in her church, and right now we’re pretty short on lay-readers, so we need her back as quickly as possible to help do the Lord’s work on a Sunday. (smile) And today I’m being led to highlight the importance of prayer for our fellow believers by individuals, as well as the church community as a whole.
And this was shown so clearly and powerfully in the early church after Herod killed James and imprisoned Peter. The Good Book states it thus: ‘Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him.’
Oh friends, that is something we don’t do nearly as much as we ought to, especially in these very evil and ungodly times. That’s a big part of what the church is supposed to be about. But unfortunately in this ‘I, me and myself ‘ society, we don’t have much time for others, even fellow saints in Christ. That’s because we supposed saints are behaving too much like the world, being of it, and not merely in it, like Jesus commanded.
And we all know what happened when the church prayed for Peter, at least I hope so (smile). The angel of the Lord came and helped him escape from prison. (Acts 12:6-10) Poor Peter never even knew what was really happening, it happened so quickly and so miraculously. Please read it if you don’t know it.
And I like how the Good Book says: ‘And when Peter was come to himself, he said, Now I know of a surety (for certain), that the Lord hath sent his angel, and hath delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from all the expectation of the people of the Jews.’ (Acts 12:11) Yes my people, our great God still does those things on behalf of His people.
But what happened after Peter was left on the sidewalk outside the prison by the angel, is cause for some concern. He ended up at ‘the house of Mary, the mother of John, whose surname was Mark; where many were gathered together praying. And as Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a damsel came to hearken (answer) named Rhoda.
And when she knew Peter’s voice, she opened not the gate for gladness, but ran in, and told how Peter stood before the gate. And they said unto her, Thou art mad (out of your mind). But she constantly affirmed that it was even so. Then said they, It is his angel. But Peter continued knocking: and when they had opened the door, and saw him, they were astonished.’ (Acts 12:12-16)
No wonder Jesus continually derided His people with the words, ‘O ye of little faith!’ Just imagine nuh, that group of believers were praying intently and fervently for Peter’s safety, but when the Lord answered their prayers, they found it difficult to believe. As the scholars so aptly put it. ‘12:12-16. Though the prayer of the church was fervent due to Peter’s situation (v.5), there was a deficiency in faith (vs.15-16) Evidently they did not believe God would answer in this miraculous way, or so soon.’
And unfortunately that deficiency in faith still exists even today when we have so much more reason to be strong in faith than the early church had. It all depends on ‘belief’ friends. Listen to Jesus tell it like it is nuh. ‘Therefore I say unto you, what things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.’ (Mark 11:24)
What’s the point of praying if you don’t think you’ll receive what you pray for eh? You won’t get all you pray for, especially if it’s outside the Lord’s will, but you won’t get it either if you don’t have strong belief. That’s what faith is all about my people. So let’s try and get a li’l stronger in the belief and faith department nuh my people. With God’s help obviously, since we can’t do it on our own.
And having sifted and settled all of that in our souls and spirits (smile) let’s go home declaring (right ho!) our Wednesday Wail, letting the world know of our safe and steadfast position in Christ Jesus. All together now: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday!
I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’
And believe you me my faithful brethren, that future will be so awesome and magnificent, that our small, simple minds can’t even contemplate it! Much LOVE!
…it’s a smiley kind of day…and why not…the sun’s shining brightly…and the Good Lord is in His heaven running things…Glory be…
10 Jun 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: Absalom, antidote, aura of love, bring it on, Christians, confidence, Davind encouraged himself, delivered me, enthusiasm, eternal life, evil, fear the Lord, fellowship, foolish mistakes, friends, from all my fears, fun, glory hallelujah, good intent, grace, he heard me, his bread was buttered, holy spirit, hope, humble servants, hunted by Saul, I sought the Lord, in the Lord his God, invincible, Jesus Christ, join in prayer, joy, let us exalt His name together, lies, like a wild animal, living in exile, LOVE, loving kindness, magnify the Lord with me, mercy, Monday blues, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, on which side, peace, rebelled against his father, rejuvenation of spirit, renewed vitality, rest, ride to battle, righteousness, righteousness., salvation, saved him out of all his troubles, sincerity, spiritual armour, stay alive, steadfast faith, taunts, the Lord's positive answer, trust, truth, ungodly world, wiles, wisdom, Ziklag
Psalm 34:3. O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together.
And then it was Monday…And all God’s people shouted: ‘Bring it on Lord! Bring it on! We’re ready and able to go out and meet the enemy in Your Name this Monday morning!’ Now that would be the day eh! (smile)
And don’t think that the Lord doesn’t want to hear that kind of response from us, because that’s exactly the kind of thing He expects His true followers to do; just get up with good intent every day, especially on Mondays, when it’s usually the hardest to get going, and fearlessly mount their horses and ride…ride to battle with the evil enemy!
But don’t worry friends, our God is a just and good God, and He knows just what we’re capable of. And though we may never reach the plateaus He desires of us, once He sees us sincerely trying, then He will be merciful and gracious to His people.
And so for those of us who just can’t seem to get it together this first day of the new workweek, let’s all join in prayer, in what we call our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, where we call on the Lord, humbly, but with the utmost confidence that He will hear and answer us in the affirmative, because it’s His will and work that we need energy and enthusiasm to go out and do.
So altogether, in strong voice 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!’
Oh friends, what an antidote to the Monday morning blues that prayer is! And what I LOVE about it, is that before we’re even finished praying it, we begin to feel the effects of the Lord’s positive answer in our souls and spirits! Oh give Him much praise, thanks, glory and exaltation my believing brethren, because He is ever so faithful to those who call upon Him in sincerity and truth!
And I’m chuckling here because I also seem to get carried away in the excitement and enthusiasm of the moment and can’t write or type fast enough to match the thoughts and words that quickly fill my mind! But that’s all because of the Lord’s mercy and LOVING-kindness, not my exceptional skill and writing talents. (smile)
Oh my people, my people, that’s exactly why we need to do as Bruh David so wisely and rightly declares (yes!) ‘O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together.’ Wow! What words of wisdom and righteousness! And although Bruh David made a lot of foolish mistakes in his time, and paid for them dearly, he did know on which side his bread was buttered. And it came through hard experience too.
But his words after our Bit are certainly telling ones, and explain why he had such an awesome reverence for the God of his forefathers. ‘I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears… This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.’ (Ps.34:4; 6) Bless His Holy Name my people, for He still delivers those who sincerely call on Him out of their troubles and from their fears!
How yuh think Bruh David managed to stay alive through all the times that Saul hunted him down like a wild animal eh? It was the Lord’s doing! And when his son Absalom caused the people to rebel against him, the Lord warned him and carried him to safety.
And think about when he was living in exile, in the Philistine territory in Ziklag, and came home one day, only to find that the Amalekites had plundered the city, then burnt it and took all the women and children captive. Then, to make matters even worse, his men wanted to stone him, because they blamed him for the loss of their families, notwithstanding that he had lost his wives and children too.
Where do you think he got the strength and wherewithal to stand up strong and stare them down? From the Lord his God! The Good Book tells it thus: ‘But David encouraged himself in the Lord his God.’ (1 Sam.30:6) Yes, friends, likewise we need to encourage ourselves in the Lord our God; every day, as often as we need to, so that we can get through each and every day successfully living for Jesus.
Otherwise, life will just beat us down and keep us down, and have us living for the devil instead. And that’s one thing we don’t want to do, because there’s no good future in that, only hellfire and eternal damnation. And we’ll end with some encouraging verses from the psalm.
‘The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them. O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. O fear the Lord, ye his saints: for there is no want (lack) to them that fear him. The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger: but they that seek the Lord shall not want (lack) any good thing.’ (Ps.34:7-10)
Oh friends, if those words don’t move you, then I don’t know what will nuh. They moved Bruh David, so much so that he became the greatest king that Israel ever knew! It’s now all up to you to decide whether to accept his words as truth or not. But I know, as for me and mine, we will serve the Lord. Much LOVE!
…of the two options we have…serving God…or serving mammon…the former is the wiser choice…
03 Jun 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a light in our eyes, a spiritual body, a spring in our step, admonishment, an enjoyable weekend, another one bites the dust, aura of love, be a burden, be your best, cancer, carefree, communicate to, condolences, confidence, conforms to God's Word, departed this world, do your best, eat any man's bread, enthusiasm, eternal life, faith, for nought, free of charge, friends, from every brother, getting motivated, glory hallelujah, going hungry, grace, holy spirit, humble servants, if any would not work, invincible, Jesus Christ, joy, keep ploughing through, lies, look your best, LOVE, make good memories, make ourselves an example, Monday blues, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, mourn, neither should he eat, night and day, our heavenly Father, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, rest, righteousness., salvation, scourge of mankind, spiritual armour, that walks disorderly, the rough minefield that's life, this we commanded you, toiled, true believers, trust, truth, ungodly world, university chums, warm the cockles of Jesus' heart, when we were with you, wisdom, withdraw yourselves, wrought with labour, young
2 Thessalonians 3:10. For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat.
‘Another one’s down! Another one’s gone! Yes, another one bites the dust!’ Ah friends, one more of my university chums has departed this world for the next. And are they ever departing at a fairly speedy rate. Chuh! I don’t even want to count how many have departed in the last three or four years because it will get too depressing.
But suffice it to say that Dr. Michael Dash Ph.D. language professor extraordinaire; (smile) has now given up his earthly body for just a spiritual one. I am not cognizant of all the facts, but I believe he was laid low by the current deadly scourge of mankind, cancer. Apparently the cancer had ravaged his body so much, that he ended up in a coma and never regained consciousness.
Ah Michael mih brother, I haven’t seen you in many a year, but we certainly had some good times way back then on the University of the West Indies Campus in Mona, Jamaica, when we were young and carefree. So regardless of what has happened in between, those memories can never be erased. And that’s why we make memories; to remind us of what life was like in earlier times. The only problem is that we must endeavour to make good memories, because who wants to remember bad memories eh?
Anyway, rest in peace Michael, and my sincere condolences go out to your family as they mourn and grieve your passing. The big problem with death though friends, is that the ones left behind have to go on, have to keep ploughing through the rough minefield that’s life as though nothing has happened. That means most of us still have to go out and labour on this Monday morning, which we’d still rather not do. (smile)
That brings us to some very interesting and important words of advice, as well as of admonishment from Bruh Paul to the Thessalonians re general behaviour. ‘Now we command you brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly and not after the tradition which he received of us. For yourselves know how ye ought to follow us: for we behaved not ourselves disorderly among you;
Neither did we eat any man’s bread for nought (free of charge); but wrought with labour (worked) and travail (toil) night and day, that we might not be chargeable (be a burden) to any of you. Not because we have not power (authority), but to make ourselves an example unto you to follow us. For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat.’ (2 Thess.3: 6-10)
Now that’s a very strong and serious admonition! Something that still holds true today. We ought to disassociate ourselves from those who refuse to walk a style of life that conforms to God’s Word. And we all ought to work as best we can to make a living. And it’s not like Bruh Paul had to work – he was a tent maker – but he wanted to set a good example for the Thessalonians. Likewise, we ought to think seriously about setting good examples for those around us.
And what a bam- bam it would be eh, if we ever introduced that rule about if you don’t work you don’t eat! (smile) Even more people would go hungry than are already going hungry for one reason or another. But since we’re true believers in Christ, that’s not in our souls and spirits at all! (smile) Some of us just have a few problems getting motivated to go out each and every Monday morning after an enjoyable weekend.
But not to worry, we have the right antidote for all those Monday blues, something called our Monday Morning Battle Hymn; sincere words of prayer, that we communicate to our heavenly Father, asking for His awesome help to get us moving. So let’s do that together now nuh, since when we agree in prayer, it makes our prayer more powerful.
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!’
And our God is so wonderful my brethren, that before the words could even quite reach up to heaven, the Father had already instructed the angels to grant our wishes! Wow! That’s why now we all feel so refreshed and energized, with a spring in our step, a new light in our eyes and a desire to get out into the evil world and just work diligently and excellently for Jesus!
So let’s go now and do just that nuh, so we can bring a smile to Jesus’ face and warm the cockles of His warm and oh so LOVING heart! Much LOVE!
…if you truly LOVE Jesus…and want to sincerely follow Him…then you need to…look your best…do your best…and be your best… (Uncle Charles –Charles Stanley)
20 May 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: almighty god, aura of love, Christians, Comforter, confidence, diligence, divine revelation, Drunk or sober mind yuh business, enthusiasm, excellence, faith, friends, glory hallelujah, glory to God, God is a Spirit, God's plans, grace, Granny's warning, Helper, holy spirit, hope, humble servants, in spirit and in truth, in truth, invincible, Jesus Christ, joy, lies, LOVE, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, near to all, orphans, our undoing, peace, privilege, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, rest, salvation, sense of purpose, spiritual, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, the Lord is nigh, the Spirit of God, the spirit of the world, trust, truth, ungodly world, Victoria Day holiday, who call upon Him, wisdom, worker bee of the Trinity, worship Him
Psalm 145:18. The Lord is nigh (near) unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.
‘Monday morning… Oh boy! No work today, no work today! Party all day…eat, drink and play, cause there’s no work today! Glory be!’ Yes friends, that’s the song a lot of people are chanting this Monday morning, as we in Canada, celebrate the Victoria Day holiday. And who’s to blame them eh? You have to take it and enjoy it when you can get it.
But just remember Granny’s warning all you party people: ‘Drunk or sober mind yuh business!’ Don’t give the enemy a chance to infiltrate your souls by throwing caution to the winds and behaving in an unacceptable bacchanalian fashion! (smile) And you know that’s what we’re liable to do when we get too party conscious and let it all hang out. So enjoy yourselves, but please be on your p’s and q’s because it’s at these sorts of times that the devil is able to get in some licks.
And unfortunately, some of us always have to go to work because of our modern 24/7 society where stuff never stops, and it’s always more difficult when the majority of workers are off. So for all you unfortunate ones, we’re going to be nice and join you in singing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn to get you started on your journey. (smile)
All together now: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
And why aren’t we surprised that the loudest, most raucous and gravelly voices were those from the partygoers eh? That’s just the way it always is; man’s natural habit to be loudly and deeply involved when the onus, or the rough time is not on them.
But I do hope that that jaunty rendition of our Monday Morning Battle Hymn did lessen the jealousy of those of you who have to go out and labour, and that you will do it with a true sense of purpose, with diligence and in excellent fashion, as becomes a sincere follower of Jesus Christ. Give Him all the glory people!
That brings us to our Bit; some rather interesting and reassuring words of Bruh David. ‘The Lord is nigh (near) unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.’ And that’s no lie my people! If we call on the Lord with a sincere and truthful heart, He will always hear our prayer and respond to it.
As Moses said to the Israelites so long ago: ‘For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh (a God so near) unto them, as the Lord our God is in all things that we call upon him for.’ (Deut.4:7) It didn’t change in Bruh David’s time, and neither has the situation changed in our time my faithful brethren! Our great and wonderful God is still there, ALWAYS NEAR, when we need Him!
But it takes two actions from us to communicate with Him. We first have to call on Him, and then do so in truth, with sincerity and right motives. Jesus said it thus: ‘God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.’ (John 4:24) So since God is a Spirit, then our connection to Him must be spiritual in nature, namely through His Holy Spirit which dwells within us to lead and guide us, help us to pray, to understand God’s plans for us.
Jesus promised His disciples: ‘If ye LOVE me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter (Helper), that he may abide with you for ever. Even the spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless (as orphans): I will come to you.’ (John 14:15-18)
What awesome promises my people! And they all came true! Give God the glory! And as Bruh Paul told the Corinthians: ‘But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that LOVE him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.
For what man knoweth the things of a man save (except) the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given of God.’ (1 Cor.2:9-12)
And we’ll end with this interesting explanation from the scholars on verse 10. ‘2:10. Revealed…unto us: ‘Unto us’ is in the emphatic position in Greek, emphasizing the enormous privilege granted the recipients of divine revelation. The magnificent treasure of God’s revealed truth is accessible to the mature believer.’
Oh friends, please, please, I implore us, let’s not abuse that great privilege of divine revelation that we’ve received through the Holy Spirit nuh, else it will surely be our undoing! Much LOVE!
…The Holy Spirit…is like the worker bee of the Trinity…the action oriented third person…
08 May 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a glorious future with Jesus, a Samaritan, an obedient child, appearance as a man, Barry Manilow, be equal with God, became obedient, being in the form of God, breath of life, Christ is risen, damnation, death of the cross, Easter Season, every knee should bow, every tongue confess, family relationship, for which do ye stone me, forgiveness, glad to be alive, glory hallelujah, God hath highly exalted him, halfway home, hands on the plough, hell fire, humbled himself, I honour my Father, Jesus christ is Lord, John Denver, let this mind be in you, looking ahead, made himself, make me cry, makes me happy, many good works, name above every name, not looking back, not robbery, of no reputation, premium on obedience, reconciliation, sacrifice, seek not mine own glory, selfless sacrifice, sinless blood, sunshine, the Father's wish, the form of a servant, the likeness of men, the name of Jesus, to the glory of the Father, uesless sinners, unto death, Wednesday Wail, which was also in Christ Jesus, work the works
Philippians 2:5. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
Well hello there you beautiful people; my Scrip-Bit family and fellow saints of Jesus Christ! Oh, isn’t it great to be alive, especially on such a sunny morning? It surely is! There’s just something special about waking up to bright sunshine… How did John Denver describe it in his popular song, of the same name written by himself and Barry Manilow?
‘Sunshine on my shoulders makes me happy Sunshine in my eyes can make me cry Sunshine on the water looks so lovely Sunshine almost always makes me high!’ And isn’t that the awesome truth! Sunshine just has a wonderful and positive effect on us, like the light of Jesus when it shines upon us and brings us out of the darkness!
Oh what a wonderful Being is our Jesus! Without Him we’re nothing! And the sooner we realize that tremendous truth, the better off we’ll all be! And that fact is most important in this Easter Season as we celebrate His death and then His triumphant resurrection from the grave, conquering the evil one in the process! For it’s that action that assures us of forgiveness, reconciliation and a family relationship with out heavenly Father, both now and forever more!
Before that we were all useless sinners, headed for damnation and hellfire, but when Christ paid for our sins with the shedding of His holy blood and sacrifice of His sinless life on the cross of Calvary, then a whole new world suddenly opened to us! No wonder we sing and shout: ‘Glory Hallelujah! Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Glory Hallelujah!’
Yes friends, that momentous occasion is possibly the most important aspect of our faith, because without it, all the good stuff now available to us would never have been. That’s why we ought to be so thankful and grateful to Jesus for His awesome and selfless sacrifice. He did not have to do it, but it was the Father’s wish, and He never wanted to do anything but what the Father desired. Wish that we could be so obedient…or even half so obedient! (smile)
Jesus in His time on earth continually made it known that He was here to do the Father’s will, and that everything He did was what the Father wanted. Listen to some of His sayings on that subject. In speaking to the Jews about them being the children of Abraham: ‘Then answered the Jews and said unto him, Say we not well that thou art a Samaritan, and hast a devil (demon)? Jesus answered, I have not a devil (demon); but I honour my Father, and ye do dishonour me. And I seek not mine own glory: there is ONE that seeketh and judgeth.’ (John 8:48-50)
And again He said, ‘I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.’ (John 9:4) And again He told them: ‘Many good works have I showed you from the Father; for which of those works do ye stone me?’ (John 10:32) And furthermore: ‘If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not. But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in me, and I in him.’ (John 10:37-38)
Yes friends, Jesus never did anything in his honour, but always the Father’s. No wonder Bruh Paul could say to the Philippians: ‘Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made (coming) in the likeness of men:
And being found in fashion (appearance) as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of (those) things in heaven, and (those) things in earth, and (those) things under the earth. And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.’ (Phil. 25:5-11)
Oh my fellow believers, why can’t we see the great premium that our heavenly Father places on obedience to His holy will eh, and just obediently do what He desires of us! Look at how He exalted Jesus for being obedient to His will! It’s the same way He will exalt us for doing what He asks of us!
But no, we claim to be believers, but constantly shy away from, and oftimes blatantly refuse to do God’s bidding. How does that endear us to him eh? How does that encourage Him to lift us up? It doesn’t at all. But we all desperately want to be lifted up… Ah mih people, our God is wonderful and all that, but He is also a stickler for obedience, and if we don’t obey, then we won’t enjoy all the blessings He’s got stored up for us.
So please, let’s stop talking about obedience to God, and just do it nuh! We all know what we’re supposed to do, so please, let’s just do it. Let’s make what we say in our Wednesday Wail a reality and not simply lip service! All together now, let’s tell the world our position in Christ. ‘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 if we’re obedient and sincere, then that future will indeed be rather glorious…more than we can ever ask or imagine! Much LOVE!
…there’s nothing the Father LOVES more…than an obedient child…
10 Apr 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: 21st century, a glorious future with Jesus, a sound mind, Abel, Abraham, according to your faith, be it unto you, David, disciples, do their own thing, eagerly, enemy's false fire, enoch, expectantly, eyes fixed straight ahead, faith, Gentiles, Gideon, glad to be alive, glory hallelujah, God is the same, grace, halfway home, hands on the plough, hebrews 11, immortal words, impossible to please God, Isaac, Jacob, Jesus, Jewish people, Joseph, lived and died by faith, LOVE, mercy, Moses, not by sight, not looking back, O ye of little faith, power, Samson, second wind, the breath of life, the Good Book, the Roman centurion, the spirit of fear, walk by faith, Wednesday Wail, wherefore didst thou doubt, without faith, your faith has made you whole
Matthew 9:29. According to your faith be it unto you.
And so we come to Wednesday…the mid-week catch yuh breath, second wind day! Everybody feeling refreshed now, having gotten back into the work week routine, and looking forward with much expectancy to the big day of Friday, so they can do their own thing.
Ah mih people, I wish we could look forward with the same amount of expectancy to the things of Christ, to the things that concern our faith! Yuh remember how Jesus kept complaining about the faith of His people…’O ye of little faith!’
He said that several times. Even to His disciples who had been with Him for years and saw all the miracles He had done. When the storm arose on the Sea of Galilee and He was asleep in the back of the boat, they woke him up scared to death. Only to be rebuked after He calmed the storm, by His lashing words: ‘O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?’ (Matt.14:31)
And remember too what He said when He healed people. ‘Go, your faith has made thee whole!’ Even when He healed the Roman Centurion’s slave from afar, He commented: ‘Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.’ (Matt.8:10) Yeh friends, in several circumstances Gentiles, or people of other nationalities showed more faith in Him than His Jewish people. But overall people were not being buoyed by their supposed faith.
And I believe the same thing is also happening now. A lot of us talk a good talk about faith, but when it comes to putting that supposed faith into action we sadly fall down and start thrashing about and looking for other avenues instead of first turning to God and waiting on Him. But friends, it’s ALL about our faith, our sincere trust and reliance on the powers and mercy and grace of Jesus!
Remember what He said to the two blind men who came to him to have their sight restored? ‘Believe ye that I am able to do this? They said unto him, Yea, Lord. Then touched he their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it unto you. And their eyes were opened…’ (Matt. 9: 28-30)
And nothing has changed since then my people, for our God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. So why do we think that our faith won’t get us through these rough and difficult times like it did those people of old eh! We have numerous examples of how faith propelled people, armies and nations to victory. Just check out that great chapter of the Good Book, Hebrews 11, where it tells you of all kinds of people who lived and died by faith.
Think about Abraham leaving his homeland at seventy five to journey into an unknown land just because God told Him to and promised Him great things. That could only come through faith. His wife Sarah also had a son in her old age when she lived up to the faith expected of her. Look at the stories of Isaac and Jacob, of Bruh Joseph and Moses, of Abel and Enoch, of Gideon and Samson, of Bruh David and Bruh Paul, and even of Jesus.
It was faith by which all of them traversed this evil world. Though Jesus was God, He was also man in the flesh and He too had to have strong faith in His Father else He would not have been able to do all those amazing things He did! Yuh think He just suffered all the abuse and pain of the cross just so? No! The Father enabled Him to go through it all!
And God hasn’t stopped working in believers lives just because this is the 21st century and mankind is on top of His technological and greedy wealth seeking game! In fact we need faith even more now with all the distractions and lies and falsehood and wiles that are now coming against us.
We need faith to help us discern the sense from the nonsense that is so prevalent in today’s evil and ungodly world. And faith isn’t something we can just pick up or set down anytime we want to! It’s a process, like sowing a seed and watching and waiting for it to grow. And the Lord has done many good things for many of us over our lifetimes, but yet when the rough times come, we forget about those fulfilled promises and cower and fear and doubt under the onslaught of the enemy’s false fire!
But remember too friends, these precious and immortal words of Bruh Paul to his protégé Timothy. ‘For God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of LOVE, and of a sound mind.’ (1 Tim.1:7)
And what is this thing called faith you all ask? The Good Book tells us that ‘Faith is the substance (realization) of things hoped for, the evidence (conviction) of things not seen.’ (Heb.11:1) Yeh friends, simply put faith is what we don’t see now, but which we hope for and believe that we will get later on. We never seen Jesus, but we believe in Him. We never seen God create the world or us, but we believe it.
All of that is done through faith! For as Bruh Paul told the Corinthians: ‘For we walk by faith, not by sight.’ (2 Cor.5:7) That’s it plain and simple my brethren! In God’s economy and universe He expects us to believe His Word and the promises contained therein and walk expectantly and eagerly with faith, knowing that they will all come to pass in His time!
And if we can’t do that, if we need to see everything before we believe, like the world proposes, then our faith is small or even non-existent, and we won’t receive ALL the wonderful benefits we can from our wonderful God. Nuff said!
So for those of us who say we believe and have faith, let’s go home now declaring (right ho!) our Wednesday Wail, letting all and sundry know our enviable position in Christ. With much fervor and sense of purpose: ‘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!’
Now don’t forget, that future will be even more glorious than we can ask or even imagine…and it’s all based on our faith! Much LOVE!
…without faith…it is impossible to please God… (Heb.11:6a)
09 Feb 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a grain of mustard seed, all things, Anselm, be thou removed, belief in christ, believe it before you see it, believe you can, believing, birds of the air, cast into the sea, castigated, circumstances, come to Jesus, corner stones, curse the fig tree, decisions, education, faith, fasting, fellowship, friends, glory hallelujah, grow strong in faith, halfway there, ignorance, in the branches, it shall be doen, Jesus' realm, Jesus' work, lodge, LOVE Revolution, nothing shall be impossible, opposition, Praise the Lord, prayer, product, say unto this mountain, seeing is believing, shenanigans, social media, stepping up to the plate, technological advancement, the disciples, the Father's business, the Word of god, turbulent times, two cents worth, whatsoever ye ask in prayer, ye shall receive
Matthew 21:22. And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.
Ah mih people, the sun is shining brightly outside, the gloominess has been lifted, but please be careful because the weather isn’t completely done with its frustrating shenanigans! (smile)
Yeh, yuh still hearing about the likelihood of getting all the different kinds of winter weather over the weekend, and the place is still white with ice and snow, and the wind is still blowing strong, but we not going to let it bother us. Like the workingman says in his song, we going to do our thing, regardless of what kind of weather shows up! Amen!
And since it’s Saturday, and we have good reasons to sleep in, (smile) let’s check out some of the quotes our friend Anselm sent us this week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And this first quote is interesting: ‘I am not a product of my circumstances. I am a product of my decisions.’
Now I don’t know if that is completely true nuh, because oftimes our decisions are made because of the circumstances in which we find ourselves. So though the decisions may seal the deal, they can always be leveraged by the circumstances.
And the next one says: ‘The question isn’t who is going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me.’ And believe me, a lot of people will try to stop you, possibly more than will allow you to do what you want to do, especially in these turbulent times of technological advances and the rise of social media, where every fool and his brother can introduce their two cents worth without revealing their identities.
But friends, all that foolishness should not stop us in stepping up to the plate and valiantly and powerfully doing what Jesus requires of us. Remember, He had plenty opposition too, but that never stopped Him from doing the Father’s business, and neither should we let whatever opposition comes against us stop us from doing His work.
Then there’s: ‘Education costs money. But then so does ignorance.’ Gospel truth that! (smile) But somehow or the other, I believe that in this day and age education is costing a whole lot more than ignorance.
You really don’t have to do much of anything to obtain ignorance nuh, just let the world go by without paying much attention to it, and you will end up ignorant, like so many of us unfortunately are today. We not even paying attention to the good free stuff like Jesus and His LOVE Revolution, so how can we be anything else but ignorant eh?
And then this last quote says: ‘Believe you can and you’re halfway there.’ I don’t know if you’ll be quite halfway there, but your strong belief in whatever you’re doing is certainly going to get you over the top. It’s like the Chinese Proverb advocates: ‘The longest journey begins with the first step.’
And most definitely, the first crucial step in any undertaking is to believe that you can do it, otherwise your odds of success will be greatly lowered. That’s just the way the Lord set up His universe. That’s why Jesus castigated the disciples with these words, when they queried why they could not heal a mentally ill young boy.
‘And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place, and it shall remove (move); and nothing shall be impossible to you. Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.’ (Matt.17:20-21)
Yeh friends, we do indeed need even a small grain of belief before we can do anything successfully. Jesus even talked earlier about the parable of the mustard seed: ‘Which indeed is the least of (smallest of) all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among the herbs (greater than the other herbs), and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge (rest, sleep) in the branches thereof.’ (Matt.13:32)
So friends, you see that all things start with small beginnings, and that also applies to our faith, our belief in Christ Jesus; we start with a small grain of faith or belief, then as time goes on and we water and feed it with the right nutrients- i.e. the Word of God, prayer and fellowship- our faith will grow stronger and stronger, and just like the mustard tree, we will be able to help others come to Jesus and grow strong in faith too. Glory Hallelujah!
And likewise, when Jesus put a curse on the bare fig tree, and the disciples marvelled at how quickly it withered away: ‘Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done. And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.’ (Matt.21:21-22)
Yes my people, belief and believing are the corner stones to doing anything successfully in this world…and even more so in Jesus’ realm. So let’s wake up and smell the coffee nuh (smile) and start truly believing, because without true belief, we will never see Jesus! Much LOVE!
…the world says…seeing is believing…but Jesus says…believe it…then you will see it…
P.S. It nice and short and sweet today. (smile) Praise the Lord! Much LOVE!
Previous Older Entries
