09 Mar 2026
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a close relationship with God, a merciful forgiving and gracious God, a very difficult working life, after you have suffered a while, all sinned and disobeyed your word, allow the devil to disrupt your spirit, as a roaring lion, be able to stand against the wiles of the devil, be clothed with humility, be sober be vigilant, be subject one to another, be ye angry and sin not, bereft of your joy, called us into his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, casting all your care upon him, Christians, divine aid, don't give an opportunity to the devil, draw nigh to God and he will draw nigh to you, ease the pain of the many, faith, faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers, get with the programme, gets us discouraged, God gives grace to the humble, God resists the proud, he may exalt you in due time, he shall lift you up, he that humbleth himself shall be exalted, holy spirit, humble ourselves, humble servants, humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, in our best interest, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus Christ, keep your promise to prosper us, learned the lesson of humility, let not the sun go down upon your wrath, LOVE, make you perfect, mercy, neither give place to the devil, one more Monday, praise Your Holy Name, pray, put on the whole armour of God, resist steadfast in the faith, resist the devil and he will flee from you, salvation, sincere repentance, sincerely seek God's face, stablish strengthen settle you, steal your joy, struggle with our faith, submit yourselves to God, suffering from negative situations, thank you for life and strong faith in Christ, the BIBLE, the devil focuses on stealing our joy, the God of all grace, the God who heals, the joy of the Lord is your strength, the mass confusion in our world, the only way to resist the devil is by keeping close to God, the power to solve our many problems, the same afflictions are accomplished by your brethren, the throne of grace, to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever, truth, turn from our evil ways, walketh about seeking whom he may devour, whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased, wisdom, wise guidance, your adversary the devil
1 Peter 5:8. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.
One more Monday morning; one more week of work! So, we had better get accustomed to them sooner rather than later because there will indeed be many of them in our lifetimes, possibly too many to count, and if you allow the devil to disrupt your spirit every Monday and thus steal your joy, then you will be in for a very difficult working life.
Yes, the devil focuses on stealing our joy, for when he accomplishes that, we get down and discouraged, and we struggle with our faith in God. That’s why the Bible tells us that ‘the joy of the Lord is our strength.’ (Neh. 8:10) For when our faith is strong and our joy is bubbling over, then Satan cannot get to us. And remember he’s always on the lookout for somebody he can inveigle to become down and discouraged and therefore lose their joy.
No wonder Bruh Paul told the Ephesians: ‘Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: Neither give place (an opportunity) to the devil.’ (Eph. 4:26-27) When you get angry, if you don’t control your anger, you’re liable to sin, and that makes it so much easier for the devil to get an opportunity to steal your joy. Going to bed angry doesn’t help matters either, it will disturb your restful sleep, and most likely you’ll wake up still angry and bereft of your joy in the morning.
Bruh Paul also strongly recommended that they, as well as us, ‘Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles (evil schemes) of the devil.’ (Eph. 6:11) That’s the basic way to stop the devil from stealing your joy and thus your strength. Meanwhile, James, Jesus’ brother, tells us to ‘Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh (near) to God, and he will draw nigh (near) to you… Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.’ (James 4:7-8a, 10)
There again, to resist the devil, we must be in a close relationship with the Lord, and that can only happen when we humble ourselves before Him. Then Peter also gets into the act with this warning. ‘…all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time. Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour. Whom resist steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in (experienced by) your brethren that are in the world. But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish (confirm), strengthen, settle you. To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.’ (1 Pet. 5b-11)
And the story we get from all of that my people, is that God LOVES us and will fight for us, as well as strengthen and perfect us, but our underlying attribute must always be one of humility, for as Peter tells us, God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. And Jesus highlighted the spirit and attitude of humility both in His own walk here on earth, but also with His words. Listen as He tells a parable to the people around him at a wedding, as He watches them choose out the best rooms and places to sit.
He warns them about going to the best or highest places, lest the host comes and tells them to move lower so he can give that spot to someone more honourable or important than them, causing them shame and humiliation. Instead, they should seek out the lowest places, so that the host can come and invite them to sit in a higher position, and then they’ll be more esteemed. (Luke 14:7-10) And Jesus reasons: ‘For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased (humbled), and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.’ (Luke 14:11)
Then, later on, while pointing out the difference in behaviour of the pompous, self-righteous Pharisee and the humble tax collector as they were praying in the temple, Jesus repeated the same warning about exalting oneself, of being proud and arrogant, especially in the eyes of God. (Luke 18:9-14) Let’s hope today friends, we’ve driven home that lesson of humility in all our hearts, so that it will no longer be numbered amongst our shortcomings. (smile) Now, let’s go to the throne of grace through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, seeking divine aid in these evil and ungodly 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!’
Oh friends, we are very blessed, but we don’t truly know it, or else we would not carry on with the foolishness we carry on with in these troubled times, when we are supposed to be ever so focused on Almighty God. And until we learn to do that, all our pleas for divine aid will most likely go unanswered. So, let’s wake up and get with the programme nuh! Remember, it’s all in our best interest! Much LOVE!
…the only way to resist the devil…is by keeping close to God…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
15 Aug 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a means of restoring faith in you, a modest but strong nature, a new flock of believers, a proud look, a word to the wise is sufficient, backsliders, be clothed with humility, be full of kindness and respect for others, be responsible and stay safe, be subject one to another, became obedient unto death, being found in fashion as a man, being in the form of God, better Christin witness, casting all your care upon him, cleanse me of pride, CNE Fair, concrete jungle, emptied himself of his privileges, error of their ways, escalating problems, even the death of the cross, every tongue confess, faith, find rest for your souls, freedom from pride and arrogance, Friday chant, gentle and humble, give me the grace to accept correction, God gives grace to the humble, God is shaping you, God resists the proud, haughty eyes, he humbled himself, he may exalt you in due time, help me to embrace the meekness of Christ, holy spirit, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, humility, I am meek and lowly, Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God, let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, LOVE, made himself of no reputation, made in the likeness of men, manifest humility every day, may my words and actions, meekness, mercy, omnipotent help, our sinful world, painful circumstances, radiate Christ's presence, rejoice, salvation, seek forgiveness, show mercy, simmering unrest, six things doth the Lord hate, take my yoke upon you, teach me to be truly humble, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, thank you Lord for your hand at work, the example we faithful believers set, the Master Potter, the name above every other name, the name to which every knee must bow, those who walk in humility, took upon him the form of a servant, tough times, trusting faith, truth, unexpected storms, wake up and smell the coffee, welcoming the weekend, whose Spirit lives within me, wisdom, wise guidance
1 Peter 5:5b. All of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.
Now don’t be surprised that the Bit is so early friends. You know there must be a good reason for it, (smile) an early medical appointment in the concrete jungle called Toronto. And is it ever disgusting having to go there with all the road closures and the traffic jams and the building construction at every turn. Brother! I don’t see how people could live down there now nuh. Fifty odd years ago, when I first came here, living in Toronto was wonderful. But now it’s gotten so big and ugly and competitive, that it’s lost the glow it once had.
But that’s only my opinion. Other’s might have a much more positive take on the situation. And that doesn’t stop them from sending up loud shouts of ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday! And the weekend is here.’ Welcoming the weekend is one of the important things we do nowadays. And oh, the CNE, the Canadian National Exhibition is opening its yearly fair today down on the CNE Grounds on the Lakeshore, so there will be even more traffic than normal. But since we cannot do anything about any of the those things that annoy or frustrate us, let’s see what the Lord has for us to talk about today.
Well, it seems to be the very important but rather touchy subject of humility. And what is humility? Basically, it’s a freedom from pride and arrogance. In scripture, it’s sometimes referred to as meekness; a modest but strong nature. And one of the things that God hates is false and overbearing pride. As Cousin Sol says in Proverbs: ‘These six things doth the Lord hate: yea, seven are an abomination to him.’ (Prov. 5:16) And the first one is a proud and arrogant look, or haughty eyes. (Prov.5:17) And to help us deal with Humility, one of the recently published Prayer Cards by the In Touch Organization deals with that very problem.
Oh yes, it is a very serious problem in today’s world, as our society is much more interested in being proud and arrogant then being meek and humble. So please pray this prayer from that card with me. ‘Father, those who walk in humility radiate Christ’s presence. Teach me to be truly humble. Cleanse me of pride and help me embrace the meekness of my Saviour, whose Spirit lives within me. May my words and actions be full of kindness and respect for others. Give me the grace to accept correction, seek forgiveness, and show mercy. I welcome whatever You send into my life to humble me. You are the Master Potter. Thank You for Your hand at work. Amen.’
Now that’s a tough prayer to pray, because when you ask God for things like humility, be sure you’re going to encounter circumstances in which you’ll need it. And things like humility only come through tough and ofttimes painful circumstances. And the Prayer Card ends with this interesting note. ‘Is a current challenge teaching you humility? Rejoice – God is shaping you.’ Yes friends, we can only be shaped in the master Potter’s hands through tough times. But we must rejoice, for it’s bringing us closer to the perfect image of Christ.
And the scriptures the Prayer Card uses, comes, most appropriately from 1 Peter. ‘Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.’ (1 Pet. 5:5-7) And we all know that to be the gospel truth, although we don’t always manifest it in our lives. But to be truly like Jesus, we need to be always, or as much as possible, meek and humble.
Jesus said it Himself in the Great Invitation. ‘Take my yoke upon you, and learn of (from) me, for I am meek and lowly (gentle and humble) in heart: and ye shall find rest for your souls.’ (Matt. 11:29) Oh my people, there’s no one as humble as Jesus! Although He controls the universe, He never finds it necessary to boast, be haughty or arrogant, and for humans that comes only when you have an innate strength found in the person of Christ. It’s like Bruh Paul writes to the Philippians about Jesus’ earthly journey.
‘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 in the likeness of men (emptied himself of his privileges): And being found in fashion (appearance) as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.’ (Phil. 2:5-8) And we know the reward the Father granted Him for such humility and obedience: The exaltation of His name being above every other name, and that every knee should bow to His name, and every togue confess that He is Lord, all to the glory of the Father. (Phil, 2:9-11)
Likewise my fellow believers, if we humble ourselves, our heavenly Father will indeed exalt us in due time like Peter says. Now, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Friday Chant, seeking divine help for our chaotic and disastrous world. Altogether: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough… because our many serious problems are escalating instead of improving. And it’s obvious we can’t fix them on our own, so Lord, we’re desperately crying out for your help.
Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat the simmering unrest in our land. We therefore ask you Lord to give our leaders the wise guidance to handle these unexpected storms properly. And please help the rest of us to be responsible and to stay safe amidst all the anxiety and confusion of these ungodly times. We fervently pray too Lord that you’ll use the discontent and dissatisfaction in our land as a means of restoring faith in you.
Return backsliders to your fold. Show them the error of their ways. And please introduce a new flock of believers, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example, we, your faithful believers set. So that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, wake up and smell it sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
And though our prayers might be heard, I believe the Lord expects, and most certainly deserves better Christian witness from us, before He floods us with divine aid. And they say a word to the wise is sufficient, so please let’s show ourselves to be wise nuh. Much LOVE!
…to be truly Christlike…Christians must manifest humility in their everyday lives…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
03 Jan 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a new flock of believers, accepting one's limitations, are riches honour and life, as a means of restoring faith in you, as seriously as my own, as your Father in heaven is perfect, be better witnesses for Christ, be the children of your Father in heaven, be ye therefore perfect, being modest in our self-assessment, Bible, bless them that curse you, blessed are the poor in spirit, bright, bushy tailed, by humility and the fear of the Lord, by the example your faithful believers set, christianity, consider their heart, consults you often, disastrous times, discontent, dismisses other opinions, disregard anyone, dissatisfaction, divine aid, do good to them that hate you, don't think too little of ourselves, don't think too much of ourselves, embrace your love and compassion, even the publicans the same, faith, Friday chant, God gives grace to the humble, God resists the proud, God sends rain on the just and the unjust, greet your brethren only, have no use for God, he makes his sun to rise, he that humbles himself shall be exalted, holy spirit, humble yourselves in the sight of God, humbled, humility - one of the hardest virtues to attain, I pray for humility, I trust you to do it, if you love those who love you, in Jesus' name, In Touch Devotional, Jesus Christ, look down on others, LOVE, love thy neighbour and hate thine enemy, love your enemy, maintaining a sense of perspective, make or break, mercy, no matter one's background, omnipotent help, on the evil and on the good, our sinful world, persecute you, positive strides, pray for those who spitefully use you, pride, pride is the enemy of humility, problems escalating, put up barriers, rest, return backsliders to your fold, salvation, see people as, stand strong and steadfast, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, the error of their ways, theirs is the kingdom of heaven, unexpected storms, wake up and smell the coffee
Matthew 23:12. And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased (humbled); and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted (lifted up).
Here comes the weekend! And as we offer up, ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ we’ll either have a chance to get in some much-needed rest, or one more go round of the new year celebrations. (smile) But whatever we do for the weekend, let’s ensure that come Monday, we’re bright and bushy-tailed, ready to do a good week’s work for Jesus, because this year is either going to make or break a lot of things and people, and only as we believers make some positive strides will things get better.
Now, today I want to share the prayer from the In Touch Devotional for December. And is it ever a most appropriate prayer for these proud, haughty and arrogant times. So please pray with me: ‘God, I pray for humility – the kind that doesn’t dismiss other opinions, that truly listens, no matter a person’s background, that consults You often and with ease. Sometimes I put up barriers and look down on others. But Lord, don’t let my pride lead me to disregard anyone – including You. Help me see people as Your beloved creations and consider their heart as seriously as my own. Only You can create this humility, Lord. I trust you to do it. In Jesus’ name, amen.’
Now that’s something we are all guilty of, to one extent or the other! For we all have some level of pride that causes us to look down on others and not value their opinions, ofttimes for rather petty, shortsighted and ungodly reasons. Like they don’t look, or act, or believe like us. They are richer or poorer than us…and the list goes on. But that’s so much foolishness it’s not funny, because we have all been made in the image of God, and though we might not look, think, act, or believe the same, we all still have value and worth and deserve to be heard, and treated with respect.
That’s how Jesus behaved and taught us to behave. Remember these momentous words of His. ‘Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt LOVE thy neighbour, and hate thy enemy. But I say unto you, LOVE your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully (spitefully, maliciously) use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and the unjust.
For if ye LOVE them which LOVE you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans (tax collectors) the same? And if ye salute (greet) your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans (tax collectors) so? Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.’ (Matt. 5:43-48)
Oh my people, Jesus is certainly asking a lot of us, but it’s nothing that He Himself didn’t do. And obviously we won’t be able to do it as well as He did, but if we believe and practice the main ingredient that’s necessary to accomplish that task, we will definitely come up higher. And what’s that main ingredient? Well, it’s simply what we’ve been talking about before; that’s humility! And believe me, humility is one of the hardest virtues to attain, because we all have pride, which is the very enemy of humility.
And pride is one of the seven things that Cousin Sol says the Lord considers an abomination. (Prov. 6:16-19) Why? Because when we’re filled with too much pride, we don’t tend to have any use for God. We believe we can do it all on our own, which is the furthest thing from the truth. But before we get to discussing humility, I guess we ought to get a decent definition of it. And I like this one: ‘Humility is the quality of being modest or respectful in one’s self-assessment and behavior. It involves recognizing and accepting one’s limitations, valuing others’ contributions, and maintaining a sense of perspective.’
Yes, we don’t need to abase ourselves, thinking that we’re no good to be humble, because we all have something to contribute. But neither ought we to think too much of ourselves. So, let’s look at a few of the many scriptures on the subject of humility. Beginning with this one from Cousin Sol in Proverbs. ‘When pride cometh, then cometh shame (disgrace): but with the lowly (humble, humility) is (comes) wisdom.’ (Prov. 11:2) Then there’s this other one from Cousin Sol in Proverbs. ‘By humility and the fear (reverence) of the Lord are riches, and honour, and life.’ (Prov. 22:4) And there’s no disputing that my faithful brethren!
Then James, the brother of Jesus, gives us a couple of good ones in his epistle, namely: ‘But he (God) giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.’ (James 4:6) Then there’s scripture we all know but don’t practice enough. ‘Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.’ (James 4:10) And let’s remember Christ’s teaching on the subject. ‘But he that is the greatest among you shall be your servant. And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased (humbled); and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted (lifted up).’ (Matt. 23:11-12)
Now that ought to make it very clear that the Lord values humility above most things. Please notice too, that His Son, Jesus Christ first came to earth in a very humble state, not because He had to, but because that was the necessary attribute for the time. However, please note that the next time He comes, then, it will be with all the pomp and splendour of a victorious warrior and King! So, with all of that under our belts, and in our hearts and minds, (smile) let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Friday Chant, seeking divine aid to help in these disastrous times.
Altogether: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough… because our many serious problems are escalating instead of improving. And it’s obvious we can’t fix them on our own, so Lord, we’re desperately crying out for your help. Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat the simmering unrest in our land. We therefore ask you Lord to give our leaders the wise guidance to handle these unexpected storms properly.
And please help the rest of us to be responsible and to stay safe amidst all the anxiety and confusion of these ungodly times. We fervently pray too Lord that you’ll use the discontent and dissatisfaction in our land as a means of restoring faith in you. Return backsliders to your fold. Show them the error of their ways. And please introduce a new flock of believers, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example we, your faithful believers set. So that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, wake up and smell it sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
Now, let’s get out into the world and be better witnesses for Christ, if we expect to receive divine aid! Much LOVE!
…blessed are the poor in spirit…the humble…for theirs is the kingdom of heaven… (Matt. 5:4)
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
27 Jun 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: adversary, afflictions, almighty god, be subject to each other, Beelzebub, Bruh Paul, cast all your care on Him, Christ's Church, Christian, christianity, cliques, clothed with humility, conceited, crucified the flesh, daylight at the end of the tunnel, denomination, divided, dominion, dysfunctional, envy, envying each other, eternal glory, evil desires, exalt, faith, fear of God, fellowship, fractured, Friday, Friday chant, fruit of the Spirit, fun, furthering God's glorious kingdom, Galatians, generous help, gentleness, glory, goals, God gives grace to the humble, God of all grace, God resists the proud, goodness, governed by the Spirit, grace, harmonious, harmony, holy spirit, humility, in Jesus' name, in the reverence of God, inherit the kingdom of God, Jesus Christ, joy, kindness, leasure, led of the Spirit, like-mindedness, live in the Spirit, long-suffering, LOVE, lusts, meekness, moral life, not under the law, passions, peace, provoking each other, relaxation, religion, renewed and refreshed in soul body and mind, resentful, resentment, resist, rest, restraints of the law, reverent, roaring lion, self-control, shame, sober, spitefulness, steadfast, submitting to each other, temperance, Thank God it's Friday, the devil, the fear of God, the lust of the flesh, the mighty hand of God, the weekend, united, unity, uplifting, vainglory, values that please god, vanity, vigilant, vulture, walk in the Spirit, warring, works of the flesh
Ephesians 5:21. Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.
‘Friday, oh Friday! How I LOVE that day! Friday, oh Friday! The weekend’s coming my way! Oh thank God it’s Friday! And I’m feeling okay! Friday, oh Friday! How I LOVE that day…’
Ah Friends, the amount of little ditties we can make up to celebrate Fridays eh. And rightly so, because Friday is a day when we finally see some daylight at the end of the work-week tunnel and envision a wonderful weekend of pleasure.
But please remember that the weekend is not only for pleasure, but should also include rest and fellowship with other believers. So let’s chant our Friday Chant, which gives us a better perspective on how to handle the weekend.
As one 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.’
Now that’s more like it! (smile) And today we’ll continue looking at our simple sounding, but oh so important Bit: ‘Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.’
And why is it so important? Because it deals with harmony, unity, like-mindedness, goals and values that please God, in His church. And right now there’s certainly not enough of that in the body of Christ.
Christianity is way too fractured, and thus dysfunctional to the serious work it’s called upon to do. In too many churches, regardless of religion or denomination, the congregations are divided in to cliques resentful of, and sometimes outright warring against each other.
Bruh Paul saw it happening even in the young churches he founded and strenuously pointed out the error to them. Here is what he said to the Galatians on the matter. ‘This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.
For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things ye would. But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.’ (Gal.5:16-18)
Basically, he’s saying that ‘the flesh seeks to thwart the Spirit, who in turn attempts to frustrate the flesh’s evil desires…. The Spirit-led person is not under the law. The Christian does not need the restraints of the law because his moral life is governed by the Spirit.’
And then Bruh Paul goes on to list the works of the flesh (Gal.5:19-21)…’and they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is LOVE, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness (kindness), goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance (self-control): against such there is no law.
And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections (its passions) and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not be desirous of vainglory (conceited), provoking one another, envying one another.’ (Gal.5:21b-26)
Yes Friends, as true believers, the Holy Spirit ought to lead us to produce fruit that is harmonious, united and uplifting to God’s church. But unfortunately too many of us have not sufficiently crucified our flesh, and thus worldly lusts like vanity, envy, resentment and spitefulness still characterize Christ’s church today. What an awful shame!
Meanwhile, Peter, who also recognizes the problem, puts it this way. ‘Likewise ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.
Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in (experienced by) your brethren that are in the world.
But the God of all grace, who hath called us into his eternal glory by Jesus Christ, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish (confirm), strengthen, settle you. To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.’ (1 Pet.5:5-11)
Oh Friends, I couldn’t say it any better! And my wish for all of us today, is that we walk carefully, recognizing that Beelzebub is constantly circling, like the vulture that he is, that we stand strong and steadfast, yet humble and reverent before Almighty God, living in harmony and unity, thus bringing untold glory to His Holy Name. Much LOVE!
…unity and harmony between God’s people…will not come simply by wishing it…but by diligently working together to make it happen…
21 Aug 2013
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a longing for God, a roaring lion, abased, absolute truth, arrogance, awareness of limitations, be sober, be vigilant, bright day, burden, cast all your care upon God, charity, cleansed souls, clothed with humility, compassion, confirm, contrite heart, down to earth, eternal glory, eternity, evil world, exaltation, face the truth, forgiveness, Friends in Christ, generous mercy, glorious morn, God cares for you, God gives grace to the humble, God of all grace, God resists the proud, gracious help, Hades, heavenly Father, hope, humble, humble spirit, humility, integrity, Jesus Christ, justice, justification, keeping up with the Joneses, LOVE, loving kindness, Lucifer, meek and lowly, merciful help, mercy, navigate the treacherous paths, night of nothingness, power struggles, Praise the Lord, pride, profitable, reality based, reconciliation, resist steadfast in faith, scorn, scorners, selfless sacrifice, settle, shortcomings, sins, social climbing, St. Therese, status seeking, strengthen, thanks and praise, the devil, the lowly, the mighty hand of God, theology, trials and tribulations, undeniable truth, wash away, wisdom, wonderful LOVE, yoke, younger generation, your adversary
Luke 18:14. I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.
Oh my beautiful Friends in Christ, we’ve been blessed to see another bountiful day on God’s great earth! Wow! Let’s give Him some thanks and praise for bringing us safely through another dark night of nothingness, into a bright day filled with His LOVE, mercy and forgiveness.
Please pray with me: ‘Oh heavenly Father, we give You thanks and praise this glorious morn, for all that you’ve done, are doing, and plan to do for us in the future. Without Your merciful help and LOVING-kindness we’re like little children, unable to take care of ourselves.
Thank You for helping us through the trials and tribulations of this earthly life. But most of all we give You immeasurable thanks for sending Your only Son Jesus Christ to die for us, so that His blood could wash away our disgusting sins, and bring reconciliation to our cleansed souls.
Oh Father, we LOVE You, and ask that you continue to help us navigate the treacherous paths of this evil world, so that we may continue to walk in Your wonderful LOVE and generous mercy. This we pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.’
Yes Friends, there’s precious little we can do in our own strength, that’s why we need to depend on our Creator for His gracious help. But remember we do have to come before Him with a humble spirit and contrite heart.
For as our Bit so truthfully declares: ‘I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.’
And before we get into today’s scriptures, I’ll remind us once again that there’s nothing the Lord despises as much as pride, arrogance and their foolish cohorts. That’s because they leave no place for Him in our lives. They don’t make us recognize Him as even important, much less the MOST important person in our lives, as He really ought to be. So to deal successfully with our Creator and Provider, it is essential to get pride and it’s evil relations out of our souls.
Now let’s turn to the scripture I want to share on the topic today. And hurray, it’s the last one Friends! So those of you who are tired hearing about pride, you can relax. (smile) And the relevant scripture comes from 1 Peter 5. In the first four verses he’s admonishing the elders of the church to be good examples to Christ’s flock.
Then he turns to the younger generation: ‘Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time. Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in (experienced by) your brethren that are in the world.
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. To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.’ (1 Pet.5:5-11)
That’s all absolute truth my people! And by the way, some of you might not notice, but I included verses 8-10 that we were supposed to check out in the references yesterday. (smile) So if you didn’t, now you know what it says.
Please note also that Peter today, and James yesterday, both quoted Cousin Sol’s wisdom in their messages. ‘Surely he scorneth the scorners: but he giveth grace unto the lowly.’ (Prov.3:35)
So my wonderful Friends in Christ, please don’t let us get caught up in the foolish power struggles, the status seeking and social climbing, keeping up with the Joneses and all that other prideful stuff that the world offers. It’s much more profitable to just remain down to earth and humble.
Remember though, that humility is not simply the opposite of pride and arrogance, but ‘is rooted in our awareness of limitations and shortcomings in the presence of God and of others. It is reality based….
Humility is rather the virtue that enables us to face the truth about ourselves. We are fundamentally a longing for God; we become more human in relationships not in independence; we thrive in living a virtuous life marked by such virtues as charity, justice, compassion, forgiveness, hope and integrity.’
And all God’s people gave a grateful shout of ‘Praise the Lord!’
Oh Friends, those words on humility come from a booklet ‘A Journey of LOVE; Walking with St. Therese of Lisieux. And if you’re serious about working for Jesus, then you’ll know they are undeniable truth.
And what better way to end than with Jesus’ wholesome advice: ‘Take my yoke upon you, and learn of (from) me; for I am meek and lowly (gentle and humble) in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’ (Matt.11:29-30)
Now my fellow believers, that’s wisdom at its very apex! So let’s be wise and take it nuh. Much LOVE!
…be everlastingly thankful to Jesus…for without His selfless sacrifice…we’d surely be spending eternity in Hades…with the evil Lucifer…
P.S. Just want to say it’s not entirely my fault that the Bit’s a li’l late. But I was taken up in frivolous conversation by someone for over half an hour earlier on. Hn, hn! But since I promised not to call names, I won’t. (smile) Much LOVE!
SCRIP-BITS 