13 Nov 2021
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a brother is born for adversity, a companion of fools shall be destroyed, a friend is one, a friend loveth at all times, a friend sticketh closer than a brother, a man lay down his life for his friends, admires the flowers in your garden, aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow, be a rainbow in someone's cloud, be in God's will, be of good courage, crapaud smoke yuh pipe, faith is the substance of things hoped for, frendship, Friend Anselm, get a snare to thy soul, God's eternal design between man and man, greater love hath no man than this, have life abundantly, he shall strengthen thine heart, he that walketh with wise men shall be wise, I had fainted, imagine it's already there, in the land of the living, iron sharpeneth iron, it is not good for man to be alone, laze on the couch, LOVE, make no friendship with an angry man, so a man sharpeneth the countenace of his friend, the evidence of things not seen, thou learn his ways, to bring anything into your life, to see the good ness of the Lord, two are better than one, unless I had believed, wait on the Lord, we want everything now for now, who overlooks your broken fence
John 15:13. Greater LOVE hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
So, finally it’s Saturday, and no more work for two, whole, big days! Glory be! But we can’t laze on the couch too much either because there’s housework to be done; stuff that we did not get done during the workweek. So, as they say, there’s just no rest for the wicked! But that’s okay, we can handle anything we have to with the amazing help of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, who enables us to do all things. And it’s that enablement I’m counting on right now, (smile) as I try to make some sense of the quotes we got this past week from our friend Anselm, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow.
Now, the first quote says; ‘To bring anything into your life, imagine that it’s already there.’ And we know that’s one of the tenets of our Christian faith: you have to believe or imagine it before you see it. That’s what the Good Book tells us in that famous verse on faith, in Hebrews. ‘Now faith is the substance (realization) of things hoped for, the evidence (conviction) of things not seen.’ (Heb. 11:1) Yes friends, faith has us waiting with eager expectations for stuff that we’ve imagined or prayed for. The only problem here is that it ought to be in God’s will, or His plan for our lives. And if it is, then we know we will receive it, in His timing, that’s why we can wait eagerly for it.
The timing scene can ofttimes be a problem though, because waiting is not in our current playbook, we want everything now for now, and the Lord seems to wait until the very last moment. But He’s never late, although we might feel so. That’s the good things about it. That’s why we need to take these two verses from Psalm 27 to heart, where Bruh David adamantly declares: ‘I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait (in faith) on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.’ (Ps. 27:13-14)
Oh my people, if we can plant those two verses in our hearts, then we have won most of the battle! Believe that God will be good to us down here on earth, since Christ said that He came so we could have life and have it more abundantly. (John 10:10) And since you believe that, then you simply wait expectantly for the goodness of the Lord to show. It’s like when you’ve ordered something online that you greatly desire, and you know it’s going to come, but you’re just not sure when, but you still eagerly wait for it. The same way we must eagerly wait for God’s goodness, because it will come eventually.
Wow! Like I got carried away there. But getting carried away with the Lord’s business is quite okay! (smile) That brings us to the next quote, which is almost the same as the first. ‘Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined.’ Yes, we do need to follow our dreams as much as possible, that is if they coincide with God’s plan for us, for if they don’t our dreams will certainly get sidetracked.
And I can give personal testimony to that since I never in my wildest dreams thought about writing scriptural stuff. Writing was one of my dreams yes, but not on the Lord’s Word. But He obviously had other ideas. So, here I am living my dream of writing, but not what I had intended to write, (smile) because it did not fall completely in line with God’s plans for my writing life. But nevertheless, I’m happy and contented, and still do some of the other writing on the side, so I can’t complain.
And the next quote tells us: ‘A friend is one who overlooks your broken fence and admires the flowers in your garden.’ And is that ever the gospel truth! True friends are few and far between, and if you ever are blessed enough to get even one true one, then shout ‘Glory Hallelujah!’ and hold on to them for dear life! There are so many scriptures on the subject of real, good and true friends, that we need to consider some of them. And most of them obviously come from the wisest man ever, that’s Cousin Sol.
Oh, before we go further, one other thing we need to admit and realize here that the flip side of most of these scriptures are also true; that is, we should not only be looking for a true friend, but also be working on being a true friend ourselves. Now listen to Cousin Sol from Proverbs. He writes: ‘A friend LOVETH at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.’ (Prov. 17:17) That means ‘a true friend has unquenchable LOVE that is not diminished by adversity.’ And hear this one: ‘A man that hath friends must show himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.’ (Prov. 18:24)
Now what does that all mean? The scholars tell us: ‘18:24. A man that hath friends must show himself friendly may also be translated, “A man of many friends comes to ruin.” In other words, a man must not spread himself too thin among many superficial relationships. Far better is it to have genuine friends who become like family and LOVE at all times (17:17).’ Truer words were never spoken.
Then there’s this most timely warning: ‘Make no friendship with an angry man; and with a furious man thou shalt not go: Lest thou learn his ways and get a snare to thy soul.’ (Prov. 22:24-25) Ah mih people, that simply means, ‘Do not make friends with a hot-tempered man, do not associate with one easily angered, or you may learn his ways and get yourself ensnared.’ And that’s the living truth, since the traits of those we associate with can easily be transferred to us.
And this one proves what we just said. ‘He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.’ (Prov. 13:20) And the scholars explain that thus. ‘Wisdom as well as folly can be transferred by association.’ And if you haven’t found out that bit of wisdom already, please don’t try to prove it, unless it’s to walk with the wise. (smile) Oh friends, there’s good reason why Cousin Sol is described as the wisest man ever, although he didn’t live it out in his own life. But that’s the same with all of us; we give good advice but never take the same advice for ourselves.
Now hear this magnificent word on friendship. ‘Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.’ (Prov. 27:17) And the scholars explain. ‘27:17. As the proper tool shapes and sharpens iron for its desired use, so a man sharpens his friend morally and intellectually by their personal relationship.’
And listen to this last one from Cousin Sol, written as the Preacher in Ecclesiastes. ‘Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour. For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow (companion): but woe to him that is alone when he falleth, for he hath not another to help him up.’ (Eccl. 4:9-10) More awesome truth friends! If you don’t have anyone beside you and you fall, then crapaud smoke yuh pipe. No wonder, the Lord, after He made Adam, said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a help meet for him (a helper comparable to him).’ (Gen. 2:18) And that’s how Eve came about.
But the greatest word ever on true friendship obviously comes from the greatest One who ever lived; our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Hear him declare to the disciples, and consequently to us: ‘Greater LOVE hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.’ (John 15:13) Then He called them friends, and laid down His life for them, for all of those who would believe in Him. That’s what true friendship is all about my fellow saints!
And the last quote simply says: ‘Try to be a rainbow in someone’s cloud.’ And we do that by befriending someone in some form or fashion, lifting them up, being a light in their darkness, the way the Lord put a rainbow in the sky to assure Noah that He would not destroy the world by water again, (Gen. 9:8-17) and the way Jesus died to bring light to our darkened souls. Much LOVE!
…friendship…God’s eternal design between man and man…and between man and God…
Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ8
20 Feb 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: 70's themed party, a bridal shower, a good time was had by all, a necklace of shining damonds, a palatial mansion, a slice of heaven, all things, around the Mo Bay harbour, be of good cheer, bleak dreary days, blessed is the man that trusts him, broken in the name of Jesus, Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir, called according to His purpose, Cape Town harbour, curse, faith, faith without works is dead, forgiveness, goodness, grace, have life abundantly, hope, i have overcome the world, immerse in salt water, Jamaica, jerk pork and chicken, kindness, less than warm welcome, Mento singers, mercy, negative word, not staying, O taste and see, obedient, paradise island, prosper, psalm 34, reassuring words of Jesus, self-control, strong will, succeed, The Lord is good, the magic words, the people love us, Thursday Blessings, to them that love God, treat us well, tribulation, tropical afternoon, view of the ocean, walk on warm sand, wisdom, work together for good
Romans 8:28. And we know that all things work together for good to them that LOVE God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
Jamaica! Jamaica! Sweet, sweet Jamaica! Everything’s good in Jamaica! Yeahhhh! Well hello there mih lovelies! The ole fella is hailing out to you all on this bright, hot, sunny, tropical afternoon from the paradise island of sweet Jamaica! Yes! We’ve left the cold and the snow and the bleak dreary days behind!
The Good Lord has seen it fit, in all His wisdom, goodness, LOVE, kindness, mercy, grace and forgiveness to give the duchess and the ole fella a trip to my third homeland of Jamaica, where I turned man some half century ago! Glory be!
The foundation of the story though is that we’re here to celebrate the wedding of a cousin and close friend on the upcoming weekend…what better excuse to get away from the cold eh? (smile) So please note, that as usual, when the ole fella is vacationing with the duchess the Bit can arrive at any time – early morning or late night depending on how the duchess and the Lord apportion my time. (smile) But you will get it as long as there is breath in the ole bod!
Well right now I’m here admiring the palm trees swaying in the cool sea breeze blowing outside my balcony door, with a beautiful view of the ocean reflecting three colours of blue as it gets deeper; from a light blue in the shallows to a deep blue in the depths. Oh, and another plane just flew by to land at Montego Bay Airport. They jut keep coming and going.
But yesterday was a rather eventful day; getting up at minutes to three so I could write the bit before leaving. Then hustling to the airport in the early morning traffic and going through all the nonsense that travelling entails these days, and getting on the big bird, the Boeing 737 Dreamliner, they changed it from a stodgy Rouge plane, don’t know why. But who knows why airlines do what they do eh? The flight was good; left around 10 am, and got here around 1.30 pm.
That was when the real fun began; having to negotiate Immigration and Customs with it seemed thousands of people arriving at same time. But eventually we got out front and proceeded to wait on a cousin to pick us up. Yuh should see the ole fella, taking off his long-sleeved shirt, leaving on just a T-shirt and outside in the sun catching some much needed rays! Wow! Was that ever cathartic! (smile)
The cousin finally came and took us to a hotel not far from the airport. We should have known that there would be problems from the less than warm welcome at the reception desk. And knowing who I was dealing with, I insisted on seeing the room allocated to us before we moved anything. And just as well, because they took us to a building far away from the main section, with two sets of stairs to climb, no elevator, and then down to the very end of the corridor. And to make matters worse, the room view opened up on to a patch of overgrown bush and a construction site.
Naturally that raised the duchess’ ire up, and she refused it. When we got back to the reception desk, they seemed less than energetic to try and find something more suitable. But in the meanwhile they advised us to go over the street to the food hut and eat some jerk pork and chicken, which we did. And don’t get me wrong, the property is nice, but as always, it’s the people who spoil stuff.
When we got back to the desk they arrogantly informed us that they had nowhere else to put us, so the duchess kindly informed them that under those conditions we would not be staying. I guess those were the magic words, because they then told us to wait and they would see what they could do. A short time later they took us to this room in the main section, on the sixth floor, with an elevator, and a beautiful view of the ocean.
Well that obviously appeased the duchess. And was I ever glad, because all I wanted to do was to go and get a soak in the salt before the beach closed at six. And ohhhh…was it ever wonderful to walk on warm sand and immerse the ole bod in some salt water; the most therapeutic remedy on God’s great earth! When I got back to the room, the duchess informed me that there was a surprise party with a 70’s theme, to go to for the bride at 7.30.
So I got dressed and went downstairs to the outside dining area, sat there and listened to a trio of Mento singers regale us with some Jamaican folk songs and other more popular stuff in that idiom. Some forty minutes later, the duchess finally came down and went to the front desk to check on what was happening. A few minutes later she came back and told me that the party was actually a bridal shower for females only.
Hn! Now I wasn’t too annoyed, because I was tired and there was lots of food and drink available and my bed close by. So I did just that: found me a seat with a couple of other guests, ate some island food, while listening to some good music from the live band and was sipping an exotic blue cocktail when the duchess showed up and dragged me off to the party, which turned out be an all genders party after all.
That party was good too, up on a Mo Bay hill side in a palatial mansion, with a million dollar view of the other side of the harbour, light’s strung out like a necklace of shining diamonds. It reminded us of Cape Town Harbour in South Africa. And then there were people really dressed like 70’s folks and danced routines to songs from that era too. So all in all a good time was had by all. I never got back to the hotel until after eleven.
And I guess you’re wondering what all of that has to do with the Bit and Scripture. Well let me give you a few verses. First off, Jesus’ memorable words: ‘I am come that they might have life abundantly.’ (John 10:10) We’re just having life abundantly as He promised. And then, though the Lord inflicts us with adversity, listen to these most reassuring words of Jesus. ‘In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33) Just doing what out Leader says, being of good cheer despite all the problems in the world.
And here is this one: ‘And we know that all things work together for good to them that LOVE God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.’ Now how can we ever discount that eh, when despite all the harassment we went through yesterday, everything turned out well and all the people LOVE us now! Well that might be taking it a bit far, (smile) but more importantly is that they have been treating us well.
And hear these immortal words of Bruh David: ‘I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.’ (Ps. 27:13) Yeh friends, what’s the purpose of all those other scriptures if we don’t expect to see God’s goodness down here eh? And the final scripture, and my favourite these days – more immortal words of Bruh David: ‘O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.’ (Ps.34:8)
Wow mih breddren! Yuh know since I recently discovered the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir on YouTube singing Psalm 34 – Taste and See- it’s resonated with me very powerfully and I find myself singing it often. Going to check it out when I’m finished here. Now let’s go home, declaring (yeah!) our Thursday Blessings in strong voice and sincere hearts.
‘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’s 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!’
We must now go out and share those blessings, for as James says, faith without works is dead. (James 2:17) So let’s show them our faith by our works nuh. Much LOVE!
…a slice of heaven is possible…right down here on earth…only trust and believe…
P.S. Yes, it’s long, because the ole fella’s excited and just wants to share His blessedness with you, so that you can go through whatever you’re going through without losing your hope and faith, knowing that whatever the Lord’s done for me, He will do for you too, if you’re obedient to His will. Hope it’s not boring. (smile) Much LOVE!
28 Sep 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a sound mind, Anselm's quotes, appreciate His loving-kindness, aspire to inspire us, be of good cheer, big dreams, courage, disgruntled, do it afraid, fear not, feast one's eyes, for a better tomorrow, full potential, Genesis, God is in control, have life abundantly, how do I love thee, hunker down, i have overcome the world, it is your Father's good pleasure, Joyce Meyer, let me count the ways, lifts our spirits, light of the world, little flock, live in fear, LOVE, more powerful, no passion, nothing is impossible, on something beautiful, panicky alarm, peace, playing small, power, put our best foot forward, reminds us of God's greatness, Revelation, salt of the earth, seem impossible, settling for a life, stretch us, supernatural help, the absence of fear, the spirit of fear, tired, to give you the kingdom, tribulation, triump over it, with all the facts, with God, you are capable of living
Luke 12:32. Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
Saturday, oh Saturday, how do I LOVE thee! Let me count the ways: I don’t have to wake up panicky to an alarm and rush out to take children to a babysitter and school, then to a job that I dislike, while sitting in traffic and getting there tired and disgruntled. I don’t have to spend 8 hours working with people who are mostly jerks. I suppose they think I’m one too, but that’s okay.
I don’t have to clean the house, do laundry or take the children out, if I don’t want to. And if the children aren’t happy with that state of affairs, then I can drop them off at their grandparents who will just LOVE to entertain them for the day, since they seldom see them during the week. Then I can spend the whole day on the couch eating junk food, or in bed with my hubby! And yuh tell me I won’t LOVE you Saturday! No way Jose! (smile)
And since it’s Saturday, let’s see what quotes our friend Anselm sent us this past week, as he sincerely aspires to inspire us to a better tomorrow. And I particularly like this one: ‘Always have something beautiful in sight, even if it’s just a daisy in a jelly glass.’
Why? Because it’s just about admiring beautiful things; things that the Lord made just for us to admire, like the beauty of nature and all therein. There’s nothing better than to be able to feast one’s eyes on something beautiful, whatever it may be, because it just lifts our spirits and reminds us of God’s greatness and helps us to truly appreciate His LOVING-kindness towards mankind!
And these next two seem to go together: ‘There is no passion to be found playing small, in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.’… ‘Never give up on what you really want to do. The person with big dreams is more powerful than the one with all the facts.’
Yeh friends, our God didn’t make us to live small, unimportant lives, but to live big ones, with big dreams that will stretch us, dreams that will seem impossible, that will then leads us to partner with Him, to whom nothing is impossible, to make them come true. Remember Jesus came to earth to die, not only to pay for our sins, but also for us to have life, and have it more abundantly. (John 10:10)
And abundant life doesn’t mean living below our capabilities, but trying to reach for the stars, with His help of course! And believe me, too many of us believers are not stretching ourselves to our full potential, merely settling for mediocrity, for merely what life offers, instead of reaching out for what God meant us to have and to be!
But please remember, we’re also supposed to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world! And you can’t make a marked difference unless your salt is indeed salty and spread out, and your light is shining big and bright! (smile) And dreams will always conquer facts, because facts are static and unchangeable, but dreams can be big, wide, far-reaching, changeable, and with the help of the creator of the universe, possible!
That brings us to this next quote: ‘There are things that always seem impossible until they are done.’ And is that ever so true my brethren! How many times in our own lives have we figured or claimed that something is impossible, then we simply hunker down, put our best foot forward, ask for some supernatural help…and voila! There it’s done and no longer impossible!
And I guess here we should note Jesus’ immortal words after making the statement about a camel passing through the eye of a needle to his disciples. (Matt.19:23-25) Obviously they were amazed, as we too are, even now. ‘But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God ALL things are possible.’ (Matt.19:26)
Please friends, please, let’s never forget that: any and everything is indeed possible with our great God, and if it falls within His will for our lives, He will make it possible for us! That’s why we can’t live small, cloistered, non-dreaming lives, but have to reach up and out for what He’s planned for us.
That brings us to this last quote: ‘Courage is not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it.’ Yes my people, in this life there will always be some kind of fear in our lives, so talking about its absence is not reality at all. However, that doesn’t mean we can’t have courage, because as Sister Joyce (Joyce Meyer) likes to say, ‘courage is doing it afraid.’ And that’s oh so true!
In this crazy, divisive, evil, wicked, strife-filled, war-torn world, fear is the number one emotion in so many of our lives. And there is cause for some fear even when walking in our own neighbourhoods, but remember that some of the most repeated words in the Good Book are these two simple ones: ‘FEAR NOT!’
From Genesis to Revelation they are used to encourage us not to be afraid, because God knows that fear is a meaningful emotion in human lives, but when we walk compliantly with Him, there is no need to be afraid, because He is in control of EVERYTHING! Thus Jesus’ affirmation to the people when He told them to seek first the kingdom of God: ‘Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.’
It’s simple friends, if we make God our Number ONE priority, we need not fear anything in this whole wide world! And if that didn’t touch you, then listen to Jesus again: ‘These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33) And if you can’t truly believe and trust Jesus’ words, what’s the point of calling yourself a believer eh?
And we’ll close with this scripture that all of us know, but not enough actually take to heart. Hear these electrifying words of Bruh Paul to Timothy: ‘For God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of LOVE, and of a sound mind.’ (2 Tim.1:7) Therefore my brethren, I implore us, let’s not only remember those powerful and true words, but as of today, let’s action them in our hearts, souls, bodies and minds nuh, for they will certainly stand us in very good stead in this life! Much LOVE!
…believers ought not to be live in fear…but in courage…
29 Aug 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: an adventure of choices, an ordeal, be of good cheer, believe also in me, Christians, compassionate heart, conquering, curse, David Rudder, death, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, eager to arise, earthly life, eternal optimists, eternal truth, faith, favour, fear not, for himself, give thanks, glorify God, have life abundantly, heavenly future, hell, hoard, I go to prepare a place for you, i have overcome the world, I will come again, In my Father's house, Islands in the Sun, it enables a man, joy, let not your heart be troubled, let our light shine before men, life, live the happiness of the day, LOVE, many mansions, negative word, not abandon it, not as the world gives, optimism, peace, Peace i leave with you, prosper, receive you unto myself, regardless of personal problems, sacrificial death, Satan, see our good works, self-control, self-discipline, share them generously, strong will, succeed, the essence of optimism, the grave, the Holy Spirit, the SON, their joy shines, there ye may be also, Thursday Blessings, to claim the future, to his enemy, to hold his head high, tribulation, victory, where I am, ye believe in God
John 14:1. Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.
Ah friends, the sun is out, but even more importantly, the Son is out in the ole fella’s soul, body and spirit! Wow! And do I ever need Him this morning as the aches and pains are running somewhat rampant from all the physical activity involved in going down to the Ex last night to check out the David Rudder show.
And it was a grand show; beautiful lighting and wonderful music from an excellent band composed of mostly local musicians! David is also an excellent performer. He went on at 8.30, and with the obvious encore didn’t finish until 10:15. And the fans LOVED him, because he is a personable and engaging raconteur, does a lot of talking and encouraging in his songs. And though the rain began drizzling around 9:15, it never stopped the Madness of the party!
And you can imagine the crowd response when he sang some of his many hits like, Hammer, Bahia Girl, Calypso Music, This is Madness, Islands in the Sun, and ended with his anthem, Give Thanks! I never got home until around midnight, and after doing the usual bedtime routing didn’t get to bed until after one. Thus the tardy awakening and consequently the lateness of the Bit. (smile)
But here is an interesting quote that we can all use, from Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906 – 1945) a Protestant Lutheran Pastor, and theologian, who was active in the German resistance to the policies of Hitler and Nazism. ‘The essence of optimism is that it…enables a man to hold his head high, to claim the future for himself and not abandon it to his enemy.’
What an eternal truth that is my people! And more so for Christians than anybody else because we have the best earthly life and eternal heavenly future planned out by our wonderful God for us! Jesus died partly so that we could have life here on earth, and have it abundantly (John 10:10), then He promised that he was going back to heaven to prepare a home for us and would eventually come back and take us with him there.
And if you don’t believe me, then listen to Jesus Himself. ‘Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions (dwellings): if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.’ (John 14:1-3)
Oh my faithful brethren, what an awesome promise! And we all know that our Godhead ALWAYS keep their promises! So why are so many of us so negative and unoptimistic eh? Being a follower of Jesus is the best cause for optimism in this evil and ungodly world. Too many of us are fearful, anxious and unsure about our lives and earthly situations, but Jesus has on several occasions told us to be otherwise.
Remember two of His favourite words were ‘FEAR NOT!’ And in our Bit He tells us quite plainly: ‘Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.’ How much more can He say eh? But He does say more. (smile) Hear Him when He promises the disciples the Holy Spirit. ‘Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.’ (John 14:27)
That’s why Christians should always be the eternal optimists! And this definition of an optimist is both excellent and true. ‘An optimist, regardless of personal problems, is eager to arise in the morning – to get to work, to be with friends or family, to live the happiness of the day. People are drawn toward optimists, for their joy shines on everyone around them.’
And that’s exactly how we believers ought to be! But in actual fact, would that be a good description of our current lives? That’s for each of us to know and work out with God. But please remember Jesus said that we should let our light shine before men, so that they could see our good works, and thus glorify our heavenly Father. (Matt.5:16) Well friends, we can’t do that unless we truly believe in Him and are joyfully optimistic about our future.
And I’ll quote us one more encouraging scripture from Jesus: ‘These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33) Oh mih breddren, mih breddren, how else and how often must Jesus say it for us to believe it eh?
He has already given us the victory by conquering hell, death, the grave and Satan through His sacrificial death and awesome resurrection, we just have to keep the victory going now, and we can only do so by resisting the wiles and taunts of the evil one and being strong and optimistic in Jesus!
And I certainly hope that what we’ve said today has raised all our optimism levels, and set us on a path where our lights can shine brightly and we can make a true and useful difference in the world as Jesus so greatly desires. And He has shown us His own optimism by not only dying for us, but also by giving us His wonderful Thursday Blessings so that we can do His earthly work.
And since they don’t work unless we invoke them, let’s declare them all now, in loud, clear, sincere and optimistic voices. As one now: ‘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’s 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 everyday! Amen!’
Yeh mih people, that’s the way Jesus wants us to declare His word and blessings. Now let’s go out and do the most important part; share them with the less fortunate…Remember now, don’t hoard them, share them as generously as He has shared them with us. Much LOVE!
…‘life is an adventure of choices to be lived…not an ordeal to be survived…I choose…optimism…and joy…’
28 Jun 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a big bash, a crooked, anger, believers in Christ, blameless, Canada Day, celebrations, children of God, Christian, comforting, covenant, disputings, do all tings, don't jealous them, drinking, drunk like a skunk, drunk or sober, each step I take, eating, elbow grease, fall flat on his face, fear, fellowship, free gift of grace, Friday chant, fun, furthering your glorious kingdom, generous help, go overboard, Granny's wise words, guiding, harmless, have life abundantly, having a blast, high life, holding fast to, holy spirit, in Jesus' name, in the day of Christ, in the midst of, Jesus' body, jump right in, laboured in vain, laugh in Jesus' face, leadin, long weekend, LOVE, low life, mess up our souls, mind our p's and q's, mind your business, parties galore, party, perverse generation, refreshed, rejoice, relaxation, renewed, resentment, rest, run in vain, Satan, sense of purpose, slave master, taunting, temptation, TGIF!, thank god for weekends, Thank God is Friday, the bacchanalian situation, the church, the enemy, the word of life, trembling, week of work, without murmurings, without rebuke, witness for Christ, wonderful country of Canada, work out your own salvation, ye shine as lights
Philippians 2:15. That ye may be blameless and harmless (innocent), the sons (children) of God, without rebuke (fault), in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation (generation), among whom ye shine as lights in the world;
Summer days are here again…Glory Hallelujah! Yes my people, it surely seems as though the summer time is fully upon us now, what with all these beautiful days all in a row with warm temps and what not! (smile) And it’s a long weekend to boot; Canada Day weekend where we celebrate our Independence from our Colonial masters.
Yes friends, we’re a hundred and fifty two years old now; young compared to many other nations, but we’re growing in strength, faith, godliness and LOVE daily! Give God the thanks my Canadian brethren!
And before we go any further, let me remind us of those wise, immortal words of Granny that are so applicable to this weekend of mucho celebration. ‘Sonny boy; drunk or sober please mind yuh business!’ Please take serious note my people and be very careful this long weekend. And is the workingman ever bursting to sing his weekend song, so let’s hear him nuh.
‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday oui…and the weekend here at last! And was this ever a rough week because the slave master had plenty work to get out before the long weekend. And wow! Is Canada Day long weekend, which means party, party, party! And the weather supposed to be nice everlasting too, right up there in the high 20’s! Mama Yo! Are we ever going to mash up this weekend.
Yuh can’t rightly celebrate Canada independence without a big bash! Lots ah eating and drinking, imbibing some good brew…and even some of the hard stuff too! I can imagine what cottage country going to look like this weekend. All the big shots and them going to be having a blast and the lakes and them going to be full ah boats riding up and down with parties galore on them.
But is okay. I don’t jealous them their high life. I’m going to enjoy my low life right down here in the city. Me and my pardies, we going to have just as good a time…and possibly even better. So leh we just thank God for weekends and this wonderful country of Canada nuh!’
Ah friends, yuh see why Granny’s words are so important when coming to these big celebrations. In all the excitement and joy, we just liable to go overboard like the workingman’s planning to do. But as believers in Christ Jesus we can’t afford to go that far into the bacchanalian situation because the enemy will jump right into that opening and mess up our souls and spoil our witness for Christ.
That’s why our Friday Chant is somewhat more reserved, thoughtful and even-tempered than the workingman’s weekend song. So let’s chant it now nuh, in loud voice, with a strong sense of purpose. ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through.
Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen!’
Yes mih breddren, ours is a more sedate and responsible life. Now that doesn’t mean that we can’t party and have fun too, but we just have to be a li’l more careful when we let our hair down and don’t give the enemy a chance to invade our souls and cause us to do wrong, because that is his sole purpose in life…get a Christian to fall flat on his face, both literally and figuratively, then laugh in Jesus face and gleefully declare:
‘Look, look at yuh boy down there in the gutter nuh…drunk like a skunk! And he is the one yuh was praising up so much, about how he so good and godly. But yuh see how he really soft. Can’t even stand li’l bit a temptation! Hn, Hn, Hn! And it have plenty more like him out there too yes. Going to show yuh them every time ah conquer them!’
Oh my fellow believers, we definitely can’t have Satan taunting and laughing up in Jesus face like that nuh! That means we have to seriously mind our p’s and q’s, else we liable to fall in the gutter too. And the church, Jesus’ body, already has enough black eyes on it, it doesn’t need anymore. That’s why friends, this Canada Day weekend, we need to consider seriously these words of Bruh Paul to the Philippians.
‘Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of (according to) his good pleasure. Do all things without murmurings (grumbling) and disputings:
That ye may be blameless and harmless (innocent), the sons (children) of God, without rebuke (fault), in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation (generation), among whom ye shine as lights in the world; Holding forth (fast to) the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain.’ (Phil.2:12-16)
And all that basically means friends, is now that we’ve been saved by the free gift of grace from God, not by anything we did, we have to stay attached to Christ and work at keeping our lives going in a godly direction. Being godly and righteous doesn’t just happen automatically once we’re saved, we have to work at it, run our race like Bruh Paul did.
And if we are sincere about running that godly race, then the Lord will help us do so through the leading, guiding and comforting of His Holy Spirit. But that means we can’t grumble and complain when things don’t go our way, neither can we live in anger and resentment with our fellow man. We need to be bright and shining lights for and of Jesus in this most perverse generation ever of mankind.
Remember, God has a plan for each and every one of our lives, and though He’ll gladly show us what it is, and help us accomplish it, He won’t do it all for us, we need to do our part of the covenant and put in some elbow grease too. So this Canada day weekend, let’s keep all of that in mind as we party hearty, and enjoy ourselves, for that is one of the reasons Christ died in our place; that we can rejoice and be happy in living and working for Him. Much LOVE!
…I am come…that they might have life…and have it more abundantly… (John 10:10b)
06 Apr 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a hudredfold, advantageous, adversity, Anselm, Apollos watered, aspire to inspire us, born rich or poor, bounden duty, brought forth fruit, catches the juiciest worms, clothed with God's armour, control over, damnation, early bird, eternity, fell on good ground, fight for it, figurative seeds, glory to God, God gave the increase, good cheer, good fruit, harvesting, have life abundantly, hell fire, I am come, in good soil, in the world, it's best shot, Jesus lives and reigns in us, make hay while the sun shines, mind and body, on holidays, peace, people's hearts, planting seeds, pull up our brithches, reap a harvest, religion, seeds, sixtyfold, sleeping in, sowing, stand, the harvest is plenteous, the joy of the Lord, the labourers are few, thirtyfold, tribulation, vicissitudes of life, your strength
Matthew 13:8-9. But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some a hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.
‘Hello…Hello in there! Anybody home?’ Hn! Like nobody wake up yet, everybody sleeping in this Saturday morning – everybody except the ole fella. I’ve been up since minutes to six, doing my own thing, even though I went to bed fairly late.
Chuh! I don’t like this thing that developing here nuh; going to bed late and getting up early, especially when I’m supposed to be on holidays! But one can’t do a lot if the body decides that it has had enough sleep. Might as well get up and make hay while the sun shines, or be like the early bird that catches the juiciest worms! (smile)
But enough with the clichés, is Saturday morning so let’s see what quotes our friend Anselm sent us this week, as he sincerely aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And we have a full slate – and they long too. (smile)
Check out this first one: ‘LIFE – is a four-letter word that is complicated enough that no one will ever decode its true meaning. Whether you were born into a wealthy family or a poor one, your life will be full of ups and downs. The goal in life is to minimize the down’s and live a happy and inspiring existence.’
And that’s certainly true! Whether we born rich or poor, we all have to face the vicissitudes of this crazy life; ups and downs, of sickness, financial problems, relationship problems, etc. etc. We all face adversity in this life, and the only way to be able to truly handle it is by being in a good relationship with Jesus!
Remember what He said? ‘These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33) Glory be my people! So though the world throws it’s best shot at us, we can always be peaceful because Jesus lives and reigns in us! Give Him much thanks and praise nuh!
Then there’s this one that fits in nicely with the first: ‘The only thing that you have control over is your mind and your body. Everything else is decided by a bunch of people and external conditions. If you are truly happy, no one else can snatch it from you.’
Again, there’s a lot of truth in that statement! We can only control what’s in our personal universe, namely our minds and bodies. But once we have serious control of them, nobody can take away our joy, especially if it’s based in Jesus, for the joy of the Lord is our strength! (Neh.8:10) Yes friends, when we are joyful in the Lord, nobody or nothing can take away that inner peace and contentment. More thanks to Christ again!
Now hear this: ‘When you were a baby, you had to cry to get what you want. If you didn’t, your parents probably thought you didn’t want it. The same applies when you grow up, the world doesn’t just hand you what you want unless you ask and fight for it.’ So true my faithful brethren! The world takes pleasure in beating us down, and if we allow it, it will beat us down to the death!
Yeh, the world is an advantageous entity, that knows no mercy! That’s why we have to stand up and fight, especially as true believers in Christ, because the world wants to beat down believers more than anybody else, since we go against its sinful and evil nature! No wonder Bruh Paul warned the Ephesians to ‘Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil…and having done all, to stand.’ (Eph.611, 13b)
Yes my people, only when we are fully clothed with God’s armour, can we resist, rebuke and beat down the enemy, who’s greatest wish is to destroy us. So please try and stay fully armoured at all times! (smile)
So, considering all that we’ve already said, then this next quote makes a lot of sense. ‘You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough. — Why live a long and unhappy life?’ Good question! Especially in light of Jesus’ immortal words: ‘The thief cometh not, but for (except) to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it abundantly.’ (John 10:10)
Yes friends, Jesus came to give us life, abundant life, both here on earth and throughout eternity with Him in heaven, so why spoil it eh, when we have such a good thing going eh? No reason whatsoever…unless we mental! (smile) And yes, I know some of us are mental enough to throw away, or not accept all that Jesus offers, but that’s not you or me! Glory to God!
And then we come to this last quote: ‘Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant.’ Now that’s something we believers are not very good at. We expect to reap a harvest as soon as we done sow a seed…and a big harvest at that. But as Uncle Charles (Charles Stanley) likes to say: ‘You reap what you sow, more than you sow and later than you sow!’ And that’s gospel truth!
Moreover, the process of sowing and harvesting is a time thing; not now for now, like we want it to be! The seeds we sow, be they real or figurative seeds need time to germinate, to take root and grow. That process doesn’t happen overnight, and all of us know it from our association with the planting of seed in the soil and waiting for it to grow, so we can reap a harvest.
The same applies to any figurative seed we sow in people’s hearts; it takes time to grow, and we should not be too concerned about how much harvest those seeds will produce, but rather about how many seeds we plant in Jesus’ name! And also about if the seeds that we plant are good, and the type of soil that we plant them in, for all of that has a bearing on the kind of harvest we’ll eventually reap.
Remember Jesus’ words in the parable of the sower. (Matt.13:1-9) The sower sowed plenty seed, but they all fell on different kinds of soil and produced different amounts of harvest – even no harvest at all, because the soil they fell in wasn’t conducive to producing fruit. ‘But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some a hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.’
Yes friends, it’s ever so important that we sow the seed of Jesus amongst the many lost of this world, but we also need to find the good soil and then water and nurture the seed so that it can grow good fruit. For as Jesus also said to His disciples: ‘The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few.’ (Matt.9:37)
No doubt about it friends, there are many more unbelievers out there than believers, and it’s our bounden duty to harvest them before Jesus comes back, else they will be lost to hell fire and damnation for all eternity! And that’s not a very nice place to be. So let’s pull up our britches and go out and be more serious and concerned about planting seeds in good soil nuh, rather than the harvest those seeds are likely to bear. The Lord will reward us for the harvest later on. Much LOVE!
…I have planted…Apollos watered…but God gave the increase… (1 Cor.3:6)
30 Jun 2018
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a balancing act, a better tomorrow, a good life, a scorcher, Anselm, aspires to inspire, bad luck, beginning of knowledge, believest thou this, big up, blessed by Almighty God, blessed favour, building on the rock, Canada Day celebrations, Canada is the best, change your whole day, Christian faith, destroy, don't tkae anything personally, epitome of wisdom, fear of the Lord, find pasture, fools despise wisdom, foundation stone, friends, gives his life for the sheep, Go Canada, good luck, grace, Granny's warnings, have life abundantly, I am the door, I am the way, immune to the opinions, inadequacy, lack of preparation, Lazarus, Martha, mercy of God, needless suffering, no man cometh to the Father, on the right foot, on the sand, on the wrong track, opportunities, optimistic, partnership, positive thought, projection of their own reality, quotes, reality, saved, shall never die, starting out, sunscreen, the good shepherd, the Life, the prince of darkness, the resurrection, the shepherd of the sheep, the Truth, to kill, tough skinned, victim, wisdom, wrong foundation
John 14:6. Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me.
And the Canada Day celebrations continue apace! And the weather seems to be in full cooperating mood too; it’s supposed to be a scorcher, possibly worse than yesterday. So get on your sunscreen and turn on the A/C, and celebrate the birth of this wonderful country called Canada, within the limits of Granny’s warnings though! (smile)
Oh we have our problems too, but of all the big countries in the world, I still believe that Canada is the BEST! Go Canada!
And so having ‘big-upped’ Canada; I hate the word, ‘big-up’ but I couldn’t think of anything more suitable at the time, let’s move on to our Saturday treat of this weeks quotes from our friend Anselm, who sincerely aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow.
And this week there’s a whole slate of them, starting with: ‘Choose to be optimistic, it feels better.’ And there’s absolutely no doubt about the truth and wisdom in that statement, for optimism is a foundation stone of our Christian faith.
That leads to the next quote: ‘Just one small positive thought in the morning can change your whole day.’ That also has many grains of truth in it, for if we begin our day with positive thoughts, we will indeed be starting out on the right foot.
Then there is: ‘Good luck is when opportunity meets preparation, while bad luck is when lack of preparation meets reality.’ It’s basically true, but we believers just don’t dabble in bad luck and good luck, but more the blessed favour, grace and mercy of our awesome God.
But we must do our part in the partnership and be prepared for them. If we aren’t prepared, when those opportunities appear or arise, then we’ll simply lose out on a chance, no, an opportunity to be blessed by Almighty God.
Listen to this one: ‘Don’t Take Anything Personally. Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won’t be the victim of needless suffering.’
Now I don’t know if I agree with that totally, because there are times when people do things because of us, and we ought to take them personally. The problem is to know when and what things to take issue with. A lot of the time what others do and say is indeed because of their own problems or inadequacy and we have to be wise and somewhat tough skinned to recognize those times and not allow them to bother us.
It’s all a balancing act my people, and we do need God’s help to set the balance right. And the last quote says: ‘The more you are positive and say, ‘I want to have a good life,’ the more you build that reality for yourself by creating the life that you want.’
Ah friends, that statement is only true in the context of Christianity! If you say you want to build a good life under Christ, then fine. But if you want to build what the world and the prince of darkness call a good life, then you’re definitely on the wrong track. Remember the immortal words of Jesus: ‘Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me.’
Yes friends, Jesus was very emphatic in that pronouncement, so if your life is not modelled on His, then you’re indeed going the wrong way, building your life, earthly as well as eternal, on the wrong foundation.
And Jesus makes His point earlier when He declares that He is the Good shepherd: ‘Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep…
I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. The thief cometh not, but for (except) to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.’ (John 10:1-2, 9-11)
And that is exactly what Jesus did friends: give His life for us, the sheep of His pasture. So why would we look for some other foundation on which to build our lives eh? Building our lives upon Jesus is like building them on a rock; a rock which stands the test of time and the elements of nature. Building our lives on anything else is like building them on sand, which cannot repel or withstand anything. Check out Jesus’ analogy re the two foundations, in Matthew .7:24-27.
And we’ll close with some more immortal words of Jesus on the subject, as He spoke to Martha when He arrived late on purpose for Lazarus’ burial. ‘Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead (may die) yet shall he live. And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?’ (Matt.11:25-26)
And as the scholars say: ‘11:25: I am the resurrection is one of Jesus’ greatest “I am” statements, signifying His power to give eternal life.’
And oh my people, if Jesus has that awesome power, why wouldn’t I believe in Him eh, and shout out a bold and confident ‘YES’ to the question He asked Martha at the end of the last passage above: ‘Believest thou this?’
Oh friends, believing in Jesus is not only the epitome of wisdom, it is wisdom itself! Much LOVE!
…the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge…but fools despise wisdom and instruction… (Prov.1:7)
13 Apr 2016
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a glorious future with Jesus, a hard row to hoe, alive and kicking, be not afraid, belief, blessings, Christian living, confess me before men, darkness, deny me bfore men, do what's right, doing Jesus' will, faith, fellowshipping, follow me, fooling ourselves, friends, glory hallelujah, God is good, God's goodness, gospel truth, harsh, have life abundantly, heaven on earth, hell on earth, I am halfway home, I'm not focusing on the past, I'm not looking back, I'm so glad to be alive, if any man will come after me, kill the soul, laborious, let him deny himself, light, LOVE, loving kindness, many mansions in heaven, maturing in Christ, my eyes are fixed straight ahead, my hands are on the plough, never to leave or forsake us, praying, put Jesus first, put up, reading the Bible, reprisals, sense of purpose, shut up, sincerity, spring-like weather, spunk, standing strong and steadfast, take up his cross daily, the breath of life, weather fluctuations, Wednesday Wail, with the Lord's help
Luke 9:23. And he said to them all, If any man will (desires to) come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.
Well, well my people, it’s another bright, sunshiny day in the life! Let’s hope it’s at least a tad warmer than yesterday, as we hopefully move into true spring-like weather by the weekend. And all God’s people in the northern climes declared a loud ‘Glory Hallelujah!’
Yeh friends, the crazy weather fluctuations do begin to get frustrating after a while. However, the good news is that it’s Wednesday, and therefore we are bold to confess and declare our Wednesday Wail. So as one good wailer, let’s wail nuh mih breddren, with sincerity and a true 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!’
Oh friends, that was beautiful! I could hear the sincerity in our delivery. And why shouldn’t there be sincerity eh? We’re alive and kicking, doing our best to be Christ-like and mature more and more in our Christian walk of faith each day.
We know what Jesus has promised and what He’s already done for us, therefore we are standing strong and steadfast in His Word, doing His will and looking forward to the wonderful future He has planned for us, not only in the many mansions in heaven, but also down here on earth.
And yes my people, as Bruh David said, he don’t know what he would have done, had he not expected to see God’s goodness and LOVING-kindness down here. And Jesus also declared that He had come that we might have life, and have it abundantly.
So earthly living, though it can often be rough, is not meant to be a hell on earth, but more a heaven on earth! Therefore let’s get our minds focused on God’s goodness down here nuh, not simply on the rough spells we sometimes must go through.
Remember, life might not be fair, but God is GOOD my people, and if we live sincerely for Him, He will pour our His blessings on us.
And in light of all of that, it is imperative that we do as our Bit dictates. ‘And he said to them all, If any man will (desires to) come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.’
Oh precious people, I know that sounds somewhat harsh and laborious, but it really isn’t, because the essence of taking up one’s cross daily and following Jesus is simply living in His will; trying to do what’s right, reading the Bible, praying, fellowshipping, maturing, treating others as we want them to treat us. It’s just the everyday things of Christian living and discipleship.
Now, no one says it’s easy, but with God’s help it is doable, and yuh better believe, it’s always interesting. So please, let’s not allow the idea of taking up our cross daily, yes daily, turn us off. The important thing is to put Jesus FIRST in ALL that we do and say. For as He said yesterday, whoever puts anything or anybody before Him, is not worthy of Him. (Matt.10:36-39)
And today, He is telling the disciples to not be afraid of what man can do to them, because our heavenly father has us covered, so much so that even the hairs on our head are numbered. Sorry for those of you who have no hair. (smile)
So with truth, sincerity and power, Jesus declares: ‘Fear them not therefore: for there is nothing covered (veiled), that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall not be known. What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light: and what ye hear in the air, that preach ye upon the housetops.
And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell…
Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.’ (Matt.10:26-28; 32-33)
Ah mih people, it couldn’t be any clearer than that nuh. Don’t be afraid! Jesus said that numerous times to the disciples, and He’s still saying it to us today. But unfortunately we don’t seem to have the faith and belief and spunk that the disciples eventually gained, because we are not standing up as strong as we ought to for Jesus.
We are allowing the evil and ungodly world to just dismantle all that our Christian forefathers spent their lives building without a serious fight. We need to put up friends, or simply shut up!
And we’ll close with some interesting explanations from the scholars. ’10:32-37. Confess me means “Acknowledge that you belong to Me.” In reality, secret discipleship is a practical impossibility. Jesus constantly called for an open confession of Himself by His followers.
That our confession is to be before men clearly indicates that a public confession of true Christian faith is a virtual necessity. The warning whosoever shall deny me is a comprehensive historical aorist (no limitation) tense, referring not to one moment of denial (such as Peter’s), but to an entire lifelong resistance to Christ.
Therefore, a single act of denial does not make one unworthy of being a disciple, but a refusal to confess Christ at all, eliminates one from being a true follower of Jesus Christ.’
There we have it friends, in black and white! We cannot continually deny Jesus and expect to be His disciple. We must acknowledge Him without fear of reprisals. For He has promised to never leave nor forsake us, and to be a true believer, we must accept Him and His words as gospel truth. Otherwise, we’re just fooling ourselves, and that’s a real sad thing to do. Much LOVE!
…walking sincerely with Jesus is often a hard row to hoe…but hoe it we must…and with the Lord’s help…hoe it we will…
P.S. Late though it be, it’s value is still priceless. (smile) Much LOVE!
SCRIP-BITS 