16 Jun 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a night of hard labour, acknowledge God's sovereignty, arise cry out in the night, at the top of every street, before the face of the Lord, cried for help, faint for hunger, for the birds, for the life of thy young children, forty years in the wilderness, get God out of our lives, godly society, going to bed early, great is thy faithfulness, hear my voice, his compassions fail not, hunger, I am the beloved of god, I can trust my friend Jesus, I don't have to hurry, I don't have to worry, I hoped in thy word, I prevented, I'm not what I do, I'm not what I have, I'm not what people say about me, in god's eyes, It is of the Lord's mercies, Lamentations, let us rejoice and be glad in it, lift up thy hands toward Him, listen, LOVE, manna, meditate in thy word, negative stuff, no one can take that from me, obey, only sensible option, pained in body and soul, pandemic sickness, pandemic struggles and protests, pour out thine heart like water, poverty, rose before, share His love with the world, strife, testimonies, the dawning of the morning, the grim reaper, the Lord fed the Israelites, they are new every morning, this is the day the Lord has made, thy commandments are truth, thy loving-kindness, Tuesday Mantra, we are not consumed, well-nourished spiritually, words of Jeremiah
Psalm 119:147. I prevented (rose before) the dawning of the morning, and cried (for help): I hoped in thy word.
‘This is the day…Yes! This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it!’ Oh friends, that’s the only sensible option of the two we have today and every day: either to rejoice and be glad in it, or be miserable and sad in it! (smile) And sadly, too many of us will indeed choose that latter option – believers included.
But friends, please, please, let’s remember the momentous words of Jeremiah in his Lamentations nuh: ‘It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.’ (Lam. 3:22-23)
Yeh mih people, it’s the Lord’s mercies, his LOVING-kindness that keeps us going, and they’re new every day! Wow! No stale mercies for His people! But bright and fresh ones every day, like fresh bread from the oven every morning and you just slather it with butter…Ohhh, awfully good!
It’s like the manna that the Lord fed the Israelites with for forty years in the wilderness: everyday, except on the Sabbath, they picked it up fresh. They might not have liked it, but it kept them well-nourished in their rough times. Likewise, our Lord’s new mercies everyday keeps us well-nourished spiritually every day, and we’d be foolish not to accept them and cherish them. End of sermon! (smile)
And lemme make a salient point here before we move on nuh: this thing about going to bed early is really for the birds oui, not for me. I tried it last night, went to bed much earlier than usual, spent most of the night in the bed, but did not sleep as much as I expected, and still got up late. And worst of all, I got up severely pained in body and soul, as if I’d done a night of hard labour! Steups!
So all yuh could keep this early night nonsense yes! But as for me, I’m going to stick with my night owl business yes, because although I might wake up late the odd time (smile) I don’t get up as pained in body or soul! Now that’s my position…and I’m sticking to it! Chuh! No more of this early night foolishness! And it even make me less productive too…! And now that I’ve said my piece, (smile) let’s see what the Lord has to say to us nuh.
But this morning looks like a Jeremiah Lamentations morning yes, because the Lord is also pointing out the words of Jeremiah to his people Israel when they were facing extremely rough times like we are currently. Hear him nuh: ‘Arise, cry out in the night: in the beginning of the watches pour out thine heart like water before the face of the Lord: lift up thy hands toward him for the life of thy young children, that faint for hunger in the top of every street.’ (Lam. 2:19)
Oh my people, there is so much hunger and poverty and strife and negative stuff in our world that we can never correct or even attempt to fix it without the Lord’s help! But we’ve become such a proud, haughty and know it all civilization that we blatantly refuse to acknowledge our Creator and de facto Controller and try to do it our way. With what results eh – pandemic sickness and pandemic struggles and protests in our streets! And yet we still refuse to turn back to Almighty God. How foolish is that eh?
When we were a fairly godly society, did we have as many problems? I really don’t know nuh. But I know for sure that trying to get God out of our lives right now is definitely not going to work, because He’s not going to allow us to do it. It’s His world and as He said so profoundly a long time ago: ‘I am the Lord: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images.’ (Is. 42:8) And if we don’t believe that, then we can continue to fight the losing battle we’re currently fighting.
Oh my people, when are we going to truly realize and accept that the Most High God Jehovah is the Ruler of the universe eh, and that nothing happens without Him allowing it? We can’t control the most important aspect of our lives, that’s life itself. Regardless of how much money and power we have when the Grim Reaper comes a calling, we have to go. And even when we want to go before time, by taking our own lives, just look at how often we fail.
But listen to what the psalmist said nuh: ‘I cried with my whole heart; hear me, O Lord: I will keep thy statutes. I cried unto thee; save me, and I shall keep thy testimonies. I prevented (rose before) the dawning of the morning, and cried (for help): I hoped in thy word. Mine eyes prevent (are awake through) the night watches, that I might meditate in thy word.
Hear my voice according unto thy LOVING-kindness: O Lord, quicken (revive) me according to thy judgement (justice). They draw nigh that follow after mischief: they are far from thy law. Thou art near, O Lord; and all thy commandments are truth. Concerning thy testimonies, I have known of old that thou hast founded them for ever.’ (Ps. 119:145-152)
Yes friends, until we begin again to seriously do the words of the psalmist; cry out sincerely for help to God, acknowledge His sovereignty, and obey His Word, our world will remain in turmoil. It’s as simple as that. The Lord is now crying out to us to turn back to Him in true repentance and acknowledgment, but unfortunately we’re not hearing His cry. So what’s to be done eh? For the relatively small amount of us who do acknowledge his sovereignty, let’s go home declaring (yeahhh!) our Tuesday Mantra, letting the rest of the world know who and whose we are.
Altogether now, in strong voice, with sincere hearts: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
Now what we waiting for eh? Let’s go out and do just that nuh! Much LOVE!
…we expect the Lord to hear us when we call out to Him…but He also expects us to listen and obey…when He replies…
15 Jan 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a door to door salesman, attitude, Behold, beloved of God, black body, bounden duty, Christ's inimitable manner, Christians, church at Laodicea, cleanliness, covered with dew, disgust, displeasure, Ephesians, evil inside, forgiveness, friend of Jesus, gladness, grace, greetings, hear my voice, home, hypocritically, I can do all things, I stand at the door, I will come in unto him, I will rejoice and be glad in it, if any man, immortal words, inviting smile, joy, kindness, King of Kings, knock, lavish decor, level of faith, LOVE, magnificent taste, Make yourself at home, mercy, no news is good news, offer my heart, One Year Book of Bible promises, open the door, open to me, original oil, plush carpeting, purchased with His blood, ring the bell, Ruth Harms Calkin, salutations, secluded corners, seed-bearing, seminal, share His love, silver service, the church of God, the door is wide open, the drops of the night, this is the day the Lord has made, through Christ who strengthens me, trust, Tuesday Mantra, unfurnished, velvet drapes, white homeowner, white washed tombs, will sup with him, wisest thing
Revelation 3:20. Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come into him, and will sup (dine) with him, and he with me.
Aye friends, greetings and salutations this wintry Tuesday morn from my house to yours! Hope all is well with you and yours, and as far as I know, it is well with mine. (smile) Yuh know they say no news is good news. Anyway, let’s begin with two powerful acclamations to set the tone for our day. And the first is the most powerful: ‘I can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens me!’ (Phil.4:13) Yes my brethren, that certainly accentuates and reminds us of the innate power that lies within us as believers in Jesus Christ!
And the second is like unto the first (smile): ‘This is the day the Lord has made we WILL rejoice and be glad in it!’ Mama Mia! What a way to begin our day! Acknowledging that Christ’s mighty power is working in us, and that our attitude will be one of joy and gladness ought to raise our level of faith and make the devil cringe and run away and hide from these awesome believers in the King of All Kings!
And to go with all of that my people, here is this poem from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin that completes the stage setting for the day. It is titled: ‘Make Yourself at Home.’ Please pray with me: ‘With extreme joy, Lord I offer my heart as Your home. I have purposely left it unfurnished Without lavish décor: No plush carpeting No velvet drapes Not even an original oil Or an engraved silver service. Examine it first for cleanliness – Every room Every closet Then furnish it according to Your own magnificent taste. The door is wide open – Don’t even bother to ring the bell.’
Ah friends, if only each of our hearts was indeed open to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ like that eh! Our hearts would be so beautifully furnished in Christ’s inimitable (cannot be imitated) manner, with plush, expensive and adorable furniture like mercy, kindness, forgiveness, grace and above all unconditional LOVE! Wow! What beautiful Christians we’d be! The world would be shocked and in awe and run to embrace Him as we did!
Steups! But unfortunately too many of us supposed believers keep God out of our living rooms, in secluded corners of our hearts and only trundle Him out on Sunday mornings when we go to church and behave ever so hypocritically. That’s why the heathen doesn’t take us seriously. We’re like Jesus called the Pharisees, ‘white washed tombs;’ clean and pretty outside, but filthy and evil inside.
That brings us to our Bit, which is also the Bible Promise for our poem. Hear these seminal, seed-bearing, immortal words of our Lord and Saviour to the church at Laodicea, re their lukewarm, not good enough behaviour. ‘Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come into him, and will sup (dine) with him, and he with me.’
Oh friends, those words also pertain to us today in this evil and ungodly world in which we currently live! Jesus is knocking, like a door-to-door salesman, on every heart that’s available. But it’s just like in real life, where many of us don’t believe in, and don’t like to be bothered by itinerant salespeople at our doors, and don’t answer them, or are rude when you open and see who it is.
I can tell you about that because in my early days in Canada I was a door-to-door salesman promoting encyclopedias – just for a few days though, couldn’t handle the cold and the rejection. (smile) And sometimes when the white homeowner opened the door and saw a black body there trying to sell them something, you could see the look of displeasure and disgust that quickly passed across their face before they say a cold and barely mannerly ‘not interested today.’
That’s how a lot of us are reacting to Jesus’ knock on the doors of our hearts my fellow believers. Please remember that we’re Jesus’ property, we’ve been bought and paid for with His holy, sinless blood. As Bruh Paul told the Ephesians elders: ‘Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed (shepherd) the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.’ (Acts 20:28)
That means we are no longer our own, but Christ’s, and our hearts, minds, bodies and souls ought to be totally open to His knocking at any time, and be amenable to whatever furnishings He chooses to place therein! This brings to mind those endearing words of Cousin Sol in his Song: ‘I sleep, but my heart waketh: it is the voice of mybeloved that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my LOVE, my dove, my undefiled (perfect one): for my head is filled (covered) with dew, and my locks (hair) with the drops of the night.’ (Song 5:2)
Yes friends, that’s our Lord and Saviour, our LOVE, who comes and knocks at the doors of our hearts. So please, when He knocks today – and He knocks EVERYDAY – don’t foolishly turn Him away, but gladly and joyfully open up your heart wide and let Him enter there in and sup with you. It will be the best and wisest thing you’ve ever done!
And having said all of that, let’s go home now declaring (got it right!) our Tuesday Mantra, letting this ungodly and evil world know who and whose we truly are! In unison, loudly and unashamedly and with a strong sense of purpose: ‘In God’s eyes, I’m not what I do. I’m not what I have. I’m not what people say about me. I am the beloved of God, that’s who I am. No one can take that from me. I don’t have to worry. I don’t have to hurry. I can trust my friend Jesus and share His LOVE with the world. Amen!’
The next thing is for us to go out and sincerely share that extraordinary friendship and LOVE of Jesus with others who don’t know or truly appreciate Him. That’s our bounden duty as believers! Much LOVE!
…when there’s a knock on your door…open it with a bright, inviting smile…for it might just be Jesus…
08 Nov 2017
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a glorious future with Jesus, a heavy old door, adopted children, ancient seals, apostate church, Behold, being born again, being saved, Christ's blessings, Christ-like image, church at Laodicea, come into him, constant repetition, dr robert h schuller, embrace Jesus, evil times, fallen world, fellowship, footsteps of Jesus, glad to be alive, glory hallelujah, God is good, he that hath an ear, hear my voice, hear something new, heavenly advocate, heavenly Father, Hour of Power Devotional, human animal, I stand at the door, improve our knowledge of Jesus, interact with Jesus, knock, learn to know God, let him hear, life's not fair, light at the end of the tunnel, listen, look forward to, LOVE, mid-point, money, my heart opening, not looking back, old chains break, on my throne, open the door, positive effect, pride in wealth, Redeemer, reigning with Christ, reject the advances, rejection of Jesus, relationship with Jesus, set down with my Father, sit with me, smart money on Jesus, spiritual conditions, spiritual. emotional walls, sup with him, support our families, talk, the breath of life, the Great tribulation, the joy of a soul, the Rapture, the weekend, to him who overcomes, transitional times, walking into my life, Wednesday, Wednesday Wail, wisdom, workweek
Revelation 3:20. Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come into him, and will sup (dine) with him, and he with me.
And then it was Wednesday, the mid-point of our workweek! Yeh friends, some light is showing up at the end of the tunnel. It’s interesting though, how we all look forward to the weekend so that we can get some time off work, but very few of us look forward to the workweek so that we can make some money to support our families and ourselves.
One would think that working would be the more important part of the equation, but apparently it’s not. I guess that’s just the nature of the human animal, especially in these turbulent and transitional times. (smile)
But here is something to help us from Gramps Schuller (Dr. Robert H. Schuller) from his Hour of Power Devotional. I’ve shared it before, but it’s one of those things that seem to need repeated sharing for us to get it indelibly written in our hearts, souls and minds. It’s called ‘Learn to Know God.’
Please pray with me. ‘Dear Jesus, I’ve got to know You better. Please help me! I can feel my spiritual and emotional walls crack. I can hear old chains break. I can feel my heart opening like a heavy old door whose ancient seals have just begun to break. I can sense the footsteps of Jesus walking into my life. I am beginning to experience the joy of a soul that is being saved, a life that is being born again. Thank You, Lord! Life’s not fair, but God is good. Amen!’
Ah mih people, I do hope that those words, especially the fact that life’s not fair, but God IS good, are having some positive effects on us this day, because we ALL need to improve our knowledge and experiences with Jesus, our Redeemer and heavenly Advocate. And we can only do some of that by constant repetition.
Oh, I know some of us want to hear something new everyday, but what’s the point when we haven’t learned what we heard the day before eh? Like everything else in this fallen world, we only learn stuff when we encounter it regularly, and that’s never more true that with our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.
The more we interact with him, the more we come to learn about and LOVE Him. And that’s the only way we can ever be changed into His Christ-like image, which is the heartfelt desire and purpose of our heavenly Father for each of us, His adopted children.
Consequently the message of Jesus to the church at Laodicea through John’s revelation is extremely important for believers right down through the ages, especially for us in these grossly evil times. ‘Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come into him, and will sup (dine) with him, and he with me.’
Yes friends, when Jesus knocks at the door of our hearts let’s be quick to answer, throw it wide open and embrace Him without any hesitation, for that’s wisdom of unmatched magnitude!
And please note I said, when He knocks, not if He knocks, for Jesus is continually knocking at the portals of our hearts, just dying to come in and have an intense and ever so satisfying relationship with us. We don’t know what we’re missing out on, when we reject the advances of Jesus.
Listen to what He says after our Bit. ‘To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in (on) my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in (on) his throne. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.’ (Rev. 3:21-22)
Yuh hear that awesome promise my people? If we stand up strong with and for Jesus, we’ll have the everlasting privilege of sitting with Him on His heavenly throne, just like He sits with the Father now, after He overcame His earthly trials and tribulations.
And the scholars offer these explanations to those verses. ‘3:20-22. In light of the spiritual conditions of the Laodiceans described in verses 17-18, (pride in their wealth and rejection of Jesus) the invitation of verse 20 seems to be evangelistically addressed to individual members of an apostate church (religious abandonment), so they might receive Christ genuinely as Saviour and Lord (cf. John 1:12; 10:27).
To sup (dine) means to have fellowship (cf. Luke 22:30; John 14:23) and to enjoy Christ’s blessings. The promise to sit with Christ in His throne refers to reigning with Christ in His kingdom (cf. Matt.19:28; Rev. 20:4; 22:1). Verse 22 contains the last reference to the church before chapter 22, implying that the Rapture will occur before the events of chapters 4-19 and thus that the church will not be present on earth during the Great Tribulation.’
And all God’s people declared a loud and grateful shout of ‘Glory Hallelujah!’ And so we should, if we know we’re not going to be here on earth when the great upheaval comes.
Oh friends, I don’t know how else to put it so that we can be convinced of Jesus’ eventual victory nuh, but as they say, the smart money IS on Jesus!
And for those of us who sincerely believe, let’s go home declaring our Wednesday Wail with much gusto and enthusiasm. ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday!
I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’
Now let’s go out and share the good news with others. Much LOVE!
…two ears…and only one mouth…means we need to listen more than we talk…
04 Nov 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: Acts, afflicted, all bets are off, anointing with oil, balance, be gracious to me, best decision you can ever make, Bruh David, Bruh Paul, busy day, by a riverside, call for the elders, calm my quivering nerves, came to faith, cast out them that bought and sold in the temple, coming or going, committments, confess, consider my groaning, continual prayer, continue in prayer, den of thieves, destiny, details, distress, Elijah, eternal lot, everlasting separation from God, evil, expectant faith, faithful lives, faithful to the Lord, faults, forgiven, frenzied schedule, fruitful, give ear to my words, God has no pleasure in wickedness, have mercy upon me, hear me when I call, hear my prayer, hear my voice, hearty chuckle, House of prayer, hungry hope, I will look up, in the midst of turmoil, in the morning, in the name of the Lord, jehovah god, Jesus Christ, Jesus cleanses the temple, keeping god in first place, lifeline, Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, LOVE, Lydia, Macedonia, make peace with Jesus, Martha, Mary, meditation, mental flashes from god's Word, my god, my King, no time to lose, O God of my righteousness, omnipotence, One Year Book of Bible promises, peace, pray for one another, prayer, prayer of faith, prayer was made, preserve my sanity, Psalm 5, reach out to God with prayer, see over my head, semblance of balance, sense of humour, sick, sins, sort priorities, suffering, tenuous connection, thanked God, thanksgiving, the Creator of the universe, the earth brought forth fruit, the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man, the heaven gave rain, the money changers, the power of prayer, the Sabbath, the sound of the mighty trump, them that sold doves, trespasses, trivial tasks, troubled, turmoil, umbilical cord, watch in the same, who don't win lose, who knows if Jesus will come today, worried, you relieved me when I was in distress
Psalm 4:1. Hear me when I call , O God of my righteousness: thou hast enlarged (relieved) me when I was in distress; have mercy upon me (be gracious to me), and hear my prayer.
Ah Friends, can you believe it’s already Tuesday? Wow! The days are certainly flying by quickly, which means we have no time to lose in getting to know our wonderful Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ!
We need to make our peace with Him ASAP; in fact RIGHT NOW, for who knows if He will come without warning today and pluck His people from wherever they are, and from whatever they are doing. And once He comes, heralded by the sound of the mighty trump, all bets are off, or as they say, who don’t win lose.
And I’m sure you don’t want everlasting separation from God to be your eternal lot and destiny. So please get a move on, give your all to Jesus Christ! It’s the best decision you can ever make as a mortal being!
Now here is another excerpt from the One Year Book of Bible Promises, one that’s rather appropriate for our current, modern-day lifestyle. It’s titled ‘Busy Day,’ and says: ‘Lord, this is one of those days I must ask You to preserve my sanity In the midst of turmoil. I’m so pressed by commitments– Plus a thousand trivial tasks- That I can scarcely see over my head.
So I plead for enough wisdom To sort my priorities carefully. Regardless of my frenzied schedule May I keep my sense of humour And even enjoy a hearty chuckle or two. Calm my quivering nerves With mental flashes from Your Word. Help me to maintain At least a semblance Of Mary-Martha balance.
And tonight when we’re together again Should my husband confront me with “What have you been doing today?” May my answer be genuine and gentle: “Part of the time, darling I’ve thanked God for you.’
Yes Friends, that definitely sounds like many of us! And the accompanying scripture is: ‘And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful (worried) and troubled about many things (the little details).’ (Luke 10:41)
Ah mih people, balance is so sadly lacking in so many -too many- of our lives, that most days we don’t know whether we’re coming or going! And balance is ever so important, if we want to live fruitful and faithful lives.
And the best way to achieve balance is by keeping Jehovah God in first place in our lives, and giving ourselves to continual prayer, which brings us to our Bit. ‘Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness: thou hast enlarged (relieved) me when I was in distress; have mercy upon me (be gracious to me), and hear my prayer.’
And some of you will be glad to hear that this is the last day for that particular Bit. (smile) And as usual, we’ll get into the scriptures with a story about Jesus on the subject; the one where He cleanses the temple.
The Good Book tells it thus: ‘And they come to Jerusalem: and Jesus went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew (overturned) the tables of the money changers, and the seats of them that sold doves;
And would not suffer that (allow) any man should carry any vessel (wares) through the temple. And he taught, saying unto them, Is it not written, My house shall be called of (for) all nations the house of prayer? But ye have made it a den of thieves.’ (Mark 11:15-17)
Yuh see Friends, the constant desecration of the Lord’s house, His haven for prayer, was one of the few things that made Jesus so angry that He resorted to violence.
Meanwhile, the awesome power of prayer is shown in Acts, where Bruh Paul is in Macedonia. ‘And on the Sabbath we went out of the city by a riverside, where prayer was wont to be (customarily) made; and we sat down, and spake unto the women which resorted thither (met there).
And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple (purple dye), of the city of Thyatira, which worshipped God, heard us: whose heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto (took heed of) the things which were spoken of Paul.
And when she was baptized, and her household, she besought (begged) us, saying, If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and abide there. And she constrained (compelled) us.’ (Acts 16:13-15)
Oh my people, how great indeed is the power of prayer, because it works through the omnipotence of the Creator of the universe and all therein!
And I don’t believe that there’s anybody who cried out to Jehovah God as much as Bruh David did. Listen to his plea from the opening verses of Psalm 5 – a prayer for protection. ‘Give ear to my words, O Lord; consider my meditation (groaning). Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God: for unto thee will I pray.
My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up. For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness: neither shall evil dwell (sojourn) in thee.’ (Ps.5:1-4)
And we’ll close this series of messages on prayer; its uses and its amazing power, with the moving and memorable words of Jesus’ half brother James, who only came to faith after the resurrection.
‘Is any among you afflicted (suffering)? let him pray. Is any merry (cheerful)? let him sing psalms. Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord;
And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. Confess your faults (trespasses) one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual (effective) fervent prayer (supplication) of a righteous man availeth much.
Elijah was a man subject to like passions as we are (with a nature like ours), and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by (land for) the space of three years ans six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.’ (James 5:13-18)
Oh my fellow believers, those are indeed words of awesome wisdom! It is ever so important that prayer occupies a central place in our daily lives. As such, we ought to be devoted to prayer, because it’s the strong lifeline, the umbilical cord between our mortal selves and the divine God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob!
If it’s broken, then we perish, like a baby in its mother’s womb when its lifeline breaks. So please, I implore us to be wise and not break that very tenuous connection, reach out to God with prayer, in hungry hope and expectant faith. Much LOVE!
…continue in prayer…and watch in the same…with thanksgiving… (Col.4:2)
18 Jan 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: beach, bless, blessings, call on God, Canada, captive's soul, christianity, Christians, clean spirit, confidence, connection to our heavenly Father, Connie Francis, contented, cut to the chase, dire siutations, direcct my prayer, drunk or sober, dry and thirsty land, early in the morning, fallible men, fight against God's will, friends, good news, good Samaritans, grace, guilty, hear my voice, heartfelt prayer, hot to trot, hunger and thirst for God, importance of prayer, joyful lips, learned my lesson, lifeline, longing flesh, look up, lost my way, LOVE, loving kindness, magnanimous god, man-made devices, mercy, mind your business, North country, onipotent, overflowing with thanksgiving, power and glory, praise, prayer, refuge, remember the cold, right heart, righteousness., satisfied soul, spirituality, strong breeze, sustenance, take my own advice, thirsty soul, umbilical cord, vacation, warm wind, wedding ring, wisdom
Psalm 5:3. My voice shalt thou hear in the morning , O Lord; In the morning I will direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.
Well Friends, the good news is that we’re somewhat earlier than we were yesterday, but we’re still not as early as I would like. Hopefully though, we’ll get better every day, and though I’m not making any promises because I’m on vacation – va-ca-tion – as the old pop song said, (smile) which I believe was sung by Connie Francis.
Anyway, at long last, on my third day in Paradise, I finally got the salt water that I’ve been so avidly desiring. I never rushed into it, partly because of the internet problems I was having, and also because I’ve learned my lesson from the time I went to California a few years ago.
That time I was real hot to trot, and though the sea was some distance away, and everybody else was too busy to accompany me, I jumped in the car and headed for the beach. Disappointingly, I ended up on a dismal patch of sand on the Pacific side, with cold, rough water, lost my wedding ring of thirty something years, then also lost my way back home.
But as always Friends, the Lord sent a couple of good Samaritans to help me out, and I returned home safely, having given my family some anxious moments. So now, with that lesson in mind, a rather expensive one, I’m trying my best not to fight against His will. Hn! Hn! I even ended up on two obscure beaches today since I didn’t feel like handling the crowds on the popular beaches.
The first, Arnos Vale beach, was a little too rocky and unpredictable underfoot for my liking. So after having a dip there, we hit Grange beach, which had better footing. And though they were both less than calm, I enjoyed Grange more because of the more sandy and predictable footing.
But brother, this area I’m in always seems to have a strong breeze blowing. Around 3 a.m. this morning, I was outside on the balcony and the wind was blowing so powerfully, that you would have thought a storm was blowing. It reminded be of the winds back in the North Country – only this wind was warm! (smile)
And as I was telling the Duchess earlier on, I feel somewhat guilty, because since I’m down here I don’t even remember the cold up in Canada. But as she so wisely said, I’d better forget the guilt and enjoy it, because we’ll soon be back in the cold. So I’m going to listen the duchess – as I always do anyway. (smile)
However my people, let’s cut to the chase and get into the Bit. I’m expecting some friends to come by and visit later, and today I intend to take my own advice; drunk or sober mind your business. Unfortunately I didn’t do that yesterday, so the Bit didn’t get done till very late, and I’m not going to allow it to happen again today.
So here goes: ‘My voice shalt thou hear in the morning , O Lord; In the morning I will direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.’
Yes my brethren, prayer is our lifeline, our umbilical cord, our connection to our heavenly Father! And the good thing about it is that we don’t need any man-made devices to call on Him, just a right heart and a clean spirit.
So what scriptures pertaining to the importance of prayer in a believer’s life are we going to look at today? Let’s start with Psalm 63, where Bruh David talks about God satisfying the thirsty soul. That’s something he wrote while hiding out in the wilderness of Judah from his enemies.
And he begins it with this powerful verse: ‘O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where there is no water.’ (Ps.63:1)
Then not satisfied to stop just there, he continues to pour out his heart to his God. ‘To see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary (so have I looked for thee out here). Because thy LOVING-kindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee. Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift up my hands in thy name. My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow (the best) and fatness (abundance); and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips.’ (Ps.63:2-5)
Oh my fellow believers, is that the way we feel about our God? Is that the way we hunger and thirst for Him and His righteousness? And are our souls contented with His grace and mercy, so that we can praise Him with joyful lips? That is how it ought to be my brethren! And if we aren’t doing and feeling those things, then we’re foolishly missing out on a lot of God’s good blessings.
As the scholars say: ‘Psalm 63. The location of the writing of the psalm is described generally as in the wilderness of Judah. Unlike many of the psalms written in these dire situations, however, this psalm is overflowing with thanksgiving rather than lament and petition. David declares his longing for spiritual renewal (vv.1-2), he expresses his thankful mood (vv.3-6), he gives voice to his trust in God (vv.7-8), and he announces his hope for the future (vv.9-11). Enemies are mentioned only in passing (vv.9-10).’
Oh mih people, would we have been able to show such trust, desire and LOVE for God under such dire circumstances? I truly doubt it. We find it difficult to praise and thank Him when things are going well, much less when they are rough. But Friends that’s the attitude true believers ought to be able to display. In rough times we ought to have enough confidence in our omnipotent and magnanimous God not to whimper and turn turncoat.
And that’s the biggest problem with Christians today; we talk the good talk, but when the rough times crop up, we don’t run to the one place and person who can truly provide refuge and sustenance; our wonderful God. Instead we quickly turn to the cheap, perishable man-made devices and seek help from powerless, fallible men like ourselves. That’s not wisdom Friends.
So I’m saying to us today, that the first place we must turn in ANY kind of situation, is to Almighty God, our Creator, Provider and Protector!
That’s what He is there for. He prides Himself on being able to help His children, and if we don’t turn to Him FIRST, He feels very disappointed and offended. If He wants us to turn to other men for help, then He will direct us to them, after we talk to Him.
And that my people is one of the reasons why we and our resultant world are in such bad shape, we simply don’t talk seriously and enough to Father God. I’m therefore asking us today to try and change that unwise attitude by turning to Him for help and guidance in every situation, through constant, genuine, heartfelt prayer, for that is wisdom at its finest. Much LOVE!
…only sincere prayer to our heavenly Father…can set the captive’s soul free…
14 Jan 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: begin each day with prayer, best example, big part of our lives, bye-gone days, call upon God, calm, ceasing to pray, cheaply made gadgets, Christian manner, commanding voice, contention, conveniences, cry aloud, Daniel, deceitful friends, dedicated button, dim his perspective, direct my prayer, distractions, divine duty, dutiful husband, enrich our lives, evening, exorbitant service charge, fix the problem, flying colours, gave thanks, God forbid, good old days, guidance, hear my voice, help, I will pray, ice maker, ice storm, imperative call, importance of prayer, in love, in the morning, Israel, Jerusalem, Jesus, kneeled, longwinded, look up, LOVE, malfunction, maturity, Maytag appliance, morning, motto, my voice, new fangled technology, noon, one function, open windows, our leader, out of the blue, plot to kill, practice what you preach, prayed, prayer quotient, problems, raises my hackles, right or wrong, righteousness., service man, sin against the Lord, sinfulness, smile, soulful lament, speaking the truth, test, Thank the Lord, the Lord's standards, three times a day, undesirable situation, wasp nest
Psalm 5:3. My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.
Oh For the good old days eh! And you’re no doubt wondering what caused that soulful lament for those bye-gone days?
Well, it’s because yesterday afternoon, while I was trying to catch up on some rest, for I’m not over whatever bug’s been bugging me for the last ten days. But I am getting better… Thank the Lord I’m getting better! Though not as quickly as I’d like.
Anyway, out of the blue, I head this imperative call: ‘Randolph, come here!’ Chuh! I sighed at being disturbed, while wondering what was wrong now. The Duchess is one of the few people who call me Randolph, and anytime I hear that commanding voice, it automatically raises my hackles. (smile)
But as a dutiful husband, I got up and went downstairs, only to find the Duchess standing in front of the opened freezer door of the fridge, watching water come pouring out.
Oh, she’d already done what she could; put some towels on the ground to sop up the water, taken out the ice-maker, and turned off the water. But the residue in there kept coming out for a couple more minutes.
She was obviously not thrilled, because as usual, she was trying to do several things at the same time. It appears that she had just come from outside talking to the man who was cleaning up the trees from the ice storm damage, and found the undesirable situation.
By the way, she had him cut down the wasp (jack spaniard) nest that had been hanging so blithely from the tree limb outside my kitchen window. Aww! Now I don’t have anything to look at and chuckle about when I look out there.
But my brethren, you would certainly have been proud of the ole fella, for I responded in a very calm and Christian manner. Wow! What maturity! (smile) I allowed her to go and continue her other chores, while I simply did what I could to clean up the resultant mess.
To tell the truth, I was even surprised at how calmly I handled the situation. I guess the Holy Spirit did a magnificent job in me. And who says He doesn’t work hard eh!
The long and short of the story is that the freezer section contains an automatic icemaker that provides either crushed or cubed ice, along with a waterspout. However the icemaker is always causing problems, either not making ice or making too much ice.
Just a couple weeks ago, it malfunctioned again, that time causing a terrible ice build up in the freezer. Everything in there was so caked with ice that we had problems taking them out. A service man came, obviously at an exorbitant service charge, but apparently all he did was de-ice the freezer, not fix the problem that had caused it in the first place.
Now yesterday the water section acted up. My contention is that the older fridges with just a small freezer section, where you put your ice trays to make ice, never caused those problems. But these fanciful, cheaply made gadgets with so many features constantly cause problems.
And this is supposed to be a top of the line Maytag appliance, whose advertisement wrongly boasted about the Maytag repairman never having anything to do because their products were so good. Hogwash! I won’t even get into the problems we’ve had with a Maytag stove.
Hn! The amount of times we’ve had service people out to fix one thing or another, and the cheap knobs that keep falling off. I would certainly think twice about buying another Maytag appliance.
But coming back to my original contention, I don’t use much ice, especially in the winter, and I never drink from the waterspout, because I find it tastes terrible. What did we do before we had fridges that automatically gave ice and water eh? We got along quite fine!
And besides there were less possibilities of a number of things going wrong, as now happens with all the supposed conveniences on them. And I was made to understand that’s how all the fridges are now made. The Lord help us! And another service man is supposed to come today, of course at some ridiculous service charge.
But that’s one of the reasons why I don’t like all this new fangled technology; they try to put too many features into a single item, and they never seem to work properly, plus when one breaks down, it causes eternal problems. And don’t even talk about the one button that does several different things, as they have in all these new gadgets. Steups! It’s just a bit much for my mentality. I like my one button dedicated to one function.
And having ‘preambled’ at length on my opening sentence, (smile) you all know that the ole fella’s longwinded, let’s turn to our Bit, which conveys such a powerful and important directive.
‘My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.’
Yes Friends, the best way to begin each and every day is with prayer! Remember Jesus did it, (Mark 1:35) so why should we not follow our leader, the best example of righteousness that we have. And today we’re going to highlight some scriptures that show the importance of prayer, and which also encourage us to make prayer a big part of our lives.
And we’ll start with an interesting, but little talked about scripture. It comes from 1 Samuel. ‘Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you: but I will teach you the good and right way.’ (1 Sam.12:23) That was Samuel’s promise when he addressed Israel re their high level of sinfulness.
And the scholars have an interesting note on that verse. ’12:23. Despite Israel’s sin, Samuel LOVED Israel and Saul (cf.16:1) and pledged his continued help, especially in praying for them and teaching them the Lord’s standards. His LOVE for them however, would not dim his perspective as to what ways were right or wrong in Israel. He would do his divine duty of speaking the truth in LOVE (cf. Eph.4:15).’
And I’ll spoil us by quoting that last verse, since I know that very few are going to look it up. Bruh Paul is talking about the new life in Christ. ‘But speaking the truth in LOVE, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ.’ (Eph.4:15)
Meanwhile, in Psalm 55, a cry against deceitful friends, Bruh David boldly declares: ‘As for me, I will call upon God; and the Lord shall save me. Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice.’ (Ps.55:16-17)
Bruh David says that he will pray at least three times a day. That brings us to Daniel who apparently did the same thing.
‘Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being opened in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a (that) day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime (had been doing before this).’ (Dan.6:10)
So although he knew that there was a plot afoot to kill him because of his praying to the God of his forefathers, he continued doing as he had always done. And the scholars point out: ‘6:10-11. Daniel was past 80 years of age at this time, yet he was still on his knees thanking God and asking for His guidance and help.’
Oh what a wonderful example for us to follow my people. Please let’s up our prayer quotient nuh. It will certainly enrich our lives. Much LOVE!
…to pray…and yet to pray again…should be the motto of ALL believers…
P.S. The Bit’s late because I didn’t get up early enough to start my day with prayer, and still have enough time to send it our early, plus I had a couple of unavoidable distractions in between.
Ah Friends, it’s not easy, that was a test to see if I was practicing what I preach. Don’t worry, I get tested on most of the stuff I write about, sometimes even before I’m even finished writing about it.
Obviously I don’t pass them all, or not as well as I should, but I’m happy to say that I passed this one today with flying colours! Wow! Aren’t you proud of me? (smile) Much LOVE!
12 Jun 2013
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a fool's wisdom, a LOVING Father, a sign, amazing feat, amazing god, another new day, bowing before God, by the wayside, deficiencies, eternal life, faith, Father God, frailties, glorify the Lord's name, god, hear my voice, heavenly embrace, Hezekiah's prayer, holy spirit, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, loyal heart, magnanimous god, mercies and blessings, miracle, praise and thanksgiving, praying beings, preserve my life, right motives, salvation, Selah, sharpened tongues, sincere prayer, sinless Son Jesus, small minds, small vocabularies, snares, spread a net, steps to stumble, straight and narrow path, traps, wonderful god
Psalm 64:1: Hear my voice, O God, in my prayer: preserve my life from fear of the enemy.
Oh Friends, oh Friends, another new day has dawned, just like so many others down through the ages! Wow!
Aren’t you excited? I sure hope so, because this new day is also loaded with blessing and mercies just like every other day that has so far dawned! So let’s give our most wonderful God and Creator some thanks and praise for that nuh.
Please pray with me. ‘Father God, our minds are small compared to yours. That means our vocabulary is also small, and consequently we have to use the same words most of the time to thank and praise You. But we know that You’re a magnificent and magnanimous God, very aware of our frailties and deficiencies, and thus understands our situation. So You don’t mind if we repeat ourselves, once our hearts are filled with the right spirit and motives.
Today we thank You, many times over, for creating and looking after us. And we just want to tell You this morning, that we LOVE You Lord! Yes Father, we truly do. And we’re also eternally grateful for all You’ve done, are doing, and plan to do for us, even though we don’t deserve most of it.
Oh, and we can never thank You enough for sacrificing Your innocent, sinless Son Jesus, so that we could have salvation and eternal life in Your awesome presence.
Oh gracious Lord, we thank and praise You this Wednesday morning, humbly asking that You keep allowing Your Holy Spirit to work in us, to lead and guide us along that straight and narrow path that joyfully ends in your heavenly embrace.
We LOVE You Lord, and glorify Your Holy Name! All this we pray on the shed blood of Jesus that washed us clean from all sin.’ And all God’s people declared a loud and heartfelt ‘AMEN!’
Oh mih people, you know that you can’t let the ole fella loose! You have to keep him on a tight rein, otherwise he’ll just run off, like a rider-less horse. (smile)
But seriously though, once you get caught up in praying and thanking our heavenly Father, it just seems right, easy and never ending. You feel His Spirit just moving and grooving in you, awakening and raising up all the wonderful stuff He’s embedded in us from the day we acknowledged His amazing Son Jesus as our Lord and Saviour. That’s because we were created to be praying and prayerful beings.
No wonder Bruh David prayed so often, and wrote so many heartfelt prayers, like this one in our Bit. ‘Hear my voice, O God, in my prayer (meditation or complaint): preserve my life from fear of the enemy.’
And today we’ll continue looking at scriptures that show us the value of sincere prayer. Let’s begin with King Hezekiah’s prayer in his time of sickness and healing as revealed in Isaiah 38.
‘In those days was Hezekiah sick unto (and near) death. And Isaiah, the prophet the son of Amos came unto him, and said unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Set thine house in order: for thou shalt die, and not live.
Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and prayed unto the Lord, And said, Remember now, O Lord, I beseech thee, how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect (loyal) heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept sore (bitterly). (Is.38:1-3)
Oh Friends, that solemn, heartfelt prayer of Hezekiah’s, reminding the Lord how he had always walked with and sought after Him with a right heart, caused the Lord to send Isaiah back to Hezekiah with this awesome promise.
‘Go and say to Hezekiah, Thus saith the Lord, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will add unto thy days fifteen years. And I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria: and I will defend this city.
And this shall be a sign unto thee from the Lord, that the Lord will do this thing that he hath spoken; Behold, I will bring again the shadow of the degrees (on the sundial), which is gone down in (which has gone down with the sun on) the sun dial of Ahaz, ten degrees backward. So the sun returned ten degrees, (on the dial) by which degrees it was gone down.’ (Is.38:5-8)
Oh Friends what an awesome, powerful and amazing God we worship! God knew all that Hezekiah had done, but until he came to Him in sincere prayer, his life was going to be filled with sickness, even close to death. Then you see the awesome miracle He worked as a sign; turning the sundial back ten degrees.
Wow! Who else could accomplish such an amazing feat eh? None but the One who had created the sun in the first place!
It’s the same way, my fellow believers that the Lord knows all of our doings, but He made us to come to Him, and until we do that on a right basis, we won’t be granted all the relief or blessings and mercies possible.
Now listen to Bruh David pleading in prayer for deliverance from evil men. ‘Deliver me, O Lord, from the evil man: preserve me from the violent man; Which imagine mischiefs (plan evil things) in their heart, continually are they gathered together for war. They have sharpened their tongues like a serpent; adders (asps’) poison is under their lips. Selah.
Keep me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked; preserve me from the violent man; who have purposed to overthrow my goings (make my steps stumble). The proud have hid a snare (set a trap) for me, and cords; they have spread a net by the wayside; they have set gins (traps or snares) for me. Selah.’ (Ps.140:1-5)
Oh Friends, if great and powerful kings could bow down to Jehovah God and plead for respite from their problems, who are we eh, to think that we can get by otherwise?
That again is a fool’s wisdom my people! That’s because part of our purpose is to be consistently on our knees, bowing before Almighty God, giving Him thanks and praise, as well as asking for help in time of need.
Please, let’s all remember that and therefore do as we ought; pray to and praise Almighty God, for that’s the true wisdom of all the ages. Much LOVE!
…when in sincere prayer we come to God…He listens with a fatherly ear…and then answers as a LOVING father would…
11 Jun 2013
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a fool's wisdom, anguish, beautiful people of God, betrayal, bitter words, confidence in man, courage, deceitful friends, fear, fear of the enemy, fears, flooding in Europe, fortitude, God comes first, God is unchanging, gospel truth, hear my prayer, hear my voice, hopes, Hour of Power, humble reliance, humble reliance on God, hurtful circumstances, key to successful living, LOVE people, man of God, moderation, new life, O God, oppression, peace, plots, preserve my life, proud, punishment, rainy Tuesday, rending of the heart, secret council, Selah, sharp tongues, shoot in secret, showers of blessings, simple minds, sincere prayer, steadfast faith, succour, surrender, terrors of death, the world's ways, times of need, trembling, trust in the Lord, trusted friend, vain ways of man, vein of prayer, wings like a dove, workers of iniquity
Psalm 64:1: Hear my voice, O God, in my prayer: preserve my life from fear of the enemy.
Well hello there you beautiful people of God! How goes it with you on this wet, rainy Tuesday in almost mid-June? I sincerely hope that there are many more positives than negatives in our lives.
But whatever our circumstances this day, I trust and pray that we’ll be dealing with them in the best way possible; that is in humble reliance on Almighty God, for He is absolutely the BEST person for us to consult on EVERYTHING in our lives, be they good or bad.
Well it’s been raining in my area since yesterday morning, and though the showers of blessings are welcome, like most things, too much of them is no good. Moderation in all aspects of life is the key to successful living.
And in regards to too many showers of blessings, please note the serious flooding currently plaguing several countries in Europe, and send up some prayers for their well-being.
And talking about prayers, here’s this one from Dr. Schuller’s Hour of Power Devotional, re wanting to LOVE ourselves and consequently others, which takes great courage and fortitude. He offers this prayer that can lead us to a new life, also suggesting that we pray it everyday for thirty days.
‘Christ – here is my brain – think through it. Christ – here is my face – glow through it. Christ – here are my eyes – look at people through them. Christ – here is my heart – LOVE people with it.’
Now that’s really surrendering, truly giving ourselves over to God! And if we’re serious about learning to LOVE, then we’ll genuinely embrace it with hungry hope and steadfast faith.
And we’ll continue in the vein of prayer with our Bit, from another great man of God, Bruh David, as he cries out in anguish, re plots and punishment. ‘Hear my voice, O God, in my prayer (meditation or complaint): preserve my life from fear of the enemy.’
Now that’s something we all could cry out!
And Bruh David continues with his heartfelt plea: ‘Hide me from the secret counsel of the wicked; from the insurrection (tumult) of the workers of iniquity.
Who whet (sharpen) their tongue like a sword, and bend their bows to shoot their arrows, even bitter words. That they may shoot in secret at the perfect (blameless): suddenly do they shoot at him, and fear not.’ (Ps.64:2-4)
Oh Friends, one of the things I LOVE about Bruh David is that he wasn’t ashamed, afraid or too proud to open his hurting and anguished soul to God, to cry out to Him for help, regardless of his kingly estate here on earth, because he knew that the God of his fathers was much higher than him, and was also very faithful to those who sincerely trusted in and sought Him.
And because our God is unchangeable, nothing is different my people, except us, except our attitude to Him. We’ve grown too proud to cry out to God for help. We’ve foolishly adopted the world’s ways of looking first to ourselves, friends, families, neighbours and supposed experts. And it’s only when all of those fail to come up with a plausible solution that we turn at last to Jehovah God, and then expect Him to expedite a solution right then and there.
But that’s a fool’s wisdom my Friends!
The Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is the FIRST one we should turn to in each and every circumstance, NOT the last! Then if He wants us to consult others, He’ll guide and direct us thus.
And I’ll repeat that for all the hard ears people (smile): In each and every situation, GOD MUST ALWAYS COME FIRST! And that’s the gospel truth!
Now let’s look at some other passages of scripture that corroborate the importance of prayer. First up is Bruh David’s cry in Psalm 55 against deceitful friends. ‘Give ear to my prayer, O God; and hide not thyself from my supplication. Attend unto me, and hear me: I mourn (wander) in my complaint, and make a noise (moan noisily);
Because of the voice of the enemy, because of the oppression of the wicked: for they cast iniquity (bring down trouble) upon me, and in wrath they hate me. My heart is sore (severely) pained within me: and the terrors of death are fallen upon me.
Fearfulness and trembling are come upon me, and horror hath overwhelmed me. And I said, Oh that I had wings like a dove! For then would I fly away and be at rest. Lo, then would I wander far off, and remain in the wilderness. Selah. I would hasten my escape from the windy storm and tempest.’ (Ps.55:1-8)
Oh Friends, I never intended to include all of that scripture nuh, but after reading it a couple times, I realized that it only conveys the true rending of the heart in its fullness, its entirety. And I know that many of us can definitely understand and identify with those hurtful circumstances, for there’s nothing like being betrayed by a trusted friend.
But the problem is that too few of us go to God with our prayers and supplications, trusting instead to the vain and proud ways of man. Please remember the psalmist’s wise advice: ‘It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man. It is better to put trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes.’ (Ps.118:8-9)
Hopefully though, these few words of mine (smile) and the scripture involved therein, will encourage us to go to God FIRST in ALL situations, because that’s where the heart of true wisdom lies.
More on this topic tomorrow, provided God’s in favour. Till then my wonderful brethren in Christ, let’s lift up ALL our hopes and fears to heaven in sincere prayer.
And may the good and great God that we serve, our Creator and Provider, bless and keep us safe from all harm, and give us His awesome peace that our simple minds cannot begin to comprehend! Much LOVE!
…God created prayer so that His hurting children could commune with Him…come to Him for succour in times of need…
SCRIP-BITS 