02 Aug 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a Guidebook for earthly living, a most encouraging and reassuring promise, after one time is two, all things work together for good, be not afraid, be strong and of a good courage, Bible, brings us to a realization, called according to His purpose, Caribana Parade, christianity, Christians, daily taking up our cross, deepen my breath, denying ourselves, do according to all that's written therein, enter the pearly gates of heaven, faith, following Jesus, frustrations, God has the power to make everything right, God is in control, God will eventually make all things right, God will never leave nor forsake us, have good success, have not I commanded thee, holy spirit, I may know you all the more, I praise you for your unceasing nearness, if we read the Bible, if you can't control it don't worry about it, in all sincerity and truth, increase my awareness of you today, it's all for our benefit, its multitude of wisdom and riches, Jesus Christ, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, leave it all to God, Lord I want to be with you now, LOVE, make thy way prosperous, mercy, neither be thou dismayed, omnipotent god, Pan Alive Steelband Competition, place our total faith and trust in God, quiet my soul, relax my muscles, salvation, slow my thoughts, still fresh through all the ages, thank you for this tenderness, the beauty of prayer, the Bible is God's word to us, the C.N.E grounds, the indisputable truth, the Lord thy God is with thee wherever you go, the low standard of the mas, the trials and tribulations of life, this book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth, thou shalt meditate therein day and night, to spend eternity with Christ, to the ends of the earth, to them that love God, truth, we'll find God wisdom on its pages, wisdom, you can't be contained, your love both surrounds and fills me, your peace and love are present
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.
And then it was our lazy-day Saturday for this our August long weekend, but for many of us, it certainly won’t be a lazy-day, for we’ll be somewhere down the Lakeshore around the C.N.E. grounds taking in the Caribana Parade. And yes, I know that’s not the official title, but to us old folks, it will always be CARIBANA, and will go down in the annals as such. (smile) Now, as the old people would say, after one time is two yes. And that’s the reality of the situation, for I never missed the Caribana Parade for thirty something years, but for the last fifteen or so I haven’t been. Sometimes I don’t even remember that it’s around. Why?
For several reasons. First of all, because the old bones can’t take the stress of the plenty walking and jumping any longer, plus I would go there and not see anyone I knew. That was just unfathomable, because in earlier times, as soon as I hit the Lakeshore I would see oodles of people I knew. And last, but possibly the most important reason is that the quality of the mas in the parade has gone down so low that it’s not worth going to see anymore. And that’s not only my opinion, but a lot of others too, who knew what real mas and mas costumes were about.
But the Caribana Celebrations is still a big thing in the city and I’m glad that they can make some tourist dollars off of it. And just to show how the standards have fallen, I went to the Pan Alive Steelband Competition last night, and there were only three bands out of the six that competed that should have been in the competition. Even one of the guest bands sounded better than the first three competitors. Steups! But who am I, a non mas and non pan person to say anything eh? (smile) And to stop my spirit from getting upset as I remember what was, and what is right now, let’s offer up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer with all sincerity and truth.
As one strong voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
That did it friends! (smile) I’ve released whatever frustrations I had about the state of the current mas and pan situation, and have accepted that things change, and not always in a manner that I like, but since I cannot change them, I just have to leave them alone. And that’s the beauty of prayer; it brings us to a realization, that if we cannot control it, we should not worry about it, just leave it all up to God, because He has the power to make everything right, and has promised to do so, through this marvellous verse from Romans. ‘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.’ (Rom. 8:28)
Yes my faithful brethren, if we LOVE the Lord and place our total faith and trust in Him, then eventually, when, in His wisdom, He knows the time is right, then He will work everything out for our good. So, although it can be very difficult when we’re going through the trials and tribulations of this earthly life, we need not worry, because we know that our omnipotent God is in control and He will eventually make all wrongs right! But we can only stand strong in faith when we know His Word, that’s why constant reading and meditating on it is absolutely necessary.
The Lord even said it in no uncertain terms to Joshua, when He made him the leader of the Israelites after the death of Moses. And not once, but several times in a few verses of Joshua chapter one. Hear this direct command: ‘This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth (shall be constantly in your mouth); but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.’ (Josh. 1:8)
Straight from the Lord’s mouth my people! If we want to be prosperous and have success then we need to know His Word, because that’s the purpose for which it was created. That reminds me of the quote I got from some unremembered place: ‘The Bible is God’s Word to us, still fresh through all the ages. And if we read it, we will find God’s wisdom on its pages.’ That’s gospel truth friends! The Bible was written as a Guidebook for Earthly Living, but we have to read and study it constantly if we want to discover its multitude of wisdom and riches.
And this last thing God said to Joshua is one of my favourite scripture verses. After telling him about constantly meditating on His Word, the Lord then expounded and admonished: ‘Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.’ (Josh. 1:9) Oh my people, what a most encouraging and reassuring promise! And it’s the indisputable truth, for our faithful God is always with us, since He’s promised never to leave nor forsake us. (Heb. 13:5)
And if we want to have a successful and prosperous life here on earth, then enter the pearly gates to spend eternity with Jesus, then we have to take all those commands and promises seriously, live by them each and every day, being true disciples of Christ. That’s denying ourselves, taking up our cross every day and following Him to the ends of the earth! (Luke 9:23)
And today is a good day to ponder our situation; whether we’re following God’s directives, meditating on His word, denying ourselves, daily taking up our cross and following Him. Remember, it’s all for our benefit! Much LOVE!
…if you don’t know God’s Word…then you cannot live the way He desires…or have a prosperous and successful life…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
26 Jul 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a sense of peace, acceptable to God, actively pursuing peace, against them that do evil, approved of men, be as wool, be devoured with the sword, be not overcome of evil, be red like crimson, be white as snow, be willing and obedient, but righteousness peace and joy in the Holy ghost, cease to do evil, christianity, condemned, deceit, deepen my breath, defend, delivers them out of all their troubles, depart from evil, do good, dwell for evermore, eat the good of the land, end of sermon, evil shall slay the wicked, faith, fall short of the grace of God, follow after the things which make for peace, follow peace with all men, fomenting strife, for our own benefit, from before mine eyes, guilty, He keepeth all his bones, he that desires life and loves many days, his ears are open unto their cry, holiness, holy spirit, I marvel to think, I praise you for your unceasing nearness, I want to be with you now, in all sincerity and truth, increase my awareness of you today, Jesus Christ, judge the fatherless, keep thy tongue from evil, laze around, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, learn to do well, lest any man fail, let not your good be evil spoken of, let us reason together, looking diligently, LOVE, make hay while the sun shines, many are the afflictions of the righteous, many be defiled, mercy, none of them that trust in him shall be desolate, overcome evil with good, plead for the widow, put away the evil of your doings, quiet my soul, raise our hopes dreams and faith, relax my muscles, relieved the oppressed, reprove the oppressor, salvation, saveth such as be of a contrite spirit, seasoned instruction, seek justice, seek peace and pursue it, slow my thoughts, spend some intimate time with the Father, teach you the fear of the Lord, thank you for this tenderness, that he may see good, that I may know you all the more, the BIBLE, the face of the Lord, the kingdom of god is not meat and drink, the Lord and His word dont ever change, the Lord is nigh unto them of a broken heart, the Lord redeems the soul of his servants, the Lord's loving-kindness, the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it, the remembrance of them from the earth, the reverence of the Lord, the righteous cry, the root of bitterness springing up trouble you, they that hate the righteous shall be desolate, things wherewith one may edify, thy lips from speaking guile, to cut off, truth, upgrading our witness for Christ, vindicate, wash you make you clean, wisdom, without which no man shall see the Lord, ye refuse and rebel, you can't be contained, your love both surrounds and fills me, your peace and love are present, your sins be as scarlet
Psalm 34:14. Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.
And then it was Saturday, our lazy-day Saturday, where we don’t have to do anything but laze around, if we so desire. (smile) And since it looks like it’s going to be another hot and hazy day, even with a promise of rain in the afternoon, the wisest thing is to stay inside and enjoy the calm and peace of an air conditioned situation. (smile) And to help us do just that, let’s offer up our Lazy-Day Saturday prayer with all sincerity and truth.
As one strong voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
Ah friends, just offering up the words bring a sense of peace and quietness, and when the Lord replies with His LOVING-KINDNESS, then it will be even better. So let’s raise our hopes, our dreams and faith as we spend some quiet, intimate time with the Father, this last Saturday in July 2025. Yes my brethren, July will be finished in less than a week’s time, so let’s make hay while the summer sun still shines by upgrading our witness for Christ. End of Sermon!
And as we promised yesterday, if God spared our lives today, we’d continue looking at the remainder of Psalm 34, as the scholars called it, the section of ‘seasoned instruction that can stem from such a deliverance,’ like Bruh David had from Saul and the Philistines with the Lord’s help. And that section begins thus: ‘Come, ye children, hearken unto me: I will teach you the fear (reverence) of the Lord. What man is he that desireth life, and LOVETH many days, that he may see good? Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips from speaking guile (deceit) Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.’ (Ps. 34:11-14)
Yes my people, if we want to learn the reverence of the Lord those are some of the things we need to do; don’t speak or do evil, but do good and seek peace, and pursue it. As Bruh David says in Psalm 37: ‘Depart from evil, and do good; and dwell for evermore.’ (Ps. 37:27) And as Isaiah proclaims on the Lord’s behalf: ‘Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil; Learn to do well; seek judgement (justice), relieve the oppressed (reprove the oppressor), judge (vindicate or defend) the fatherless, plead for the widow.’ (Is. 1:16-17)
Now those are the things we’re supposed to be doing rather than doing evil and fomenting strife like we’re doing today. And it’s certainly interesting how Isaiah continues that passage. ‘Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.’ (Is. 1:18-20)
It’s laid out plain and straightforward my people. If we are obedient to the Lord’s word, we will prosper, if not, we shall be destroyed. And we can see evidence of it in the many heart rending problems that the Israelites faced when they disobeyed God, so why do we think it will be any different today eh? The Lord and His Word don’t change.
And as per peace, let’s note, it’s not only a matter of seeking peace, but actively pursuing it, looking for it, going out of our way to find it and make it happen! Bruh Paul in his epistle to the Romans, also warns us: ‘Let not the your good be evil spoken of: for the kingdom of God is not meat (food) and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost. For he that in these things serveth Christ is acceptable to God, and approved of men. Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify (build up) another.’ (Rom. 14:16-19)
And later on the author of Hebrews also encourages us to: ‘Follow (pursue) peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see God. Looking diligently lest any man fail of (fall short of) the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled.’ (Heb. 12:1-5) So friends, we see how very important the pursuit of peace is in the believer’s life. And if we don’t actively seek it, we can cause a lot of problems in both our lives and the lives of others.
Then Bruh David continues explaining why we should fear the Lord and do good. ‘The eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry. The face of the Lord is against them that do evil, to cut off (destroy) the remembrance of them from the earth.’ (Ps. 34:15-16) Yes my brethren, the Lord dislikes evil, and has promised to destroy it and all memory of it from His world. Now, we don’t want to be amongst those that are destroyed, do we?
Obviously not! Then listen and inwardly digest these marvellous words of the rest of the psalm. ‘The righteous cry, and the Lord heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles. The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of contrite (crushed ) spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the Lord delivereth him out of them all. He keepeth all his bones: not one of them is broken. Evil shall slay the wicked: and they that hate the righteous shall be desolate (condemned or held guilty). The Lord redeemeth the soul of his servants: and none of them that trust in him shall be desolate (condemned or found guilty).’ (Ps. 34:17-22)
Oh my fellow saints, that’s what we have to look forward to when we fear the Lord, do good and not evil, and sincerely pursue peace! There’s nothing better to be gained in all the world! So please, let’s spend some time today contemplating those scriptures and seeing how they fit into our current lives. It can only be to our own amazing benefit. Much LOVE!
…be not overcome of evil…but overcome evil with good… (Rom. 12:21)
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
19 Jul 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a case of belief versus disbelief, a heartfelt prayer, bangles, baubles, bet your bottom dollar, blistering summer heat, bright shining beads, deepen my breath, difficult for the Lord to refuse our desires, eternal life with Christ, faith, God sent not his Son into the world to condemn it, godly wisdom, having good communion with God, holy spirit, I marvel to think, I may know you all the more, I praise you for your unceasing nearness, if you're not for me then you're against me, increase my awareness of you today, Jesus Christ, lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, Lord I want to be with you now, lose all the marvellos benefits of God, LOVE, mercy, only a facade, quiet my soul, relax my muscles, salvation, seeking greater intimacy with God, sincere belief in Christ, sincerity and truth, slow my thoughts, sweltering days, take the extreme heat over the extreme cold, thank you for this tenderness, the best decision a human being can make, the straight and narrow path, the wide and winding way, the world through him might be saved, thieves do not break through and steal, to catch your fancy with, to catch your selfish and greedy flesh, to curry favour, to their own detriment, truth, unfortunate categories, we brought nothing into the world, we carry nothing out of the world, where moth and rust doth corrupt, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, where thieves break through and steal, where your treasure is there will be your heart also, wisdom, Ye cannot serve God and mammon, you can't be contained, your love both surrounds and fills me, your peace and love are present
John 3:17. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
Saturday, oh lazy-day Saturday! How great it is to see and experience you! Yes friends, that’s what it is; a bright and sunshiny lazy-day Saturday with temps in the mid-twenties! No more of that blistering summer heat. Thank the Lord! Those sweltering days in the past couple of weeks were certainly tough on both old and young, and makes me sometimes thankful that we don’t live in the tropics with that kind of hot weather all year round. But if I had a choice, you can bet your bottom dollar that I would take the extreme heat over the extreme cold. Any day! (smile)
And having said that, let’s offer up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, with all sincerity and truth. As one strong voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
Oh my people, what a heartfelt prayer! That indeed makes it difficult, if not impossible for the Lord to refuse our desires. And I believe getting to know God better, seeking greater intimacy with Him, is one of the best desires we can ever have, for to have good communion with Him, is one of the major reasons He created us. And only fools and mad men don’t desire such intimacy with their omnipotent, omniscient and omni-present Creator. Thank God we don’t fall into any one of those unfortunate categories!
But sadly, too many of God’s human creation choose not to seek intimacy with Him, only to their own detriment, for as the old saying goes, if you’re not with me, then you’re against me. And if you’re against God, you’ll most certainly lose all the marvellous benefits that He has to offer those who sincerely seek Him, and most woefully you won’t experience eternal life with Him, but eternal death with the prince of darkness, Satan. And as I keep reminding us, that is the worst fate than can ever befall a human soul. However, too many of us don’t seem to care, and continue along our merry way, rejoicing along the wide and winding way with Satan, instead of along the straight and narrow path with Christ Jesus.
And why do you think Jesus left His comfortable royal living in heaven and came to earth to sacrifice His sinless life for a bunch of ungrateful sinners eh? So that we could escape the horrendous death staring us straight in the face if we continued with our sinful ways. He said it Himself to Nicodemus, the Jewish ruler who came to Him under cover of night seeking answers: ‘For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.’ (John 3:17)
There it is friends, Christ’s major purpose for coming to earth, stated as simply as possible, and certainly not difficult to understand. But the wonderful thing about being saved through Jesus Christ is that it’s so easy to accomplish; it only takes sincere belief in Him! As He says: ‘He that believeth on him, (God’s Son) is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.’ (John 3:18) And it’s all so simple and straightforward; believe in Jesus and you are saved. Do not believe in Him, and you are immediately slated for eternal separation from Almighty God.
And I like how the scholars put it: ‘This verse answers the question, “Why do people go to hell?” It is because they do not believe in Jesus.’ It’s as simple as that my brethren! It’s a case of belief versus disbelief, with belief unfurling all the wonderful things God has in store for those who believe in His only begotten Son. And it’s true that Satan might have some half-decent material things to curry favour with, to catch your fancy with, like ‘baubles, bangles and shining beads,’ but the problem with most of Satan’s stuff is that they are not real, they’re only a façade, a trick to catch your selfish and greedy flesh, and they don’t last very long either.
And even worse, when you die, you leave it all behind, for we brought nothing into the world and we carry nothing out of it. Why do you think Jesus made these monumental pronouncements regarding treasures in the Sermon on the Mount eh? He very confidently states: ‘Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, were moth and rust doth corrupt (ruin), and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt (ruin), and where thieves do not break through nor steal.’ (Matt. 6:19-20)
That’s such wonderful advice my people! Advice we should all heed without a moment’s thought! (smile) But the problem with too many of us though is that we’re trying to hedge our bets, seeking the material and ungodly things that Satan eschews, while also trying to keep one foot also in heavenly bound things. But Jesus nixes that idea right away, when He points out: ‘For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also… And Ye cannot serve God and mammon.’ (Matt. 6:21, 24b)
Yes my brethren, it’s impossible to serve God and mammon, that’s money or the material things of the world at the same time, for they are two different places, with two different sets of rules and regulations, and wherever you have the most treasure set aside, then that’s where your hearts will be focused. But both Satan and God desire your undivided attention and adoration, so neither will be happy if you try to serve them both simultaneously.
But, thankfully, true, godly wisdom dictates that serving Almighty God fully in heart, soul, mind and body is the best decision a human being can make in this earthly life. So we hope and pray that we’ll all make, and/or renew that wise decision today, on this lazy-day Saturday in mid-July 2025, so that we can rest assured of obtaining eternal life with Christ Jesus! Much LOVE!
…only in fully serving Christ…can we expect to receive all the wonderful benefits He has to offer…both here on earth…as well as in heaven above…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
05 Jul 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a Sunday afternoon stroll, an attitude of prayer, ask and it shall be given to you, be patient in tribulation, communication with God, continuing instant in prayer, deepen my breath, delve into God's Word, everyone that asks receives, everyone that seeks finds, eye-opening scripture, faith, for our benefit, frequent prayer, go and pray unto me, He spake a parable unto them to this end, holy spirit, I love them that love me, I may know you all the more, I praise you for your unceasing nearness, I will hearken unto you, in Christ Jesus concerning you, in everything give thanks, in the face of adversity, in the morning, in the Spirit, increase my awareness of you today, intimacy with god, Jesus Christ, Jesus went out into a solitary place and prayed, knock and it shall be opened unto you, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, LOVE, maintain gratitude, make time to be intimate with our heavenly Father, meditate and pray, men ought always to pray and not faint, mercy, not lose heart, patient in tribulation, perseverance, pray without ceasing, praying always, put the word into action, quiet my soul, refreshing ourselves, rejoice evermore, rejoicing in hope, relax my muscles, relieve frustrations, rising up a great while before day, salvation, search for me with all your heart, seek and you shall find, slow my thoughts, spiritual success, thank you for this tenderness, the armour of God, the BIBLE, the Christian life, the wronged woman seeking justice from the unjust judge, then shall ye call upon me, this is the will of God in Christ, those that seek me early will find me, to everyone that knocks, to him that knocks it shall be opened, truth, watching thereunto, wisdom, with all perseverance and supplication for all saints, with prayer and supplication, ye shall seek me and find me
Luke 18:1. And he (Jesus) spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint (lose heart).
And finally we come to another Saturday, our lazy-day Saturday, where we dare to lie about doing as little as possible, in the opening rounds of refreshing our tired selves and spirits from a mediocre and unpleasant week. And the best way to begin relieving our frustrations is by offering up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer in all sincerity and truth.
So, as one strong voice, let’s pray. ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
And there’s nothing better at relieving frustrations than seeking intimacy with our heavenly Father, because it lightens our spirits and renews our souls. Remember that eye-opening scripture we read yesterday from the prophet Jeremiah? ‘Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto (listen to) you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.’ (Jer. 29:12-13)
Yes friends, anytime we’re disheartened, discouraged, fearful, worried, lost or even just tired, the best way to relieve our anxieties is by sincerely seeking Jesus in prayer with all of our hearts. souls, bodies and minds. Cousin Sol also offer his two cents worth on the subject in Proverbs, when he writes of the Lord: ‘I LOVE them that LOVE me; and those that seek me early (diligently) shall find me.’ (Prov. 8:17)
This brings to mind this ever so important verse of the Bible, where it says: ‘And he (Jesus) spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint (lose heart).’ (Luke 18:1) Then He told them about the wronged woman who kept seeking justice from the unjust judge, until he finally got tired of her and gave her the justice she desired and deserved. And prayer, sincere and steadfast must always be number one in our lives.
Look at how often Jesus prayed. Before and after almost every event He went away by Himself to pray, to seek intimacy, strength, renewal and direction from the Father. And this scripture verse on the subject just touches my heart. Mark writes: ‘And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he (Jesus) went out, and departed into a solitary (deserted) place, and there prayed.’ (Mark 1:35)
Now, if Jesus, the Son of God, thought it necessary to make time to be in the Father’s presence, how much more do we, miserable and sinful creations that we are, need to make time to be intimate with our heavenly Father eh? Much, much more! And there are a number of scriptures that do encourage, admonish and exhort us to pray.
So let’s look at a few of them now nuh, beginning with this famous one from Jesus: ‘Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.’ (Matt. 7:7-8)
And the scholars offer this explanation of those verses. ‘The three imperatives, ask, seek, knock are in the present tense of the original language, suggesting both perseverance and frequent prayer. Fervent and continual prayer is to be made on behalf of those for whom we are concerned. God promises to answer all genuine prayer (vs. 8). Everything we need for spiritual success has been promised to us. God leaves us no excuse for failure.’ And that’s something we ought to grab hold of and hold on to quite tightly: we have no excuses for spiritual failure, because God has already given us what we need, and shown us the way to succeed.
Now here is another verse of scripture that encourages us to pray, from Bruh Paul to the Romans. When talking about overcoming evil with good, he says a part of our behaviour to enable us to do that, must be: ‘Rejoicing in hope, patient (persevering) in tribulation; continuing instant (steadfastly) in prayer.’ (rom. 12:12)
Then to the Ephesians, when talking about the armour of God, Bruh Paul ends with this most important verse. ‘Praying always with prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for the saints.’ (Eph. 6:18) What he’s saying there is that despite all the godly armour you might have on, prayer is still very important, for without it, the armour won’t work.
And finally, to the Thessalonians, Bruh Paul exhorts them thus: ‘Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.’ (1 Thess. 5:16-18) Yuh see how he throws in that li’l gem in the middle: ‘Pray without ceasing.’ The scholars tell us that means we ought always to have an attitude of prayer, although we might not be praying audibly, and that constant attitude of prayer will help us to maintain gratitude in the face of adversity.
No friends, living the Christian life is not easy, definitely not a Sunday afternoon stroll in the park,, but as we saw earlier on, our wonderful God has given us everything we need to live the successful Christian life, so it’s all up to us to delve into His word, meditate and pray on it, then put it into action in our lives. And there’s no better time to begin doing that than right now. So, let’s take some time on this lazy-day Saturday, the first one in July of 2025, and spend it in true and sincere intimacy with our marvellous God. That can only be to our benefit! Much LOVE!
…without prayer…there’s no communication with God…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
28 Jun 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: bask in His love, be found unto praise honour and glory at Christ's appearing, because thou hast seen me thou hast believed, being much more precious than gold, believers must be valiant, blessed are they that have not seen yet believed, christianity, Christians, close to God, deepen my breath, do we with patience wait for it, doing God's will, eagerly wait, faith, faith is the substance of things hoped for, for he that loves not his brother whom he has seen, for what a man sees why does he yet hope for ir, full of glory, gave his only begotten son as a sacrifice, he is a liar, he who loves God love his brother also, holy spirit, hope that is seen is not hope, how can he love God whom he hath not seen, I may know you all the more, I praise you for your unceasing nearness, I want to be with you now, if a man say I love God and hates his brother, if we hope for what we see not, in our chaotic world, increase my awareness of you today, Jesus Christ, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, lightning, LOVE, love our neighbours as ourselves, making positive changes, mercy, Mother Earth, perseverance, placed our trust and lives in Jesus' faithful hands, put his hands in the nail prints of jesus' hands, quiet my soul, reach hither thy finger and behold my hnads, reach hither thy hand, relax my muscles, return his love through trust and surrender, salvation, saying we love god is easy but doing it is hard, slow my thoughts, thank you for this tenderness, that our sins could be forgiven, the BIBLE, the evidence of things not seen, the fain fell in torrents, the One who loves us more than we can imagine, the second great commandment, the sun valiantly overpowered the clouds, the trial of your faith, though it be tried with fire, though now you see him not yet believing, thrust it into my side, thunder, truth, we are saved by hope, we love him because he first loved us, we walk by faith not by sight, whom having not seen you love, wisdom, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable, you can't be contained, your love brh surrounds and fills me
John 20:29b. blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.
So we move on to Saturday, our lazy-day Saturday, where we try to do as little as possible, after a hard and frustrating week’s work. (smile) And it’s a beautiful day, with more sunshine than cloud, plus a brisk, cool breeze, and temps supposedly on the rise. But Mother Earth is clean, after a thorough cleansing in the midnight hour, when the thunder roared, the lightning flashed and the rain fell in torrents.
And by the way, yesterday afternoon, the sun did valiantly overpower the clouds and come out shining in all its glory, so it’s not impossible for us to be valiant and get up and do God’s will. Just a reminder that we need to get up and get a move on, if we ever hope to make any productive and positive changes in our chaotic world. (smile) And we can begin right now by offering up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer.
As one strong and sincere voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
Ah friends, how good it is to be close to our God; our Creator and Controller, the One who LOVES us more than we can ever think or imagine, so much so that He gave His only begotten Son as a sacrifice so that our sins could be forgiven! Now, if that doesn’t show true and real LOVE, I don’ know what does! And it’s ever so wise for us to get close and stay close to Him, so that He can LOVE us the way He desires, to bask in it, while returning it through our surrender to and trust in Him and His awesome Son Jesus Christ!
That brings to mind the situation after Christ rose from the dead and appeared to the disciples. Thomas though was absent, and after hearing about it, claimed that He would not believe unless he put his hands in the nail prints of Jesus’ hands and the javelin wound in His side. And you must LOVE the wit of Jesus, for He specifically chose a time when Thomas was with the other disciples to appear again.
Jesus headed straight for him, and said, ‘Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless (unbelieving), but believing. And Thomas said unto him, My Lord and my God. Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.’ (John 20:27-29)
Yes friends, Jesus is there talking about people like us, who did not see Him in the living flesh while He was here on earth, but nonetheless have believed His story, and fervently placed our trust and lives in His faithful and trustworthy hands. That’s why Bruh Paul could write thus to the Corinthians: ‘(For we walk by faith, not by sight:) (1 Cor. 5:7) And to the Romans: ‘For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience (perseverance) (eagerly) wait for it.’ (Rom. 8:24-25)
And that’s what our faith is all about; eagerly waiting with perseverance for Christ’s return! As the author of Hebrews writes: ‘Now faith is the substance (realization) of things hoped for, the evidence (conviction) of things not seen.’ (Heb. 11:1) So faith and hope help us to understand as well as wait for those wonderful things that Jesus promised would eventually come to pass.
And I like how Peter puts it when talking about an Incorruptible Inheritance that’s laid up for us. He says: ‘That the trial (genuineness) of your faith. being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried (tested) with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing (revelation) of Jesus Christ: Whom having not seen, ye LOVE; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory.’ (1 Pet. 1:7-8)
Wow! What a manifestation of our faith! Though we haven’t seen Jesus in the flesh, like so many others did, yet we LOVE Him like no other; more than any human being, and rejoice with unspeakable joy and give Him all the glory! Now, many other beings have the power to entice others into joyfully LOVING them and basking in their glory, but NONE of them have the power to keep the promises that Jesus made and instill the marvellous and miraculous faith that He’s been able to instill down through the ages in so many humans who have never seen Him in person, and is still instilling in numerous believers.
And I believe these are some excellent words for us to go out on this lazy-day Saturday, the last one of June 2025. They come from the first epistle of John, where he confidently declares: ‘We LOVE Him, because he first LOVED us. If a man say, I LOVE God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that LOVETH not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he LOVE God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from him, That he who LOVETH God LOVE his brother also.’ (1 John 4:19-21)
Oh my people it could not be any clearer than that. We cannot say we truly LOVE God while hating our brother. Remember the second great commandment is to LOVE our neighbours as ourselves, (Matt. 22:39) and our neighbours are all those we come into contact with. So, I implore us this lazy-day Saturday, to spend some time considering our faith; if we truly believe in Jesus, although we’ve not seen Him, and if so, how are we relating to our brothers and neighbours in this crazy and ungodly world. That ought to give us much pause for thought! (smile) Much LOVE!
…saying we LOVE God is easy…but doing it in real life is definitely not easy…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
21 Jun 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a fool's wisdom, acknowledge God's sovereignty, after a hard week's work, all liars, be wise and choose life, between a rock and a hard place, blaspheme His holy name, blessing and cursing, both thou and thy seed may live, choose life, crying out for help, deepen my breath, disobedient, do our won thing, draws us closer to our heavenly Father, established it upon the floods, eternal death, eternal death with Satan, eternal life, eternal life with Christ, every step of the way, faith, find ourselves in trouble, fools despise wisdom and instruction, free will, good communion, he hath founded it upon the seas, holy spirit, I call heaven and earth, I have set before you life and death, I may know you all the more, I praise you for your unceasing nearness, I want to be with you now, in the name of Jesus, increase my awareness of you, indwelling Holy Spirit, intimacy with god, intimacy with His human creation, Jesus Christ, Jesus is with us, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, LOVE, mercy, more in tune with Satan than with God, no more death, no more pain, no more sorrow, nomore cruing, pray without ceasing, quiet my soul, rebellious, relax my muscles, robots, salvation, selfish, sexually immoral, slow my thoughts, stay in the good graces of God, thank you for this tenderness, the abominable, the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, the fearful, the former things are passed away, the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone, the world, the world and they that dwell therein, to make a living, to record this day against you, traffic jams, true wisdom is clinging sincerely to Jesus, truth, under the umbrella of His shed blood, warms the cockles of God's heart, whoremongers, wisdom, you can't be contained, your love both surrounds and fills me, your peace and love are present
1 Thessalonians 5:17. Pray without ceasing.
And after Friday comes Saturday; our lazy-day Saturday, when we just laze around and try to catch ourselves after a hard week’s work, of battling the twice a day traffic jams and all the other stuff we have to contend with out there in this crazy world, as we try to make a living, all in the name of Jesus! And we only succeed because Jesus is with us every step of the way, through His indwelling Holy Spirit!
So, seeing that we don’t have to rush off anywhere today, let’s take a moment and offer up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, with all sincerity and truth. As one strong voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
Now, that just quiets our souls and draws us a li’l closer to our heavenly Father, giving Him His greatest desire, more intimacy with His human creation. For, remember one of the main reasons He created us, is that we could have good communion together. The unfortunate part of that plan though, is that we’ve used the free will He gave us to become selfish, disobedient and rebellious, not desiring to have much communion with Him, preferring to do our own thing without any interference whatsoever from Him.
But that’s a fool’s wisdom, and it’s only when we find ourselves in trouble, between a rock and a hard place that we run to Him, crying out for help. And when He doesn’t answer our cries for help, we get all upset and blaspheme His holy name. What we need to remember is that He is the Sovereign ruler pf this universe; it’s Creator and Controller, and answers to NO ONE! Bruh David stated it in no uncertain terms: ‘The earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. For he hath founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the floods (rivers).’ (Ps. 24:1-2)
Yes, He is the one that created everything and controls it all. And until we get that straight in our puny minds, we’re liable to go off on all sorts of foolish tangents in this crazy and chaotic world, that will only make our lives more difficult than necessary, and will eventually ruin us. That’s why it’s wise and necessary to stay in the good graces of Almighty God, keeping in constant touch with Him through prayer. As Bruh Paul wrote to the Thessalonians: ‘Pray without ceasing.’ (1 Thess. 5:17)
In other words, have a running communication with the Father. As you go about your day, talk to Him about everything. Oh friends, you don’t know how it warms the cockles of His heart when we bring Him into all of our affairs, be they simple or complicated. It certainly does, because He created us so that He could get involved in our everyday lives, and gave us free will so that we would not be merely robots, but have some choices in our lives, hoping that we would choose Him, and His way of life over everything else.
Sadly though, today we seem more in tune with the fallen angel, Satan, than we are with our Creator. But please remember that Satan is also a created being, and only exists by the grace of God, and when He believes the time is right, Satan will be destroyed, along with all those who have taken shelter under his evil wings. That means true wisdom is clinging sincerely to Jesus Christ, for those who are under the umbrella of His shed blood will enjoy eternal life with Him.
As Cousin Sol so wisely says in Proverbs: ‘The fear (reverential awe) of the Lord is the (principal) beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.’ (Prov. 1:7) And he’s right on both points. The first step in gaining knowledge is by submitting to God and His revelation. And fools do indeed despise wisdom and knowledge because they think they know it all. But thankfully some of us do bow to the Lord’s sovereignty and accept His Word as wisdom and truth, the things which will give us a good life here on earth and an even better one in the life to come, where there will be no more tears, no more death, or pain or sorrow, or crying, for the former things are passed away. ( Rev. 21:4)
However, if we don’t acknowledge God’s sovereignty here’s what we have to look forward to. ‘But the fearful (cowardly), and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers (sexually immoral), and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.’ (Rev. 21:8) Now that’s the two ends we humans will eventually face; eternal life with Jesus, or eternal death with Satan; the choice is ours.
But like the Lord so strongly advised Moses to say to the children of Israel so long ago: ‘I call heaven and earth to record (witness) this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live.’ (Deut. 30:19) Oh friends, it’s the same thing the Lord’s saying to us today; be wise, choose Me, choose life and not death, because in death, it’s all over, but in life, it goes on forever.
So please, I implore us, on this bright and sunshiny lazy-day Saturday in June 2025, let’s take a moment to review all we know and have heard, then be wise and choose life nuh! Much LOVE!
…when the battle rages…it’s wisest to choose the reigning king…over the foolish, untried usurper…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
14 Jun 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a more meaningful relationship with Christ, a personal relationship with Christ, a strong assurance and belief, afflicted hearts cling to each other, ask anything according to his will, being made conformable to his death, companionship in sorrow, confidence, confidence in receiving what is asked for, count them all but dung, deepen my breath, departed into a solitary place and prayed, establishes the most intimate and lasting of ties, faith, go down the wrong path, God answers prayers aligned with His will, God delights in intimacy with us, God is a just and faithful God, he hears us, holy spirit, I count all things but loss, I praise you for your unceasing nearness, if we know that God hears us, in actual day-to-day experience, in the Garden of Gethsemane, increase my awareness of you today, Jesus Christ, Jesus went out, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, leads to Christ and eternal life, leads to death and destruction, like Jesus did, Lord I want to be with you now, LOVE, made conformable unto his death, mercy, not having mine own righteousness, Paul's conversion on the road to Damascus, ponder our relationship with God, pour out our hearts to God, preaching Christ crucified, quiet my soul, reach for Paul's level of zeal, relax my muscles, rising up a great while before day, salvation, seeking God's desires than personal whims, singing praises to their heavenly father, slow my thoughts, thank you for this tenderness, that I may know him, that I may know you all the more, that I may win Christ, the birds are frolicking, the broad and winding way, the effectiveness of prayer, the excellency of the knowledge of Christ, the fellowship of his sufferings, the link between faith prayer and God's will, the power of his resurrection, the power that raised Jesus from the dead, the righteousness which is of God by faith, the straight and narrow path, the wind is kicking up a rumpus, this is the confidence that we have in Him, truth, we know we have the desired petitions, whatsoever we ask, wisdom, wisdom at its zenith, you can't achieve intimacy unless you seek it, you can't be contained, your love both surrounds and fills me
Philippians 3:10. That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death.
Oh friends, it’s a beautiful though a bit cool lazy-day Saturday in my neighbourhood. The sun’s shining, the birds are frolicking and singing their praises to their heavenly Father, but unfortunately, the wind is kicking up a rumpus, causing the poor trees to dance to its wild and crazy tune. But other than that, everything’s right in my area. (smile) Consequently, let’s offer up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer with sincere and heartfelt desire.
As one strong voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’ And because we know that our God is a just and faithful God who delights in having intimacy with us, if our prayer was truly sincere, we’ll soon be experiencing His awesome peace and presence in our spirits.
It’s like John declares in his first epistle: ‘And this is the confidence that we have in him (God), that if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired (asked) of him.’ (1 John 5:14-15) You cannot ask for better assurance than that my brethren! Now what does it all mean?
This commentary breaks it down thus: ‘Confidence: The verse speaks of a strong assurance and belief that God hears and answers prayers that are aligned with His will. According to his will: This is a crucial part of the verse. It suggests that the effectiveness of prayer is tied to seeking God’s desires and purposes rather than personal whims. He hears us: This emphasizes that God is attentive to the prayers of those who believe in Him and seek His will. In other words, this verse highlights the link between faith, prayer, and God’s will, emphasizing that when prayers align with God’s plan, there is confidence in receiving what is asked.’
I couldn’t put it any better than that my people. And why this big thing about intimacy with God? Because that’s the essence of our relationship! Yes, He made us to have intimacy with Him; so that we can know Him and all that He is and stands for. Note how Jesus was always off somewhere praying to the Father, talking to Him, asking for guidance and strength to do His Work. And I like how Mark puts it: ‘And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he (Jesus) went out, and departed into a solitary(deserted) place, and there prayed.’ (Mark 1:35)
Yes, Jesus even rose up early and went out to a quiet place to have intimacy with the Father. That’s what we need to do on a more regular basis; find a quiet place and talk to the Father, pour out our hearts to Him, like Jesus did in the Garden of Gethsemane on the night before His crucifixion. (Matt. 26:36-46) Let’s remember that there’s nothing the Lord desires more than a close and intimate relationship with us. He desires to be involved in every aspect of our lives. That’s because of His great LOVE and compassion for us. He doesn’t want to see us go down the wrong path, the broad and winding one that leads to death and destruction, but to stay on the straight and narrow one that leads to Him and eternal life. (Matt. 7:13-14)
And when we talk about intimacy with God, I don’t know if there’s anyone who wanted it as badly as Bruh Paul, judging from what he wrote in his letter to the Philippians. He was from a good family, a well-educated and diligent and zealous Pharisee, a Pharisee of Pharisees, who sincerely believed that he was right in persecuting the church. However, in one of the Lord’s many mysterious movements, one sunny day, as Bruh Paul was travelling to Damascus to persecute more believers, the Lord accosted him with a bullet of light which knocked him off his horse and blinded him.
Subsequently, the Lord forgave him of his earlier heinous deeds against the church, and instead gave him the responsibility to spread the church. You can read the story of Bruh Paul’s amazing conversion in Acts chapter 9. Now, all of that so touched Bruh Paul, that with his characteristic diligence and zeal, he transformed it all to preaching Christ crucified and His resurrection. So much so that he wrote to the Philippians:
‘But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung (rubbish) that I may win Christ. And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death.’ (Phil. 3:7-10)
Oh my fellow believers, do any of us want such deep intimacy with Christ? Yes, I know it’s difficult to come to that stage of faith, but it’s one we should all seek to reach. And here’s how the scholars explain Bruh Paul’s sentiments. They say that verse 10 ‘may also be paraphrased: “In order that I may personally know Him, that I might both experience His resurrection power and share in His sufferings, and thus I will be more and more conformed to His death.” Paul wants “the righteousness of … God” (vs. 9) so that he can obtain a personal relationship with Jesus in actual day-to-day experience.
This knowledge of Christ is obtained by experiencing in daily problems, needs, ministry, and so forth, the same power that raised Jesus from the dead. Knowing Christ also entails participating in His sufferings. Paul desires to share in the Lord’s sufferings because they bring him into a deeper and more meaningful relationship with Him; companionship in sorrow establishes the most intimate and lasting of ties, as afflicted hearts cling to each other.’
And that’s a fact that many of us can attest to, if we’ve been through suffering with others. But getting back to intimacy with Christ. Most of us can never hope to reach Bruh Paul’s level of zeal and LOVE for Christ, but as I said earlier on, it is the standard to which we all ought to aim for, because the closer we get to God, the better will be our lives, both earthly and heavenly. So let’s take some time on this lazy-day Saturday to ponder our relationship with our heavenly Father, and see how we can improve it. That’s wisdom at its zenith! Much LOVE!
…you can’t achieve intimacy with God…unless you actively seek it…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
07 Jun 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a godly promise, a growing relationship with God, a lover of intimacy, a sincere heart, a spiritual man, as a dream, Bishop Riscylla Shaw, brought into desolation, Christian Residence Schools, deepen my breath, destroyed those who are unfaithful to you, destruction of the wicked, envious of the wicked's prosperity, essential to keeping our faith strong, face doubts and fears, faith, find the answer to the problem, God doesn't make idle promises, God is the strength of my heart, guide me with counsel, he won't ever defeat us, holy spirit, I am continually with thee, I have put my trust in the Lord, I marvel to think, I may declare all thy works, I may know you all the more, I praise you for your unceasing nearness, I was as a beast before thee, increase my awareness of you today, Indigenous people, it is good for me to draw near to God, Jesus Christ, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, Lord I want to be with you now, lost his faith, LOVE, mercy, Metis heritage, my flesh and my heart faileth, my flesh and my heart fails, my heart was grieved, my portion for ever, Pentecost Prayer Breakfast, pierced in my mind, pricked in my reins, put on the armour of god, quiet my soul, receive me to glory, received a divine perspective, relax my muscles, reprehensible act of colonialism, salvation, sentiments, slow my thoughts, so foolish was I, stand firm for God, stripped of their culture, stumbled spiritually, Suffragan Bishop of Toronto, thank you for this tenderness, the destiny of the wicked, the enemy can take his best shot, the enemy shoots his fiery darts at us, the spiritually mature, then I understood their end, there is none upon earth I desire beside thee, they that are far from thee shall perish, thou didst set them in slippery places, thou hast held me by thy right hand, truth, Truth and Reconciliation, until I went into the sanctuary of God, utterly consumed with terrors, walk in god's will, warnings of smoke from wildfires, whom have I in heaven but thee, wisdom, with God's protection, write deeply in our hearts souls bodies and minds, you are here with me, you can't be contained, your love both surrounds and fills me, your peace and love are present
Psalm 73:26. My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength (rock) of my heart, and my portion for ever.
It’s a hot and hazy lazy-day Saturday friends, like it was yesterday, with more warnings of smoke from the wildfires. Thankfully, though I saw the haziness of the smoke in the area, I could not smell it because my allergies were acting up, just as they are today. But that did not stop us from going to the annual Pentecost Prayer Breakfast at my church this morning, where everyone had a good time…as always, (smile) led by our indomitable, courageous and joyful pastor Fr. Jeff Brown. And that’s why we’re somewhat late with the Bit.
We also had an interesting and informative Guest Peaker, Bishop Riscylla Shaw, the Suffragan Bishop of Toronto, giving us some insights into her Indigenous (Metis) Heritage and her work with the Truth and Reconciliation Committee. Unfortunately, that Committee was brought about by another disgusting and reprehensible act of the Colonial Era, the Christian Residence Schools, where the Indigenous people were stripped of their language, culture, history and self-confidence so that they could become good Christian children.
Oh, the abominable things we’ve done, supposedly in the name of the Lord! But slowly, things are changing, and though it may take a long time to come to rights, we have to keep working and praying to finally see that day, although most of us currently alive, probably will not see it. In the meantime, let’s offer up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, with heartfelt sincerity.
As one voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
And as we full well know; intimacy is one thing the Lord will not, in fact, cannot refuse, if we come to Him with a sincere heart, because that’s who He is: a LOVER of intimacy, and one of His purposes for creating us. And speaking of intimacy, there’s no better revelation of that fact than in the psalmist Asaph’s situation, as he states in Psalm 73, the first part of which we looked at yesterday. He was jealous and envious of the wicked and their seeming prosperity here on earth, while the righteous were suffering, and he almost stumbled spiritually and lost his faith…’Until I went into the sanctuary of God: then I understood their end.’ (Ps. 73:17)
As the scholars explain: ‘Not until the psalmist entered God’s sanctuary and received a divine perspective on the wicked’s prosperity did he find his answer to the problem.’ Yes, then and only then did he truly realize how our God looks at wickedness, as he says: ‘Surely thou didst set them in slippery places: thou castedst them down into destruction. How they are brought into desolation, as in a moment! they are utterly consumed with terrors. As a dream when one awaketh; so, O Lord, when thou awakest, thou shalt despise their image.’ (Ps. 73:18-20)
And that’s for certain sure! The Lord has made many promises to destroy the wicked and their seed when He is good and ready. And since we know He doesn’t make idle promises, that destruction of the wicked is definitely in the cards. However, as we said yesterday, for those of us who are having problems envying the wicked and their earthly prosperity, it might also be a good thing for us to go into the house of the Lord and try to find greater intimacy and understanding with Him.
For as Asaph further confesses: ‘Thus my heart was grieved, and I was pricked in my reins (pierced in my mind). So foolish was I, and ignorant: I was as a beast before thee. Nevertheless I am continually with thee: thou hast holden (held) me by thy right hand. Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory.’ (Ps. 73: 22-24) Now those are also faithful promises made by our God to the righteous, so if we walk in His will, then we can be assured that He will keep them.
And I like how he concludes the psalm. ‘Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee. My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength (rock) of my heart, and my portion for ever. For, lo, they that are far from thee shall perish: thou hast destroyed all them that go a whoring from thee (those who are unfaithful to thee). But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord God, that I may declare all thy works.’ (Ps. 73:25-28) Now my fellow believers, those are words and sentiments that we should all have and write deeply in our hearts, souls, bodies and minds, for they are essential in keeping our faith strong and growing.
And we’ll close with this overall explanation of the psalm from the scholars. ‘He saw (Asaph) the destiny of the wicked (vs. 17-20); therefore, he repented of his foolishness (vs. 21-22) and found his happiness solely in a warm and growing relationship with God (vs. 23-28). The point of the psalm is driven home even more dramatically when remembering that Asaph, the author, was a spiritual man who grew up with deeply religious training. (1 Chr. 15:16-19; 16:4-7; 2 Chr. 5:12; 29:30).’Those are references to where Asaph is mentioned in the Bible as an important musician and seer under Bruh David and other kings.
Now, Asaph’s problem just goes to show that even the spiritually mature amongst us can face doubts and fears when the enemy shoots his fiery darts at us. So, it is incumbent on us to always put on the armour of God for protection, and when we do…then we stand…stand firm for God! Much LOVE!
…the enemy can take his best shot…but with God’s protection…he won’t ever defeat us…that’s a godly promise…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
31 May 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a disciplined mind, a life devoid of strife and hatred, a positive response, according to his own purpose and grace, according to the power of God, appear outwardly beautiful, appear outwardly righteous, as the hart panteth after the water brooks, be not ashamed of the Lord's testimony, be partaker of the afflictions of the gospel, before the world began, brought life and immortality to light, but of power love and a sound mind, by the putting on of my hands, called us with an holy calling, deceit, don't have time to spend with God, eccentricities, eternal life, faith, For God hath not given us a spirit of fear, fraudulence, full of dead men's bones, genuine faith, given us in Christ Jesus, God-given abilities, good news of the gospel, gotten up off our rear ends, great joy on earth and in heaven, heartfelt sincerity, heed the urgent call of jesus, holy spirit, I may know you all the more, I praise you for your unceasing nearness, I put thee in remembrance, I want to be with you now, increase my awareness of you today, intimacy with god, it's not too late to turn things around, Jesus Christ, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, like unto whited sepulchres, living a life filled with salt and light, LOVE, love and kindness, mercy, Mother Nature, my soul thirsts for God, no one to blame but ourselves, not according to our works, now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour, our world is a paradox, quiet my soul, relax my muscles, roll along with the tumbling tunbleweed, run Beelzebub out of town, salvation, self-aggrandizement, selfishness, sincere of heart, slow my thoughts, so panteth my soul after thee O God, spreading our salty flavour and bright light, still expect to receive his blessings, stir up the gift of God, thank you for this tenderness, the darkness and death that Satan offers, the sons of Korah, the unfeigned faith, true disciples of Jesus, truth, unpredictable year, whine and complain about the sad state of the world, whitewashed tombs, who hath abolished death, who hath saved us, wisdom, within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity, woe unto you scribes and Pharisees hypocrites, your love both surrounds and fills me
2 Timothy 1:6. Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on (laying on) of my hands.
There we have it friends, the end of another month of this crazy and unpredictable year of 2025! And I’m still amazed at how quickly the days and months are going by. And not only are the days and months passing by quickly, but the weather is also topsy-turvy. Yesterday we had highs in the twenties and you could feel the heat. Today though, our lazy-day Saturday will barely get up into the mid-teens, while being cloudy and very windy. And, unfortunately, it’s definitely not in our power to stop or control Mother Nature and her eccentricities, (smile) we can only roll along with the tumbling tumbleweed if we want to survive and be successful in the long run.
Our world today is a paradox that only the Lord could work out and understand. But we can certainly benefit from His colossal wisdom by turning to Him and asking for His wonderful assistance. So lets’ do that right now by offering up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer with heartfelt sincerity. As one strong voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
Now, that’s one of the great things about our God; we can pray to Him, and if it’s in His will, and we’re sincere of heart, then almost immediately we can get a positive response. Especially if it’s a desire to grow closer to Him. That just floors Him every time! (smile) And because intimacy and communion with Him were amongst the major reasons He created us, He obviously cannot refuse a sincere request to get intimate with Him. Not at all! That brings to mind these two marvellous verses from Psalm 42 titled – My Soul Thirsts for the Lord – where the Son of Korah write: ‘As the hart (deer) panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God?’ (Ps. 42:1-2)
Oh friends, that’s how we believers ought to be hungering and thirsting for our great and wonderful God. But sadly, too many of us supposed believers don’t have the time to spend with Him, or even want to spend time with Him, but we do expect to receive His awesome blessings and favours though. What a set of bloody hypocrites we are. It’s like Jesus saying to the Pharisees: ‘Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres (whitewashed tombs), which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and are of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity (lawlessness).’ (Matt. 23:27-28)
Ah mih people, definitely too many of us fit that disgraceful sobriquet in these perilous times, brought about to a large extent by our unwillingness to get out into the world and impart Christ’s gospel to the heathen, by spreading our salty flavour and bright light in the terrible darkness that exists there. And why have we so badly reneged on our promise to go out and manifest the Great Commission? Who knows? Possibly through laziness, shame, fear, or whatever cunning and deceitful method the devil used to restrict us.
But let’s remember these fateful words of Bruh Paul to Timothy. ‘When I call to remembrance the unfeigned (genuine) faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice, and I am persuaded that in thee also. Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on (laying on) of my hands. For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of LOVE, and of a sound (disciplined) mind.
Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions (share with me the sufferings) of the gospel according to the power of God: Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began (before time), But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.’ (2 Tim. 1:5-10)
Yes my fellow saints, we have been appointed by our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, who, through His selfless sacrifice on the cross of Calvary, brought us salvation and eternal life, to go over all the world and spread the good news of His gospel, so that all the earth would have the option of accepting His amazing options of light and life over the dreaded darkness and death that Satan offers. But we have failed to live up to our promises as His true disciples, as His ambassadors and representatives here on earth. What a shameful display my brethren!
But then we whine and complain about the sad state of our world! Do we ever sit and consider what would have happened if many more of us had gotten up off our rear ends and gone out and lived the life of a true Christian. Not even preaching the gospel, but simply living a life filled with salt and light, with LOVE and kindness, one devoid of strife and hatred, of deceit and fraudulence, of greed and envy, of selfishness and self-aggrandizement! Yes friends, if a greater portion of us had lived that kind of life, our world would certainly not be in the ungodly and chaotic state that it’s currently in.
So, when we complain about the terrible times we’re now facing, let’s remember that a lot of it stems from our lack of living the way we ought to, so we have no one else to blame but ourselves. But thankfully it’s not too late for us to turn things around. So please, let’s wake up and heed the urgent call of Jesus nuh, and get together and use all the tools we have to run Beelzebub out of town! What great joy that would bring, both here on earth and in heaven above! Much LOVE!
…it’s time for us to wake up…and use our amazing God-given abilities…to turn the world around…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
24 May 2025
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a free for all, a hard task master, a heart full of love, a man's enemies are the men of his own house, a more godly being, according to the fruit of his doings, adulteries, arrogance, be careful what we allow in our hearts, blasphemy, blustery winds, christianity, closer intimacy with God, compassion, created in the image of God, deceitful hearts, deepen my breath, desperately wicked, every man did that which was right in his own eyes, faith, filled with hope, for out of it flow the issues of life, fornications, fraud, from her that lieth in thy bosom, God tests the hearts and minds of the righteous, God's greatest attribute is love, goodness, great sinfulness, greed, hardship, heartfelt sincerity, holy spirit, I marvel to think, I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins, if there be any wicked way in me, increase my awareness of you today, incurably sick, intimacy, Jesus Christ, keep the doors of thy mouth, keep thy heart with all diligence, know my anxious thoughts, know my heart, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, lead me in the way everlasting, Lord I praise you, Lord I want o be with you now, LOVE, mercy, no honour in a man's' word, nothing from without a man can defile him, obedience, out of the heart of men, out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, pride, put ye not confidence in a guide, quiet my soul, receive God's help, relax my muscles, salvation, Satan, search me O God, self-aggrandizement, slow my thoughts, strife, test the mind, tests our faith and love, thank you for this tenderness, that I may know you all the more, the BIBLE, the daughter rises up against her mother, the heart is deceitful above all things, the Master Deceiver, the motives of our hearts, the son dishonours the father, the things which come out of a man defile him, there was no king in Israel, to give every man according to his ways, trust ye not in a friend, truth, try me, unwise to trust others, waiting in the wings, who can know it, wickedness come naturally to man's sinful nature, wisdom, you are here with me, you can't be contained, your love both surrounds and fills me, your peace and love are present, your unceasing nearness
Jeremiah 17:9. The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked (incurably sick): who can know it?
Awright friends, our lazy-day Saturday is here, sunny with a touch of cloudiness and a little warmer than yesterday, but it opened with the same blustery winds that created havoc yesterday. Right now it seems to have settled down somewhat, but who knows what later will bring. But we won’t worry, just hope that if it does restart, it won’t do any serious damage. In the meantime, let’s offer up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, seeking closer intimacy with our wonderful God.
As one strong and sincere voice: ‘Lord, I want to be with You now. Please slow my thoughts and quiet my soul. Let my muscles relax, my breath deepen. You are here with me – Your peace and LOVE are present. I marvel to think You can’t be contained, that Your LOVE both surrounds and fills me. Thank You for this tenderness, Lord. I praise You for Your unceasing nearness. Increase my awareness of You today, that I may know You all the more. Amen!’
And with the heartfelt sincerity in which we offered up that prayer, the Lord simply cannot refuse our request, because His greatest attribute is LOVE, which includes closeness, caring, compassion and intimacy, and from day one He’s been asking us to LOVE Him more. So how can He refuse when we come to Him with a heart full of LOVE eh? No way!
However, please note that the Lord doesn’t fall for our outward manifestations, but first checks the motives of our hearts before He makes a move. Remember what He says in Jeremiah? The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked (incurably sick): who can know it? I the Lord search the heart, I try (test) the reins (mind), even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.’ (Jer. 17:9-10)
And how does the Lord test our hearts? This commentary tells us: ‘God tests the hearts and minds of the righteous. He tests our faith and LOVE by means of obedience and hardship. He sometimes withdraws to test us. The Messiah refines His people by fire.’ So being a true believer is no Sunday afternoon walk in the park., for it takes guts and discipline. That’s why Bruh David could offer up these heartfelt words: ‘Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me and know my (anxious) thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.’ (Ps. 139:23-24)
Now that’s an interesting prayer that we can all offer up, for we know from personal experience as well as worldwide knowledge, that the heart of man is the most deceitful thing in God’s great universe! Just look around at our world today and you’ll see that all the strife, all the greed, all the fraud, arrogance and self-aggrandizement come from deceitful hearts. We blatantly make promises with no intention of keeping them. There’s no longer any honour in a man’s word. Everything’s become lawless, a free for all. We’re daily becoming more like old time Israel, when the Bible tells us: ‘In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes.’ (Judg. 21:25)
Unfortunately, that’s the way we seem to be travelling my brethren, for even with an abundance of dictators and despotic leaders, man’s natural gravitation to lawlessness, to doing what He himself desires, is very strong. And don’t forget that the Master Deceiver, Satan, is always waiting in the wings with a deceitful word and smile to encourage us to go our own way. That’s why these days it’s so unwise to trust others. We have to be so wary, even with our own family.
The prophet Micah said it a long time ago, revealing the deep societal decay within Israel, and it’s the same today. ‘Trust ye not in a friend, put ye not confidence in a guide (companion): keep (guard) the doors of thy mouth from her that lieth in thy bosom. For the son dishonoureth the father, the daughter riseth up against her mother, the daughter in law against her mother in law; a man’s enemies are the men of his own house.’ (Mic. 7:5-6) And sadly my brethren we can see that taking place all over our world right now. For wickedness comes naturally to man’s sinful nature.
Remember what Jesus said about that? ‘There is nothing from without (outside) a man that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are they that defile a man. …That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye (licentiousness), blasphemy, pride, foolishness: All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.’ (Mark 7:15; 20-23)
And if you’re alive today, and of sane mind, you will see that all those evil things are currently very prevalent in our society, in fact ruling the roost. No wonder, Cousin Sol, the wisest man ever, could write a long time ago: ‘Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.’ (Prov. 4:23) And this commentary explains that verse thus: “Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs of life.” Our heart is our mind—it’s what we think and believe with, feel with, choose with, and judge with. Solomon warns us to be careful what we allow into our hearts.’
And there’s no better time to start doing that than right now my faithful believers, when our world is in such chaos and disarray! It’s so sad, that at the height of our evolution, we seem to be returning to our warlike, animalistic roots, and not moving upwards to a more godly, peaceful and LOVING being, created in the wonderful image of our great God. It must break His heart every day, when He looks down upon His creation and see what a mess they are making of His universe.
But don’t worry, one thing we, His true disciples are filled with is HOPE; a hope for a brighter day, a brighter future which we are slowly and painstakingly working towards. So let’s stay strong, look up, and receive God’s help and encouragement to turn things around. For that’s why we’re here at this particular time! And we pray it all in Jesus name! Amen! Much LOVE my brethren!
…sinfulness comes easily to us…but goodness is a hard task master…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
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