16 Dec 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a light to lighten the Gentiles, a sword shall pierce thy own soul, a tumultuous climax, Advent, anguish, Bible, blessed God, christianity, deliverance, devout, divine aid, divine helphumble servants, division, eternal life, faith, fellowship, for a sign, forgiveness, great fanfare, Happy Holidays, heartache for Mary, hellfire and damnation, holy spirit, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus Christ, Jesus is the reason for the season, Jesus' coming, Jesus' sacrifice, joyful festive season, judgement, just, let thy servant depart in peace, life, LOVE, machinations, mercy, Merry Christmas, messianic hope, mine eyes have seen thy salvation, praise, prosper, redemption, salvation, Seasons Greetings, seeking God's face, Simeon, sincere repentance in our hearts, special insight, strong faith in Christ, thanksgiving, that will be spoken against, the big day of Christmas, the fall and rising of many in Israel, the God who heals, the Holy Spirit's influence, the Messiah, the power to solve our many problems, the thoughts of many hearts be revealed, the throne of grace, this child is set for, to bring revelation to, truth, turn from our evil ways, when Christ was born, wisdom, wise guidance, worship
Luke 2:32. A light to lighten (bring revelation to) the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel.
Nine days and counting friends! Counting down to the big day of Christmas, when we celebrate our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ’s birth! It’s the day when all the hullabaloo of the Christmas season will come to a tumultuous climax, of food, drink and partying, but hopefully too, one of praise, thanksgiving, worship and fellowship, in appreciation of the Father’s great gift to us.
And as we go out on this wet, cloudy, Monday morning in mid-December, and get into the spirit of the season with our co-workers and fellow shoppers, please, let’s remember that Jesus is the reason for this joyful festive season, and don’t allow others to forget it either, as the world is trying to do.
So it’s not merely ‘Happy Holidays,’ or ‘Season’s Greetings,’ but ‘Merry Christmas,’ or some such greeting that makes it clear that this is the Christmas Season, when Christ was born, when He came down from heaven, so that He could bring us forgiveness, salvation and eternal life! End of Sermon! (smile)
And today we’ll look at another prophetic phenomenon in the life of Jesus, corroborating all the things the Old Testament said about Him. We’re talking about the story of Simeon, who, as the scholars tell us ‘had his heart set on the messianic hope (of seeing the Messiah), which alone could bring consolation to his troubled land. He was therefore open under the Holy Spirit’s influence for God to impart special insight to him.’
And when Mary and Joseph came to the temple to present Jesus to the Lord, and to offer sacrifices for Him according to the law, the Bible recounts this very interesting scene: ‘And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him. And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.
And he came by the spirit into the temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him after the custom of the law, Then took he him (Jesus) up in his arms, and blessed God, and said, Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, Which thou hast prepared before the face of all the people; A light to lighten (bring revelation to) the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel.’ (Luke 2:25-32)
Yes friends, we see that all through His Word, the Lord moved in all kinds of mysterious ways to let mankind know that He was going to redeem them at the appropriate time, through the coming of His Messiah. Simeon was just one of those instances, guided by the Holy Ghost to be at the right place at the right time. And like so many other instances of the Lord’s largesse and mercy, Simeon had to wait a long time to see it. He was rather old by then. But our God keeps His promises, even if He has to keep us alive till we’re old and grey. (smile)
And that’s how it was with Simeon. But it was also another lesson for Jospeh and Mary in the Lord’s infinite machinations, as the scholars reveal that the words ‘a light to lighten (bring revelation to the Gentiles,’ was the first time they were hearing the startling prophecy that Jesus’ significance will extend even to the Gentiles. And that would have been surprising even if it had not come from a stranger.’
No wonder, as the Bible continues: ‘And Joseph and his mother marvelled at those things which were spoken of him.’ (Luke 2:33) No doubt it reminded them of the shepherds who were led by the angels and the heavenly host to the place where Jesus lay on the night that He was born. They too had seen and spoken of some marvellous things. By then Mary and Joseph must have been wandering what they had gotten themselves into.
But the worst was yet to come. ‘And Simeon blessed them, and said unto Mary his mother, Behold, this child is set (destined) for the fall and rising again of many in Israel; and for a sign which shall be spoken against; (Yea, a sword shall pierce through thine own soul also,) that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.’ (Luke 2: 34-35)
Oh, Jesus’s coming will bring deliverance, but also division, anguish and all sorts of heartache for Mary. As the scholars say: ‘Both redemption and judgement are bound up in His advent (coming).’ Now, how many of us still want to be Mary the mother of Jesus eh? It might have come with great fanfare and blessings, but the heartaches were also enormous. But be that as it may, let’s take our problems to the throne of grace, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, seeking help for our many problems.
Altogether: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems.
Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.
Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’
And to get that divine aid, means cleaning up our own act, through prayer, repentance and sincerely seeking God’s face! Much LOVE!…
were it not for Jesus’ sacrifice…mankind would ALL be heading for hellfire and damnation…so let’s be very thankful for Him…this Christmas season…
25 Nov 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a spirit of fear, a spirit of power love and a sound mind, access to grace, and all these things shall be added unto you, anger, be a good example, be of good cheer, character, disrupt our spirits, do not worry, expereince, faith, frustration, glory in tribulations, have peace with God through Christ, holy spirit, hope maketh not ashamed, hpe does not disappoint, humble ourselves, humble servants, humility, i have overcome the world, in me ye might have peace, in the world, is not life more than meat, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus Christ, justified by faith, let not your heart be troubled, life, life is about living for Jesus, LOVE, mass confusion in our world, mercy, my peace I give unto you, neither let it be afraid, not as the world giveth, Peace i leave with you, perseverance, power to solve our problems, pray, rejoice in hope, salvation, seek ye first the kingdom of God, shed abroad in our hearts, sincere repentance, sincerely seek God's face, strong faith in Christ, take not thought for your life, the body more than clothes, the finished work of Jesus, the God who heals, the lilies of the field, the LOVE of God, the Prince of Peace, traffic jams, tribulation worketh patience, truth, victory, wisdom, ye shall have tribulation, your heavenly Father knows you need all these things
2 Timothy 1:7. ‘For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of LOVE, and of a sound (disciplined) mind.’
And it’s a fine looking sunshiny Monday morning, but a tad on the chilly side. We’ll take the sunshine anytime though, for its effervescence boosts the spirit, regardless of the temperature, especially on a Monday. (smile) And I sincerely hope that most of us did not allow Monday to disrupt our spirits, but were prepared to meet it and got off to work early and in a peaceful state of mind, although the traffic jams on the way there will possibly cause some frustration and anger.
But let’s remember that we serve the Prince of Peace, and He was peaceful under all circumstances, and try to be a good example of that. For the traffic jams won’t go away, but if we allow them to upset us to such a level, we might just pass away right there in the middle of it, and that will not be a very welcome or worthwhile situation.
And I guess it’s not too early…No, it’s never too early to hear the words of Jesus on any subject, especially these two on peace, which we all know, but don’t take the time to action. The first one goes like this: ‘Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.’ (John 14:27)
It’s like He said in Matthew about worry. ‘Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for (do not worry about) your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not life more than meat (food), and the body than raiment (clothing) ? (Matt. 6:25)
Then He goes on to talk about the birds not planting or harvesting, but they eat and survive very well through God’s goodness. Likewise the lilies of the field, who neither toil nor spin, but even Cousin Sol in all his finery could not be prettier than them. So if God looks after the less important aspects of His creation, why won’t He look after the most important one eh? That’s mankind.
‘Therefore take no thought for (do not worry), saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewith shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles (unbelievers) seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ (Matt. 6:31-33)
Yuh see friends, Jesus’ peace is different to what the world offers and with it running through our souls and spirits, there’s no need to be anxious or alarmed about circumstances. And then His next declaration on peace is even more uplifting. He declares: ‘These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33)
Now, we all know that’s easier said than done, but again, when we have the spiritual peace of Christ flowing through us, we don’t need to worry as the ordinary unbelievers do, because we know whom we serve, and what power He possesses. Remember, He’s already overcome the world; namely the devil, hell and the grave, so victory is ours, as long as we don’t give it away.
And these words of Bruh Paul to the church at Rome, serve as a booster to Christ’s statement. He writes: ‘Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience (produces perseverance); and patience, experience (character); and experience, hope: And hope maketh not ashamed (does not disappoint); because the LOVE of God is shed abroad (has been poured out) in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.’ (Rom. 5:1-5)
Oh my faithful brethren, just look at all the benefits we’ve acquired through the finished work of Jesus nuh! We didn’t do a thing to deserve them, and couldn’t even if we tried our very best. But Jesus did it all for us, and all we have to do is to receive it now by faith, a faith which grows stronger and stronger, the longer we serve Christ, read His Word and be obedient to it, and give thanks and praise for our wonderful blessings, in and through Christ!
And no, it’s not easy in a world that denies God and thus Christ. But nonetheless, we have been given all the tools to go out into this ungodly world and live like and for Christ, if we don’t fear the possible repercussions. For there will be repercussions if you go against whatever the world and it’s evil system are promoting. But let’s also remember these most reassuring and uplifting words of Bruh Paul to Timothy: ‘For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of LOVE, and of a sound (disciplined) mind.’ (2 Tim. 1:7)
So please let’s use the many gifts we’ve been granted to live the life expected of us nuh, otherwise Jesus’ sufferation would have been a waste of time. And we simply cannot allow it to go for nought. Therefore, let’s go to the throne of grace, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn seeking divine aid for our many earthly problems.
Altogether: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems.
Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.
Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’
Now, let’s remember that no divine aid will flow down to us unless the Lord sees some humility and sincere repentance on our part! Much LOVE!
…this life is all about Jesus…living for, in and through Him…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
07 Oct 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a crying shame, a disciple of Jesus, a new creation, a nuclear holocaust, accoring to his riches in glory, after the things of the Spirit, all our needs met, all things are become new, as babes in Christ, Bible, cannot please God, carnal, christianity, deny himself, divine aid, enmity against God, excellence, faith, fed you with milk not meat, fervently, forget ourselves, grow in faith, humble servants, if any man be in Christ, Jehovah Rapha, Jesus Christ, just laze around, life, LOVE, make a living, mass confusion, mercy, mid the things of the Spirit, mind the things of the flesh, negative situations, old things are passed away, peace, reconciled us to himself, sacrifice, sacrificing for Christ, saints of Christ, salvation, seek God and his righteousness first, sincere repentance, spiritual maturity, strife, strong faith in Christ, take up his cross daily, the carnal mind, the God who heals, the sins of the flesh, the Spirit of God, they athat are after the flesh, those in the flesh, to be carnally minded is death, to be spiritually minded is life and peace, trun from our evil ways, truth, wisdom, wise guidance, work dilgently, ye are yet carnal
Romans 8:6. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
And the roller coaster ride keeps rolling on! Another day, another dollar! Yes my people, it’s another Monday, the start of a new work week and we have to get out into the evil world and make a living. And Jesus did instruct us to seek God and His righteousness first, and all of our needs would be met; (Matt. 6:33) while Bruh Paul also promised that God would provide all our needs according to His riches in Christ Jesus; (Philp. 4:19) but all of that implies that we would get up and work diligently, fervently and efficiently, not just laze around, as so many of us are doing, and expecting our needs to be filled.
Being a disciple of Jesus can be hard work. Remember how He described a disciple? ‘If any man will (desires to) come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.’ (Luke 9:23) That means we have to take up our cross, every day, and follow Him, wherever He may lead us, sacrificing our own desires for His. And that’s not easy to do, especially in this prosperous and amenity filled society in which we currently live.
The word ‘sacrifice’ doesn’t even register with a large portion of our population, many of whom have no idea what it means, much less know how to put it into practice. But if we desire to be true believers, true disciples of Christ, then we have to learn how to do the job, how to forget ourselves and sacrifice whenever and wherever necessary, so that His desires can be achieved.
And my fellow believers, we can say whatever we want, fool ourselves as much as we desire, but it’s obvious in this last generation, our witness, our sacrifice, diligence, fervency and excellence on Jesus’ behalf have not been very satisfactory. We have allowed the world and all its carnality, it’s fleshly lusts, to lessen our call to righteousness.
That’s why Bruh Paul wrote these words of warning to the Roman church. ‘For they that are after the flesh do mind (set their minds on) the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.
So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.’ (Rom. 8:5-10)
Yes friends, we have received the indwelling Spirit of God to help us lead a godly life, not turn back to the sins of the flesh that Christ died to save us from. When we become saints of Christ, we have to kill that old life. As Bruh Paul wrote in his second missive to the Corinthians: ‘Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature (creation): old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given us the ministry of reconciliation.’ (2 Cor. 5:17-18)
Now my people, that change in us to the new man cannot be just for a time… no. When we come into a new relationship with the risen and glorified Lord, we see things in a different light, and that change has to continue for the rest of our lives, so we can sincerely do the work Christ requires of us. And furthermore, we have to grow in faith, in spiritual maturity – from no faith, to little faith, to great faith! Otherwise we’d end up, and have indeed ended up just like Bruh Paul chided the Corinthians in his first letter.
‘And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ. I have fed you with milk, and not with meat (solid food): for hitherto (until now)ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able. For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions (dissensions), are ye not carnal (fleshly), and walk as men (according to man’s ways).’ (1 Cor. 3:1-3)
And unfortunately that carnal and fleshly attitude still prevails in Christ’s church today. The majority of the people are not growing in spiritual maturity, they’re not seriously and sincerely studying the Word and living it. At this stage of their development when they should be eating solid food, they still can only drink milk, because there’s too much envying and strife and dissensions amongst the body of Christ.
That’s why the negative attributes of the enemy are currently holding our world hostage, and unless we supposed believers get up and begin fighting back mano a mano, God’s great world is liable to implode with all the strife and talk of strife that’s currently in the air. We’re talking about World War Three, which won’t be fought with ordinary weapons, but will be a nuclear holocaust. So let’s start doing something about it right now nuh, by going to the throne of grace, through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn seeking divine aid to help in this time of dire need.
Altogether: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems.
Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.
Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’
But first things first, we have to start changing from our evil ways and becoming true disciples of Christ before any divine aid will start flowing down to us. Much LOVE!
…it’s a crying shame…that Christ’s church…is still so carnally minded…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
14 Sep 2024
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: after that ye have suffered a while, all that glistens is not gold, and forget not all his benefits, as a roaring lion, as far as the east is from the west, baubles and bangles, be sober, be vigilant, Bible, bless the LOrd o my soul, blessing, both thou and thy seed may live, called us unto his eternal glory, callous and cruel world, casting all your care upon him, choose life, christianity, crowns thee with loving-kindness, cursing, death, deepen my breath, don't save earthly treasures, faith, forget not all his benefits, forgives thine iniquities, God's awesome presence, God's benefits, heals all thy diseases, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, I may know you all the more, increase my awareness of you today, Jesus Christ, keep God first place in our lives, Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer, life, LOVE, make you perfect, mercy, moth and rust doth corrupt, quiet my soul, redeems thy life from destruction, relax my muscles, relax my musclesslow my thoughts, satisfies thy mouth with good things, save up treasures in heaven, seeking whom he may devour, showers us with undeserved blessings, so far has God removed our transgressions, steadfast resit in the faith, tender mercies, thank you for this tenderness, the God of all grace, the real McCoy, the sinful pleasures of Satan, thieves break through and steal, thy youth is renewed like the eagle's, to him be glory and dominion, trust, truth, walking on air, walks about, wisdom, wisdom in spades, your adversary the devil, your love both surrounds and fills me, your unceasing nearness
Psalm 103:2. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:
At last it’s our lazy-day Saturday, where we can do as we please; laze about or work hard about the house… Hn! Work hard… Not likely! It’s a day to just take things easy; to contemplate life; to consider our future in terms of our present. Although even that sounds too difficult to do today. (smile) One thing we’re going to do for sure though, is to send up our Lazy-Day Saturday Prayer to heaven.
So, as one 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 what more can you ask on a lazy-day than the Lord’s awesome presence in abundance eh? Nothing! Because it makes us feel light and refreshed, like we’re walking on air, we can’t do any wrong! (smile) But how can we with the Lord’s presence so strong in us eh? No way! And it’s sad that more of us don’t seek the Lord and a greater showing of His presence in our lives. Oh, how that would alleviate much of the pain and suffering that so many of us experience in this cold, callous and cruel world. But for whatever reason, too many of God’s creation shy away from Him, and thus lose the many benefits of His LOVING presence.
And we see a handful of those benefits from Bruh David’s writings in Psalm 103: ‘Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: Who forgives all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with LOVING-kindness and tender mercies; who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.’ (Ps. 103:1-5)
Oh my people, just look at the many benefits we get from associating with, from staying close to Almighty God! Why then would we ever want to go astray from His wonderful fold eh, when there’s no one, or nothing else that can offer us those marvellous and miraculous benefits? Let’s look a li’l closer at those wonderful benefits nuh. And the first one is indeed a major benefit, one that no one else can provide: ‘Who forgiveth all thine iniquities;’
Yes friends, can you imagine any other supposed God, even Satan doing that? No way! But the Lord Jehovah sent His One Son down to earth to die on our behalf, so that our sins could be forgiven. And furthermore, as Bruh David says later on in the psalm: ‘As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.’ (Ps. 103:12)
And for that mighty deliverance, done from an heart of everlasting, unconditional LOVE, all the world should be shouting a loud and grateful ‘Praise God for His undeserving goodness to the sinful children of men!’ But, unfortunately, only a small portion of us are doing that wise and godly thing.
Then there’s this other marvellous benefit from knowing and being in close contact with God; ‘who healeth all thy diseases;’ Wow! What more can we ask eh my brethren; a kind, LOVING and compassionate God who forgives our sins, heals us and showers down undeserved blessings on us? And don’t forget that He satisfies our mouths and stomachs with good things that renew our strength like the eagles do!
Why then are we so stupid and foolish to fall for the deceptive, sinful pleasures of the evil one eh? Pleasures that only last a short while and which gets us into trouble with God. Satan does NOTHING good for us, because his total purpose is to keep us on the outs with Almighty God. And the sad part is that the stuff he offers is not even good stuff, not even the real thing, but ofttimes faked. Remember, all that glistens is not gold, and that’s where Satan exceeds; in the glittering gold-like or gold plated stuff. But with Jehovah God, we get the real stuff.
And remember what Jesus said about laying up earthly treasures; because moth and rust doth corrupt (ruin) them, and where thieves break through and steal:’ (Matt. 6:19) But the wise plan is to lay up treasures in heaven where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt (ruin), and where thieves do not break through and steal.’ (Matt. 6:20) And we do that by keeping God first place in our lives and ignoring Satan and his evil deeds and pleasures as much as possible.
But it’s not easy, however, as Peter so wisely instructs us, we ought to: ‘Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt thee in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom steadfast resist in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in (experienced by) your brethren that are in the world.’ (2 Pet. 5:6-9)
Yes my people, Satan likes to play games with our lives, but if we hold steadfast to our faith in Christ Jesus, we will defeat him most of the time. And as Peter assures us: ‘But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish (confirm), strengthen, settle you. To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.’ (2 Pet. 5:10-11)
Oh my fellow saints, being a true Christian in this corrupt and evil world was never, and will never be easy, but if we put our trust and faith in Jesus Christ, then we will have all the tools necessary to defeat the devil and his evil cronies and live the good and abundant life down here on God’s great earth, that Jesus died for us to have. It’s all up to us, whether we take Almighty God seriously or not. However, please let’s be wise and do as Moses asked the Israelites long ago, when he placed life and death before them, as well as blessing and cursing, and then advised them ‘therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live.’ (Deut. 30:19)
Yes my brethren….that’s wisdom in spades! Please, let’s follow it for the sake of our children’s children! Much LOVE!
…Satan’s baubles and bangles are all fake…but God’s are the real thing…the real McCoy…
Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien
16 Dec 2022
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a new flock of believers, accounted as sheep for the slaughter, all things work together for good, backsliders, damnation with Satan, distress, encouraging words of scripture, faithfulness, famine, Friday chant, fruit of the Spirit, God's omnipotent help, hedge your bets, hold on to for dear life, in all these things we are more than conquerors, joy, kindness, layer of fog, life, LOVE, meekness, nakedness, neither death, pandemic, patience, peace, peril sword, persecution, principalities, sailing on the good ship Jesus, self-control, stand strong and steadfast, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, the error of their ways, to them that love God, tribulation, trusting faith, wake up and smell the coffee, who shall separate us from the Love of Christ
Romans 8:35a. Who shall separate us from the LOVE of Christ?
And then it was Friday, but I don’t know how many of us sincerely trumpeted the mantra: ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday!’ That’s because we eventually got the snow that was forecasted, which turned back to rain in the evening, and then everything froze up overnight, so that this morning, ice is more the problem than snow. And to make matters even worse, a thin layer of fog is also hovering over my area. So, the driving conditions must have been somewhat difficult and dangerous, even the walking conditions with ice all around.
But that’s all a part of living in the northern wintry climes. (smile) And even if you don’t like it, you handle it like the stalwart child of God that you are. Yes friends, with God’s omnipotent help, we are indeed able to handle anything that comes against us. Let’s remember these ever true and encouraging words of scripture as we go out to do the Lord’s bidding today.
From the pen of Bruh Paul to the church at Rome. ‘Who shall separate us from the LOVE of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that LOVED us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, not things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the LOVE of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.’ (Rom. 8:35-39)
Oh my people! What a powerful and encouraging bit of scripture! It’s something we ought to hold on to for dear life! And if you don’t believe me, then please listen carefully to the scholars, who say: ‘We cannot be separated from God’s LOVE, because it is set forth in a person who is God Himself, Jesus Christ, our Saviour. God’s desire to redeem believers cannot be frustrated because He is infinitely greater than any potential enemy. His plan will be realized because it is his purpose (vs.28).’
Wow! If we are under God’s domain, no one can take us away, since He is the most powerful being in the universe. And per the scholars’ reference to vs.28, let’s refresh our memories about just what it says. (smile) ‘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 brethren, more rich and true assurance that regardless of our problems, those who sincerely LOVE the Lord and are obedient to His will, will eventually end up on the good side of the ledger, because that’s His acknowledged purpose, and no one or nothing can thwart God’s purpose.
But we can only appreciate that fact if we truly LOVE and reverence the Lord. That means we have to dig down deep and raise up the faith that’s planted within us. We have to allow the Holy Spirit to grow the seeds of its fruit planted in us. We’re talking about fruit like ‘LOVE, joy, peace, patience, goodness, gentleness, meekness, faithfulness and self-control. Now, it’s certainly a big task to grow all those different fruit of the Spirit, especially at the same time, but it can be done, if we follow the leading and guidance of the Holy Spirit, the divine Gardener. (smile)
Ah friends, I do hope that we are taking the Word of the Lord seriously and doing our best to live for Christ because that’s the only way we’ll ever be able to have joy and peace on this earth, and then enjoy eternal life with Christ when our earthly days are over. For, as we keep saying, the only other option available is hellfire and damnation with Satan. And I don’t know about you, but I won’t even consider the thought of such a horrible end, much less work towards it. And there is so much scripture warning us of that disastrous end that we ought to take it seriously.
Remember what Moses said to the Israelites? ‘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) And please, let’s take these poignant and oh so true words of Jesus to heart. ‘For God so LOVED the world, that he sent his only begotten son, that whosever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved.’ (John 3:16-17)
Yes, my fellow saints, you think the Creator of the universe would have sent His Son to earth to die on our behalf if the end times won’t be hellish and damnable? Of course not! But He did, that means the end won’t be pleasant for those who don’t believe in the Son of God. I can’t say it any clearer than that. And if you’re still not sure, then it’s still wise to hedge your bets and believe. If it turns out to be not true, then you haven’t lost anything, you had an interesting life anyway. But if it turns out to be true, then you’ll be sailing on the good ship of Jesus, all the way to heaven and eternal life. You simply can’t lose if you believe in Christ!
Now, let’s go to the throne of God in prayer, through our Friday Chant, and seek His divine help for our earthly problems. Altogether: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through this past week. You know it’s been rough… what with all the confusion and anxiety caused by the pandemic and our many other serious problems. We can’t fix them on our own Lord, so we desperately need your help. Oh heavenly Father, with your omnipotent help, and our trusting faith, we know that we can stand strong and steadfast and defeat the simmering unrest in our land.
So Lord, we sincerely ask you today to give those involved in the forefront of this serious and unexpected storm, the wise guidance to handle the situation properly, without further serious setbacks. And please help those of us who must go out to work amidst all the confusion, to be responsible and to stay safe. And Lord, we fervently pray that You’ll use this situation to return backsliders to your fold, show them the error of their ways. And please introduce a new flock of believers, who will embrace your LOVE and compassion by the example, we, your faithful believers set.
Yes Lord, please use this pandemic, the bubbling discontent and dissatisfaction in our land, as a means of restoring faith in You, so that our sinful world can wake up and smell the coffee, wake up and smell it sweet and strong! We pray this in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen!’
And if we want to receive positive answers from heaven, then we need to keep our promises and do our part in the partnership with God! Much LOVE!
…what more do we need to truly believe in Jesus eh…what more…
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21 Jul 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a complicated balancing act, a fool's wisdom, a little faith, between a rock and a hard place, bring heaven to your soul, bring your soul to heaven, calamity, called by my name, Christians, compassions, corruption, deception, disaster, explosive times, forget the Lord thy God, forgive their sin, from all my fears, from the ole school, God gives us power to get wealth, great faith, he delivered me, heal their land, heumble themselves, holy spirit, hurry, I sought the Lord, I'm not what I do, I'm not what I have, if my people, in god's eyes, lies, life, LOVE, manna, multitasking, negative stuff, new mercies, o magnify the Lord with me, physical distancing, pray, prayer, saints, saved him out of all his troubles, seek my face, share His love with the world, sincere hearts, social interaction, social media, summer's day, take a page from the Israelite's book, that moves heaven on earth, the abundant life, the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob, the lack of God and godliness, the purpose of life, the tool, their faces were not ashamed, then will I hear from heaven, this poor man cried, trust my friend Jesus, Tuesday Mantra, turn from their wicked ways, vexing problems, walk after other gods, wise enough to repent, works of the evil one, worry, ye shall surely perish
2 Chronicles 7:14. If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
Aye mih people, can you believe we almost at the end of July already? Not really nuh, because my mind is saying we just celebrated Canada Day and the 4th of July so how can it be the 21st already eh? But that incredible thing we call time doesn’t seem to be waiting on me at all. The duchess tired telling me that, but I can’t seem to understand it. (smile) Anyway, it’s Tuesday, and another wonderful summer’s day in my neighbourhood, so I’ll just get out there and enjoy it, with all the new mercies and compassions and manna and whatever else that’s been showered down for our enjoyment today!
And here’s a super thought for today…don’t remember where I got it from: ‘A little faith can bring your soul to heaven. Great faith will bring heaven to your soul.’ Now isn’t that an awesome truth! All it takes is a li’l faith to get to heaven, but when your faith is strong, heaven will come to you! Wow! Now that’s something to work towards my people!
And yuh see why I don’t like social media… One of my sisters bothering me here, but still want me to write a good Bit. (smile) She doesn’t realize that I’m only black and beautiful, not superman! And also from the ole school – no good at multitasking. But yuh know what – I’ll just ignore her until I’m done! But she won’t take my ignoring…
But what’s the purpose of life if you can’t have a li’l fun with your friends and family every so often eh, especially in these highly explosive times, with all the physical distancing and lack of our normal social interaction? None whatsoever! That’s all a part of the abundant life that Christ came to earth and died that we could have. (John 10:10) And yes, we must take life seriously, but sometimes we take it too seriously, while at other times we don’t take it seriously enough!
Life is a complicated balancing act which we can only successfully balance with the help of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ through His Holy Spirit that dwells within us for that very purpose! That’s why these words of Bruh David from Psalm 34 are ever so important in our LOVE walk. ‘O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together. I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears. They looked unto him, and were lightened (radiant): and their faces were not ashamed. This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.’ (Ps. 34:3-6)
Oh friends, what magnificent and encouraging words! Who else can do all of that for us eh? NOBODY! None but the great God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob! That’s why we need to turn to Him in these trying and troubled times, why prayer and repentance should be our number one priorities, because He is the ONLY ONE who can help us solve the very vexing problems that are currently consuming us and driving so many of us crazy! And as I keep saying, there’s absolutely no doubt in my mind that some of the negative stuff we’re now experiencing is directly related to the lack of God and godliness in our society!
You can’t denigrate and try to kick out your Creator from amongst you and still be successful. As Moses asked the people of Israel: ‘Do ye thus requite (repay) the Lord, O foolish people and unwise? Is not he thy father that hath bought thee? Hath he not made thee, and established thee?’ (Deut. 32:6) Yeh friends, foolishly, like the Israelites, we’re repaying our great God with corruption, lies, deception, and all the other works of the evil one! So what can we expect eh?
Like Israel, every time they turned away from the God of their fathers, they experienced calamity and untold disaster. So why should we be any different eh, when it’s the very same God that we’re supposed to be worshipping? Some people seem to think we’re different, but I think that’s a fool’s wisdom. So why don’t we take another page from the Israelites book eh? When they disobeyed God and found themselves between a rock and a hard place, they were wise enough to repent and run back to Him. So why can’t we do the same thing now too? I’m sure that’s all He’s asking.
And I want to point out some scripture here that ought to drive home the point to us. ‘But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish (confirm) his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day. And it shall be, if thou do at all forget the Lord thy God, and walk after other Gods, and serve them, and worship them, I testify against you this day that ye shall surely perish. As the nations which the Lord destroyeth before your face, so shall ye perish; because ye would not be obedient unto the voice of the Lord your God.’ (Deut. 8:18-20)
Now isn’t that exactly what we have been doing in our society? And we like to say that the Lord and His Word never change, they are the same today and forever. That means the negative consequences of disobedience won’t change either. That sounds like good logic to me. (smile) But He’s such a wonderful God and Father that He’s made provision for us to turn again to Him, whenever we’re ready. Hear what He told Cousin Sol at the dedication of the first temple. ‘If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.’ (2 Chr. 7:14)
Back then, they had to go to the temple to sacrifice and pray, but we’ve had Jesus sacrificed for us once and for all time, and His Spirit now dwells within us, so we don’t need to go to the temple, we can come boldly to the throne of grace, and pray anywhere, without ceasing. That’s the most significant change in that area. So please fellow saints, fellow Christians, called by Christ’s name, let’s wise up and repent and pray and seek His face nuh, so that He can hear us and heal our land…in Jesus name.
Now it’s finally time to go home, declaring (steups!) our Tuesday Mantra, letting the whole world know who and whose we are. 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!’
And the obvious corollary to that is for us to go out – with care – or stay at home, and share Jesus’ amazing LOVE and beautiful friendship! Much LOVE!
…prayer…the tool that moves heaven on earth…
25 Mar 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a glorious future with Jesus, a rewarder, according to his riches in glory, all my needs, do not worry, eternal joy, Generous provider, God shall supply, hands on the plough, he that cometh to God, he who has ears to hear, heavenly Father, it is impossible to please him, let him hear, life, must believe that he exists, omnipotent Creator, righteousness., seek ye first the kingdom of God, take no thought, thank God, the breath of life, those that diligently seek him, Wednesday Wail, what ye shall eat, without faith
Hebrews 11:6. But without faith it is impossible to please him (God): for he that cometh to God must believe that he is (He exists), and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
Oh friends, the birds are singing their Hallelujah Chorus… but sadly there’s no one out and about to hear their beautiful song of praise and thanksgiving to their omnipotent Creator and ever-generous Provider! And Jesus made it quite clear about the birds when He said in the Sermon on the Mount: ‘Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?’ (Matt. 6:26).
I guess in the big picture the answer to that question might be yes, but in relation to our reactions to our heavenly Father, the answer is certainly no! That’s because we don’t worship and praise and give as much thanks to our Creator and Provider as they do, or as we should. We seem to feel that He doesn’t do anything for us, that all we have and have achieved have come through our own efforts. But that’s not true, for remember Bruh Paul assured us that ‘my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.’ (Phil. 4:19) And He will…if we follow His Word and Will.
But instead, we foolishly still insist in going our own way. We foolishly shout: ‘Yippee! We have free will, so we will use it as we please!’ But what good has that done us eh? None whatsoever! For from the day Eve bowed to the duplicity of the wily ole enemy, Satan, he has used that free will to dupe us into doing his desires instead of the Lord’s! And because of it, we are engaged in constant strife, resentment, anger, war and a host of other negative actions and activities. Because we refuse to listen, as per the Bill Gates warning yesterday, we’re caught up in another germ attack, this one seeming to be the most pervasive and widespread yet.
Ah mih people, what’s wrong with our minds eh? Why have we been caught flat-footed by Aids, Sars, Ebola and now the Coronavirus eh, when there’s enough brain power, wealth and technology in the world to either prevent them, or stop them sooner in their tracks? I guess because we concentrate on the things of the world too much and not enough on the things of God. Too many of us apparently don’t take Jesus’ words as seriously as we should. When He says earlier on in the Sermon on the Mount:
‘No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and LOVE the other; or else he will hold (be loyal) to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon (riches, material things). Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for (do not worry about) your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat (food), and the body than raiment (clothes)?’ (Matt. 6:24-25) Yes my faithful and precious people of God. Life certainly is more than food and clothing.
And that’s when Jesus spoke about the fowls of the air. Then asked: ‘Which of you by taking thought (worrying) can add one cubit unto his stature (height)?’ (Matt.6:27) And the answer is not a single one of us! So Jesus continues: ‘And why take ye thought for raiment (do you worry about clothes)? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: and yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed (clothed) like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe (clothes) the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith.’ (Matt.6:28-30)
Oh friends, we do not serve a stupid or unconcerned God! Whatever He’s made, He will take care of! That’s all Jesus is trying to point out to us. So if He looks after the birds and flowers so wonderfully, and they are low down the totem pole, why wouldn’t He look after us, His children even better eh? But the problem seems to stem from Jesus’ last words above: ‘O ye of little faith.’ That seems to be the tantamount problem with God’s children; a sad lack of sufficient faith.
And the Good Book says it right up front: ‘But without faith it is impossible to please him (God): for he that cometh to God must believe that he is (He exists), and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.’ That’s what it’s all about friends; belief and faith! We talk a lot about having faith, but when the time comes to put it into action we falter and fail. And that’s exactly why Jesus directed us in the Sermon on the Mount: ‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow (do not worry about tomorrow): for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil (trouble) thereof.’ (Matt.6:33-34)
He wasn’t joking my brethren. He was quite serious. We ought to concern ourselves first of all with spiritual things, make God our first priority, and then He will give us all the material things we need. For as the scholars so wisely say: ‘Where God guides, He provides.’ And that’s the gospel truth my people…but we must have sufficient faith to live it. And hopefully, this dreadful time in which we’ve found ourselves, will have a lot more people sincerely crying out to God for help, and will help to build the faith of those of us who already believe. Now let’s go home declaring (yeahhh!) our Wednesday Wail, letting the world know of our serious and faithful position in Christ.
As one, in strong voice, with sincere hearts: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday! I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’
And is that ever something to look forward to friends: the day when there’ll be no more pain, sorrow, sickness, death or tears, just eternal joy and life with Jesus! Much LOVE!
…he who has ears to hear…let him hear…
19 Mar 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: alive and kicking, any other creature, height nor depth, I am persuaded, in Christ Jesus our Lord, life, neither death, principalities or powers, separate us from the love of God, shall be able to, things present, things to come
Romans 8:38-39. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the LOVE of God, which was in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Welcome to another wonderful day on God’s great earth my faithful brethren! Wow! We’re alive and kicking; that means the Lord still has a plan and purpose for each of our lives, and His universe is unfurling as it ought! So if you checked the obits this morning and did not see your name, (smile) then let’s all shout a loud and grateful: ‘Glory Hallelujah! Praise the Lord for His great mercies and LOVING-kindness!’ He has not chosen to infect us with the Covid-19 stuff and most of us are safe and secure in our homes.
So let’s give Him some more thanks and praise as we acclaim on this Acclamation Day: ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it! If God be for us who can be against us eh? Not a single soul, because God and we are a majority! And we know for sure that God will provide all our needs according to His riches in glory, through Christ Jesus! And furthermore, we know for a fact that all things work together for good to those who LOVE God, to those who are called according to his purpose!
Wow! And are we ever called according to God’s purpose, as we said above…and do we ever LOVE Him – more than life itself! That means our position in His wonderful organization is secure from this day until forevermore! Mama Mia! That’s why we can also acclaim that something good is going to happen to us today, and that something good is also going to happen through us today!
Ah mih people, what a marvellous and miraculous God we serve! He’s so wonderful that even when things are somewhat on the rough side and we are resting uncomfortably on tenterhooks, like now, when the Covid-19 virus is ravaging our world, we can still give thanks and praise and still be assured that He is working in, and our behalf, and we don’t need to worry, because He has promised to work it all out for our good! And all God’s children gave a loud and grateful shout of: ‘Praise the Lord for His unfailing goodness to the undeserving children of men!’
Oh friends, the ole fella’s on a roll! (smile) And here is something quite appropriate from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin – haven’t heard from it in a while, but it’s still going strong. And today’s offering is most appropriately titled ‘Nothing Can Separate me!’
So please pray with me: ‘God, who or what in all the world Can convince me that You No longer LOVE me – That You’ve given me the slip And thrown me over? Shall mounting pressures interfere With my personal relationship with You? Shall shadowy fears that plague my nights? Shall a palpitating heart Or a strange buzzing in my head Or pounding pain Or bitter tears? Or what if people laugh at me and reject me Until I feel utterly confused and alone? Or what If I can no longer work And unpaid bills pour over me Like a deluge of crashing bricks?
Or what if an accident incapacitates me And I must depend on others for personal care? Or what if I can no longer remember names And my blurry eyes see double And my hands tremble? Or what if an earthquake crumbles my home And my furniture is buried in thick mud? Or what if I am left alone Without family or friends? Am I finished then? Does this end my small scene? No, dear God. Positively not! In all these impossible circumstances I know that nothing is impossible with You. I am utterly assured that: In weakness or sickness Catastrophe or anxiety Loneliness or despair I am Yours and You are mine. NOTHING can separate me From your matchless LOVE!’
And that’s the gospel truth my fellow believers…NOTHING – NO SIMPLY NOTHING – not even this dreaded Covid -19 virus that’s wreaking havoc over our world can ever separate us from the wonderful, unconditional, everlasting and powerful LOVE of Almighty God, our Creator and Keeper! And why are we believers so convinced of that most amazing and true fact eh? Because the Lord himself said it in His Word through the mouth of His trusted servant and follower Bruh Paul.
And if you don’t believe me, then listen to this: ‘Who shall separate us from the LOVE of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that LOVED us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the LOVE of God, which was in Christ Jesus our Lord.’ (Rom. 8:35-39)
Oh my people, that’s what you call sure and positive assurance! Wow! Once you become a follower of Christ and His Holy Spirit comes to dwell within you, and seals you as a child of God, NOTHING in this whole wide world, or even in heaven above and hell beneath, can separate you from the amazing and awesome LOVE of our heavenly Father! There’s just nothing strong enough in this existence to break that forever bond! Please, let’s remember that and act accordingly in these most trying and concerned times.
Now let’s go home declaring (yeahhh!) our Thursday Blessings, so generously granted by our heavenly Father so that we can do His earthly work. All together now, in strong voice and sincere hearts: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline!
I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and everyday! Amen!’
Oh my fellow believers, this is the time we have to put all those things to work as best we can, so that our world and our faith can survive, and eventually thrive when all this adversity is over! Let’s show them what true Christians are made of nuh, by getting our act together, for we were made for a time such as this. And please remember, we obviously need God’s help to do it! Much LOVE!
…what’s the purpose of faith…if not to keep us faithful…
18 Feb 2020
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a vpour, Ahab, another winter's day, appears for a little time, arrogance, Ben-hadad, best example, boast himself, boast not thyself of tomorrow, boastings, boldfaced, build bigger and better, buy and sell, crowing, eat drink and be merry, get gain, girdeth o his harness, God's graciousness, have a good attitude, heavy snaowfall, hurry, in god's eyes, in Jesus' name, including god in one's plans, Israel, Jesus the poster boy, layeth up treasure for himself, life, litigation, make a profit, mans heart plans his way, mentally embrace it, much goods laid up, no difference between jew and Gentile, not rich towards God, not what I do, not what I have, omitting god is sin, parable of the rich fool, put out best foot forward, sacrificial love, say to my soul, shall not be ashamed, share His love, sin, Smamria, take thine ease, the beloeved of god, the grace of Jesus, the Lord directs his steps, the northern climes, the white enemy, the world's wealth, thou knowest not, trust my friend Jesus, Tuesday Mantra, turn back and bite you, vanishes away, what a day may bring, what is your life, whoever believes on him, with Jesus' help, worry, worthless possessions
Proverbs 27:1. Boast not thyself of tomorrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring.
And yuh see how life could turn back and bite yuh! Yes, for all of you in the G.T.A, who were crowing yesterday morning because you didn’t have to go to work, yuh see the dangerous and messy conditions you have to go out in today…the white enemy all over, after a heavy snowfall last night! Serve yuh right for lording it over those who had to go and labour yesterday! (smile)
Ah friends, it’s just another winter’s day in the northern climes, and as you valiantly forge through it, you must have a good attitude, laugh and chuckle, hope for and think of the sunshine and good weather that soon come, otherwise it’s just going to drive you crazy, as you slip and slide through it. You might not like the snow, but the wise thing to do is to mentally embrace it, with Jesus’ help of course, so you’re not always flustered and bothered when you encounter it.
Yes, that can be easier said than done, but like everything else in this world, we have been endowed with the parts to live a pleasant and abundant life, we just have to put our best foot forward in Jesus’ name. And all of that brings us to this ever so important principle of scripture and life in general. Hear these immortal, truthful and wise words of Cousin Sol. ‘Boast not thyself of tomorrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring.’
And Jesus described it ever so well in the parable of the rich fool, who had so much wealth and not enough space to store it, that he decided to tear down all and build bigger and better… ‘and there will I bestow (store) all my fruits (crops) and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.’ (Luke 12:18-19) Yes my brethren, that’s how too many of us behave, believers included. We live too much for the world’s wealth and pretty but worthless possessions.
And Jesus continued His parable with these words of everlasting wisdom. ‘But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?’ Yeh friends, for the lawyers and other professionals involved in the tremendous and foolish litigation that will follow his death! We see that played out everyday in the lives of the rich and famous: somebody is never satisfied with their portion of the estate, or unhappy that they didn’t get any.
And the warning is also in the Old Testament. In 1 Kings 20, when Ben-hadad, king of Syria, threatened Ahab, king of Israel to destroy Samaria unless he gave up his wealth and power voluntarily, Ahab answered: ‘Tell him, let not him that girdeth on his harness boast himself as he that putteth it off.’ (1 Kin. 20:11) Yes my people, we never know what’s going to happen in between time. And Ben-hadad in his righteous anger was defeated by Israel, obviously with God’s help, when he finally came against them.
But getting back to Jesus’ parable of the rich fool. Here is how He ended it. ‘So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.’ (Luke 12:21) And the scholars explain: ‘12:21. Here Jesus brings out the meaning of verses 16-20. Notice that what Jesus calls for follows quite logically out of His own example (2 Cor.8:9), as well as out of God’s graciousness toward all who seek Him (Rom.10:12). Jesus is thus not speaking of a pay-as-you-go faith, but of participation in a relationship in which God already provides what He wishes His people to give back to Him.’
Oh my people, remember all that we have belongs to God, and we’re just stewards of His belongings, so it’s rather boldfaced of us to think that we’re giving Him our things. (smile) Anyway, we have space to highlight those two scriptures the scholars quote above. ‘For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.’ (2 Cor. 8:9) Yes, when coming to sacrificial LOVE, Jesus is the poster child for that, the mightiest example to be ever found!
And the next verse declares (yeah!): ‘For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.’ (Rom.10:11-12) I put in verse 11 so that the context could be better understood, that our God is rich in mercy, grace, forgiveness, what ever have you, towards all and any that call on Him, in sincerity of heart, be they Jew or Gentile! So it doesn’t make sense for us to become so attached to the things of the world, as so many of us are.
Now hear James theorize on the subject: ‘Go to (come) now, ye that say, Today or tomorrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain (make a profit): Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this or that. But now ye rejoice (boast) in your boastings (arrogance): all such rejoicing is evil. Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.’ (James 4:13-17)
And the scholars offer a couple of explanations. ‘4:15. This, or that: This verse teaches that God does have something for Christians to do and that they should plan accordingly. James condemns only elaborate planning that omits God (cf. Prov. 16:9).’ ‘4:17. To do good here requires including God in one’s plans. Omitting God is not merely bad planning; it is sin.’ Now if all of that doesn’t grab our attention and teach us not leave God out of any of our business, then I don’t know what will. (smile)
Now let’s go home declaring (yeah!) our Tuesday Mantra, letting the whole world know who and whose we are! 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!’
And the end goal is to now go out and share that wonderful friendship and amazing LOVE with those who don’t know Him! Much LOVE!
…a man’s heart deviseth (plans) his way…but the Lord directeth his steps… (Prov.16:9)
19 Oct 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: after the Spirit, all things are become new, Anselm's quotes, cannot please God, carnal mind, carnally minded, challeneged, Christ's lifestyle, compromising, dangerous charade, death, dictators, enmity against God, evil web we weave, except a man be born again, fallen nature, Federal Elections, fool yuh fat, glowing promises, godly principles, he cannot see, he is a new creature, holy spirit, if any man be in Christ, kindergarten, life, LOVE, morally new, more opposition, Nicodemus, no condemnation, nothing happens, old things are passed away, omnibus bills, overrules, peace, politicians, politics, practice to deceive, raison d'etre, reneging on their promises, righteous Christians, Saturday, see the light of day, sleeping in, social media platforms, socio-economic ladder, spin and more spin, spirtually minded, the kingdom of God, the larger the change, the love of power, the more resistance, the power of love, the world will know peace, to change ourselves, unless something is moved, walk not after the flesh
2 Corinthians 5:17. Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature (creation): old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
‘Sleeping in, sleeping in…that’s what we do on a Saturday morning!’ Yeh people, that’s why so many of us like Saturdays; no getting up early and rushing off to work, we can sleep in and laze away the whole day if we so desire…unless we have young children to look after, or lot’s of house work to do. (smile) But however you take it, Saturday belongs to us! Praise the Lord!
We also need to take a look at the quotes our friend Anselm sent us, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. Hear this first one: ‘Nothing happens unless something is moved.’ And I believe that’s fairly true. If everything stays the same, nothing much will happen. However if something is moved, it’s liable to stir up stuff, either desirable or undesirable.
That leads us to this next quote: ‘The larger the change, the more people will resist it. Thus, make it seem so tiny and trivial that people don’t even realize it.’ And I guess we would all agree on the first part; the bigger and more invasive the change, the more opposition one will get, although one will get some opposition to any change at all, big or small.
And as to the second half, I’m not sure that a serious change can be made so small that people won’t even notice it. That’s because serious change usually comes in big packages, and you do notice big packages. I’d say, if the change is worthwhile, then the size of the package doesn’t really matter.
Although the norm nowadays is for politicians to hide important changes in large omnibus bills covering many things, hoping that you won’t have the time or energy to dig and delve into them that much. Oh the crooked, tangled and evil web we weave, when we practice to deceive! But that’s the politician’s raison d’etre; spin, spin, and more spin!
For example, this Monday is our Federal Election here in Canada and the four political parties involved are making all sorts of glowing promises, but the sad reality is that when one of them gets in power, none, or very little of what they promised will ever see the light of day. And don’t fool yuh fat, they will have some reason that sounds plausible for reneging on their promises.
But let’s move on the next quote, since there’s nothing much we can do about the politicians right now. On a point of interest though, we advocate putting up righteous Christians for election, but most righteous Christians don’t want to become embroiled in the serious and dangerous charade that is politics. And many of those who do get involved, end up compromising their godly principles in the hothouse that is modern politics.
And that’s a good lead in to the next quote: ‘The day the power of LOVE overrules the LOVE of power; the world will know peace.’ Oh how true that is my brethren! The LOVE of power is so prevalent these days, that it’s seen from the top of the socio-economic ladder, where all the leaders now want to be defacto dictators, right down to the bottom, where things like bullying and advantage taking have become serious problems on social media platforms and even in places like kindergarten.
That’s how far the LOVE of power has eclipsed the power of LOVE! And the way things are going, I doubt we’ll see a reversal until Christ comes back and sets up His eternal kingdom. Now here is the last quote, which says:‘When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.’
That’s for sure my people! In a whole lot of situations, the only change that’s possible is ours. We see that in our Christian life all the time. And there’s no better example than when we receive Christ as our Lord and Saviour. As Bruh Paul says in 2 Corinthians: ‘Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature (creation): old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.’
Yeh friends, once we accept Christ, we can’t be the same old sinful people that we once were. We have to become new people, morally new and different, change ourselves with the help of the Holy Spirit. Jesus said it to Nicodemus in so many words. ‘Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.’ (John 3:3) That means change is expected, a new beginning has to be made, for Christ’s lifestyle does not mesh with that of the world.
And that lifestyle is simply described by Bruh Paul in his message to the church at Rome. ‘There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.’ (Rom.8:1) Yeh friends, our new lifestyle in Jesus should be walking in the leading and guiding of His Holy Spirit, not that of the flesh.
‘For they that are after the flesh do mind (set their minds on) the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.’ (Rom.8:5-8)
So let’s spend some time pondering that today nuh; whether we are still walking in the flesh, or in the Spirit, and ask the Lord to help us, for the world and it’s sinful ways still offer powerful attractions to our fallen nature. Much LOVE!
…to be in Christ…one must become a new person…
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