03 Dec 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: anti-Jesus world, Bruh Paul, burnt our bridges, Calvary, Christ's sacrifice, Creator of the universe, eternal life, expectant faith, forge ahead, friends, give us strength to carry on, glorified, gospel truth, halfway to home and freedom, help others achieve their dreams, hungry hope, in the evening, in the morning, Jesus Christ, Lord and Saviour, Most High, no looking or turning back, reconciliation, resonate in our souls, righteousness., salvation, sanctified children, sins, son jesus christ, sow thy seed, Wednesday, withhold not thy hand, word of encouragement, worth to be praised, you don't know which will prosper, you reap what you sow
Ecclesiastes 11:6. In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper (which will succeed), either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.
Welcome to Wednesday Friends; the halfway to home and freedom day!
And all God’s people shouted a hearty ‘Yeah! Welcome Wednesday!’ (smile)
Ah mih people, Wednesday is the day of no looking or turning back, because we have already burnt the bridges of Monday and Tuesday behind us.
Therefore, our only option now is to forge ahead with hungry hope and expectant faith in the Creator of the universe and His wonderful Son, Jesus Christ!
The sinless Son who selflessly gave up His all and sacrificed His life on Calvary’s hill, taking our burdensome sins upon His strong shoulders, giving us righteousness, reconciliation with the Father, salvation and eternal life. Oh what a mighty Lord and Saviour is our Jesus!
And the sanctified children of the Most High burst out: ‘Oh Thank you Jesus! We praise and glorify your holy name, for you are indeed worthy to be praised and glorified!’
And that’s an indisputable fact my brethren! So please, let’s allow that to resonate in our souls, bodies and minds today and give us strength to carry on, as we face an increasingly anti-Jesus world.
And our word of encouragement for today comes from Les Brown, (1945- ) a world-renowned African-American motivational speaker, and it points out a rather intriguing and beautiful aspect of human life. It simply says: ‘Help others achieve their dreams and you will achieve yours.’
Now that’s gospel truth Friends! It’s just another take on God’s universal principle of ‘what you sow, you will reap.’
And it works nicely in tandem with our Bit: ‘In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper (which will succeed), either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.’
Yeh mih people, we have to sow some kind of seed, hopefully good ones, every day, so that we can reap their harvest at a later date. Like the farmer sows and waits patiently, but with eager expectation for the former and latter rains to water his fields and produce a bountiful harvest, we must also do likewise.
And as Cousin Sol says in the opening verse of the chapter: ‘Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days.’ (Eccl.11:1)
And the scholars have this to say about those verses. ’11:1-6. These verses contain a series of sayings about the uncertainty of human industry, and are held together by the fourfold occurrence of the expression thou knowest not. Although man cannot comprehend God’s work, nor predict success, he needs to be involved in life’s activities and trust God for the results.’
Absolute truth my brethren! To achieve success, we have to sow good seed, then trust God to bring forth the harvest in His good time.
As Bruh Paul tells the Corinthians in his first letter. ‘I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth: but God that giveth the increase.
Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour. For we are labourers together with God (God’s fellow workers): ye are God’s husbandry (field), ye are God’s building.’ (1 Cor.3:6-9)
Meanwhile, Isaiah testifies: ‘Blessed are ye that sow beside all waters, that send forth thither the feet of the ox and the ass.’ (Is.32:20)
Yes Friends, we need to be continually sowing good seed in all kinds of places, everywhere we go, helping and encouraging others, so that they can stand steadfast in God. And there’s immense truth in the saying that nothing helps and heals us like giving to others, be it time, money or talents.
Again we turn to the wise words of Bruh Paul, this time in his second missive to the Corinthians. ‘But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully (with blessings) shall reap also bountifully.
Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity (compulsion): for God LOVETH a cheerful (joyful) giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things (never lacking anything), may abound to every good work.’ (2 Cor.9:6-8)
The scholars offer this explanation: ‘9:7. Cheerful giver: The giver is to have a willing heart and a sincere desire to participate in the offering. Paul is not so much interested in their money. Nor is God, for that matter, as the passage from Proverbs 22:9 indicates.
The Greek term ‘hilaron,’ from which the English “hilarious” derives, is best rendered as the English text suggests, “cheerful.” Giving is not a joke. It is a serious business, but it is a delightful experience all the same.’
And so it should be! But sadly my people, giving these days is the bane of our existence! That’s because giving, both generously and cheerfully, is no longer one of our strong points. This version of our society is rather averse to giving, even though we have more people and institutions asking.
And when we give, it’s…it’s like pulling teeth. (smile) We oftimes have to beg and beseech to get a little of anything, because we have now become a real selfish and greedy society.
Anyway Friends, let’s take this message to heart today nuh and go out and seriously put into practice, for it is wisdom of the highest order and benefits us like nothing else does. Much LOVE!
…as Uncle Charles (Charles Stanley)likes to say…you reap what you sow…more than you sow…and later than you sow…
12 Nov 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a Prophet, a way with words, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, as for me and mine, but on whom this stone falls, calm, chief cornerstone, Christ died for us, come unto me, cornerstone, discouragement, don't give up, done deal, doubt, encourage, eternal life, eternal separation, faith, faithful promises, fallen world, follow in the footsteps of Jesus, full steam ahead, Gentiles, God demonstrates His love to us, God's Guide Book, God's love changes us, gospel truth, grind him to powder, halfway home, hang in there, heavenly wisdom, hypocrite Pharisees, I am meek (gentle) in heart, I will give you rest, is become the chief cornerstone, it is marvellous in our eyes, Jesus Christ, Jesus is the chief cornerstone, judgement, keep keeping on, learn from me, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, mercy, motivate, my burden is light, my yoke is easy, Old Testament, parable of the wicked husbandmen, Pentecost, persevere to the end, pilgrim's journey, powerful, purposeful, rejection, renew our fragile spirits, repentance, salvation, Sanhedrinists, solace, something to hold on to, take in front before in front takes you, take my yoke upon you, the BIBLE, the foundation of the church, the great invitation, the nations bringing forth the fruits, the race is not for the swift, the real cornerstone of God, the road is rough and rugged, the stone which the builders refused, the surest of feet, the true cornerstone, this is the Lord's doing, ultimate triumph, victory is assured, warning of judgement, we will follow Jesus, while we were yet sinners, who shall fall on this stone shall be broken, ye shall find rest unto your souls
Psalm 118:22. The stone which the builders refused (rejected) is become the headstone of the corner (chief cornerstone).
A hale and hearty Wednesday morning Friends! We’re halfway home, and victory is assured if we just hang in there, just keep on keeping on, following in the wonderful footsteps of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ!
It’s a done deal mih people…but only if we don’t give up, if we persevere to the end! So if we stumble, as we most likely will…don’t give up, because that’s expected since the road ahead is rough and rugged.
And even if we happen to fall, please, please, let’s just get ourselves back up, dust ourselves off and keep on going, full steam ahead, for the race is not for the swiftest, but for the surest of feet, those who persevere to the end.
And please remember that our wonderful Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, has promised to meet us at the level of our faith. Let’s allow His Great Invitation to fill our hearts and minds this morning. ‘Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you, and learn of (from) me; for I am meek and lowly in heart (gentle and humble): and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’ (Matt.11:28-30)
That my Friends, is an invitation we’ll never regret accepting!
Now here’s an interesting poem from the One Year Book of Bible Promises. It’s simply called ‘Reversal’ and it says: ‘Lord For so long I thought Your LOVE Demanded that I change. At last I am beginning to understand That Your LOVE changes me.’
We cannot dispute that my brethren! It’s God who changes us!
And the Bible promise given to support that declaration is Romans 5:8: ‘But God commendeth (demonstrates) his LOVE toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.’
That’s gospel truth Friends; pure, unadulterated gospel truth! So please, let’s allow that to resonate in our souls, hearts, bodies and minds today!
Ah my people, there’s nothing like scripture to encourage and motivate us along our pilgrim journey. In fact, that’s one of the reasons why God’s Guide Book, the Bible was drawn up; so that in times of doubt and discouragement, we‘d have something strong, powerful and purposeful to give us solace, for us to hold on to, something to calm and renew our fragile spirits.
Now here’s another piece of scripture to cogitate on (smile) and hold on to. That’s our Bit: ‘The stone which the builders refused (rejected) is become the headstone of the corner (chief cornerstone).’
And that again is indisputable, gospel truth my people! For Jesus Christ, whom the leaders of the Jews refused, despised and worked diligently to have Him eventually crucified, has indeed become the chief cornerstone of this world; bringing salvation and eternal life to the wise of this fallen world, those who would believe in His Deity and stand on His ever-faithful promises.
Wow! What a wonderful God we serve my brethren!
And in talking to the leaders of Jewish people, Jesus reveals the parable of the wicked husbandmen (tenant farmers) who refuse to pay their rental to the owner of their vineyards, and instead kill his representatives, who came to collect, even his son. (Matt.21:33-39)
Jesus then asks them, ‘When the lord therefore of the vineyard cometh, what will he do unto those husbandmen? They say unto him, He will miserably destroy those wicked husbandmen, and will let out (lease) his vineyard unto other husbandmen (tenant farmers), which shall render him (pay back) the fruits in their seasons.’ (Matt.21:40-41)
Jesus tricks the hypocrite Pharisees into admitting that the owner of the vineyards ought to destroy the wicked husbandmen and replace them with others who would faithfully keep their agreements.
Then ‘Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read in the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner (chief cornerstone): This is the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes?
Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to the nation bringing forth the fruits thereof. And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.
And when the chief priests and Pharisees had heard his parables, they perceived (knew, realized) that he spake of them. But when they sought to lay hands on him, they feared the multitude, because they took him for (held him to be) a prophet.’ (Matt.21:42-46)
What a way Jesus had with words, my people!
Now here are some explanations from the scholars. ’21:40-43. Verse 40 represents the condemning question of the judicial parable, What will he do unto those husbandmen? Their reply again unwittingly condemns their own attitude of rejection toward Jesus.
The other husbandmen are the Gentiles (v.43). Jesus quotes Psalm 118:22-23 exactly from the Greek Septuagint version of the Old Testament, relating to His present rejection to His ultimate triumph (cf. Acts 4:11; 1 Pet.2:6-7, where the stone which the builders rejected is also quoted in relation to Christ).
The Sanhedrinists represent the builders of Israel’s religion, who rejected the real cornerstone of God, Jesus, the true Cornerstone of the foundation of the church.’
And the scholars further explain: ‘21:44-46. The warning The kingdom of God shall be taken from you (v.43) was fulfilled at Pentecost when the kingdom was mediatorily transferred to the church. Yet, within this warning of judgement, Jesus offers mercy to those falling on this stone, meaning falling upon Him in repentance and faith. But His falling upon man in judgement will grind him to powder.’
Oh my Friends, how much more do we need to hear and experience eh, for us to truly believe in and put all our trust in Jesus Christ? I don’t know nuh! But as for me and mine, we have heard and experienced enough to obediently follow His lead.
Hopefully the same can be said of you and yours, because following Jesus, the cornerstone of the church, is heavenly wisdom! Much LOVE!
…please take in front before in front takes you…fall on Christ, the cornerstone…and receive salvation and eternal life…before the cornerstone falls on you…and brings judgement and eternal separation…
31 Oct 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: adamant, advertisments, Advocate, all alone, all because we do not carry, all our sins and griefs to bear, all people, altar, another week of work, answers, appreciate our blessings, atonement for sin, be gracious to me, be wise, believing, benefits, blessings, burnt offerings, confess, covenant with god, depriving ourselves, distress, ease our sorrows, entreaties, everything to God in prayer, fallible, fellowship, fickle, Friday chant, fun, furthering God's glorious kingdom, generous help, Genesis, give thanks and praise, God incarnate, God should always be our first source of help, God's divine Word, gratefully accept Jesus' invitation, have mercy upon me, hear me when I call, heartfelt plea, high priest, holy mountain, House of prayer, hurting, importance of prayer, in Jesus' name, Isaiah, Jesus, Jesus' invitation, joyful, languishing in abject poverty, live that abundant life, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, O God of my righteousness, oh what peace we often forfeit, our Creator, our Provider, pilgrim's role, poverty, power of prayer, praise God's holy name, pray for one another, prayed fervently, prayer, prayer of a righteous man, prayer of trust, Psalm 4, Redeemer, relaxation, relieve our pains, renewed and refeshed, Revelation, sacrifices, sincere heart, sinful mortals, son of god, stubborn, TGIF! Thank God it's Friday!, the act of prayer, the BIBLE, the Good Book, the million-dollar question, the need for prayer, thou relieved me when I was in distress, week of life, what a friend we have in Jesus, what a privilege to carry, what needless pain we bear, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, wisdom, wonderful oppostunities, ye shall receive
Psalm 4:1. Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness: thou hast enlarged (relieved) me when I was in distress; have mercy upon me (be gracious to me), and hear my prayer.
Ah Friends, once again it’s Friday…! And as usual there are loud and joyful shouts of ‘TGIF! Thank God it’s Friday! Thank God for bringing us safely through another week of work! Praise His Holy Name!’
Yes my people, we do indeed need to thank our heavenly Father for allowing us to successfully complete another week of life, both in the general world and in our particular place of work.
Many people can’t say that at all, so please let’s learn to appreciate the wonderful blessings we have, by giving some thanks and praise to our Creator and Provider, for without Him, we’d be all alone out on some lonely back street, languishing in abject poverty, as numerous others are unfortunately doing today.
And I don’t know why, but I got up a while ago humming the chorus to our old and dear hymn, ‘What a Friend we have in Jesus.’ And just in case it was a sign (smile) I decided to include it in our discourse today.
Please sing the first verse with me. ‘What a Friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear! What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer! O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear, All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer.’
Yeh mih breddren, we have such a wonderful Lord and Saviour, such a wonderful High Priest and Advocate, to whom we can carry all our cares and problems for sure help, yet we foolishly decline to do so. Thus we suffer, endure so many unnecessary burdens and cares. That’s not very wise my people.
Jesus is inviting us to bring ALL our troubles to Him (Matt.11:28-30), so that He can ease our sorrows and relieve our pains. So please, let’s be wise and gratefully accept His most generous invitation nuh. We’re only hurting and depriving ourselves of wonderful opportunities to live that abundant life which Jesus died to provide for us.
We quickly turn to fickle and fallible man for help, when our omnipotent God should ALWAYS be our FIRST source of help. Let’s try and rectify that unfortunate situation today nuh. Let’s focus on taking our prayers to God, like Bruh David does in this evening prayer of trust in God – Psalm 4.
He opens it with the sincere and endearing request of our Bit: ‘Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness: thou hast enlarged (relieved) me when I was in distress; have mercy upon me (be gracious to me), and hear my prayer.’
Friends, it’s simple and to the point. There’s no denying what he desires. And that’s all it takes to go to God; a sincere heart with a heartfelt plea. The Lord knows all our problems, but He requires us to come to Him to help us solve them. It’s true that He could solve them all with a simple snap of His fingers or a word from His lips, but that would make Him our lackey, rather than our Lord and God.
Please remember that we are in covenant with Him, and we need to perform our part in the covenant relationship, else the covenant becomes null and void. And today, since that’s the direction it seems our Lord wants us to go, we’ll look at a few instances where the importance and power of prayer are highlighted in the Bible, God’s divine Word to us.
And the greatest and best example of participating in prayer is obviously Jesus! The Good Book declares it thus: ‘And it came to pass in those days, that he (Jesus) went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.’ (Luke 6:12)
Ah Friends, if Jesus, the Son of God, God incarnate Himself, still felt the need for prayer, who are we then, mere sinful mortals to think that we don’t eh?
And again, we turn to Jesus, this time as He positively promotes the act of prayer. ‘And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.’ (Matt.21:22)
Oh my people, our Lord and Saviour, Redeemer and Atonement for our abominable sins said it, so it must be true!
And way back when, Isaiah declared this word from our God on the subject. ‘Even them (those who take hold of my covenant) will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for mine house shall be called a house of prayer for ALL people.’ (Is.56:7)
Oh my fellow believers, our God couldn’t be any clearer and simpler than that! His invitation is open to all those who are willing to accept it. So why don’t we do so today eh? Now that’s the million-dollar question! It’s not an idle or false and deceitful invitation like so many of man’s entreaties and advertisements.
We have oodles of examples, from Genesis to Revelation, where all the true servants of God prayed fervently to Him and received answers and benefits. So why are we so stubborn, so adamant in refraining from something that can only benefit us eh? I really don’t know nuh.
But in accordance with all we’ve written, we’ll go home with our own prayer today, our Friday Chant. No I didn’t forget, (smile) just thought it would be more appropriate today at the end rather than at the beginning.
So as one loud, grateful and prayerful voice, let’s chant: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through.
Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’
Yes Friends, it’s short and simple, but as James so wisely and truthfully tells us: ‘Confess your faults (trespasses, sins) one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual (effective) fervent prayer (supplication) of a righteous man availeth much.’ (James 5:16)
And when we follow that heavenly wisdom my people, we certainly won’t go wrong. Much LOVE!
…to pray…to pray…and yet to pray…that is the pilgrim’s role…
25 Sep 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a blessed day, a hard row to hoe, a token of a covenant, accepting Jesus, almighty god, ambassadors, awesome, be strong and courageous, beautiful rainbow, benefits, blessing, blot of a curse, clouds of darkness, confusion of tongues, courage, covenant, Creator of the universe, demonic purposes, enlightening, ever-faithful God, everlasting covenant, evil, evil cohorts, exile, faith, feeling of relief, fires of evil, floundering ship, for our children's sake, get with the programme, glimmered in the bright sunlight, God has my back, God's creation, God's ever-loving embrace, God's great heaven, God's little Acre, God's people, God-like wonder, good things God's promised, have the world by the throat, I set my bow in the cloud, illuminating, in living colour, Jesus Christ, Jesus' sacrifice, leading and guiding, live in the fleah, living God, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, Love conquers all, Lucifer, man's evil nature, mockery, Niagara Falls, no need to fear, Noah, obedient to God's will, passion, peace, planet earth, rainbow, sign, signs and wonders, strangling, swirling water, thank you heavenly Father, the Good Book, the Great Flood, the last breath of life, the LOVE of Jesus christ, the Love Revolution, the One and Only One, the spirit, the tower of babel, to further God's glorious kingdom, Tobago, total destruction, troubled times, unconditional LOVE, wake up and smell the coffee, walk seriously with God, waste of time, we praise and bless your holy name, wisdom, wonder of God, working diligently, worthwhile, Wow, you can never go home again
Genesis 9:13. I do set my bow (rainbow) in the cloud, and it shall be for a token (sign) of a covenant between me and the earth.
Mornin’ Neighbuhs! LOVE and peace and wisdom be unto you all this blessed day that our wonderful God has provided! Let’s be strong and courageous and enjoy it in Jesus’ name, because that’s why it was given to us.
And all God’s people said a loud and grateful: ‘Thank you heavenly Father for allowing us to see another marvellous day on planet earth, and we will strive to be obedient to your will. We praise and bless your Holy Name! Amen.’
And Friends, yuh better believe that the ole fella thoroughly enjoyed yesterday. I took my brother and his wife to see that great wonder of God and tourist attraction – Niagara Falls. And it’s interesting that what seems to amaze them most is the vast expanse of land and water that is Canada.
Oh they enjoyed it all, but coming from the small, but oh so beautiful island of Tobago, God’s Little Acre – you know I had to throw that in there (smile) – and seeing for the first time the vastness of God’s creation, especially as believers, it will have a noticeable impact on you.
Even me, who has been here for over forty years, I still get a jolt of God-like wonder when I behold the Creator’s vast and beautiful expanse of nature.
But mih people, what thrilled and excited me the most yesterday is that through the mist of the swirling water of the falls on the American side, a small but ever so beautiful rainbow glimmered in the bright sunlight!
When I first saw it, my spirit responded with a silent but powerful exclamation of ‘Wow!’ And note, it wasn’t a big one arcing through the whole sky, but just over the falls itself.
Ah mih people, how could I not believe and have faith and courage and all the other good things that our great God has promised eh, when He so plainly shows me His signs and wonders?
Hear the Creator’s promise to Noah after the Great Flood that was supposed to wash away man’s evil nature, but unfortunately didn’t, and culminated in the building of the Tower of Babel and God causing the confusion of tongues. (Gen.11:1-3,7)
‘And God said, This is the token (sign) of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I do set my bow (rainbow) in the cloud, and it shall be for a token (sign) of a covenant between me and thee and the earth.
And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow (rainbow) shall be seen in the cloud: And I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh.
And the bow (rainbow) shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth.’ (Gen.9:12-16)
Oh Friends, rainbows are few and far between these days, and whenever I see one, I take it as a personal blessing, a personal message from my ever-faithful God, that things will be all right, there’s no need to fear, He has my back, I’m safe and protected in His ever-LOVING embrace, and He will make my way clear, despite the bumps and pot-holes in the road.
I took yesterday’s rainbow as a sign that God was mightily pleased that my brother and I had hooked up so wonderfully, and that we were both working diligently to further His glorious kingdom!
That reminds me of two years ago when I returned to Tobago after thirty years in exile. The first thing I espied as the small plane took of from Trinidad, heading for Tobago, was a big, beautiful rainbow arcing through God’s great heaven.
And it just brought a mighty, but ever so grateful feeling of relief over me, because I knew then that everything would be all right, that the saying you can never go home again wasn’t true, once Almighty God was involved, leading and guiding your way!
And my first visit to Tobago, after such a long time, was indeed beautiful, as it obviously would, if orchestrated by the Creator of the universe. And believe me people, the second visit, earlier this year, was even better! Mama Mia! Can’t wait to experience the next one! (smile)
That’s why I keep telling us, that though walking seriously with God is often a hard row to hoe, the benefits, the blessings and the awesome, unconditional LOVE of our heavenly Father makes it all worthwhile!
I don’t know what else to say to convince you all nuh. The Good Book tells you about people long dead and otherwise, but Friends, I’m giving it to you live and in the flesh, in living colour, from a living God, the One and Only One!
So you have it both from the ones that have gone before, and also from the ones alive and kicking all around you right now, so what’s preventing you from accepting Jesus Christ as your true Lord and Saviour eh?
Believe me people, in these seriously troubled times, the only thing that will, or can save our world from total destruction is the LOVE of Jesus Christ, the rising up and flourishing of His LOVE Revolution, because Lucifer and his evil cohorts now have our beautiful world by the throat, gradually strangling it, trying to squeeze out the last breath of life in it for evil, demonic purposes.
Are we going to allow them to do that, my fellow believers? I certainly hope not!
Please remember that Jesus is depending on us, His workers, His ambassadors, to right the floundering ship that’s our world. So please, I implore us, let’s get a move on nuh, let’s get with the programme!
Do you know, or do you realize that right now, Jesus isn’t too thrilled with us, because we’re allowing the evil forces to take Him out of the world He created and died to save, without even a decent effort on our part. Chuh! Just like we don’t like others to force us out of stuff that we created, Jesus doesn’t like been forced out of His creation.
So again, I plead, let’s wake up and smell the coffee nuh! The fires of evil are spreading their dreadful tentacles all over the world with much haste, and we desperately need to combat them before they totally overtake us. And if they do, that would make Jesus’ sacrifice a mockery, a complete waste of time.
Do we want the blot of that curse on our generation? Certainly not!
So let’s get serious about the LOVE Revolution, and instead of evil spreading like wildfire, let’s have LOVE! Let’s allow the LOVE of Jesus Christ to lift the heavy clouds of darkness and evil from our world, and replace it with His bright, illuminating and enlightening light…for our children’s sake Friends! Much LOVE!
…LOVE CONQUERS ALL…
P.S. Hope it makes sense yes people, but that’s just where the Spirit led me today. And yuh know what happens once the passion in the ole fella is set free. (smile) Much LOVE!
16 Sep 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: all praise and thanks to God, allergies, awesome, better late than never, blessings, boggles my imagination, born again, born of water and the Spirit, brought men to christ, Bruh Paul's conversion, by faith in christ Jesus, Calvary, children of God, christ jesus, church at Corinth, comforting, compliance with God's word, condemn the sinner, conversion, covenant, curse of the law, Damascus, declared righteous, divinely intended purpose, endowed us with physical life, enter into the kingdom of god, eternal life, ever so faithful and kind, ever-Loving, evil, externalism, faith, Galatians, generous, glorious, Glory Halleujah, God's Spirit, good, good measure, gung ho, healing, helping, holy, holy spirit, internalism, jehovah god, Jesus Christ, just, justified, keeping our focus on God, Law of Moses, learning, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, magnanimous, manifestations, medication, mercies, minister of the New Testament, miracles, Mosaic covenant, Nicodemus, our sufficency is of God, precious blood of Jesus christ, reconciled, redeemed, righteousness., runny nose, schoolmaster, sleep inducing, spiritual blessings, Stephen, sufficient of ourselves, teaching, that which is born of the flesh, that which is born of the spirit, the flesh profits nothing, the Holy Spirit, the letter kills, the spirit gives life, Triune God, true believer, truth, ultimate wisdom, understanding of the scripture, wisdom, words of jesus, worker bee
John 6:63. It is the spirit that quickneth (gives life); the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.
Aye Friends, the ole fella’s in a bit of a rough shape this Tuesday morning. Last night my allergies, or the cold, or some similar malady had me sneezing and sniffling with a runny nose thrown in for good measure. (smile)
So I took some relief medication, which though it eased up the nasal situation, it was also sleep inducing, which therefore made it somewhat difficult to get up at an early hour. But as they say, better late than never! (smile)
And the ole fella’s up now, gung ho and ready to go; not a hundred percent fit, but feeling much better than when I went to bed last night, or rather early this morning. (smile) All praise and thanks to our ever-Loving, healing and comforting God!
Ah my people, when I consider all the blessings and mercies that our magnanimous and generous God daily bestows on us, it just boggles my imagination and fills my heart, body, soul and mind with the urge to greatly praise Him! He is ever so faithful and kind…
But I don’t really need to tell you all that eh, because if you’re a true believer, you will already have discovered that by the way He operates in your own life.
And all God’s children gave out a loud and grateful: ‘Glory Hallelujah! All thanks and praise be to Jehovah God, who has redeemed us from sin, and reconciled us to Himself, through the precious blood of His Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, that was shed on Calvary’s hill for our benefit!’
And isn’t that a most glorious and awesome truth my brethren? It surely is!
Now let’s have a look at some more wise and truthful words, words of Jesus, in our Bit. ‘It is the spirit that quickeneth (gives life); the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.’
And we saw yesterday where it was God’s Spirit that actually endowed us with physical life. (Gen.2:7) And that Bruh Paul’s conversion on the road to Damascus, as well as Stephen’s wisdom and miracles were figurative manifestations of the way the Holy Spirit works in our lives.
I guess we can compare the Holy Spirit to the worker bee in a hive; He is the one who carries out the actual work or deeds in our Triune God.
Hear how Bruh Paul puts it to the church at Corinth: ‘Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think anything as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God; Who also hath made us able (sufficient as) ministers of the new testament (covenant)’ not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.’ (2 Cor.3:5-6)
Words of absolute truth my brethren!
And the scholars explain that last verse thus: ‘3:6. The new testament (lit. New Covenant) is both new in time (not being inaugurated until Christ – Matt.26:28; Luke 22:7-23; 1 Cor.11:25; Heb.8:8) and new in quality (providing better spiritual blessings than did the old Mosaic covenant).
Letter, but of the spirit: This expression corresponds to the thought of verse 3 contrasting “ink” with the “Spirit.” The contrast is between the externalism inherent in the Old Covenant and the internalism inherent in the New Covenant.
The letter killeth: Since certain Jews in the assembly at Corinth were concerned with Paul’s defection from Moses’ law, Paul here explains his position. The best the law could do was condemn the sinner.
It is not here implied that the law of Moses was evil. On the contrary, it is holy, just, and good (Rom.7:12). This can be asserted because it brought men to the end of themselves to Christ (Gal.3:24).’
Oh my people, I sincerely hope that gives us a better understanding of the scripture, because that’s what we’re all about with the Bit; learning, teaching, helping to understand God’s Word and keeping our focus on Him.
And please check out the scriptures mentioned in the scholars’ explanation, because they offer a wealth of information. I just did, and consequently was inspired to quote the last scripture reference, that from Galatians.
‘Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified (declared righteous) by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a school-master (tutor), For ye are all the children (sons) of God by faith in Christ Jesus.’ (Gal.3:24-26)
Yes Friends, as the scholars say: ‘3:25. After one’s conversion to Christ, he is no longer under the curse of the law, as it has fulfilled its divinely intended purpose.’ That is, bringing us to the point where we become children of God, through faith in Jesus Christ.
Oh, I know I digressed there for a moment, but I just thought it necessary to interject those verses so that we could come to a better understanding of Bruh Paul’s words. And we’ll close with some more awesome words from Jesus, re the second part of our Bit: ‘the flesh profiteth nothing.’
Listen to Him expound to Nicodemus: ‘Verily, verily I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.
The wind bloweth where it listeth (wishes); and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.’ (John 3:5-8)
More truth of the awesome, indisputable variety my people!
Now let’s take a few moments to ponder all that we have spoken about today, then try, with the help of God obviously, to make our lives better and brighter by bringing them into compliance with God’s Word and the wonderful plan He has for each human life He has created. That is the ultimate wisdom of the universe! Much LOVE!
…oh what a magnificent blessing it is…to have the Holy Spirit of God dwell within us…to have Him continually lead and guide us in righteousness…to have Him strengthen us with true faith and trust in Almighty God…then finally bring us to eternal life with our wonderful Lord and Saviour…Jesus Christ…
14 Sep 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: Aaronic benediction, almighty god, blessings, cause his face to shine on us, christ jesus, Christ's spirit, come together as one body in Jesus, comfort, created the universe and all therein, deliver me, evil, faith, favour, fellowship, first day of the week, focus on Almighty God, forgiveness, gladness, glorify, God be merciful unto us, healing, joy, Lord and Saviour, lord of hosts, loving god, magnify, mercies, omnipotent, oppression of man, prayer for restoration, prayer of thy servant, psalm 119, psalm 67, psalm 80, rejuvenated, rested, restore us O god, rivers of water, Sabbath, save me, sincerity and truth, sing God's praises, strife-filled world, Sunday, teach me thy statutes, thanks and gratitude, thanksgiving, the Lord bless thee, the Lord's Day, the Most High God jehovah, trust, ungodly, we shall be saved, wisdom, words to live by, worship God
Psalm 67:1. God be merciful unto us, and bless us; and cause his face to shine upon us; Selah.
Well Friends, it’s the Lord’s Day, the Sabbath! The day on which He rested and rejuvenated Himself after creating the universe and all therein. Now it’s time for us to do the same. So let’s get ourselves to the Lord’s sanctuary today and fellowship with other believers; sing His praises, worship Him in sincerity and truth, giving Him the thanks and gratitude He so richly deserves.
Let there be joy and gladness in our hearts as we come together as one body in Christ Jesus, to glorify and magnify the Most High God Jehovah and receive His blessings, mercies, forgiveness, comfort, healing and strength to carry on in faith in this ungodly, strife-filled and evil world!
And as we celebrate this first day of the week with our focus on Almighty God, remember that the other days of the week will fall into easy lock-step with it, and enable us to have a better week than we would have had without that rejuvenation of Christ’s Spirit within us. The first day sets the tone for those that follow.
That brings us to our Bit: ‘God be merciful unto us; and cause his face to shine upon us; Selah.’
Now yesterday we looked at what Psalm 67, the national psalm of thanksgiving itself said, today we’ll look at some other scriptures that invoke the same kind of blessed attitude.
And we’ll begin with the heartfelt words of Bruh David from Psalm 31, superscripted – In thee, O Lord, do I put my trust. ‘But I trusted in thee, O Lord: I said, Thou art my God. My times are in thy hand: deliver me from the hand of mine enemies, and from them that persecute me. Make thy face to shine upon thy servant: save me for thy mercies’ sake.’ (Ps. 31:14-16)
Words of true faith my people! Then in Psalm 80, a prayer for restoration, the psalmist Asaph feels so strongly about his belief that he repeats it three times in the psalm. ‘Turn us again (restore us), O God, and cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved.’ (Ps.80:3, 7, 19)
And that is exactly what happens when our omnipotent and LOVING God causes His face to shine upon us my brethren…we are saved! No ifs, ands, or buts about it!
And from that great expose on God’s word, Psalm 119, comes these words: ‘Deliver (direct) me from the oppression of man: so will I keep thy precepts. Make thy face to shine upon thy servant; and teach me thy statutes. Rivers of waters run down mine yes, because they (men) keep not thy law.’ (Ps.119:134-136)
Ah mih people, more entreaty for the Lord of hosts to shine His wonderful countenance upon His humble servants! That means there must be something sacred and powerful when the Lord shines His face upon His human creation. For even that mighty man of God, Daniel, invoked that in his prayer when he prayed for his people Israel, during the time of their captivity in Babylon.
‘Now therefore, O our God, hear the prayer of thy servant, and his supplications, and cause (be gracious) thy face to shine upon thy sanctuary (temple) that is desolate, for the Lord’s sake.’ (Dan.9:17) Words to live by my fellow believers, words to certainly live by!
And here is where it all began, from the Aaronic benediction; that decreed by the Lord Himself, way back when the Israelites were making their way through the wilderness from slavery in Egypt to prosperity in the Promised Land.
‘And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto Aaron and unto his sons, saying, On this wise ye shall bless the children of Israel, saying unto them, The Lord bless thee, and keep thee: The Lord make his face to shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:
The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee (look on you with favour), and give thee peace. And they shall put (invoke) my name upon the children of Israel; and I will bless them.’ (Num.6:22-27)
There we have it my people; the Lord’s blessing upon His people Israel, and subsequently, with the coming of Jesus, for all those who believe in Him and honour Him as their Lord and Saviour.
There’s not much more to be said nuh Friends, except to advise us to go out and fellowship with other believers, get encouraged, rejuvenated and have the Lord’s countenance, His favour shine on us. That’s wisdom of the highest order! Much LOVE!
…to be blessed…to have the Lord’s radiance shine on us…oh what a privilege…oh what a joy…
P.S. No complaints today Friends, because it short and sweet! (smile) Much LOVE!
13 Sep 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: all the earth shall fear God, almighty god, always on the go, anger, anxiety, at the beck and call, ball is in our court, bless us, blessings, busy with work, Calvary, confidence, down time, dress, education, Elohim, evil, faithful, feeding frenzy, frustration, generous father, glorify the mediocre, God be merciful unto us, godly attention, gratefulness, greedy business people, harbinger, heavenly wisdom, high standards, in the swing of things, Jesus Christ, judge the people righteously, Labour Day, let the nations be glad, let the people praise thee, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, loving, low standards, may God cause his face to shine on us, modern conveniences, money, morals, no separation between work home and play, obdeience, old rugged cross, only one superstar, our imagination playing tricks on us, patient, pedestals, perception, reconciled to God, resentment, rudeness, salvation, saving health, seamless continuum, Selah, selfishness, sincerity, sing for joy, sit and relax, social happenings, societies flourish, spare time, technological innovations, technology monster, tension, thanskgiving, trust, truth, ungodly world, wisdom, wonderful opportunity, work ethic, worry, Yahweh
Psalm 67:1. God be merciful unto us, and bless us; and cause his face to shine upon us; Selah.
Aye Friends, do you realize that we’re already in the middle of September…and it was just last week we celebrated Labour Day? (smile) Ah brother! The days they surely seem to be passing rather quickly. I don’t know if time is actually speeding up, or it’s simply our perception that it’s going by faster; just our imagination playing tricks on us. (smile)
If I were to guess though, I’d say that it’s our imagination playing tricks on us. Our days have become so busy with work and looking after home and family and the myriad of things those tasks entail, including the presence of worry and anxiety, that the time just speeds away on us before we even realize what’s really happening.
Even a generation ago, our lives weren’t so busy. What’s happened eh? Unlike what we were led to expect and believe, in spite of all the technological innovations and modern conveniences, we seem to have lees spare time, less down time where we can just sit and relax. It seems like we’re always on the go.
Now there’s no separation between work, home and play, they all seem to have morphed into one seamless continuum. With our wonderful technological devices we now work everywhere; at home, at work and at play. We’re now constantly at the beck and call of the technology monster and its feeding frenzy. If we’re not constantly in touch with the social happenings then we feel lost and behind the times, not in the swing of things.
And sadly, that feeling is perpetrated by the greedy business people who are just out to grab whatever they can from us, without caring even one iota about our situations. It’s all about the money. That’s a big part of the reason for the unnecessary tension, frustration, resentment, anger, selfishness and rudeness in our current society.
Our standards, including morals, work ethic, dress, education and otherwise have fallen so low, that now we glorify as superior, of superstar status, what was once considered mediocre, and even of no account. And yet we expect to flourish.
How foolish of us Friends, for societies only flourish when truly high standards are the norm, not the exception. As standards fall, so do the societies themselves. And if you don’t believe me, just check out man’s history that’s littered with so many examples.
And before we go any further my people, let me remind us that there’s ONLY ONE SUPERSTAR in this evil, ungodly world – that’s our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! And don’t you forget it! Stop buying into the nonsense that the world is selling us; putting people on pedestals who can’t even run their lives properly.
Anyway, that’s enough pontification from me for today. (smile) Let’s see what our Bit has to say: ‘God be merciful unto us, and bless us; and cause his face to shine upon us; Selah.’
And yuh better believe my brethren that we desperately need such godly attention today, right now, if we’re ever going to turn this wicked and ungodly society around. As the psalmist so wisely and truthfully continues: ‘That thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving health (salvation) among all nations.’ (Ps.67:2)
But for that to happen, the psalmist tells us: ‘Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee. O let the nations be glad and sing for joy: for thou shalt judge the people righteously, and govern the nations upon earth. Selah.
Let all the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee. Then shall the earth yield her increase (give her produce); and God, even our own God, shall bless us. God shall bless us; and all the ends of the earth shall fear him.’ (Ps.67:3-7)
Yes Friends, without God’s blessings, we’re doomed, and we won’t get God’s blessings unless and until we praise and worship Him in faithful obedience and trust.
And according to the scholars: ‘Psalm 67. This national psalm of thanksgiving expresses the gratefulness of the people to their God and their confidence in His continued blessings. The point of the psalm seems to be that God’s blessing on Israel is only a harbinger of divine blessings for the entire world.
This universal outlook is revealed not only by the explicit statement of the final verse, but by the exclusive preference of the general word for God, Elohim, to the complete exclusion of the personal name of Israel’s God, Yahweh.’
So you can see Friends, from early on, God planned to have the entire world, His entire creation, bowing at His feet, praising and worshipping Him, while He showers them with untold blessings and mercies. Unfortunately though, that plan has gone somewhat awry, because of our rebellious and disobedient nature.
But He’s such a LOVING, generous and patient Father, that He gave us a second chance by sending Jesus to die on the old rugged cross at Calvary, so that we could be reconciled to Him. What a marvellous Deity!
That means the ball is now in our court, my people. It’s now up to us to embrace the lifeline that He’s thrown out to us through His son Jesus. Please, let’s show heavenly wisdom and grab hold of the wonderful opportunity that has been presented to us.
And now, may the Lord bless and keep us and cause His face to shine upon us as we praise and worship Him in all truth and sincerity. Much LOVE!
…as the praise and worship of Almighty God increases…so will the blessings and mercies that are showered down upon earth…
03 Sep 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a righteous branch, all things work together for good, balance, benediction, blood of the everlasting covenant, calm, carry them in his bosom, cling to the Lord God Jehovah, clutch our faith, David, duties of a shepherd, evil, expectant trust, extinguish their lifeblood, Ezekiel, faithful and trustworthy god, feed his flock like a shepherd, female of the species, friendships, gather the lambs with his arm, gently lead those that are with young, good shepherd, good success, gospel truth, halfway home, I am your God, imagery, Israel, Israel Salanter Lipkin, Jeremiah, Jerusalem, Jesus Christ, judge, justice, leading and guiding, lifeline, Lord and Saviour, Lord jesus, LOVE, magnificent and majestic God, make you perfect, managing people, mother hen, my servant David, parenting, pastoral scene, peace, Praise the Lord, prey, promises, prosperity, protection, provision, renege, responsible, responsible reliance, righteous, righteousness., semblance of balance, spiritual development, spiritual glory, spirituality, spirituality is like a bird, surrender our lives to god, this is the day the Lord has made, to those who love God, we shall rejoice and be glad in it, Wednesday, wisdom, woe to the pastors, wonder of wonders
Isaiah 40:11. He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.
Ah mih people, it’s Wednesday – we halfway home! So please hang in there, faithful and steadfast, knowing that all things work together for good to all those who LOVE God and are called by Him for His purpose. (Rom.8:28) That’s a wonderful scripture to hold on to this morning my brethren.
And all God’s people joyfully declared: ‘Praise the Lord! This is the day the day Lord has made, we WILL rejoice and be glad in it!’ Way to go my fellow believers!
Now here’s an interesting quote from Israel Salanter Lipkin (1810-1883), the famous Lithuanian Rabbi and revolutionary philosopher. He says: ‘Spirituality is like a bird: if you hold on to it tightly, it chokes, and if you hold it loosely, it escapes.’
And that my people, is not only true of our spirituality, but also a number of other things in life. If we hold on to them too tightly, we extinguish their lifeblood, and if we are too lax and wishy washy with them, they just float away from us.
We constantly see it in friendships, in LOVE, in parenting children, in managing people in the workplace, in all walks of life. That means we need to exhibit some semblance of balance in our lives. Don’t hold on to things or people too tightly – read control (smile) or they are likely to rebel.
Neither should we take them too much for granted, or we’re liable to lose them too. So it’s essential that we don’t tip the scales on either side. The same thing goes for our spiritual development.
As the One More Day Devotional from which I got the quote says: ‘When we possessively clutch our faith and expect all that we demand, our spirituality is weakened. Yet if we expect nothing of it, it might seem to disappear.
Our spiritual lives are strengthened as we find that precious balance between expectant trust in our Higher Power and responsible reliance on ourselves.’
And that’s gospel truth! But the problem is trying to strike that right balance in our lives. However, it is not an impossible task if we cling to the Lord God Jehovah as our lifeline, and hold on to the many promises He has made us, none of which He has ever, or will ever renege on.
And I definitely like the promise in our Bit: ‘He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs in his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.’
Oh my brethren, what wonderful imagery, what a beautiful pastoral scene it paints; depicting Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour just gently and wisely leading and guiding us, like a good shepherd takes care of his sheep, like a mother hen takes care of her chicks, generally speaking, like the female of the species looks after the young ones in her brood.
Some of us might not know the duties of a shepherd, but it’s basically to look after his flock in all aspects of their lives; be it leading them to green and plentiful grass and wholesome water to drink, taking care of them in sickness, seeking them out when they’re lost… whatever it takes to maintain the peace, calm and prosperity of the flock.
And wonder of wonders my people, that’s exactly how our great and wonderful God looks after us when we surrender our lives, our struggles to Him!
Now let’s look at some scriptures where the Lord is referred to as our Shepherd. Jeremiah, in his prophecy of the remnant of God’s people one day triumphantly returning to Jerusalem, first decries the leaders of Israel. ‘Woe be unto the pastors (shepherds, leaders) that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! saith the Lord.
Therefore, thus saith the Lord God of Israel against the pastors (shepherds, leaders) that feed my people; Ye have scattered my flock, and driven them away, and have not visited (attended to) them: behold I will visit upon you (attend to you for) the evil of your doings, saith the Lord.’ (Jer.23:1-2)
Yes Friends, in due time the Lord will get rid of the woeful and wicked pastors and leaders who are leading His people astray and replace them with righteous and responsible ones.
And then the eventual Good Shepherd will come. ‘Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper (act wisely), and shall execute judgement and justice (justice and righteousness) in the earth (land). (Jer.23:5)
And that promise was fulfilled my people when Jesus came to earth as a man and blossomed in all His spiritual glory! Wow! What a faithful and trustworthy God we serve and worship!
And all God’s people joyfully declared: ‘Thank you Lord! We praise you and bless your holy name!’
And the prophet Ezekiel tells us thus of the Lord’s care for His flock. ‘Therefore will I save my flock, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between cattle (sheep) and cattle (sheep).
And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. And I the Lord will be their God, and my servant David a prince among them; I the Lord have spoken it.’ (Ezek.34:22-24)
Yes Friends, that’s the magnificent and majestic God we worship, making everlasting plans for our protection and provision!
And we’ll close with this appropriate benediction from Hebrews. ‘Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, Make you perfect (complete) in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.’ (Heb.13:20-21)
Now Friends, as we go about our busy lives today, let’s hold on to all that our God has promised, so that we can have peace and good success, despite all the troubles crazily swirling around us, for that is indeed wisdom from on high! Much LOVE!
…and ye my flock…the flock of my pasture…are men…and I am your God…saith the Lord God… (Ezek.35:31)
02 Sep 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: agrarian, Bishop of our souls, Bruh David, calling, calm and collected, calm interior, caring, carry them in his bosom, cast all our cares on god, cried, deep down inside, destiny, disappointed, feed his flock like a shepherd, forgiving, gather the lambs with his arm, Gentiles, gently lead those that are with young, God has good plans for our lives, God will never leave nor forsake us, good shepherd, grace, green pastures, grieved, guidance, heavenly blessing, heavenly Father, hireling, holy spirit, hope faith, I am the good shepherd, I shall not want, I will fear no evil, in the strength of the Lord, inner peace, inspiring, internal peace, Isaiah, Jehovah Raffa, Jeremiah, Jesus Christ, Jewish society, Jews, Joel Osteen, labour day weekend, Lakewood church, lay down my life for my sheep, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, loving, majesty, merciful, mercy, moaning and groaning, moral of the story, omnipotent, one fold, one shepherd, paths of righteousness, personal testimony, plans of hope and a good future, problems, promises, quiet peace, restores my soul, sad, sheep going astray, shepherd, shepherd his flock, sleep deprived, sorrow, sorrow and heartache, soul searching, still waters, storm clouds, tearful Tuesday, The Lord is my shepherd, the Lord's peace, the peace that surpasses all understanding, the wolf, thy rod and thy staff they comfort me, Triune God, trouble, trust, Tuesday, turmoil, unforseen role, unscathed, uplifting, valley of the shadow of death, winds of the storm, word portrait, words of jesus, wreaking havoc
Isaiah 40:11. He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.
Oh Friends, it’s Tuesday – tearful Tuesday! That’s because of the many tears we’ll shed this morning, having to get up and go out to work, tired, sleep deprived, moaning and groaning, after the long, loud, lusty and lustful Labour Day weekend. (smile)
Don’t worry my brethren, the ole fella’s in the same boat. I shed a few tears my self just now when I had to get up to write the Bit, after only about three hours of sleep. But having cried out for LOVE and mercy and grace, I’m facing up to my task, assured of heavenly blessing and guidance to complete it in a worthwhile manner.
And I just want to comment here, give a personal testimony, on some thing I heard my Bubba Joel (Joel Osteen) say this weekend. He claims he wasn’t the least bit interested in being the pastor at Lakewood Church after his father went to be with the Lord some ten years ago.
He was quiet happy being in the background looking after the television aspect of the ministry. However, deep down inside, he felt that it was his calling, his destiny, and once he accepted that unforeseen role, despite all the problems surrounding it, he experienced an inner peace within himself that he just could not understand.
But it was the Lord’s peace; that peace that surpasses all human understanding.
On hearing that, it just brought back to my memory the surprising and unexpected peace I also experienced when my mother Molly died three years ago.
I was in California at the time, on a short vacation, the first time I’d left the country in some four or five years, and was most surprised and disappointed when I got the news of her passing, without me even having a chance to say a formal goodbye, and she, just a couple days before telling me that she wasn’t yet ready to go home.
But soon thereafter, I unexpectedly found myself at a point of quiet peace with situation. The Lord put a couple of understandable though not necessarily wonderful reasons in my heart for His action.
Oh, don’t get me wrong, I was disappointed, sad and cried and grieved and everything else. But deep down inside I didn’t have the turmoil that usually comes with those kinds of situations. I remember remarking to myself how calm and collected I was, despite all the sorrow and heartache surrounding me.
I now realize that that was indeed the peace of God which passes all human understanding, which allows us to have a calm interior, while the winds of the storm are wreaking havoc all around us on the outside.
And the moral of the story is that when the storm clouds of trouble and sorrow surround us, it is indeed possible to have internal peace, if we turn to our wonderful God and cast all our cares upon Him, as He so generously advises. ‘Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.’(1 Pet. 5:7)
He will certainly keep ALL of His promises; of never leaving nor forsaking us, of having good plans for our lives, plans of hope and a good future, to also bring us through the fire suitably changed but unscathed, working it all out for our good in His time and manner.
No wonder Isaiah likens Him to a shepherd in our Bit, for a true shepherd cares for and looks after his flock with total concentration. ‘He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those with young.’
Oh my fellow believers, what a wonderful word portrait of our great Provider, Jehovah Raffa!
And there are lots of scriptures that describe Him as a shepherd because the old Jewish society was agrarian, and best-understood stuff couched in agricultural terminology.
Now let’s look at some of those scriptures that portray our omnipotent, LOVING, merciful, most caring and forgiving God as a shepherd. And the obvious scripture to begin with are the words of Jesus Himself, of whom Isaiah was prophesying, when he made the claims in our Bit.
Jesus unequivocally declares to His listeners: ‘I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. But he that is a hireling (hired man), and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep.
The hireling fleeth, because he is a hireling, and careth not for the sheep. I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. As the Father knoweth me, even so knoweth I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.
And other sheep I have (Gentiles), which are not of this fold (Jews): them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold (flock), and one shepherd.’ (John 10: 11-16)
Oh Friends, how much more convincing and eloquent can Jesus be eh? Not much. He says it all right there.
Meanwhile Jeremiah in his prophecy declares: ‘Hear the word of the Lord, O ye nations, and declare it in the isles (coastlands) afar off, and say, He that scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him, as a shepherd doth his flock.’ (Jer.31:10)
And Micah, in talking of the deliverers from Bethlehem, tells us: ‘And he shall stand and feed (shepherd his flock) in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God; and they shall abide: for now shall he be great unto the ends of the earth.’ (Mic.5:4)
Then Peter declares it thus: ‘For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop (Overseer) of your souls.’ (1 Pet.2:25) There he is quoting Isaiah 53:5-6.
And we’ll close with the most famous scripture passage, re the analogy of God to a shepherd. Hear these beautiful, soul-searching, uplifting and inspiring words of Bruh David: ‘The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want (lack). He maketh me to lie down in green pastures (pastures of tender green grass): he leadeth me beside still waters (waters of rest).
He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.’ (Ps.23:1-4)
Oh my people, please take heart, for despite all the troubles that surround us, all the fires we must pass through, our wonderful heavenly Father, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, our helper and comforter, are always around us, leading us to green pastures filled with restful, sweet tasting and rejuvenating water.
So today, please put all your trust and faith and hope in our Triune God, who watches over and protects us like a true shepherd does his sheep. Much LOVE!
…when the Good Shepherd, Jesus comes a calling…His sheep will recognize His voice…and heed His righteous and comforting call…
21 Aug 2014
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a prayer for solutions, action, apply thine heart to understanding, commandments, commitment, communing with God, commute, confident in god, Cousin Sol, cry after knowledge, cut costs, destiny, devious ways, discerment, discretion, do our part, don't ever give up, downsizing, dr robert h schuller, emotionally, equitable pay, equity, eternal life, exercise the faith, expectation of bosses, faith, fear of the Lord, fearful for jobs, forgiveness, god is good fair and just, God's never-ending faithfulness, God-given plans, grace, have a blessed day, incline thine ear unto wisdom, jehovah god, Jesus Christ, joy, judgements, knowledge, knowledge is plesant unto thy soul, knowledge of God, leadership of my life, life isn't easy, lift up thy voice for understanding, Lord and Saviour, LOVE, make right decisions, meeting of the minds, mentally, mercy, parent's instructions, paths of justice, paths of uprightness, persevere right to the end, perverse things, perversity, physically, poor economic situation, preserves the way of saints, prospector, raise profit margins, refreshing, rejoice to do evil, rejuvenating, reverential awe, right conduct, righteous, righteousness., salvation, shield, silver, solve the problems, stand strong, stress, stressors, summer, take command over my destiny, the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob, the way of the evil man, Thursday, tired Thursday, traffic jams, treasures, understanding, unforgiving world, ungodly world, walk uprightly, ways of darkness, weary, wisdom
Proverbs 2:5. Then shalt thou understand the fear (reverential awe) of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God.
And then it was Thursday – tired Thursday – and a misty one in my area this morning. In fact it’s been misty since I was sitting out on my front porch around 1 a.m. this morning, enjoying the quiet and peaceful atmosphere, communing quietly with my Maker.
And I can’t begin to tell you my people, how nice and refreshing and rejuvenating that is. Consequently, I don’t get to my bed very early these days, and thus can’t get up very early either. (smile)
Please don’t begrudge the ole fella that particular joy; because it will soon be over, as the summer floats away and the cold days become the norm. (smile)
However, getting back to the tired Thursday theme. I call it that because by the fourth day of the workweek we’re all weary, physically, emotionally and mentally, from the many stressors of modern workday life. Stressors like getting up early to get the children ready for day care and/or school, when that begins in the next couple of weeks.
Then get ourselves off to work, which necessitates a long, arduous commute for so many, standing idly by in huge traffic jams, morning and evening, and finally having arrived at work tired, needing to put up with the high expectation of bosses, of much work for not always equitable pay.
And then with the strain of the poor economic situation, many of us are fearful of losing our jobs, in a time when everybody’s downsizing, ostensibly to cut costs, but more than likely to raise their profit margin.
Anyway my fellow believers, in spite of all the stress and strain to which we’re currently exposed, followers of Jesus are expected to persevere right to the end; to pursue their God-given plans without fail, for our wonderful God has promised to bring us safely through all that comes against us, though we will also have to do our part and stand strong.
And if there’s one thing we’re ever so confident in our great God for, is His never-ending faithfulness! Whatever he promises, He fulfills. So please hang in there, for life wasn’t meant to be easy, but our God is good and fair and just, and in His own time, He will bring us to a successful meeting of the minds with Him. (smile)
Above all, DON’T EVER GIVE UP! For giving up is not numbered amongst the things believers do. Now here’s an appropriate prayer from Gramps Schuller (Dr. Robert H Schuller), from his Hour of Power daily devotional, which is appropriately titled; ‘A Prayer for Solutions.’
Please pray with me. ‘Lord, thanks for assuring me that you’ll solve the problems if I’ll exercise the faith and make the right decisions! Forgive me for waiting for all difficulties, real or fanciful, to be resolved before deciding to make my commitment.
I confess I have too often allowed problems instead of possibilities to take over the leadership of my life – to make my decisions – and take command over my destiny. I know, now, what faith is, Lord! It’s making the right decisions before I see solutions to all the problems! Increase my faith! Amen.’
And now that we’ve prayed those faith raising and releasing words, my brethren let’s go out and faithfully put them into action nuh, for words without action are generally worthless.
And as the passage before our Bit, in the wise words of Cousin Sol tells us, re the reward of heeding wisdom: ‘My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide (treasure) my commandments with thee; So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding;
Yea, if thou criest after knowledge (discernment), and liftest up thy voice for understanding; If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; Then shalt thou understand the fear (reverential awe) of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God.’ (Prov.2:1-5)
Yes Friends, in these very crucial and critical times, wisdom and understanding are a MUST, if we’re to navigate this evil, ungodly world successfully. And true wisdom and understanding comes ONLY from Jehovah God my people!
As Cousin Sol continues: ‘For the Lord giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. He layeth up (stores up) sound wisdom for the righteous: he is a buckler (shield) to them that walk uprightly.
He keepeth the paths of judgement (guards the paths of justice), and preserveth the way of his saints. Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgement (justice), and equity; yea, every good path.’ (Prov.2:6-9)
Yes my people, without true wisdom and understanding which emanate from our magnificent God, we’d be entirely lost in this unforgiving world of ours.
Now hear some comments from the scholars. 2:1-22. The conditions for obtaining wisdom are given first: one must earnestly seek it, as a prospector would search for gold (vv.1-4). It is not an undirected search, however, since the parent’s instruction is the basis. The consequences of obtaining wisdom are then listed (vv.5-22): knowledge of God (vv.5-8) and right conduct (vv.9-22).’
And we’ll end with a few of those verses on right conduct. ‘When wisdom entereth into thine heart, and knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul: Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee: To deliver thee from the way of the evil man, from the man that speaketh froward (perverse) things;
Who leave the paths of uprightness, to walk in the ways of darkness: Who rejoice to do evil, and delight in the frowardness (perversity) of the wicked; Whose ways are crooked, and they froward (are devious) in their paths.’ (Prov.2: 10-15)
There we have it Friends, some benefits of seeking after wisdom and understanding through the ONLY avenue through which they are really obtained and granted; i.e. through the Most High God Jehovah!
Now let’s have a blessed day as we walk in lockstep with our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, in wisdom and understanding! Much LOVE!
…oh, our world would be such a much better place…if the inhabitants would only turn to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob…for wisdom and understanding…which would bring them oodles of peace, LOVE, joy, mercy, grace, forgiveness, salvation and eternal life…oh what blessings…
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