10 May 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a drop of water, a great gulf, another rainy day, another week of work, dogs licked his sores, fires of hell, Friday chant, Hades, he lifts up his eyes, he who has ears to hear, hear not Moses, in hell, Lamb's book of life, Lazarus in his bosom, Lazarus the beggar, let him hear, LOVE, mercy, pleading for mercy, pray, rain on my parade, seeth Abraham afar off, shirtsleeves, shorts, smally mercy, spoilsport, sufferation, TGIF!, Thank God is Friday, the prophets, the rich man, the workingman's song, those suffering from floods, to wet, will eventually feel, yuh flaming tongue
Luke 16:23. And in hell (Hades) he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
Another wet and cloudy morning! But that’s nothing new, and the good news is that the sun does look like it’s going to put up some kind of battle to come out later on. But the best news is that as believers in Jesus Christ we have His bright light surrounding us and living in us all the time! Glory Hallelujah! So, regardless of what the physical day looks like, we are always clothed in His sunshine! Give Him some thanks and praise my people!
Unfortunately though, one community in the Ottawa Valley is still suffering from the effects of the recent floods, apparently their area has now been made an island with water all around it, and they have to use boats to get around. Hn! Can you imagine that? Please, let’s pray for them to return to normal soon, for all these unforeseen and unexpected difficulties when they drag out for a long time also take a severe toll on people’s humanity.
But the fact that it’s Friday takes away a li’l of the rain pain, (smile) and the workingman is just dying to broadcast his song. ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday! And the weekend’s here! But this blooming rain just looking to spoil my weekend activities yes! With the weather getting warmer, I expected to be able to go outside and frolic in just mih shirtsleeves and shorts…possibly even set up the barbecue and have a few while the meat cooking.
But chuh! This rain becoming a real spoilsport yes! Curtailing all mih outdoor fun! You could only have so much fun inside for just so long, before the wife and children get tired of you. But anyway, thank God is Friday and the weekend oui, no more labouring for the greedy slave master for a couple days! Thank God for that small mercy yes!’
Yeh friends, many of us are thankful for the two days off from work, though as believers we don’t get as worked up as the workingman when the rain rains on our parade… ‘Who says so?’ you shoot back? ‘We have the same feelings like the workingman, but we just don’t show them to his extreme!’ Sorry mih people, sorry! And since we’re not that extreme, let’s chant our Friday Chant nuh to show our less extreme feelings. (smile)
As one now: ‘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!’
Ah mih people, we are a li’l more reined in by Jesus’ dictates than the ordinary workingman is by his worldly desires. But please, let’s not resent it, because it’s only for our benefit! It helps to keep us on the straight and narrow path that leads to salvation and eternal life, which we all believe is the best option we have going here on earth.
You know there are ONLY two options; Satan and Jesus, and as for me and mine we will gladly follow Jesus because he has the best long-term plans and solutions. Satan has a lot of stuff he offers in the here and now, but what happens in the hereafter eh? Nothing but hellfire and damnation! And if you think that’s all a bunch of hogwash, then go ahead and accept the earthly benefits of the devil. But just supposing it’s true eh? What then when you pass into the next world?
Some of us know the parable of the rich man and Lazarus the beggar, but for those of us who don’t, here is a brief outline. The Good Book says: ‘There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously (lived in luxury) every day. And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores. And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.
And it came to pass that the beggar died, and was carried into Abraham’s bosom (enjoying the messianic banquet in Abraham’s company): the rich man also died, and was buried. And in hell (Hades) he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.’ (Luke 16:19-24)
Now friends, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ spoke that parable, and if, as we contend, He cannot lie, why is it so hard to believe the presence of hell eh? And please note the reply the rich man received from Abraham.
‘But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.’ (Luke 16:25-26)
Yuh see friends, after our earthly death, there is no second chance. All the second, third, fourth and numerous other chances are present here on earth. And to make matters worse, there’s no mercy available in hell, just here on earth! And if you read the rest of that passage (Luke 16:27-31) you’ll see that in hell you’re still aware of what’s going on, both in heaven and on earth, but you can’t do anything about your situation or your family’s.
As Abraham told the rich man when he asked for him to send someone to talk to his family about the terrible situation he was in. ‘And he (Abraham) said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.’ (Luke 16:31)
And the scholars explain that verse thus: ’16:31. If here carries the weight of “since.” They were not paying attention to the light they already had. Hard-heartedness is not necessarily overcome by miraculous signs.’
So friends, it just comes back to prove that we need to make the right decision before we die, and since we don’t know when that will be, it’s best to decide for Jesus RIGHT NOW, so that your salvation and eternal life can be secured, your name written in the Lamb’s Book of Life, and yuh not lost somewhere down in the burning fires of hell, tormented like crazy, going through ‘sufferation’ that you couldn’t even imagine in earthly life, crying out, pleading for mercy, begging for just a drop of water to wet yuh flaming tongue! Much LOVE!
…as Jesus said…he who has ears to hear…let him hear…else he will eventually feel…
06 May 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a roof over our heads, all things you ask in prayer, almighty god, antidote, ask, aura of love, believing, confidence, eat, enthusiasm, evil, faithfulness of God, false promises, finicky weather, for good measure, for my love, friends, frivolous, greedy, holy fire, holy hands, holy spirit, humble servants, I give myself unto prayer, in Jesus name, in return, invincible, Jesus Christ, joy, knock, knock the door will open, lagniappe, lose heart, LOVE, mature in faith, men ought to pray, men pray every where, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, music to my ears, my adversaries, nectar for our souls, not faint, omnipotent god, our bread is buttered, power of prayer, pray without ceasing, prayer, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, renewed vitality, rest, salvation, seek, selfish prayers, sincere prayer, sincerity, sinful mask, sinful mortals, spake a parable, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, stumbling block, sweet music, the enemy's ranks, the Son of God, thou that hearest prayer, trust, truth, ungodly world, victorious battle, wisdom, without wrath or doubting, you shall find
Psalm 109:4. For (in return for) my LOVE they are my adversaries: but I give myself unto prayer.
Well at long , last, yesterday we had a sunny and dry day from begin to end! Glory Be! Let’s hope today will be the same. But who knows what the finicky weather will do these days eh? Anyway it’s Monday… and you know what that means – to labour, to labour, and yet to labour!
Yes, it’s unfortunate that we need to labour, and labour so much and so often, (smile) but the truth of the matter is if we don’t labour, we won’t eat, nor have a roof over our heads. And having settled the question of labouring, (smile) let’s get on with life, get ourselves together and go out and labour, in Jesus’ glorious name.
And yes, some of us will always have problems on a Monday morning, but thankfully we have this wonderful antidote for all of Monday’s ills, called our Monday Morning Battle Hymn; a crying out in prayer, in confidence, to our heavenly Father, who’s faithfully promised to hear and answer us whenever we come to Him humbly and reverently outlining our needs.
So let’s do just that right now nuh; call on Him as one: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
And as always, our heavenly Father answers by getting the Holy Spirit, which dwells within us, to ramp up His efforts of positive production in our souls so that we can step higher and lighter, throw our shoulders back with confidence and enthusiasm, while a holy fire lights up our eyes! Yes friends, we’re now ready to go out and do victorious battle against the enemy, all in Jesus’ name!
Never doubt the power of prayer…neither the faithfulness of our omnipotent God! That’s why Bruh David made this immortal statement: ‘For (in return for) my LOVE they are my adversaries: but I give myself unto prayer.’ Oh friends, we could never go wrong by declaring (steups – wrong again!) that same statement in sincerity and heartfelt truth. For like Bruh David, we ought to know where our bread is buttered…at the throne of the Most High God Jehovah!
And Bruh David reinforced all of that with this other immortal statement: ‘O thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come.’ (Ps.65:2) Ah mih people, our God does hear prayer! That’s the way He set up communications with us, and we should be wise and knowledgeable, and mature enough in faith to go to Him with ALL problems, because that’s exactly what He desires.
And Jesus, as He is ever wont to do, states it so clearly and plainly: ‘And all things whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.’ (Matt.21:22) Now that’s not me, but the Son of God making that bold statement! And if anybody should know about prayers and having them answered, it should be Him!
But please note the one stumbling block in His statement; the word ‘believing.’ Yes mih people, when making those prayers to Almighty God, we have to believe that we will receive what we pray for. And Jesus is not talking about, frivolous, greedy, selfish prayers either, but serious stuff that we truly need.
And that wasn’t the end of His wonderful advice either. Listen up, as Luke informs us: ‘And he (Jesus) spake a parable unto this end, that men ought always to pray, and to not faint (lose heart).’ (Luke 18:1) There again friends, if the Son of God makes such a definitive pronouncement, who are we mere sinful mortals to disagree eh?
And we all know Jesus’ other famous pronouncement on prayer: ‘Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.’ (Matt.7:7-8)
I don’t know about you nuh my fellow believers, but that is sweet music to my ears! Just keep on asking and seeking and knocking in prayer and I will be rewarded! I know to some of us it sounds too good to be true, but please remember Jesus is not a man to lie or make false promises, so if He says so, it is so! Matter fix!
And just for good measure, as a lagniappe or brawtha, (not sure about that last spelling) (smile) here are a couple of admonitions from Bruh Paul on the subject. To the Thessalonians he said in no uncertain terms: ‘Pray without ceasing.’ (1 Thess.5:17) And to Timothy, he exhorts: ‘I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting.’ (1 Tim.2:8)
So that seals the matter; we ought to keep on praying, anywhere and all the time in true belief, never get tired or give up! Much LOVE!
…sincere prayer…truly nectar for our souls…
02 May 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a good foundation, abides forever, all or nothing at all, be loyal to one, be obedient to His word, compassionate heart, curse, despise the other, do good, do his bidding, earthly riches, Emmanuel, enmity with God, eternal life, Everlasting Father, faith, favour, friendship with the world, gave us His freedom, generously shared, good works, gospel truth, grace, halfway measures, hate the one, haughty, highminded, immaculate conception, King of Kings, lay hold on eternal life, laying up for themselves, Lily of the valley, Lord of Lords, LOVE, love not the world, love of the Father, love the other, lovers of God and the world, lust of the eyes, majesty, negative word, no man can serve two masters, positive outlook, pride of life, revere, Rose of Sharon, sacrificed His sinless life, self-control, self-discipline, selfishly hoarded, Sermon on the Mount, sinless character, success, surrender our lives to Jesus, the mighty God, the things in the world, the time to come, the will of God, the world passes away, Thursday Blessings, took our sins, virgin birth, Wonderful, you cannot serve God and mammon
Matthew 6:24. 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 (earthly riches).
And yes, it’s a cloudy, foggy Thursday morning in my li’l part of the world, but hopefully the sun will push through and decimate all the fog and cloud in a short while. But even if it doesn’t, if the sun doesn’t shine, we must remember that we have a friend, a Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ who controls the calm and the storm alike and He can decimate whatever ills, or storms that are blowing through our lives with one single, simple touch of His favour, mercy, grace and/or LOVING-kindness! Give Him the thanks and praise He so well deserves my faithful brethren!
Ah mih people, our Jesus is so wonderful that there are no words in any language that can truly describe Him! We try, but all our man-made descriptions fall far short of the ideal, of the magnificent Deity that He is! Only Deity like Himself might be able to find language to truly describe Him.
But until we get to heaven and hear the Father and the Holy Spirit describe Him, we’ll have to settle for insufficient terms like: ‘Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Rose of Sharon, Lily of the Valley, Emmanuel, A name above every other Name, to whom ALL knees must bow, Heavenly Advocate, High Priest, Son of God, Saviour of the World, ‘Uniter’ of Jews and Gentiles, He of the Immaculate Conception and of Virgin Birth…etc. etc.’
Yes friends, those are only some of the many names we use to describe Jesus, but the great thing about it is that ALL of them are true and reflect some aspect of Jesus’ great and godly character and the extensive list of jobs that He performs with such grace and majesty! How can we not LOVE and revere Him eh? And if we LOVE and revere Him, then we ought to be delighted to do His bidding, be obedient to His Word and His dictates!
But unfortunately that’s where too many of us draw the line! Yes, we all claim to LOVE Jesus and spout a good talk, but when it comes right down to the nitty gritty, doing as he says, that’s an entirely different subject. We hem and haw about giving up our independence, about surrendering completely to the One who LOVES us so much that He sacrificed His sinless life for our sinful ones. He took our sin and gave us His freedom, His sinless character.
But friends, there can only be one driver of a vehicle or ship or plane at any one time, and it’s either we surrender our lives completely to Jesus and let Him run them as He sees fit, or we don’t. There’s no halfway or in-between measure! You can’t sit on the fence and hope one side or the other will work out. With Jesus, it’s either ALL or NOTHING AT ALL!
As He says so vividly 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 (earthly riches).’
Yes my people, that’s gospel truth! In this world you have to serve somebody, but you can only truly serve ONE somebody at a time, and the choices we have are simply Jesus Christ or the riches of this world controlled by the evil Satan himself. And today I just want to look at a few scriptures that promote serving Jesus as opposed to the evil one and his lure of earthly wealth and power.
First up is Bruh Paul in his first missive to Timothy, where he warns. ‘Charge (command) them that are rich in this world (present age), that they be not highminded (haughty), nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy. That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute (to give), willing to communicate (share). Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.’ (1 Tim.6:17-19)
Yes friends, nothing is basically wrong with being rich, God gives earthly riches to many of us, but we need to be generous and godly with those blessings. As the scholars explain: ‘6:19. When wealthy believers generously share (v.18), they secure an assurance (laying up in store for themselves a good foundation) that in the future (against the time to come) they will indeed enter heaven (lay hold on eternal life).
Salvation is not purchased by the giving of money, but generosity demonstrates the reality of one’s faith. Since the believer trusts God and not money, he gives. This giving shows where his heart is and that he views his wealth in light of eternity.’
Now James says it thus: ‘Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of (with) the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be (makes himself) a friend of the world is (makes himself) the enemy of God.’ (James 4:4) Yes my people, we cannot be both LOVERS of God and the world at the same time, as John says so clearly in his epistle.
‘LOVE not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man LOVE the world, the LOVE of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever.’ (1 John 2:15-17)
Ah friends, please pay particular attention to the part that says the things of the world pass away, but he who does the will of God abides forever, because it’s gospel truth. End of sermon! (smile) Now let’s go home declaring (right ho!) our Thursday Blessings, which the Lord has rained down on us to assist us in doing his earthly work.
All together now with sincere hearts, in loud voice: ‘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 true believers in Christ, how blessed we are! Now let’s go out and share those wonderful blessings as Jesus desires of us. Much LOVE!
…all that we’ve been given…is meant to be generously shared…not selfishly hoarded…
01 May 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: all things work together for good, an action word, as for me and mine, benefits of the working class, Book of the Law, C.E.O of Disney, called to his purpose, catching their nen-nen, claw back, Daily Bread Devotionals, dance the maypole, day of judgement, do according to all therein, exorbitant remuneration, faith, faithfulness to God, fourteen thousand times more, greedy, halfway home, hands on the plough, hard won rights, have good success, in the darkest hours, Labour unions, life hands us lemons, looking to the future with christ, LOVE, loving hand of God, make lemonade, make thy way prosperous, Management Class, May Day, meditate day and night, not looikng back, out of thy mouth, pass through the fire, pass through the water, power hungry, profit margin, promises of God, shall not depart, the bottom line, the breath of life, the eyes of faith, the righteous judge, to them who love God, true success, we will follow the Lord, Wednesday Wail, wet Wednesday
Joshua 1:8. This book of the law shall not depart out of (shall constantly be in) thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.
Welcome to a dark, wet Wednesday first of May in my neighbourhood friends! Hn! And just the day I have to go out the street and do some stuff. But as the old people would say, ‘a li’l rain never hurt anybody!’ I really don’t want to get caught up in it though, since I haven’t fully recovered from this cough and cold that’s been harassing me for the last ten days or so.
And speaking about coughing, would you believe a bout of that seemingly unrelenting cough just took me by surprise? Ah Lord eh! But we all have to do what we have to do. Unfortunately the May Day Parades, if any, and the dancing of the Maypole will be wet affairs.
But look at how things can go out of style eh? When I was growing up dancing the Maypole was a big thing, and May Day Parades were plentiful and well attended. But now most people don’t know what dancing the Maypole means, and May Day Parades are smaller and less plentiful because Labour Unions are weaker, as the greedy and power-hungry Management Class steadily claw back hard won rights and benefits of the Working Class.
Nowadays very few work places have any real meaningful benefits, and oftentimes the workers have to pay a healthy amount into them. But it’s all about the bottom line, the profit margin and the exorbitant remuneration of the executive class. I read recently where the C.E.O. of Disney made something like 14,000 times the amount of the ordinary working person in that company. Yes fourteen thousand times, something like sixty something million!
By whatever standards friends that is ridiculous! I don’t believe that any C.E.O. anywhere does that much more work than the ordinary people in the company, and thus deserves so much more. Meanwhile a lot of the folks working there are catching their nen-nen to make ends meet. Long time I haven’t heard that term. (smile) ‘Nen-nen’ is jut an old term for ‘Aunt,’ but used thus, means finding life difficult.
Whatever happened to social justice eh my people! Steups! I don’t see how you can be living high on the hog and see others just scratching and scraping to get by and feel comfortable! But friends, please remember that the Lord is THE righteous judge, and He will have His day of judgement and the wicked will pay for all their wrongdoing!
Meantime, let me remind us of two very important details of this earthly life, as described by Daily Bread Devotionals. The first is that in the darkest hours of life, only through the eyes of faith can we see the true and LOVING hand of God. And secondly, Faithfulness to God is true success!
Ah mih people, there’s no doubting those two things! When life is really throwing us lemons, the only way we can make lemonade is by having true and strong faith, knowing that our wonderful God is riding shotgun with us even through those rough times and He will eventually turn them around and bring us out even better than before.
That’s why we have and hold on tightly to promises like this: ‘And we know that all things work together for good to them that LOVE God, to them who are called according to his purpose.’ (Rom.8:28)
And don’t forget this immortal promise given through Isaiah: ‘When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned: neither shall the flame kindle upon (scorch) thee. For I am the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour: I gave Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee (in thy place).’ (Is.43:2-3)
Oh friends, it’s only with true faith can we accept those promises and live by them. And yuh notice that the Lord wasn’t only talking figuratively there, but also literally, as we see in the annals of Daniel where the three Jewish boys, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were rescued from the fiery furnace in Babylon because they refused to bow down to any other God but Jehovah.
The Good Book says they came out of the furnace that had been heated seven times hotter than normal, not even smelling of smoke! (Dan.3:8-30) Mama Yo! All glory and power and exaltation to our great God, who created this wonderful universe and still controls it from His heavenly throne! So there’s no need to be afraid of what man can do to us, because man is just a creation of Almighty God, and He has both the first and last say in all matters!
But friends, we do have to believe and stand strong in our beliefs. And the only way we can do that is by continual reading of God’s Word, meditation upon it, and serious and sincere communication with the Father Himself. That’s what He expects of us, as He so plainly said to Joshua when he made him leader of the Israelites after Moses’ death.
‘This book of the law shall not depart out of (shall constantly be in) thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.’
Oh my brethren, those aren’t my words, but the Lord’s, and if you don’t believe Him, then that’s your funeral, but I know that as for me and mine, we WILL follow the Lord. And for all of those who are in heady agreement with me, let’s go home declaring (right ho!) our Wednesday Wail, letting the whole world know our wonderful position in Christ Jesus!
Altogether in strong voice and sincere belief: ‘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 just to remind us…that future will be even more glorious than we can even imagine with out puny, finite minds. So please hang in there! Much LOVE!
…like LOVE…faith is an action word…so please…let’s action it nuh…
29 Apr 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a thorn in the flesh, accomplishments, answer the bell, any man should boast, aura of love, blessings, born again, bounded duty, confidence, conquerors, created in Christ Jesus, deserve, diligently, doing good, enjoy god's largesse, enthusiasm, evil, exalted above measure, example, excellently, faith, for good works, friends, generous help, giging back something, glory in my infirmities, glory to God, God hath ordained, God was with him, God's creation, grace, His workmanship, holy spirit, humble servants, in the Spirit, invincible, Jesus Christ, Jesus went about, Jesus' atonement, lies, LOVE, mercy, merit, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, pep in your step, rejuvenation of spirit, renewed vitality, rest, salvation, spiritual armour, spirtual blessings, steadfast faith, surrender our all, taunts, the cross of our Lord, the gift of God, the weekend, to buffet me, truth, ungodly world, we should walk in them, weary souls, wiles, wisdom
Ephesians 2:10. For we are his workmanship (creation), created in Christ Jesus unto (for) good works, which God hath ordained (prepared) that we should walk in them.
At ‘em friends, at ‘em! The weekend is done now and work calls, and as a true believer in Christ, you have to answer the bell on time, diligently and efficiently! And I hear some of you steupsing and muttering: ‘What is his problem eh? Who he think he is eh, to tell us when to reach to work and how to do our work eh?’
Ah mih people, is not me saying that nuh, but your Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ; that is the example He wants us to set to the world. So please don’t get on my case nuh, cause I’m just the messenger. Doh kill the messenger, just accept the message! (smile) Remember the Good Book says that whatever you do, you ought to do it as unto the Lord and not unto man.
Anyway, the important thing is to get ourselves out into the workplace and do our duty. And if the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak this morning, then we have something that will liven up both body and spirit; our Monday Morning Battle Hymn; that wonderful antidote for whatever ails us on a Monday morning. Glory to God! So let’s get right with it nuh!
All together in sincerity and strong sense of purpose: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Oh yes, I can see it’s working already, by the new pep in your step and the light that’s shining in your eyes. Give God the glory! Then let’s get out into the evil world and do the work God has destined for us; having His grace and mercy and strength to do it diligently and efficiently.
That brings us to this pertinent reminder of Bruh Paul’s to the Ephesians. ‘For by grace are ye (you have been) saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God. Not of works, lest any many should boast. For we are his workmanship (creation), created in Christ Jesus unto (for) good works, which God hath ordained (prepared) that we should walk in them.’ (Eph.2:8-10)
Yes friends, those are important things we ought not to forget. It’s only by God’s grace, His unmerited and undeserved favour that we are saved. It is only when we believe in Jesus Christ, are spiritually born again and develop faith in Him, that God’s grace flows down on us and salvation becomes a reality, and not by any good works that we might have done. In fact, there are no good works that we can ever do to merit or deserve salvation!
And the Lord in His ultimate wisdom made it thus, because He knew that if it were otherwise, men would be boasting all over town about their good works and what it had earned them. That’s why Bruh Paul says that with all his accomplishments and revelations, he was given a ‘thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me (beat him), lest I should be exalted above measure.’ (2 Cor.12:7)
Whatever it was, it was painful and problematic, causing shame and embarrassment, so that he could not get too big for his britches. And even when he asked the Lord three times to remove the blemish, the Lord refused, stating: ‘My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength (power) is made perfect in weakness. ((2 Cor.12:9a) And that’s the gospel truth! God’s awesome power is usually more apparent when we are going through times of weakness.
All of this drove Bruh Paul to declare: ‘Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities (weaknesses), that the power of Christ may rest upon me…for when I am weak, then I am strong.’ (2 Cor. 12:9b, 10b) Good logic friends, so that God’s power may show up more in his life.
Bruh Paul also resisted boasting of his achievements, when he told the Galatians: ‘But God forbid that I should glory, save (except) in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.’ (Gal.6:14) And so should we too friends, only boast, take pleasure in Jesus’ atonement and all the spiritual blessings it brings, not our own accomplishments.
But all of that aside, the Lord does want us to do good works, that’s one of the purposes for which He morally recreated us in Christ Jesus. He expects us to be like Christ and do good works when we are born again in the spirit, not just enjoy His largesse without giving back anything. So on this day that we are once again blessed with earthly life and the free gift of salvation, let’s go out and do our bounded duty nuh; good works in Christ’s name. Much LOVE!
…Jesus went about doing good…for God was with Him… (Act.10:38)
25 Apr 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a compassionate heart, a name above all names, a no no, a pardoning judge, a stickler for justice, abundance, appearance, as a man, became obedient, believe in Christ, best way to live, by one man's disobedience, courage, creativity, curse, disobedient creation, displeasing the Father, Dr. Charles Stanley, Easter celebrations, empathy, eternal life, every knee must bow, faithful obedience, found in fashion, frailties, God of Numerous Chances, God's Word, gracious, he humbled himself, lack of obedience, leave all the consequences to Him, LOVE, many made righteous, many made sinners, merciful, negative word, obedience of one, obey God, once and for all time, our benefit, painful death, prosper, rebellious, righteous, sacrificed his son, salvation, self-control, self-discipline, selfishly hoard, share the blessings, sinless blood, so much to gain, so much to lose, success, take up the baton, talent, tests, the death of the cross, the Good Book, Thursday Blessings, to pay for our sins, Triune God, unto death, weaknesses, wisdom
Philippians 2:8. And being found in fashion (appearance) as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
Well a blessed Thursday to you my faithful Scrip-Bit brethren! I do hope that the day has and or will bring you substantive joy and peace as you walk the strait and narrow path that our Lord and Saviour Jesus desires of you. Oh, we all know that this earthly life is not an easy one to hoe, but with Jesus on our side, right beside us all the time as He sincerely promised, we do have a better chance than the unbelievers to live a life blessed with joy and peace.
But it just won’t fall into our laps, as some of us seem to think. We need to get up and do our part in this partnership, this everlasting covenant with Almighty God. If we do our part, He will certainly do His, but if we don’t, He won’t. It as simple as that my people!
And what’s our part you ask? Again, it’s pretty simple: believe in His Son Jesus Christ and walk in faithful obedience to His Word! Granted, it’s much harder than it sounds, but then again the Lord has promised to help us in any area in which we are deficient or lacking. We just have to come to Him in sincere prayer and ask for his help.
And He’s also promised not to give us more than we can handle. He’s God, and merciful, gracious and forgiving, plus He knows all our frailties and weaknesses, so why will He give us more than we can handle eh? No reason whatsoever! Oh, He will test us occasionally to see if we really believe the stuff we talk. And I can personally tell you about that, because some days before I’m even finished writing the Bit, I’m bombarded with tests about what I’ve written.
But then again, if we fail, He always gives us more chances to come back and take them. That’s why He’s known as the God of Numerous Chances! And that’s all to our benefit! Praise His holy name my people! For though He’s righteous, a stickler for justice, He’s also a pardoning judge. Because He created us, and thus knows what we’re all about, He has great empathy and LOVE for us.
And He proved it by the celebrations we just had this past Easter weekend, where He sacrificed His Son for us, to pay for our sins once and for all time. There could be no greater LOVE than that! The Creator of the universe, and all therein, sacrificing His sinless Son to appease the need for sinless blood to cleanse the sins of His disobedient, rebellious creation. He LOVED and cared for us so much that He went to such drastic lengths to provide a means of redemption for us.
How wonderful He is my brethren! There is NONE other like Him in the world! All the others are mere pretenders, jokers and fools! So since He’s provided ALL that we need to live a godly and righteous life, and come to salvation through His resurrected Son, then technically speaking, the problem(s) we face nowadays stem mainly from our lack of obedience to His Word. And if you claim that you don’t know His Word, then that’s still disobedience, because He’s admonished us many times to read, study and meditate on it.
And since we’re talking about obedience, I believe it’s only right to mention two of the most profound statements on the subject in the Good Book, both not surprisingly made by Bruh Paul. The first one is found in his missive to the church at Rome: ‘For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.’ (Rom.5:19)
Yeh friends, we all fell into sin by Adam’s disobedience. Although, come to think of it, I don’t know why Adam get’s blamed for the dastardly deed nuh, when it’s Eve who supposedly first took a bite of the apple, and Adam foolishly followed? But be that as it may, our forefathers weighed us down with sin by their disobedience, and it was only with the coming of Jesus Christ that we were granted a way to get out from under that deathly and damning sin.
And as Bruh Paul says to the church at Philippi: ‘And being found in fashion (appearance) as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.’
Oh friends, do you think Jesus wanted to die, and even more, such a murderous, unfair and painful death! Obviously not! But He knew that the Father wanted to save us more than anything else, and that He was the ONLY ONE who had the parts to accomplish the Father’s plan. So He obediently went along, even to that disturbing and horrible death on the cross because displeasing the Father was a no no in His mind.
And all I’m trying to point out here, by saying so much (smile) is that if Jesus, God’s Son was obedient to the point of giving His life for us, we, mere mortals, mere puny and flimsy creations of God, should also be very obedient to God’s Word because we have so much to gain and so much to lose. Please remember that ALL the Father and the Son did, was purely for OUR benefit not theirs.
And Jesus has already been exalted for His sacrifice with a name above all names and to whom each knee must eventually bow, and sits comfortably at the right hand of the Father, so we are the ones who now need to take up the baton and lead a righteous and obedient life, if we want to enjoy salvation and eternal life with our Triune God. Sermon done! (smile)
Now for those of us who are sincerely attempting to do as Jesus asks, let’s go home declaring (right ho!) our Thursday Blessings, those wonderful aspects of life that He’s showered down on us to help us do the job.
So altogether now: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment!
I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and everyday! Amen!’
And the corollary to all that is that we must now go out and share them with others, not selfishly hoard them for ourselves, because that’s why we were given so much! Much LOVE!
…the best way to live…obey God…and leave all the consequences to Him… (Uncle Charles – Charles Stanley)
23 Apr 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a court of law, able to save, advocacy of Christ, an advocate, an unchangeable priesthood, Christ's intercession, come unto God by Him, crab races, everything wrapped up in one, exalt, friendship, glory to God, Goat races, high priest, higher than the heavens, hurry, if any man sin, in god's eyes, intercessor, jazz concerts, Jesus Christ, lawywer, LOVE, my little children, passion of Easter, preventitive medicine, sacrificing His sinless life, saviour, share His love, sinning believers, the joy of Easter, the ministry of Christ, the righteous, Tobago, trust my friend Jesus, Tuesday Mantra, walk of faith, with the Father, worry, worship, ye sin not
1 John 2:1. My little children, these things I write unto you, that ye sin not (may not sin). And if any man sin, we have an advocate (an intercessor) with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.
So it’s Easter Tuesday and everybody’s now at work…No! Some blessed people down in sweet Tobago where the fun and frolic of goat races and crab races will take place down in Buccoo today, definitely aren’t working! Ah friends, Tobago is the mecca of fun and partying come Easter time! What with boat races, jazz concerts and all sorts of other joyful activities!
I tried to stay for the festivities but unfortunately wasn’t able to do so. Steups! I guess the Lord overruled me. He knew something that I didn’t know. But them’s the breaks! You win some and you lose some! And anyway the many good memories I made in Tobago will always remain in my heart, as well as the joy of Easter, where our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ rose triumphantly from the grave, victorious against His evil foe, Satan!
Oh glory to God my people! What a blessed day that was, and will always be! Please never let the joy and assurance it provides to escape from our hearts, minds, bodies and souls! Yes, it’s that important that we have to reiterate it again today…and every day, since it’s the very foundation on which our wonderful faith is based!
Without Jesus sacrificing His sinless life for us, there’d be no resurrection for us, or salvation or promise of eternal life! So we’ve got to keep the fire, the heightened passion of Easter burning in our hearts each and every day of our lives, not only at the particular time of year that we actually celebrate it! And just to show how important it all really was and is, here’s a li’l gem from a daily Bread Devotional: ‘The One who died as our substitute, now lives as our advocate!’
All praise and thanksgiving and glory to God my faithful brethren, for He’s made our Saviour our Advocate too, sitting at His right hand interceding on our behalf! As John says in his epistle: ‘My little children, these things I write unto you, that ye sin not (may not sin). And if any man sin, we have an advocate (an intercessor) with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.’
Glory to God my people! Oh how wonderful is our God! How can we not LOVE and worship and exalt Him eh, after He’s done so much for us, none of which we even come close to deserving?
And the scholars explain the Advocacy of Christ thus: ‘2:1. The term ‘advocate’ denotes a lawyer who represents his client before a court of law. When applied to the present ministry of Christ, it speaks of His work for sinning believers to restore them to fellowship. Christ’s work as an advocate is based on the sufficiency of His blood for all sin, past and present.
Illustration: In the Old Testament, when David confessed his sin, he was forgiven and restored to a place of service. Application: Although the Christian has an Advocate with the Father, his goal in life ought to be overcoming sin (1 John 5:4), rather than merely confessing it. (First Ref.1 John 2:1; Primary Ref. 1 John 2:1; cf. Heb.7:25).’
And the scholars make a very good point there; not because we have an advocate are we going to sin willy-nilly. No! But because of our aversion to sin and its detrimental consequences we try our best to sin as little as possible! And John follows up our Bit with this reassuring statement: ‘And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.’ (1 John 2:2)
Yes friends, Jesus Christ paid the price for the sins of the WHOLE WORLD! What an amazing sacrifice and accomplishment! Only the SINLESS Son of God had the ability to pull off such an amazing feat!
Hear what the scholars say about that: ‘2:2. Propitiation is here an atoning sacrifice. Jesus bore in His body the punishment due us for our sin; in so doing He ‘propitiated’ God, satisfied God’s just demand that sin be punished. Thus Jesus is both the advocate for sinners (v.1) and the sacrifice for their sins.’
Mama Mia! There are no words to really describe the amazing scope of Christ’s work! And I guess that’s why some people don’t or can’t believe it? It’s just too much for our puny human minds to assimilate! That’s why we have to accept it be faith, and not by sight or understanding! And Christ is not only our Saviour and Advocate, but also our High Priest!
Listen to how the author of Hebrews puts it when talking about priests. ‘But this man (Jesus), because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he liveth for ever to make intercession for them.
For such a high priest became us (was fitting for us), who is holy, harmless (innocent), undefiled, separate from sinners, and made (has become) higher than the heavens; Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice first for his own sins, and then for the people’s: for this he did once when he offered up himself.’ (Heb.7:24-27)
Oh friends, what an amazing personality is our Jesus! Saviour, Advocate, High Priest, God! He is everything wrapped up in ONE! That means we have no need for anything or anybody else but HIM! Please, please, let’s remember that as we go about our daily lives, walking out walk of faith!
Now let’s go home declaring (right ho!) our Tuesday Mantra, letting the 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!’
Now let’s go out and do exactly that; share Christ’s amazing friendship and His awesome LOVE! Much LOVE!
…Christ’s intercession…is like unto…preventive medicine…
22 Apr 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a hard row to hoe, a modicum of circumspection, a tooth for a tooth, an eye for an eye, an open licence, anti-climatic situation, arch-foe Satan, assurance of resurrection, aura of love, Christians, confidence, constrained by our faith, darkness, Drunk or sober mind yuh business, Easter celebration, Easter Sunday, enthusiasm, eternal life, evil, evil for evil, faith, forgiveness, friends, glory to God, God's grace, Good Friday, goodness, Granny's warning, gumption, hell death the grave, holy spirit, humble servants, in Jesus' name, invincible, Jesus Christ, joy, lies, light, LOVE, massacre, mercy, Monday Morning Battle Hymn, praise, provide things honest to all men, recompense to no man, rejuvenation of spirit, relaxation, rest, retaliate in kind, righteousness., sacrificed, salvation, senseless violence, sinless Son, spiritual armour, steadfast faith, thanks, the Good Book, triumphant victory, trust, unconditional LOVE, undeserving sinners, ungodly world, wisdom
Romans 12:17. Recompense (repay) to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest (have regard for good things) in the sight of all men.
Ah my fellow believers, what an anti-climatic situation! Yes, in the heat, in the heart of our Easter Celebrations, the most important event in our faith, or rather the most important event in man’s history since the Creation, Easter Monday rolls around and many of us have to go back out to labour for our daily bread!
Chuh! How unfortunate that the evil and ungodly world doesn’t consider Easter important enough to make the Monday following a public holiday. But some of them do think that it’s okay, in fact quite right to massacre Christians in their churches and elsewhere at Easter, as was so shamelessly done this past weekend in Sri Lanka! Ah Lord eh! When will the foolishness end eh?
But let’s leave that topic alone for now and consider the importance of what happened at Easter time; the resurrection of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ from the grave! Glory to God! And yuh know what friends, even though the ungodly world would like to trample on our physical celebrations, they can’t trample on the joy that the resurrection of Jesus Christ stimulates in our hearts, minds, bodies and souls! Absolutely not!!! And yes we need three exclamations marks there! (smile)
For by God’s great grace, mercy and forgiveness, they can’t destroy the assurance of our own resurrection, and the ever-faithful promise of salvation and eternal life that Jesus’ triumphant victory over hell, death, the grave and our arch-foe Satan provides! Glory to God my people!
Give Him overwhelming praise and thanks for the overwhelming and unconditional LOVE He showed for us undeserving sinners when He sacrificed His only, sinless Son so selflessly for us on that old rugged cross of Calvary!
So today, even if you’re out labouring, please keep that joy and assurance flowing freely and joyfully as you go about your tasks diligently and excellently, as Jesus desires of His followers.
And yes, you might have needed this a tad earlier, but it’s NEVER too late to pray. So let’s declare our Monday Morning Battle Hymn with the gumption, confidence and enthusiasm that Easter Sunday has raised up in us!
Altogether now: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.
We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.
But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.
Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’
Oh friends, by the enthusiasm, gravelly voices and slurred words, I can tell that I’m not the only one caught up in the throes of excitement and celebration of this most wonderful Easter Season! As always, those of us not going to work are rather vociferous on these occasions, but please remember Granny’s warning, ‘Sonny boy, please, please, ah beg yuh, drunk or sober, please mind yuh business!’
Yes my brethren, at times like these the evil one and his evil cohorts are out there seriously trolling for believers who might slip and allow them a foot or toehold into their righteous souls. So we do have to be careful and curtail our celebrations with a modicum of circumspection.
But coming back to the massacre of Christians recently in Sri Lanka, it seems like it’s open season on believers these days. All over the world somebody or other is killing believers for no apparent reason other than that they believe! Hn! And to tell the truth, I think it’s high time that we retaliate in kind, because these people only understand one thing, an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth, in other words, violence!
Are we going to be continually led like sheep to the slaughter with no resistance? I certainly hope not! Oh, I know our faith and the Good Book says: ‘Recompense (repay) to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest (have regard for good things) in the sight of all men.’ But that’s extremely difficult friends, when the enemy is killing us with such joy and gay abandon with no one doing anything worthwhile to stop them!
There must be something we can do to curtail this offensive and sinister state of affairs. It’s obvious that the governments of supposed Christian countries aren’t really interested in doing anything but talk when these senseless murders occur, because they soon get back into bed with the same offenders in search of money and power. So it’s definitely up to us believers to stand up in some form and fashion and do something about it.
But then again we are constrained by our faith as to what we can actually do, for the Good Book purposefully says: ‘Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.’ (Rom.12:21) Now that’s a real hard row to hoe friends, but we just have to find some way to mitigate this senseless slaughter of our fellow believers in certain parts of the world.
And please don’t ask me how, because you’ll just get me in trouble with the Lord! (smile) But some of you deeper and better thinkers than me, will have to come up with something, else the nonsense will just continue unabated…and possibly get worse, as the enemy begins to believe they have an open license to do their evil work. Much LOVE!
…the darkness and evil of Good Friday…has now been overcome…by the light and goodness of Easter Sunday…please…in Jesus’ name…let’s keep it going…
19 Apr 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a party animal, a shout of triumph, assurance, at the beginning, behest of the Father, believers in Christ, breathtaking dawn, carousing, cross on calvary, crucifixion, disobedient, drink the cup, Easter, Easter Sunday, Eli Eli lama sabachthani, enthusiasm, evil enemy, fellowship, for they know not what they do, forgive them, forgiveness, Friday chant, fun, furthering God's kingdom, generous help, go to extremes, Good Friday, heart-rending words, home, I made it through, in paradise, Jesus Christ, Jesus cried, killing we self, LOVE, mankind, modus operandi, My God my God, obedience, rebellious creation, refreshed, rest renewed, Satan, sin-bearer, sincerity, sompassion, TGIF!, Thank God is Friday, thankfulness, the curse of sin, the darkest hour, the ninth hour, times of trouble, unbeliever, unjust situation, vacationing, week of work, why hast thou forsaken me, with a loud voice, workingman's song
Matthew 27:46. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, eli, lama sabachthani? That is to say, My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me?
Home…Home…Home at last! But home sick! Steups! Ah friends, it’s great to be home, but when you come home from vacation sick with an annoying cold it doesn’t help matters at all. You’re already tired from all the vacationing, (smile) and you just want to rest, to put sickness on top of it isn’t the greatest feeling in the world.
After the long flight and the hassle to get through the airport, I got home around eleven and expected to have a good night’s rest…Hn! What a pipe dream! I was up several times during the night bringing up stuff, my throat was raw, still is, making swallowing a tad difficult. But if one has to be sick, I guess the best place for that to happen is home.
Home where the heart is! Home where you’re most comfortable and relaxed, be it a humble hovel or a majestic mansion! Something about home just gives one a li’l more assurance in times of trouble or illness. But enough about my woes, (smile) it’s Friday and the workingman is waiting to sing his song.
‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday oui! Good Friday…that means the long Easter weekend! Mama Yo! Party fuh so! And the weather should be good! Good thing that Easter fall so late this year yes, so it happen in springtime and not in winter! So many things to do, and places to go, and people to see! Chuh! Don’t know where to start nuh! But as they say, the best place to start is at the beginning! So ah guess we going to start with some eating and drinking and carousing!
Brother! Who knows whether we going to be alive come next week Tuesday when we have to go back to the slave master slave labour? One thing ah know though; when we go back, we not killing we self over the work nuh. Leh him fire we, see how long his business going last nuh! But forget he now yes! Is time for me to do my own thing! Thank God for Fridays and weekends yes!’
Yes mih people, the workingman is a party animal if nothing else! But unfortunately, or should I say fortunately, as believers in Christ Jesus, we can’t afford to let our hair down like he can for fear of allowing the evil enemy to invade our righteous souls. But as I keep saying, that doesn’t preclude us from having a good time, we just don’t go to the extremes that the ordinary workingman does.
And we have our own Friday Chant, which chronicles our thankfulness and wishes. So please, let’s chant it now nuh, in true sincerity and mucho enthusiasm. ‘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!’
Now, to the unbeliever, that might not sound like much, but to us believers, it’s short, sweet and to the point! (smile) And today, Good Friday, our hearts are heavy, filled with sadness as we commemorate the crucifixion of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. And some will ask why call it Good Friday when such a heinous, illegal crime was committed against an innocent person?
That’s a good question my brethren. But the long and short of the story is that if Jesus had not died in place of us, our sins would not have been paid for, and we would not have been forgiven, redeemed, made clean and washed white as snow! Yes, it was a rough, unjust situation, but from the beginning of time the Father had decreed it to be the Son’s job to die for the abominable sins of His disobedient and rebellious creation called mankind.
And yuh better believe it was no easy job that! The pain and agony, the ‘sufferation’ He had to endure was immense, seemingly unbearable, but He withstood it, all for our sakes, at the behest of the Father, who LOVED us so much that He didn’t want to lose even one of us to the evil enemy, Satan.
That’s the most beautiful and compelling picture of LOVE that exists; sacrificing your only Son for a bunch of ingrates! Some people will call it crazy or stupid, but our heavenly Father called it LOVE! And since He’s the eternal Creator, He should know what He’s talking about.
But I don’t know how Jesus handled all that unjust ‘sufferation’ nuh, without much complaining too. I guess He knew His role, and could not even consider disobedience to the Father’s wishes. As He told Peter on the night of His arrest, after Peter had cut off the high priest’s right ear. ‘Put up thy sword into the sheath: the cup which my Father hath given me, shall I not drink it?’ (John 18:11) Yes friends, I wonder how many of us put such a high priority on being obedient to the Father’s wishes eh?
And what I greatly admire about Jesus are some statements He made from His painful and agonizing perch on the cross. The first one is ‘Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.’ (Luke 23:34) Even on the cross, His modus operandi was LOVE and forgiveness!
Note His words to the criminal crucified with Him, who saw the light and sincerely pleaded: ‘Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me in paradise.’ (Luke 23:42-43)
But the most touching and heart-rending words of Jesus on the cross are contained in this verse. ‘And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, eli, lama sabachthani? That is to say, My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me?’
Yes friends, what seemed to hurt Jesus the most was not the physical pain inflicted on His body, but the spiritual separation from His Father, the first time that had ever happened. And it had to be so since He was then the sin-bearer of the world, and the Father could not associate with sin. As the scholars explain: ‘Here we have the high cost to Christ of His atonement for our sins, who was accursed of God as our sin-bearer (cf. 2 Cor.5:21; Gal.3:13) and suffered the agony of spiritual death for us.’
And finally, the Good Book tells us: ‘And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost (breathed his last).’ (Luke 23:46) And the scholars explain: ‘He cried with a loud voice, as a shout of triumph, and yielded up His Spirit. In other words, having borne the wrath of God’s judgement against sin, He knew He had triumphed over Satan and the curse of sin.’
Oh what a blessed day that was for us my people, as Jesus gave us such a wonderful example to follow, showing LOVE and compassion and obedience even in His last agonizing moments on that old wooden cross on Calvary! Please, please, I implore us to do a better job, to improve in our own showing of LOVE, compassion and obedience, because that’s all He asks of us! Much LOVE!
…Good Friday…the darkest hour…just before the breathtaking dawn…of Easter Sunday…
18 Apr 2019
by randyobrien50
in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living
Tags: a place called Gethsemane, as thou wilt, clear direction, coconut water, corruption, courage, creativity, curse, disciples, fear of death, forgiven, fruits, God willing, Good Friday, good news, guilty mankind, hoard, Holy Thursday, humble prayer, I go and pray yonder, in high places, last day in Paradise, Lent, let this cup pass from me, level of our faith, light, LOVE, necessity of drinking the cup, negative word, northern climes, not as I will, prosper, rampant, sacrificed, self-control, self-discipline, set free, share the blessings, show appreciation, sincere hearts, sinless life, sit ye heree, sons of Zebedee, sowrrowful, spiritual wickedness, Store Bay, substitutionary death, succeed, tasted death, the will of the Father, then cometh Jesus, Thursday Blessings, triumphant Easter resurrection, ungodly fashion, unto death, watch with me, wisdom
Matthew 26:36. Then cometh Jesus with them (His disciples) unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder (over there).
Well it’s the last day in Paradise…Steups! But I guess all good things must come to an end at some time or another! And being in sweet Tobago was indeed a good thing, or rather a wonderful thing! I don’t know where all the time went nuh, because I still haven’t seen or spoken to several people I wanted to connect with. I haven’t had a coconut water since I’ve been here…Imagine that nuh!
I only bathed in my favourite beach, Store Bay once! Brother that sure is shocking! (smile) I did bathe in other beaches several times though. And the rain has continued through the night and the early morning. Think it might clear up later though.
And yes, it’s Holy Thursday too, the day before Good Friday, when believers hunker down and consider their faith in light of Jesus’ upcoming crucifixion! The night when He bared His hurting soul and spirit in the Garden of Gethsemane in a futile attempt to change the course of His destiny.
Jesus knew deep down that the Father wasn’t going to change His plans, but the human element in Him, and the upcoming separation from the Father, the first time in their long existence, plus the great weight of sin that would be placed on His shoulders forced Him to His knees in humble prayer. ‘Then cometh Jesus with them (His disciples) unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder (over there).
And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee (James & John), and began to be sorrowful (grieved) and very heavy (deeply distressed). Then said he unto them, My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye (stay here), and watch with me. And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will but as thou wilt.’ (Matt. 26:36-39)
Ah friends, yuh see the heavy sorrow that Jesus felt! It wasn’t easy for Him, although He was the Son of God. And I like the scholars’ explanation here. ‘The prayer for the cup to pass is not due to Jesus’ fear of death. Jesus questions the will of the Father as to the necessity of drinking the cup.
While this may refer to death (“he tasted death”) it is more likely that the cup represents the wrath of God against sin, the divine wrath Christ would incur on the cross as man’s sin-bearer. In the awful anguish of that moment, the sin of the world was poured on Christ and he became “sin for us” (2 Cor.5:21). Thus the Righteous One dies a substitutionary death for guilty mankind.’
So true friends, so true! He sacrificed His sinless life so that we could be set free from the bondage of sin and death, and have eternal life; the greatest gift ever given to mankind, and yet we still don’t appreciate Him the way we should! Why is that eh friends? I don’t know the answer, neither do I understand it. We should be so grateful and jumping with joy, and living so sincerely for Him, that the world would open their mouths and wonder in astonishment at our godly and righteous lifestyle.
But instead in our hypocrisy and lust for the things of the world, we make a mockery of His sacrifice with mostly a lot of talk and no real substance in our actions. Chuh! When I see how the leaders of Christ’s church, and consequently the followers behave in such ungodly fashion, it’s no wonder that the unbelievers don’t take us seriously. Christ’s church has as many scandals and unrighteousness as the evil world does. In fact, we seem to take our lead from the world and not from Christ! As they say, spiritual wickedness and corruption is rampant in high places!
Oh my people, I do hope that this season of Lent has been one of deep concern and pondering on our faith and how we live it daily, because that’s how the world and the Lord will judge us; how good were our fruits, and how bright was our light? And when we come to the tremendous conclusion in a triumphant Easter resurrection, let’s hope that we will all have raised the level of our faith and practice of it thereof, so that we can be better witnesses and disciples for Christ! For that’s what it’s all about; spreading the good news of His gospel far and wide!
Now let’s go home thankfully declaring (right ho!) our Thursday Blessings that the Lord has so generously bestowed on us. In strong voice with sincere hearts: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline!
I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’
And the next movement is to go out and share it all with the less fortunate as Christ intends for us to do. It’s not for us to hoard, but to share! Much LOVE!
…He died that we might be set free…forgiven…the least we can do…is show some sincere appreciation…
P.S. Tomorrow, God willing, I’ll be writing from the northern climes…good and bad… (smile) Much LOVE!
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